View Full Version : Goodbye E34 Touring ... hello E38
Well folks, it looks like I am going to be getting rid of 1/2 the E34's that I own. I have two E34 tourings and I am going to sell the wife's 1993 525iT. The inline-6 is still absolutely bulletproof but I am also selling two other (non-BMW) cars and will be buying an E38 .... a 2001 740iL for the ole lady. That M62 can really hum! I will be keeping my E34, a 1994 530iT ... but the little 3.0 liter V8 is an embarrassment compared to the M62 (fuel consumption, power, etc). You know the E34 Touring is a good car when an employee at my mechanic's garage wants to buy it!
As long as the tranny checks out fine on the E38 I will do the deal .... but will still be actively reading the posts in this forum. You guys are a wealth of knowledge. I don't know crap about M62's and E38's!
LunatiC
06-21-2007, 09:25 PM
You better post up pics of the E38 once you get it!
winfred
06-21-2007, 10:00 PM
oooo vanos 740s ****ing fly for a 4300# brick, the m62tu has some major balls and will definetly lay down some tire smoke if you turn off the traction and floor it pulling out of a driveway, if it has the weird ass massaging seat option you can have fun with the passenger by turning it on after you have been riding a while, it comes on slow and all of the sudden one ass cheek gets jacked up like a 1/2" then the other
bmwrp8
06-21-2007, 11:15 PM
oooo vanos 740s ****ing fly for a 4300# brick, the m62tu has some major balls and will definetly lay down some tire smoke if you turn off the traction and floor it pulling out of a driveway, if it has the weird ass massaging seat option you can have fun with the passenger by turning it on after you have been riding a while, it comes on slow and all of the sudden one ass cheek gets jacked up like a 1/2" then the other
hahaha LOL:D love the way how you described the massaging seat specially the part "if it has the WEIRD ASS massaging"
I have some pics but the file is too large.
Besides, the car is a bit dirty right now. After I shine her up I will post some pics. The Sport Package is pretty sweet .... but the cost to replace the 18 inch Z rated tires, particularly since they cannot be rotated (different sizes front and back) kind of sucks.
I have already told the current owner if there is < $1000 worth of "required" repairs we are good to go. My novice eye spotted about $500 worth so far (loose grill, broken driving light, cup holder will not close)
the m62tu has some major balls and will definetly lay down some tire smoke if you turn off the traction and floor it pulling out of a driveway
+1 they're beasts
Not sure if it has that option or not. If my wife never wants to drive it I will assume it has the upgrade :)
winfred
06-22-2007, 08:09 AM
i think those came like that from the factory, grills are a royal pain in the ass for two simple pieces of plastic, front cup holders suck bad, expensive and a bitch to install glue em closed and be done with it (we figured at out cost including the piece of wood for the front they were about $450 for the front and rear holders, up that about 20% to factor out our dealer discount), get some of those stick on fog light covers before you replace or get use to replacing them
My novice eye spotted about $500 worth so far (loose grill, broken driving light, cup holder will not close)
repenttokyo
06-22-2007, 08:38 AM
no one is forcing you to buy z rated - you could step down in speed rating and save some cash.
Good point. I have H-rated Turanza's both both my E34's and like them a lot. Something to consider.
repenttokyo
06-22-2007, 01:24 PM
I had a friend in a similar situation trying to find a Z rated 16 inch tire for his Caprice police car, it can be quite difficult to find something affordable.
attack eagle
06-22-2007, 04:37 PM
I figure any 18" tire under $175 to be affordable... but that is probably becasue I remember when 17" tires cost $300 each, and it was the sign of being a "baller' in today's lingo.
I think my Bridgestone potenza RE750s (w speed rated) in 245/45/18 were about 150-160 from the tire rack. Pretty quiet and good wet weather performance. Especially compared to the RE730s they replaced.
