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Thread: Daily 850 ?

  1. #1
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    Daily 850 ?

    i always wonder when people talk about a "daily" 850.... let me tell my story :

    i bought a '91 manual 850i , nice condition , black on black, "only" 87K miles…. and could drive it home ! ( 20 miles ) The shop had just renewed the GM module and waterpump... belts and oil … ...

    Following is over a total of 1000 miles :

    Not much later Limp Mode.... took a lot of searching, switching sides... to found out a MAF did not run the bank on which it was. 2 new MAF's and problem gone.

    A bit later i had sticking brakes… searched the forum and … indeed, new master cilinder. Problem gone.

    Leaking gasket at differential…. new in , problem solved.

    Assumed ignition troubles but could not found the real cause… so new rotors,caps,wires, plugs,coils. Problem gone.

    Had a code.... O2 sensors . New in , problem gone.

    Worst event , water leak at the pump.... till i demount it to see it were the tubes (across the valley) corroded at the O ring ends … yep, to replace those , demount inlet manifolds….

    Manifolds demounted i found .. of course... the gaskets stone hard and brittle… so new.

    Also the alternator cable baked in that metal tube above the exhaust … exposure of the copper ! scary. Made new cable going to the fender , no more hot metal tube guide.

    Meanwhile 2 shocks were leaking oil… so 4 new shocks and at the same time new springs.

    Strange running issues... to see it had 1 DME with another chassis #... bought a set from a 750 , the 2 DME's and EML. Changed and was indeed better.

    Drained batteries…. i suspected the alarm system , got it removed, new batteries and so far no problems.

    Changing batteries i see a lot of moisture under them… cleaned and painted …

    Just installed new inside fender liners , all brittle and broken at bolt locations ...

    i'm sure i forget some and don't even mention many little problems … the car was more on the lift than on the road for 2 years….

    Would i buy it again ? i serious doubt it. I have 40 years experience on BMW's , rallying a 2002 and now a CS … all maintenance i can understand … a 850 seems a bit to high tech , with many problems due it's age , and so difficult to cope with. Even for dealers.

    Now , why i bought it in the first place ? sure not as a oem "oldtimer" , but to experiment with a supercharger.
    That's another story but we are at 437 HP and 600 NM with 0.5 bar boost. Indeed a different car to drive, as it should have been . The oem 286 HP ( dyno ) not impressed for such a heavy car. Yes, a cruiser...

    Now don't get me wrong , i love BMW's , had 5 2002's , a 528I, 535,320 , new 520, 530, 650... i'm a regular customer …. but my 850 had the problems of all the other ones together in one.

    Please share you're experiences… did i bought a real bad one or is this "average" for our so loved model ????

  2. #2
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    '93 850Ci- Daily Driver
    You bought one that was patched together for the sale instead of one that actually had periodic preventative maintenance performed on it.
    '93 850Ci - Mineralweiß Metallic

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  3. #3
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    Had a 1991 BMW 850

    Problems

    They are a lot more demanding than the run of the mill car. I have gone thru more that what you did Belgiumbarry, when I am done I am looking for a about 50K miles before the maintenance items start cropping up again.

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by TxGR8White View Post
    You bought one that was patched together for the sale instead of one that actually had periodic preventative maintenance performed on it.
    i don't think one can "patch" a lot on those cars … most things either work or not. I believe , i my case , the car must have been not used for a long time....garage queen ? I heard indeed the car was out of a "collection". So all those failures were lurking to pop up in the first miles ....

    Yes, seller garage that got it through tech inspection must have had a "friend" over there…. it had a "serious" oil leak ( the long pentosin line over de driver side fender) , a suspension arm with "play" , and if they already cleaned shock oil from the struts to camouflage , those shocks woudn't pass the test . Weak bulbs etc... We sadly know that problem, the garages get it approved till you must go yourself a year later..... maffia.

