Test drove the E34

"gmctavish needs more space" (gmctavish) 06/13/2019 at 02:11 • Filed to: Necessary car shopping without E90M3

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I really like it, I want it, but I can’t bring myself to buy it right now. If I had the money, time, and space for another project, I’d do it. But I’m looking for something to fill the role of the Subaru, and I think this thing has been sitting too long, and has some kinks to be worked out. It has a a power draw, that drained the battery so badly that it had zero electricity after being shut off after a 20min drive. It didn’t even start when I showed up, we had to jump it. It’s bizarrely difficult to get it into gear, each gear feels like the gate on reverse. One of the back doors is stuck shut, and that’s a huge pain in the ass to rectify. It’s the actuator, not the latch.

The seller is a really nice guy, and he’s in no hurry to sell. I think he could guess that after the electrical issues I was leaning away from it, and understands that I might not want the potential headaches in a daily and road trip car, so he’s suggested I buy it after I’ve done this trip, and either sold the Subaru or sold the car I wind up taking on the road trip. He’s pretty sure he’ll still have the car. So I might have to take him up on that, because I like it a lot. It really does run and drive great. Super healthy engine, and super tight suspension.

My heart wants the BMW, but my brain is telling me I’m getting the Volvo.

BlueMazda2 - Blesses the rains down in Africa, Purveyor of BMW Individual Arctic Metallic, Merci Twingo > gmctavish needs more space 06/13/2019 at 02:16

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“ My heart wants the BMW, but my brain is telling me I’m getting the Volvo”

...and BM2 is telling you to get the BMW.

You can trust my input— I have a PhD in shitposting.

AestheticsInMotion > gmctavish needs more space 06/13/2019 at 02:42

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I think you made the right choice in walking away. There’s something to be said for having a reliable, easy/cheap to maintain car. Which... The Volvo probably won’t be either, as cool as it is....

Future Heap Owner > AestheticsInMotion 06/13/2019 at 03:33

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Now you tell me

kanadanmajava1 > gmctavish needs more space 06/13/2019 at 05:32

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If it wasn’t willing to start after 20 min it could be an alternator problem too. Or a very bad battery. Both of these would be quite easy to fix.

If my guess is wrong the issue might be more difficult to solve. The electric system itself is quite complicated in E34s but pulling away fuses and relays you could find the possible current eater.

Some BMW transmissions have had problems with the selector mechanism. when it’s in good condition the gears should work very smoothly. Some bushing parts can we swapped but nearly all of them are hidden inside the casing.

superdave847 > gmctavish needs more space 06/13/2019 at 07:10

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Damn, it does sit right.

Jordan > gmctavish needs more space 06/13/2019 at 08:23

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If you can get the issues sorted out, the E34 would be a great daily. Very reliable cars.

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > gmctavish needs more space 06/13/2019 at 09:23

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You know deep down that caddy is the way to go lol.

Then you just gotta hit the thrift store and start smoking cigars. Play the part

gmctavish needs more space > AestheticsInMotion 06/13/2019 at 09:40

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Yeah, it’s liable to be expensive at some point, but it doesn’t seem to have excess crankcase pressure, and the timing belt doesn’t need done again for a long time. Of the cars I’ve looked at so far, it seems the most likely to do a decently long trip without any drama.

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > gmctavish needs more space 06/13/2019 at 09:42

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You do NOT want to fuck around with a battery draw. Trust me, that could be Pandora’s box. Unless you’re already 99% certain of what’s causing it, don’t buy that car. I love and am very very good at electrical diag, but I would walk away from a car with a draw unless it’s a super rare dream car at the most amazing price ever.

How would you go about getting the door open to fix that? Cut a hole in it? Sometimes that’s the only option with door latch actuator issues.

He will still have it. Do you know why? Because it’s a basket case and nobody wants the headache. Not for more than a grand or 1500 at most.

This isn't a BMW hate thing either. To the contrary, I actually think E34's are super cool. Especially in 540 or M trim. Manual. BBS. So good!

gmctavish needs more space > kanadanmajava1 06/13/2019 at 09:44

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The current owner has traced the draw to the cluster, replaced the cluster, and it’s still there. So that’s not super fun.

