Price: $8,000
Up for sale is my 1988 BMW 735i. It has 102k original miles, and I am the 2nd owner. I purchased the car just a few months ago from the original owner who is a wealthy doctor and avid car collector. It was purchased new at the BMW dealer in Mechanicsburg, PA on Carlisle Pike but has spent every winter in South Carolina at the owner’s winter home (no snow!).
This is a rare factory 5-speed car, supposedly 1 of less than 200 7-series ever produced with a manual transmission. Clutch and transmission are in great shape and showing no signs of wear. This is also one of the very rare 5-speed cars that were ordered from the factory with a limited slip differential. Needless to say, this is a very rare and special car, especially to BMW enthusiasts.
Here is a video of the original Top Gear episode displaying the 735i and talking about some of its features:
The paint is in near mint condition also. No fading, peeling, etc has taken place. Only a few scratches and rock chips are present to show evidence of its age and lack of any previous body work. The car does have 1 dent in the trunk that can be seen at certain angles (see photo below), but there is no paint damage or scratching so a simple PDR will pull it out.
As for the interior, it is in beyond fantastic shape. The gray leather seats have no cracks, stains, or tears; dash has no cracks or warping; no stains in the carpet, no imperfections in the REAL matte wood trim, and 2 weeks old brand new floor mats from BMW have just been added since there was a coffee stain from the previous owner one one of them. I also have a set of new fitted gray all-weather floormats that haven't been used since the car has never seen snow or any winters in general.
__________________________________________________ ____
Now here is the real kicker; I have EVERY maintenance record for this car since the day it was brand new, including all the dealership paperwork and original window sticker from 1988. Every worn bushing and ball joint has been replaced by me, and a fresh alignment was performed after all suspension work was completed. The car rides beautifully on all roads.
Here is a list of just some of the new parts it has had within the last 5-10k miles:
-Meyle front lower control arms with ball joints
-Meyle front upper right control arm with ball joint and HD bushing
-Europarts rear pitman arms
-All new belts
-New Bosch battery
-Oil pressure switch
-4 brand new tires (225/60R/15- Bridgestone Potenza G009- High Performance All-Season)
-New front brake calipers, and all 4 pads and rotors. (This car shares the same brakes front and rear with the E36 M3, so it stops quite well)
-OEM Mahle fuel filter
-All soft fuel lines replaced
-All power steering lines
-Trunk struts
-Outer door handle seals
-New OEM alloy wheel center caps (wheels themselves have zero rash, bends, scratches, etc)
-Throttle body gasket
-All air intake hoses
-OEM air filter
-Coolant hoses
-New lighted master key internals
-Fresh oil change, and has been performed every 5k miles since new (BMW recommends every 15k) at a BMW dealer using only BMW oil.
-Oil pan gasket
-Timing cover gasket
-Valve cover gasket
-Cylinder head end plugs
-Water pump
-Spark plugs
-Plug wires
-Distributor cap & rotor
-Full coolant flush with BMW antifreeze
-Fresh headgasket only 3k miles ago with new head bolts
All of this work was either performed at my local BMW dealer here in Williamsport, or by a private BMW authorized repair facility. I have receipts to show EVERYTHING that I listed. I am afraid to add up the receipts, but the headgasket replacement was $1260 alone (see photo below).
The transmission fluid has also been replaced with Redline MTL, and shifts are ultra smooth. No grinding or hesitations; even when cold.
Every car has their quirks, and this one’s quirk is that the camshaft oil squirt bar bolts come loose and lead to the cam destroying itself. To prevent this from ever happening, I had the updated new style bolts with a lock patch on the threads installed from BMW.
The only oil leak on the entire car is a very small drip from the rear main seal. It is so small that I haven’t even bothered putting a new one in, even after all the work performed. It drips 1 drop only every couple days, but the car comes from the factory with a metal shield under the bell housing so nothing that drips down actually hits the ground. This makes it very easy to tell how much it is leaking without playing inspector gadget with hunting for fresh drops in your driveway. I see no reason to go through the trouble of replacing the seal, as the clutch will not need replacing for a very long time.
