Buying a 97 M3 4 door.....anything i should know?
- Thread starter Blake2043
- Start date
I stand corrected and you are right Jammer.
FYI: Here are some spec.
http://www.edmunds.com/used/1997/bmw/m3/17463/specs.html
http://www.edmunds.com/used/1997/bmw/m3/17797/specs.html
FYI: Here are some spec.
http://www.edmunds.com/used/1997/bmw/m3/17463/specs.html
http://www.edmunds.com/used/1997/bmw/m3/17797/specs.html
do you really think i should have a mechaninc check it out? they took it to a local place to get a few things fixed(airbag light) how much do you think it would cost to get it checked out? im gonna pay 13,000 and it has 95,000miles on it, they are going to throw in a 1 year warranty...we talked them down alot...
I have a 97 M3 4 Door and love it. I have had it for only about 2 months. The only different color that the 4 Door came in was Byzanz metallic (a gold/champagne type color), and it was only produced on from 9/96 to 8/97. I have also heard that the 4 Door handles a little bit better because the B pillars on it are larger/bulkier.
If your asking what to look for to see if your buying a 'sound' car.. here is a few things I have ran into after buying my 97 M3 coupe.. and building it...
-Spark plugs (what type.. With the ignition system on the E36 ect. Having nothing but the factory spec. plugs is the only way to go. Because you dont have a distributor the spark goes in both directions. Some burn to hot and some will burn colder.. I'd stick to the factory specs)
-Underbody/Subframe, I'd see if you could lift it and look at the underneath.. you can tell a lot from the condition of the subframe IE how hard the car was driven. Look for cracks and abnormal bends ect.
-Struts, Its a common thing for the top bushing of the rear struts to deteriorate thus a thunking sound in the rear of the car when going over bumps.. easy and cheap replacement.. but ignored for a long time can result in a lot extra repairs.
-Brakes/Rotors, I know you probably wont be able to check this before you buy but you should afterwards.. the thickness of your rotors.. with 90k+ miles its easy to ignor the condition of your rotors..(they look the same everyday you look at them) Till you slam on the bracks at 110mph and then you have warped your rotors and then its very obvious they are done.
But like in the privious posts... I'd say get a BMW dealership or someone that knows more than your self to look at it.. and if possible... get a bmw tech to hook up the OBD downloader and see exactly what that car has been through and what the engine condition is...
Good Luck
-Spark plugs (what type.. With the ignition system on the E36 ect. Having nothing but the factory spec. plugs is the only way to go. Because you dont have a distributor the spark goes in both directions. Some burn to hot and some will burn colder.. I'd stick to the factory specs)
-Underbody/Subframe, I'd see if you could lift it and look at the underneath.. you can tell a lot from the condition of the subframe IE how hard the car was driven. Look for cracks and abnormal bends ect.
-Struts, Its a common thing for the top bushing of the rear struts to deteriorate thus a thunking sound in the rear of the car when going over bumps.. easy and cheap replacement.. but ignored for a long time can result in a lot extra repairs.
-Brakes/Rotors, I know you probably wont be able to check this before you buy but you should afterwards.. the thickness of your rotors.. with 90k+ miles its easy to ignor the condition of your rotors..(they look the same everyday you look at them) Till you slam on the bracks at 110mph and then you have warped your rotors and then its very obvious they are done.
But like in the privious posts... I'd say get a BMW dealership or someone that knows more than your self to look at it.. and if possible... get a bmw tech to hook up the OBD downloader and see exactly what that car has been through and what the engine condition is...
Good Luck
Make sure the water pump impeller has been replaced with a metal one.
Check the radiator, particularly the plastic neck.
The rear shock mounts are known to fail. If they do the car will sound like you have a door open when you go over bumps.
The HVAC system can fail.
Some cars have had vanos faliures, but that seems to be rare.
The automatics are not particularly robust, but you should be looking at manual cars . . .
I cannot stress how important a pre-purchase inspection from a competent mechanic (INDY BMW specialist or dealer) is.
I don't mean to discourage you, but it sounds like you are stretching your budget to buy this car, and I doubt you have an extra $100-200 a month to spare on maintenance costs. And these costs don't spread themselves out over each month, but rather are off and on, i.e. nothing for 8 months and then a $1200 bill.
Buying a used high performance car is not the same thing as buying a new car of similar cost. You need to factor in the extra maintenance costs.
I had a 325i that was $240/month for the note and another $100/month in maintenance/repairs over the time I owned it. If you are going to modify the car, that will also cost. I spent about $100/month on modifications while I owned the car (2.5 years, 50k miles).
Check the radiator, particularly the plastic neck.
The rear shock mounts are known to fail. If they do the car will sound like you have a door open when you go over bumps.
The HVAC system can fail.
Some cars have had vanos faliures, but that seems to be rare.
The automatics are not particularly robust, but you should be looking at manual cars . . .
I cannot stress how important a pre-purchase inspection from a competent mechanic (INDY BMW specialist or dealer) is.
I don't mean to discourage you, but it sounds like you are stretching your budget to buy this car, and I doubt you have an extra $100-200 a month to spare on maintenance costs. And these costs don't spread themselves out over each month, but rather are off and on, i.e. nothing for 8 months and then a $1200 bill.
Buying a used high performance car is not the same thing as buying a new car of similar cost. You need to factor in the extra maintenance costs.
I had a 325i that was $240/month for the note and another $100/month in maintenance/repairs over the time I owned it. If you are going to modify the car, that will also cost. I spent about $100/month on modifications while I owned the car (2.5 years, 50k miles).