Buying a V12 blind - am I crazy?
Discussion
I have somewhat of a problem when it comes to E38's.
Bought my first one back in 2006 and have had 20+ since then and tried them all. I have an E38 instagram page, contribute to various forums, facebrick ... etc you know. A proper problem, an experienced problem.
Currently run two - a super low miles almost concourse Jap import SWB sport, and a not-so-perfect daily 728 in poverty spec. The latter I bought for £500 off an elderly guy local to me who had looked after it well - but it was in dreaded t'rans failsafe prog' aka limp mode/3rd gear.
So my reputation is now such that someone dropped me an email offering me a 750 for a price I can't refuse. It hasn't run in 7 years but everything else about it shouts YES.
My problem has either got the better of me, or this is going to be a big YES.
The level of excitement is extraordinary. The lack of fear is maybe a bit of a worry, albeit not something I will take ownership of - my closest friends think i am a bit nuts and asked questions about it that didn't even occur to me - like does it turn over, whats bodywork like?
Question is, do I take a battery and try turn it over? This will be my first E38 non-runner, and not wanting my excitement to get the better of me or the car - I do want to be cautious about recommissioning it. Thinking i bring her home, drop the oil and leave plug out overnight then top her up with some fresh oil. Drain the petrol tank, replace fresh. Anything else I should do that doesn't involve the medical profession?
Bought my first one back in 2006 and have had 20+ since then and tried them all. I have an E38 instagram page, contribute to various forums, facebrick ... etc you know. A proper problem, an experienced problem.
Currently run two - a super low miles almost concourse Jap import SWB sport, and a not-so-perfect daily 728 in poverty spec. The latter I bought for £500 off an elderly guy local to me who had looked after it well - but it was in dreaded t'rans failsafe prog' aka limp mode/3rd gear.
So my reputation is now such that someone dropped me an email offering me a 750 for a price I can't refuse. It hasn't run in 7 years but everything else about it shouts YES.
My problem has either got the better of me, or this is going to be a big YES.
The level of excitement is extraordinary. The lack of fear is maybe a bit of a worry, albeit not something I will take ownership of - my closest friends think i am a bit nuts and asked questions about it that didn't even occur to me - like does it turn over, whats bodywork like?
Question is, do I take a battery and try turn it over? This will be my first E38 non-runner, and not wanting my excitement to get the better of me or the car - I do want to be cautious about recommissioning it. Thinking i bring her home, drop the oil and leave plug out overnight then top her up with some fresh oil. Drain the petrol tank, replace fresh. Anything else I should do that doesn't involve the medical profession?
Edited by torx_whisperer on Friday 19th July 16:17
Gary29 said:
Are you a man or a mouse?!
Get it bought and get the photos up.
This is happening - of that there is no doubt. Recovery truck booked for the 70 mile trip home (ouch! £££). 10 litres oil, 2 air filters, 12 plugs and 10 bottles of brake cleaner ordered. Spare battery charged up and ready. 2 spare alloys packed in boot. What have I missed? Get it bought and get the photos up.
Will leaving the sump plug off over-night do the trick or do I need to run some sort of chemical flush through it?
No photos yet, am buying this 100% blind. Vin number does suggest it won't disappoint though.
Lord.Vader said:
Join us over on the Barge 1-5 thread.
Buying V12's, importing a Toyota Century and generally advising each other to buy TTV12 Mercedes or an aging unseen Bentley for under £5k.
You will fit right in, plus there is a wealth of knowledge.
Is that the general smokers one? Will def join in. Barges all the way! Buying V12's, importing a Toyota Century and generally advising each other to buy TTV12 Mercedes or an aging unseen Bentley for under £5k.
You will fit right in, plus there is a wealth of knowledge.
Gallons Per Mile said:
Excellent, just the sort of thread we all like to see on here!!
I'd change the oil and filter, put some fresh petrol in, squirt a small amount of diesel in each of the bores and turn over by hand a couple of times, then with no plugs in and fuel pump relay taken out I'd turn over on the starter until you get oil pressure and the diesel has blown out of the plug holes. Pop the plugs back in and you're ready to go assuming you have spark and fuel in the right places
Diesel? In a petrol 12 cylinder rolls-royce creation? What kind of sorcery is this?? I'd change the oil and filter, put some fresh petrol in, squirt a small amount of diesel in each of the bores and turn over by hand a couple of times, then with no plugs in and fuel pump relay taken out I'd turn over on the starter until you get oil pressure and the diesel has blown out of the plug holes. Pop the plugs back in and you're ready to go assuming you have spark and fuel in the right places
Some great advice from all - cheers!
I think I'll be somewhere in the middle here. 2 kids and a full time job plus a tendency to be impatient with stuff like this means I'll do my best to be gentle and will do an oil change and all that but I will not be reading to it the complete works of Dostoevsky.
Tend to agree these cars aren't like today's snowflakes and can handle a bit of banter and rough play. But first we shall meet and size one another up.
