What to expect at 80,000 miles?

[retso73]

Can anyone tell me the kinds of things I should expect in terms of major maintenance or major part replacement now that I'm closing in on 80,000 miles (the car is 5 years old and I'm the original owner)? Water pump, fuel pump, transmission? What's considered normal wear and tear?

Luckily I've made it all this time with only minor problems and maintenance (window regulators failing, sunroof problems, etc).

I'm getting to the point where I'm trying to decide if I should keep the car and drive it for another 3-4 years, or get into something new before I'm stuck with major repairs.

Thanks!

 

[bmwrocks]

Even if you have some repairs to do, you need to weigh the cost vs. cost of a new car. A new car will cost you 30-40K depending on model (assuming comparable to what you have now). That's if you pay cash. Add interest over 4 or 5 years and increase that to 35-45K.

It is highly unlikely you will spend anywhere near that on your '99 over the next 3-4 years, even for a major repair.

So do you want a new car? Tired of the same old ride every day?

The choice is yours......spend 40K or maybe 4K over the next 3- 4 years.

Personally, I like driving newer cars just because I can afford it now. I mean what could be more fun than a new 330i PP or a 330Ci PP or a 545i?

 

[theBMWenthusiast]

o...a 1999 BMW 323i...we had one of those and got it new in 1999 but sold it 16 months early, but we hit 80,000 in 10 months...the only things i can remember about service and what to expect is that if this hasn't happened alot of the 323i's had something wrong with a chip and it needed replacement which was one of the most costly single repairs...but ew got that car to over 120,000 from the time of 1999 to December 2002

 

[aNoodle]

I'm over 107,000 miles now...original owner. I'm holding on to see what the new 3 series looks like. Since mine has been paid off a few years now, I consider these months all gravy (gotta love those lower insurance premiums). A BMW engine should go to 250,000 miles no problem.

My water pump for the winshield wiper fluid broke on me.

I think there is a problem with my camshaft/vanos...I need to take that in so I'm not sure exactly what is wrong.

Otherwise, I've been pretty lucky so far. Nothing major here.

 

[retso73]

I think there is a problem with my camshaft/vanos...I need to take that in so I'm not sure exactly what is wrong.

What problems are you experiencing that make you think it's your camshaft/vanos (and sorry to sound dumb, but what's a vanos). Just curious. Good to know your car has been such a trooper. I'm loving not having any monthly payments and a car that still looks good.

 

[aNoodle]

What problems are you experiencing that make you think it's your camshaft/vanos (and sorry to sound dumb, but what's a vanos). Just curious. Good to know your car has been such a trooper. I'm loving not having any monthly payments and a car that still looks good.

Well I'm no mechanic...so who knows. I get an odd flutter sound at low rmp's. Maybe it's the air pump to the engine? The vanos is the variable intake stuff. The camshaft is variable so I was thinking it might have something to do with that given the way the engine is acting.

Sometimes the car, when I'm up past 70 mph on a downhill and coasting, gets the the bright idea of downshifting from 5th to 4th (automatic here...pre-sliptronic). Then it'll be stuck in some safe mode in 4th until I turn the car off. When I start it back up, it's like nothing ever happened.

Othertimes if I'm in Sport 4 mode and accelerating hard on an incline, I hear that flutter sound, and when I'm coasting later I get a check engine light and it goes into safe mode. It all goes away when the car is restarted.

So something is messed up, it's an engine mangement sort of thing. These modern engines are so complicated. I need to get the codes read, I'm sure there are a bunch stored in the computer. But obviously it's not anything serious, cuz the car runs great otherwise...there's just something in there that's not pulling its weight.

I'm gonna take it in soon so I'll let you know if I need a whole new engine!

 

[nadroj]

vanos is like v-tech for bmw except better

 

[theBMWenthusiast]

one last word is that the 323i is an excellent car and problems are few and rare...at least in my practices with the car while i was owner (well son of owner but had to arrange and do everything)

 

[Wallie05]

I'm also a '99 323i owner. Mine has 71,000 miles on it and runs like a dream. I had two worn out ingnition coils that would cause the "check engine" light to go on once in a while replaced last month, but the mechanic said this was normal wear-n-tear type stuff. Other than that, I've never experienced any other mechanical problems. If you get it serviced regularly, and provided you don't beat it up too bad, it should be good for another 100K+. A friend of mine is still driving his '95 328i with over 200,000 miles on it.

I'm still amazed at the structural rigidity and overall solidness of the car. Only the most severe bumps/potholes (if I can't avoid them) manage to bring a slight creak from the dash. This stands in sharp contrast to another friend's WRX which shudders and shakes over even slightly rough roads.

I'm planning on keeping my 323 for another couple years--until I get a bonus big enough (if the market allows) to buy a 7 series. Hopefully a 760Li, but more likely a 745...I'm skipping the 5 entirely and shooting for the stars.