Hey all,

I've come across a 5-spd 1988 535is for sale locally with a little over 300k on it. It's been owned by the same family since 1994, and female driven since then (I don't consider that a negative or positive, but they mentioned it, so what the heck )

Appears to have been pretty well maintained. The paint is faded and the driver's side leather seems to be torn up; not bad. Otherwise it's had all regular maintenance and apparently a very thick maintenance history. The price is right (I don't want to mention it, yet).

Top-end rebuild was done 3 years ago, 10000 miles. Seller says it was not because anything broke, but simply because it was getting "about time". This seems a little funky, but ok.

Anyway, I know a little more than that about it, but had some questions before I pursued any further. Any and all help would be greatly appreciated!

- Reliability: These things sound like a tank, from what I've read. What should I look for when looking at it? How are the transmissions and clutches?

- is badging: I've been looking into e30s, and know a little bit about their "is" package. Does the 535is have revised suspension/wheels/seats? What's included in this package?

- Performance: What is the ~ weight of these cars? Any and all subjective information is appreciated. For 3.5 liters, it looks like they have modest top-end output. How is the partial-throttle and under-the-curve acceleration? Does the handling/steering/suspension contain the classic "BMW Feel"; or is it more damped because of the extra weight and specific tuning to the 5-series?

That's all for now. Thank you all in advance for your feedback, thoughts, and suggestions.

Regards,

Joe