__________________________________________________ ___
I am currently located in Williamsport, PA, but can make arrangements a couple weeks in advance for serious buyers in New Jersey for the car to be seen at my other residence in Hackettstown, NJ.
Pricing this car is difficult, as there is nothing on the market to compare it with. I was told by a couple people in the area who restore classic BMWs to list it at $9,000, but we recently sold our 330ci with 125k for $9,500 so I think that this car should go for less than that (even though to be honest, this one is in much better shape!). I have decided to list this car at a very fair price of $8,000. With that said, I do not believe in firm prices for anything and am willing to hear what people have to offer, but will not give the car away. Like they say, cash talks…right?
Anyone is welcome to come check it out for themselves, hear it run, take it for a spin, look under it, have their mechanic check it out, browse through the maintenance records, etc. I do not drive this car much, so the mileage will not increase dramatically. I love this BMW, but right now with my schedule it doesn't make sense to have so many cars.
No check engine lights, warning lights, maintenance indicators, etc. Never overheats, even on hot summer days the needle stays right in the middle.
Rear sunshade- functions flawlessly
Rear storage compartment
Power seats with memory
Dual heated seats with power lumbar control
Large trunk with unused full-size spare rim/tire
Unused factory tool kit
OEM 16" Alloy wheels are mint with no curb rash, scratches, or faded emblems
This is from a few weeks ago when the updated camshaft oil bolts from BMW went in along with a new valve cover gasket. No sludge, no signs of wear, nothing! Looks almost new.
Hood operation
VIN tag- Anyone is free to run a carfax to verify that the original owner owned the car until 2010 and that there were no accidents.
The single dent in the trunk
All original BMW manuals and paperwork
Original window sticker, press book, paperwork, etc.
Window sticker close-up
That's right...hundreds of receipts dating back to 1988. There is documentation of every single maintenance item or repair ever performed on the car.
Here are 2 examples of some of the more recent work done.
Feel free to contact me with any questions you may have.
Up for sale is my 1988 BMW 735i. It has 102k original miles, and I am the 2nd owner. I purchased the car just a few months ago from the original owner who is a wealthy doctor and avid car collector. It was purchased new at the BMW dealer in Mechanicsburg, PA on Carlisle Pike but has spent every winter in South Carolina at the owner’s winter home (no snow!).
This is a rare factory 5-speed car, supposedly 1 of less than 200 7-series ever produced with a manual transmission. Clutch and transmission are in great shape and showing no signs of wear. This is also one of the very rare 5-speed cars that were ordered from the factory with a limited slip differential. Needless to say, this is a very rare and special car, especially to BMW enthusiasts.
Here is a video of the original Top Gear episode displaying the 735i and talking about some of its features:
The paint is in near mint condition also. No fading, peeling, etc has taken place. Only a few scratches and rock chips are present to show evidence of its age and lack of any previous body work. The car does have 1 dent in the trunk that can be seen at certain angles (see photo below), but there is no paint damage or scratching so a simple PDR will pull it out.
As for the interior, it is in beyond fantastic shape. The gray leather seats have no cracks, stains, or tears; dash has no cracks or warping; no stains in the carpet, no imperfections in the REAL matte wood trim, and 2 weeks old brand new floor mats from BMW have just been added since there was a coffee stain from the previous owner one one of them. I also have a set of new fitted gray all-weather floormats that haven't been used since the car has never seen snow or any winters in general.
__________________________________________________ ____
Now here is the real kicker; I have EVERY maintenance record for this car since the day it was brand new, including all the dealership paperwork and original window sticker from 1988. Every worn bushing and ball joint has been replaced by me, and a fresh alignment was performed after all suspension work was completed. The car rides beautifully on all roads.
