should i sell my E34?

[Moolala]

Hey guys...

I need a "daily" driver thats good on gas, cheap on insurance, and cheap on maintanence.

Now the E34 isnt all that great on gas, but it does better than my 97 328is.
insurance is a little bit cheaper. how about maintanence? ( ive only had this car for 1 year )

Im thinking of selling the E34 and picking up a used civic. are parts really that much cheaper for a civic? btw, i'm a home DIYer. Even tho i buy a civic, i'm still going to have to maintain it. but is it worth it? and is it worth going through the trouble of selling the car and looking to buy a used civic?

Now the E34 i know is a very solid peice of machinery. but im having issues such as a leaky head gasket and valve cover gasket. (my head gasket is just leaking coolant out of the head and is not entering the combustion chamber thank god)

MY E34 only has 79 000 Kilometers. (49,000 miles.) ... Will I be dumping a lot of money into the 535 in the near future for maintanence??

What should I do? Am i going to be happier with a civic? Discuss!

Thanks.

[Sam Son]

49k miles?!? thats all? holy crap well since Im certifiable Id keep it but if your not the type go with a used accord you always have the E36 for fun

course I like E34's much better

[tonyroc14]

wow, keep it, sell the other bimmer. Dont get a honda, get an acura. :D same thing, just more refined, and alot more comfortable.

[zubbie]

I have a civic, a corolla, a chevy caprice and an E34. In order of expense for parts from cheapest to most expensive.

1. chevy
2. BMW
3. civic
4. corolla

I still spend more on the BMW than any other car because more parts are need.

Corolla's are very reliable, rarely fail and boring as shit to drive. Civics are more fun but still light and tinny and fairly reliable but nothing compares to the feel of an E34.

For a commuter vehicle a civic will be fine but I guarantee that you will miss the E34 road feel if you sell

[mrsharp]

Hey guys...

I need a "daily" driver thats good on gas, cheap on insurance, and cheap on maintanence.

Now the E34 isnt all that great on gas, but it does better than my 97 328is.
insurance is a little bit cheaper. how about maintanence? ( ive only had this car for 1 year )

Im thinking of selling the E34 and picking up a used civic. are parts really that much cheaper for a civic? btw, i'm a home DIYer. Even tho i buy a civic, i'm still going to have to maintain it. but is it worth it? and is it worth going through the trouble of selling the car and looking to buy a used civic?

Now the E34 i know is a very solid peice of machinery. but im having issues such as a leaky head gasket and valve cover gasket. (my head gasket is just leaking coolant out of the head and is not entering the combustion chamber thank god)

MY E34 only has 79 000 Kilometers. (49,000 miles.) ... Will I be dumping a lot of money into the 535 in the near future for maintanence??

What should I do? Am i going to be happier with a civic? Discuss!

Thanks.
For one sell the e36. For second it sounds like someone overheated and warped the head on your e34. Depending on how bad it is you may need a new head. So I suggest you sell what appears to be a very nice e36 and spend half the money on a e30 318 and the other half on fixing and perfecting your e34. Get in touch with your old school bimmer side. There the best cars ever made and I think once you fall in love you'll never leave. But thats just me:D

[Moolala]

im never selling my E36!!! its my baby haha.

Maybe i should stick with the E34 who knows...
i know i wont like to drive a civic but as the gas prices increase, my wallet goes down the drain!

[mrsharp]

im never selling my E36!!! its my baby haha.

Maybe i should stick with the E34 who knows...
i know i wont like to drive a civic but as the gas prices increase, my wallet goes down the drain!
Hahaha. To each his own.

[tonyroc14]

should have thought about that before you bought two bimmers :D seriously tho, i drive a 540 with failing o2 sensors, and now that i cant get around that, i drive it like it was meant to be driven, and im 16, and barely make enough to keep it up, and i do :D keep the e34. Never buy a honda

[e34freak1993]

dude your only sixteen i didnt know that kool me 2 haha!
We gotta get together some time!

[mrsharp]

dude your only sixteen i didnt know that kool me 2 haha!
We gotta get together some time!
Me three

[e34freak1993]

There is more of us every day geez! lol!
Yeah the only reason i work is because of this car!

[skylinergtr]

79000kms? was the car a japanese import?

[Moolala]

yes it is imported from japan.

http://www.members.shaw.ca/d_chan328/535i/535i2.jpg

http://www.members.shaw.ca/d_chan328/535i/535i3.jpg

talk about front wheel gap haha.

[skylinergtr]

yeah, i'm sorry to say this but i think your milage is not accurate. japanese imports tend to have rolled back odometers because they dont have carfax or anything in japan so they can basically do what they want. so i believe most japanese imports have rolled back odometers because i worked on a lot of mercedes imported from japan that say only 50000kms or 70000kms but they need a new head gasket... and all that. crafty japanese. i like your e34 but maybe get rid of it to avoid future problems? maybe get another one:redspot

[screwbiedoo15]

your e34 is so clean no way should you sell it

[Moolala]

Interesting...

Can i find out by checking the tamper sticker at the back of the cluster gauge?

[mrsharp]

OMG, I love that car! Is it a manual?

[E34ührer]

I don't care for Hondas myself. Overhyped piles of crap. They break too. There are just as many, if not more, Honda repair shops as BMW repair shops. PLUS they aren't cheap to fix anymore. Even parts are spendy now. MPG is the only reason to think about a Honda, but if you are still wanting a Honda, you can buy my wifes. 97 Accord 4 banger special. 9X,XXX miles on it, and has cost me 7X the money that my E34 has....AND ITS A BITCH TO WORK ON because I don't have little baby hands like the guys that put it together.

