Teach me: e28's

So I've been looking to trade my 944 for an E30, but I've come across a really nice later e28 535is not far from me and the gentleman may be interested in my car. I know these cars have slightly less sporting intentions than the E30, but this would serve more as a highway car, second car, and a few mods here and there. In other words, I don't care much if it can't ever be a track beast.

I tried searching a bit and there was some info here and there, and it seems the Suddard's even had one in the fleet at one point. Anyone have some good experience with these? From the bits that I've read here and there, they seem to be one of the more robust cars to come out of Bavaria.

These are very well built cars - built to a standard not a price. High quality materials. The m30 (535) is a very tough engine as well. For specific info maybe check out mye28.com. I wish I'd kept my challenge e28 as a daily. It soaked up miles (I bought it MD, drove it to Chicago, cleaned it up, painted it, daily drove it for 6 months, drove it to the challenge and back without a second thought - with 210k on it) and was a comfy car. Oddly attracted a lot of attention from people. I wouldn't hesitate at giving another one a go. I don't feel the same about m20 cars. The only failure I had in about 10,000 miles was a clutch master that went out.

Common Issues - odometer gears get old and break, dashes crack, driveshaft bearings/guibos go out, on MT cars with a bunch of miles, the pedal bracket cracks, trunk seals get old and leak - can result in water/rust.

My 528e has 400xxx on it when I sold it; the sills were rusty and it was on its second trans but sheesh that thing soaked up the miles.

In reply to redhookfern:

the 535is was a two-year package and is the almost-top-shelf E28, behind the unobtanium E28M5. iirc the is has a unique front fascia and rear lip spoiler. they are very solid cars, and like a lot of older cars the condition and maintenance are more important than the miles. i haven't decided yet whether i'm going to get a 535is or an E12 with a 3.5 / 5sp swap.

bottom line: they are tasty.

Oldtin covered the common things. If they've been taken care of they'll last just about forever, My M535i has a little over 200,000 miles on it so it's only middle aged.

The hardest thing to fix will be rust. Mechanically they're pretty easy to work on and parts are still mostly available at reasonable prices.

This was mine... 88 535is 5sp car. 200k+ on the odo when it took a 55 mph t-bone in the driver's front wheel. I walked away with just a bruise or two. I loved it - solid as a tank cruising triple digit speeds. 25mpg all day long. Unstoppable in the snow. Comfortable for all-day trips. Seats a whole family and enough luggage to go for a long time. Sweet exhaust note with just a muffler swap. Nice ones with 5 speeds are becoming unicorns though.

I daily drive a 528e, which is an automatic with mileage-conscious modifications. In other words, by most definitions, it's a dog... and I love it. The 535i would remove that dogness while sacrificing none of the car's excellent utility. (I'd have one, but then it would turn into a temptation for my husband, and this way I know my autotragic eta travels under the radar and will always remain mine all unmodified mine.)

As others have said, these cars are well-built, dead reliable, and just soak up the miles. They also have very roomy and comfy interiors, a wide-open greenhouse and great styling. Handling is competent if not jaw-dropping. Honestly, a 528 probably does all the same things a Camry does, but people's reactions to it are the polar opposite, and it's one of the most practical classics you can daily-drive.

Problem-wise, again, most of them have been listed here. Dashes crack, power window switches fail (load up on extras at your local U-pull-it), and minor electrical gremlins are common--most cars by now throw incorrect warning lights on the overly-detailed overhead panels, the old Bosch relays get cranky, and the primitive computers are capable of running half-broke for a maddeningly long time as you search in vain for the source of the problems. Speaking of problems, the OBD system is also quite primitive, so troubleshooting is not quite as direct as it is on modern cars. Also, the odometer gears break, and even if yours is still (mostly) working, you may find that you need a good, sharp whack! on the LH side of the gauge cluster every now and then to get your speedometer working again. Try to avoid the dash cracks when you do this.

Overall, highly recommend. Good luck!

Margie

They are on the list of cars to keep an eye out for when it comes time to move on to my next daily driver. ESPECIALLY the 535 cars. Can't find em around here to often.

More:

Speedo gears are a $25 DIY fix.

The wonky warning lights are the batteries on the SI board. Another DIY $25 issue if you can solder.

Vacuum leaks account for 999% of all the drive-ability issues.

If the car cranks but won't start its the crank position sensor. It's in the bell housing aimed at the starter gear.

A fist full of new relays and a half a day spent cleaning grounds will make everything better.

Window switches stop working but they can be popped apart and cleaned up with sand paper.

The carpet in the back seat is soaked because your sunroof drains are blocked.

Your trunk is leaking because your tail light gaskets are rotten.

