Is this a good car?

[Cognizant]

So my lease on my Nissan LEAF expires next March, so I'm beginning my research into options after it expires. Option A is my dad is planning on leasing/buying a different modern-day Nissan, or I would just buy my own used car and hold onto that for a few years.

I'm thinking that if I buy my own car, it'll need to last around 5 years/35k miles before I'm financially stable enough to buy or lease a new car. In addition, I would be making payments on it (where if my dad leased a Nissan it wouldn't be my issue), so it should be somewhat reliable. I was looking into BMW 5-series, Toyota Camrys, and Lexus ES for under $5,000. I came across this car and was wondering what people think of it:

Autotrader - 1998 BMW 528i Sedan (http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?endYear=2015&zip=92286&maxPrice=6000&showcaseListingId=0&mmt=%5BTOYOTA%5BCAMRY%5B%5D%5D%5B%5DBMW%5B%5D%5B5_SERIES%5B%5D%5DLEXUS%5B%5D%5BE S_MODELS%5B%5D%5D%5D&modelCode1=CAMRY&makeCode2=BMW&modelCode2=5_SERIES&showcaseOwnerId=68205427&makeCode1=TOYOTA&modelCode3=ES_MODELS&startYear=1981&makeCode3=LEXUS&searchRadius=100&listingId=377304784&Log=0)

It looks okay to me, and the Carfax report checks out okay. Is it worth mentioning to my dad?

[Plane And Simple]

Old BMWs are rocks. Thyou'll have this car last as you want and more probably. It's a good engine and it's well built (hell, its german). I'd say tell your dad about it.

I can give you a thorough list of points to check before buying it to see if it's worth it, if you want it, just ask

[earl_hun]

Old BMWs are rocks. Thyou'll have this car last as you want and more probably. It's a good engine and it's well built (hell, its german). I'd say tell your dad about it.

I can give you a thorough list of points to check before buying it to see if it's worth it, if you want it, just ask

Maybe an Audi A6, the C4 coded one? But this BMW is fine, too-just an idea.

[Plane And Simple]

Yeah that may be another idea. For VAGs though, get a TDi.

[unknownuser]

Just because it's a European car doesn't necessarily mean that it's built the same quality-wise as the ones in Europe are. Don't know about BMW all too much, but I'd read up on the model that you linked just to make sure it's not a bad car that's known to have issues. Look up trans / engine issues specifically, as those are the most severe and pricey things ~ being a '98 auto trans, that might be a little iffy. Manuals and TDI (diesels) tend to hang in better and last longer.


It looks really nice, but being a '98 just keep in mind that cars and parts can go bad just from age alone and it would be best to get it checked out really well by a German car specialist before you make any decisions. Be prepared to shell out more then the $5,700+, as it might need some repairs and work done... but that really goes for just about any older car that you're buying.

[Dannibabi]

Pretty much all BMW's from before 2000 tend to either be very reliable as Plane and Simple said, or else complete money pits of despair. There's usually not much middle ground there it seems. But as long as everything seems to be in good condition and it runs good, assume the first, and hope the second doesn't happen.

[PinkFloyd]

The BMW 5-series is a great car and it's one of the last BMW's that isn't fully taken over by electronics that make things more likely to break and cost you a fortune. That brings me to my next point. Should anything go wrong with this 17 year-old BMW, it's gonna cost you A LOT more than a regular, non luxury car due to the fact that the parts have to be shipped over and because it's a German car, so the parts are just a lot better in general. Insurance is also way higher. If you live in a climate, that is snowy, the rear real drive aspect is not good at all.

[CosmicNoodle]

Old BMWs are rocks. Thyou'll have this car last as you want and more probably. It's a good engine and it's well built (hell, its german). I'd say tell your dad about it.

I can give you a thorough list of points to check before buying it to see if it's worth it, if you want it, just ask

This, when it comes to engines you litterally can't beat German, I have no doubts that the car will last as long as you want it too, like he said. They may as well be carved out of stone.

However, 18-26 mpg!? How the hell can you afford to run that beast?!?!? I get 90mpg and I struggle!

[Plane And Simple]

Yeah, if you can, get a diesel. It's cheaper to run and you'll feel it's more powerful due to the torque. Really, it's your call, but diesels tend to be more reliable and last longer, which in the end is what you're looking for.

Other than that, there are failures that just don't depend on reliability, you can expect a couple windows to get stuck down, or the on board computer's screen to start fading out, but those are just age related failures that are inevitable.

[earl_hun]

Well, IDK is it sold it in the States, but the VW Passat with the 1.9TDI is a fine, reliable, and even comfortable car. The B5 model, 1997-2003.

[Cognizant]

The BMW 5-series is a great car and it's one of the last BMW's that isn't fully taken over by electronics that make things more likely to break and cost you a fortune. That brings me to my next point. Should anything go wrong with this 17 year-old BMW, it's gonna cost you A LOT more than a regular, non luxury car due to the fact that the parts have to be shipped over and because it's a German car, so the parts are just a lot better in general. Insurance is also way higher. If you live in a climate, that is snowy, the rear real drive aspect is not good at all.

Yeah, if you can, get a diesel. It's cheaper to run and you'll feel it's more powerful due to the torque. Really, it's your call, but diesels tend to be more reliable and last longer, which in the end is what you're looking for.

