Considering a '02 330i and need advice

[Robasaurus]

Last summer I bought my first BMW, a mint 2003 Z4, and driving became fun for the first time in a very long while. Now I’m no longer satisfied with driving my very reliable Toyota Camry and have been looking for a BMW to drive daily. More than anything else the car needs to be fun to drive. I also want a car that's in nice condition but not so nice that I'm going to worry about driving it in the winter or have a shopping cart bump into it. I can do most of my own repair work and I tend to like the looks and simplicity of older BMWs so I've been looking at them. I'm likely to drive whatever I buy to 200K+ miles so I also want a manual transmission and a motor without turbos so I wouldn't have to worry about huge repair bills for those things.

So tonight I found a rust-free 2002 BMW 330i with a manual transmission and only 107K miles that the owner wants $3700 for. A kid has owned it for the last year and before that his neighbor had it since it was new. It needs rear brakes, rear tires, and a front right turn signal lens. You also have to push the clutch hard to the floor before you can start it. This car seems to be what I've been looking for, although I've only driven a few other BMWs ('09 645 that was too "boaty", an '11 328 that had a vibration problem, and a '15 328 that failed to impress me for some reason, probably because I don't want a four-cylinder motor even if it's turbo charged.

The car seems to run well and I really enjoyed driving it. But it has the following engine codes:

P1083 - Fuel Control Mixture Lean Bank 1 Sensor 1
P1085 - Fuel Control Mixture Lean Bank 1 Sensor 2
P0171 - System too lean bank 1
P0174 - System too lean bank 2

Pending Code P0313 - Misfire detected with low fuel

My research indicates these codes are most likely caused by a vacuum leak, but possibly the MAF sensor or fuel pump. None of these things seem very worrisome or expensive, although I'd pay a garage to replace the pump.

Do you agree? What other things should I check or do before committing to buying this car?

I don't know a good independent BMW mechanic and it'll take a week or more to get an appointment at the dealer to have them check the car over. I will get the CarFax for it in a few minutes.

[dnbmbimmer]

I'm more or less in the same boat. 2004 vert with 110k. I own a 98 328i and I believe the E46's have similar issues for an older car: Make sure the top functions normally there is a lot of electrical components which can and do fail, check the rear suspension shock towers for corrosion, you will most likely have to replace all cooling hoses expansion tank etc, the vacuum leaks will probably need replacement of all vacuum lines and CCB and ICV, do a cooling system flush, do a brake line flush, do the double vanos repair. All of this is doable but it takes some time and $. Someone on the list can correcxt me if I'm wrong or this is something I have missed as I am usually on the E36 side of the forum.

Don B.

[Robasaurus]

Thank you for telling me about shock towers. I would never have thought that they could become a problem. I also didn't know that the vanos would need repair.

The "kid" has driven the car about 10k miles in the year he's owned it. But he's also had the oil changed three times so that's a good sign. The CarFax also showed that the previous owner regularly had it serviced at the local BMW dealer.

I'm going to take another look at it and drive it one more time. If I don't find any more serious problems I'm going to buy it. I figure I'll need to spend about $2000 right away on the most important repairs and preventative maintenance, and maybe another $1K-$2K over the next year. But I think that's reasonable and I'll end up with a fun car that will last for a while.

[All2kool]

...although I'd pay a garage to replace the pump.

That would be a waste. It's a 30-minute DIY and requires just a few hand tools. Skill level = 1.

[Robasaurus]

Thank you for telling me that. I had an unpleasant experience once replacing a gas tank mounted fuel pump and I wrongly assumed that the 330i's pump might be hard to change too.

I put myself through college by working as a mechanic and garage manager. I still have skills but they've gotten rusty because the Camrys I've owned have rarely needed more than routine maintenance even thought I drove the last one to the moon (250K miles). I'm actually looking forward to working on this 330i and getting it in great condition. But I'm also getting older and so I'm more willing to pay for some repairs that can be done much easier with a lift or a younger back.

[jclausen]

Always get a prepurchase inspection, as far as the faults you won't know what the cause is until you smoke check the intake system

[Robasaurus]

A PPI isn't going to be possible for the reasons I stated earlier. Is there any kind of vacuum leak that would be a deal breaker? It seems to me that an intake manifold gasket leak would likely be the worse case scenario. How hard / expensive would that repair be? The car idles and drives well. The engine codes are the only indication of a vacuum leak.

I'm traveling now and am going to look at the car again on Sunday when I'm either going to buy it or walk away.

[Robasaurus]

Ok, so I just learned that a cracked intake manifold is not unlikely and the repair is probably around $700 at a garage.

[watut]

If you live in a cold climate, start it up cold and watch for injectors leaking. As someone else mentioned CCV, Front control arm bushings.

[rbelton]

Doesn't sound too bad, but at 100-120k is where all of the deferred maintenance starts to hit on BMW's. Suspension, cooling system, clutch sounds like it could need replacement, CCV valve could be source of the lean codes if it's not something simple like torn intake boots. Just be sure you know what you're getting into. I'd try to find a 330i that has maintenance records.

Here's a common cause of the lean codes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vODpt5b2DsM

[Robasaurus]

I bought the car Sunday and I hope to get just a little more advice before wrapping up this thread.

I wasn't able to get a pre-purchase inspection done but I found a good independent BMW garage and I'm going to have them do a cylinder leak / compression test and change the plugs at the same time. The car starts and runs great but I want to know for certain that there aren't any fundamental problems with the motor before I start investing money in the car.

Is there anything else I should have them check? They probably know what to look for but I'd like your opinion.

