7 series

michaelanthony

I am thinking of buying an E38 7 series. Probably a 740i. Are these reliable?

I want a BMW that doesn't give any sh it like head gasket problems. I am sick of 3 series because of this and they keep getting stolen on me.

Owen

E38 740 v8 engine is as reliable as anything, I've a great friend with one. Another mate has the e38 750iL v12, and it's grief every few weeks, how and ever when the engine's running sweet, it's rewarding.

ToxicPaddy

OP, Unkel on here has one, a 740i iirc and I've never heard him complain or give out about it once.. so he's def a guy to chat to.

Tox

mike65

e38.org

Mike.

Anan1

I'm regularly tempted in that direction myself. In my experience, however, middle-aged German heavy metal tends to be quite expensive to run. I'd imagine a big Lexus would be a much cheaper ownership proposition. If you are going to buy one, get the 4.4 rather than the 4.0 V8. Or how about a 540i? More horse, less carriage..

michaelanthony

Anan1 wrote:

I'm regularly tempted in that direction myself. In my experience, however, middle-aged German heavy metal tends to be quite expensive to run. I'd imagine a big Lexus would be a much cheaper ownership proposition. If you are going to buy one, get the 4.4 rather than the 4.0 V8. Or how about a 540i? More horse, less carriage..

They cost too much and I don't like the look of them.

junkyard

I've had a 1991 730i and a 2001 740i and I actually preferred the 1991 model as a car to drive and to look at. Very comfortable very reliable and not majorly expensive to run or maintain either. I'd stay with the straight six model tbh the V8's tend to be a bit tempermental as they get older.

unkel

Where do I start?

junkyard wrote:

Very comfortable very reliable and not majorly expensive to run or maintain either

Indeed. Insurance is relatively very cheap (less than for a 523 in my case) but some people aren't aware that large engined cars attract hefty motor tax in this country

junkyard wrote:

I'd stay with the straight six model tbh the V8's tend to be a bit tempermental as they get older.

Can't agree with you there. The six pot belongs to a 3 or 5 series. A 7 series needs a V8. The M62 V8 is very reliable and built to last. Most sources I've found state it will do 400,000 kms without issues

Anan1 wrote:

I'm regularly tempted in that direction myself. In my experience, however, middle-aged German heavy metal tends to be quite expensive to run. I'd imagine a big Lexus would be a much cheaper ownership proposition

I had the same expectations as yourself before owning V8 BMWs although the proposition of owning an ueber Toyota never appealed to me that much. Nice sound system though. My ownership experience with V8 BMWs has been troublefree and inexpensive so far (6 years of middle-aged or even plain old ones. Youngest 7 years, oldest over 10 years)

Anan1 wrote:

If you are going to buy one, get the 4.4 rather than the 4.0 V8

There's a lot of talk in that point alone. I won't even start getting into details here. There are two V8 engines, the older M60 which comes in 3.0 and 4.0 liter and the newer M62 which comes in 3.5 and 4.4 liter. The latter is found in models from '96. There's not much between the 735 and 740 with that engine in real terms tbh

Anan1 wrote:

Or how about a 540i? More horse, less carriage..

A same year, condition, mileage etc. 540 costs more than a 740 to buy and insure. Incredible but true. Only in Ireland

This post will self-destruct in 24 hours. One E38 owner is enough on boards.ie