Other than that, there are failures that just don't depend on reliability, you can expect a couple windows to get stuck down, or the on board computer's screen to start fading out, but those are just age related failures that are inevitable.

Yeah, my dad remarked that if it craps on me somewhere bad, it'll probably end up costing more in repairs than I would be paying for the car.

How reliable is Toyota? I know for a fact that the Toyota MZ engine is bulletproof, but what about their transmissions, computer reliability, etc from the same era as the BMW?


However, 18-26 mpg!? How the hell can you afford to run that beast?!?!? I get 90mpg and I struggle!

Lol, my dad's truck averages 16, and costs us about $90 USD to fill up the tank :P

[Plane And Simple]

Yeah, my dad remarked that if it craps on me somewhere bad, it'll probably end up costing more in repairs than I would be paying for the car.

How reliable is Toyota? I know for a fact that the Toyota MZ engine is bulletproof, but what about their transmissions, computer reliability, etc from the same era as the BMW?



Lol, my dad's truck averages 16, and costs us about $90 USD to fill up the tank :P

From the same era they're just fine. 2003 onwards they're way better. Look for an Avensis if they sell those here. True rocks, more than BMWs

[earl_hun]

From the same era they're just fine. 2003 onwards they're way better. Look for an Avensis if they sell those here. True rocks, more than BMWs

And don't forget the Carina E model, from older times. My dad's friend is using one for 20 years, over 500k km-s, and it works like new.

[thatcountrykid]

So my lease on my Nissan LEAF expires next March, so I'm beginning my research into options after it expires. Option A is my dad is planning on leasing/buying a different modern-day Nissan, or I would just buy my own used car and hold onto that for a few years.

I'm thinking that if I buy my own car, it'll need to last around 5 years/35k miles before I'm financially stable enough to buy or lease a new car. In addition, I would be making payments on it (where if my dad leased a Nissan it wouldn't be my issue), so it should be somewhat reliable. I was looking into BMW 5-series, Toyota Camrys, and Lexus ES for under $5,000. I came across this car and was wondering what people think of it:

Autotrader - 1998 BMW 528i Sedan (http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?endYear=2015&zip=92286&maxPrice=6000&showcaseListingId=0&mmt=%5BTOYOTA%5BCAMRY%5B%5D%5D%5B%5DBMW%5B%5D%5B5_SERIES%5B%5D%5DLEXUS%5B%5D%5BE S_MODELS%5B%5D%5D%5D&modelCode1=CAMRY&makeCode2=BMW&modelCode2=5_SERIES&showcaseOwnerId=68205427&makeCode1=TOYOTA&modelCode3=ES_MODELS&startYear=1981&makeCode3=LEXUS&searchRadius=100&listingId=377304784&Log=0)

It looks okay to me, and the Carfax report checks out okay. Is it worth mentioning to my dad?

a good place to look for used cars is retired police cown victorias . theyve been driven hard and all but theyre great car

[Pulp501]

It looks pretty good to me, it's a 98, so it might have a lot of miles, I'd try to find a 2000s model if I could.

[Cognizant]

a good place to look for used cars is retired police cown victorias . theyve been driven hard and all but theyre great car

How much do you think they'd run for? My cities police force is actually starting to auction off their Crown Vics in place of some Chevrolet.

[thatcountrykid]

How much do you think they'd run for? My cities police force is actually starting to auction off their Crown Vics in place of some Chevrolet.

my guess is 2 to 5 thousand.

i dont know man it depends

[CrazyPerson101]

So my lease on my Nissan LEAF expires next March, so I'm beginning my research into options after it expires. Option A is my dad is planning on leasing/buying a different modern-day Nissan, or I would just buy my own used car and hold onto that for a few years.

I'm thinking that if I buy my own car, it'll need to last around 5 years/35k miles before I'm financially stable enough to buy or lease a new car. In addition, I would be making payments on it (where if my dad leased a Nissan it wouldn't be my issue), so it should be somewhat reliable. I was looking into BMW 5-series, Toyota Camrys, and Lexus ES for under $5,000. I came across this car and was wondering what people think of it:

Autotrader - 1998 BMW 528i Sedan (http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?endYear=2015&zip=92286&maxPrice=6000&showcaseListingId=0&mmt=%5BTOYOTA%5BCAMRY%5B%5D%5D%5B%5DBMW%5B%5D%5B5_SERIES%5B%5D%5DLEXUS%5B%5D%5BE S_MODELS%5B%5D%5D%5D&modelCode1=CAMRY&makeCode2=BMW&modelCode2=5_SERIES&showcaseOwnerId=68205427&makeCode1=TOYOTA&modelCode3=ES_MODELS&startYear=1981&makeCode3=LEXUS&searchRadius=100&listingId=377304784&Log=0)

It looks okay to me, and the Carfax report checks out okay. Is it worth mentioning to my dad?

my guess is 2 to 5 thousand.

i dont know man it depends



Omg YES Do what country kid says . Crown Vics will go .... FOREVER like omg, idk what it is about them but they will go forever. IF yo uwant a reliable car get a Crown Vic.

[LifeOfLove]

While German cars are great, (I currently have an Audi and I've had a VW) you get lucky or screwed. Good ones are super reliable, others are terrible. They also are crazy expensive to fix, so they can be rough on a budget.

[Shaundi]

Nissan 180sx or 200sx S13. Very cheap, cheap parts if something breaks down, is RWD ( That means more fun ;) )