If you had the chance to buy this car, would you?

[Zip]

Ive found a car that look pretty good and i like and is manual(yay for manual )
Its a BMW 325e with an M-tech body kit. (Its not an M3)

Here's what its got:
2.7 Litre, 6 cylinder engine
5 speed manual
Power chipped
M-tech body kit
Remus exhaust
Immobiliser
Keyless entry
Tinted windows
Alloy wheels 15x7
CD player/amp
Chrome Z3 gear knob
Navy/Charcoal interior
Reg/road worthy(MOT)

It looks good from what ive seen and the owner sounds genuine but i havnt seen the car in person myself.

Ill show you some pictures of it now and then ill tell you the part that has me scared.

 

[Zip]

Ive got some pictures of the interior and engine bay but i need something better then image shack to host them.

Now the scary part and the part thats putting me off is......

Its done 252,000kms and it costs $8500AUD
The price isnt a big issue yet because i havnt asked if i can get it for a bit cheaper and because BMWs cost an arm a leg and a left testicle down here.
Its the mileage that i dont like

 

[Zip]

Was going to ask you to post the price in UK£, but I've found an exchange rate of "AUD$2.35/UK Pound Sterling"?

= £3617

Thats a touch too much for this car in the UK, but I couldnt comment on the OS market.

Mileage, or perhaps more usefully an indication of its mechanical condition? I.e. if its a minter then perhaps its worth over the odds.

I asked him what it runs like and if its needed much fixed on it and he said this.
"There has been no repairs on the car since I have had it just regular servicing.It runs like a dream and is very good on fuel, average 400km's out of a tank."
Hes owned the car for the last 6 years.

 

[Zip]

If it goes wrong, expect a large repair bill.

IVe heard about those prices that BMWs cost if they brake.
Its something i would be willing to live with though.

Has anyone got any good hosting websites so i can put the other pics up?

 

[Zip]

To be fair though mate (and correct me if i'm wrong), you're borrowing the money to buy the car in the first place aren't you? And it's also your first car isn't it? Probably not the most ideal first car tbh....

It might me my first car but ive been driving mum car around since i got my licence and ive racked up a lot of Kms and when my sister had her knee operation i was he shoffer and shoffered her every where in her huge landcruser and drove it down some tiny 1 way streets and small 2 way roads.

 

[Zip]

You drove a Landcruiser down 1 way streets?

Well that's that then, you are perfectly prepared for the challenges of a powerful rear drive sports coupe with not a single driver aid..

I know it will be a different experience to what im used to but i would enjoy the challenge and there's no way in hell i would do anything stupid in a car that has lots of power and no driving aids that costs 8k because if i kill it then my insurance would go through the roof and ill have to wait for ages to get another car.
Most peoples 1st car down here are Holden commodores, ford falcons or Nissan Skylines. All powerful cars and some are even V8s. Its not really that unusual for people to have powerful RWD cars as there first car here

 

[Zip]

How old is it?

Got to be close to 15 years + . Together with the fact that its been to the moon and back. In UK terms its done 156,000 miles

I would say in this country you'd struggle to get over £1000 for it which is AUS$2,358.

Also if beemers cost a fortune to buy in Aus then parts are going to cost too.

Ive seen the BMW prices in the uk. The difference is scary how ITs the same with scoobs aswell.
The mileage is a bit of a concern. Its really off putting tbh

 

[Zip]

400kms eh?

Thats worse than my Impreza Turbo.

Give us an idea of insurance and running costs (service costs, fuel etc) in Aus to put the car in context. IIRC foreign cars are expensive becuase of the distance they travel to get there and the iffy exchange rate.

Cars in the UK are cheaper to buy but then things like insurance and fuel may cost a lot more (you would not get insured in the UK on that car until 25 and as for Skylines, they'd keep laughing long after they put the phone down)

I havnt checked thje insurence yet because i was waiting to see what you lot would say about it first.
Petrol down here is $1.20-$1.30 a litre for unleaded and $1.40-$1.60 for 98RON.(im not too sure about the 98RON but thats what it was about a month ago)
Ill see what the insurance is like now.

 

[Zip]

How the hell can you get insured on that thing?
I know Austrailia is a pretty empty country, but there must be a chance of you hitting something at some point on a journey.

Personally I wouldn't buy that car, even it was under a £1000, surely japanese cars are cheap in Austrailia? Why don't you get a nice powerful jap car, like an RX 7! Then you can kill yourself in style!

There are Jap cars but a lot of them have been "chaved" up or just old or way out of my budget
Im looking at insurance quotes as i speak and so far so good

 

[Zip]

I just got some insurence quotes.