And W is a higher rating than Z (168 vs 149)
I checked out TireRack and also Sam's Club. Right now there is good rubber on the tires but when it is time I will just suck it up an drop a $1000. I will try and get 400 AA A tires though to give me some life ... we will see
OK folks ... I have not pulled the trigger yet on the 2001 740iL with the Sport Package but it is getting closer. Just got the list of "needs" from my Mechanic. The list of items that need to be replaced are: four (yes 4!) power steering lines, belts, thrust rods and bushings, valve cover gaskets, fuel filter grill, the dang cup holder POS, one fog lamp .... for about $2500 including labor. I have quickly finding out that parts for the E38 are a lot more expensive than for the E34. My mechanic is a great guy and has served my two E34's well. Time to go back to the negotiation table and see what we can work out ....
winfred
06-23-2007, 07:03 PM
another little fun e38/39 job is the rear suspension upper camber links and lower ball joints, those suck in the fact that you need special tools to do the lowers
Alan_525i
06-23-2007, 09:00 PM
How many miles are on this 740 whack? I'm in the market too, I figure most of whats wrong with yours will be similar on other same-mileage cars.
gtopaul
06-23-2007, 09:31 PM
OK folks ... I have not pulled the trigger yet on the 2001 740iL with the Sport Package but it is getting closer. Just got the list of "needs" from my Mechanic. The list of items that need to be replaced are: four (yes 4!) power steering lines, belts, thrust rods and bushings, valve cover gaskets, fuel filter grill, the dang cup holder POS, one fog lamp .... for about $2500 including labor. I have quickly finding out that parts for the E38 are a lot more expensive than for the E34. My mechanic is a great guy and has served my two E34's well. Time to go back to the negotiation table and see what we can work out ....
Hope you have some history to look at on the E38. If it needs all that work it must have over 100k miles on it. See if the radiator, expansion tank, water pump and thermostat have been replaced recently. If they haven't I'd suggest you keep new ones in the trunk because it's not a matter of 'if' but more like 'when'. We do E38 radiators and expansion tanks almost everyday at work. Those exploding water pumps are pretty common too and they usually take out the fan blades, shroud, and sometimes the radiator when they come apart. Still, the 2001 E38 is the one to get if you can live with the issues. Oh, forgot to mention the pixel problems with the radio, cluster, and temp controls, mucho bucks when you can't put off looking at that mess any longer. My wife wants one but it'll have to be a car I know the service history of before I bite.
Paul
There is 98k miles on it. Two owners. I like the idea of high miles in a 6 year old car that is this solid. None of the work mentioned needs to be done ASAP, but I want the car to be as close to 100% as possible. If the deal does not work out, I will keep looking too.
Paul,
Good input. I do not see where the records indicate that these parts have been replaced, but I do not have all the records yet either. We have a "deal" at $15.5k for the price of the car if the suggested repairs were < 1k. Since the repairs are > 1k, if he knocks off some more I will still go with it. This way, a 2001 740iL in tip top shape for $18k or less I can deal with. I figure any BMW with 100k or greater miles on it I will have to sink about $2500-3000 to get it where I want to be anyway. The good thing is that other folks have paid down the $55k in depreciation already! Since you work on these cars (sorry, I know this is an E34 thread), what weight oil do you prefer in the E38? Here in South Carolina I only run 15w50 or 20w 50 (synthetic) in my 93 and 94 2.5 liter in-line 6 and 3.0 V8. Do the newer engines like the heavier grade? Freakin' 8 quarts of synthetic oil in my 94 530iT is a killer .... a $60 oil/filter change doing it myself (I view it as insurance though). By the way, I figure if I went through a dealer to get the repairs done on the E38 I would be looking at $4,000+ .... and I would not be in the market for a vehicle such as this due to cost and future MN of the vehicle.
Thx,
Wack
Forgot to mention that there are no pixel problems yet. Besides, if the wife drives it she will not even notice that there is a computer. She puts freakin' post-it notes all over the instrument cluster on her E34 that hides everything. Drives me nuts.