  5. #5
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    You mentioned you had 650. What do you think of that? I’m asking because i bought one a year ago and it has been a huge pain in the ass ever since. There has been something wrong with it all the time. Very expensive problems like the valve stem seals, valvetronic and lot more. This experince has taught me that i would never ever buy a 10 year old bmw EVER again.

    newer bmw’s are pretty poor guality.

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by rjjablo View Post
    They are a lot more demanding than the run of the mill car. I have gone thru more that what you did Belgiumbarry, when I am done I am looking for a about 50K miles before the maintenance items start cropping up again.
    i'm with you rjjablo, me too hope to get it "done" once and be good for some trouble free K miles.... therefore i always buy new oem parts . Can't do better ?
    Al least the body and interior are fine for a 30 year old car…. it only had ( imho ugly) Hartge wheels , so i bought direct new Mpars/tires at BMW.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by mikae31 View Post
    You mentioned you had 650. What do you think of that? I’m asking because i bought one a year ago and it has been a huge pain in the ass ever since. There has been something wrong with it all the time. Very expensive problems like the valve stem seals, valvetronic and lot more. This experince has taught me that i would never ever buy a 10 year old bmw EVER again.

    newer bmw’s are pretty poor guality.
    Hallo mikae31 , sorry for your problems… i bought the 650i new and sold it after 5 years when out of warranty. That is indeed a car that i wouldn't want to drive out of warranty....as so many modern complex cars now…. myself had little problems, if i remember correct they had to place a new GPS system , some failures on the hood mechanisme ( it was a convertible) , and last problems with the gas pedal sensor . A bit boring , but easy when under warranty

    Remained a expensive car…. bought it new for exact 100K euros, 5 years and 100K kilometers later i got 27K for it...

  8. #8
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    damned, i must ad a story ... when "we" were looking for a car at that time, i preferred a FGT that was for sale for 150K , but wifey didn't agree and it became the 100K new 650I.... so i got 27K for it... what would have done the FGT ? 200 K ?

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Belgiumbarry View Post
    Hallo mikae31 , sorry for your problems… i bought the 650i new and sold it after 5 years when out of warranty. That is indeed a car that i wouldn't want to drive out of warranty....as so many modern complex cars now…. myself had little problems, if i remember correct they had to place a new GPS system , some failures on the hood mechanisme ( it was a convertible) , and last problems with the gas pedal sensor . A bit boring , but easy when under warranty

    Remained a expensive car…. bought it new for exact 100K euros, 5 years and 100K kilometers later i got 27K for it...
    I have spent over 10 000 euros in repairs within a last year. There has been something wrong with it all the time. Now it seems to be mechanically goog but i am so fed up to this car that all i want to do is to get rid of it.

    One thing also is that bmw’s are nowdays pretty poorly ”protected” against rust. There is only a thin layer of paint under the car, nothing more. There are plastic panels but those are nothing more than cosmetic protection. My car has only 108000km (68k miles) and the underbody is completely rusted all over! Something i wouldn’t have expected to find in this kind of car!

  10. #10
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    perhaps used a lot on salty roads due snow ?? but even then, you don't expect that in that price range cars….

    on the other hand mikae31 , those are "expensive" cars when new, so repairs are similar …. either justified due complexity or quality ...or for brand profit… sometimes you can see it in part prices , the same part ! costs more for a 650 as for a 530 ( just random example ) ... i'm not surprized of 10K repairs to get a "old" 650 running trouble free.

    i'm afraid it all began with the 850 …. what was a 535,635 with M30 engine simple and "cheap" to maintain…. !
    I love my 2 E9's for years now, even abusing (rallying) one. But a 850 is another level.... after 2 years i'm almost afraid of using it , just wondering what would go wrong this time.....