Your brakes suck because they use a hydraulic pump for assist and the accumulator "bomb", regulator or pressure sensor is shot. Take the whole regulator/bomb out and do it on the bench then put it all back in. If the regulator is bad, be prepared to cough up $$$. The good news is, it probably isn't. It's the bomb.

That sounds exactly what we're looking for. It doesn't need to be a hardcore sports car like the 944, but something that is still fun and has that classic appeal. They still fly under the radar around the area so they don't seem to have the ridiculous euro-tax that all bashed up E30's around here seem to have. The only major drawback to this one, so far that I can tell, is that it's an automatic. It makes more sense for where I live, and the other half would prefer it as well, but I always try to make it a priority to get a manual. It does have a set of, what appear to be, something like the wheels on 840ci's. Not sure how that would be possible.

I checked out Mye28.com and some other sites, everyone seems to agree that the major organs of these cars are all pretty healthy and bulletproof, with the niggling issues being the annoyance.

The auto transmission in a 535i isn't bad but it does take a lot of the fun out of the car. If you're ambitious you can swap in a manual transmission.

Some people are using the wheels off the 840 on their e28s, as well as wheels off other newer 5 and 7 series cars - many e28s came with TRX metric wheels originally, and when the supply of TRX tires dried up (well, you can still get them from Coker Tire but they cost $430/each) everyone switched to regular size wheels and tires.

It does look good with the 840 wheels. I will have to wait till Friday morning to see how they look, and the overall car, in person. Seems like a nice, knowledgeable guy and said he has receipts from an indy bmw shop that has done a lot of the work on it. Seems to need a few odds and ends cosmetically in the photos (broken antenna, missing bumper trim, cracking leather), but my 944 has a few cosmetic blemishes too.

Who would ever pay $430 for TRX-compatible tires? I guess to maintain restoration correctness?

I have a '87 535is 5spd. It has a little over 300k and still runs strong. The clear coat on the hood is mostly gone and it started to peel on the roof too but the rest of its red paint still shines...after a carwash...at about 20ft...lol. Other than ST springs and Bilstien dampers, its completely stock. It was my DD but now my back up car. Speaking off... I need to go for a nice drive this weekend.

There's one for sale in Greenville, SC. Auto, but looks nice. Question though, is this a realistic price? Seems high, but I really don't know what these trade hands for.

http://greenville.craigslist.org/ctd/3933089619.html

I paid $2300 for the blue one above with a 180k, 5sp and pretty good maintenance history. That was circa 2003 or 2004? So... holy E36 M3. A decade ago.

I wouldn't pay $5k for one of these with all the E46 325i cars in the same price range.

Yeah seems like dealer mark up. I've seen a few decent ones under $3

One caveat on wheels: The e28's are hubcentric, and you may need adaptor (a.k.a. centering, or hub-centric) rings to switch to different wheels. There's a handy tutorial here.

Margie

Thank you Margie! You all are awesome with these tips

Matt B wrote: There's one for sale in Greenville, SC. Auto, but looks nice. Question though, is this a realistic price? Seems high, but I really don't know what these trade hands for. http://greenville.craigslist.org/ctd/3933089619.html

that car's been for sale for several months now.

a few months ago i passed on an '86 528e 5sp, burgundy with cream interior in VGC, for $600. i wish i hadn't done that.

Thanks for the price check guys. $5K seemed a little crack-smokey to me.

$5k for that 535is in Greenville isn't necessarily out of line, it looks pretty good in the photos. A quick scan of the classified ads on mye28.com shows other similar cars selling in the $4k to $6.5k range

Clarification: odometer gears don't affect the speedometer, it's an electrical issue if you have to whack the dash to get your speedo working.

Odometergears.com is the place for, well... odometer gears.

Tom Suddard wrote: Clarification: odometer gears don't affect the speedometer, it's an electrical issue if you have to whack the dash to get your speedo working. Odometergears.com is the place for, well... odometer gears.

Ah. Well, now you know why I have you to work on my cars... or, in my dash-tapping, dummy-light-ignoring case... not.

Margie

It's okay, we often pound on the dash of our Grand Cherokee to get the climate control to work. I understand.

Now I'm more excited to check this car out tomorrow morning. I just hope that he is as equally into the 944.

I picked mine up in 2010 for $1600. 5 spd, ran flawlessly, 2 boxes of spares. Had a 3" crease in a fender. For the condition it was well bought. At least in my head, I'm thinking 3-3.5k should get a pretty good one. There's 88 m5s out there for under 10k.

Oh, the ECUs do start getting old - solder joints break. Sometimes you can fix gremlins by resoldering the box connections.