your view on a 2001 525i I may be getting soon

[DCColegrove]

I work on a lot of these at the shop...

Don't get me wrong they are good cars...

Just a lot of shit to break on them.

[der affe]

extended warranty/service contract that is transferable come with the car?

they don't cover everything but can help (if they are a good one) when shit craps out on you.

[jflip2002]

Is a rusty trombone included in this transaction?

[der affe]

naw maybe a "dirty Sanchez"

[SpecM]

Get it, I'd rock an e39 for 3k

[DCColegrove]

naw maybe a "dirty Sanchez"

Dirty Sanchez?

I'd rather have the rusty trombone...

What's a Dirty Sanchez anyway?

[der affe]

anal, then wipe the tip across their upper lip, leaving a "mustache"

[reelizmpro]

170K miles, auto for $3K? That's not bad at all. E39's are nice cars and are getting cheaper. A lot of shit does go wrong with them though. If you are a DIY'er it's not a problem but if you have to pay someone to fix everything then it could become an expensive burden. Fortunately, there's good info on bimmerforums.com and bmwtips.com on all of the common problems including cooling system, Secondary air pump and valve, window regulators, door handles, cupholders, climate control buttons, etc.

I have two 98 528i's that I work on with about 130K miles. This should give you an idea of what to look forward to. I've had to do the following:

98 528iA - GM trans remanufactured, broken radiator neck (so we did the entire cooling system) @ 140K miles, leaking PS hose, new alternator, door handle (interior), cupholder, brakes, 1 window regulator.

98 528i 5 speed - flooded Secondary air pump caused by bad diverter valve, 3 window regulators, cupholder, both pre cat 02 sensors, brakes, cooling system.

On the later models, like the one you're buying, also look out for dead pixels in the hi instrument cluster and bad abs computer (expensive).

[femme325is]

reeliz- thanks for the specific info. :) I'll ask him soon what he's actually had to do to the car since he's owned it.

Der Affe- Yes on the roadtrip. No on the transferable warranty. For some reason he doesn't have a warranty on it. He bought it in Illinois a few years back

DCColegrove- yeah, I've heard that alot so far. Lots of shit breaking on them. Im still a bit nervous about this one eve though it's a good deal. I DEF dont need a money pit rt now. The E30 is bad enough

[Stevie30]

Meh, It's no e30. It'll do 'till you can get an e30. LOL

[etta325]

i say go for it man

[Tree18is]

shit breaks on everything, dont be scared.
should be a nice car to drive normally and who knows you may end up keeping it forever.

[dashboardmonkey]

Do it:hitler:

[aintnothang]

go for it!

[gearheadE30]

Should be fun. Easy enough to swap in a stick if the tranny fails, which is known to happen on these cars if the fluid isn't replaced at reasonable intervals.