Hi. I am looking to buy a BMW 3 series 3.0d sport estate. (£16K, 61Kmiles, sat nav/tv, sun roof, auto, 03 plate dec 2003, FBMWSH)
Having found one, it looks good other than a few light surface scratches that are in line with age which I am told will be polished out by seller (trader). It has been on the forecourt for (advised) 4 weeks. (This is a hard to find car - do you think that is is strange that it would stand for 4 weeks)
On starting there was small amount of blue smoke. Took for drive and after 2-3 minutes whilst waiting at lights, there was a lot of white smoke (billowing around car). Advised that this was moisture being burnt off. Advised that it would not happen when car was used more regularly. Smoke lasted for 10 seconds.
Once car warm, drove fine and pulled well. On return, no smoke at all and engine sounds quiet and smooth (for diesel) Do you think that small amount of blue / lot of white smoke is something to worry about. I currently have a diesel and it does not do that, though it does not stand excessively (max 48 hours at time)
Please advise. Thanks
Answer
If you have serious doubts about the car, don’t buy it – you’ll never be happy and confident.
However, this all sounds fairly feasible. The blue smoke on start up is oil burning and a sign of wear, which is not inconsistent with 61k miles, but that’s the only thing that would give me some concern. If there’s definitely no blue smoke when the engine’s hot, it’s probably OK, but make sure you get a full one year warranty.
Cars sell slowly from November to February, so 4 weeks on a forecourt doesn’t seem that strange and if the white smoke disappeared after 10 minutes or so it will be condensation in the cold exhaust. But, as I said, if in doubt, walk away.
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