Really Expensive Parts???

[mrfc3s]

Hey, i was talking to someone about my bimmer, and we got onto the subject of replacement parts... He said they were more expensive. I replied that its probably worth the extra couple of bucks... he laughed and said that a pair of spark plug wires from advance auto was $200. i didnt beleve him at first but then checked it out myself online and found the truth...

WTF??? WHY ARE A COUPLEA WIRES 150 More than they should be??? WTF does BMW Do Differently ???? Why are things overpriced??? I figured that things would be a few dollars more... not a few more hundred dollars??? its going to cost me atleast 3-4bucks for a worthy tuneup alone??? I know im Bitching alittle, and some of you are going to say buy a honda or somthing to that affect.. but Is there a cheaper place to get stuff??? I really dont want to get rid of this car... but $200 Plug wires is outragous... Does anyone see the insanity in this??? :

[BMWJNKY]

Because I got over 200,000 miles out of my orginal BMW wires. They would still be on my car but one our parts vendors was having a special on OEM parts so I got a new set.

[yammahamma]

Yea I got pretty bummed when I replaced my plug wires. I bought new ones from Bavauto.com, and they were complete garbage. After the new wires, which cost $160 at the time, my car was miss-fireing...pretty much just running like crap.

Here's where I outline my whole experience:

http://www.bimmerwerkz.com/forum/3-s...ght=plug+wires

in the end, and after spending $300 total on two different sets of new wires, I would definently recomend going with Ireland Engineering 8mm wires. they only cost me $130, but that was a while ago. You might could find cheaper if you DON'T go with 8mm wires.

I got mine at bmw2002.com

I still have my old wires, made by bremi I think, The impulse cable has been cut (long story) and the plug connector on wire #2 is bad....other then those two things they should work fine. I'm sure you could put yours and mine toegther and make a working set....let me know if you want them, I'll let them go for dirt cheap.

[Starmavin]

Try this! My new favorite place: www.autohausaz.com Wire set with loom $79.90 with free shipping!!!

[mrfc3s]

Thanks guys, its just that this has hit me like a brick(ow...) not just the wires, aparently im looking at $500 for a decent tuneup... Cap, Button, Wires, Plugs... ect.. also it sounds like i need another Diff... or atleast a fluid change... and when i fill up, gas pours from the rear of the car on the filler side... and a bad oil leak...argggg... little overwhelmed.... is there any chance that this car might become a decent DD for cheap??? It sounds like a forutune for parts... the worst part is im sure ill never be able to resell for more than $800... but i love that car so....
Ill bite on those wires... how much?

[RobY330i]

It really is a matter of "you get what you pay for".
BMW did not do a half-ass job in designing their cars. They have the autobahn. They know their target clientele. They need to keep their image.
With that in mind, you need to do a little research to get the best price for a part.
Get yourself a Bentley manual. Most BMW repairs are DIYers.

[Morgenster]

hehe, I got freaked out about the same thing.
I bought my bimmer with zero knowledge about cars. once I saw the first shop bill I learned real fast.
You should maybe look for a shop that specialises in BMW but isn't an official dealer. I found one where the mechanic has 20 years of experience and gets parts straight out of Germany or from a nearby german car cemetary. That's what you'll need if you don't want to do much yourself.

[mrfc3s]

well, its not even that, im more of a try and do it yourselfer... the thing that bothered me was the price of the ignition and tuneup parts... for me, its unheardof to pay mroe than $30 for a set of wire... and 10-15 for a distributor cap... But looking around and at some options, i might still be able to afford it... Its not that bad i guess, and i also now understand why they are so much...
The only things that i cant do are like adjusting the valves and stuff like that. and machine work and exaust work.

[325eXTATIC]

Actually MrFc3s (are you a rotary head, like me too???) the valve adjustment is WAAAAAYYYYY easier than I gave it credit for! Trust me, I am very mechanical, but I expected it to be really difficult or the valve train to be over-engineered, making it difficult to do... I found it to be the exact opposite. Perfectly engineered and no more than 90 minutes end to end... And that was my first time!!! If you need some tips when the time comes, start with my thread here http://www.bimmerwerkz.com/forum/3-s...eas-45343.html
and then ask any necessary questions, or feel free to PM me with questions... I will happily help anyone that understands the concepts of a motor with 3 moving parts(eccentric, and rotors!)!

Josh W.

[Starmavin]

The BMW plug wires have a solid wire core, unlike carbon (suppression) conductors that break down after time. The BMW plug wires can last 10x longer. To tell if your wires are bad do a continuity check, if you have a break, your wires are bad...