Part Service History - What To Do?

C

CryptoWhale

Member
Hi All.

I purchased my car (3.0Si late 07 plate) just over a month ago, it has 106k on the clock. It has BMW service history up to 65k miles. I was advised the car was then serviced and maintained since 2015 by the owner of the car previous to the forum member of whom I purchased the car off. There are no receipts to show this self service maintenance though. The next inspection is due in 10k miles according to the dash.

Essentially the car has a gap of 40k miles / 5 years with no proven service history / maintenance (The car was off the road for 18 months also, 2017-2019).

The car could very well have been self serviced meticulously which I believe it has as it is in great condition for the most part... but with no proof of this I'd like to get this back on track (and for peace of mind also). I'm not sure that I am comfortable waiting another 10k miles either... so what would you guys recommend I do? Should I get the car booked in now with a specialist for full inspection 2? or just an inspection 1? Is there any way to tell if the car has actually been self serviced? Is an inspection 1 or 2 even necessary considering it's not due for another 10k?

I must add having driven around 800 miles in the car, it is running perfectly, an absolute joy to drive :D

Cheers
 
Its on 107k its 14 yrs old .
You mention not being comfortable waiting 10k & id agree there as it could already have covered 6k-8k ?
With no documentation I would spend £300-£400 & change oil & filter
air filter
plugs
coolant
brake fluid
gearbox oil
 
Do all the ususal ‘missing history’ checks if you’re not sure.
Look for any new welds, overspray, uneven panel gaps, dodgy looking vin plates, matching numbers and drives straight if you think it’s had a whack.
Otherwise, as others have suggested get it serviced and do as much as you can yourself if you’re inclined.
 
I'd be inclined to agree with mr wilks. Just jump to Insp 2 (for peace of mind as this includes spark plugs, and filters) and additionally get the:
- coolant flushed
- brake fluid flushed
- gearbox oil refresh
 
I bought my e89 with no history, but did due diligence, the car was serviced up to 2017 at Sytner in Coventry, the car was then serviced in 2020 by the supplying dealer (to me) and was also sent to BMW for some work before I collected.

The car has only ever been MOT'd at two garages prior to the supply dealer doing the one that I purchased the car with, car looks and runs great.

Took me a few hours of searching and ringing around but pieced enough together to buy the car.
 
As above, £3-400 (Indy prices) not a lot for peace of mind and probably adds as much value on to your car if you were selling. There’s a big difference between “just had inspection 2+ At Indy/BMW” and “the last owner told me he’d been servicing the car for the last 5 years”.

I bought mine with “full service history”, but for a low mileage car this translated into 3 services in 14 years, so I had no hesitation in getting an Inspection 2 and fluid changes straight away.
 
I have a good example of service history and regular maintenance. A car that i bought from UK and even drove a bit before i found this:

IMG_20200804_210304 (1).jpg
 
Thanks for all your responses. Decided I will be getting the car booked in with an Indy for an inspection 2 + coolant flush, brake fluid and gearbox oil change. As Zedebee mentioned it's not a big cost and for peace of mind and getting the service history back on track it will be worth it I think.
 
Defo a good choice. Will give you confidence driving. Whether your driving spiritedly or worries about overheating, etc. You’ll know all is mech sound. Even if we can’t drive it so frequently with current restrictions!
 
I have a similar thing where mine has all the stamps except 1 but then there is a receipt for that missing stamp and then some receipts missing for the past services with stamps argh! Contacted the dealerships and they couldn't issue copies of invoices as it was to far back.

I took mine to TWG for a check over then did a full service on mine with a swathe of other nice-to-do bits for 100k such as various gaskets, CCV and so on and kept a written journal with photos of my work.

Smart move on the Insp II with extra, nothing like driving with peace of mind post all that work.
 
CryptoWhale said:
Thanks for all your responses. Decided I will be getting the car booked in with an Indy for an inspection 2 + coolant flush, brake fluid and gearbox oil change. As Zedebee mentioned it's not a big cost and for peace of mind and getting the service history back on track it will be worth it I think.
Click to expand...

FWIW if I were buying it from you a couple of years down the line, and you had done the Inspection 2 plus proof of maintenance since then, I wouldn't be put off by it. As others have said, keeping to the "every 15,000 miles" check can actually result in pretty patchy history.

Has it had any of the "main" issues fixed (e.g. water pump, springs, ABS motor etc)?
 
mr wilks said:
Its on 107k its 14 yrs old .
You mention not being comfortable waiting 10k & id agree there as it could already have covered 6k-8k ?
With no documentation I would spend £300-£400 & change oil & filter
air filter
plugs
coolant
brake fluid
gearbox oil
Click to expand...
+ diff oil.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom