looking to buy

the m25 engine is a good engine this is the same engine as the 323, i would think this is not the niklasil block or am i wrong?

Buying any older car can inherit secondhand problems. Depending if you are acquiring it privately or from a dealer. If the latter, then it must comply with the Sale of Goods act and it must be fit for purpose. See what guarantees or warranty they give? If they give a warranty which is backed by a warranty Company check what is NOT included.
If the purchase price of the car is fairly low, so less than 1000 pounds, then you get what you pay for really and take a chance to some extent. My son bought an E46 with 10 months MOT and did nothing to it, not even a service and paid 600 and sold for 400, cheap motoring. In many older BMWs you will hear stories or be given known faults, these need to be balanced against your budget.

Edited by Norrie - 04 Feb 2014 at 3:11pm

Hi blade
I have a 323i se 1999 & I had some bushes replaced on mine a few months ago & I think the ones my local garage fitted were about £15 - £20 each,it does depend on which bushes they are on the front suspension as it might work out cheaper to replace the arm as well as I think some bushes come with the arm attached.

As for the bulb,I replaced side light,dip beam,main beam & front fog light bulbs on mine to the xenon h7 55w type to give a better brighter white light for better night driving & it gives the car a nicer look.These were bought off eBay for about £15 plus a small postage fee for the whole set.

Cheers
Rich

Edited by rpennington - 08 Feb 2014 at 8:45am