Need to make a decision this weekend!

[jdsteel731]

Disclaimer: Please pardon the long read, I'm completely new to BMW's and feel it necessary to expain this deal in so you can potentially help me decide whether or not to buy the car. Thanks!

First of all, this is my first post on these forums so hello to everyone. Second of all, my parents have been looking for a car to buy for me to drive after they sent my brother down to college in Cali with the 2000 Accord (I'm in Oregon). My mom and I saw this Bimmer in the mall parking lot with a for sale sign. It looked interesting, so we thought we'd look at it (wouldn't hurt anything).

Well, upon further inspection it turned out that it fell into the category we were looking for in a car: Four cylinder, Automatic for a reasonable price (especially, it seems, for a Bimmer). Note: My mom will not by a 5-speed, so we haven't looked into any. And my dad likes the gas mileage of 4-cyl better than 6-cyl (even though I'm aware it doesn't make much of a diff on BMW's).

Details:

1998 318ti Compact/Hatchback
Black, Grey leather interior
130K miles
V4, 1.9 Liter
New alloy wheels
Condition:
Exterior: Excellent
Interior: Near perfect, leather seats (some wear on the driver's seat)
Asking Price: $6500 w/ Alpine sound system (subwoofer, deck, bass), $6000 w/o
Extra: He's leaving on the _nice_ alloy wheels and including the original bmw wheels w/ bmw hubcaps (which my mom thinks are worth $400 alone). Also, he's fixing the last potential problems (see below).

Pictures (from my crappy cell phone camery, sorry! ):





Needless to say, we called on the car and scheduled a test drive, which we did today. Now I expected it to run kinda rough because of the miles, but to my suprise, everything was great. Acceleration was good for a four cylinder, I don't know a lot about BMW's but it seemed overall really good. Body is in basically perfect condition, not a single scratch or ding to the best of my knowledge. Interior very clean and w/o odor (something my mom likes).

Of course, I ran a Carfax and it came out clean. Although at one point in 2002, it failed emmisions inspections, then passed the next month. But another Bimmer I checked on had the same thing, so might this be common and not signify a problem? I also ran the Kelly Blue Book and Edmunds pricing, which came out to about $5650 on both. So it really seems like a great deal for $6k, since a good sound system is not something I absolutely need at the moment.

As far as servicing goes, the last owners have had it for about a year. They installed new breaks, a new radiator, vaccuum tubes, put on new wheels and tires, new belt, and really seem to have taken care of any problems that came up with the car. Currently he's going to bring it into the mecanic to fix the window regulator/switch on the drivers side, and since the vaccum tubes became loose or something, he's having them fixed as well (they're still under warrently from the mechanic's). Overall the guy said he's put about $1500 in repairs in it for his daughter, who drove the car. They're selling it because, apparently, she makes enough money as a waitress to afford a nicer and/or newer car.

The last thing is that I'm not looking for a racing car, or something with 250+ hp. I just want a decent car that will last me for my senior year of high school, and if a car such as this one would be reliable and, since it's economically priced, affordable, it seems like it would be perfect for me. And, of course- it's a Bimmer for 6 grand. How can you go wrong? (Actually, please answer this for me if you know )

I can't think of anything else to tell you about the car besides what I've said. I found this website off Google and thought that, as a community of 318ti enthusists, you might be able to help me out, especially concerning potential problems that might come up as the car approaches 130k+ miles. If you have any more questions, I'll try to answer them to the best of my ability. And, of course, and help you could provide or questions for me to ask the seller would be greatly appreciated!

-Josh

[USMC318ti]

Congradulations on the purchase! Welcome to the addiction!
You are gonna find just about everything you'll need to know
about your new car on this site. Everyone is more than helpful!

[1996 328ti]

A couple problems might be a sagging headliner and window regulators that break. Run the windows up and down and note if the door panel bulges.

The headliner starts to sag towards the rear around the light and above the doors.

I would change all the fluids, plugs and filters and start your maintanence that way.

[jdsteel731]

Thanks. My apologies for not making it clear in the title- I haven't actually purchased this car yet, I was asking for opinions on the deal.

@1996 328ti: So what you're saying is that, because of the milage, I will almost certainly have to start fixing things up right away? And would changing all the fluids, plugs, and filters be expensive for this particular car? I'm sorry that I'm so clueless, thanks again for the kind replies .

[1996 328ti]

Originally Posted by jdsteel731

@1996 328ti: So what you're saying is that, because of the milage, I will almost certainly have to start fixing things up right away? And would changing all the fluids, plugs, and filters be expensive for this particular car? I'm sorry that I'm so clueless, thanks again for the kind replies .

It's not necessary unless you know all of the previous history.
BMWs have an Inspection I and Inspection II. Inspection I is much like an oil change and filter and look over a few things. Inspection II are fluids and filters and a few other things. You can do most if not all yourself and save a ton of money. I only suggest it because you are starting from scratch. Eventually your service interval indicator will say INSPECTION and you won't know which one to do so I suggest Inspection II.