During my second examination and test drive of the car I didn't find any additional problems. I did learn that the other previous owner had spent $2000 to replace "the water pump" and I suspect that also included a radiator because it looks new. The Carfax showed he regularly took it to the local dealer and the dealer says they can provide me with the maintenance records.

The current owner said they replaced the belt tensioner and they had proof they'd done oil changes at 3000 mile intervals (unfortunately at a Jiffy Lube). So it looked like they'd been trying to take care of it. They were selling it to buy a newer BMW.

The engine codes cleared on their own and then came back when I accelerated hard to get on an expressway. Then they quickly cleared again with normal driving.

The car is enormously fun to drive but it still doesn't come close to my Z4's handling and quickness. It needs some work but it will be a great daily driver for $3700 if the mechanic doesn't find anything serious that I missed.

Thank you for all your help.

[MarcoZandrini]

Jiffy Lube! Gott im Himmel!

1. Buy a Bentley manual for the car. Try eBay.
2. Buy an oil filter made by Mann and only Mann. Try amazon.
3. Buy 7 quarts of fully synthetic oil that has “BMW LL01” on the label.
4. Buy a 36mm 6 point (NOT A 12 POINT) socket for the oil filter cap. Try Home Depot or Lowes.
5. Drive the car 10 miles.
6. Change the oil and filter.

The cooling system is the car’s Achilles heel. Why? It’s made of plastic. It’s high quality German plastic, but it’s plastic nonetheless. So, keep a careful eye on its condition. Most folks here overhaul the cooling system at 100k miles. What does that include:
1. Water pump - Scaleri or Graf
2. Thermostat - Whaler
3. Radiator - Nissens or Behr
4. Upper and lower hoses - Continental
5. Expansion tank and cap - Modine
6. Serpentine belt - Continenal
7. Pulleys - IMA (?)
8. Temperature sensor o-ring in the lower hose (dealer doesn’t sell these but the parts is available from several vendors)
9. Block drain plug crush ring
10. DISTILLED water - 1 gallon
11. BMW coolant - 1 gallon.

Where to buy? I’ve used fcpeuro for years. The company warrants all parts for life. The prices are usually among the lowest, too.

If the car has a manual transmission, buy 2 quarts of Redline D4ATF and a transfer pump. The capacity is ~1.5 quarts. Both the drain and the fill plugs are 17mm. The power steering system uses the same fluid regardless of what’s on the power steering reservoir cap. The differential uses EXACTLY 1 quart of fluid. I used Redline 75W90 for non-limited slip differentials.

[Robasaurus]

I'm impressed by FCP Euro. The company gets good reviews and I prefer to buy parts that have been reviewed by other buyers.

[Jackson42]

Jiffy Lube! Gott im Himmel!

1. Buy a Bentley manual for the car. Try eBay.
2. Buy an oil filter made by Mann and only Mann. Try amazon.
3. Buy 7 quarts of fully synthetic oil that has “BMW LL01” on the label.
4. Buy a 36mm 6 point (NOT A 12 POINT) socket for the oil filter cap. Try Home Depot or Lowes.
5. Drive the car 10 miles.
6. Change the oil and filter.

The cooling system is the car’s Achilles heel. Why? It’s made of plastic. It’s high quality German plastic, but it’s plastic nonetheless. So, keep a careful eye on its condition. Most folks here overhaul the cooling system at 100k miles. What does that include:
1. Water pump - Scaleri or Graf
2. Thermostat - Whaler
3. Radiator - Nissens or Behr
4. Upper and lower hoses - Continental
5. Expansion tank and cap - Modine
6. Serpentine belt - Continenal
7. Pulleys - IMA (?)
8. Temperature sensor o-ring in the lower hose (dealer doesn’t sell these but the parts is available from several vendors)
9. Block drain plug crush ring
10. DISTILLED water - 1 gallon
11. BMW coolant - 1 gallon.

Where to buy? I’ve used fcpeuro for years. The company warrants all parts for life. The prices are usually among the lowest, too.

If the car has a manual transmission, buy 2 quarts of Redline D4ATF and a transfer pump. The capacity is ~1.5 quarts. Both the drain and the fill plugs are 17mm. The power steering system uses the same fluid regardless of what’s on the power steering reservoir cap. The differential uses EXACTLY 1 quart of fluid. I used Redline 75W90 for non-limited slip differentials.

There is a tremendous amount of useful advice and wisdom in Marco's post. Bottom line: zero-time the cooling system from the firewall forward. Total cost of parts is about $700 or so, and it is the cheapest peace of mind you can purchase for this car. You have the skills and the attitude to be successful. Just be patient and methodical in trying to chase down any manifold vacuum leaks - there are a lot of places to bite you. Replace the air intake boots between the MAF and the throttle body - there are two of them. Kind of a stinker to replace but commonly fail at this age. Double-check the fiddly little hoses that come off the back of the inlet manifold - if your car is so equipped, there is a resonance flap actuator at the back of the muffler, and I have yet to see a car that doesn't have a failed vacuum hose somewhere in this assembly. It is completely unnecessary, so I remove the hose for it from the back of the manifold and cap it. There's another vacuum tap back there for which the cap seems to crumble and disappear. Easy to fix if that is the case.

Get acquainted with realoem.com. It has the BMW factory parts catalogs and is invaluable not only for looking up part numbers, but also for allowing you to see how all of it goes together. Just enter the last seven characters of your VIN, and hey presto...

As for coolant, I use Pentofrost NF, which is just the BMW blue coolant without the BMW price tag. Good luck and happy hunting.

[MarcoZandrini]

You can also use Peak coolant. My go to local bimmer shop uses this instead of BMW coolant.