E28 vs E34

[dan101smith]

I'm thinking of getting either an E28 or E34 as an "everyday" car - although I don't drive everyday, when I do it tends to be trips of 50+ miles.

I'm not too fussed about outright speed, just something that will cruise comfortably, be a bit of fun down the back roads and not cost the earth to buy/run.

Which model would people recommend to cover these bases? My preference would be for a 525 as a minimum.

[dan101smith]

Thanks for the advice guys.

To give a bit of background, I'm chopping in an M3 Evo, so when I say cheap to run, I'm comparing to that!

My budget is around £1500 for a 5 series, the idea being it is cheap daily transport, because I'm also looking to get a bmw 2002 to restore, which aint gonna be cheap!

I think a 525i should fit the bill, just concerned about what sort of reliability you get on a £1500 bmw these days?

[dan101smith]

out of interest, when did the 24v engine come in? is there an easy way to tell which version it is?