I'm looking for someone with mechanical experience on newer model Z3, 2.5. Being a mechanic myself for many years i have come across a lot of common problems on many cars. Not having worked on BMW for a few years I'm out of touch on these cars. I'm trying to buy a high mileage 01, Z3, and wanted to know if anyone out there with mechanical experience on these cars can tell me what to watch out for.
Thanks in advance.
"s" wrote
For all recent BMWs, the major problem areas are the cooling system (some people have gone to pro-actively replacing the radiator, water pump and hoses at 75-100K intervals), electrical system gremlins, and suspension (replace ball joints/control arms at 100K intervals). Motors, body and every thing else seems to last forever.
FloydR
"s" wrote
Well. 200K miles is a lot for an '01. I only have 92K on my '01 330xi. It uses around a quart of oil in 5K miles, barely more than when new. There have been no recalls on the 2.5L/3.0L engines AFAIK. Worst problem seems to be occasional VANOS problems, and the afore- mentioned cooling system follies.
You might scan the forums on RoadFly at
Yeah High miles, but the price is very good. Plus i figure that as long as the body is good, which it is, I can fix the rest. Just wanted to make sure these things aren't POS, before i buy.
Look at the rear subframe mounts, they tend to tear out of the unibody if the car was driven hard. Google search for Z3 forums. Try
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