What to expect with 90-110K miles - United Bimmer Community

**guerilla** · 05-12-2007, 02:26 PM

Hi fellas,

I am thinking about buying a used 3 series... if I do, I will probably end up with a vehicle with mileage around 100K.

I was just wondering what I might expect in terms of MAJOR service issues... what are common problems/failures for this car with that many miles on it? (I know it does depend somewhat on the prior owner's care of the vehicle)

Many thanks
J

**Dudesky** · 05-12-2007, 05:01 PM

Welcome to UB.c

It would help to know what year 3 series you're looking at. If it's an E36 ('92-'99), I may be able to help . . At 100k, the first thing that comes to mind is a radiator replacement. And definitely change the water pump if the seller cannot state or prove it's been changed recently. You'll want one with a metal or composite impeller, not the plastic type; not sure if you'd even find the plastic impeller versions these days anyway. Lastly here's a good read on what things to watch for:

http://www.unitedbimmer.com/kb-e36-c...faults-faq.php

EDIT: oops, never mind, just noticed this is in the E46 section!

**guerilla** · 05-12-2007, 05:22 PM

Yeah I've noticed "radiator replacement" is often in the FSBO ads when the car is at 100K+.

Hmmm, looks like an E46 radiator runs about 150 or so. That ain't bad. How tough is it to get engine access on these cars?

Wow, water pump at 100K... that's pretty cool. My VW's went at 60K. The VW OEM water pump also has a crappy plastic impeller (why, God why, do they use cheap materials for such an important part??)

Nice doc, btw.

**Dudesky** · 05-12-2007, 05:43 PM

^^^No I didn't mean the water pump gets replaced every 100k. It's more like 60k. But the E36 & some E46's had a notorious and unpredictable water pump failure at any mileage in models that employed the plastic impellers. Problem is, you can't tell from outside the engine what the pump is made of, so it's always best to replace once you buy the vehicle.

**guerilla** · 05-12-2007, 06:31 PM

Gotcha.