Wanna buy a 2002 E46, please advise!

[Bimmerized]

I drove this 2002 e46 last night here in London, and it seems in very good shape. It's auto, 160km, fully loaded 325i. It comes with new winters on BMW rims, and original rims in all season tires. 2nd owner.
It drove extremely nice, very clean in and out, absolutely no rust, bluish Greyish color. I could hear no bumps, or clicks, and it absolutely did not shake, or pull, and I drove it for good 30 minutes, brought it up to 150, no lights on the dashboard, no rips or scratches on the leather, xenons, and I have the receipts for some work, brakes all around, rear shocks, belts, left front wheel bearing, and alignment!

Is $7000 too much, etested? He was asking 8200, I offered 6500, and we worked it out to $7000 as is but etested. He said he's moving out of country, and I believe him cus his house is up for sale too.

Your thoughts, is this an ok price? Should I go for it!?

Thanks![IMG] Uploaded with ImageShack.us[/IMG]

[uzi577]

I would suggest drive it to a mechanic to take a look.
Please be advised it has 160Km.
So next for you are the front control arms and whole cooling system overhaul, one of the front caliper sticking that is just from the top of my hat.
Also remember you are buying a 10 year old car there are going to be 10 year old problems. Make sure you have couple of grand to spend on the car, just in case.

Good luck and welcome to the forum

[Renboy]

Is there a receipt in there that shows the tranny fluid has been changed?

[Blackedout95]

If no major repairs needed it is a fair price. I agree, visit a local bimmer shop and for $100 have them go over the under and look for major repairs that may be needed. Even if you find a minor oil leak etc that may run you several hundred to fix, $7k is still fair.

[pawcio]

it seems like a fair price. based on your description the only thing that would make me think twice is the high mileage.

[B6T]

Do you think he's going to find a car with 50,000km on it for $7k?

[pawcio]

Originally Posted by B6T

Do you think he's going to find a car with 50,000km on it for $7k?

sure...but it probably won't be a bmw.

but on a serious note, its quite likely that the amount you save on a higher mileage car will need to be invested into its maintenance, whereas more expensive lower mileage cars will likely not require as much work and time. i love working on cars and on my car, but reliability saves time and money so i prefer to purchase cars that have lower mileage.

[oakville46]

That's a good price. I would look into any work done previously for coolant and suspension. Most likely you'll need a new water pump and a couple bushings here and there. Check to see if there is any milky type residue under the oil filler cap. If so, they do short trips which can lead to future headaches like gasket replacements.

Does this car have the cold weather package? and/or cold weather crank case valve?

[B6T]

Originally Posted by pawcio

sure...but it probably won't be a bmw.

but on a serious note, its quite likely that the amount you save on a higher mileage car will need to be invested into its maintenance, whereas more expensive lower mileage cars will likely not require as much work and time. i love working on cars and on my car, but reliability saves time and money so i prefer to purchase cars that have lower mileage.

Every car I've bought that had mileage starting with 1xx,xxx has required significantly more repair then any car I've had with mileage starting with 2xx,xxx.

It comes down to the fact that things start wearing beyond their useful service life between 100,000km and 200,000km. I laugh at people who think a car with 125,000km is a better buy than a well maintained car with 200,000km.

[pawcio]

Originally Posted by B6T

Every car I've bought that had mileage starting with 1xx,xxx has required significantly more repair then any car I've had with mileage starting with 2xx,xxx.

It comes down to the fact that things start wearing beyond their useful service life between 100,000km and 200,000km. I laugh at people who think a car with 125,000km is a better buy than a well maintained car with 200,000km.

...and a superbly well maintained car with 300,000km could be better than a well maintained car with 200,000km.

regardless you just proved a point...this $7000 car with 160K is in the zone where it will require more service. therefore the op should look for a cheaper well maintained car with 200K + or a <100K car. my vote is still for a <100K car.

[Eurostyle]

Originally Posted by pawcio

it seems like a fair price. based on your description the only thing that would make me think twice is the high mileage.

20K a year is high!? lol
I'm just used to big numbers in the 300-400K, but then again i put 60K year on my cars!

[pawcio]

Originally Posted by Eurostyle

20K a year is high!? lol
I'm just used to big numbers in the 300-400K, but then again i put 60K year on my cars!

when i bought mine it had a little over 10K a year put on it and I put on maybe 14K per year since then.

[Bimmerized]

thank you for all the input, I bought the car. Well first I looked at all the receipts, and the work was done at the BMW dealership, water pump, thermostat, and belts were replaced, both front calipers and control arms replaced, rear shocks, and all the fluids (tranny, power steering, diff. and engine), also some sensors were replaced as well.
I took it the car to both my well known mechanics here in London, and they both said it looks like it's been taken care of, so considering the prices I check all the time on the internet I think I did good. I got a set of brand new winters on BMW rims, plus the summers are almost new michelins.

No heated seats though, no power seats, and no traction control, it has ASC though. So even if I have to put a grand or two, considering the body shape, and the overall interior of the car, I think I did ok!

Thanks!

[new member]

Look at it again, its suppose to have DCS, as ACS was discontinued in '00.

[pawcio]

Originally Posted by new member

Look at it again, its suppose to have DCS, as ACS was discontinued in '00.

i have a late '01 with ASC....DSC and ASC+T were still option.