johna's automotive blog

Another BMW E36 parts car

2013-11-07T12:00:00+10:00

I bought another parts car, this time a 1998 BMW 318is 4-door sedan.

For only A$500 I got a car registered for more than a month, and with half a tank of petrol. It drove the hour long trip home with no problems.

The reason it was being sold for this price was that the paintwork was in a bad state (possibly due to being by the beach), and there was quite a bit of body damage. Also the windows were all held up with tape.

However it had travelled only 160,000km and mechanically seemed in good condition.

The intention is not to make a profit out of this car, just get the parts I need myself, including a spare engine, and try and recoup my costs, essentially making the parts I take for myself free.

It had a C33 radio which I fitted to my 1998 318is Sport coupe, and the sports seats and throttle body found there way into my wife's 1997 318is 4-door. I also used a lot of other minor parts on both my cars.

Here's the details for this car:

Modellbezeichnung: 318IS
AusfÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â¼hrung: Europa
TypschlÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â¼ssel: CD62
E-Code: E36 (4)
Karosserie: Limousine
Lenkung: rechts
TÃƒÆ’Ã‚Â¼ren: 4
Motor: M44 - 1,90l (103kW)
Antrieb: Heckantrieb
Getriebe: automatisch
AuÃƒÆ’Ã…Â¸enfarbe: Cosmosschwarz Metallic (303)
Innenraum: Stoff/leder/anthrazit (C1AT)
Produktionsdatum: 11.03.1998
Werk: Rosslyn

Code Standard Equipment
S510A Headlight aim control
S853A Language version English

Code Optional Equipment
S243A Airbag for front passenger
S246A Manually adjust. steering column
S255A Airbag Sports leather steering wheel
S305A Remote control for central locking
S341A Bumpers completely in body colour
S354A Green windscreen, green shade band
S401A Lift-up-and-slide-back sunroof, electric
S411A Window lifts,electric,front/rear
S441A Smoker package
S481A Sports seat
S520A Fog lights
S534A Automatic air conditioning
S548A Kilometer-calibrated speedometer
S556A Outdoor temperature indicator
S687A Radio preparation
L810A National version Auatralia
S818A Battery master switch
S823A Hot-climate version
S832A Battery in luggage compartment
S864A Retailer Directory Overseas
S876A Radio frequency 315 MHz
S880A On-board vehicle literature English
S925A Transport protection package

Second parts car gone

2013-03-22T12:00:00+10:00

A$100 was the amount received for the shell of my 1992 318i parts car, with no bonnet, guards, boot, doors, interior or transmission. Once again I have my carport back.

I knew this car wasn't going to be as profitable as the previous 1997 323i. Before purchasing it I guessed there was only about $600 profit in it, but reasoned that the parts I could use myself were also going to save me money. I used the headlining and various other miscellanous parts in my 325i and my wife's 318is, and kept the wheels and tyres and M3 side rubbing strips for use in the future.

So far I have made about A$500 profit and still have a few hundred dollars worth of parts to sell.

The previous car has made close to A$2,200 profit which mostly comes down to the black leather interior which was in good condition, as opposed to the 318i which had a grey leather interior with plenty of wear.

I'm keeping my eye out for the next bargain wrecked or non-running E36.

Bought another parts car

2013-02-22T12:00:00+10:00

Like a little old lady that collects stray cats, I seem to be doing the same with BMW E36s.

I found a 1992 318i automatic sedan with a blown head gasket for sale and, after looking at it and making a few low offers, and a few weeks wait, I purchased it today for A$400. Add another A$65 for towing just a few kilometers.

In addition to the engine problem it also needs a respray, has just ran out of registration and the interior is in poor condition.

Positives are that it has 16" wheels with good tyres, M3 side protection strips, a rare centre arm rest, and the head lining is in good condition so will go straight in to my 325i.

Shame that I tried to swap the interior mirror with the one in my 325i and cracked my windscreen (it had a crack in that area already).

Aside from a few parts here and there most of the parts are destined for sale and the rest will go to scrap metal. I don't want to keep the car for too long as it takes up valuable space so am going to try and get rid of it over the next few weeks.

This car has a private import compliance plate and I am interested to work out which country it came from. I can't tell from the VIN though I see from the original specifications that it was not originally fitted with a catalytic converter, and has a speedometer in kilometers.

