Ok, give me "THE LIST"

[Jand3rson]

I'm looking at the auto 89 325i tomorrow that I am planning to buy. I need the complete laundy list of things to look for while giving the car it's once-over. So hit me with it.

[KenC]

Do a search. I posted one that's on unofficialbmw.com a while ago when Kris was beginning to look for a car. The original thread was started by him.

[MR 325]

You better drive it! Shhh... don't tell anyone about the license.

[Low Level E30]

Why you would risk driving it without a licence, I don't know :roll:

[JonG]

i just bought my car a month or 2 ago..heres what i did

make sure it pulls hard (to the redline if you can do that on autos..)
do some hardcore brake tests
try and do some highway driving making sure its aligned fairly well and doesnt shake at high speeds
get the vin and do a car fax if the car looks good
check for variations in paint...factory paint vs. crappy paint, probably means body work has been done
make sure tires have a good amount of tread


in hind sight...

mine didnt have an owners manual
parts like door trim and sun roof handle started falling off after driving the car for a while
get a history of the car from the owner...how many owners have their been etc.

if it looks good, ask him to hold it a few days and take it to a good mechanic..i paid 60 bucks, and through the stuff the mechanic found, i was able to talk the seller down by 700 dollars.

hope this helps

[mgold]

Some suggestions I have...

Compression check.

When was timing belt and water pump replaced?

Make sure the AC blows cold.

Check the oil and air filter, their condition can sometimes determine if the car is well cared for (the smart seller will change them before trying to sell the car).

Lift the carpets in the trunk and check for rust.

Check to see if the VIN numbers on the panels all match. If some say D.O.T. then those are factory replacement parts. If they are mismatched then repairs were done with parts from other cars.

Check the tires for even wear.

Make sure the tools are complete, the jack and its parts are there and all the manuals are there. If it has the factory anti-theft radio then make sure the card with the security code is with the documentation.

Jack up the car and wiggle the wheels to make sure the control arms aren't busted and visually inspect the control arm bushings and guibos for cracks.

Remove the wheels and check the brakes to see how much pad and rotor life is left.

Try to get as much documentation on the car as possible.

Drive the car. The butt dyno is the best tool of all.

Just my 2¢ :D

[nando]

redlining an auto is easy.. just stick it in 2nd and go to town. :)

[Jand3rson]

I just ran Carfax on the car, NOTHING even remotely bad was found on the car. This makes me very happy.

What I DO know is that the head was replaced about 2 years ago, due to the timing bely breaking and valves being bent. No damage to the engine otherwise. It was a replaced with a very low mileage head & the car runs very smoothly.

I will be doing a complete inscpection of the car today, and if all goes well, I will be buying it tomorrow. :D

[mgold]

Good luck with that. And hey an auto can be fun, just ask T.J. (who's in the process of converting to 5-speed). But seriously, my co-worker had a blast running his 89 325is (auto) in autocrosses. No missed shifts to worry about!

[E30//MAN]

If you leave the car in 2nd and hit about 4k rpm in a parking lot and then let off the gas, it's got the coolest airplane sound in the world.

All sorts of people look over to see what the hell could possibly be making that crazy sound.

Ease into the gas, and let it ease into second .... If it shifts hard into second ... could be electronic shifter, or possibly tranny might need a rebuild sooner than later. But I mean hard.

I love my auto, except for running around on the freeway at 3k - 4k. speeding that is 8)