looking 4 A 2001 BMW 740i any thoughts

[IS300]

Have been looking for a vehicle for road tripping...

Big bad on gas but nice.....

current car I have found, I like...

2000 - 2001 BMW 740i M package

still easy to work on, from what I have researched , can find them low miles.

Any of you owned this car and give some feed back?

[908/930]

I think the real problem with the 7 series is they have the most electrical crap, and are sort of the testing grounds for new tec. Are you ok with sorting out electrical problems?

[Steve Carlton]

My understanding is those cars cost a lot to keep up.

[Chocaholic]

Agree. Nothing will be cheap about maintaining a 20 year old BMW with sophisticated electronics and systems.

[908/930]

If you can find a good 2001-2003 (e39) 540i with a stick you should have less trouble.

[wildthing]

Is your road tripping exclusively on paved roads in good weather?

[SCadaddle]

Originally Posted by wildthing

Is your road tripping exclusively on paved roads in good weather?

Hehe. Might better look for a Mercedes.

[asphaltgambler]

They are very good looking and driving large sedans. In my opinion the 740I (short wheel-base) in either the M or the high line package are the one's to get. They are maintenance intensive but no more than similar large sedans of the same era. Like a lot of vintage cars, it's all about the maintenance history, actual records. Count on timing chain, guides, etc @100K along with major cooling system component replacement.

There are a few performance upgrades, including ECM tuning firmware that really wake the 4.0 up.

[IS300]

I'm getting great with electrical problems,
I have thought about a BMW 540i too but I thought the e39 was older

[Scott Douglas]

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1989-bmw-735il-2/

I would think this should be a consideration.

[sugarwood]

Road tripping with a 20 year old car doesn't give me the warm fuzzies.

[cassisrot]

If you want a comfortable, luxurious tourer that gets decent gas mileage and is very reliable you really need to check out the Lexus LS series.

[A930Rocket]

[908/930]

I'm getting great with electrical problems,
I have thought about a BMW 540i too but I thought the e39 was older

Well if you are ok with into electrical problems that will be the biggest problem that I can see, I would still take the 5 over the 7 because you can find a 6 speed stick, and I do think they have less problems, likely to have auto trans failure at some point. Somehow I have not owned one yet, had e12,e28,e34,e60 I still look at them though. Almost picked up a 2003 M5 years ago but ended up with the 930.

The e39 started in 96 but I think the later ones are a little more refined. The E39 530i with a M pack and a stick are rare but available.

[dafischer]

This 540i just closed on BAT. Looks to be a pretty decent car for a reasonable price.
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2001-bmw-540i-59/

[chapo]

I had a 1999 740 il. Bought it from my mechanic and told him it had to last 5 years. It did. Then it died a slow electrical death. Greatest 80k car I ever owned for 5k. Autobahn fast, looked more expensive than it was and the motor was great. The electrical gremlins went from quirky to horrible. Wouldn't pass smog even after two cats, four o2 sensors (they have 4) and numerous other repairs. It passed the sniffer, the CEL would never shut off. Had to plug it in every night to a charger, numerous window regulators which is a BMW norm. I gave it to my mechanic in the end. The nav system would just have the spinning symbol on the dash at all times. I have heard that the cars have over 300 lbs of wiring. We surmised that the coating on the wires was wearing off and throwing random codes. Run Away.

[Chocaholic]

This^^^. The best advice of all.

[slow&rusty]

This BMW mechanic has some good YT videos on the E38.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WxF7nUK-44

Worth a look.

[ErVikingo]

2003 745 here. $$$ to maintain. Some of the things on this car were designed by engineers not thinking about servicing and real life usage.

Here's a couple:

- general coolant leaks
- electrical gremlins (seats, instrument panel)
- bad paint quality
- coolant transfer pipe failure. This is one of the major ones for me. To replace it we were quoted $15K. Basically to do it right most of the nose of the car and the top of the engine must come off.

AGA has an expandable pipe which is affordable and solves the problem at a highly discounted cost.
- sticky plastics
- bad leather quality

They are cheap to buy used, expensive to maintain. Run away, get something with a warranty.

Full disclosure, we have had 325, 330, 750 (2 of them) and 745. IMHO you dont want a BMW if out of warranty

PS, I forget the details but the Odo and something else are prone to damages from coolant leaks

[matthewb0051]