| I'd highly recomend a manual over the auto....I'd be willing to bet this is why your local used dealer is willing to deal so much w/ ya. BMW makes a very solid car, and all things being equal, they spend more time developing their 3 than any other car in the lineup....needless to say they spend the most time w/ the ///M series car.
however, there are a few problem areas in these cars, and as I've owned several BMW's, here's some sound advice to someone looking to join the club:
1. Buy a manual. While the auto's aren't typcially failure prone, they do fail and are very costly to have re-manu'd. Depending on the age and condition of a given BMW, tranny problems can in some cases total a car. Besides, your buying a BMW -a driver's car- buy a manual and thank me later.
2. The coolant systems. Not only should you replace the water pump every 60K, you should also swap out the thermostat and thermostat housing. While your at it, wouldn't hurt to replace drive belts and any hoses that appear weak. Short of having records or confirming w/ a trusted previous owner....there is no way to confirm such maintenance has already been performed, as BMW has waffled back and forth on recomending plastic v.s. metal impellers (they both fail, but for different reasons)...these are fairly cheap items to replace and will ensure a long and healthy engine life. If you plan to track the car at all, i'd also recomend upgrading the radiator to an all alluminum unit (as a permenant fix), or a simple oem replacement every 100k.
3. Control arms/bushings/sway bars/end links/shocks/springs, are all things to look into upon purchase of a 10 year-old BMW....replacement of these parts are not rediculously expensive, and if you have any ability to wrench yourself, you can do most if not all of it yourself. Replacing these often worn parts will completely transform your car....trust me on this one.
4. Lastly and probably most importantly, when looking for a used BMW, i can't stress enough, how much a complete set of maintenance records is worth. I'd much rather have a car w/ 100k and a complete service history v.s. a 65k car w/ none. These cars are built very well and last forever, but only if properly maintained... a car neglected is a car fraught with needed repairs. There's no sense in buying someone else's problems.
Hope this helps
btw, got any pix of your gxsr?
__________________ 
Last edited by jllphan : 12-27-2007 at 01:13 AM.
| 
