What do u all think?

[Dreamspawn]

I recently found a nice *i think* bmw 5 series. I'm going to try to offer the guy a trade and somemoney and see if he bites. http://www.nd.edu/~pduckwor/BMW/

U all think it would be worth it? i know it needs a paint job but all and all i think its worth the money.

[zmuff]

Overall, it looks like a pretty good price for what you're getting. You're okay with the paint, and the SRS light may just need to be reset (I think only a dealer can).

The one concern I would have is the cooling system, the last pics shows the temp needle moving kind of high. It should be at 12:00 solid...always. The m30 is an almost indestructable engine, but an overtemp will kill it. You should inquire about things in the cooling system that have been replaced recently. The radiator, water pump, fan clutch, thermostat, and aux fan can all make the needle move. As long as it's not the head gasket, everything else is fairly easy to fix.

Other stuff to look for is the front suspension. If it starts to vibrate or shimmy around 50-60 mph, you may have some front end work to do. If it vibrates while braking, you may be looking at some new rotors.

Provided you have some extra cash to fix a few things here and there, I would go for it. My car has 168,000 miles, I've replaced all that stuff one at a time (not the head gasket) and it still runs and drives great. Good luck!

[Markash]

Looks like a good deal...I have an 89 525i with 248K on it and love it. As the earlier poster stated, would be a little concerned with the temp gauge, mine does not move past mid-point, even on the hottest days. If you don't mind putting some money into it, you will be very happy with the car. One thing, if it needs an A/C recharge, it will cost you more due to (I believe) the refrigerant that is used. Last time I had mine done it was in the neighborhood of $200.00, just FYI...

[ShadeTreeBill]

I love my 89 525i. This does look like a good deal. I have done a good bit of work on mine, and the cooling system problem could be air trapped in the system if it was opened, then not bled properly when reassembled. If the heater blows, but does not get hot, its a good sign that there is air trapped. I find it a pain to get that worked out every time I have to 'break" open the cooling system. I also had a bad aux cooling fan resistor. The car would stay at 12:00 when driving, but would rise when stuck in traffic for a few minutes. You could pop it in neutral and rev the moter up to about 2000 rpm for a few seconds, and the needle would drop... replaced the open resistor, and now its rock solid at 12 again.

Last of all.... I am not sure about this engine model (mine is different) but if it is an interference type, you should replace the timing belt immediately. If it breaks, you will be sad like me, and have to replace the head.... bent valves bite!