[fe7565]

I post this in this non-F30 specific thread.

At what point do the hoses and wiring and other plastic or non-metal parts start cracking and falling apart effecting operation/safety? Besides normal maintenance intervals, what else do you need to replace/refresh that you would not have to in the first 10 years?

My current car is the longest I have ever kept a car, at 114k miles and 13 years old. Had it since it was 1.5 years old. I always replaced my cars after 3-4 years, and I bought them either new or under 30k miles. So do not have experience with older vehicles (let alone BMW) with over 100K miles.

The car has been garaged for 11 years, and in the NOVA/DC area. So everything like hoses/wires, etc seem to be in about twice as good shape as my previous ungaraged cars. Also, I remember my 1983 Camaro in 1989 that had cracked interior dash and various quality-control issues that were so representative of US-made cars in the 80s. I would never keep those cars past 80-90k miles.

So with today's better made cars, I am so far going to keep the car longer. Of course, the engine could seize anytime if something breaks (even with the most diligent maintenance), but I plan to keep it for now as long as the hoses/non-metalic parts, etc structurally hold up well.

[freakystyly]

The moment the last piece is assembled from the factory. Technically correct.

Everything decays at different rates, some are instant, some are over time. Rust, wear, electric shorts, too many variables...

Just do your best to keep on top of what keeps the car safe and relatively reliable.

[Redd]

It really depends. Cars that have been parked under the sun deteriorate 10x faster than cars parked underground all the time. But generally, BMW used good quality plastics for the E9x platform. I wouldn't worry too much about it.

[ctcarbonari]

My 15' 535i BMW seems to have a sensor that knows when my disposable cash flow is low. It then triggers a "falling apart" failure scenario. Case in point: My recent headlight water ingress.

In all seriousness tho, Mechanical Systems Fail, Electrical Systems Fail. They all do. Best you can do is keep fluids fresh & clean. Keep moving/sliding components lubricated. Don't overly stress the engine/transmission by "getting on it" before it's warmed near operating temperature. And, in general and especially if you're DIY, plan on replacing additional components "while you're there" while working on a failed part. (i.e. when replacing wp & thermostat, just plan on changing out all the hoses, expansion tank, swapping ground plug screw to an aftermarket stainless steel type, and upgrading the coolant hose flange to an aftermarket aluminum billet style.

Otherwise, just plan for the future while enjoying the ride in the present!

[fe7565]

Thank you for the tips and the insight. So far, no repairs over 100k miles, only normal maintenance/replacements...although some are quite late.

[Efthreeoh]

I have 400,000 on one of my BMWs, which is 19 years old next month. It has not had any falling apart events that you speak fearful of. Other BMWs I've owned and some I still own had (have) 265,000 mile at 18 years old and 200,000 miles at 27 years old. My 17 year old Z4 at 122,000 miles is in excellent shape.

I'm not sure what you are worried about.

[ShocknAwe]

Rubber and plastic fail when heat cycled. All the hot plastics on my E82 started failing at the 15y mark. I'm working my way through them all.

The car is by no means falling apart by performance car or exotic car measures. Not bad for 600hp on a 3000lb chassis, I accept it and thank it for being less needy of my wallet than anything Italian would be.

[UPSROD]

As soon as the price gets low enough that someone under 30 buys!

[NSXR]

Originally Posted by UPSROD

As soon as the price gets low enough that someone under 30 buys!

It's the dismal tide of every car.

[fe7565]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

I have 400,000 on one of my BMWs, which is 19 years old next month. It has not had any falling apart events that you speak fearful of. Other BMWs I've owned and some I still own had (have) 265,000 mile at 18 years old and 200,000 miles at 27 years old. My 17 year old Z4 at 122,000 miles is in excellent shape.

I'm not sure what you are worried about.

I am not worried. I am setting expectations based on what others experienced with their BMWs.

Since I do not have experience owning 27 year old cars, I would have to wait another 14 years until my current car reaches that age. So I am relying on kind and wise individuals such as you with decades old BMWs to pass on their first-hand experience.

[fe7565]

Originally Posted by ShocknAwe

Rubber and plastic fail when heat cycled. All the hot plastics on my E82 started failing at the 15y mark. I'm working my way through them all.

The car is by no means falling apart by performance car or exotic car measures. Not bad for 600hp on a 3000lb chassis, I accept it and thank it for being less needy of my wallet than anything Italian would be.

Good to hear that the plastics are manageable. The good thing about older BMW cars, is that most (used/new) parts become cheaper and cheaper with time. I experienced that with my 2102 F30. One reason why I was able to retrofit CIC to NBT, Lane Change Warning, Dimming/Folding mirrors, etc for reasonable costs.

My 1983 Camaro had a good engine, but the rest of that car was a POS. Workmanship\parts quality of American cars in the 80s was atrocious and that car would have never survived for 27 years...unless you rebuild it bolt by bolt, nut for nut. Glad to know that with 15 years and with 600 horses your car's maintenance/appearance is still quite manageable.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by fe7565

I am not worried. I am setting expectations based on what others experienced with their BMWs.

Since I do not have experience owning 27 year old cars, I would have to wait another 14 years until my current car reaches that age. So I am relying on kind and wise individuals such as you with decades old BMWs to pass on their first-hand experience.

Last fall, I just replaced the original factory brake hoses on the Z3 (then at 26 years old).

