HELP! E30 or E34 is it a good buy?

[busdriver]

[SIZE=3]tsikoteers,
hello. Need help here.
A friend is trying to sell me a BMW. I have no experience whatsoever on BMWs. The cars look interesting.
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• [SIZE=3]The first car is a '91 BMW 3 series (Touring) E30 with M50 fuel injected[/SIZE]

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• [SIZE=3]The other car is a '91 BMW 5 series (Touring) E34 with M52 engine[/SIZE]

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Any general advice. Are this good cars for a first timer? What are the common problems with this generation cars? Engine, suspension, exterior? Things to look out for?
Sasakit ba ulo ko dito?
Maraming salamat po.[/SIZE]

[ghosthunter]

Any general advice. Are this good cars for a first timer?

Generally no. European cars in the philippines take a bit more money to maintain well whatever the brand. Reason is parts are not as cheap nor as easy to find as more common japanese brand cars.

Also note that you are looking at a couple of 18 year old cars. BMW or not, they will require a certain minimum level of maintenance just to run smoothly.

[thephantom]

arent those two pics both of the e34 variant? i'm an e30 user and as far as i know, e30s don't have their turn signals beside the low beam lenses.

[Benzmizer]

*Darren: ghosthunter is correct. You and I know (being European car users) age and premium = cost. You have such a fine european car now. Why not use and enjoy it first? No offense partner pero one can only drive so much. There is no sense of satisfaction when your attention is split in two. masakit pa nito, sure ka sa oto mo ngayon pero what if the 2nd (regardless of european brand) is a pain in the a%#? In the end, you would loose your appetite on both cars.

To be more specific, BEEN THERE, DONE THAT ako dyan. Had 4 european cars all at the same time. 2 are in excellent condition, the other 2 aren't. Ayun, I ended up getting saw disappointed wit the problematic 2 and in effect got paranoid that the other 2 good ones may just bring me bad experience not long after. So i ended up selling all 4.

Yeah.... [SIZE="4"]L-O-S-E-R !!![/SIZE]

[noobskie]

A really old european car coupled with a first timer is a recipe for disaster. If you're rich enough, just buy brand new. Kung second hand, never consider buying a decade old or older european car except kung enthusiast ka talaga.

[mashimaro]

I am eyeing a 1995 e34 525i for my wife. The 525i has 90,000 kms mileage. Seems in pretty good condition. First own daw.

Should I decide to buy it, it will be used mainly for weekend driving (and not as a daily commuter). Exterior seems very good, interior even better - owner seems to have maintained it very well for its age.

I have read several reviews about the 1995 525i that says this is definitely one of the best buys and that this series is rock solid - as long as it has been maintained well. But these comments were on foreign (US) websites. So driving conditions there of course differ from here. Not to mention the weather.

My questions to the beemer gurus:

(1) Is it a worthy buy given the above purpose (weekend driving)?
(2) How many more thousands of kilometers of life should I expect from it (assuming regular maintenance)?

Your expert opinions will really help me decide.

many thanks in advance!

[BE36]

if you're a 1st time euro car buyer i suggest you start with the E30. why? it's very reliable COMPARED to other late-80's BMW. cheap parts din. as much as possible, get a m/t. check leaks from top to bottom. alternator, starter, a/c parts are easy to find (used or b-new). i had 1 E30 325i and an E36 325i both coupe. my current is a 325i E36 sedan with a lil over 100,000 kms on the clock and still running strong. had i leak and compression test last year. change your oil every 5k kms regardless kung mineral or synthetic oil. goodluck .

boss, after purchasing a bimmer please don't install a jdm tilting plate holder or frame w/c ever they call it