[mrsharp]

I don't care for Hondas myself. Overhyped piles of crap. They break too. There are just as many, if not more, Honda repair shops as BMW repair shops. PLUS they aren't cheap to fix anymore. Even parts are spendy now. MPG is the only reason to think about a Honda, but if you are still wanting a Honda, you can buy my wifes. 97 Accord 4 banger special. 9X,XXX miles on it, and has cost me 7X the money that my E34 has....AND ITS A BITCH TO WORK ON because I don't have little baby hands like the guys that put it together.
It's true! My dads five year old Pilot has more issues than my 18 year old European racer!:confused

[zubbie]

yeah, i'm sorry to say this but i think your milage is not accurate. japanese imports tend to have rolled back odometers because they dont have carfax or anything in japan so they can basically do what they want. so i believe most japanese imports have rolled back odometers because i worked on a lot of mercedes imported from japan that say only 50000kms or 70000kms but they need a new head gasket... and all that. crafty japanese. i like your e34 but maybe get rid of it to avoid future problems? maybe get another one:redspot

Wait... is this possible in an E34. I thought the only way to change the mileage is to replace the coding plug in the gauge cluster with a lower mileage one from another car. Since each coding plug is serialized based on the car you should be able to tell if it has been changed. My car is also a J-spec (113,000 km) but it truly looks like it only has that mileage. I removed the original exhaust with hand tools without breaking a single bolt. Age, no coolant changes and lack of driving will also cause head gaskets to go by the way...

Anyone out there know anything different?

[Moolala]

thanks mssharp. no its not manuel but i can get 1 for cheap.

hm u guys have a point about the honda parts being expensive, same with labour if anything goes wrong. the difference is not that much of a difference. i have to worry about timing belt when i buy a car around 60 000 miles too.

i'm probably going to keep the E34 and fix the head gasket myself.
It be a good learning experience as well...


yah zubbie im curious as well.

[skylinergtr]

i think its possible. i was told by my mechanic that 99% of cars can get their clusters rolled back, but u know we have insurance and carfax and everything. in japan they dont have anything to keep track. plus they are more technological. cars that are rolled back are usually from jap actions. i asked my mechanic as a joke if i wanted to could you roll back my odemeter and he said he could do it. so i dont know i could be wrote but thats my theory. also dont let milage fool you, it depends on how well it was kept as well. my friends 91 explorer with 240k miles looked really clean until he hit a tree. i'm just saying this has happened to many cars that i worked on (mainly benz') and hopefully both of yours is special and was taken care of and is original. i'm just telling you what i've heard.


Wait... is this possible in an E34. I thought the only way to change the mileage is to replace the coding plug in the gauge cluster with a lower mileage one from another car. Since each coding plug is serialized based on the car you should be able to tell if it has been changed. My car is also a J-spec (113,000 km) but it truly looks like it only has that mileage. I removed the original exhaust with hand tools without breaking a single bolt. Age, no coolant changes and lack of driving will also cause head gaskets to go by the way...

Anyone out there know anything different?

[daflameking]

although civics are reliable and on gas, good savers, the parts in them go real bad fast meaning the life doesnt last as well as our authentic e34s. they're light, nimble and the parts are cheap and most can be DIY.

if you do the switch, you'll miss the e34, just like what everyone has said.

[zubbie]

i think its possible. i was told by my mechanic that 99% of cars can get their clusters rolled back, but u know we have insurance and carfax and everything. in japan they dont have anything to keep track. plus they are more technological. cars that are rolled back are usually from jap actions. i asked my mechanic as a joke if i wanted to could you roll back my odemeter and he said he could do it. so i dont know i could be wrote but thats my theory. also dont let milage fool you, it depends on how well it was kept as well. my friends 91 explorer with 240k miles looked really clean until he hit a tree. i'm just saying this has happened to many cars that i worked on (mainly benz') and hopefully both of yours is special and was taken care of and is original. i'm just telling you what i've heard.

One way to check is to get the dealer to run the serial number for service records. I did this and saw a series of recalls performed over the years with logical mileage documented.

I do believe, however, that changing the odo is fairly easy. Quick Google search and voila http://www.tachosoft.com/pics/bmwe341992.htm

Based on my electronics background the odo is likely an EEPROM that can simply be rewritten using the right circuit to change the correct field.

I found another site.. I am correct. A simple program and an eeprom programmer and you've got "newly calibrated" odometer

http://www.jmdiagnostics.co.uk/01/mileagecorrection.htm

[billygoat777]

There is more of us every day geez! lol!
Yeah the only reason i work is because of this car!

haha me 4 and same reason im getting a job

[tonyroc14]

dude your only sixteen i didnt know that kool me 2 haha!
We gotta get together some time!

hells yea. Where at in socal are you?


Me three

:D


There is more of us every day geez! lol!
Yeah the only reason i work is because of this car!
i've had a job alot longer. My car hasnt asked for much money yet, aside from gas...*knock on wood*


yes it is imported from japan.

http://www.members.shaw.ca/d_chan328/535i/535i2.jpg

http://www.members.shaw.ca/d_chan328/535i/535i3.jpg

talk about front wheel gap haha.
if you sell that i will piss on your grave.

[mrsharp]

thanks mssharp. no its not manuel but i can get 1 for cheap.




It's MR.Sharp:mad:stickoutt

[Moolala]

It's MR.Sharp:mad:stickoutt


haha my bad. :D

*sigh* living in the world of bmw is $$$

[mrsharp]

haha my bad. :D

*sigh* living in the world of bmw is $$$
It's allll good!:)

[Erick]

HEY just like mine, but mine is black and 15k more miles =O