gtopaul
06-24-2007, 11:37 AM
Paul,
Good input. I do not see where the records indicate that these parts have been replaced, but I do not have all the records yet either. We have a "deal" at $15.5k for the price of the car if the suggested repairs were < 1k. Since the repairs are > 1k, if he knocks off some more I will still go with it. This way, a 2001 740iL in tip top shape for $18k or less I can deal with. I figure any BMW with 100k or greater miles on it I will have to sink about $2500-3000 to get it where I want to be anyway. The good thing is that other folks have paid down the $55k in depreciation already! Since you work on these cars (sorry, I know this is an E34 thread), what weight oil do you prefer in the E38? Here in South Carolina I only run 15w50 or 20w 50 (synthetic) in my 93 and 94 2.5 liter in-line 6 and 3.0 V8. Do the newer engines like the heavier grade? Freakin' 8 quarts of synthetic oil in my 94 530iT is a killer .... a $60 oil/filter change doing it myself (I view it as insurance though). By the way, I figure if I went through a dealer to get the repairs done on the E38 I would be looking at $4,000+ .... and I would not be in the market for a vehicle such as this due to cost and future MN of the vehicle.
Thx,
Wack
Don't get me wrong, they are good cars but for some reason most 7 series owners are more interested in driving them than fixing them. With the exception of the M cars I'm pretty sure they put 5w30 in the other BMWs that require synthetic. I use 10w40 Mobil 1 in my S52 525iT but it doesn't require synthetic. I haven't heard of any problems caused by using the heavier grade synthetic's. It doesn't take much to run up a bill. 4-wheel brake jobs are around $1200-$1500 for most Bimmers at work. Makes me cringe when I see customers having to pay that much but I don't set the pricing. I picked up 4 Brembo rotors and new pads (included sensor wires) from O'Reilly Auto Parts last week for for about $350 and will do my sons 94 540 this week sometime. Oh, make sure that E38 is a Sport model if it's being advertised as such. It's a popular look and I see lots of E38's coming in lately with the wheels and blacked out trim but they aren't really Sport models. If you don't have any paperwork confirming that you can always run the VIN by the dealer for a vehicle history report which will show the options. I really like the sport seat models but it doesn't have to have the sport seats to be a sport.
Paul
Good input about the Sport Package, I will run the VIN. I work about 15 minutes away from the BMW plant in South Carolina, perhaps I will visit them tomorrow!
Jim
Here she is, my "new" 2001 BMW 740iL with Sport Package. I will keep my '94 530iT but will sell my the wife's 93 525iT after I have some MN done on the E38.
... hopefully the attachement will come through.
///Sniper535
06-30-2007, 06:58 PM
Here she is, my "new" 2001 BMW 740iL with Sport Package. I will keep my '94 530iT but will sell my the wife's 93 525iT after I have some MN done on the E38.
... hopefully the attachement will come through.
sexyness
LunatiC
06-30-2007, 07:27 PM
Must... keep... hands... above... waist...
Here she is, my "new" 2001 BMW 740iL with Sport Package. I will keep my '94 530iT but will sell my the wife's 93 525iT after I have some MN done on the E38.
... hopefully the attachement will come through.
BimmerMeUp
06-30-2007, 08:37 PM
Sweet Ride.. Saw a black sport running down the road today and they niiice.
Atl530i
06-30-2007, 09:22 PM
Very nice. That is probably going to be my next BMW when the time comes. I will still be keeping the E34 though.
I just sold my 1996 Ford Mustang Cobra (which I bought new). I firmly believe that this E38, with 18 inch tires would out corner the Cobra.
The problem is that the E38 was SUPPOSED to be the wife's car .... now I do not want to give it up!
I agree .... I will still be keeping our Nikasil-powered E34 as once a week I have a 160+ mile commute (1 way). I must say, it appears that the fuel consumption difference in the highway between the 4.4 liter and the 3.0 liter V8 will be minimal.
gtopaul
07-01-2007, 05:20 PM
Good looking car! Hope it gives you many years of driving pleasure.
Paul
Al Gray
07-01-2007, 08:44 PM
I bought a beautiful 2001 740il from my neighbor that had 84,000 mostly highway miles in March 2007. I am very happy with it. It drives like a dream, has some major balls and on long trips gets 23 miles to the gallon. Around town its 14 - 16 mpg. I still have my 1992 525i that has 196,000 miles but runs great. My son, Sean, is getting that ready to get back on the road with new exhaust, brakes, new headliner, and door panels. BMWs are quality machines and with a little know-how you can still do a number of repairs yourself. Good luck with your decision about the 2001 740il. I really enjoy mine.
Al Gray
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.3 Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.