Urgent What to look for on an 04

The dealer is driving the car to me and will be here at 4 today. I have a pretty good idea of what to look for, but would like to know if there are any known issues I should be checking out that are are obvious "walk away from it" or "you have big expenses coming up with x issue"

Carfax and all are very clean, she continued to take it to a BMW dealer religiously after her 50k was up and had them complete routine and non routine maintenance.

Other than the obvious things on any used car, pay special attention to the dash lights. If ANY of the warning lights are ON after you turn the engine on, that's o problem.

Originally Posted by X3-terrestrial

Other than the obvious things on any used car, pay special attention to the dash lights. If ANY of the warning lights are ON after you turn the engine on, that's o problem.

Sweet thanks. I am just about to leave to go check this thing out. Hope he didnt just drive 6 hours for nothing.

Originally Posted by tmwoodall

Hope he didnt just drive 6 hours for nothing.

Car sales are tough...they would do almost anything....which one is this one, the white one? Good luck.

Based on experience with my 05: Bad tires (Bridgstones can suffer tread separation, will wobble the car or steering, or make uneven noise when rolling); mis-matched tread wear (if substantial, bad for AWD); leaky pinion seal in rear diff; handbrake has no spare travel (self-adjuster was broken); replacement windshield not done by BMW (reveal moldings on the sides of it may be loose - new clips would be required). And from other posts: leaky or squeaky sunroof; squeaky door seals. Early 04's had extra stiff suspension - make sure you are happy with it.

If the battery is original assume it is near end of life - up to $300 to replace, depending on source.

If you are really analytical and have a reader check for stored ODB II codes. And of course, the idiot light recommendation in post above.

It was the white one, only shows two signs of wear on the inside: Cup holder and the Button for the console on the dash.

It came with two inside the car bike racks too! My big ole bikes won't fit but perhaps they are sellable on clist.

those bike racks should be fork mounts and with your seat post all the way down or completely off -- you should be able to get nearly any bike in!

Originally Posted by cubed

those bike racks should be fork mounts and with your seat post all the way down or completely off -- you should be able to get nearly any bike in!

I ride a fairly big Full Suspension 29er I am going to give it a shot but my gut says they are getting sold.

Originally Posted by tmwoodall

It was the white one, only shows two signs of wear on the inside: Cup holder and the Button for the console on the dash.

It came with two inside the car bike racks too! My big ole bikes won't fit but perhaps they are sellable on clist.

So did you buy it? If so congrats! Tell us about it and post some pictures.

The interior bike rack is a really cool accessory, but I don't know if it will fit a full suspension 29'er.

I am going to go buy a real rack today after work and then clean it up on the exterior.

Yes I bought it and it is literally in nearly perfect shape, no door dings, no scratches everythign works perfectly. The wood looks new. It is phenomenal shape and rides/drives great. It doenst feel too firm for me at all. It rides better than my truck and I like the stifness when I get into it on the turns.

I was very sad to hear my truck rumble away but I think this little thing will serve me well.

Congrats! I know you'll enjoy it, the more you drive them , the more you like them. The cup holder it's an easy replacement and not expensive.

tm, trust me there are going to be times you will really miss that truck!