2000 BMW 7 Series 740 IL 4.4 V8 from North America

Faults:

I bought what I thought would be my ultimate car a BMW 740IL.

With it, I purchased an extended warranty. Boy was I glad I did! Best investment of my life! Since this purchase, the warranty company has paid over $6,000 in covered repairs!

General Comments:

Will I buy another BMW? NOT! This car is forever leaking something. Don't get me wrong, it is a beautiful car to look at. You just need deep pockets to own one.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 15th February, 2009

17th Feb 2009, 11:59

It seems that the 7 series isn't as reliable as the 3 or the 5. According to owner reviews that is.

24th Feb 2009, 13:42

I agree with you. These cars could be a lot better. My 740i has had a lot of small but still annoying problems with the electronics, and some big problems too. For an 8 year old car with a complete service history, that is generally in good shape, this is just not good enough, especially considering what these cars cost. The BMW e38 could easily have been the perfect car, if it had been well made. Great combination of comfort and road handling. Sadly it is just not well made, and the sweet taste of driving it the times when everything works fine, is not enough to make it worth it.

In reply to 17th Feb 2009, 11:59

13th Sep 2012, 16:15

Nope. In the 7 Series they throw a lot of seemingly untested electronics into that car and let the owner figure it out. Don't get me wrong, when the E38 is running right and everything works, there is nothing like it. But when it goes wrong, everything is spidered in so it feels like a person is rebuilding half the car just for some minor nuance. The 2002 and up 7 Series is even worse, but also beautiful when running right.

The 3 Series and 5 Series are what they call the "mass market" cars that must uphold well compared to the stiff competition in that category. They seem to do more equipment testing and or have less electronics, and thus less things go wrong in the 3 and 5 Series. But neither one feel as great as a good running 7 Series.

So what I did was buy an E36 along with the E38 (then traded the E38 for the E65) for those times when the 7 Series is being repaired. Never had issue with the E36 (2001), but little niggles with both 7 Series that weren't major, but did affect driving ability like warning lights (most turned out to be false in the E65, but more of PITA to fix than actual problems that trip the lights) and leaks in the 7 Series. I think BMW engineers can build a NASA space ship, but seem to have trouble with little things like engine oil seals, reliable electronic modules, and "cool to play with" electronic features.

2000 BMW 7 Series 740 Sport 4.4 petrol from Spain

Summary:

Superb

Faults:

Parking sensor malfunction - only works occasionally.

Stone chips... saving up for front respray at moment.

Pixels - as with all of them, failing.

General Comments:

Very fast.

Huge road presence in Sport form.

Steering lighter than my 3 series.

Holds the road well.

Scary depreciation, but very very rare in Spain, so people always do a double take when they see mine - i.e. what the hell!

Eats batteries - 2nd car so only used at weekends.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 5th October, 2008

31st Dec 2010, 12:19

I purchased my 2000 E38 Sport Package in 2004. It had 44K miles on it and had just come off of lease. I had wanted one of these ever since the Sport Package was introduced, but I could not afford one new… or near new up until this point.

My car was lightly used and in fairly good condition. Good thing it was a certified pre-owned unit, because I immediately started having issues… my battery went down, the mass air flow sensor went bad, and some trunk latch sensor went bad, causing my alarm to go off and go into lock out (I could not turn the alarm off nor would the car start!) so I had to have it towed to the dealer.

Well… that was almost 7 years ago! I kept it, and apparently sorted out all of the quirks. The car now has 88K miles and is a JOY to drive and own. Yes… it is now a limited use car and only sees service during good weather. Did problems stop occurring? No… however, they were predictable and I actually accepted the challenge to address (fix) them myself! For instance, REPLACE your water pump at 60K mile intervals!!! Yeah… you might be able to get one or two thousand miles past 60K, but I swear… it will fail, and when it does… buckle up! The water pump becomes a projectile and will damage everything in front of it… and that's where the costs start adding up! BMW wanted around $3K to do a fix… and get this… they wouldn't even give me a firm quote! I told them to put it on a flatbed and send it to my house, and I would fix it! You should have seen the look on that guys face. He was probably thinking… yeah right. You'll be back! $750 later I was back on the road.

Since then I've replaced an alternator, valve cover gaskets and whilst at it, the plugs. Oh… and I restored the ugly finish on the valve covers while at it! Any time I work on my car, I clean so my car is in better condition now than when I purchased it in 2004! If you own or are thinking of owning one of these… the web is your friend! SAVE MONEY… use www.Autopartswarehouse.com and www.e38.org. These resources are invaluable! Oh… and don't think Amazon isn't a good resource as well! I've purchased BMW parts from the resources at a FRACTION of dealer wholesale cost! Plus the knowledge base out on these forums are life savers!!!

Maintenance is your key to success with not only this car, but ALL cars! The investment you make in maintenance pays dividends in avoiding material and costly replacements! Trust me! Also… DON'T PURCHASE CHEAP REPLACEMENT PARTS!!! You get what you pay for! Don't pay top dollar… look for bargains. You'll find them… like a mass air flow sensor. If you buy a Rover part number, you will SAVE!!! And it's the same part!!!

If you are reading this now and here, you aren't probably the normal BMW owner type, so you are lucky. This car is excellent and worth the trouble. I call it an ICON car, and predict it will be worth a great deal down the road, because it hasn't been eclipsed by the newer versions. The newer ones may have more electronic features, but they lack the one essential component that this e38 has… passion and style. You can't replace it with gadgets and options. When I drive my car today… here in New England… it still gets the looks and respect that it did when it was new. It's amazing… oh, and I don't pay the penalty for insurance and taxes!

Lastly…. stay away from this car if you can't afford it! I'm not saying it's overly expensive. I'm saying if you aren't willing to make the investment in time and preventative maintenance costs… then go buy a Toyota or something. I'm not saying it's a nightmare… I'm saying it is still a sophisticated high dollar machine that will kill your passion if you aren't willing to accept the realities.

If you want to follow up with me on this car or if you have questions, give me a holler. My email address is bmwbillr@hotmail.com. My name is Bill.

10th Jan 2014, 13:54

Just came across my review above from 2008. I actually sold this car in 2010, and then bought it back in far worse condition for half what I sold it for 6 months later in Gibraltar! It had a big dent in the bonnet, so I did eventually get the bonnet resprayed.

I am pleased to say that although quite a few cars have come and gone, I still have this car - it's immaculate now and garaged, so it's kind of retired, but still gets a good thrashing every few weeks. Getting on a bit now (has it really been 6 years since I bought it first time around?!) but it's such a great car that I am tempted to keep it for some time yet. It's been relegated from my garage, but lives in a rented spot in a nearby underground garage with an indoor cover, to keep it out of the Spanish sun.

So what has gone wrong with it? Expansion bottle split, but was replaced. Rear window doesn't work on one side. Starter solenoid has started to fail and will be replaced soon when it's serviced. Otherwise it's still perfect. Great cars, and very well built if looked after well.