535i 5-speed for sale on eBay

[Matt P]

I wanted to let you guys know that I've put my 535i 5-speed up on eBay with no reserve to see what the larger market thinks of it.

I had posted the ad here and on Roadfly a month ago, but other than Brandon, not so much as an inquiry. The current situation with my ankle and my wife (who just got an Acura TL), oh and my relocating to Austin from the DFW area has left it where finding a good home for the 535i is what I need to do.

1990 535i 5-speed on eBay (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=140228343166)

I think the starting price is reasonable, and with no reserve I'll let the market tell me what's it worth. If any of you guys want it and win it, I'd be happy to bend over backwards to help with the logistics of the situation (more than I would for others).

It'll be weird not to own an E34 after a decade and 3 of them (the '95 525iT and '95 M5T). I'll miss them. The E39 is nice, but it's more of pain in arse in some ways.

Regards,

[Ross]

Good luck with the sale Matt.
From what I've read of your car it's a nice one and whoever buys should be pleased.
I'll be watching as my '89 has similar miles....and rust.

[BMWDriver]

The E39 is nice, but it's more of pain in arse in some ways.

Regards,

Whoa man ! you're selling the wrong car then ! ;)

[healtoeit]

The E39 is nice, but it's more of pain in arse in some ways.

Man! I would take an e34 over an e39 any day!

P.S. Who ever does NOT buy that is an idiot... I don't have the $$

[bimmerd00d]

noooooooooooooooooooooooooo. I've been tossing money into my savings, selling lots of crap to fund this purchase. Hope another fine example of this comes along in a couple of months, good luck with the sale. :(

[Matt P]

The biggest deal with E39 540iT is the V8 engine. It's a money pit compared to the M30. More gizmos = more hassle when you keep a car as long as I do.

[Matt P]

Sorry. :( My wife would give me heck if I hung onto it all summer.

[bimmerd00d]

Sorry. :( My wife would give me heck if I hung onto it all summer.

It happens, well maybe it won't sell on ebay and it'll be around for another month or two :D i'm with you on the M62....plus that open diff is a pain.

[Matt P]

The diff never gave me any trouble. The 540iT has the Sports Package and the 3.15 rear, but I don't know if that is relevant to what you are referring to.

We had the rear 'gas bags' burst and the rear suspension go flat around 110k miles. My wife was out driving it and the rear end basically collapsed. She was near Classic when it happened and drove as slow as she could over there to avoid further damage.

The amount of expensive things that needed to be fixed between 110k to 120k on that car was staggering. I swear it'd be cheaper to completely disassemble and reassemble that engine all at once to get it over with. I've flushed the tranny a couple of times and it shows no hints of wearing out, but I still worry about the day it gives up.

[Derek A.]

I am debating on what do do with my 90 535i. Its has 222,000+ on the clock and rusting doors. Rest of the car is in great shape, seems the market on these cars is down. Contemplated an e34 540i or M5 replacement with half the miles on it. Will be curious to see what yours brings.

[repenttokyo]

Good luck to both of you guys.

One things I want to let everyone know is that eBay is doing a great job bringing in the eyeballs, compared to roadfly, etc. I've got 3 bidders already, and two seem pretty serious -- i.e. one had a E28 recently wrecked, and the other's son has a 535i - so they probably know what they are getting into.

The flip side of course, is that I am letting them set the price. But then I'm not concerned at all about recouping my recent expenses in that car. I've got too many other things in my life demand my worrying, and I'm fortunate enough to not be a bind money-wise.



not only that, but you are going to sell it and not deal with tirekickers for months at a time, which is the most important thing :)

[Ross]

You and I are in the same boat, only my boat has more miles.
Sadly the car is worth more in parts than the whole. I really don't wish to break mine. Perhaps another winter on it then....
Glad to see Matt getting some action, hopefully the winning bidder won't be one of the flakes who thinks ebay is a video game.

[Matt P]

Good luck to both of you guys.

One things I want to let everyone know is that eBay is doing a great job bringing in the eyeballs, compared to roadfly, etc. I've got 3 bidders already, and two seem pretty serious -- i.e. one had a E28 recently wrecked, and the other's son has a 535i - so they probably know what they are getting into.

