advice on a 1995 540i

[e34_540i]

Hi,
I need an advice in purchasing a 1995 540i; I hope I'm posting into the right section.
history: the car is now with the second owner, 8 years with the first one, dealer maintained; second owner had it for 2.5 years, no maintenance done except for brakes, shocks, a/c and muffler
Mileage: 284000km
The car is in a very good shape, I had the opportunity to drive it and it drives better than many new cars that I drove. It was rust-checked 3 years ago, no visible rust except for the trunk hood (around the lock). It drives very smooth, interior looks great, no visible wear, everything works inside&out
Known problems:
- weak a/c
- "clunk" noise sometimes when you go over potholes
- tail brake lights errors sometimes
- 1 time the alarm went off when it stayed in sun on a very hot summer day, engine immobilizer engaged, had to wait for it to cool down to start it
I think these are all the problems.
If I buy it, I plan to have the maintenance done by a dealer (assuming it doesn't go to 1k$/month:), but I will be happy to do some small jobs myself (I don't have specific tools and not too much time)
The asking price is $8k CAN, final. I know well the seller, I can test drive it for a couple of days.
Any thoughts?
thanks for any replies & advices

[Evan]

Auto or 6 speed? Check out this car before you buy a 540i Auto http://www.bimmer.info/forum/showthread.php?t=18845

[Traian]

It sounds like the car has been loved, which is nice. Make sure the motor idles smoothly and revs freely, you don't want to have an incoming Nikasil issue. Some people might recommed a leakdown or at least a compression test to make sure, thought at that mileage I think it would just be money for confidence's sake. I bought my 540 and did neither and haven't had problems. The clunk noise might be worn sway bar links. If the steering wheel shifts out of your hand over bumps, it might be steering end links. That the a/c works at all is nice, do you know if it leaking big time or just needs a recharge? No rust around the door bottoms is impressive, it means they must have been replaced, which again suggests the car was loved. The price is a tad high, I would try to take $1K off the top or so, but that is a personal issue more than anything else and depends on each individual car and how you feel about it. Don't let anyone tell you you got ripped off after you buy it! Btw, there is another fellow from Montreal selling his 94 540 for only $6k (US I believe) here on the board, might wanna check that out.

[Evan]

$8000 CDN is around $6800 USD and 284K Km is about 175K miles -- it's on the high end in mileage and money for an auto trans.

Also, by his own admission, the second owner spent the bare minimum on maintenance for 2.5 years.

If it's a 6 speed... which I'm sure it isn't -- the price is perfect. Buy it tomorrow.

Seriously... you'll need to spend a few hundred (minimum) to make the A/C cold... the clunk noise you hear is at least another couple hundred, and the alarm and tail lights are another few hundred... that's $1000 minimum to get the car right... is this the first car you looked at?

Best,
Evan

[e34_540i]

Auto or 6 speed? Check out this car before you buy a 540i Auto http://www.bimmer.info/forum/showthread.php?t=18845

6 speed.

[GJPinAU]

Known problems: - weak a/c
Might be the micro-filter is clogged with crap, easy DIY

[e34_540i]

the motor idles smoothly, revs ok (as far as I ca tell :). anyway, I will try to check the serial #.
the a/c was refilled last summer, but by September was weak again, so I think it's leaking somewhere.
the actual owner had the shocks replaced hoping this will fix the clunk noise, but it didn't help. the guys who installed the new shocks are not too good, so this might have something to do with it :)
the stearing wheel doesn't shift over bumps & the cars drives straight always.
I should be able to take 1k off, and usually I'm not looking at prices after I buy something :)
my problem is that I drove it, and it just runs great! the concerns are the high mileage and the maintenance costs.
thanks for the reply

[e34_540i]

yes, it is a 6 speed. I'm sure I will have to spend ~1k for the beginning but I am just concerned about the reliability at this age and mileage.
yes, this is the first car that I looked at, but again, also drove it ~4k km and it seems to be running perfectly.

[e34_540i]

I'm sure nobody checked that in the last 3 years, thanks for the reply.

