How to check the condition of a used car before buying

[@vomdeich1011]

My rule of thumb: If a car is equipped with cheap tires in relation to its value - just walk away. The previous owner was not willing to spend money on the car, which was not visible to his neighbor.

[@RoadandRacetv]

+VomDeich Good tip!

[@Photoandcargeek]

VomDeich Yes and no. There was an interesting study on Fifth Gear about that, not all budget tires are bad. On my sports cars I have always fitted the expensive stuff and I used to push my wife to do the same on her utilitarian 20 year old Toyota Corolla until we thought about selling it and Toyota dealership offered us two tire options, we picked the budget one and to be honest I can't really feel the difference in dry/wet, normal or fast driving just like Fifth Gear demonstrated in their study for some of their budget tyres ... so maybe the compromise is fuel economy. I also have to add that I have raced cars and do track days so I am an experienced driver ... and i have driven cars with bad tyres before so I know what it is like, in particular a Mexican Hertz rental car, a VW Jetta if I remember well, which had tyres that felt like toy car's hard plastic tyres! Anyway, budget is not always bad but not all budget brands are good and picking a tyre depends on what you are going to do with your car.

[@redkop7909]

Superp car very reliable, have ovened past 3,5 years, didn't have any problems. Very fast and economical, plus comfortable and silent.

[@OffGridInvestor]

46 thousand kms since last oil change. So basically abused to hell. REALLY got me screwed why the guy who did the brake fluid didn't do the oil. Probably ONLY had a brake issue causing it to be changed so "I ONLY want the brakes fixed".

[@gutterrashautomotive3361]

Came from CT, great video man!

[@RoadandRacetv]

+GutterRash Automotive Thanks! Glad to know the CT posts are working!

[@hasnat9]

Right, so how much are we asking for off the asking price in this scenario?

[@daysofgrace2934]

E87 120d you check the oil after the car has been warmed up i.e. coolant temp is 80c or drive 6 miles+ then parks on a flat level surface and leave it for 5 minutes. At cold the oil dip stick should be at the minimum level. No coolant change, rear differential oil change interval from. I did mine at 100k. I changed my ATF and sump every 50k or 5 years. I change my oil and oil filter annually. Air filter, fuel filter, pollen filter every third service. My services are every year rather than 18 months. 55 plate 120d 142000 miles new MHI turbo, 4 Bosch injectors, radiator, alternator, glow plug controller, steering rack, Koni FSD dampers and Eibach pro springs. I’m self employed so if I cannot get to my clients location I lose 500GBP and any flight/hotel costs, so I want ultimate reliability…My garage reckon the steering rack and radiator went because over Covid lockdown I wasn’t driving it, was just trying to keep the Boxster & the Evoque running…I also have small remap to 190BHP, solid cars…

[@johnnyrinsma]

Thanks alot I see this video over and over from time to time very helpfull.. can you make a video how to change oil or service this car yourself?

[@dawnbroadbent9935]

I always get someone to start car whilst standing at rear to check any exhaust smoke be it black ,blue or white and I check with my finger if the exhaust is dirty……a good engine has virtually no deposits!

[@NickMurray]

Excellent

[@xabibilboful]

Nick Murray Great surprise to find you here!

[@NickSed]

Great vid, it's tyre tread rather than thread though...;)

[@RoadandRacetv]

+NickSed Yes, how embarrassing.

[@Alteriukas]

That's E81, not E87. Also, how do i get recommended tire pressure if my sticker destroyed? (I own BMW E87 LCI 2007 120D)

[@colinzandwijken7202]

hi i have same model. I have 2.2ps1 and 2.4 psi rare

[@Alteriukas]

+Colin Zandwijken on what wheels?

[@colinzandwijken7202]

Stock 17inch, micheling

[@MrZoufzouf]

Most of the time there are multiple stickers. Look under bonnet, boot and glove box etc. And you can definitely find it in the owners manual.

[@AbrarKhan0007]

Have you checked for front collision? Rust underneath the car? Oil leakage and seals leakage in engine bay? Engine blow?

[@AbrarKhan0007]

Any ways ,Good for initial inspection :)

[@MRAGFT7]

2:23 brilliant editing!!!

[@RoadandRacetv]

+Ahiezer Coronel Thanks mate!

[@vic_cafc]

Wow this video was really useful 👍🏽

[@RoadandRacetv]

+vic_cafc Thank-you! To be fair this hasn't had many views so it's very kind of you to say you found it useful.

