Thinking about buying a used car. Need advice...

[Heartless Butterscotch]

Hey, I'm thinking about buying a used BMW (mid-90s model) and was wondering what sorts of things I should look for before making a decision. From those who have bought used cars, where are the best places to look (online or local dealers?) and what sort of experiences have you had?

I'm looking at the 330i right now...

[DragonMage]

I don't have specific advice about used BMW's, but if you want advice on what to look for in a used car in general...

I'd be a bit leery about buying one online if you can't get to it to test drive it first or have a mechanic look at it.

Things to look for when buying used:

Check the ground underneath to see if it looks like fresh oil or antifreeze is present.

Look at the block and the head gasket to see if there's oil or other residue on the engine. If it's totally clean, they've cleaned the engine and there could be a leak they are hiding. Take it for a test drive for about an hour, then park it, pop the hood and see if it looks like there are any leaks from the seals/gaskets.

Also, when test driving, turn the vents towards you on 'outside air'. Smell what comes out of the vents. You can smell things like antifreeze,oil and gasoline from the air blowing off the engine through the vents.

(my first truck, I kept smelling gasoline. Took it to my mechanic and they looked at the engine and found no leaks. Over the next week, I had to fill up every other day!!! Took it back and told them it was using too much gas and I still smelled strong fumes. They took another look and had one guy stomp on the gas pedal while the other looked at the engine...turns out the diaphragm on the fuel pump had gone bad and was SPRAYING gas all over the engine when I was going over 45 or so - which was all the TIME I was driving!!! Scary, that.)

Check all fluid levels, though they may have been topped off before sitting it out to sell.

Listen to the engine. If there are any noises that don't sound "normal" check it out.

Make sure all gauges, lights, auto door locks/windows and such work.

Take it to a mechanic for a look-see within three days of purchase. Better if you can have a mechanic look at it BEFORE you buy it.

And remember - you have three days to back out on the deal, so NEVER pay cash!!! It's almost impossible to get your cash back from someone over a car and, if it's a lemon, you'll be screwed.

Also, make sure whomever you buy it from - that there's something in writing CLEARLY specifying your terms and conditions. Read any pre-printed/written forms completely before signing.

Okay...that's probably more than you wanted but there it is.

[ 12-15-2002, 07:40 AM: Message edited by: DragonMage ]

[Heartless Butterscotch]

No, that's perfect DM. Thanks for typing all of that out. I think I'll take your advice on hiring a mechanic to check out the car.

If it was a domestic, I'd feel better about diagnosing irregularities but those German cars are built rather strangely sometimes (The Audi that I"m driving right now has its battery situated underneath the rear passenger seats for instance).

Anyways, thanks.

[ 12-15-2002, 08:32 AM: Message edited by: Heartless Butterscotch ]

[DragonMage]

Well, you're welcome HB.

Being of the feminine persuasion , I've had to pick up all this info in order to protect myself from men who think women are vapid airheads. Fortunately, my father worked as a mechanic for a few years and knew what to tell me to look for. When I had a problem with my truck, he'd ask me a few questions, tell me what it *could* be, hand me the Chilton manual and tell me to 'go to it'. LOL So my advice is at least based on personal experience. [img]smile.gif[/img]

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

[Memnoch]

Not much I can add to that, except:

1. Check logbooks and service history. BMWs are usually well-kept, but if you're buying a high-performance one like an M3 or a 330Ci, it may have been thrashed. Check if anything's been replaced, especially if the mileage is at key points like 80,000 - 100,000 kms. Things like cambelts etc probably need replacing around this time and they will be expensive if they haven't been done yet.

2. Look at the car from the side and if one end is noticeably higher than the other, it might mean a problem with the rear suspension. Check the rear suspension bushes as this can be an expensive repair.

3. Do the usual check to make sure it's not stolen and there's no finance owing.

4. Make sure you take it out on a test drive, under conditions that you would drive it in. And turn the radio off - so you can listen to the engine while you do it. Pay attention to the clutch and gearbox on gear changes, and the feel of the brakes.

Good luck. [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Sir Krustin]

All good advice.

I'd add:

Inspect for evidence of a collision...by this, I mean look for paint overspray under the wheelwells or overtop of the labels situated around the car (underhood, on door post, etc), mismatched paint colours and so on.

If you are buying from a dealer, get them to put it up on the hoist so you can look underneath it.

Check the colour of the engine fluids. Oil that's thick as tar indicates poor maintenance, although freshly changed oil may be an attempt to hide something. If there's rust in the radiator, the coolant has never been changed. (some of the newer cars use a pink coolant, so be careful about jumping to conclusions). If the car is an automatic, smell the fluid - if it smells burnt, the tranny is likely on the way out.

When test driving, don't just pay attention to the motor, check how far the brake pedal goes - if it goes a long ways before the brakes engage, likely you need rear brakes. When cornering, listen for growling noises and feel for play in the steering. Listen for clunks when going over bumps, and if the car "porpoises" then it needs new struts/shocks.

Make sure all signals work, and all the doors operate, as well as lock/unlock. Use all the controls to make sure they aren't broken. Examine the tires for wear, if the wear bars are near the surface of the tire, you need new tires.

As mnemnoch says, if the car is close to 100,000 it likely needs belt service, and in many cases a tuneup. (modern cars claim 150,000 or more between tuneups, but that's really extreme in this mechanics opinion)

[Ronn_Bman]

All of the above tips are absolutely great, but you'll probably not be interested in any recent car that's had a dozen or so different owners. If they tell you it's a "one-owner"(grandma only drove it to church on Sunday, I PROMISE) there IS a way to be sure(in America anyway).

Ask to see the title!

The VIN(Vehicle Identification Number) always starts out with just numerical characters. That's why it's called a Vehicle Identification Number.

When you buy a new car, you get the original VIN on your title, but subsequent owners add an alpha character to the end of the VIN, for record keeping purposes. If the last character in the VIN "number" is a "C", then the car has had 4 owners. The original owner(#1) plus 3(C is the third letter in the alphabet) subsequent owners.

Soooooooooo you probably wouldn't be interested in a car with a VIN ending with X....lol.

[Mouse]

Oh, and as it's a BMW, check the options. The most popular "delete" option for BMW drivers where I come from appears to be the indicators.........

[Epona]

Originally posted by Mouse: Oh, and as it's a BMW, check the options. The most popular "delete" option for BMW drivers where I come from appears to be the indicators.........

You mean there may be a BMW out there somewhere with indicators? First I've heard of it

[AzRaeL StoRmBlaDe]

my advice is buy an audi instead get an A4 they have AWD and are awesome in the winter