So we got an old BMW for the summer.
It's a delphingrau 1987 518i Bavaria. While it does have the asthmatic M10B18 four cylinder engine, the main thing wasn't to get a M5 or even a 535i ; me and my friend wanted a cheap saloon in good running condition, that wouldn't break the bank. Some backstory first:
We've made plans to spend weekends touring the neighbouring countries in the summer, possibly filming the road trips and generally having a good travellin' time. The thing is, my Mazda 323, while very reliable and up for long journeys mechanically speaking, is quite uncomfortable and not very spacious. It also lacks any style.
After discarding our bold plans to get an '80s Jaguar XJ40, for obvious reasons, we started looking for old BMW:s and Mercs. The shortlist consisted of W123, W124 and W201 model Benzes, and with BMW it was always about the E12 and E28 5-series; the E30 3-series is too small and has too much of a boyracer kind of image and you can't really get an E34 for the kind of money we wanted to, without the kind of kilometres nobody wants. The car was to be something usually considered unburstable, or at least mechanically reliable and relatively simple to fix. Japanese cars just wouldn't cut it (style-wise) and when I started to talk about old Volvos and Saab 99/900s, I got the kind of feedback usually reserved for people of dubious taste in clothing. So it was to be a German.
The first car we found was a steel blue 1985 518 for 850 euros; it was on its second engine and the odometer had stalled at ~530 000 kms (mind you, the instrument panel was near-dead anyway). All the doors, the hood and the boot deck had been replaced and the car painted twice; it was still/again rusty and moist from the inside. The owner was the kind of old guy that would frantically search for the missing sunroof knob, but hadn't carried out a proper rustproofing (vital here).
Car number two: another 518, but gold this time. It was at a used car dealer forecourt with a very inflated 1290e price tag and 303 000 kms. It had been resprayed badly with the panelwork done dodgily; the boot seams had a good amount of rust as well as the sills. The springs were very tired and again this time we soon figured the car was worthless for us.
Car number three: a blue Mercedes 200E (W123). These usually have the wonderful "African taxi" kind of image; they go for a million kilometres and then for another million. So, when this was advertised for 1500 euros with 220 000 kms in the clock, it had to be seen.
The problem was, it wasn't very good. The panels looked like it had been T-boned and hastily repaired; the paintwork had the orange peel effect to it and the doors didn't fit. The interior too was so worn it was hard to believe the odometer reading. Not something we would invest into.
The next day, things took a turn for the better. We had arranged to see this 1987 example which belonged to a guy from the GM dealership bodyshop; judging from the pictures he had done some repairs to the rear end (the trunk has been repainted from the bumper line downwards) and removed the rear bumper. The odometer reading was 217 000 km (~135k miles) and the guy wanted 1200 euros for it. Even if it would have been lightly rear-ended, it looked straight enough to be worth a closer look.
And it was good. The logbook had enough BMW dealership stamps to give a good feeling about the kms, everything worked fine and the car felt right. Even if the engine was fuel-injected unlike the previous E28:s we checked, the performance still felt very modest. The ride and handling were that good, though, that the relatively weedy engine didn't really matter. The wheels had been recently re-aligned, the shocks were fine, the steering felt positive and there were less rattles than in the 1998 Golf we drove to the appointment. The car had a Blaupunkt mp3 stereo and a working, rust free factory sunroof, the latter being a part of the relatively desirable Bavaria package which also featured a limited-slip differential, tinted windows, central locking, power steering and a leather steering wheel, among other things. Nothing to boast about, but good things to have. The driver's seat had a rip in the doorside cushion, like cloth seats in old BMW:s tend to have; otherwise it was tidy and the sunroof hadn't leaked. The leather shift knob had been replaced with a metal ball-shaped one. The gearshift itself was slightly vague, but was otherwise ok, especially with a recently replaced main cylinder for the clutch.
The price dropped to 1000 euros after some token haggling, which I think is fair for a clean, working (German) car with good history and no rust problems for a long time and seven months until the next obligatory inspection. Even if it were to turn out that half of the things the guy said he'd done to the car weren't true (we're in the dodgy end of the used car market, dealing with a car that's over 20 years old), it would still be very well kept.
My friend (who also paid for 75% of the car and has it under his name, in his parking spot) has now changed the spark plugs, fixed the awkwardly-working bonnet hinges and the distributor that let in moisture. The Bavarian, sitting on its tidy stock alloys, only really needs a tidy rear bumper.
Of course, summer is still a short while away and anything can happen. If the car shits itself or hugs a guard rail, I'll tell you.
For the record, the gas prices are now over 1,4 euro (2,2 USD) per litre here. I don’t think getting the most fuel efficient model of that body type is a bad idea.
