Zhp w/195k miles a good buy?

[jcollins03]

Hey ZHP family,

There is a ZHP 6spd coupe about an hour away, selling for $12k but talked him down to about $7k. Even $7k seems high for a car w that high of mileage. It does look extremely clean though and very well taken care of. Am waiting for the maintenance history, most has been done by Bmw as he claims.

My question to anyone who will respond is, what should I look out for with a car that has this many miles? And would it be a money pit even if it was maintained properly?

Any advice would be great.

Thanks!

[wstr75]

My first advice suggestion is to leverage your abilities and get a job where you can earn the big bucks via negotiations. Wow! Talking the seller down from $12K to $7K (a 42% reduction) says you are ready for the business world Big Leagues!

Same advice as has been given in many previous threads:
Suspension refreshed? What was replaced? At what miles/last done?
Cooling system refreshed, including water pump? At what miles/last done?
Brakes (rotors and pads)? At what miles/last done?
Original clutch?
Fuel pump replaced? At what miles?
Tire tread depth?
Oil pan and oil filter gasket replaced? At what miles/last done?

195K miles is nudging up to the second time many of the above items should have been replaced and some may be at the 3X mark (coolant system, suspension bushings).

[t.er]

Aside from the regular stuff like bushings, cooling system, and any other leaks (oil, power steering, which are bound to be leaking if the owner didn't replace gaskets/PS steering hoses and reservoir) things that immediately come to mind are:

- shifter bushings, how wobbly is the shifter? Mine had a ton of play when I got it at 188k miles

- is there a known date the clutch was replaced? But the clutches on our cars are quite stout, I'm at about 220k miles on the original and it's still going strong

- wheel bearings: apparently mine are original too and still going strong, but something to note

- RACP: had a crack and had to get that reinforced. E46 facelift did get extra spot welds but the root cause of cracking is still there. Higher chance of that with a higher mileage car

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[TrKy3]

This one? Looks like they dropped it from 12 to 8.
If it was highway driven and adult owned (granted they know how to drive stick), I’d say the clutch is ok.

As others above have noted; cooling system, vcg, ofgh, oil pan gasket, etc.

I’d rather buy a clean well maintained car with higher miles, than a ragged out lower mileage car.
Condition is everything. Mechanics are easier to fix than body work. It looks like it has solid bones.
The motors are good for 300k+.

GL with whatever you decide.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/216894693872921/

[jcollins03]

This one? Looks like they dropped it from 12 to 8.
If it was highway driven and adult owned (granted they know how to drive stick), I’d say the clutch is ok.

As others above have noted; cooling system, vcg, ofgh, oil pan gasket, etc.

I’d rather buy a clean well maintained car with higher miles, than a ragged out lower mileage car.
Condition is everything. Mechanics are easier to fix than body work. It looks like it has solid bones.
The motors are good for 300k+.

GL with whatever you decide.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/216894693872921/

Yeah, they said it needs the oil pan gasket replaced, there is a leak. So might just let this one go. I also really want the alcantara so I’ll just wait and hopefully one comes up. In no rush really.


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[Pilot05]

Yeah, they said it needs the oil pan gasket replaced, there is a leak. So might just let this one go. I also really want the alcantara so I’ll just wait and hopefully one comes up. In no rush really.


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You will be very luck to find ANY ZHP without an oil pan leak for 2x the $7k price.

If you are looking for a driver, I would jump all over that car for $7k, assuming records pan out...

[jcollins03]

You will be very luck to find ANY ZHP without an oil pan leak for 2x the $7k price.

If you are looking for a driver, I would jump all over that car for $7k, assuming records pan out...

Thanks for the advice! 200k just seems so high, but I’ll get it checked out and take it for a drive. If it feels nice I’ll snag it and ride it until the wheels fall off


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[TrKy3]

Agree with Pilot, a lot of these cars sweat before they actually start leaking oil from the pan, but figure a grand or so for that repair.

For $7K, it looks like a solid deal. Most sub $10-12K ZHP's in the current market are going to need a fair bit of work, this one seems to be well sorted.

[fredo]

+1. While you are there (oil pan gasket replacement) you may consider other parts. Engine mounts and steering couple come to my mind.

[jcollins03]

+1. While you are there (oil pan gasket replacement) you may consider other parts. Engine mounts and steering couple come to my mind.

Is that because they are related? Or the oil pan gasket job allows easier access for the steering, engine mount work so it’s recommended to do them together, similar to replacing the thermostat you should replace the water pump?


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[fredo]

Replacing the OPG requires the subframe to be lowered. This allows easy access to those other parts. You will save on labor cost.

[jcollins03]

Replacing the OPG requires the subframe to be lowered. This allows easy access to those other parts. You will save on labor cost.

Got it - thanks!


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[Pilot05]

Thanks for the advice! 200k just seems so high, but I’ll get it checked out and take it for a drive. If it feels nice I’ll snag it and ride it until the wheels fall off


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Mileage is just a number...My daily driver '03 E39 530i with the nearly identical (and original) M54 engine has 412k miles on it...

It drives and looks great....And I live in rusty New England....