Manual 4 door saloon in calypso red metallic. Plastic bumper model, with BMW's sturdy M43B18 engine.
This has been my run-around for the last 19 months - incredibly reliable and a bit fun too. When I bought the car, although I just needed something cheap and to get from A to B, I still wanted something that was satisfying to drive. And I wasn't disappointed!
This Beemer features the more reliable and longer lasting 4 cylinder engine. Yes, it's a bit slower than it's six cylinder brethren and yes the brakes aren't quite as sharp - but don't let that put you off. What you lose out on in power and still very-sufficient braking ability, the car pays back in spades when it comes to fuel economy. It's nice and clean inside, a bit tatty* on the outside and, with a little outlay now, sure to serve the next owner as well as it's served me.
*I think the previous owner drove the car through a hedge and then re-touched with an approximately matched aerosol. There's paint runs and overspray in various places.
Good Points:
89k
Lots of history
3 Previous Owners
Factory alarm and electric windows
Clean and complete interior
Eligible for some classic car policies (cheap insurance)
Pleasure to drive
Idles well
Accelerates smoothly
Stops well
Plenty of life left in the front tyres. Rears probably half way through their lifespan.
Economical (~55mpg achievable on the motorway)
Timing chain - no belts to worry about
Very little rust relative to other BMWs of this age - small areas of rust now showing through can be easily treated
Bad points
Exterior Tatty
Short MOT (Feb 5th)
Could do with an oil + filter change (I did the plugs/leads/air filter late last year)
Couple of minor oil leaks - fairly typical with BMW's M43B18 engine and cheap to fix.. (cheaper to ignore!)
Needs some work for MOT (see below)
Unevenly wears o/s/r tyre
Drivers window does open and close without any assistance, but it's slightly noisy
Rattle in the drivers door on opening and closing - probably related to the above
Sagging headlining
O/S/R wheel arch starting to rust - could probably (most likely) just be rubbed down and repainted
Two small sections of sill (O/S) need need rubbing down and repainting
New parts:
Thermostat + Coolant flush
Idler pulleys
Brake light switch
Front discs + pads
Rear shoes
Renewed brake fluid
New rear silencer
New battery
New plugs, leads and air filter
It's done 5k since the last MOT.
Last year's MOT advisories:
Front registration plate deteriorated but not likely to be misread
Rear registration plate deteriorated but not likely to be misread
Nearside Rear Brake pipe slightly corroded
Offside Rear Brake pipe slightly corroded
Nearside Front Brake pipe slightly corroded
Offside Front Brake pipe slightly corroded
Nearside Front coil spring corroded
Offside Front coil spring corroded
In addition for MOT I think it will need:
Rear anti-roll bar re-bushing
Probably some other bushes or ball joints - E36s are notorious for short shelf-life on these parts but they are cheap to replace
It also needs:
Wheel alignment (it's very slightly off)
Wheel balancing - there's some judder as you reach about 70 mph
So in summary, what's on offer here is a very honest car. My ownership experience with it has far exceeded expectation. I'm offering it for sale on account of recently buying a 323 SE in close to perfect condition.
Ideal first "classic" BMW, well suited to a rolling restoration.
The car is currently declared SORN. Under the new rules, any buyers would have to arrange their own tax.
£445 OVNO
No time wasters please!
Pictures to follow...
This has been my run-around for the last 19 months - incredibly reliable and a bit fun too. When I bought the car, although I just needed something cheap and to get from A to B, I still wanted something that was satisfying to drive. And I wasn't disappointed!
This Beemer features the more reliable and longer lasting 4 cylinder engine. Yes, it's a bit slower than it's six cylinder brethren and yes the brakes aren't quite as sharp - but don't let that put you off. What you lose out on in power and still very-sufficient braking ability, the car pays back in spades when it comes to fuel economy. It's nice and clean inside, a bit tatty* on the outside and, with a little outlay now, sure to serve the next owner as well as it's served me.
*I think the previous owner drove the car through a hedge and then re-touched with an approximately matched aerosol. There's paint runs and overspray in various places.
Good Points:
89k
Lots of history
3 Previous Owners
Factory alarm and electric windows
Clean and complete interior
Eligible for some classic car policies (cheap insurance)
Pleasure to drive
Idles well
Accelerates smoothly
Stops well
Plenty of life left in the front tyres. Rears probably half way through their lifespan.
Economical (~55mpg achievable on the motorway)
Timing chain - no belts to worry about
Very little rust relative to other BMWs of this age - small areas of rust now showing through can be easily treated
Bad points
Exterior Tatty
Short MOT (Feb 5th)
Could do with an oil + filter change (I did the plugs/leads/air filter late last year)
Couple of minor oil leaks - fairly typical with BMW's M43B18 engine and cheap to fix.. (cheaper to ignore!)
Needs some work for MOT (see below)
Unevenly wears o/s/r tyre
Drivers window does open and close without any assistance, but it's slightly noisy
Rattle in the drivers door on opening and closing - probably related to the above
Sagging headlining
O/S/R wheel arch starting to rust - could probably (most likely) just be rubbed down and repainted
Two small sections of sill (O/S) need need rubbing down and repainting
New parts:
Thermostat + Coolant flush
Idler pulleys
Brake light switch
Front discs + pads
Rear shoes
Renewed brake fluid
New rear silencer
New battery
New plugs, leads and air filter
It's done 5k since the last MOT.
Last year's MOT advisories:
Front registration plate deteriorated but not likely to be misread
Rear registration plate deteriorated but not likely to be misread
Nearside Rear Brake pipe slightly corroded
Offside Rear Brake pipe slightly corroded
Nearside Front Brake pipe slightly corroded
Offside Front Brake pipe slightly corroded
Nearside Front coil spring corroded
Offside Front coil spring corroded
In addition for MOT I think it will need:
Rear anti-roll bar re-bushing
Probably some other bushes or ball joints - E36s are notorious for short shelf-life on these parts but they are cheap to replace
It also needs:
Wheel alignment (it's very slightly off)
Wheel balancing - there's some judder as you reach about 70 mph
So in summary, what's on offer here is a very honest car. My ownership experience with it has far exceeded expectation. I'm offering it for sale on account of recently buying a 323 SE in close to perfect condition.
Ideal first "classic" BMW, well suited to a rolling restoration.
The car is currently declared SORN. Under the new rules, any buyers would have to arrange their own tax.
£445 OVNO
No time wasters please!
Pictures to follow...