[SharkmanBMW]

that is a lot of mileage...
weak ac can be very expensive...
buy my 540, in Montreal! $7250 Cad$
213k

[Warren N.CA]

replacing worn out parts, during the next few years. This car has unusual maintenance issues. Better do some reasearch, Dude!

Worst case: you'll need a replacement engine, soon, at $10K or more.

[Paul in NZ]

brake light error could be as simple as a new brake light switch
A/C is weak,or weak airflow?
clunk is thrust arm bushings.
6 spd 540 is a lot of car,6 spd not that common...

[NickT]

I would be worried that nothing major has been replaced. I took great care of my car and replaced a massive amount of things before it even reached 100k miles...such as drive shaft, entire front suspension (control arms, tie rods, idler arms, etc.), flywheel/clutch, radiator, rear subframe bushings, motor mounts. Luckily I had an extended warranty through GE that took care of the majority of these replacements. My car would drive fine even with many of these ailments, but I was so sensitive to the car because of my long-term ownership that I could detect these things...you might not be able to. The clunk could have something to do with the subframe.

Anyway, I sold my 540i six speed recently. 1995 w/99,XXX miles for 12k and change.

[Evan]

Buy It. But --- First have the drive train checked at your local BMW dealer. Have them check the motor, transmission, and rear for any leaks, signs of wear, or unusual sounds.

How is the interior and the rest of the cosmetics? How is the paint and exterior trim? Does everything work? Are the seats "twisted?" Do the headrests work? How is the carpet?

If the drivetrain is in order and the paint and cosmetics are in order, I would buy her.

Make a list of all the negatives and go over it with the owner... see if he'll come down for another $1000 CDN

[632 Regal]

If your going to depend on the dealer for repairs prepare to spend a LOT of money.

[ra_pro]

Let me tell you a little story about my 95 540i.

I bought it in 2001 with about 92k kms (57k miles) now it has about 157k kms (97k miles). In those 4+ years there probably wasn't more than a few months that the car didn's suffer from some ailment that affected its drivebaility. In other words in the 4+ years of ownership there may have been 4-6 months in total that the car was driving at maybe 90-95% to its potentail. Today I found out the it has a leaking gasket somewhere that destroyed one ignition coil, possibly damaged others. This after I changed O2 sensors and still had check engine on. It seems like I just can't keep up with the maintenance. It needs more maintenance than it's driven something like the infamous Canadian Sea King helicopters. In a way I am lucky becaue I have a mechanic that charges me one third or one fourth of what the dealer would. Even so because the repairs are expensive and I have to buy parts at BMA it takes time to get repairs done and by the time I fix one thing another two things need attention.

And I can't even sell the car because I didn't pass the emission test because the car needed 2 cats. I can drive it but can't sell it. Another test is coming up and I need the cats fixed. (Fortunately I know a shop where they can replace both for 500 CAD, normally one OEM cat costs 1000 CAD.) In addition the car needs window motor, auxilliary fan and heater core replaced. These are not urgent and I have been putting them off for some time now.

I was actually thinking about whether the car is worth the trouble today. In the end it's not the cost that's the main problem but the frustration that I cannot drive this car to its full potential most of the time. Therefore I think it might be worth having a Japanese car with little driving excitment but without the constant reliability headaches. The overall level frustration would probably be lower.

If you want to have the car maintained by the dealer I would suggest that you forget about the car. Unless you can do most of the repairs yourself or have a good and cheap mechanic I guarantee you you cannot afford it. It's sad but that's my conclusion about 540i. I think 6 cylinder may be a different story as they seem to be more reliable and less expensive to fix. Or look elsewhere, Saab might be a good alternative.

[DueyT]

E34, 284,000km? Wow! That's a bit for a 95! Any pics?

"Clunk" over potholes....you mean your standard Montreal pothole? ha ha...I lived in St-Hubert for a few years and the potholes on the Bonaventure/20 were insane! :) ...that said, could also be a worn sway-bar bushing...especially if there is not a major shimmy at 80kmh (perhaps not the thrust arm).

I had my air done when I got my car three years ago...$400 for a purge and recharge with sealer included...luckily didn't need a drier/evap core...that could get pricey.

On the other hand, so long as the clutch is relatively new, you might have a nice ride there...

Cheers,
Duey