Cliffs:
- went looking for vintage wheels for the summer
- saw some real heaps
- got a 1987 BMW
It's a delphingrau 1987 518i Bavaria. While it does have the asthmatic M10B18 four cylinder engine, the main thing wasn't to get a M5 or even a 535i ; me and my friend wanted a cheap saloon in good running condition, that wouldn't break the bank. Some backstory first:
We've made plans to spend weekends touring the neighbouring countries in the summer, possibly filming the road trips and generally having a good travellin' time. The thing is, my Mazda 323, while very reliable and up for long journeys mechanically speaking, is quite uncomfortable and not very spacious. It also lacks any style.
After discarding our bold plans to get an '80s Jaguar XJ40, for obvious reasons, we started looking for old BMW:s and Mercs. The shortlist consisted of W123, W124 and W201 model Benzes, and with BMW it was always about the E12 and E28 5-series; the E30 3-series is too small and has too much of a boyracer kind of image and you can't really get an E34 for the kind of money we wanted to, without the kind of kilometres nobody wants. The car was to be something usually considered unburstable, or at least mechanically reliable and relatively simple to fix. Japanese cars just wouldn't cut it (style-wise) and when I started to talk about old Volvos and Saab 99/900s, I got the kind of feedback usually reserved for people of dubious taste in clothing. So it was to be a German.
The first car we found was a steel blue 1985 518 for 850 euros; it was on its second engine and the odometer had stalled at ~530 000 kms (mind you, the instrument panel was near-dead anyway). All the doors, the hood and the boot deck had been replaced and the car painted twice; it was still/again rusty and moist from the inside. The owner was the kind of old guy that would frantically search for the missing sunroof knob, but hadn't carried out a proper rustproofing (vital here).
Car number two: another 518, but gold this time. It was at a used car dealer forecourt with a very inflated 1290e price tag and 303 000 kms. It had been resprayed badly with the panelwork done dodgily; the boot seams had a good amount of rust as well as the sills. The springs were very tired and again this time we soon figured the car was worthless for us.
Car number three: a blue Mercedes 200E (W123). These usually have the wonderful "African taxi" kind of image; they go for a million kilometres and then for another million. So, when this was advertised for 1500 euros with 220 000 kms in the clock, it had to be seen.
The problem was, it wasn't very good. The panels looked like it had been T-boned and hastily repaired; the paintwork had the orange peel effect to it and the doors didn't fit. The interior too was so worn it was hard to believe the odometer reading. Not something we would invest into.
The next day, things took a turn for the better. We had arranged to see this 1987 example which belonged to a guy from the GM dealership bodyshop; judging from the pictures he had done some repairs to the rear end (the trunk has been repainted from the bumper line downwards) and removed the rear bumper. The odometer reading was 217 000 km (~135k miles) and the guy wanted 1200 euros for it. Even if it would have been lightly rear-ended, it looked straight enough to be worth a closer look.
And it was good. The logbook had enough BMW dealership stamps to give a good feeling about the kms, everything worked fine and the car felt right. Even if the engine was fuel-injected unlike the previous E28:s we checked, the performance still felt very modest. The ride and handling were that good, though, that the relatively weedy engine didn't really matter. The wheels had been recently re-aligned, the shocks were fine, the steering felt positive and there were less rattles than in the 1998 Golf we drove to the appointment. The car had a Blaupunkt mp3 stereo and a working, rust free factory sunroof, the latter being a part of the relatively desirable Bavaria package which also featured a limited-slip differential, tinted windows, central locking, power steering and a leather steering wheel, among other things. Nothing to boast about, but good things to have. The driver's seat had a rip in the doorside cushion, like cloth seats in old BMW:s tend to have; otherwise it was tidy and the sunroof hadn't leaked. The leather shift knob had been replaced with a metal ball-shaped one. The gearshift itself was slightly vague, but was otherwise ok, especially with a recently replaced main cylinder for the clutch.
The price dropped to 1000 euros after some token haggling, which I think is fair for a clean, working (German) car with good history and no rust problems for a long time and seven months until the next obligatory inspection. Even if it were to turn out that half of the things the guy said he'd done to the car weren't true (we're in the dodgy end of the used car market, dealing with a car that's over 20 years old), it would still be very well kept.
My friend (who also paid for 75% of the car and has it under his name, in his parking spot) has now changed the spark plugs, fixed the awkwardly-working bonnet hinges and the distributor that let in moisture. The Bavarian, sitting on its tidy stock alloys, only really needs a tidy rear bumper.
Of course, summer is still a short while away and anything can happen. If the car shits itself or hugs a guard rail, I'll tell you.
For the record, the gas prices are now over 1,4 euro (2,2 USD) per litre here. I don’t think getting the most fuel efficient model of that body type is a bad idea.
Cliffs:
- went looking for vintage wheels for the summer
- saw some real heaps
- got a 1987 BMW
