older BMW. thoughts?
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I had a 1998 318i for a while.
Seem to have great longevity. Make sure the water pump has been done or YOU will be doing it soon. Check the rear struts and check where they meet up in the trunk. they have a problem of rusting out. Be ready to change the bushings and mounts for those as well. Cheap though. Make sure the bushings all around are in good shape. They drive nice on the highway. I didnt have a convertible so i cant add anything to that. I never drove mine in the winter either. *Use premium gas.
Have u carfaxed the 95k miles? Not saying that this person isnt honest but, the Odometer LCD's have a huge tendency to burn out the first number which would be 195k. I had the same lcd problem with mine. The lights on the factory cd player and such do burn out a lot as well.
There is a lot of aftermarket for these cars.
Overall They are pretty decent cars.
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manual or auto? auto's on BMWs are weak... tend to be 100-120k mile devices. If its a manual the car will slowly fall apart around the drivetrain... which is invincible.
If the car has been driven hard the rear subframe can tear out, but this is unlikely on on a convertible.
The convertibles are floppy compared to the cars with metal roofs. While the Z3/Z4 were designed to be a roadster from the get go, the 3 series wasn't, and its rigidity suffers.
do you want a convertible specifically? or is this just a cheap BMW that you came across?
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Rexwagon;295066 wrote:
I had a 1998 318i for a while.Seem to have great longevity. Make sure the water pump has been done or YOU will be doing it soon. Check the rear struts and check where they meet up in the trunk. they have a problem of rusting out. Be ready to change the bushings and mounts for those as well. Cheap though. Make sure the bushings all around are in good shape. They drive nice on the highway. I didnt have a convertible so i cant add anything to that. I never drove mine in the winter either. *Use premium gas.
Have u carfaxed the 95k miles? Not saying that this person isnt honest but, the Odometer LCD's have a huge tendency to burn out the first number which would be 195k. I had the same lcd problem with mine. The lights on the factory cd player and such do burn out a lot as well.
There is a lot of aftermarket for these cars.
Overall They are pretty decent cars.
Hehe replaced like all of those things on mine except for the LCD. Rear Shock Mounts went after I put suspension in, replaced all the bushings basically, water pump replaced etc etc...
thrash;295072 wrote:
manual or auto? auto's on BMWs are weak... tend to be 100-120k mile devices. If its a manual the car will slowly fall apart around the drivetrain... which is invincible.If the car has been driven hard the rear subframe can tear out, but this is unlikely on on a convertible.
The convertibles are floppy compared to the cars with metal roofs. While the Z3/Z4 were designed to be a roadster from the get go, the 3 series wasn't, and its rigidity suffers.
do you want a convertible specifically? or is this just a cheap BMW that you came across?
I agree. Don't buy a BMW Auto, and the rear subframe is something you will want to check.
I say save up a little more cash and buy an E46.
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Rexwagon;295066 wrote:
*Use premium gas.lol
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