535i Manual gearbox.

535i Manual gearbox.

Author
Discussion

s4avant

Original Poster:

196 posts

195 months

Monday 30th June 2014
quotequote all
A nice F10 535i touring has appeared for sale but has a manual gearbox.
The vast majority of these cars have auto gearboxes and although I prefer the manual, would I suffer badly if I chose this car come resale time?
Any thoughts would be appreciated. type

redtwin

7,518 posts

181 months

Monday 30th June 2014
quotequote all
Are you buying the car for yourself or for the next owner?. smile

I wouldn't want a manual F10...unless it was so cheap that I could chop it in for an auto version for more than I paid for it.

tgr

1,129 posts

170 months

Monday 30th June 2014
quotequote all
I think the fact that they are not the norm tells its own story. You are not looking at the 520d!

cerb4.5lee

30,184 posts

179 months

Monday 30th June 2014
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I always like the rare motors that come with a manual and I wouldn't hesitate to buy that but as a general rule most people prefer auto in an executive car, I have an auto in my 330i and that ruins the whole car so I am always positive if I see a nice motor with three pedals thumbup

Lowtimer

4,286 posts

167 months

Thursday 3rd July 2014
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I would happily buy a manual F10, I love big manuals. But only if I could reasonably would expect to have a use for it for long enough that I was not really bothered about the resale.

philmots

4,630 posts

259 months

Thursday 3rd July 2014
quotequote all
How long are you keeping it for?

You can bet when the car is around 8 years old it will be worth more than the auto. People would be (rightly) scared of the auto going pop.

gizlaroc

17,251 posts

223 months

Thursday 3rd July 2014
quotequote all
There will be 100 auto buyers for every manual buyer, however, there are currently 190 F10 5 series on BMW AUC with 3 litre or bigger engines, of those only 1 is manual.

So when selling you have a captured audience, that one person looking for a manual will probably have the choice of your car and .......well, just your car.

The F10 suits the auto, but a 535i or 550i manual does sound nice, No way I would own a manual diesel, but a nice powerful petrol manual would be great.

iSore

4,011 posts

143 months

Friday 4th July 2014
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Whilst the normal opinion is that 'nobody wants big manuals', you'll find that come resale time you won't have much trouble shifting a manual 535i. They're incredibly rare and interesting cars in a sea of 520d Autos. When I sold cars for a BMW dealer, I found that stuff like 6 Series manuals were very quick to sell. I'd prefer an auto myself.


Danstable

203 posts

216 months

Sunday 13th July 2014
quotequote all
Buy it. Great car, I bought mine (manual F11 535i) about three months ago, love it. It has just tucked over 100k and whereas I was always worrying about the auto box in my 45k mile E39, I have no such concerns now.

There are two minor problems with the manual though:

1 - Find yourself driving along at 5k revs because it's so refined you forgot to change up.

2 - That funny BMW valve thing that makes a fast 1st to 2nd change nigh on impossible.

gizlaroc

17,251 posts

223 months

Sunday 13th July 2014
quotequote all
That takes less than 15 minutes to remove.

Clamp the pipe leading to it, remove the plastic housing, pop the grommet out and put the housing back in.

Makes a huge difference.


Then put some Redline D4 ATF in the gearbox for really slick gear changes.

Edited by gizlaroc on Sunday 13th July 22:08

Danstable

203 posts

216 months

Monday 14th July 2014
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Cheers...although I wouldn't trust myself, will pay someone to do it!

Lowtimer

4,286 posts

167 months

Monday 14th July 2014
quotequote all
Try the car for yourself for a while first. Removing the clutch delay valve certainly improves a five-speed E39 but I didn't find my six-speed manual E91 to need any sort of modification.

s4avant

Original Poster:

196 posts

195 months

Wednesday 16th July 2014
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Thanks for all your comments!
Just bought the used F11 535i touring that I started this thread with and should take delivery in the very near future.
Can't wait! bounce

gizlaroc

17,251 posts

223 months

Wednesday 16th July 2014
quotequote all
s4avant said:
Thanks for all your comments!
Just bought the used F11 535i touring that I started this thread with and should take delivery in the very near future.
Can't wait! bounce
Nice one.

Look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Lowtimer

4,286 posts

167 months

Thursday 17th July 2014
quotequote all
Well done. I take it it was the central London one? looked nice in the AUC listing.

s4avant

Original Poster:

196 posts

195 months

Thursday 24th July 2014
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Collected the car on Tuesday and had a good long drive home over a mix of motorway and two way A roads.
The power delivery of the 3 litre petrol engine is amazing and can be almost silently silky smooth in comfort mode, or much more responsive, with a nice rorty engine note, in sport mode.
The manual gearbox is nice and positive to operate, but all is so quiet in comfort mode, that you have to double think which gear you are in at times!
Managed 38mpg on the drive home, but this was a result of a leisurely 55-60mph cruise in the midst of fairly busy holiday traffic and I would think that a more realistic average of 30 - 34 mpg, should be achievable.
In all, a great car and looking forward to seeing how it performs on a more day to day basis. smile

Lowtimer

4,286 posts

167 months

Thursday 24th July 2014
quotequote all
Glad you are enjoying it. Let me know if you want to move it on in a couple of years, I am quite likely to be interested.

tgr

1,129 posts

170 months

Thursday 24th July 2014
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Is that engine the twin turbo 3.0 litre six (or the twin stage single turbo 3.0 six)?

Lowtimer

4,286 posts

167 months

Thursday 24th July 2014
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It is the single turbo model ("twin scroll"), N55B30

tgr

1,129 posts

170 months

Thursday 24th July 2014
quotequote all
Lucky fellow! Hope you enjoy your ownership!