The flip side of course, is that I am letting them set the price. But then I'm not concerned at all about recouping my recent expenses in that car. I've got too many other things in my life demand my worrying, and I'm fortunate enough to not be a bind money-wise.

Like many of us here, we have cars that are now nearing 20 years old, even though they have received a lot of mechanical care. I think we need to consider what is the appropriate level for each of us of cost effectiveness when keeping them and how long to hang on to them.

[Derek A.]

Ouch - $2550 was the final bid. Did you have a ton of inquiries about the car?

[Robin-535im]

Ouch - $2550 was the final bid. Did you have a ton of inquiries about the car?
It was higher than that a day before the end, wasn't it?

[Ross]

I thought I saw $2800 or so. What happened?

[Matt P]

Hi guys. Here's what happened...

I had several inquiries about the car, and 3 bidders.

With a day to go the car was bid up to $3176

One of the two bidders dukeing it out emailed me just before the auction ended (not sure exactly when, I got his email with about one hour to go - I was tied up that morning with other things), and told me quote "the buyer for his car couldn't get financing so his car sale didn't go through and he wouldn't have the money to back up his bid and would I mind canceling his bid"

Sheesh. Well, I didn't have any need for someone who wasn't going to be able to pay, so I canceled his bids. (You cancel them all at once).

So that dropped the price down to just over the #3 bidders high bid at $2550. And at that point, whoever was watching the car knew that they would have to bid over the previous high bid (over $3200, but how much over to get it they don't know) to get the high bid, so I'm pretty sure that scared off any possibly serious bidders on the sidelines.

So yeah, that sucks in a way, but ... it's still one sale more than the online classified have gotten me to date.

I spoke the eventual winner last Wednesday, as he is out of state, and he then spoke to Pat A. (My service adviser) about the car. I got a good feeling about him so I think the 535i is going to a good home at least (and not the teenage delinquent down the street) - The winner's son is a BMWCCA member, and I think owns an earlier M30 powered car, and has been advising his dad. Something about 'this car's a steal' I think :)

Actually, I should say I am pleased with the buyer - He understands it's an 18-year old car with 253K on the clock and his expectations are grounded in reality and he's got the means and place to service it and keep it up as he wishes.

We're not sure if he is going to fly in to DFW to drive it back (looks likely again) or send it by transport, but in either case I should have a couple weeks between taking payment and turning over the car, so I don't see any issues with worrying about payment clearing (and no paypal involved either).


So, in conclusion, if there is anything I would do differently, it would be to have stated very clearly and loudly a "If you bid, Be prepared to pay for it - I don't do cancellations" policy.. but then, if a bidder flakes, would it even help?

As for the final price, in the end it's only worth what someone is willing to pay , not what I wish it to be, so I opt to be happy with the result of getting a sale and having it go to someone who will appreciate it.

[Derek A.]

Doesn't make we feel real good about what I can get for my car - should I decide to do something with it.

[Matt P]

Well, for me it wasn't about the money... really.

I drove the 535i last week to Austin, to work a few days and back, making sure it was sorted out. First serious driving of it in a couple months. And after a couple days, my fraking left ankle felt like it was on fire. On fire when I went to bed, and on fire when I woke up, with the bone that protrudes to the outside being a center point of pain.

I love driving a stick, I really do, but now I am holding out for the 535d Touring with SMG to be imported as a '010 model (how do you write 'oh-ten' anyway?)

To put a finer point on learning to not worry about how much you get when you sell... I sold the M5 Touring for a price that would be unbelievable for any other E34. And yet, I had spent over twice that in total in the 4 years I had owned it.. I put almost $40k into it that was not recouped on sale. I had fun with it, and I remember it fondly that way. But I can't let myself worry about a car of mine having to be worth a particular amount. (I know.. often easier said than done.)

Time to update my Signature it would seem...

[Ross]

So the high bidder had no *^#&!*# money, great. ebay ought to have a way to qualify bidders and keep these retards from fouling up someone else's business.
Gotta go boys, bidding on a new yacht.