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by Belgiumbarry View Post
    perhaps used a lot on salty roads due snow ?? but even then, you don't expect that in that price range cars….

    on the other hand mikae31 , those are "expensive" cars when new, so repairs are similar …. either justified due complexity or quality ...or for brand profit… sometimes you can see it in part prices , the same part ! costs more for a 650 as for a 530 ( just random example ) ... i'm not surprized of 10K repairs to get a "old" 650 running trouble free.

    i'm afraid it all began with the 850 …. what was a 535,635 with M30 engine simple and "cheap" to maintain…. !
    I love my 2 E9's for years now, even abusing (rallying) one. But a 850 is another level.... after 2 years i'm almost afraid of using it , just wondering what would go wrong this time.....
    I’m pretty well aware of the history of my car and it hasn’t seen snow much. If the underbody would have been protected like in the good old days, it would look like new. It’s just the fact that guality has gone worse. I also have e39 that is 20 years old, accident free, and the underbody is WAY BETTER than this expensive six series. The underbody of my -91 e31 850 looks like new.

    I’m pretty sure i won’t be buying any newer bmw ever again. The guality sucks and the design has gone from bad to worse. One example is the sound insulation. This 650 is way more noise than my e39. I have actually measured the difference and it is 4db, wich is a lot! I personally think that the highlight of bmw cars were at the end of 1990. After that the guality has began to go down, there are problems in timing heads, valvetronics, cars bursting fire and so on...

  12. #12
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    oh, but it is better now... compared to the E9's , those are real rust buckets. No protection at all from the body factory ( Karmann) …. i heard story of a dealer with new ones in the showroom with rust traces… OK, they are 50 years old now , and there are 2 : either complete rusted out bottom or one with a restored new bottom. But for that time no exception…. i ever had a Porsche 911 with the same issues. Same for Alfa, Fiat etc... and i remember the car graveyards ( as we name it ) in the '70-'80s , all Jap cars rusted complete but still nice spinning engine.

    My 850 bottom is solid, but sure surface rust on suspension components. Doesn't look "new"....

  13. #13
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    in my opening post i forgot...

    a few injectors went bad .... so new set

    A fuel pump went bad …. so complete new pumps set ( $$$) and filters...

    New crankshaft position sensors....

    oil leaks everywhere… still not "dry" running.... always a big mystery from where it comes…

    "pumping" idle or stall … still not solved…

    etc.. just to be complete in my miserie count

  14. #14
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    Had a 1991 BMW 850

    Daily

    Ordered 2 new MAF Sensors today

  15. #15
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    Only owned mine for about three years now, but yes these cars especially the ones that have been sitting for a while are problem. I pretty much immidiatly had to fix the Breaks, Gearbox, Batteries, the original exhaust was mostly rust and numerous small things like the seals on the fuel tank and so on.

    Last autumn I simply decided that I would stop worry and drove it for six months while the Z4M Coupe stood in the garage. It worked more or less perfectly as long as I filled up pretty much every oil type regularly and a hint of water now and then. As long as everything doesn't need to be perfect these cars are pretty sturdy. While the 850 is expensive it isn't M car expensive so far.
    Last edited by exalted; 06-16-2019 at 06:34 AM.

  16. #16
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    Just turned 193,000 miles. Biggest expense tires.


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  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by rosakirk12 View Post
    Just turned 193,000 miles. Biggest expense tires.


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    Forgot to say everything works but does require attention here and there at times but nothing major and was pristine when purchased.


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  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by exalted View Post
    Only owned mine for about three years now, but yes these cars especially the ones that have been sitting for a while are problem. I pretty much immidiatly had to fix the Breaks, Gearbox, Batteries, the original exhaust was mostly rust and numerous small things like the seals on the fuel tank and so on.

