Higher Mileage E89's

U

Unclepip

Member
Hello again...... Having been a forum member for many years, I sold my E85 Z4 2.5 to a forum member back in 2019. I am starting to get withdrawal symptoms for a fun motor and after looking around at the range of convertibles out there I have (not surprisingly) come back to the Z4.

I am thinking about the 2.3 or 3.0 E89. I note on the forum there are a couple that look stunning and would meet my budget. However, they both have above 90K on the clock, which makes me slightly nervous. I have no experience with regard to buying a high mileage car even less so a Z4 in this area.

I should also add I would feel a lot more comfortable buying from a forum member, where you know the car has generally been very well looked after and maintained (and often a lot more done to it) by a Z4 enthusiast.

Can anybody share their thoughts / experiences in this regard please, it may just be me worrying unnecessarily :D .

It is good to be back, and I look forward to being enlightened......and hopefully buying a Z4 from a member :D

Phil.
 
wouldnt be too concerned about mileage on the 6 cylinder.. i d be a little more wary on the 2.0 turbos, loads of 6yl n52 engines running well into moon miles, be concerned about wear and tear on the chassis tbh so evidence of any suspension refreshments down the years would be handy.. its been ssid many times on the forum, buy on condition and history rather than mileage. White 23i on the forum at 7.5k looks good value at the moment
 
Hi Mr. Tourette, many thanks for your wise council. I agree the white 23i does look well, it was one of those that caught my eye :D
 
I wouldn't be too worried about high mileage on those, other than for ease of re-sale - as long as it's been looked after.

Brilliant engines with more than enough power and noise to put a smile on your face. For me the 23i is probably the sweet spot of the range (if I wanted 4 cylinders I'd get an MX-5 and save myself £10k) but if you can find the right 30i within your budget I would go for it because more is always better, right?

Depending on the year of your old E85, it might have had the same N52 engine as the E89's, just with a lower power output.
 
The two high milers on here both look very nice and there is a £7k car on eBay with 90k on and it looks awful in comparison, I would not worry about the miles at all, jut go view buy the one you like and enjoy :thumbsup:
 
I had a 126k 23i ( bought on 122k) zero issues with it & no reflection of the mileage was evident on either condition or mechanics .
Buy a well kept car ( this should be easy enough to spot ) & there is no reason why a 120k car would be any more unreliable than a 60k one .
I would also say build quality is very good with the E89s , some are now 12yrs old yet still very few repeat fails reported on the forum .
 
tiglon said:
I wouldn't be too worried about high mileage on those, other than for ease of re-sale - as long as it's been looked after.

Brilliant engines with more than enough power and noise to put a smile on your face. For me the 23i is probably the sweet spot of the range (if I wanted 4 cylinders I'd get an MX-5 and save myself £10k) but if you can find the right 30i within your budget I would go for it because more is always better, right?

Depending on the year of your old E85, it might have had the same N52 engine as the E89's, just with a lower power output.
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The e85 2.5si had more bhp than the e89 23i, and as far as I’m aware the mx5 doesn’t come with a turbocharged engine :poke:
Rob
 
As others have said I wouldn't worry about higher mileage cars with the wonderful N52 engine; history and condition is far more important.

My 2nd E86 was on 91K when I sold it, I had an E91 325i with the 2.5 litre version that had done 139K when I sold it and my current E90 330i is on 115K. All drove fine, pulled really strongly and revved eagerly with no issues (other than one dead water pump on the 325i) and some "ticking" when cold, due to lack of use in the world of lockdowns!

There are a couple of decent looking 23is for sale on here so have a look in the classifieds if you haven't already! And good luck getting back into a Z4. :thumbsup:
 
Thanks one and all for such a quick response from so many different members, I shall take on board your wise council, much appreciated. As Mr Tidy says there are some stunners on here and I think that would be my preference for sure and I am looking forward to getting a smile on my face. :D

To answer Lynchy's question, I recently moved from Northampton across to Cardigan in Wales, big move but loving it.
 
Unclepip said:
Thanks one and all for such a quick response from so many different members, I shall take on board your wise council, much appreciated. As Mr Tidy says there are some stunners on here and I think that would be my preference for sure and I am looking forward to getting a smile on my face. :D

To answer Lynchy's question, I recently moved from Northampton across to Cardigan in Wales, big move but loving it.
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Gods country sir - lovely place to live :D
 
We only moved the week before xmas having been trying to sell for nearly 3 years! We absolutely love it, so peaceful and tranquil, the locals are so friendly......hopefully, with lock down easing we might even get out to meet some of them. The thought of cruising around here in a convertible on a sunny day is very appealing. :D
 
When enquiring of a vehicle that has done circa 100K and advert advises FSH - what are the key questions to be explored re jobs undertaken, key parts that are subject to wear and tear at that sort of mileage that you might expected to have been replaced?
Thanks Again.

Phil
 
mr.tourette said:
wouldnt be too concerned about mileage on the 6 cylinder.. i d be a little more wary on the 2.0 turbos, loads of 6yl n52 engines running well into moon miles, be concerned about wear and tear on the chassis tbh so evidence of any suspension refreshments down the years would be handy.. its been ssid many times on the forum, buy on condition and history rather than mileage. White 23i on the forum at 7.5k looks good value at the moment
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Fully agreed.
I do have 2 BMWs with N52 engines, one of them with already ... TKm. No worries about the motor, I expect more than 500 TKm for it.

Unclepip said:
..., key parts that are subject to wear and tear at that sort of mileage that you might expected to have been replaced?
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Wheels, rims, suspensions, former crashes, water in the trunc below(!) the hydraulic pump
 
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RobbiZ4 said:
Fully agreed.
I do have 2 BMWs with N52 engines, one of them with already more than ...TKm. No worries about the motor, I expect more than 500 TKm for it.
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In between there are >530T on the clock.
 
Have 23i on 108k miles now.
Engine wise the only thing replaced was the oil filter gasket housing and the cam cover, common problems.
See if that has been done.
The filter housing gasket goes hard and brittle then leaks, cam cover warps, result was unstable idle.
Replace with genuine BMW not aftermarket for the filter gasket, how do i know :cry:
Cam cover was from Autodoc.
 
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