I love bimmers. any advice on buying one used?

E30 is beautiful, a real classic:


2.5 liter engine (325i) with 170 hp is very nice, get a 2 door, 4 door ones have too much turbulence for the driver when the windows are down, very good acceleration and brakes although they tend to lose grip quickly when cornering hard. Poor performance under wet or snowy conditions. Parts are easy to get and not expensive, easy to work on if you like to do your own repairs.


325e or just 325 with 2.7 liter eta engine has less horses (121, 129) but has higher torque for pulling things, and great gas mileage. And the engine lasts forever.


I suggest you check out the BMWCCA web site for cars on sale. These guys are all bimmer freaks and they really take good care of their cars.I love bimmers. any advice on buying one used?
CARFAX it before you buy! I wish I had. Ended up with a lemon of a 1998 M3, Thats costing me thousands to get it back where its supposed to be. Get it inspected by a BMW specialty mechanic. Good luck.I love bimmers. any advice on buying one used?
Make sure that the tool kit is complete in the trunk of your car. Your tow cable hook, spark plug tool, and your most commonly used metric wrenches are in this kit.





Change out the fan clutch when you get a chance because it is a part that commonly goes out on BMWs.





Check your tires for wear as they have a different wear pattern from American and Japanese cars (they wear on the inside as opposed to the outside).





Don't be cheap when replacing parts on your beemer. Using non-OEM parts will compromise the performance of the car. Buy parts from your dealer or BMW authorized part retailers. Performance parts in your car are fine as they tend to be superior in quality to OEM parts.
Just because it's a high end car, do not assume that it was well taken care of. Check it out thoroughly or have it checked out. This is the case especially if it has been out of warranty for a few years.
research the E30 or E36 body style of the old 3 series BMW's. They are cheap and quick. Plus they are bmw so milage isnt much of a factor to the buying of these used cars.