High mileage purchase - how’s the experience so far?

[euroshowoff]

I’ve made a post regarding mileage and I just wanted to get the experience from people who have bought a high mileage m3. I’m putting together a list of things I’ll need to have done and refresh parts etc. it is adding up quickly lol. I have another daily so sitting during the winter and completing the refresh isn’t an issue.

[For3]

Hey great question. I was in a similar boat 4 1/2 years ago and took a leap buying a higher mileage M3, one to fit budget, and two since I was only interested in sedans available ones regionally were harder to come by.

I bought my 2010 E90 M3 in June of 2019 with 84,000 miles on the odometer. I replaced the rod bearings within 2 weeks of owning and had factored that into the purchase price. it is my daily driver and I drove approximately 8000 miles a year and 6 days a week on average. It currently sits at just under 120,000 miles

Overall it's been a great experience and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again. The car has been reliable as any I have owned and most items needing to be addressed I would attribute to age. I've learned how to DIY which has kept repair costs down.

Below is a list all the items I have done over the course of ownership besides oil changes, new battery, and tires which you would have with any car:

1)HVAC blower motor went out after 2 years. Easy DIY
2)Rear passenger window regulator (motor) went out. Easy DIY having never taken a door panel off in my life much less switched a regulator.
3)Fuel regulator went out (tell tell sign of smelling gas when parked). Doable DIY that wasn't too hard, just smelly and messy.
4)Starter motor went out at 119k. Hard DIY but between youtube, this forum and a helping hand managed to do it.
5)Refreshed front lower control arms. Moderately easy DIY.
6)Replaced aging EDC struts, shocks, and springs with Ohlins Coilovers. Moderately easy DIY.
7)Replaced steering rack chasing a suspension clunk that ultimately wasn't the rack itself. DIY able but not easy.
8)Replaced engine motor mounts at approximately 118.5k. I had a shop do this.

Again I wasn't much of a car DIY'er until this vehicle.

Upcoming maintenance:
1)Valve cover gaskets are leaking. Will DIY along with spark plugs in early 2024
2)Center support bearing for the driveshaft needs to be replaced. Will DIY in 2024.

[euroshowoff]

Originally Posted by For3

Hey great question. I was in a similar boat 4 1/2 years ago and took a leap buying a higher mileage M3, one to fit budget, and two since I was only interested in sedans available ones regionally were harder to come by.

I bought my 2010 E90 M3 in June of 2019 with 84,000 miles on the odometer. I replaced the rod bearings within 2 weeks of owning and had factored that into the purchase price. it is my daily driver and I drove approximately 8000 miles a year and 6 days a week on average. It currently sits at just under 120,000 miles

Overall it's been a great experience and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again. The car has been reliable as any I have owned and most items needing to be addressed I would attribute to age. I've learned how to DIY which has kept repair costs down.

Below is a list all the items I have done over the course of ownership besides oil changes, new battery, and tires which you would have with any car:

1)HVAC blower motor went out after 2 years. Easy DIY
2)Rear passenger window regulator (motor) went out. Easy DIY having never taken a door panel off in my life much less switched a regulator.
3)Fuel regulator went out (tell tell sign of smelling gas when parked). Doable DIY that wasn't too hard, just smelly and messy.
4)Starter motor went out at 119k. Hard DIY but between youtube, this forum and a helping hand managed to do it.
5)Refreshed front lower control arms. Moderately easy DIY.
6)Replaced aging EDC struts, shocks, and springs with Ohlins Coilovers. Moderately easy DIY.
7)Replaced steering rack chasing a suspension clunk that ultimately wasn't the rack itself. DIY able but not easy.
8)Replaced engine motor mounts at approximately 118.5k. I had a shop do this.

Again I wasn't much of a car DIY'er until this vehicle.

Upcoming maintenance:
1)Valve cover gaskets are leaking. Will DIY along with spark plugs in early 2024
2)Center support bearing for the driveshaft needs to be replaced. Will DIY in 2024.

Thanks for sharing your experience. Outside of the piece of mind on rod bearings, my list includes suspension refresh, swaybar bushings, arms etc. Do most people just wait for the tb actuators to go out themselves since it wouldn't be a catastrophic engine failure?

Haven't really factored in broken parts yet lol.

Finding a decent e90 with a clean title has been proving to be a challenge. I found a black/white interior for 22K and 95K miles. I'm just hesitant to pull the trigger because its not the specs I'm looking for. Also recently posted a video and the crank time seems to be a little longer, not sure if that is common for this chassis? The carfax came back as having the starter, and batter replaced within the last 20K miles.

[E92Bean]

Originally Posted by euroshowoff

Thanks for sharing your experience. Outside of the piece of mind on rod bearings, my list includes suspension refresh, swaybar bushings, arms etc. Do most people just wait for the tb actuators to go out themselves since it wouldn't be a catastrophic engine failure?

Haven't really factored in broken parts yet lol.

Finding a decent e90 with a clean title has been proving to be a challenge. I found a black/white interior for 22K and 95K miles. I'm just hesitant to pull the trigger because its not the specs I'm looking for. Also recently posted a video and the crank time seems to be a little longer, not sure if that is common for this chassis? The carfax came back as having the starter, and batter replaced within the last 20K miles.

It’s fine to just wait for the TA’s to go out since it only puts the car in limp mode. I bought my e92 last month with 90k miles, and had the RB and motor mounts replaced in my 2nd week of ownership. Shops need to expose the motor mounts anyways for the RB job, so you may as-well get them done with the same labor charge.

To be fair, the parts the previous poster mentioned go bad on any car over 100k miles. If you’re going to track the car, suspension refresh isn’t a bad idea, but just not critical.

