Finally decided what I want to buy (E34). Need help.
 

So, I was looking at Jags, but the truth is I won't drop 30 grand on a car that will likely require quite a bit of maintenance. So I'd rather drop around 5 or 6, and then pay the maintenance :p

Anyway, looking for a 91-94 525/535. Preferably with an AC Schnitzer kit and Traction Control, because I love the looks and will be DDing it, even in the winter. Even better would be something like this:

ＢＭＷ 5シリーズ 535i 中古車情報

Looks nice, except for the ugly ass LV covering on the armrest. Whatever.

How much would it cost me, say, to get someone to go to the dealership in Japan, inspect it, put it on a boat and ship it here? Where would I find someone reliable? I looked for JDM brokers here on the forum and I couldn't find any. Or even from Europe, as these are dirt cheap there too.

I haven't seen any local ones that are decent.

Help?

Edit: Needs to be an auto too.

you spelled E46 wrong.

Uh, I want the 5 series, not the 3 series.

i have one. how much you want to spend. 95 540i6 black on black with oem m-sport kit. traction control with lsd.

I am avoiding the 540i due to having to use premium fuel; on top of that, I'd prefer an automatic, so that my wife is able to drive it if necessary.

But thanks!

even with your criteria I would still suggest picking up a local example and put the ACS kit onto it or what not....mo better. The headache of going through out of province inspection when the car is retrofitted with headlights for RHD roads, and different emission standards cause more problems than the saving is going to be worth.

It's not even a question of savings, really. It's more because people here want 10k for a car that's not even rare, and 20 years old.

I saw one on Kijiji, and the guy wants 16k. 16k would be high even for an M5, let alone a 535i.

Now, I thought I could just import it straight without any modification since it's 20 years old. Is that incorrect? Is there a "Importing cars from Japan for Dummies" somewhere?

1993 BMW E34 535i Sedan

http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/rc...557487513.html

No.

I don't know where you are looking but 535i are worth almost nothing. I got a 1995 E34 525i I bought off the Adesa public auction (we can mention their name here now right? They let us have a meet there lol) for $1500 and change.

So if you'd look hard enough they are everywhere for cheap.

1991 BMW 353i
Quality** 1989 BMW 535i
http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/va...548994320.html

where did you end up with 16K was it a "Friend" who wanted to scam you into it?

lol no, just stuff I saw on craigslist/kijiji. Like I said, I have no idea where to look. I sort of assumed it would be easy to find an old E34 with a kit for like 3 or 4k. All I see is overpriced shit.

I mean, I wouldn't mind buying a 525 or 535 and put a kit on it later, but I assumed those wouldn;t be easy to find, given it's age and stuff.

Any car you import, be it < or > 15 years old will require a provincial safety inspection. You must modify the vehicle accordingly (if necessary) to meet its passing guidelines.

anthony espinosa will import it for you :troll: :troll: :troll: :troll: :troll: :troll: :troll: :troll: :troll: :troll: :troll:

I was just buggin' ya

So, yeah, can anyone recommend a Japanese importer for me to talk to? Found not one, but two S5 Silhouette's doing a quick dealer search. And surprisingly cheap, too. I'd gladly pay 4k for one of those, lol.

lols. we just sold a japanese import eurospec M5 for about 16k...

very very mint car. 55k kms only. it was amazing.

Yeah, that car was really worth it. If only I could live with a manual, but my wife owuld kill me if she ever need to drive it.

This is what I saw for 16k:

'91 BMW 10th Anniversary Edition 535i AC Schnitzer WILL TRADE!!! - British Columbia Cars For Sale - Kijiji British Columbia Canada.

If it was 6k, I'd want to negotiate it down, but sixteen? Geez. If I wanted to spend that much, I'd get the B10 that's on CL right now and just not let the wife drive it :p

i got to drive that M5.. and damn, those older bimmers are amazing.

everything just feels so right.. not to mention they make all the right noises.

get a 525 instead of 535.
more parts, less expensive to maintain = less worry.

both are slow and problematic, unless you get the larger V8 models

^ That.

525i at least at that time shared its engine with the 325i and that means more common parts and cheaper parts for you.

Unless a car is unique or special, please don't import RHD junk from Japan. I can't wait for ICBC to change the law on this. There are plenty of decent E34s all over North America.

Go over to BCBimmer.com If there is any e34 for sale locally.. people there would have critiqued them to death.

Possibly not the best forum to say this, but I hate RHD. We live in a LHD world. I would not under any circumstance import a RHD car.

Only reason I am looking at Japan is because they apparently *love* Alpinas and AC Schnitzer BMWs there. There's a shit ton of them for sale.

I would suggest getting one locally as well as opposed to importing one.
Avoid the hassle.

get this 530i. Doesn't matter what model car it is, use what is specified. I believe it is 89 octane required.

http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/va...553309601.html

pros:
-BMW individual
-automatic (the 5hp18 is probably the better of the autos that came in the e34 chassis)
-32 valve V8 (its going to be more economical than a m30 535i, but worse than an 525 for sure)
-local BC car

cons:
-maintenance costs (its a bmw, and its a V8. Its gonna cost you)
-fuel consumption (its a pig in the city, and decent on the highway)

Virtually all ex Japanese BMW you see on this shore will be LHD, they are grey imported from Europe in the first place.

The ones that are RHD have "Authorized BMW Japan Model" plates affix on them are actually collectibles and worth more in Japan/ RHD friendly places than North America.

With Yen so high it is economically stupid to import from Japan. It is cheaper to import from Deutchland @ current Euro rates.