Here is a list of just some of the new parts it has had within the last 5-10k miles:
-Meyle front lower control arms with ball joints
-Meyle front upper right control arm with ball joint and HD bushing
-Europarts rear pitman arms
-All new belts
-New Bosch battery
-Oil pressure switch
-4 brand new tires (225/60R/15- Bridgestone Potenza G009- High Performance All-Season)
-New front brake calipers, and all 4 pads and rotors. (This car shares the same brakes front and rear with the E36 M3, so it stops quite well)
-OEM Mahle fuel filter
-All soft fuel lines replaced
-All power steering lines
-Trunk struts
-Outer door handle seals
-New OEM alloy wheel center caps (wheels themselves have zero rash, bends, scratches, etc)
-Throttle body gasket
-All air intake hoses
-OEM air filter
-Coolant hoses
-New lighted master key internals
-Fresh oil change, and has been performed every 5k miles since new (BMW recommends every 15k) at a BMW dealer using only BMW oil.
-Oil pan gasket
-Timing cover gasket
-Valve cover gasket
-Cylinder head end plugs
-Water pump
-Spark plugs
-Plug wires
-Distributor cap & rotor
-Full coolant flush with BMW antifreeze
-Fresh headgasket only 3k miles ago with new head bolts
All of this work was either performed at my local BMW dealer here in Williamsport, or by a private BMW authorized repair facility. I have receipts to show EVERYTHING that I listed. I am afraid to add up the receipts, but the headgasket replacement was $1260 alone (see photo below).
The transmission fluid has also been replaced with Redline MTL, and shifts are ultra smooth. No grinding or hesitations; even when cold.
Every car has their quirks, and this one’s quirk is that the camshaft oil squirt bar bolts come loose and lead to the cam destroying itself. To prevent this from ever happening, I had the updated new style bolts with a lock patch on the threads installed from BMW.
The only oil leak on the entire car is a very small drip from the rear main seal. It is so small that I haven’t even bothered putting a new one in, even after all the work performed. It drips 1 drop only every couple days, but the car comes from the factory with a metal shield under the bell housing so nothing that drips down actually hits the ground. This makes it very easy to tell how much it is leaking without playing inspector gadget with hunting for fresh drops in your driveway. I see no reason to go through the trouble of replacing the seal, as the clutch will not need replacing for a very long time.
__________________________________________________ ___
I am currently located in Williamsport, PA, but can make arrangements a couple weeks in advance for serious buyers in New Jersey for the car to be seen at my other residence in Hackettstown, NJ.
Pricing this car is difficult, as there is nothing on the market to compare it with. I was told by a couple people in the area who restore classic BMWs to list it at $9,000, but we recently sold our 330ci with 125k for $9,500 so I think that this car should go for less than that (even though to be honest, this one is in much better shape!). I have decided to list this car at a very fair price of $8,000. With that said, I do not believe in firm prices for anything and am willing to hear what people have to offer, but will not give the car away. Like they say, cash talks…right?
Anyone is welcome to come check it out for themselves, hear it run, take it for a spin, look under it, have their mechanic check it out, browse through the maintenance records, etc. I do not drive this car much, so the mileage will not increase dramatically. I love this BMW, but right now with my schedule it doesn't make sense to have so many cars.
No check engine lights, warning lights, maintenance indicators, etc. Never overheats, even on hot summer days the needle stays right in the middle.
Rear sunshade- functions flawlessly
Rear storage compartment
Power seats with memory
Dual heated seats with power lumbar control
Large trunk with unused full-size spare rim/tire
Unused factory tool kit
OEM 16" Alloy wheels are mint with no curb rash, scratches, or faded emblems
This is from a few weeks ago when the updated camshaft oil bolts from BMW went in along with a new valve cover gasket. No sludge, no signs of wear, nothing! Looks almost new.
Hood operation
VIN tag- Anyone is free to run a carfax to verify that the original owner owned the car until 2010 and that there were no accidents.
The single dent in the trunk
All original BMW manuals and paperwork
Original window sticker, press book, paperwork, etc.
Window sticker close-up
That's right...hundreds of receipts dating back to 1988. There is documentation of every single maintenance item or repair ever performed on the car.
Here are 2 examples of some of the more recent work done.
Feel free to contact me with any questions you may have.
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