Close friend of mine picked up a '99 540i last month. Asking price was initially ~$4,970 but my buddy brought him down to ~$4,260. I had a look at the car, and it needed a heck of a lot of work:
- Burning oil through the valve seals
- Coolant leak through cracked plastic thermostat housing
- PSF leak
- Engine oil cooler lines leaking
- Thermostat stuck open
- Scaled up cooling system (he ran straight tap water)
- Torn rear brake hoses
- Warped rotors
- Control arm bushings
It was also a grey import from Belgium, which meant the price wasn't going to match a local import. Offered him ~$3,000 cash on the spot, take it or leave it. Done deal. First thing we did was ditch the fake M badges and clean up the engine.
Flushed the engine with Liqui-Moly ProLine Engine Flush and went with five short runs with Fuchs Formel HD 15w40 to clean up the internals (625 miles each and it came out pitch black). Previous owner used Mid Eastern Castrol 20W-50 with no API or ACEA ratings ever since the car was imported in 2005. Sorted out the rotors and control arm bushings, got the torn brake hoses out the way (Jeez that was a safety issue) and some fresh DOT 4 fluid, then started working on the engine. Welcome to Varnishville.
- Burning oil through the valve seals
- Coolant leak through cracked plastic thermostat housing
- PSF leak
- Engine oil cooler lines leaking
- Thermostat stuck open
- Scaled up cooling system (he ran straight tap water)
- Torn rear brake hoses
- Warped rotors
- Control arm bushings
It was also a grey import from Belgium, which meant the price wasn't going to match a local import. Offered him ~$3,000 cash on the spot, take it or leave it. Done deal. First thing we did was ditch the fake M badges and clean up the engine.
Flushed the engine with Liqui-Moly ProLine Engine Flush and went with five short runs with Fuchs Formel HD 15w40 to clean up the internals (625 miles each and it came out pitch black). Previous owner used Mid Eastern Castrol 20W-50 with no API or ACEA ratings ever since the car was imported in 2005. Sorted out the rotors and control arm bushings, got the torn brake hoses out the way (Jeez that was a safety issue) and some fresh DOT 4 fluid, then started working on the engine. Welcome to Varnishville.