[SunDevil_M3]

I would honestly say, after owning two of these and about to purchase my third, the only thing I am going to be pressed to do are the rod bearings. Throttle actuators you can replace when they go out as it's a hit or miss on when they go out and they don't ruin your motor when they do. You will just go into limp mode and can even clear the codes sometimes to get you through until you fix it. In regards to maintenance that is the only thing... You can do everything else as needed. VC gasket, cooling system like T stat and water pump, belts, etc. These cars are very reliable. Just change the oil do the rod bearings and enjoy it. Quit worrying about all this stuff, any performance car will be the same. If you are worried about cost, then maybe this is not the right car for you. Won't keep running unless you care for it.

[atopa2002]

Originally Posted by euroshowoff

Finding a decent e90 with a clean title has been proving to be a challenge. I found a black/white interior for 22K and 95K miles. I'm just hesitant to pull the trigger because its not the specs I'm looking for. Also recently posted a video and the crank time seems to be a little longer, not sure if that is common for this chassis? The carfax came back as having the starter, and batter replaced within the last 20K miles.

These cars are about 15 yrs old now and are keepers now, to find your dream specs will be hard to come by.

Add a PPI if the crank time is a concern. Go buy it and enjoy it in good health.

[Robocop305]

Any issues with the injectors? I just bought a set to install on my 2011 with 58k miles. I fear that they may go bad and hydrolock the engine. The car is currently running great.

[Ajolives]

5 years daily driven starting with 123k miles and currently sitting at 179k miles. It’s a joy to drive and not terrible to maintain.

I had the same approach as you, bought this ‘tired’ M3 and wrenched it almost every weekend for the first year or so refreshing suspension, driveline, and engine components as I saw fit. Only problem is this almost became an addiction due to how well the car responds to new parts.

The car is transparent and will usually let you know something is wrong before it fails completely, only left me stranded once due to failed alternator, which I saw coming but pressed my luck.

5 years later and now I’m starting to plan round II. My work still holds down, but now I need to focus on big ticket items: clutch/flywheel, rod bearings, subframe bushings, etc.

I would recommend minding the leather and paint, which goes for all older cars I guess.

Overall these are solid-ass cars. The E90 is amazingly versatile for daily driven activities. Having a car like this to drive every day to work almost seems unfair.

[Ajolives]

Non-maintenance parts installed:

• Full suspension arm refresh
• B8 Bilstein Stuts paired with lowering springs
• OEM steering wheel (nice touch to freshen old car)
• (1} Throttle actuator; (1) rebuild
• Drive shaft
• RR half shaft
• ABS sensor
• Oil valve cover things + gaskets
• Bank 2 valve cover
• VANOS adjustment gear clip on covers
• Headliner (sun roof slider failing again already)
• Both fuel pump and sender
• Low/high pressure fuel valves
• Fuel breather valve
• Battery, starter, alternator
• Radio/AC panels
• Shifter knob and ebrake boot
• RR window regulator
• Power steering pump reservoir w/ built in filter - easy method to flushing power steering fluid (30 min tops)
• Fuse box cable recall

Prob forgetting some things…..

[DrFerry]

Originally Posted by Ajolives

Having a car like this to drive every day to work almost seems unfair.

Totally agree. Driving mine to and from work for a decade, on weekdays along some twisty roads - were usually the best parts of my day by far. Especially in the wet... Climb in, let it warm up a little, then let it howl. What a hoot the E9X can be...

[Ajolives]

Originally Posted by DrFerry

on weekdays along some twisty roads - were usually the best parts of my day by far. Especially in the wet... Climb in, let it warm up a little, then let it howl. What a hoot the E9X can be...

That’s awesome, I mean if your commute has twisty roads it only makes sense to drive a competent vehicle lol. I have a ramp on my drive, it’s a long sweeping banked left over the highway it merges into, valves open and the exhaust bouncing off the concrete walls, simply the best. It really is a hoot.

[spammysammich]

Originally Posted by Robocop305

Any issues with the injectors? I just bought a set to install on my 2011 with 58k miles. I fear that they may go bad and hydrolock the engine. The car is currently running great.

Injectors are definitely a point of concern as they are in the S85 owner community as well. Bore wash and scoring has take out a few members engines since I have been a member of this forum. Not sure about hydrolock but I suspect something that catastrophic may be under reported as the owners would likely ditch the car as totaled and not look back.

[Helmsman]

Originally Posted by Ajolives

The E90 is amazingly versatile for daily driven activities. Having a car like this to drive every day to work almost seems unfair.

Great reminder how lucky we are. Like DrFerry I'm enjoying my E90 since a decade. Been toying with the idea to change for something newer but everytime came back to...simply can't sell this away.

[BimmerMan33]

All BMWs (German cars in general) start needing stuff after 50-60,000 miles..
The M3 does need additional stuff such as rod bearings, throttle actuators & some others..
Over 90,000 miles, most of the repairs are similar to other German cars with higher mileage.
Don’t be too concerned about various leaks (oil sweating, not dripping), some leaks worsen quickly & others stay the same for a long time. I had a minor sweating from steering rack at 60K mi which did not change even after 45K mi including 15 track days..

When looking for a higher mileage car, service record is important but don’t discount cars with insufficient service records on carfax as some people DIY & some shops don’t report to carfax. I personally focus on the condition of the interior as a rough indicator whether the car has been cared for or not..

I’d budget $7,000 between rod bearing service and other items over the near future assuming you DIY the moderately difficult stuff.

The E9x M3 is definitely unique, will never see anything like this from any manufacturer in the future..
I’m on my 3rd one now!
If you’re used to German cars, you’ll mostly be fine, but if coming from Japanese cars, you might need to develop more tolerance..
All the best..