1,003GBP
704GBP
961GBP
741GBP

Ok those are 4 quotes. I think i did every thing right and they dont look too bad

 

[Zip]

I would love one of those
I would have to sell a kidney to be able to afford one down here though

 

[Zip]

Yes,If he has got a genuine E30 325e, he's got a rare beast of a car, with an equally rare BMW 2.7 in-line 6.

The 325e (E30) is powered by the M20 Straight 6 cylinder SOHC 12V. or the "Baby Six" as its otherwise known. Apparently (never driven one) they have greater low end torque than the UK spec 325i

Used in E21 320, E21 320i/6, E28, E30, E34, E21/ E30 323i, E30 325e and E28 528e. 2.0i (129bhp), 2.3i (143bhp), 2.5i (170bhp), 2.7e (125bhp).

BMW Engines.

Not sure about the price though, I'd have thought it has some rarity value, as I don't think many were built.

I'd have loved one as a first car!

So from what u say the car and engine are rare? and you think they are good?

Edit:Because the car is rare(expecially down here) does that mean the car will eventually grow in price? Im no good with clasic cars and icons

 

[Zip]

As for the car in question. There's two options on the engine. It could be a std 2.7, in which case it'll be a bit of a dog. It could however have started as a 2.5, and then received a replacement cylinder block from a 2.7e. That's a very common and well known mod (if you know about E30s) and gives a good power increase (20-30hp), still maintaining the rev capability of the 325 engine.

How would you tell if it has had a replacment cylinder block?
Could you tell from looking at a photo of the engine and the engine? Because if you can ill get around to posting pictures of them up

 

[Zip]

It's got nothing to do with not being stupid, meh, I doubt you'll listen anyway.

Fox i just thought thats what you were implying. The reason i posted this thread is to get different opinions.
So what is it that you ment by your comment?

 

[Zip]

No typo.

Iirc, it has similar power to a 320i ,but, more torque than a 325i.

How much power does the 320i have?

Edit: i think thats a really stupid question for me to ask after rereading what you wrote

 

[Zip]

It's got nothing to do with not being stupid, meh, I doubt you'll listen anyway.

Can you please say what you intended to mean?

Edit: I know what speed can do to a car and i know a lot of people that have had a powerful first car and wrote it off. Im not stupid enough to drive fast anywhere where there are any bends, bad conditions, other cars, or even trees close to the road.
When i do speed i dont go past of what i can handle and if i feel any instability at all i dont keep pushing it

 

[Zip]

this is the get-out clause in your post.
when it comes to driving,the UK is way ahead of America/Canada when it comes to young drivers acting like retards.it's another by-product of the culture differences between our countries so i have to agree with Fox on this one.

I dont know if you knew or not but im from Australia not the UK

 

[Zip]

to extend your prediction i'd have a guess and state that IMHO 3 of those 10 cars would've been written off in the year,and 9 or all 10 would've been involved in some for of accident which the driver was responsible for.

And i would be that 1 driver that wont be responsible for having accident
Tbh im not stupid enough ot hot headed enough to throw 8 grand into a ditch

 

[Zip]

don't get me wrong mate,i don't know you from the garden wall and it's perfectly possible you have a v.good attitude on the road.
what i am saying is that at your age group and level of experience,the majority of drivers are not ready for powerful RWD cars.

this may come as a surprise but the drivers that DO throw their cars into ditches and the like almost certainly thought they'd get round said corner.
they hardly plan to trash their prized vehicle.
their limited knowledge and experience told them they were not going too fast to attempt whatever manoevure they were going for....physics, on the other hand, thought otherwise and promptly spat them of the road.

Im a quiet guy by nature.
Ive driving some RWDs before even if they wernt very powerful and have already learnt my lesson not to corner like you can in FWD.(long driveway incident. Back end slipped out and when i went to correct i got a face full of sun had me driving and bouncing across a paddock)
Im also planning on taking an advanced driving course in the near future because it does 2 things, 1)improves my driving skills. 2)it reduces insurance premiums

 

[Zip]

Is it quite common then to have a powerful 1st car in Austrailia?
I saw a programme about New Zealand where a load of young lads had big powerful jap cars, and would spend all night doing burnouts til the police moved them on.

Now the Burnouts were stupid, but I'd love to get something with a bit power at my age (18). But insurance in the UK is crippling.

If your insurance works out quite cheap, then you obviously don't have the same problem with young drivers that we do. Or you just don't get ripped off.

Either way if you can afford it, and promise to drive like a good boy then go for it. Just get the car checked out first.

People are always getting V6s or V8s as there first car down here.
Holdens and Fords come at a dime a dozen(Ive always wanted to use that saying )
I found some insurance prices earlier on for it and posted them in this thread. I didn't think they are too bad myself.
The burn outs you mentioned are starting to get cracked down on and cars are getting impounded but it serves them right imo.
If/When i look at it and i do like it i would get it checked
And i promise ill drive like a good boy if i get it

Is mileage much of a factor with this?