Type code CA42
Type 318I (EUR)
E series E36 (4)
Series 3
Type LIM
Steering RL
Doors 4
Engine M40
Displacement 1.80
Power 83
Drive HECK
Transmission AUT
Colour GRANITSILBER METALLIC (237)
Upholstery (0466)
Prod.date 1992-01-15

Options
Code Description (interface) Description (EPC)
S199A AUSSTATTUNG BLEIHALTIGER KRAFTSTOFF without catalytic converter
S411A FENSTERHEBER,ELEKTRISCH VORN/HINTEN Window lifts,electric,front/rear
S530A KLIMAANLAGE Air conditioning
S548A KILOMETERTACHO Kilometre speedo
S570A STAERKERE STROMVERSORGUNG Reinforced power supply
S818A BATTERIEHAUPTSCHALTER Battery master switch
S823A HEISSLAND-AUSFUEHRUNG Hot-climate version
S850A ZUSAETZL. TANKFUELLUNG EXPORT Additional Export tank filling
S925A VERSANDSCHUTZPAKET Dispatch protection pack

Parts car gone

2013-01-14T12:00:00+10:00

I am pleased to finally report that my parts car shell was picked up today and my carport is finally free again for me to park my 325i in.

I only got $70 for the shell which still had a couple of doors and part of the engine.

I finally sold the black leather seats which I thought would be really popular and easy to sell but ended up taking forever. The transmission eventually also sold and someone came from interstate and removed it themselves. I guess for $100 it was worth the long drive.

Profit so far is around $1750 with maybe $500 worth of parts left which might sell eventually.

Can you make money from parting out your car?

2013-01-13T12:00:00+10:00

For a long time I have wanted to buy a wrecked car and sell off the parts. Time, lack of space, and fear of the unknown have prevented me from giving it a go... Until now.

I recently saw an advertisement for a cheap written-off 15 year old BMW 3 series. As I happen to own two similar models I thought this might be a good opportunity to get some parts for myself and make some money.

The car was advertised for A$1000. I made a low offer and we eventually agreed on A$600.

Fortunately the car was only 10km away, and although it was driveable, it was unregistered and uninsured so I spent A$75 on towing. (NB. I had another quote for towing another car that was about 40km away and it was A$75, so still reasonable.)

One of the reasons why I chose the car was that it had a few high value parts like a black leather interior.

I immediately put a listing on eBay listing all the parts that were available. I also put a few of the high value parts up for bidding.

Some parts sold quickly for good prices, but some took some time to sell. Perhaps it was because it was around Christmas time and perhaps this is not the best time, with people spending their money on other things or away on holiday.

Anyway, it took over two months to get rid of the majority of parts and strip the car of all other valuable parts which were stored and advertised. Over that time I ended up heavily discounting most of the parts as I just wanted to move them and clear some space.

I also didn't have the experience or tools required to remove some of the larger mechanical items like the engine and transmission. I opted to make these real cheap if someone would come and remove them themselves. Only the transmission sold this way and I ended up stripping a lot of the parts off the engine (which wasn't in good condition anyway) so the block and head will go with the shell to scrap metal.

After 2 and a half months I had sold around A$2,300 worth of parts, for a profit (excluding my time and effort) of around A$1,600. Plus I still have many parts left, maybe another A$500 or so. Of course, I also got many parts for myself and have many spares if I ever need them.

So there's a reasonable amount of profit to be had, but there is a lot of work involved: stripping parts, advertising, handling enquiries, and waiting for people to come and look at parts or pick things up.

I guess part of the reason why I was able to make this profit was because I chose a model with plenty of demand but one that parts are usually expensive for from wreckers. Choosing a more popular model with plenty of cheap parts already available might not work out so well.

Today I have arranged for the shell to be taken away which will also add an extra A$150 to the profit for scrap metal value.

Parts car progress

2012-12-23T12:00:00+10:00

It has been two months since I bought this written off car, which I planned to remove some parts for myself and sell of the rest for profit.

So far I am about $700 in profit which means I have sold about $1400 worth of parts.

Items that went quickly were the centre arm rest, 17" wheels, climate control module, and many of the exterior lights.

I still have the seats, probably because I have tried to sell them for top dollar. The door trims went after a long time and many failed offers.

My pricing strategy has been to sell things less than anyone else (except the seats and door trims) as I just want to get rid of things as quickly as possible. However I haven't sold many body parts even though I dropped my prices to ridiculously low prices.

I have now removed almost all of the parts that I can store and should be saleable, except some of the body parts like doors. Everything else will hopefully soon be picked up by a scrap metal merchant. I might even get $100 for what's left.

