I have a guy wanting to trade his 2003 530i Sport (so he says) for my 98 GSXR 600. Even with the high miles, his car is worth more than my bike, IMO. I am aware of the sub frame issues and the cooling maintenance requirements but if it runs and drives fine, should I be worried about anything else?
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http://columbiamo.craigslist.org/cto/5164182860.html
Also, if someone wants this car, I am not planning on keeping it and would likely sell it for mid $2000s.
Check the guibo on the drive shaft for cracks and tears and just driveline vibrations when engine braking. Check for rips on the air intake boot behind the MAF. Listen for any misses in the exhaust note (most likely a coil pack). Check for codes, or see if they have recently been cleared. ABS and SRS lights. Check vacuum hoses all around. Check for clunking in the front over bumps ( front sway bar endlinks) Then it's trim items like, door jam seals, windows switches, power seat trim, windshield molding trim, hood latch cables and opens easily, windscreen squirter hoses break.
That's mostly it, for what I encountered on the 2001 525i I restored. I'm not sure how the auto trans in those holds up as mine had a manual.
ABS pumps, vanos, ccv items tend to freeze in very cold weather, resulting in popped valve cover gaskets and leaks.
A suitcase full of money?
Oh yeah, pixels seem to go missing too 
Look for any evidence of overheating - white-ish water spots, residue buildup on the overflow tank, excessive damp in the valve cover, etc. Overheat these engines even once, and they become ticking time bombs.
Even if the car seems a good deal, just walk a way if you feel any unease during your inspection.
Run all 4 windows up and down a couple times and make sure the operate smoothly and solidly. Regulators aren't a terrible job to replace, but usually do fail. Ditto the sunroof, it applicable. That's more work.
E39s were not affected whatsoever by the subframe issues so don't worry about that. These auto trans had the "lifetime" fluid so plan on changing that immediately no matter what and be very picky about how the transmission feels and shifts. I would also add to plan on a front suspension refresh if there are any vibrations under braking. Otherwise all prior advice is sound; mine has been a pretty solid car in the time I've had it, and it has 203k now.
If you get it, I would be very interested in taking that supposed touch screen radio off your hands if it's one of the Dynavin-style units that looks more or less OEM.
I would just be worried about the transmission or engine at that mileage, IE whether they were upkept properly, not that they can't go that long. The rest is not terrible to fix.
Disa valve issues too... Luckily my brothers worked just needed to be resealed to the intake manifold. His abs module also went out I dont know if thats a common issue but we found a company online that was able to rebuild it, when it went out it caused a bunch of stange issues and plenty of dash lights.
My wife's car had the DISA valve break, easy swap, but the dealer wants $300 for it.
Well, its gone. I had kind of decided against it but this shiny happy person told me wanted my bike and said this weekend would work, sold it, and then didn't bother to tell me until I contacted him.
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