Tag: high mileage

1986 BMW 735i Euro 5-Speed LSD No Reserve

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A find from the bargain bin here. This grey market 735i is up for sale on eBay with no reserve and a price currently well under $1,000. Sure the car has over 200,000 miles on it, but the seller seems very confident in its reliability. Several things set this 7 series apart from others including the Zender style body kit, limited slip differential, 5 speed manual, and the unique euro only interior appointments.

The car has a few things wrong with it, but nothing you couldn’t leave and just enjoy the car as is. A nice looking ride that will sell to the highest bidder.

 

~Evan

How low would you go? Bargain-ready 1988 BMW M3

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I rarely consider myself old enough to say “back in the day…!”, but I’ve been watching E30 M3 prices for over a decade and can sadly say that I’ve seen prices for decent ones nearly double. Well, it must be Memory Monday because there’s an M3 for sale starting at $8,000. It’s reasonably clean and well-maintained, but even the most well-maintained car get a little rough around the edges after a quarter million miles. I can’t say how much work is in there before it’s 100%. It could live a little longer, or it could be time for a rebuild ASAP. Either way, it’s important to keep these things on the road, and I think someone could get a start on this one for significantly less than the normal price of entry.

From the seller:

She has had a good run but it is time for her to move to a new home. I have owned her since 1999 or so. I am the third owner. I bought her with about 89k miles on her. I have a complete history to include the dock inspection but I do not have the window sticker. I have receipt for parts purchases and a composition book listing her history of service and repairs. All maintenance since I have owned her has been done by me. She was in two accidents:

· 2000 (or so) – Rear ended by a Corolla and pushed into a Supra. No major damage. Complete front bumper replaced and rear bumper repainted. All bumper shocks were replaced. At that time I also had the mirrors and rockers re-sprayed because when I bought the car it had the notorious red faded paint on those plastic parts.
· 2001 (or so) – Backed into by a hit and run driver while parked on the street in DC. Damage was scratch on the hood and the passenger front fender dented just where it curves to meet the front grill. The fender was replaced because the dent was on a crease and the hood was re-painted.

Modifications:

· Bilstein Sport Shocks w/Ground control coil-over conversion. OE front spring perches were never removed in the event I want to go back to stock springs. Rear springs are now 6” not the 5” that came originally with the kit.
· RD rear shock tower tie bar.
· BMP front Shock tower brace.
· Eclipse head unit with stock BMW amp and speakers. The original head unit comes with the car.
· OZ Mito 17 by 8.5, 13mm offset wheels ( 215/40s front & 235/40s rear – Yokohama S.Drive) . Wheels purchased from Mr. BBS. Still in good shape to be 10s a re-polish and centers re-sprayed or powder coated.
· Front aggregate guard. E30 Motor Werks Severe Duty Skid Plate. Installed after a lower pan pucker… just enough to leak oil when car was not running. Yes, the lower pan was replaced.
· Raven (Dimoff) track exhaust w/DTM tips… Loud!
· Will Chu – FG brake ducts
· HID low beams
· French (Yellow) high beams
· Sport EVO grills (Kopi)
· Smoked front signal lenses (not painted)
· Rear fog bulbs wired as additional brake lights.
· Delrin shift knob
· Short shift BavAuto
· Battery cut-off switch. Mounted on battery cover.
· Remote jump cable connection with large AMP connector with matching 12 foot heavy gauge jumper cables.
· Conforti chip
· Etc…

Current state:

· Back in November I think I burned a valve on cylinder #4. Compression numbers were 195, 200, 150 and gauge flutter… I have not opened the engine. She still will run but sounds like a flat-four with exhaust.
· A/C stopped working just at the end of the summer. I never diagnosed it. I know the compressor needs the mounting bushings which I have.
· There is a little rush on the cowl near the wipers. I also know there is some in the front jack pad region and rear of the rear wheel houses.
· Sunroof was replaced with a painted unit form Vintage Sport Racing.
· She has her second rear wing. The clear just cracked dead center…
· Both mirrors have seen better days. They could stand a repaint. Again clear coat issues.
· Interior is in great shape. The driver seat has the most wear on that outer bottom bolster.

The bidding hasn’t kicked in yet, but starting at $8,000 for the M, the myth, the legend sounds like we’re partying before the new millennium.

-NR

Reasonably-priced E30 M3

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There’s quite a few E30s for sale around the internets right now, more than I’ve seen in a while. The problem? Despite an increase in supply, prices aren’t going down; most are $17k and above. So while I’d love to post about a glorious 110k-mile relative creampuff with Evo 2 bits, I’m personally more interested in the M3s that are more within reach. Hence my excitement at finding a clean M3 for just $11,000.

1988 BMW E30 M3 for sale on SF Craigslist

Unfortunately there’s a dearth of pictures, but I still think the listing does a decent job of portraying this as a well-used (175k miles) but clean M3:

picked up the car April 23, 2010. I’ve put on ~500 miles since then.

I have recent PPI report, smog check, about 75 pages of receipts, and carfax available (all from previous owner).