I found the engine was belching blue smoke every time I ran it and I didn't end up finding the cause as I started selling off parts which made it impossible to run the engine again. So I'm not selling the engine but will instead dismantle it mostly just because I would like to see how it comes apart.

The transmission was too much trouble to get out myself and noone has shown any interest in it so it will probably go with the shell.

The worst part about this project is the number of calls and messages I get that are a waste of time. People asking about parts then eventually telling me what model they have and finding out that the parts are not suitable. Or people who make an offer, I accept it, then I never hear from them again. Weird.

I have kind of enjoyed pulling things aparts and find out out how to remove things with little regard for if I break something.

Would I do it again? I would say no, but then if I wanted some of the parts myself then I might be tempted.

Bought a parts car

2012-10-25T12:00:00+10:00

For some time I have been looking for various parts for my E36 318is and 325i, things like a nicer set of wheels and interior parts.

The other day I saw an advertisement for a cheap 323i that had been written off after an accident. It had a nice set of 17" wheels, a black leather interior and seemed to be mostly in good condition (aside from the accident damage of course).

The car has only done around 150,000km and has had a few thousand dollars spent on it recently.

I negotiated with the seller and a deal was done for $600 and I had the car towed home (less than 10km) for $75.

I have it home now and all looks good except one of the tyres has some major sidewall damage due to the accident. It came with a few bonuses like the original radio, original lights, and a Bentley workshop manual.

Now to get off what I want and sell the rest, then somehow dispose of the left overs!

I ran the VIN through a Russian BMW VIN decoder website and here are all the specifications and options.

Type Value

VIN ABMCP82080NA61149
Type code CP82
Type 323I (EUR)
E series E36 (4)
Series 3
Type LIM
Steering RL
Doors 4
Engine M52
Displacement 2.50
Power 125
Drive HECK
Transmission AUT
Colour BOSTONGRUEN METALLIC (275)
Upholstery LEDER STANDARD/SCHWARZ (P8SW)
Prod.date 1997-06-17

Options

Code Description (interface) Description (EPC)

S243A AIRBAG FUER BEIFAHRER Airbag for front passenger
S246A LENKSAEULENVERSTELLUNG MECHANISCH Manually adjust. steering column
S255A SPORT-LEDERLENKRAD Sports leather steering wheel
S282A LM RAEDER/SPORTSPEICHENSTY.II BMW LA wheel, sport-spoke styling II
S305A FERNBEDIENUNG F.ZENTRALVERIEGELUNG Remote control for central locking
S341A STOSSFAENGER KOMPLETT IN WAGENFARBE Bumpers completely in body colour
S354A GRUENKEIL-FRONTSCHEIBE Windscreen, green-tinted upper strip
S401A SCHIEBE-HEBEDACH, ELEKTRISCH Lift-up-and-slide-back sunroof, electric
S411A FENSTERHEBER,ELEKTRISCH VORN/HINTEN Window lifts,electric,front/rear
S431A INNENSPIEGEL,AUTOMATISCH ABBLENDEND Interior mirror with automatic-dip
S438A EDELHOLZAUSFUEHRUNG Fine wood trim
S441A RAUCHERPAKET Smoker package
S473A ARMAUFLAGE VORN Armrest front
S498A KOPFSTUETZEN IM FOND Headrests mechanically adjustable, rear
S520A NEBELSCHEINWERFER Fog lights

Code Description (interface) Description (EPC)
S534A KLIMAAUTOMATIK Automatic air conditioning
S540A GESCHWINDIGKEITSREGELUNG Cruise control
S687A RADIOVORBEREITUNG Radio preparation
S785A WEISSE BLINKLEUCHTEN White direction indicator lights
L810A AUSTRALIEN-AUSFUEHRUNG National version Australia
S818A BATTERIEHAUPTSCHALTER Battery master switch
S864A SERVICE KONTAKT-FLYER UEBERSEE Dealer List Overseas
S876A FUNKFREQUENZ 315 MHZ Radio frequency 315 MHz
S880A ENGLISCH / BORDLITERATUR On-board literature, English
S925A VERSANDSCHUTZPAKET Dispatch protection pack
S928A REIFENSTEUERUNG Tyre control

Standard equipment

Code Description (interface) Description (EPC)

S214A AUT.STABIL.-CONTROL+TRAKTION(ASC+T) Automatic stability control (ASC+T)