TheFinanceGuy
10-09-2014, 10:17 AM
This car doesn't seem to have its own thread. So I'll start one.
Whoops. Here's the link to the one I'm interested in:
http://www.777auto.com/2004-BMW-3Series/Used-Car/Weymouth%2cBoston%2cHingham-MA/3895747/Details.aspx
I was looking at this car back in Feb 2014, then again in April 2014 it was "sold." In talking with the owner today, it went back on the market in April after a PPI noted some items that the buyer wanted fixed. It appears that the dealer/owner has since fixed these items, and lowered the price, but a lot! Original list price was $12,900.
First impression of the car is Great. Just like any ZHP, those lines really get you.
BODY
The wheels all have some sort of curb rash. Drivers Front seemed to be the worst (pictures below). Passengers side had some rash, as well as an odd chip/rub mark next to the wheel.
Scratches seemed to be everywhere. All around the body of the car. I think a good stage 2 buffing would take these out. When sliding a fingernail over them, most do not catch.
The drivers side rear door has some damage to the trim.
INTERIOR
The inside was in great shape. The seats were clean and free of rips. Though, the leather was badly dried out it was clean. The carpers were also clean. No floor mats were present.
The sunroof switch panel (whats this called?) was hanging down as all clips are broken. Dealer said he would replace that ASAP. I unhooked it so as to not put tension on the sunroof wires. Because of this, I didn't test the sunroof.
The sunroof shuttle is broken. If you push it too far back, it would slid right into the headliner.
Radio Nav unit failed to turn on. Dealer said he would repair that. Believed it to be a loose connection from the computer in the trunk (I can vouch for this explanation/though. Had this happen in my 540). Radio did turn on though, sounded great!
There was a broke cube trim piece. See picture.
All around the shifter was beat... badly. See picture.
Steering wheel needs re-warp. Badly.
MECHANICAL
Started right up. No hesitation despite the dealer warning me it hadn't been turned on in several weeks (important to remember this).
Idled fine, no strange noises.
I drove it around the block a few times with a few 0-50 runs once warmed. The AT functioned fine, no hard shifts, no serious lag. I can only compare this AT to my 99 540- This felt just as strong.
Item to note- I felt a little play in the wheel when weaving the car left/right/left/right/left/right.... also a small whine was present during this. I checked the ATF upon return to find it a bit low.
I could only crawl under the car so far (Try doing this in business cloths without getting dirty...). I noted new front control arms, and an undercarriage free of oil.
VCG was done by dealer. See picture, you can see fresh RTV.
Tires are showing signs of dryrot. Would need replacing soon, however lots of tread left.
Overall- The car felt great. It needs some cosmetic love- but at $8,500- it appears to a be a good deal. I would still PPI this. I found some hack-job wiring under the hood. See picture.
Questions? Let me know- I may have left a few things out.
The dealer stated that at $8,500, he has had quite a bit of interest, he encouraged me to put a deposit on it if I wanted to hold the car for my "friend." Remember up top he told me it hadn't been started in several weeks... yeah... about that interest BS.
Drivers Front
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5982_zpse72e387e.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5982_zpse72e387e.jpg.html)
Passengers Front
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5981_zps5ba7ce22.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5981_zps5ba7ce22.jpg.html)
odd rub mark
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5983_zps2ae26354.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5983_zps2ae26354.jpg.html)
Scratch plus small dent
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5984_zps488bdf27.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5984_zps488bdf27.jpg.html)
No words...
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5985_zps9ce10c67.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5985_zps9ce10c67.jpg.html)
Le Sigh
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5986_zpsbd36ca47.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5986_zpsbd36ca47.jpg.html)
Cube Trim
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5992_zpsb6e62743.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5992_zpsb6e62743.jpg.html)
Wheel (Coby Wheels should look away)
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5991_zpsebab4856.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5991_zpsebab4856.jpg.html)
No Spare (common auction house thing)
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5990_zps1f73d550.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5990_zps1f73d550.jpg.html)
Wires anyone?
