Re: 850Ci purchase question. (archive)

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Regarding Carfax: I requested a report on my 850 last year from Carfax. I was amazed to see that there was a report of "Replaced engine" for the previous year! Wow, and I only thought I had the air conditioning worked on. In other words, the data out is only as good as the data in.

: I've been looking for a later model 850Ci for a while. They are very hard to come by, especially in the bay area. I have found one last week that seems to be in a good condition. But the problem is, the car is located in New York (and I'm in California). It looks like I might have to do a "blind" transaction without inspecting the car first hand. Fortunately the car is sold by the dealer, and it's Certified Pre Owned with 2/50K additional warranty. I would think the CPO status says a lot for a used car. I'm going to ask a bunch of questions before making an offer. If there are other things that I should keep an eye on, please comment on.

: - get VIN and run carfax.
: - get photos inside out.
: - check for any after market parts installed in the vehicle (manifold, suspension, exhaust).
: - books and records.
: - number of keys.

: I'm not against all after market mods, and I'll probably end up upgrading suspension anyways, but I think it's good to get a glimpse of previous owner's driving habits by looking at the mods. I didn't have very good experience last week when I found a white '97 850Ci from a dealer locally. Upon a casual inspection, I've noticed the accel/brake pedals have been replaced with racing style metal pedals, in addition to very noticeable 18" custom wheels. Test drive went OK, but when I looked under the hood after the drive, the white paint in the engine compartment had brownish discoloration, obviously from over heating! At that point I said "thanks, but no thanks" and I left. God help the next owner..

: Well, please comment on. Has anyone done a similar "blind" transaction before? Thanks.

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