E60 BMW 5 series on a shoestring
Discussion
Lozw86 said:
Yes these are all good points and were the motivating factors for doing it this way
At the end I hope to have a well sorted, comfy 5 series with a smooth straight 6 to run about in for a few years
Replaced the oil filter housing gasket today which looks to have been dripping down to the sump pan, so we'll see if that sorts the leak. Also renewed the brake fluid and spark plugs
Checked out the thermostat, seems to be operating correctly but is possibly leaking coolant, this will be monitored
Sounds like you need to be handy with the spanners to own a car like this.At the end I hope to have a well sorted, comfy 5 series with a smooth straight 6 to run about in for a few years
Replaced the oil filter housing gasket today which looks to have been dripping down to the sump pan, so we'll see if that sorts the leak. Also renewed the brake fluid and spark plugs
Checked out the thermostat, seems to be operating correctly but is possibly leaking coolant, this will be monitored
Are you quite good at spannering and are the jobs hard to do?
Quick tip is to keep a genuine Bosch coil pack in the boot for when one goes. We do, and on average use one on our 2002 330i every 18 months.
One minute they work, the next they do not.
When it goes, call AA / BB / RAC who get there quickly and they diagnose a coil pack, at which stage you produce one from the boot. Normally on your way within 30 minutes of them arriving.
Remember to get the breakdown gut to clear the fault code, so the EML light goes out.
Great car, enjoy!
One minute they work, the next they do not.
When it goes, call AA / BB / RAC who get there quickly and they diagnose a coil pack, at which stage you produce one from the boot. Normally on your way within 30 minutes of them arriving.
Remember to get the breakdown gut to clear the fault code, so the EML light goes out.
Great car, enjoy!
gf15 said:
Quick tip is to keep a genuine Bosch coil pack in the boot for when one goes. We do, and on average use one on our 2002 330i every 18 months.
One minute they work, the next they do not.
When it goes, call AA / BB / RAC who get there quickly and they diagnose a coil pack, at which stage you produce one from the boot. Normally on your way within 30 minutes of them arriving.
Remember to get the breakdown gut to clear the fault code, so the EML light goes out.
Great car, enjoy!
Useful tip! Thanks. One minute they work, the next they do not.
When it goes, call AA / BB / RAC who get there quickly and they diagnose a coil pack, at which stage you produce one from the boot. Normally on your way within 30 minutes of them arriving.
Remember to get the breakdown gut to clear the fault code, so the EML light goes out.
Great car, enjoy!
funkyrobot said:
Sounds like you need to be handy with the spanners to own a car like this.
Are you quite good at spannering and are the jobs hard to do?
I'm ashamed to admit all work has been done by my independent BMW specialist. Are you quite good at spannering and are the jobs hard to do?
I run an E60 530i an 04 like yours. It's a great car just recently had all gaskets done on the engine. It's was an expensive job but worth while as it's currently on 145,000 and am aiming for 200k. Also had Autobox serviced with a new ZF kit.
If your loosing about 1l a month or more probably worth doing the gaskets. Also polybushed it when the bushes needed replacing. Most things on these are wear and tear items.
If your loosing about 1l a month or more probably worth doing the gaskets. Also polybushed it when the bushes needed replacing. Most things on these are wear and tear items.
tioaboa said:
I run an E60 530i an 04 like yours. It's a great car just recently had all gaskets done on the engine. It was an expensive job but worth while as it's currently on 145,000 and am aiming for 200k. Also had Autobox serviced with a new ZF kit.
If you're losing about 1l a month or more probably worth doing the gaskets. Also polybushed it when the bushes needed replacing. Most things on these are wear and tear items.
If you're losing about 1l a month or more probably worth doing the gaskets. Also polybushed it when the bushes needed replacing. Most things on these are wear and tear items.
How do you find the steering? A customer of mine has an 07 plate one with the electric steering. I on the other hand have an old E39 with the hydraulic steering. I don't like the electric steering, it feels very disconnected to me. Is it just me, or is it te car, or a common complaint?
Nice car though.
Nice car though.
bearman68 said:
How do you find the steering? A customer of mine has an 07 plate one with the electric steering. I on the other hand have an old E39 with the hydraulic steering. I don't like the electric steering, it feels very disconnected to me. Is it just me, or is it te car, or a common complaint?
Nice car though.
E60 has hydraulic steering? Do you mean active steering?Nice car though.
I find the steering fine, it's slightly heavier than my F30 was, which is to be expected as it is an older and slightly heavier car. People also do comment that the steering is particularly light on the F30, especially in comfort mode. To be honest I am not particularly interested in steering feedback on a medium to large size saloon car
Looks very good for its age.
You should be careful viewing these as a much cheaper alternative to depreciation on a newer one, though. I replaced my beloved 530i as a daily driver (I'll never sell it) with a used F10 and over the 2 years I owned the F10 it cost pretty much exactly the same per mile all in as the 530i did - instead of paying to fix bits all the time and sort stuff out I simply lost value.
This seems to be going the same way at £4.1k total already a month in
I wonder what your 328i would have lost if you'd taken it from 3 to 6 years old?
You should be careful viewing these as a much cheaper alternative to depreciation on a newer one, though. I replaced my beloved 530i as a daily driver (I'll never sell it) with a used F10 and over the 2 years I owned the F10 it cost pretty much exactly the same per mile all in as the 530i did - instead of paying to fix bits all the time and sort stuff out I simply lost value.
This seems to be going the same way at £4.1k total already a month in
I wonder what your 328i would have lost if you'd taken it from 3 to 6 years old?
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