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BMW 8 series?!? BMW?!?!? Are you mad?!?!?!?!? While the SC400 was built as a competitor to the 850i/840Ci, it is far superior in the reliability category. I owned an 850i for over nine years and did all kinds of work on it, including rebuilding the engine myself. It is an unreliable, ill-engineered piece of carp. Every time I drove it I was waiting for something else to break or for a new computer related problem to arise.
This pretty much sums up most BMWs, in my opinion. I have had four of them, all top of the line in their day ('85 635CSi, '95 540i, '91 850i, 2000740iS), and I work on all my own machines, so I know how they're built. I can give you an extensive list of poor engineering / reliabilty problems.
As for recommendations, if you love the SC400, put 6,000 into it and drive a near-new, reliable car for 10 more years!!
W210 Sedan is in this budget. It's auto and a four door, but there is no other car on the road that gives you a narcissistic feeling like a Mercedes Benz. When you look thru the windshield, all you see is that **** target lifted from the front hood. The E 320 came with an inline 6 similar to a 2JZGE. The 430 had a V8, and of course the E55 was just a hand built beast.
If you want a coupe, the W209 is also available. The CLK 320 came with a V6 vs the inline 6 from a W210 I believe.
These cars are almost bulletproof and I put them in the same reliability as a LS400. I use to own a w210 and sometimes I wish I kept it over this piece of junk SC.
Oh man, you hurt my feelings ragging on the BMW 850i. Yes, reliability is an issue, but as with all BMWs, if you stay on top of maintenance, they will reward you with longevity and a satisfying ride. Parts are starting to get hard to find, especially the interior bits, but oh what a beautiful coupe it is!
Below is my 1991 850i. Currently building the V12 motor.
There are not too many of these around and if you can wrench your own stuff and have deep pockets, you'll be the envy of your friends...
By far, the best BMW for the money is the E39 series. The 528i and 530i are the best ones going. I've had both and each of them were the highly sought after 5 speeds. Nothing drives like a BMW as far as I'm concerned - although you DO pay for that experience. I drove my 528i for 3 years, probably put $2K into it for cooling system components and suspension components. Never, ever let me down. The seats are to die for and the HVAC is spectacular!
Came close to buying a BMW 840 4.4L, but the reliability headaches and cost of parts dissuaded me. The V12 seemed to difficult to keep in tune, and the earlier 4.0L V8s (Nikasil) had the potential of sulfur damage.
I'll throw this one out there: Porsche 928. I owned one and loved it.
1. Reliability was good if you kept up on regular maintenance (and previous owners often couldn't afford to), but the parts situation was admittedly bad.
2. Performance was good for its times and is still competitive depending on the engine. Manuals were available, but the automatics weren't bad. Handling was outstanding.
3. Interior luxury was very nice (although my door panels eventually broke their plastic connections). I wish my SC400 had leather half as thick.
4. Style was very nice and unique, although I recognize that opinions differ on this (some said it looked like a "hunkered down Pacer"). I get tired of seeing all sorts of 911s around town and not being able to tell whether they're new or forty years old from a distance.
My high mileage 928 died on the day I got engaged (!). The auto transmission went out and it was more cost effective to sell it to a specialty yard for parts than to fix it.
Oh man, you hurt my feelings ragging on the BMW 850i. Yes, reliability is an issue, but as with all BMWs, if you stay on top of maintenance, they will reward you with longevity and a satisfying ride.
"Maintenance" with an 850 includes replacing the radiator and much of the rest of the cooling system every 30k miles "just to safe". Won't mention the plastic seat rail gears, camshaft banjo bolts that self loosen, cyl. head bolts that shear, the weak front suspension, headlights that break and droop, self -destructing plastic sun roof rails, ...oh wait I just mentioned
Nice looking engine, though. I enjoyed rebuilding mine. Just be sure to re-rout that B+ cable that runs through the metal conduit bolted to the side of the motor. Several 850s have had catastrophic fires due to that bit of "fine German engineering"
I would have loved to keep the 850, but it was like driving a Martini glass...beautiful but fragile.
"Maintenance" with an 850 includes replacing the radiator and much of the rest of the cooling system every 30k miles "just to safe". Won't mention the plastic seat rail gears, camshaft banjo bolts that self loosen, cyl. head bolts that shear, the weak front suspension, headlights that break and droop, self -destructing plastic sun roof rails, ...oh wait I just mentioned
Nice looking engine, though. I enjoyed rebuilding mine. Just be sure to re-rout that B+ cable that runs through the metal conduit bolted to the side of the motor. Several 850s have had catastrophic fires due to that bit of "fine German engineering"
I would have loved to keep the 850, but it was like driving a Martini glass...beautiful but fragile.
Regards,
M.R.
All that you have mentioned has already been done, and more! The B+ cable is an issue when the insulation breaks down and shorts against the captive metal sheath it is routed in. I thoroughly inspected mine before running it back in its sheath.
DanielDD, that's a beautiful 850! I love those coupes and I've always wanted to own an 850CSI. I'm sure it is as expensive as you say it is to work on (one engine computer for each cylinder bank!) but I don't feel the company makes a car as good looking even today. That V12 on the engine stand getting a rebuild is inspiring.
S14 Nissan 240sx. Everything suspension wise can be replaced with new bushings for cheap, unlike our SC's. On top of that they have a similar styling and weigh a hell of alot less. Tons of aftermarket support. Not to mention pretty easy to swap in a 2j. Also they hold their value alot better than our SC's at the moment. They are getting harder to find and the prices are going up.
I'm quite enjoying this thread too. A note on the 240, I owned a 1-owner all stock S14 before my SC and I actually didn't enjoy it. Too many issues with difficult diag, even though it had OBD2. Crappy materials on the inside. The saving grace was fantastic steering, great feel on the track, and surprisingly addicting noise.
I vote 300zx the twin turbo one of course Im building one right now with a buddy we just put the motor back in and they are built well aside from the fact that japan shoved everything together under the hood they are an amazing vehicle and light to boot the drivers seat is like jet fighter cockpit big brakes come factory and they are sharp from every angle its a 92
^^ The 300ZX Twin Turbo is a fantastic car. When in good shape they're excellent and take to 400whp easily. They're just a complex pain to work on right up there with the also superb 1988-93 Celica All Trac Turbos. Have to love the #6 spark plug location on the VG engine, cool as it is.
They also only have two seats in TT spec (2+2 models were NA only in the USA) which is another unique feature of turbo SC300/400's compared to other used alternatives.
The 240SX (S14 anyway) felt great when I drove a couple when they were barely discontinued. A local dealer at the time wanted $28k in 1998 or 1999 for an automatic "SE" model. 155hp stock. No wonder they didn't sell at that point. That aside I did and still do love the looks and the handling. RB's, SR's and the header fitment on LS1's on 240's not being smog complaint I think doesn't help for some of us.
07-29-14, 11:38 AM
While the SC400 was built as a competitor to the 850i/840Ci, it is far superior in the reliability category. I owned an 850i for over nine years and did all kinds of work on it, including rebuilding the engine myself. It is an unreliable, ill-engineered piece of carp. Every time I drove it I was waiting for something else to break or for a new computer related problem to arise.
Im building one right now with a buddy we just put the motor back in and they are built well aside from the fact that japan shoved everything together under the hood they are an amazing vehicle and light to boot the drivers seat is like jet fighter cockpit big brakes come factory and they are sharp from every angle its a 92