Yeah, any e28 or e24 I’ve driven with this motor and trans was much smoother to shift. I don’t like the sound of getting at bushings in the casing...

gmctavish needs more space > superdave847 06/13/2019 at 09:45

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H&R sports and Bilsteins

gmctavish needs more space > Jordan 06/13/2019 at 09:48

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That’s what I’m kinda thinking, use it as a summer daily if he still has it in a few months. 

Neil drives a beetle and a fancy beetle > gmctavish needs more space 06/13/2019 at 09:49

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The BMW is really cool given the sport seats, manual, and the  m30 but it sounds like it has some kinks that need sorting.

What about something BMW that’s the age of the Volvo? I’m thinking an e46 325i or 328i. You get the RWD, manual, straight 6 of the older car but should be able to find something pretty road worthy.

gmctavish needs more space > AMGtech - now with more recalls! 06/13/2019 at 09:56

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His mechanic traced it to the cluster, but the draw is still there after replacing the cluster. The odometer stays on all the time, so it’s something to do with that. Currently he just has a switch on the battery, which I had thought would be livable, but yesterday kinda changed my mind.

Back seat base out, and then have a really bad time getting the door panel off, then reach into the door and cut the actuator arm. It’s a common enough problem that there are a couple writeups on forums on how to do it. Doesn’t look fun.

I appreciate your opinion, none of the old bmws I’ve had, had battery draws, so maybe I should keep it that way and get something else when it’s old bmw time again 

gmctavish needs more space > Neil drives a beetle and a fancy beetle 06/13/2019 at 10:00

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Lsd, too. There was a gorgeous 528i touring, manual, but I couldn’t get there in time and someone bought it within a day. There’s been the odd decent deal, but a solid third of e46s are rebuilt, and like half the e39s seem like beaters by now. I also just don’t love e46s, so I’ve mostly been looking for e39s when it comes to “modern” bmws 

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > gmctavish needs more space 06/13/2019 at 10:11

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Even bigger red flag is that a mechanic diagnosed it and was wrong. It could be a random relay or control module somewhere. It could be a short circuit. It could be a button or switch. There are so many things that can cause this and it takes a very high level of understanding of the specific circuits involved to figure it out. And patience. And time. Lots and lots of patience and time. It probably also means his mechanic couldn’t figure it out after the initial misdiagnosis. Which means it’s probably not going to be something simple.

There’s nothing wrong with getting an old BMW to be a reliable daily. You just have to get the right one. That goes with most European cars  though honestly.

thejustache > gmctavish needs more space 06/13/2019 at 13:13

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I had a black 535 of that year with the factory LSD (auto though, unfortunately) as my second car. I believe I paid $2200 for it in 2006 or 2007 and sold it for $1k a few years later with around 275k miles on it. Out of the 6 cars I’ve had, it’s the one I’d love to own again (except in manual this time).

All that to say, I completely understand your reasons for not pulling the trigger on that one with the issues it has, and a t $5k I probably won’t be getting another one myself in the near future. Still, that M30B35 motor will probably last forever, and with the LSD mine was super predictable and fun to slide around while being a comfortable cruiser too . They are good cars

kanadanmajava1 > gmctavish needs more space 06/13/2019 at 13:44

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Dr aining the battery in 20 minutes should require so high amount of current that you could probably find the place  with ther mal imaging camera. The place where you could see it might be very hard to reach though.

gmctavish needs more space > kanadanmajava1 06/13/2019 at 18:14

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Oh it was already drained, I just assumed that driving would charge it up enough to start again, but it was still totally dead

gmctavish needs more space > thejustache 06/13/2019 at 18:16

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Yeah, they’re awesome cars and I love the engine. I might look for another one like this, that doesn’t have electrical issues, but I think I still prefer E28s. So if a good e28  535i shows up sometime, hopefully that’ll be the one. 

thejustache > gmctavish needs more space 06/14/2019 at 09:19

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Ooh I had an e28 as my first car. Of course it was an auto 528e with over 300k miles and a terminal rust problem, but $200 only gets so much car even in 2005 . Still it ran flawlessly for the year and a half I had it, and it led me to have a life long appreciation for the BMWs of that era (an appreciation that has only led to me owning those 2 so far, but hey). Good luck, looking forward to seeing what you ultimately find!