Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

[beem]

I'm thinking of purchasing a 2003 2.2L E46 with 150K mileage done on the car....the price is very attractive. A MODIC check indicated nothing wrong with the car. Car's engine is smooth, transmission good, steering feel tight. Only things needed to change is arm bush and rear bush. Suspension and absorber still okay.

What are your thoughts? I'm afraid the gearbox needs to be rebuilt and the engine's wear and tear would be enormous....

Any idea how much money needs to be dumped into this car when it ages.....or just totally forget about it...my average mileage per year would be around 15K...

Car was mostly used on highway driving...

 

[hetraa]

Re: Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

wah very high mileage..gearbox wil have prob soon, almost reaching its lifespan (unless u wanna buy, then swap to manual)
.find another low mileage one better..

 

[opvaulet]

Re: Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

Do a search on the web to find various surveys on how different cars fare after warrentee expires. No question its a nice car, but sometimes they can cost a small fortune to keep feeling like new.

 

[emiffy]

Re: Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

Buy on condition, not on mileage.
Gearbox will probably go soon, check if ATF has been changed before. Factor in autobox rebuild.

Misc stuff like bushings, shocks, etc are relatively cheap to change.

 

[beem]

Re: Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

ATF has not been changed before....i plan to factor in the torque converter pricing.

 

[diablo_728]

Re: Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

mileage is important bc it will lead to increased wear and tear thus higher cost of maintainence. 150k in 3yrs is very high and the owner must have been travellin often to msia. the other drawback is that the car body has very little value once the mileage crosses 100k. i suggest u relook at other options, unless of course the car is going very close to scrap value or abt 10k belw mkt price. then at least if the repair cost is high u can scrap the car..cheers

 

[louis]

Re: Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

those engines are bullet proof if properly maintained. nothing to worry about on that front.

 

[satinGHOST|r!der]

Re: Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

those engines are bullet proof if properly maintained. nothing to worry about on that front.

i agree 200% on that. FAultless if u maintain it time to time. Its the other stuff like radiator and gearbox u ought to worry abt on the pretext that engine is still good.

 

[33]

Re: Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

mileage is important bc it will lead to increased wear and tear thus higher cost of maintainence. 150k in 3yrs is very high and the owner must have been travellin often to msia. the other drawback is that the car body has very little value once the mileage crosses 100k. i suggest u relook at other options, unless of course the car is going very close to scrap value or abt 10k belw mkt price. then at least if the repair cost is high u can scrap the car..cheers

This is a very normal perspective of our local drivers. In Europe, they would have prefer to buy a BMW with higher mileage, becos it have proven to reliable and able to withstand the change of weather conditions...

 

[beem]

Re: Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

I agree this is what locals usually would prefer as it gives the impression its "new". As what diablo said, the price is lower than market price..so...maybe i'll give it a shot and negotiate further to factor in any gearbox repairs...

 

[louis]

Re: Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

This is a very normal perspective of our local drivers. In Europe, they would have prefer to buy a BMW with higher mileage, becos it have proven to reliable and able to withstand the change of weather conditions...

hur hur, 33, you must be one of those who goes to market and buys the vege with the most worms and holes in the leaves.... if not good, worm won't eat. tio bo?

 

[quiksilver]

Re: Buying a high mileage 2.2L e46

I agree this is what locals usually would prefer as it gives the impression its "new". As what diablo said, the price is lower than market price..so...maybe i'll give it a shot and negotiate further to factor in any gearbox repairs...

go for the kill and quote really low (maybe >10K less) cos they cant export the car and not many locals will be willing to buy...so the dealer (i assume) is stuck between a rock and a hard place now...

otherwise there are plenty of nice e46 to buy in the market...take your time to buy...