    Last autumn I simply decided that I would stop worry and drove it for six months while the Z4M Coupe stood in the garage. It worked more or less perfectly as long as I filled up pretty much every oil type regularly and a hint of water now and then. As long as everything doesn't need to be perfect these cars are pretty sturdy. While the 850 is expensive it isn't M car expensive so far.
    exalted, now you mention it ….
    i also renewed complete exhaust as it was serious rusted but no holes in it. So one can catalogue that under "cosmetic". Either way , i wanted a bigger exhaust diameter for the supercharger install.
    And i have new gaskets laying around to look also for a leak at the fuel tank... when full it leaks fuel from above dripping down the tank.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote Originally Posted by rosakirk12 View Post
    Just turned 193,000 miles. Biggest expense tires.


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    rosakirk12 , you are one lucky guy ! in that case , my 2 year old tires are still brand new.

  19. #19
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    Quote Originally Posted by rosakirk12 View Post
    Just turned 193,000 miles. Biggest expense tires.
    Congrats! Not too far behind you....161,000 miles on mine. Going into my 14th year of ownership was my daily driver for the 1st 10 years. I've spent more on wheels & upgrades than repairs. Only engine work has been gaskets & waterpumps....so far. OK, add driveshaft & transmission to the list.
    1993 850Ci.....18 years & 165,000 miles and counting!

  20. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by TedBobo View Post
    Congrats! Not too far behind you....161,000 miles on mine. Going into my 14th year of ownership was my daily driver for the 1st 10 years. I've spent more on wheels & upgrades than repairs. Only engine work has been gaskets & waterpumps....so far. OK, add driveshaft & transmission to the list.
    Thanks TedBobo…. hope some more chime in … to give us , with less lucky 850's , more courage and to believe one day it will be OK....

  21. #21
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    Still my DD keeps the miles off the b7.


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  22. #22
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    Mine has been a lot at the mechanic but always gets me to the destination.
    I have been considering though selling and getting a 911 964

  23. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fatandre View Post
    Mine has been a lot at the mechanic but always gets me to the destination.
    I have been considering though selling and getting a 911 964
    sorry to hear you thinking of selling …. the 964 is the nicest P they ever made imho , but on a different price level as most 850's... and a different car , more "sport" instead of "comfy cruiser". O well, depends on what you want to do with the car.

  24. #24
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    Quote Originally Posted by Belgiumbarry View Post
    And i have new gaskets laying around to look also for a leak at the fuel tank... when full it leaks fuel from above dripping down the tank.
    Same problem I had but more like a steady stream then dripping, changed the gaskets on the top around the fuel pumps and now I think it works but ain't going to fill the tank full just to test it.

    Of course I barely mentioned above that I likely have a headstud or headgasket problem that I will have to do something about eventually . I've also been finding surface rust in a number of places and will be cutting out one of the battery trays and welding new metal as it is mostly gone anyway. But really the small stuff that don't impact drivability doesn't worry me its part of the ongoing hobby.

  25. #25
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    Quote Originally Posted by exalted View Post
    Same problem I had but more like a steady stream then dripping, changed the gaskets on the top around the fuel pumps and now I think it works but ain't going to fill the tank full just to test it.

    Of course I barely mentioned above that I likely have a headstud or headgasket problem that I will have to do something about eventually . I've also been finding surface rust in a number of places and will be cutting out one of the battery trays and welding new metal as it is mostly gone anyway. But really the small stuff that don't impact drivability doesn't worry me its part of the ongoing hobby.
    don't be afraid, fill the tank and test it ! That's what i will do … ok, i can fill it at a station 1 km from my lift at home ... and inspect the leak… or no more leak .

    oeps, headstud… headgasket… that's another level . When needed , i recommend to forget the 2 lifting lugs and rebuild the fuel return line above the passenger valve cover. Makes almost every manifold bolt visible ! When you are up there, you will see
    Don't know if doable with engine in the car … ? i think so… yes, you will need to remove the exhaust down pipes…. great fun ….but OK, turning loose and dropping a nut i realized that putting them back on would be another story.... i got those back in place more easy with the springs above. Just drilled some holes in the heat shields to clear the springs, but they are not in the way for pulling plugs ! That way you only have to magic the nuts from below on the bolts….

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