– $11,000
– ~175k miles
– Hennarot
– Tan interior
– Has been resprayed, not in showroom condition, minor rust on sunroof and where front windshield meets the hood
– Looks/drives great
– Located in San Francisco (can meet in SSF for a test drive to avoid driving the hills)
– Local pick-up only

Reason for selling: Moving overseas in the semi-near future.

Yeah, it’s a lot of miles, and I’m sure an inspection of the interior would reveal a worn drivers seat and maybe some other foibles, but the exterior and engine look clean enough. In my book, $11k for any clean-running M3 is a great deal and I’m wishing I could fast-forward a year to when I’ll have that kind of funds. Ideal entry into E30 M3land.

-NR

1991 BMW E30 325i 5 speed convertible High Mileage

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We see a lot of low mileage beauty/garage queens and we see literally tons of high mileage ragged beaters in our quests. We don’t often find a mostly original 200,000 mile car we want to post, but this one I felt deserved a little press.

Reader Peter caught this 1991 325i that still sparkles. The 5 speed manual definitely helped in convincing me that you readers would appreciate this well traveled cabrio a bit more.

It looks to be well cared for, obviously, it is on its second timing belt, has a reconditioned soft top, and a new plastic rear window. The seller says it has no rattles, no leaks, no rust, and a strong clutch. The seller also says it “drives like a new car”. I don’t know about that with that high mileage on it I’m sure it feels a bit different than a new E30, however with that many miles it probably has all the kinks worked out and settled in to a sort of automotive stasis.

Apparently the odometer has stopped working, but when selling a car with a known 200k on the clock does the additional mileage matter other than for bragging rights and maintenance upkeep records?

The vehicle has a reserve on the price, it would be interesting to see what this would go for without a reserve or what the seller thinks it is worth. With 16 bids already and a price of $2300 it is hard to say how much higher it will go. I’ve said this before, I’m not a convertible guy so this doesn’t appeal all that much to me. I do suspect without a reserve some enthusiast with a budget would get a nice entry point into BMW ownership.

Does the mileage make you nervous or does the overall presentation and condition of the car assuage any fears you might have?

~Evan

High Mileage 1992 Mercedes 500E No reserve sale

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200,000 mile 500E for sale with no reserve and an opening bid of $7,950. I’m a bit up in the air on this one, good deal or not? The price is far from the $40k you might pay for a super fine 500E. With Benz and Porsche engineering if the was well maintained the mileage shouldn’t be too scary right? The car looks almost completely stock other than the new radio and 18″ AMG wheels. It has apparently been serviced regularly by an authorized dealer. I am unclear as to what the seller means by saying the car was “used as real estate closing tool.”
The seller gives a list of recent maintenance items and fixes:

# Upper & Lower timing chain and rail replacement
# Full replacement transmission
# New air compressor
# New power steering box & pump
# Suspension and rubber mounts renewed
# New valve cover gaskets
# Recent Transmission Seals, (Trans. was pulled) – there are no oil or fluid leaks.
# New radiator
# New windshield wiper reservoir
# New front tires.
# Regular oil & filter changes
# Clean leather interior, wood is all nice.
# Newer Kenwood radio.

What do you folks think about this one? It looks pretty clean. I can’t imagine prices for a 500E will drop much lower than this even with high mileage.

~Evan

Well-Traveled but Clean 1988 BMW 535is for sale

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Before I take the big plunge to E28 M5dom, I could definitely see myself learning the ropes by enjoying a 535is for a while.  With essentially the same styling and plenty of fun to be had from the venerable M30 3.5 inline-6, the “is” provides a nice middle ground between the normal 535i and the fantastic M5.  535is prices also trend much closer to the 535i than the M5, making it perhaps the best value of the bunch.  Today we have a very clean but high-mileage example off eBay.

With a no-reserve starting price of $3,995, this 245k-mile 535is could be a great starter.  The body is very straight, the interior is mostly great with some medium bits, and the paint and wheels look fantastic.  There are enough little issues (trunk doesn’t stay open, broken cruise control, etc.) in addition to the high mileage to keep the price low, but it’s a lot of car.  The M30 block is widely regarded as one of the more bulletproof engines out there, and this one seems to be running strong and well maintained, so that mileage is much less of an issue than it would be on most other cars (Benz and VW diesels excluded).  If it stays around $5k, this could be a great way to enter the sporty E28 market without breaking the bank.

-NR

High-mile, well-maintained E30 M3 for sale

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Another rare, attractively-priced E30 M3 has come up on eBay that could give someone the chance to fulfill their dreams without destroying their bank account.  We’ve seen examples go north of $30k, with the majority of the market in the mid-teens these days.  High-mileage M3s have become the last affordable way to get in the ultimate homologated BMW sports car, and this one comes in decent condition considering it’s covered 190k miles.

The mileage means it’s going to need a bit of work, but getting an M3 for under $10k is practically grand theft auto these days.  The engine looks very clean considering the mileage and age, and the interior and exterior each have highs and lows.  The Cinnabar Red looks pretty good though the front fascia has seen a lot of road.  The seats have normal E30 wear but aren’t falling apart, and the rest of the front interior looks pristine.  With less than day left and reserve off, the bidding is at $7,900.  If people say you have to spend $15k to get a nice M3, this one will give you plenty of breathing room to make it gorgeous.

-NR