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Thread: Questions after test driving two E38s and arresting rust on these cars

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Oct 2018
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    Toronto
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    1986 Supra

    Questions after test driving two E38s and arresting rust on these cars

    Hello, first post here. I loved the style of the E38 back in the day and almost bought a 2000/2001 off lease in 2004 and based on browsing this forum it looks like I made a good choice to go with the other option at the time. However, seeing how prices have plummeted over the past decade and how there are many of these still available with relatively low mileage and bodies in good shape I am toying with the idea of picking one up during the next couple of years. No urgency and I am patient enough to monitor what comes up for sale and wait for a good one. All though I heard the 740i sport are starting to appreciate. Do you find this to be true BTW?

    I went to test drive two this Saturday to see how they feel/drive/handle. First was a 2001 740i sport in orient blue I believe it's called with around 135k miles. It had the light sand colored interior which looked pretty dirty from wear and tear that was a turn off. The front plastic skirt was cracked in two places held together with duct tape and the right rear window was also taped along the top with an inch wide gap.

    The body was pretty clean however rust was starting to show slightly along the side skirt and corners of the doors. The drivers side seat up/down motor was making a grinding noise but worked fine and there was a lot of wind noise by the moon roof. It had the cooling retrofit and the engine was not making any noise that would lead me to believe it had t/chain guide issues at this time. The owner had it for two years, it was a two owner car, and he didn't know if it had been done. He is asking $6500 for it. The drive felt good it pulled hard in manual mode, it revved nicely.

    The second one was a 740iL with about 90k miles grey on grey with a clean body as far as I could tell. It had the 4:3 stereo and the screen apparently just died on him. The main instrument cluster had dead pixels and the odometer was also at 999999 due to some recent repair. I'm not sure what would cause the odometer to be set to 999999 but I believed him as it was an older gentleman who had it for 14 years, also a two owner car, and there is no way it actually had that much on the clock.

    The issue I had with this one was handling when I took it on the freeway. It seemed to under steer at about 70 when I switched lanes. I turned the wheel and I had to turn it more to get it to move and once I was in the other lane it kept wanting to go to the third lane requiring me to correct the other way to pull it back into the lane. I later read up on the buttons it had and one was the one that firms up the shocks EDC or E-SCD sp?. Unfortunately I did not try it during the test drive but is this characteristic of this car and would the firmer setting corrected it or am I just not used to its heft.

    I am in Canada and considered perhaps importing a rust free 740i sport from a southern state with a clean, rustfree body. However I noticed that in Canada the iL version had the steptronic shifter as an option which means I might be ok with a 740iL with the steptronic.

    What is parts availability from the dealer on these cars? I believe in using oem parts for the most part.

    I love the looks of the 740i sport in either blue with light interior or black on black though I have a black car, actually make that two, and really dislike how dirt shows immediately on them. I also like the silver/titanium colors with the light interior. My concern with the light interior is the dirt. Can the seats be cleaned properly or is it possible to find clean ones?

    Finally, were these cars tinted originally i.e. smoked glass from the factory vs. after market film? The 740i I drove had film on it.

    Sorry about the length. I hope you made it this far....

    Cheers

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2018
    Location
    Toronto
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    4
    My Cars
    1986 Supra
    I heard this was the best BMW forum but I guess people are too busy working on/enjoying their cars...

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    Ft. Lauderdale, FL
    Posts
    5,083
    My Cars
    98 740il, 00 540i,04 ZHP
    I think part of it is the length of your post. You've got a lot of info in there. I would recommend reading the common problems and DIY section at the top of the forum page. There is a ton of information there about all of the things you need to look out for when shopping around.

    But long story short, I wouldn't touch a car with rust. And wouldn't touch a car where the owner taped a window. And I wouldn't touch a car that didn't have good maintenance records.

    Neither car you describe would fit something I'd be looking for.

    The second car with 999,999 on the odo doesn't sound right. Also, it sounds like it needs a full suspension rebuild or alignment at the least. Both cars sound neglected and would probably cost you a lot in maintenance.
    '98 740il | 9/97 build | schwarz 2 | sandbeige | 5AT | 270k
    '04 330i ZHP sedan | Mystic blue | Alcantara | 6MT | 120k
    '00 540i sport | Titanium silver | Black | 5AT | 152k
    '85 Mustang GT convertible | Medium charcoal metallic | Gray | 5MT | 216k | one owner, all original

    mods: m-pars | Bilsteins & B&G springs | ValentineOne | StealthOne
    retrofits: full nav | MKIV | bluetooth TCU | BM53 w/ AUX input | video module w/ AV input & backup cam | oem sirius xm | xenon | shades | PDC | rain sensor | BMW DWS TPMS | lighted door handles | front seat heaters | heated steering wheel | euro rear fog lights | ski pass | folding mirrors


  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Queensland, Australia
    Posts
    4,199
    My Cars
    1995 730iL (M60B30)
    That first one is a clear no-go, avoid at all cost. The taped window, taped bumper and filthy interior basically indicate an owner that has no interest in doing regular ongoing maintenance. Buying that car would be an absolute gamble, as there is simply no way of truly knowing what work has been done, to what standard, or when (if at all). Unless you're totally ok with dumping thousands into it in your first year of ownership, best to just let that one slide. That price is ridiculous too, from how you've described it.

