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RE: '94 vs '95 540i Questions
Mohamed,
> I saw a 1994 540iA for sale. The car has 40-45,000 miles on it.
> Has Traction Control too. I am interested in it but would like to
> hear from existing owners as to what their thoughts and
> perceptions are on this car. Should I go ahead and look at it or
> look for a 1995 instead.
You should determine if the engine has any corrosion of the Nickasil-coated
cylinder walls - I'm sure you're aware by now of this _potential_ problem,
regardless of which year you look at. A compression and leak-down check by a
mechanic familiar with the problem should resolve the issue. If perchance
the engine got the sickness and has been rebuilt, I'd require confirmation
that all the oil-lubricated parts were in-spec, or were replaced with new
parts. BMWNA's 100K mile extended warranty covers all internal
oil-lubricated engine parts. I _presume_ this is because, if the cylinder
walls corrode, there will be an excessive amount of intake mixture blow-by,
the oil will become diluted by gasoline, and lubrication will suffer.
The advantage of the '94 model compared to the '95 is that the top speed of
the '94 was not governed. It should do about 155 MPH vs. 128 for the '95
model. Since the higher speed requires (stickier) Z-rated tires, the '94 may
corner better also, but this is just informed conjecture on my part.
Regards,
Jerry
Arlington, TX (18-Aug-96, 20:15)
'95 540i-6 spd