Discussion
My brother has just bought a new motor and as such his old 528i se is up for sale.
E39 1996 N, 110,000 FSH
green with beige leather
manual
its obviously 10 years old, so has the odd scratch and scuff, but mechanically if seems fine.
now i was thinking of getting something a bit older just to run to work in really, question is, how much should i offer and will it be reliable,
must admit had a drive at the weekend and it still feels very solid for a 10 year old car, is there anything i should be looking out for?
thanks in advance
stew
E39 1996 N, 110,000 FSH
green with beige leather
manual
its obviously 10 years old, so has the odd scratch and scuff, but mechanically if seems fine.
now i was thinking of getting something a bit older just to run to work in really, question is, how much should i offer and will it be reliable,
must admit had a drive at the weekend and it still feels very solid for a 10 year old car, is there anything i should be looking out for?
thanks in advance
stew
stewsy said:
My brother has just bought a new motor and as such his old 528i se is up for sale.
E39 1996 N, 110,000 FSH
green with beige leather
manual
its obviously 10 years old, so has the odd scratch and scuff, but mechanically if seems fine.
now i was thinking of getting something a bit older just to run to work in really, question is, how much should i offer and will it be reliable,
must admit had a drive at the weekend and it still feels very solid for a 10 year old car, is there anything i should be looking out for?
thanks in advance
stew
E39 1996 N, 110,000 FSH
green with beige leather
manual
its obviously 10 years old, so has the odd scratch and scuff, but mechanically if seems fine.
now i was thinking of getting something a bit older just to run to work in really, question is, how much should i offer and will it be reliable,
must admit had a drive at the weekend and it still feels very solid for a 10 year old car, is there anything i should be looking out for?
thanks in advance
stew
Check for Nikasil problems on a car that age. If you can get the engine number, BMW UK will be able to advise whether it's either had the block replaced or fixed.
If it's been sorted, go for it for about £3K. It'll be a lovely car.
If not, run away - a big bill and a lot of aggro potentially await.
well my brother certainly has never had that looked at, it was full bmw service history until he got it, after that an independant. If it was BMW service until 60,000 miles, which was three yeras ago, does this mean that BMW would have picked it up and carried out the work within the first 7 years of the cars life?
stewsy said:
well my brother certainly has never had that looked at, it was full bmw service history until he got it, after that an independant. If it was BMW service until 60,000 miles, which was three yeras ago, does this mean that BMW would have picked it up and carried out the work within the first 7 years of the cars life?
If it's not happened yet it'd be worth having a shufty through the car's paperwork to see if they sorted it under warranty.
Edited by CommanderJameson on Monday 9th October 13:29
On the manuals listen for a noisy flywheel.
When the car is thoroughly warm ( having been driven using all gears) put box into neutral, don't touch clutch, and rev the engine. If you hear a loud rattling that goes as soon as you depress the clutch it means the flywheel springs are worn.
They can go on for some time like this (my old E39 did) but the flywheels are dual mass and cost about £450.00 for the part alone and its a box out job so once the clutch is changed as well you won't see much change out of £800.00 if using a specialist !
Also check for vibrations through the body between 65 and 85 which can be a bugger to solve.
The key with any E39 is the way it has been maintained - they are well built but that can mean they hide neglect well.
Have a look at www.bmwland.co.uk - it will give you a better idea of what to look for on these
Good luck
When the car is thoroughly warm ( having been driven using all gears) put box into neutral, don't touch clutch, and rev the engine. If you hear a loud rattling that goes as soon as you depress the clutch it means the flywheel springs are worn.
They can go on for some time like this (my old E39 did) but the flywheels are dual mass and cost about £450.00 for the part alone and its a box out job so once the clutch is changed as well you won't see much change out of £800.00 if using a specialist !
Also check for vibrations through the body between 65 and 85 which can be a bugger to solve.
The key with any E39 is the way it has been maintained - they are well built but that can mean they hide neglect well.
Have a look at www.bmwland.co.uk - it will give you a better idea of what to look for on these
Good luck
Edited by Egbert Nobacon on Monday 9th October 14:15
If the Nikasil problem hasn't occurred by now it's actually unlikely to ever occur! See my website for why:
www.bmwclassics.co.uk/articles/nikasil.html
Although this text is mainly related to the V8's the will apply...
The problem arose due to high sulphur contents in 'cheap' fuels with the greatest U.K indidence in the north of the country. This type of fuel is no longer being sold.
My current daily driver (E39 523i) had an engine replace at 43K miles under warranty because of this. However, the car was originally from the N.East.
Where the 'Nikasil Issue' still carries BIG sway over market prices is in relation to cars fitted with the 4.0L V8 as opposed to the later 4.4L (non-nikasil) V8.
In short, I wouldn't let 'Nikasil' be in anyway an over-riding factor in your decision over that car...Much more would be overall condition/aesthetics of the car.
Good luck
www.bmwclassics.co.uk/articles/nikasil.html
Although this text is mainly related to the V8's the will apply...
The problem arose due to high sulphur contents in 'cheap' fuels with the greatest U.K indidence in the north of the country. This type of fuel is no longer being sold.
My current daily driver (E39 523i) had an engine replace at 43K miles under warranty because of this. However, the car was originally from the N.East.
Where the 'Nikasil Issue' still carries BIG sway over market prices is in relation to cars fitted with the 4.0L V8 as opposed to the later 4.4L (non-nikasil) V8.
In short, I wouldn't let 'Nikasil' be in anyway an over-riding factor in your decision over that car...Much more would be overall condition/aesthetics of the car.
Good luck
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