vehicle history red flags

[jeremicium]

Hello all,

It's been a long time since i've been on Bimmerpost. I'm interested in picking up a used E70 35d. The depreciation hit that these have taken make them pretty appealing. I was gonna get a Toyota Tacoma but a 8 year old Tacoma with 100k+ miles is thousands more than an X5 with 75k miles.

I found a 2012 with all the options I want near Atlanta. I'm a five hour drive from there so trying to do as much research as possible before making the drive. No accidents or other damage reported. From the pictures it looks like it was well cared for. Here are the red flags:

It's had three owners. First owner shows as commercial in Connecticut. 56k miles put on, all service done as required. From there it went to an auction and ended up in Atlanta. Between march and October of 2015 it bounced around between a BMW dealership and a VW autonation dealership with about 200 miles being put on it. It then went to another auto action and was sold in November of 15. Next owner had it until April of 18, put about 25k miles on it in just over 2 years. That owner paid it off in Nov of 17 then it ended up back at an autonation Toyota dealership. Also, the last owner got an oil change done at an express lube in dec of 17. Why would anyone that cares for their cars take it there?

I can't really think of why the vehicle would have bounced around like that for 6 months unless there were some problems that made it unappealing.

Currently the car has 82k miles and is being advertised for $16.4k. Too good to be true?

I expect there to be some problems that come up and items like water pump will need to be changed, but if the engine is strong, and it doesn't show a maintenance history of constantly being in the shop, is this a risk worth taking...(rhetorical question)

This isn't my only vehicle, so if I need to take my time taking care of some mx items, i have that luxury. Just looking for a decent, AWD/4WD daily driver for under $20k to hold me over while I save up $$$ for my next baby...A Cayman S.

Thanks for any input you guys have on the vehicle history red flags.

[socale39]

As a 35d owner myself you are at the mileage where you are going to need to do the following:

- Transmission Fluid Change
- Vacuum Line Replacement
- Possible Harmonic Balancer Replacement
- Transfer Case Oil
- Differential Oils
- All filters if not done recently
- Drive Belts, Tensioners and Idlers
- Possible Thrust Arm Bushings
- Thermostat
- Water Pump

I’m just giving you this list as something to consider as I just went through some of this on my 91k 35d. I still need to do the bushings and front sway bar links. These are all common things to expect and all that being said I love my 35d. I’ve hauled so much it’s turned into the family work horse.

[-c-]

Originally Posted by socale39

As a 35d owner myself you are at the mileage where you are going to need to do the following:

- Transmission Fluid Change
- Vacuum Line Replacement
- Possible Harmonic Balancer Replacement
- Transfer Case Oil
- Differential Oils
- All filters if not done recently
- Drive Belts, Tensioners and Idlers
- Possible Thrust Arm Bushings
- Thermostat
- Water Pump

I'm just giving you this list as something to consider as I just went through some of this on my 91k 35d. I still need to do the bushings and front sway bar links. These are all common things to expect and all that being said I love my 35d. I've hauled so much it's turned into the family work horse.

I bought my 2012 with 100k miles for 14k (got it at trade price) and that was 3 years ago, so 16 grand now isn't crazy, lots of highway miles and like yours was a business vehicle for sales use. All maintenance was done at the correct time line.

And it's been 40k miles of problem free driving so far.

As stated above I'd recommend all fluid to be changed, trans, diffs and antifreeze, brake fluid, all the fun stuff.

Mine is a 35i so can't talk to the motor but I know it has more issues the higher mileage it goes.

Mine was a single owner however but not sure it's a big deal.

Just had the dealer do a full inspection and at 140k miles the suspension is still tight and everything is running great so just because of high mileage doesn't mean they fall apart. Knock on wood!

[socale39]

From a suspension standpoint it’s all relative to three things in my opinion: driving style, typical road conditions and weather. If it’s been driven most of its life on smooth highways, it’s likely the suspension components will last longer.

[jeremicium]

Appreciate the input guys. After spending too much time researching on forums, and talking to a service advisor that I trust, i'm going to pass on the 35d. The idea of that diesel engine is hugely appealing, but the emission equipment failure is just a risk i'm not willing to take. I'm a bit twitchy with regard to getting into a used car as my daily driver, my daily drivers for the past 15 years have been a bullet proof Toyota 4runner followed by two new BMWs. Looking into a 35i instead of the d...seems to be a slightly less risky proposition.

[-c-]

Originally Posted by jeremicium

Appreciate the input guys. After spending too much time researching on forums, and talking to a service advisor that I trust, i'm going to pass on the 35d. The idea of that diesel engine is hugely appealing, but the emission equipment failure is just a risk i'm not willing to take. I'm a bit twitchy with regard to getting into a used car as my daily driver, my daily drivers for the past 15 years have been a bullet proof Toyota 4runner followed by two new BMWs. Looking into a 35i instead of the d...seems to be a slightly less risky proposition.

It is less risky and the gas mileage isn't hugely different anyway.

A Dinan tune will put you at 400 lbs of torque from what I hear.