Am I insane for considering a cheap, high mileage 435i xDrive?
A little background. I'm currently in the market for a "cheap" 2nd car. My daily is a TT RS, but I am looking for something that will comfortably fit 3 people while still being engaging to drive because I hate driving my wife's SUV. I've never owned a BMW, but have become enamored with the F36 platform.
This car would be bought with cash, and if I had to guess, I'd say it might see 5k - 8k miles a year. I do have a 2 post list in my garage, and am on the upper end of a YouTube DIY enthusiast. For example, I watched FCP's N20 timing chain guide and thought "That looks tricky, but I could probably handle that."
Now. The car itself. It is a 2015 435i xDrive Gran Coupe M Sport, and it's optioned just about perfectly for what I want. Has 158k miles on it, and asking price is $9k. I purchased the CarFax for it, and has decent history. It had 2 owners from purchased new to 60k miles, then the same owner for the last 100k miles.
First two owners service history is kind of patchy, but for the last 100k miles, it's been getting oil changes every 6 months (6k - 7k miles average). At 93k miles, it does list "Oil pan gasket replaced" at a BMW dealer, and at 147k miles had "Drive belt idler pully replaced, Drive belt tensioner pulley replaced, Drive belt tensioner replace, Idler pulley replaced, and Serpentine tensioner replaced". Not sure if any of those are indicative of a bigger job or problem, but it seems well maintained.
So. Am I crazy for considering it? Need someone to talk me in or out of it 🤣