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5989_zpsbac0f3da.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5989_zpsbac0f3da.jpg.html)
I'm sure nut caps are approved for use in autos
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5988_zpseed949db.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5988_zpseed949db.jpg.html)
VCG
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5987_zps61bb2314.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5987_zps61bb2314.jpg.html)
Whoops. Here's the link to the one I'm interested in:
http://www.777auto.com/2004-BMW-3Series/Used-Car/Weymouth%2cBoston%2cHingham-MA/3895747/Details.aspx
I was looking at this car back in Feb 2014, then again in April 2014 it was "sold." In talking with the owner today, it went back on the market in April after a PPI noted some items that the buyer wanted fixed. It appears that the dealer/owner has since fixed these items, and lowered the price, but a lot! Original list price was $12,900.
First impression of the car is Great. Just like any ZHP, those lines really get you.
BODY
The wheels all have some sort of curb rash. Drivers Front seemed to be the worst (pictures below). Passengers side had some rash, as well as an odd chip/rub mark next to the wheel.
Scratches seemed to be everywhere. All around the body of the car. I think a good stage 2 buffing would take these out. When sliding a fingernail over them, most do not catch.
The drivers side rear door has some damage to the trim.
INTERIOR
The inside was in great shape. The seats were clean and free of rips. Though, the leather was badly dried out it was clean. The carpers were also clean. No floor mats were present.
The sunroof switch panel (whats this called?) was hanging down as all clips are broken. Dealer said he would replace that ASAP. I unhooked it so as to not put tension on the sunroof wires. Because of this, I didn't test the sunroof.
The sunroof shuttle is broken. If you push it too far back, it would slid right into the headliner.
Radio Nav unit failed to turn on. Dealer said he would repair that. Believed it to be a loose connection from the computer in the trunk (I can vouch for this explanation/though. Had this happen in my 540). Radio did turn on though, sounded great!
There was a broke cube trim piece. See picture.
All around the shifter was beat... badly. See picture.
Steering wheel needs re-warp. Badly.
MECHANICAL
Started right up. No hesitation despite the dealer warning me it hadn't been turned on in several weeks (important to remember this).
Idled fine, no strange noises.
I drove it around the block a few times with a few 0-50 runs once warmed. The AT functioned fine, no hard shifts, no serious lag. I can only compare this AT to my 99 540- This felt just as strong.
Item to note- I felt a little play in the wheel when weaving the car left/right/left/right/left/right.... also a small whine was present during this. I checked the ATF upon return to find it a bit low.
I could only crawl under the car so far (Try doing this in business cloths without getting dirty...). I noted new front control arms, and an undercarriage free of oil.
VCG was done by dealer. See picture, you can see fresh RTV.
Tires are showing signs of dryrot. Would need replacing soon, however lots of tread left.
Overall- The car felt great. It needs some cosmetic love- but at $8,500- it appears to a be a good deal. I would still PPI this. I found some hack-job wiring under the hood. See picture.
Questions? Let me know- I may have left a few things out.
The dealer stated that at $8,500, he has had quite a bit of interest, he encouraged me to put a deposit on it if I wanted to hold the car for my "friend." Remember up top he told me it hadn't been started in several weeks... yeah... about that interest BS.
Drivers Front
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5982_zpse72e387e.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5982_zpse72e387e.jpg.html)
Passengers Front
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5981_zps5ba7ce22.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5981_zps5ba7ce22.jpg.html)
odd rub mark
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5983_zps2ae26354.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5983_zps2ae26354.jpg.html)
Scratch plus small dent
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5984_zps488bdf27.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5984_zps488bdf27.jpg.html)
No words...
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5985_zps9ce10c67.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5985_zps9ce10c67.jpg.html)
Le Sigh
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5986_zpsbd36ca47.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5986_zpsbd36ca47.jpg.html)
Cube Trim
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5992_zpsb6e62743.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5992_zpsb6e62743.jpg.html)
Wheel (Coby Wheels should look away)
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5991_zpsebab4856.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5991_zpsebab4856.jpg.html)
No Spare (common auction house thing)
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5990_zps1f73d550.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5990_zps1f73d550.jpg.html)
Wires anyone?
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5989_zpsbac0f3da.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5989_zpsbac0f3da.jpg.html)
I'm sure nut caps are approved for use in autos
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5988_zpseed949db.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5988_zpseed949db.jpg.html)
VCG
http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j464/TheFinanceGuy/IMG_5987_zps61bb2314.jpg (http://s1087.photobucket.com/user/TheFinanceGuy/media/IMG_5987_zps61bb2314.jpg.html)