[@candogan8049]

extremely nice well studied guide 👍 thanks

[@NostalgieLand]

what are the music used in the video?

[@crispincrunch]

How did you get the camera in to see the brake pads? I would like to utilize this same method to quickly check a 986 Boxster.

[@RoadandRacetv]

+crispincrunch I just hit record on the video function on my iPhone, turned the led flash to stay on and the pushed it through the gap in the alloy wheel. Give it a go!

[@crispincrunch]

Road and Race Simple and very effective. A really quick, easy way to check the brake pads when inspecting a car (if the wheel openings allow it)

[@ShaikhMomo]

Here I was thinking it must of been a special camera. Great Tip, thanks

[@youraveragejoe1]

Who owned that BMW then? No basic maintenance, didn’t even keep air in the tyres...

[@EppingForest304]

That BMW has been neglected... Missed oil changes will shorten the engine life

[@Mr330d]

Engine oil under the minimum i wouldn't even close the bonnet before walking away from buying it

[@石乐乐石]

宝马最差劲的就是他的密封胶条，高温设计太容易老化，一老化就漏机油。气门油封万公里就坏掉，油封不贵，伹更换斦费用非常高。非常麻烦。

[@mrpumpkin8289]

@@石乐乐石 Yep i understood that, very promising thank you!

[@sheldonm3535]

Wish the 1 series hatch was FS in the USA.

[@RoadandRacetv]

+Michael Broski No 1 series in the USA? I wonder why?

[@sheldonm3535]

Road and Race there is 1 series in the US just not the hatchback

[@MoXy33]

UK owner, so fun to drive.

[@GinsengStrip-wt8bl]

Superb handling in this car, technically it's smaller E90, unlike its competitor Audi A3 which is much worse than A4s. Just gotta watch for the timing chain in diesels.

[@nolifamandebele4608]

Thank you

[@RoadandRacetv]

You're welcome

[@awhodatt]

Good vid!

[@RoadandRacetv]

+A Who Dat? Well, thanks for saying so!

[@talk2s5061X]

Nice one

[@abc-ni9uw]

Bollerks

[@JPORHINT]

Was that not the gearbox dipstick he pulled out when checking the engine oil level?

[@lewiscollins1045]

They don't have a gearbox dip stick!! please tell me a modern car that does??

[@JPORHINT]

It was just a question.....

[@OffGridInvestor]

@@lewiscollins1045 and also almost NO BMWs have ENGINE dipsticks. Must be a 1 series thing.

[@AT-ww6pj]

This is extreme basic stuff anyone should know, you should look at another video on how to buy a used car there is a lot more you can check

[@石乐乐石]

宝马最差劲的就是发动机各种密封胶条，高温设计太容易老化，一老化就漏机油。气门油封万公里就坏掉，油封不贵，伹更换斦费用非常高。非常麻烦。

[@ModifiedMotors4U]

"thread depth" XD

[@lanehogger1532]

I wouldn’t be buying it. What an abused motor. I expect they wanted good money for it too.

[@gufoscuro]

that car has a N47 engine, which has a built-in manufacturing problem in the timing chain, which means 2000-3000€ service. Just walk away.

[@connormcghee4135]

You're having a laugh, that service is no where near that expensive nor is the problem that common to warrant concern. All you have heard off is a few horror cases, that doesn't reflect the 10s of thousands of vehicles sold.

[@sgdtv1368]

Not serviced in 4 that's bmw diesel drivers for you 😂😂

[@ruk2023--]

I'd have left it with the seller for that alone based on the fact that it has done 17k miles a year on average and not had an oil change.

[@Lg-vm1pl]

Sgd TV 120i

[@Mr330d]

@@Lg-vm1pl It's clearly a 120d are you blind

[@Lg-vm1pl]

@@Mr330d 0:21 no it's clearly a 120i

[@Mr330d]

@@Lg-vm1pl 120I with a redline at 5000rpm LOL you're an idiot

[@CuPekils]

Poor friend of yours should get rid of this car immediately lmao

[@AwesomeFPV]

First!

[@demonkillarocks]

I wudnt sell my car to you🥵🥵🥵

[@tomthompson7400]

Why didnt she ask you to check it before she bought it ,,,, now thats a womans logic.

[@vozim]

That is not how you check the car when buying. This video should be titled yearly servis check

[@awhodatt]

Good vid!