Jackyboy545i

Going to look at a 550i BMW this Friday. The cars is 6spd manual and has around 90k miles. The warranty has 10k left on it. My question for you guys is should i be worried. Will this engine start to give trouble around this time. I wanted a 545i but cant pass up a deal like this plus the extra 30 pony's. Any advice would be wonderful, just dont want to make a bad decision and end up with a beautifully maintained BMW 550i paper weight.


-Jack

stoic1

Its always a gamble when buying a used vehicle. Maintenance history will be a good guideline, but what also must be factored in is the previous owner's driving style and how well they cared for it.

Two things I would do before buying a used car would be to use a checklist for such items as paint, interior etc. The other thing I would do is take it to an independent maintenance shop to get they're opinion on the car and find out what near term items will have to be repaired or replaced. That may cost you a little bit of cash to do but in the long run it may save you from havng some major headaches down the road.

Jackyboy545i

Thanks, i contacted the guy and he said all work had been done at BMW. I asked him for the paperwork he said its in the dash so when i come look at the car i can see whats what. I havent really heard anything bad about the 550i. It seems to be a strong well built engine would you agree? I know alot of the 545i's had some engine problems and i dont want to be in that same boat.

twobeemers

I like the PPI advice - I'd definitely advise it if you're not comfortable doing it yourself. I've heard some wonderful things about the N62 motor and that it addressed some of the short list of M62 issues. I wouldn't focus on the miles on the motor provided it runs well - that motor *should* go another 100k miles without any more than normal maintenance. I'd focus on the rest of the package and things that are likely to cost you money down the road.

1600

The 550i is indeed a fine vehicle. Look around....body, engine compartment, underbody, interior...and see how well maintained it is. Then, have an independent shop that you trust do a thorough examination. If it passes, you should have a great ride for another 100K. Good luck.

Euronuts

Wow thats a lot of miles...for me anyway, must be a lot of freeway miles driven!
I love my 550 and it only has 28,500 miles on her and not one issue YET. a true drivers car!!!

if you take care of it and the previous owner did as well, which most bmw owners do, you will be fine!

Enjoy

sdg1871

90k miles is a lot. Don't touch it without an extended warranty.

Jackyboy545i

I am a college student at ASU in North Carolina. I was going to buy a 545i with low miles but with this deal is wonderful for the 550i. Like i said the car still has a warranty for 100k so i have 10k till its all gone. So i assume i will just go to BMW and ask to extend my warranty is that how it works. I mean i am new at this so any tips would be great. I have already called ahead and have a local shop to have a look see. so i guess i will do that and give her a test drive and make the call from there. Any more input would be great i am sure i will check this page on my phone tomorrow before i make the final decision and put it in writing..


thanks again for all the valuable Input.. thats why i love this forum.

psam550

If the car is well maintained, it should have many more years of good service ahead. I will say, however, that at 100k miles, the car will likely be due for some significant service, like new spark plugs and brakes, new brake fluid, new coolant and new transmission fluid. It's not cheap-- but well worth it if you plan to keep the car for the long haul. See if you can work some of that cost into the deal. Of course, you should take the car on a thorough test drive-- drive the car w/ spirit in all gears, including reverse, with the radio OFF. Slide the gear selector to the left, so you can shift the gears as you wish. Listen for hiccups. I would check to make sure that the oil was changed every 7k miles or so-- not every 15k like BMW says. If it only received the once every 15k miles oil change-- I might be a little concerned.