New member hoping to get in the ZHP game

[racer2086]

Hi ZHP crew!

New here. I had a friend in high school that had an 2004 Imola ZHP. I loved that car. We took turns trying to get the fastest 0-60 time with my g-timer one night. What a great time. That's when I realized how great of a car it was to drive.

I've grown up around BMWs with my family. I do all my own work and love to keep them running. I spend all my time over on bimmerforums. I have an E38 with 237k and my wife drives an E39 with 119k. The transmission just went out on my E38 (doesn't owe me much I guess at 237k). So I'm using that as an excuse to get a ZHP if I can find the right one for the right price.

I am planning on fixing my transmission because that E38 is just such a great car to drive, especially on the highway.

Look forward to becoming a contributing member of this community.

[fredo]

Welcome, sir. There are some good ZHP cars for sale out there. Where are you located ?

[704sw]

psssssst: manual swap the E38

Also welcome!

[John in VA]

Where are you located ?
Location states Tampa FL.

[fredo]

Thanks. I'm positive the location was blank earlier. :dunno

[johnrando]

Welcome!

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[racer2086]

Thanks guys! I'm looking every day for a good example that isn't outrageously expensive. There are some on autotrader etc that are listed for more than an M3!


psssssst: manual swap the E38

Also welcome!

Haha! Thought about it, but like the auto for traffic. I'd rather the manual in a smaller car for the fun. I am planning on getting the E38 running again, since I've put so much work into it and its a real great highway cruiser.


Thanks. I'm positive the location was blank earlier. :dunno

You're not going crazy, it was :). I added the location after I posted and realized it was blank.

[Hejie023]

Thanks guys! I'm looking every day for a good example that isn't outrageously expensive. There are some on autotrader etc that are listed for more than an M3!



Haha! Thought about it, but like the auto for traffic. I'd rather the manual in a smaller car for the fun. I am planning on getting the E38 running again, since I've put so much work into it and its a real great highway cruiser.



You're not going crazy, it was :). I added the location after I posted and realized it was blank.I keep hearing about ZHPs asking more than me, but never seen it happen. Could you show me some of the ads that you're seeing?

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[ELCID86]

Where’s William when you need him!

OP, get a Craigslist app and add various markets and search away!

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190205/25c3860cf770718930392ee321f8af95.jpg

Also remember some cars will be listed as 3-series or 330, etc.

[fredo]

I like the one for $6,850.

[racer2086]

6850 car is auto. I've scoured the net and looked at every car. There is one near me in Daytona area, Orient blue, but wants 13.5k with 131k miles. Like whoa. There are manuals around for 5-6k, just not near me. So I'll just have to chill and wait until something comes up around me.

On CL there are some M3s for less than that ZHP. Here's one: yes, SMG, but only 30k more miles but 4.5k less... https://tampa.craigslist.org/pnl/cto/d/clearwater-bmw-m3-e46/6808973390.html

[DeathTrap]

For some odd reason these cars hold their value unbelievably well. Probably because they are so damn good. You'd have to find a really beat one (like mines lol) to get a good price, somewhere under 7k...but then you'll be putting another 3-4k into it and be back at square one.

[racer2086]

For some odd reason these cars hold their value unbelievably well. Probably because they are so damn good. You'd have to find a really beat one (like mines lol) to get a good price, somewhere under 7k...but then you'll be putting another 3-4k into it and be back at square one.

They should command more than a standard 330, which I understand. But go on Autotrader and there's a firm out of St. Louis that has some ZHPs listed for OVER 22k and some in the mid to high teens with higher mileage. Are you kidding?

The extra 3-4k in maintenance...Isn't that like every BMW? :rofl

We have a bunch of people join the E38 forum over at BFc after having picked up a 740 with 150k miles for $1000. They end up spending 10k in parts in the next year just to get it running right and fixing all the old brittle stuff that breaks to get it back to business. Then the chain guides let go. It's a phenomenal car when running great and in good shape, but man you will still have a large annual maintenance bill because of the age.

I have no problem wrenching, but a car with 130k, 150k, 180k is still a car with that mileage even if it has been maintained. And age kills these BMW parts just as much as mileage. Anyone with a BMW plastic cooling system or timing chain guides can attest to that...

I'll just take my time and see if I can find a reasonable one. It's also difficult, because it seems if you ask too many questions about maintenance or condition of a car with 150k+ miles, you just get a short answer "whatever's in the listing" or stop hearing back. Rarely, it seems, do people have actual documentation of repairs. I have 2 binders of paperwork for my E38 over the last 240k miles.

[DeathTrap]

I saw those listings. I threw up in my mouth a bit.

I would never recommend an older BMW to my "normal" friends for that reason. Cost of entry is cheap... that's the easy part. Can you handle the long run is the question? Most can't, and they go on to post how their car was a POS. Which it probably was...

When/if I buy another German car, it's definitely coming from an enthusiast.

[Gordo_GT]

They should command more than a standard 330, which I understand. But go on Autotrader and there's a firm out of St. Louis that has some ZHPs listed for OVER 22k and some in the mid to high teens with higher mileage. Are you kidding?

The extra 3-4k in maintenance...Isn't that like every BMW? :rofl

We have a bunch of people join the E38 forum over at BFc after having picked up a 740 with 150k miles for $1000. They end up spending 10k in parts in the next year just to get it running right and fixing all the old brittle stuff that breaks to get it back to business. Then the chain guides let go. It's a phenomenal car when running great and in good shape, but man you will still have a large annual maintenance bill because of the age.

I have no problem wrenching, but a car with 130k, 150k, 180k is still a car with that mileage even if it has been maintained. And age kills these BMW parts just as much as mileage. Anyone with a BMW plastic cooling system or timing chain guides can attest to that...

I'll just take my time and see if I can find a reasonable one. It's also difficult, because it seems if you ask too many questions about maintenance or condition of a car with 150k+ miles, you just get a short answer "whatever's in the listing" or stop hearing back. Rarely, it seems, do people have actual documentation of repairs. I have 2 binders of paperwork for my E38 over the last 240k miles.

I’ve had luck with the dealerships. Someone trades in their ZHP and the dealer has no clue what it is and sells it based on KBB.

I should be getting this car on Friday, it was picked up from Austin, TX today. Has 82k miles. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190205/11421ffb4f0ff74e474226ae39969626.jpg



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[racer2086]

Nice!!! Now that's what I'm talking about. How are you searching the dealers? Standard online searches like Autotrader?

[Gordo_GT]

Nice!!! Now that's what I'm talking about. How are you searching the dealers? Standard online searches like Autotrader?

I mainly use Cars.com and Autotrader. Use the advanced search function to search the year and model and expand the search radius to any distance.

Zero in on the listing by dealerships that don’t have any pictures, and which are probably newly listed. Email the dealership asking for them to send you pictures of the interior and exterior. You should be able to conclude if it’s a ZHP or not.

Ideally you want to find franchise dealerships (e.g. Chevrolet, Jeep of xyz city). These dealerships will send crappy trade ins to the auction and only sell the nicer stuff.

If you find what you want, place a deposit with the dealer so that they don’t sell it under you. Get a PPI done and finalize the sale if everything checks out.




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