    The second car sounds fantastic! Do you have any means to confirm the 90k mileage? Documentation, historical service records, etc? I've heard of the 999,999 mile error before. From what I understand, it's module related - the LCM (light control module) is damaged and/or not communicating with the IKE (instrument cluster) properly. It could also be the fault of various other modules, or someone really buggered up while stuffing around with some coding. I would suggest that it is a recoverable issue, but it's hard to make any particular guarantees about that. The handling situation just sounds like it needs the very typical front suspension refresh. More than likely the thrust arms and center link ends are all shot, which greatly affects the self-correcting capability of the steering setup. This car would be my choice of the two if you don't find any other more suitable candidates! Suspension work is peanuts on these cars, easy to do, fun to learn, and oh so rewarding when you're done It's also relatively cost effective in the long run if you go with mid to high end parts for your suspension refresh - entire kits ARE available to make life easy. Avoid rust like the plague, if you see it in one spot, guaranteed it's present in countless others you can't see, or at least the seeds are sown and it will grow in time.

    Tint came from the factory, but many were ordered without it, so you get what you get, but most people have replaced tint over the years anyway you'll find, often with darker options. Seats, well you can find plentry at the wreckers, but it's luck of the draw! If they're not torn or splitting, restoration is a very sensible option with some great cleaning products available out there.

    I would say hold out for better cars, find one that someone has put a bit of effort into maintaining. Doesn't have to be a concours car, but so long as the current owner has tried their best to fix things, you at least know there was some love for the car. Personally, I got mine with low mileage but it needed a LOT of work. I jumped right into the deep end, I've spent a lot, but I'm at that stage where I know it inside and out and I'm happy, I've learned a lot and I feel a sense of intimacy with my car, which is what you really want. Are you mechanically inclined? If so, you'll LOVE these cars. Everything can be done with the most basic tools

    Good luck!! Sorry if my post is scattered, it's very late here and I am on wonderful painkillers for a very sore back haha.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Oct 2018
    Location
    Toronto
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    1986 Supra
    Quote Originally Posted by racer2086 View Post
    I think part of it is the length of your post. You've got a lot of info in there. I would recommend reading the common problems and DIY section at the top of the forum page. There is a ton of information there about all of the things you need to look out for when shopping around.

    But long story short, I wouldn't touch a car with rust. And wouldn't touch a car where the owner taped a window. And I wouldn't touch a car that didn't have good maintenance records.

    Neither car you describe would fit something I'd be looking for.

    The second car with 999,999 on the odo doesn't sound right. Also, it sounds like it needs a full suspension rebuild or alignment at the least. Both cars sound neglected and would probably cost you a lot in maintenance.
    Yes, I knew it went long but most forums prefer a single longish post vs multiple short ones by the same poster so I decided to keep it in one.

    I have been reading through the "new buyer" posts and I have gleaned a lot of useful info already.

    I am in no hurry to buy one as the impulse hit after watching some youtube videos. I never drove one before, or been in one for that matter, and wanted to test drive both wheelbase models.

    I really like the sport shorties but also like the long lines of the iLs. I am your typical "driver wanted" person therefore I like the idea of the steptronic tranny along with the rest of the "sport" changes. In Canada we got the steptronic tranny as an option in the iLs and as long as the s-edc worked well it could be a contender. Hence my question if the sample I drove was characteristic of other iLs' handling.

    I agree, about the tape being a bad sign and wouldn't have bought it. I loved the orient blue exterior but the seats were gross unfortunately. I really like the dark on light interiors like yours as well.

    The iL was in decent shape and would trust it as it was leased by a doctor and the current owner had it for the rest of the time and he could afford to keep them maintained as far as I could tell.

    If I needed to replace my car or had a garage to keep a third car I would have been all over the ~40,000km one posted in the for sale thread in British Columbia. That's practically a brand new car!

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2018
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    Toronto
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    1986 Supra
    Now worries Sobek, I tend to go on in my posts as well. I appreciate the responses. The first one I wouldn't have paid half the asking price, the only thing it had going for it was the orient blue color and beige interior.

    The second was gray on gray which I really would not want unless it was a great car for a great price. It was in good cosmetic shape however there were a few too many "little" things wrong with it for the asking price. As I mentioned above I just wanted to get a feel for the model. There was a really nice sport version gray on gray with even lower mileage (~70k miles) went for $6,000 ($8,800CAD) I didn't get to test drive as it was sold by the time I called.

    I am mechanically inclined. I have fixed washing machines, dishwashers etc. and grew up with Lego the problem I have is that I live in a condo and we are not allowed to work on cars in our underground spots. I would actually love to get my hands on one of these to work on. If I do buy one I'd have to find space to work on it. Perhaps I could find a storage unit that fits the car. I could probably rent one for a month for not much more than an hour labor at a BMW dealership.

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