And I don't mean you will need to fix things. The headliner and window regulator are just two things to look at when buying a ti. You may never have a problem with them.

[Sergey]

>And, of course- it's a Bimmer for 6 grand. How can you go wrong?

Easily. There're bimmers out there for $500, too.

At that mileage, I would look into the suspension. Lower control arms, shocks and struts, rear shock mounts.

Get it checked by a BMW pro.

Regards,
Sergey.

[pnosker]

Hey Josh,

A month ago or so I bought a 318ti. I'm a senior in high school and I love the 35-40 mpg I get on it. My headliner is sagging slightly in the rear but it's not enough of a problem. Mine has 93k miles and it runs well. My dad had a 318i E30 with over 250k miles on it with no major incidents so I know the engine design is decent and reliable. And this thing is light and handles well too. I suggest getting it, it's certainly worth it. I paid $6300 for mine + taxes and tags. I have a 5 speed though.

[96cali]

True, I would take it to a non-dealer bimmer specialist (best deal, best service) and then have it serviced there if it works out. Common maintenance points on all e36's (318, 318ti, 325, 328, M3 1993-1999) run from annoying to significant: sagging headliner, window regulator and clips, rear shock mounts, lower control arms/ball joints, crank position sensor, thermostat. At that milage you'd benefit but not necessarily need new shocks unless they've been replaced. Get a good leather conditioner on the seats and close the windows on a hot day to let it soak in. 129k miles wouldn't scare me if it seems in good overall condition- lots run over 200k. Rust would get you sooner but Oregon is pretty gentle IIRC. You could pull off the fender liners (plastic, easy) and check for debris that might hold water and possibly the start of rust. Otherwise, you probably have a great little car. Show up with cash and haggle- the worst that can happen is you pay full price anyway.

Good luck!

[praveen.thomas]

i bought mine 3 months ago and i m in love with the car. go for it. you can do most things ourself and it is not expensive if you do it yourself. this site has amzing people and everyone helps each other. welcome!

[pdxmotorhead]

http://www.pacificmotorsportsonline.com/

Decent shop and don't jerk you around....

Dave

[SDKmann]

I think your first mod should be the ever popular chrome rim delete. I dont think getting those rims would be considered a extra good thing, more like a extra item on your to-do list. And that whole bimmer for 6 grand being great isnt really great. I bought my 96 for $4000 with 115000mi. You probably should have looked into the right prices for these cars before you go off and pay exactly what he wanted for it.

[DustenT]

It blue books at $8k in excellent condition.

[jdsteel731]

Originally Posted by SDKmann

I think your first mod should be the ever popular chrome rim delete. I dont think getting those rims would be considered a extra good thing, more like a extra item on your to-do list. And that whole bimmer for 6 grand being great isnt really great. I bought my 96 for $4000 with 115000mi. You probably should have looked into the right prices for these cars before you go off and pay exactly what he wanted for it.

Hey, first of all, thanks everyone for all the responses! It really helps. One of the things I wanted to ask you SDKmann was is your's a 5-speed? Because, to me, it seems like automatic BMW's are a lot harder to come by than 5-speeds. And I understand that manual transmission is usually more desireable for a Bimmer, but as I've said before, my mom will not allow a 5-speed, so I'm limited in that regards.

Of course, I could just be assuming- maybe it isn't that hard to find an older 318ti automatic for a better deal than this. But you guys would know better than me.

@Dusten, yes, 8000 for dealer retail but keep in mind this is private party (maybe I failed to mention that). Private party is about $5600 on both KBB and Edmunds.

[Turo]

I've had a 98 ti since new and the only major problem with the car is that after you've driven it for awhile, it's very difficult to get enhusiastic about anyhing else. It's simpy from a different planet compared with other modern compacts. The car is also quite rare - and cute.

Don't be overly concerned about repairs & maintenance; ti is still a pretty basic kind of car that you can tinker with yourself.

If a basic inspection does not reveal anything ugly, I'd say go for it and have fun, lots of fun driving it - you will remember this car for the rest of your life.

[jdsteel731]

I managed to talk him down to $5500 BUT here's the issue:

We had a mechanic do a pre-purchase inspection and he found the following problems:

*Compression Test: 155 psi, 160 psi, 180 psi, 160 psi
*Engine Oil Leak (Possibly Rear Main Seal) ( Est. Cost $300)
*Steering Rack Leak ($300)
*Power Steering Hose Leaking ($50)
*Rear breaks 10% ($200)
*Rates car 7/10

Now the mechanic said that not everything needs to be taken care of at once, probably just the breaks and possibly one of the leaks for now and see if it becomes worse for the others at a later time.

So, my question is, is $5500 the right price for this car, or is it too much? Especially considering these mechanical problems that will need dealing with in the (near) future? The only reason he is cheaper is because he's kind of like a Mom and Pop repair shop and not a renowned dealer service or anything.

P.S.- Please look past your bias of auto tranny's, my mom will only let me get an automatic and not a stick. So please put yourself in my position.