Looking to buy first BMW - 1989 535i

[Unregistered]

Hello all,

I live in Australia, and am considering the purchase of a 1989 535i, 5 speed manual. The car has travelled 264,000km (165,000 miles) and has plenty of service stamps in the books. When I took it for a test drive, there seems to be plenty of power over 4,000 rpm, and the motor pulls strongly and smoothly right to redline. No smoke is evident from the exhaust under load, and the inside of the exhaust tips are a nice even dark grey colour.

The car idles fairly smoothly, but has a ticking sound that is audible even with the hood closed. Is this the valve clearances, or perhaps the timing chain has stretched (or do they have a timing belt?)

The bodywork and interior is all in good order, and all electrics work.

Are these a good buy? Looking for a reliable involving car to drive, which can also transport my wife and 2 young children in comfort and safety. I have an Audi A4 at present, but this is just a bit small to take another adult with our 4 person family.

Any advice? Anyone else here live in Adelaide, South Australia and can suggest a good specialist mechanic to do a pre purchase inspection?

Cheers,
Nathan

[shortbuss2336]

definitely a good buy, make sure to get it checked out, ie compression test, which will tell the story of the car. Having owned an A4 and a e34 the e34 is waaaaay roomier, comfortable, and definitely better built. If i hadn't gotten hit I would have driven the e34 at least another 100K strong.

[George M]

yup a great car...but at that age...likely will need a fair amount of work as in suspension, drive shaft...perhaps a head gasket etc. Have the compression checked as mentioned by a reputable shop. Review Bruno's site for a what-to-look-for list.
If you can turn a wrench, a good buy. The big six is close to bullet proof and easy to rebuild if something goes amuck. Downside of the car is it is quite heavy which makes it relatively safe but fuel economy isn't very good...not too bad on the highway but poor in the city. Not sure I would consider one as a result today if you do a fair amount of driving due to $2/gal gas prices which will only climb in the future.
HTH,
George

[bimmerd00d]

the tapping you hear is just the valves, VERY common on the M30 motor which the 535 has. Even when the valves are adjusted correctly, they will still tap a little bit. I would definitely have them adjusted as soon as possible, so you can be sure that it gets done. Welcome to the board and you wont be disappointed with the car. Do you have any pictures you can post?

[nate71c]

... Welcome to the board and you wont be disappointed with the car. Do you have any pictures you can post?

Hi again,
I've gone and registered, so the nasty "Unregistered" won't haunt my posts!
I have some pics, hopefully I can work out how to attach them...

OK, will post some exterior shots right after this post.

[nate71c]

Sorry about that, didn't realise I could only post 5 pics at a time. Save the best till last, right?

Not too sure about the bright red paint, but everybody has a silver Bimmer!

The license plates are an interesting touch. I think they are probably overkill, and will probably go to something a bit lower key if I buy the car.

Oh, and by the way, you think US$2 per gallon is doing it tough? Down here in Australia, we are paying AUS$1.05 per LITRE, which makes it about US$2.60 per gallon at today's exchange rate. Still, the first half of my daily commute is clear freeway...

Nathan

[BigD]

Wow Mtech seats, and E28 M5 steering wheel. Bonus points!

Engine looks pretty neglected though. I'd have a mechanic check it out...

[nate71c]

I have test driven 2 other E34 535i's, but neither of them had leather or the sporty seats this one has. These seats are so adjustable, and even the under thigh squab can be extended around an inch and a half (I have long legs).

Am I right that this steering wheel cannot contain an airbag? I would assume the steering wheel was standard fitment along with the seats. Is this possible?

Will definitely have a mechanical inspection performed.

[nate71c]

...Review Bruno's site for a what-to-look-for list.
George

Who is Bruno, and what is the URL to his site? Sounds like a good pre purchase inspection inspection

Cheers,
Nathan

[BigD]

Yep, that's an upgrade the owner did, those were not an option on the 535, only standard on the M5.

The steering wheel does not have an airbag but it's possible to retrofit one. The wiring is already there, you need the wheel and the control module (there should be an orange rubber plug hanging on the passenger side in the engine compartment, around the wheel well, that is supposed to connect to the air bag controller).