330ci 2001 nz new done over 210ks, thoughts?

[qube 3570]

ive owned a 330i 2002 that had done around 160,000 kms before and it was as reliable as a car with half the kms.

what to look out for on one thats done over 210,000kms?

its nz new but no service history, apparently maintained by a mechanic friend ha! we've all heard that before.

could be a good buy at the right price.

[E30 325i Rag-Top 2956]

I wouldn't be scared of the kms if there was some sort of history.

Did the mechanic friend keep any receipts for filters, oils, etc used..? There should be some history from when the car was new as it would have been dealer serviced to start with.

If there is no paperwork then look for signs of what has been done - check the air filter, oil colour, etc. look at suspension bushes that should tell you if it has been maintained at all. Then go from there.

[qube 3570]

from the brief conversation over the phone, seemed like an older kiwi bloke, a genuine sounding person. he said he gets free oil and filters from his friend so they were done regularly. has owned for around 10 years and is the 2nd owner.

he said that it hasnt been driven in about 6 months, which was after the radiator, fan, waterpump, etc have been changed. he said the fan disintegrated and caused damage to the radiator? i duno how thats possible but thats what he said haha.

i dont mind doing the obvious things like oil and filter, checking all lights and suspension bushings (which probably havent been done). but if there are any issues with engine/cooling system/trans then i better stay away.

im not put off by the kms, ive owned cars with more than that and they have been fine (so far).

might as well check it out as its quite cheap

[charles28 136]

At least being high k's it might have had a lot of the common issues sorted already.

I'd be wanting to ensure the transmission had been serviced before now though.

The ZF transmission is a good one, but no transmission oil is good for 210,000k, at least that I know of.

[qube 3570]

lol yea. but in my experience, unless the previous owner is frequent on forums or is a bmw fanatic, it probably hasnt been done. i mean it says lifetime fluid or something like that haha

[charles28 136]

lol yea. but in my experience, unless the previous owner is frequent on forums or is a bmw fanatic, it probably hasnt been done. i mean it says lifetime fluid or something like that haha

Yeah, I was the first to do it on my E39 530i (same engine etc).

at 139,000k the oil was in poor condition, i'd be getting the tranny oil checked to get an idea of what state the trans is in.

[Allanw 1071]

apparently maintained by a mechanic friend

^^^ That right there says to me it's had typical NZ car owner servicing - Engine Oil and filters - nothing else matters - haven't you heard?

[E30 325i Rag-Top 2956]

"free oil and filters from a friend" - hmm, I bet they were real high quality then. I would be trying to get hold of this "mechanic friend" and sound him out, and get some more info from him about what products were used. If doesn't matter if the oil was changed every 6,000kms if he was putting cheap crap back in!

[MattA 164]

316K on mine and still goes well, had obviously been serviced and looked after by previous owners.

So definitely capable of doing high kms without issue.