I've come a long way since years ago when I picked up a rotten basket case E34 535i which hadn't moved in 12 years.Did nothing but connect a new battery and floor it and you'd be amazed at how well it ran all things considered. For a minute it honestly felt like it was firing on all six. I would probably be amazed at how much better it could have run with fresh fuel and oil though. That, however, was a different proposition.
I think I'll be somewhere in the middle here. 2 kids and a full time job plus a tendency to be impatient with stuff like this means I'll do my best to be gentle and will do an oil change and all that but I will not be reading to it the complete works of Dostoevsky.
Tend to agree these cars aren't like today's snowflakes and can handle a bit of banter and rough play. But first we shall meet and size one another up.
I've come a long way since years ago when I picked up a rotten basket case E34 535i which hadn't moved in 12 years.Did nothing but connect a new battery and floor it and you'd be amazed at how well it ran all things considered. For a minute it honestly felt like it was firing on all six. I would probably be amazed at how much better it could have run with fresh fuel and oil though. That, however, was a different proposition.
Dr G said:
Is it stupid cheap?
No, but I would consider it safe enough given the value of some of the nice bits it has. Not that I am in the business of breaking cars - the parts are valuable enough for it to be a worthwhile punt. The real killer is the flat bed I have booked to pick it up, um, 'properly'. I too have bought many junkers, only one really hurt and that was a R129 300SEL convertible. Bought it with a blown head gasket but it was completely oversold (the rest of the car was a piece of sh*t but had been sold as if it were some philanthropist's pride and joy) and I hadn't yet developed my thicker eBay skin - and I should have walked away which I would do now. eBay is not the law. Spent a fortune getting head reskimmed and rebuilt only to find the bottom end had cracked. Have pretty much avoided all Mercedes barges since. Warming to the idea of another W140 though... they're something else.
Picked up this morning and I am over the moon. Pickup went surprisingly smoothly. Been busy draining oil into a pan since it arrived and I’m charging up the second replacement battery. This battleship takes 2 large batteries!
Got to figure out how one gets to the spark plugs so I can trickle a bit of diesel in each cylinder and replace the plugs. More pics to follow - would have upload more but the pics are all too pics and don’t have time to resize right now.
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/Du6hyFIH[/url]
Got to figure out how one gets to the spark plugs so I can trickle a bit of diesel in each cylinder and replace the plugs. More pics to follow - would have upload more but the pics are all too pics and don’t have time to resize right now.
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/Du6hyFIH[/url]Edited by torx_whisperer on Saturday 20th July 15:16
I changed my username after having a good laugh out loud at a few of the others I have seen - so just to say I am the OP.
So the collection went well all things considered. We had to pull the car out the back of a house and down the side where it had been for about 2 years having been moved from somewhere else but not run. Managed to do it without touching the brakes or using park brake. Car didn’t exactly ‘free wheel’ to start but when it arrived at mine and off the flat bed it moved easily.
Started strait away jacking it up high and draining the dark goo out of the big 12. Underside of the car seems pretty solid from where I have been able to prod. All the suspension components are of course knackered and perished. Underside of the engine bay was the spider hotel for the whole of SE England, have served notice of a Karcher sponsored eviction party.
Replaced the air filters and pulled the oil filter out which was bone dry - that alone would be a big advert to say don’t start an engine that’s been sat so long!
Popped in a couple of suitable batteries and turned ignition on and was pleasantly surprised to see dash pixels etc work and radio works. Didn’t try the windows as the aux battery I put in hadn’t been fully charged up and didn’t want to end up with a window half down.
Last night I popped the sump plug back in and poured in a few litres of ECP’s cheap and cheerful QX. This morning I will be dropping that out, dropping in a soaking wet filter and topping up with some more QX which I will eventually mix with some oil cleaning product that arrived yesterday but cant think of the name.
Will need to drain out the coolant today too and run the garden hose through the system for a few mins.
Fingers crossed today she will turn over for the first time in 7 years. I have doubts about the starter motor from stories I have heard about these big beasts but seller claimed that was replaced not long before the car was SORN’d.
Not sure what I am actually going to do with this car or if it is something I want to invest the time it needs in - but it is without doubt the best looking E38 I have ever seen. I am a huge fan of Mora Mettalic Individual cars but this is so much more up my street being blue on champagne. The interior looks like a car a quarter of it’s age and really is something to behold. Exterior paint is a bit flat all round and there’s some laquer issues on the boot lid. This car has everything including things like tyre pressure monitoring which I didn’t know you could get on an E38. I hate the term ‘fully loaded’ - but this thing really comes about as close as you can. Plus as personal preference and as it’s usually just me in a car, it’s a SWB so no unnecessary dead weight to haul around for that magnificent lump. Enjoy the pics and apologies some are upside down - when I get back at a desk will try replace those.
[url
|https://thumbsnap.com/XjqMVGW5[/url]
So the collection went well all things considered. We had to pull the car out the back of a house and down the side where it had been for about 2 years having been moved from somewhere else but not run. Managed to do it without touching the brakes or using park brake. Car didn’t exactly ‘free wheel’ to start but when it arrived at mine and off the flat bed it moved easily.
