Thinking of getting 1997 328i... few questions

7400 miles a year is good. Well, the driver could be a complete putz, and 10 miles a year could be horrible, but for most of us, you are looking at a good car to buy.

I'm not sure what the repair cost comparison would be. I'm on my 2nd '94

325, and my annual cost of ownership was(is) among the lowest of any car I've ever owned.

It's as good a place as any.

Get it, and drive happy. Wait, that's not the slogan ...

Thanks for a quick reply Jeff! Looking at carfax, car was obviously shipped here from Germany, and had...5 owners Should I be alarmed? :-\

Jeff Strickland wrote:

Leave it alone. unusually high ownership and history will be almost impossible to trace unless it was imported new and is on HPI index. Personally, I think the 5 series are a better drive, and they are cheaper than the 3 series once 2nd hand (albeit far more new). You'll find a better 5 series for the money and the model that went from

1996 to 2003/4 is visibly the same so pop some personalised plates on and it looks ageless

Five owners would alarm me. I prefer to be the 2nd or 3rd owner.

Yeah, only 9 years old, 2 owner at max for that kind of car, something wrong there...........

yeah 5 owners is a not gonna work, so I keep searching

if I was to look at late 1990's BMW, what would be a good millage for them?

Should I use the regular 10,000-12,000 mile a year rule?

go for a 330 or 530 diesel. Great performance and amazing economy on a run. History vital

Yes, 10k to 12k per year is good. One thing to keep in mind is that these cars can easily produce well in excess of 200,000 miles before the motor wears out. My first '94 3 Series (325 with M50 motor) had over 220k miles when it met its doom in an intersection. I had no thought that the motor needed any kind of servicing.

Miles is only one measure of whether or not a car has lived well. My car delivered right at 20,000 per year and was running strong, but it's possible that a car delivering half that could be worn out. the diffference is in the driving habits of the main driver. It might be a good strategy to allow the seller to take you for the first couple of miles of the test drive.

The rule I use for transmission selection is that if you are attracted to the 4 cyl. motors, the manual transmission is a must, but if your engine choice is the 6, then your transmission options become a matter of your preference. Personally, I really enjoy the manual trans most of the time. My wife and kids, on the other hand, can't seem to master the clutch well enough to make the stick a comfortable piece of equipment.

10K -12K miles per year is below average these days so cars with that kind of milage or below will be desirable. Of course, as others have pointed out, the kind of driving the previous owners gave the car will be equallly or even more important than the actual mileage. My '96 328i had two owners before me - the first one obviously pampered the car and the one before me was starting to let it slip a bit but only put highway miles on it. When I got it, it had just about 10K per year on it. Now it has 103K miles and is driving great. I do my best to take care of it and drive it in a gentlemanly fashion most of the time. Of course, why have a BMW if you don't wind it up here and there?

I'm on the lookout for a 2001 530i as I'm really fond of that series and the last 6 they made seemed to be the best one from everywhere I've read about it. 3 or 5 series depends mostly on how much car you want to drive and whether or not you need a bigger car. The 328 is a great commuter car for me, but I think I could use the extra room. From what I've read, the two cars get the same gas mileage which is amazing considering the difference in size and weight. What BMW has done with that inline six is amazing and I'm a big fan. 30MPG on the highway, plenty of power, and smoooth driving. My cup of tea.

Karl Winkler