BMW 3.3 LiA for Sale On Ebay

[stemas]

Anyone know anything about these? Not long been listed on eBay and I want it!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1977-BMW-3-3-LI-A-GREY-R...

[dpp]

How does the seller know the misfire is only a plug or lead but doesn't fix it, sounds like a at least a stuck valve or maybe more if he doesn't fix a simple fault.

[rallycross]

That is a rare thing They drive really well and the 3.3 is ultra rare. Might put a bid in myself on this one.

[XJ Flyer]

The E3 is really at it's best as a sports saloon so really it's the manual 3.0 Si that was the best of them all.Most of the surviving E3's would probably be best modified with the M88 24 valve 3.5 litre engine used in the M5 and it's transmission.

[graemel]

If it was just plugs, leads or points he would just do it. Same as mot. If if was roadworthy he would just do it. Buying someone elses pain personally.

[Travis Mcgee]

The sellers feedback shows that he is a bit of trader, nothing wrong with that of course, but if thats the case you may have some come back if the engine problem is not what he has stated. Its probably worth a look though. At the right price you could end up with a decent old BM

[stemas]

Thanks for the feedback guys, good point on the plugs and leads/mot etc Think I will go and have a look before bidding, at least it runs I suppose, so thats a start. What are these things worth up and running mot etc then? I cannot find another one anywhere?

[Travis Mcgee]

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C305014

Gives you some idea i suppose

[stemas]

Travis Mcgee said:

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C305014

Gives you some idea i suppose

Thank you! Wow, I may have to look down the back of the settee then to add to my £1500 budget lol

[danoli777]

The car in the link is a 3.0Si which is slightly more desirable imo. That particular one has been for sale for a very long time.

This one has also been on for an age.
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C316114

So I would take any of these values with a very large pinch of salt, asking is one thing, getting it is another.

[stemas]

Thanks for the links...Deffo need one thats fully loaded I think..will be interesting to see what this one fetches on the bay then judging by prices

[illmonkey]

You could test the leads on a viewing. IF that's all it is, he should be happy with you swapping some of the leads over and seeing if its still missing on the same cylinder or not.

[9mm]

A dealer, using private listings, selling off his drive. I reckon it's rotten with a broken engine. I wouldn't go near it with a barge pole but will be interesting to see what it (allegedly) makes.

[XJ Flyer]

9mm said:

I reckon it's rotten with a broken engine. I wouldn't go near it with a barge pole but will be interesting to see what it (allegedly) makes.

For an E3 to have lasted this long without ending up in a scrap yard years ago would probably mean that someone has at least been maintaining the bodywork over the years.

There's no point in comparing prices of any of the auto versions with the 3.0 Si because it's like comparing apples with oranges.Even the Si itself being a let down if it's used for long distance high speed runs because of the low overall gearing and 4 speed box and the idea of less than a 3.5 litre engine in a big BM saloon is borederline anyway.Which trust me causes all sorts of issues in regards to an engine that's revving too much to maintain decent speeds over long distances.

I agree I probably wouldn't bother with an E3 now having had a 3.0 Si for a number of years during the 1980's.Unless it had at least a new MOT and,as I said,I was at least bargaining to throw out the standard engine and transmission in favour of the later 24 valve 3.5 litre M5 engine and a 5 speed manual box,which would obviously mean a purchase price which couldn't be refused.In which case it's probably better to spend the money on any of the later up to 3.8 Litre 6 cylinder M5's in most cases.

[Fast Bug]

Travis Mcgee said:

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C305014

Gives you some idea i suppose

They always ask A LOT for their cars, they do get hold of some lovely stock though.

[Rumple]

graemel said:

If it was just plugs, leads or points he would just do it. Same as mot. If if was roadworthy he would just do it. Buying someone elses pain personally.

Spot on, the question is, is the car worth that pain.

[stemas]

Only 6 left in the UK according to DVLA...Looking at it on Saturday

[Travis Mcgee]

stemas said:

Only 6 left in the UK according to DVLA...Looking at it on Saturday

You'll have to report back on what you find. My gut feeling says you might be pleasantly surprised. Just looked at all the pictures and to be fair it does seem fairly good. Could be rotten as hell underneath. The seller seems to be trading in cars that are spares or repair. That could be the reason he isn't willing to get it Mot'd or the miss fire sorted.
Good luck! you might just find a little gem.

[stemas]

Yes after speaking to him he only deals with faulty cars, spares/repairs cars, as you said could be a gem, the question is... when is another likely to turn for sale? Will report back

[Travis Mcgee]

stemas said:

Yes after speaking to him he only deals with faulty cars, spares/repairs cars, as you said could be a gem, the question is... when is another likely to turn for sale? Will report back

Yes, but don't let your heart rule your head on this. Set your budget and stick to it, unless you recently won the lottery of course. But seriously, this is an auction. I reckon he doesn't know for sure what it's worth, hence the no BIN. But as has been said in other threads, a car is only worth what somebody is willing to pay for it. You might get a bargain, but at the same time you don't want to pay over the odds. Just friendly advice BTW, not trying to lecture.