Started strait away jacking it up high and draining the dark goo out of the big 12. Underside of the car seems pretty solid from where I have been able to prod. All the suspension components are of course knackered and perished. Underside of the engine bay was the spider hotel for the whole of SE England, have served notice of a Karcher sponsored eviction party.
Replaced the air filters and pulled the oil filter out which was bone dry - that alone would be a big advert to say don’t start an engine that’s been sat so long!
Popped in a couple of suitable batteries and turned ignition on and was pleasantly surprised to see dash pixels etc work and radio works. Didn’t try the windows as the aux battery I put in hadn’t been fully charged up and didn’t want to end up with a window half down.
Last night I popped the sump plug back in and poured in a few litres of ECP’s cheap and cheerful QX. This morning I will be dropping that out, dropping in a soaking wet filter and topping up with some more QX which I will eventually mix with some oil cleaning product that arrived yesterday but cant think of the name.
Will need to drain out the coolant today too and run the garden hose through the system for a few mins.
Fingers crossed today she will turn over for the first time in 7 years. I have doubts about the starter motor from stories I have heard about these big beasts but seller claimed that was replaced not long before the car was SORN’d.
Not sure what I am actually going to do with this car or if it is something I want to invest the time it needs in - but it is without doubt the best looking E38 I have ever seen. I am a huge fan of Mora Mettalic Individual cars but this is so much more up my street being blue on champagne. The interior looks like a car a quarter of it’s age and really is something to behold. Exterior paint is a bit flat all round and there’s some laquer issues on the boot lid. This car has everything including things like tyre pressure monitoring which I didn’t know you could get on an E38. I hate the term ‘fully loaded’ - but this thing really comes about as close as you can. Plus as personal preference and as it’s usually just me in a car, it’s a SWB so no unnecessary dead weight to haul around for that magnificent lump. Enjoy the pics and apologies some are upside down - when I get back at a desk will try replace those.
[url
|https://thumbsnap.com/XjqMVGW5[/url]Sadly no starting videos - just 2 videos of a dash lighting up and the sound of a key turning fruitlessly in the ignition.
Got everything prepped which included nipping down to Halfrauds for a new auxiliary battery and a few jerry cans of fresh fuel. (it's quite amazing how quickly the costs start to add up).
The big moment came, the excitement of which even attracted a couple of neighbours over to come and see the big beast fire up. I felt like Clark Grizwald turning on his Christmas lights after the big family drum roll.
Plugged in a code reader and it showed 2 codes for the DME. Went over to the DME housing and only one screw was securing it (out of 4) - not a good sign. Opened up to find another spider cabinet and a clearly water damaged DME. This could be terminal. Going to see if I can source one with identical part number having had luck in the past doing this with a transmission control module for the 728 which was in trans failsafe prog - that turned out to be a £15 fix. DME's look pricey though, and refurbed ones are £800+.
Given the list of things this car is going to need i am already at the point where i need to make a decision. Either I keep going and could find the hole gets wider and bigger, or this gets it running. Fingers crossed for a guy I know who breaks E38's might have just what I need.
Got everything prepped which included nipping down to Halfrauds for a new auxiliary battery and a few jerry cans of fresh fuel. (it's quite amazing how quickly the costs start to add up).
The big moment came, the excitement of which even attracted a couple of neighbours over to come and see the big beast fire up. I felt like Clark Grizwald turning on his Christmas lights after the big family drum roll.
Plugged in a code reader and it showed 2 codes for the DME. Went over to the DME housing and only one screw was securing it (out of 4) - not a good sign. Opened up to find another spider cabinet and a clearly water damaged DME. This could be terminal. Going to see if I can source one with identical part number having had luck in the past doing this with a transmission control module for the 728 which was in trans failsafe prog - that turned out to be a £15 fix. DME's look pricey though, and refurbed ones are £800+.
Given the list of things this car is going to need i am already at the point where i need to make a decision. Either I keep going and could find the hole gets wider and bigger, or this gets it running. Fingers crossed for a guy I know who breaks E38's might have just what I need.
dme123 said:
As a SWB 750i optioned up to the eyes this is about as desireable an E38 as you can find. Spending a couple of grand sorting it out would not be a bad investment, IMHO. Dare I ask what you paid for it?
Yeah you are not wrong - but this will be a lot lot more than a couple grand. Couple grand might get it through an MOT but to make something good of this car it needs a full paint job and a very very long list of other bits replaced. I don't think the market is strong enough to justify the spend even though its a rare car and while I am passionate about them and not in this to turn a profit - I have a family and cant be losing thousands on a car. Got to stay positive about it - All I can do is be pragmatic and tackle each challenge as it arises. The DME being a potentially expensive problem could be a fork in the road, but believe me I will exhaust all options before I abandon hopes on this beauty.
Gallons Per Mile said:
Surely you can take it to an ECU repair company that will be able to have a go at it? The same sort of place that fixes dead pixels on he instrument cluster etc. I wouldn't imagine it would cost the earth for them to sort it?
I am definitely looking into everything I can and have contacted just such a specialist outfit. No idea on the cost yet. I consider this is a journey, and any journey involving a V12 is almost always going to be an epic!
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff