03 530i Needs New Engine - Selling Advice

Just found out my 530i has a cracked block. Not sure how the moisture got in the block but the damage is done.

I'm leaning towards not replacing the engine and selling the car. Overall the car is in great condition (except for the engine of course) and someone else may want to put an engine in or part it out. Details - 03 530i, non-sport, AT, 84K miles, gray with black interior.

Any idea how to get a price range on what it might be worth as is?

Why not take advantage of such an event to do an awesome engine rebuild for forced induction? Fun, rewarding, and you can get awesome performance. Just wondering. Sorry I couldn't answer the question.

well an engine is prob, like 6k job and the car is worth 9k. so i dont know if you will get more than 3500 for it. Pics would also help to determine the value.

Honestly, you are in a difficult position unless you can afford to let the car go cheap. Any DIY mechanic that would buy your car for an engine swap is not likely to give you more than $2K and you can expect lower offers than that for a non-running car. A used car dealer that would want to buy it to install a cheap used engine and sell the car, will probably offer the least of all. I am not saying that these low offers are fair but that is probably what you are looking at. FWIW, there was a similar 530i for sale in Cherry Hill, NJ for many months. The owner started out asking $3500 and had come down to $2200 the last time I saw his ad on Craig's List. I don't know if he sold it and what he got if he did. Another piece of information that is important. No privately sold 530i is worth $9K on today's market. People may ask that but they are not getting it. Dealers try to get that kind of money for a 530i Sport Package model with all the bells and whistles.

I suspect your best bet is to find an honest independent mechanic that will install a used engine and buy the engine from a salvage yard that offers some kind of guarantee. That is probably still going to be at least $4000 and likely more if you are on east or west coast.

I have bought two non-working BMW's from my indie. I bought a 01 325i without an engine for $1,500 and a 02 540i with a blown transmission and 180k for $3,500 (probably paid too much). The reason I mention this is you might ask indie shops in your area if they have customers looking for project cars. Craig's list may be a good way to move it as well.

Replacing an enigine is not as hard as it sounds. It is some bolts and a WHOLE lot of electrical connections. It is also a perfect opportunity to replace all the problem parts when they are easy to get to!

You could also part it out, but that is a whole lot of work and then you have to dispose of whats left.

BTW - I bought the 325 engine from a local recycling yard and the transmission from Bavarian Auto Recycling (with a warranty) out of California. I got exactly what I ordered.

Good luck!

Originally Posted by Bwood1

You could also part it out, but that is a whole lot of work and then you have to dispose of whats left.

This will get you the most $$
Only do it if you have plenty time and you are mechanically inclinded

If you sell as is, I'd think you might be able to get $3k

Like Mike said, do you have any pics?

While your at it--give us a little info on why you think there is a crack in the block you have. Is the oil and water mixing--is there smoke coming out of the tail pipe--just what kind of problems are there?

Thanks for the responses. I was kind of expecting around 2K so it sounds like I'm in the right range.

History - went to start car. Ran really rough - wouldn't idle - would try to surge then die. Tried several times - even tried to use the accelerator to keep it going but it would crap out after about 15 seconds. Gave up for the day.

Tried again on another day and it wouldn't turn over. Starter was working but it didn't sound like the engine was even making an effort. Had it towed to a local indie with a great reputation (have used before). They told me first from the sound of trying the starter that it wasn't catching and the thought the engine was seized. When they finally got it up on the lift they examined and tried to turn the engine manually (from what I understand) and diagnosed a bad piston (or piston gone through) and said the block was cracked. Said moisture must have gotten in the oil or in the block somehow. That's about all I know.

I'll post pics soon but overall the car is in really great shape. They are telling me to expect about 6K for the replacement and related things (fuel pump, crank case vent, etc. as needed). I figured 8K was about it's max with a replacement engine so I'm hesitant to put money in. If I could get 2K as is I'd probably go that route. I'm not inclined to part it out although I can see how that would maximize the $.

I have a call in to 2 recyclers and another Indy that does some rebuilds himself for resale and to see his estimate to repair.

Sucks of course - car was a good example of the classic e39 but I'm not sure I want to dump that much in to keep it going. I have a truck and a Boxster so it's not a critical vehicle although it was my daily driver.

Thanks

Recently I bought 2000 540i 127kmi with engine that needs overhauling (timing chain guides; great shape otherwise with a lot of stuff already replaced) for.... $1600. So, don't expect to get much if you sell it as-is.

Update: Sold the car to a local indy that I had used for several other cars. Got 1750 for it. He's going to replace the engine and sell it.

Sux to lose such a great car but just couldn't justify putting 6 or 7K more into it for used engine. Must have been some cooling system failure. Radiator was nearly empty. I never got a warning light or saw the temp gauge spike. Did not have leakage signs in the garage. Still not sure what happened.

Thanks for the advice.

this is because you have low cluster where there is no warning light for coolant
I am checking my radiator level every 300-500 miles
also empty radiator and no leakage signs in the garage do not work together
Thanks for sharing

Hi Larry,

Sorry to hear about your BMW engine. I found this posting after you sold the car, but depending on the crack on the block, it may be repairable with out removing the engine using a product called locknstitch
http://www.locknstitch.com/RepairExamples.htm

Jose F. Medeiros
San Jose, California

For future users, this reference list was designed to help in a similar situation:

- Summary advice to provide users who suspect a major engine repair due to overheating (1) (2) (3) (4) & how to test an engine for a blown head gasket, cracked heads, a warped block, stripped head bolt threads, cam seizures, contaminated bearings, coolant hydrolock, or piston, ring, or valve damage (1) (2) & what are the major factors in deciding whether to rebuild the engine, replace the engine, or sell the car (1) & a DIY for replacing the I6 M54 head gasket (1) (2) & replacing the V8 M62TU head gasket (1) & why these engines are so prone to heat-related damage in the first place (1) & welding the crack between cylinder #3 and the water jacket on the exhaust side (1) & what engine swaps are most recommended (1) (2) (3) & where to obtain a new or rebuilt head (1) replacement short block or long block (1) (2) & how to lift & remove the engine (1) & the most recent real-world results from the last 50 people faced with similar blown engine problems from which this advice came from (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10) (11) (12) (13) (14) (15) (16) (17) (18) (19) (20) (21) (22) (23) (24) (25) (26) (27) (28) (29) (30) (31) (32) (33) (34) (35) (36) (37) (38) (39) (40) (41) (42) (43) (44) (45) (46) (47) (48) (49) (50)

Thank you for the links, since I am new to the forum, they are very helpful.