In 2017, when the Z3 turned 20 years old, we took it across the US from the Mid-Atlantic to the Rockies to celebrate it's 20th year of service. Other than the coolant pump, the cooling system is original.

[Altamate]

Our 2008 328xi after ~ 10years of happy ownership started to have broken wire issues with the trunk and door cables where the bundles pass to the trunk lid and to the drivers door. To keep the taillights, trunk release and windows working fixed a number of wires but more kept breaking. I then checked into new harnesses for those areas from BMW, I can’t remember now how much it was anymore, but the price was sickening, so I fixed more wires and sold the car.

When replacing BMWs, I now sell at the 10-11yr / 100-120,000km mark and buy 1-4yr old cars with less than 30,000km. I haven’t avoided all the issues doing that, but the car is still new enough and worth enough that doing large expensive work is worth it.

I own an old 1973 Pontiac Trans Am I bought in the 70’s( there is an earlier comment here about a Camaro) I did have to fully nut and bolt restore the car but it is worth more than our current BMW and my Truck combined, so I don’t mind spending money on it

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by Altamate

Our 2008 328xi after ~ 10years of happy ownership started to have broken wire issues with the trunk and door cables where the bundles pass to the trunk lid and to the drivers door. To keep the taillights, trunk release and windows working fixed a number of wires but more kept breaking. I then checked into new harnesses for those areas from BMW, I can’t remember now how much it was anymore, but the price was sickening, so I fixed more wires and sold the car.

When replacing BMWs, I now sell at the 10-11yr / 100-120,000km mark and buy 1-4yr old cars with less than 30,000km. I haven’t avoided all the issues doing that, but the car is still new enough and worth enough that doing large expensive work is worth it.

I own an old 1973 Pontiac Trans Am I bought in the 70’s( there is an earlier comment here about a Camaro) I did have to fully nut and bolt restore the car but it is worth more than our current BMW and my Truck combined, so I don’t mind spending money on it

Reading your post, it reminded me and I have to amend my statement about electrical wire failures. On both the E90 and Z3, I have had to repair the wire harness at the hingeline of each car's trunk. A few of the wires in the trunklid harness did fray and break. Not a repair that is worth recycling the vehicle and inconsequential enough that I forgot about it. The E90 as my daily, I probably opened the trunk 10x a week, so after 15 years or so, a few wires broke. It's not a difficult repair, and I've had it happen on my '89 Acura Integra as well, so it's a design issue more than strictly a BMW issue. Nothing like it happens 5 years into ownership.

[Vtg92]

I believe everything depends how well you take care like frequent oil changes and high grade fuel and not driving it crazy 100% of the times and not doing cheap remaps

[StradaRedlands]

Boot wires are the only wires that have ever gone bad on both an E90 and E91. And that's just because they are at a hinge point. Static wiring that doesn't move around has never failed on any of our Bimmers. None of our Bimmers have needed anything other than regular maintenance.*

*Regular maintenance on BMWs includes a lot of parts on other cars that don't fail: OPG, OFHG, valve cover/VCG, Mickey Mouse flange, coolant bypass line, radiator, windshield cowl, window regulators.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by Vtg92

I believe everything depends how well you take care like frequent oil changes and high grade fuel and not driving it crazy 100% of the times and not doing cheap remaps

I don't think frequent oil changes matter. I think using the correct oil and oil filter do. My E90 has a lifetime OCI average of 12,253 miles. Seven changes went over 16,000 miles each.

[Chihuahua]

Originally Posted by StradaRedlands

*Regular maintenance on BMWs includes a lot of parts on other cars that don't fail: OPG, OFHG, valve cover/VCG, Mickey Mouse flange, coolant bypass line, radiator, windshield cowl, window regulators.

Well said, this has been my experience as well over the years with several older BMWs.

[Altamate]

Originally Posted by StradaRedlands

Boot wires are the only wires that have ever gone bad on both an E90 and E91. And that's just because they are at a hinge point. Static wiring that doesn't move around has never failed on any of our Bimmers. None of our Bimmers have needed anything other than regular maintenance.*

*Regular maintenance on BMWs includes a lot of parts on other cars that don't fail: OPG, OFHG, valve cover/VCG, Mickey Mouse flange, coolant bypass line, radiator, windshield cowl, window regulators.

Variable Cam timing and chains, fuel pumps, water pump. I guess these do fail on other cars, but BMW it is frequent and early. Batteries don’t seem to last well beyond 4 yrs either especially if the car is loaded with all the options

[Daeda01]

Originally Posted by freakystyly

The moment the last piece is assembled from the factory. Technically correct.

Everything decays at different rates, some are instant, some are over time. Rust, wear, electric shorts, too many variables...

Just do your best to keep on top of what keeps the car safe and relatively reliable.

This! GM just announced a recall for their shitty V8s, Toyota is having a helluva time with their new twin turbo V6 (never should've replaced the 3UZFE), etc. The day they make plastic that doesn't degrade and rubber that doesn't become concrete, every car will be indestructible.

[eluded]

120K is my rule of thumb on most vehicles. Things just generally start failing more beyond this mileage.

[TriumphTim]

Originally Posted by eluded

120K is my rule of thumb on most vehicles. Things just generally start failing more beyond this mileage.

I agree with this statement, maybe even be prepared at 100k miles.

I purchased a 2008 328xi with 95K miles on it and it promptly received a belt service, water pump, starter, cooling system overhaul, valve cover gasket/OFHG, and suspension overhaul.

Lots of work but I expect it last another 100k miles for the most part.