E39 Topping up the oil - is it usual

[crofty1984]

Is needing to top up the oil on an E39 530 sport a common thing?
I'm thinking of buying one.
Dan

[drivin_me_nuts]

crofty1984 said:

Is needing to top up the oil on an E39 530 sport a common thing?
I'm thinking of buying one.
Dan

.. Not that unusual between services. But if you're talking a litre every 500 miles then step away pronto

[matt uk]

Had mine for 5,000 miles now and it hasn't really used any. I keep am eye on it though.

[Vee]

Acceptable consumption is 1 litre in 700miles according to BMW.
We run 2 E46 330s. Wifes saloon uses none, my coupe uses a litre every 1,000-1,200 miles.

[Fox-]

crofty1984 said:

Is needing to top up the oil on an E39 530 sport a common thing?
I'm thinking of buying one.
Dan

For your budget of less than £4k I'd be suprised if any 530 Sport you find isn't a smoking old nail that drinks more oil than petrol - cheap BMW's are cheap for a reason.

Under normal circumstances an M54 engine will use a litre of oil between every 1500 and 5000 miles depending on how its driven.

You should buy a slightly older 528i instead, as you have considerably more chance of getting a half decent one.

[crofty1984]

What do you think is the going rate for a good one, I've increased my budget a bit, and another PHer has offered me theirs. I'm hoping it'll have been looked after if it's a member on here.

[matt uk]

crofty1984 said:

What do you think is the going rate for a good one, I've increased my budget a bit, and another PHer has offered me theirs. I'm hoping it'll have been looked after if it's a member on here.

Got some more details?

[sparks87]

Fox- said:

crofty1984 said:

Is needing to top up the oil on an E39 530 sport a common thing?
I'm thinking of buying one.
Dan

For your budget of less than £4k I'd be suprised if any 530 Sport you find isn't a smoking old nail that drinks more oil than petrol - cheap BMW's are cheap for a reason.

Under normal circumstances an M54 engine will use a litre of oil between every 1500 and 5000 miles depending on how its driven.

You should buy a slightly older 528i instead, as you have considerably more chance of getting a half decent one.

£3000-£4000 will buy you an excellent 528i from 1999 in top condition, I've seen a few 530's for around £4k and they are a bit rough.

[Fox-]

crofty1984 said:

What do you think is the going rate for a good one, I've increased my budget a bit, and another PHer has offered me theirs. I'm hoping it'll have been looked after if it's a member on here.

I saw the post where you offered that one - have they told you how much they want for it yet because ISTR when they bought it was a low mileage example and is thus still worth rather a lot more than £4k.

I would want to spend about £6k+ if I was buying another one. There are many for less than this but its far better to buy a quality one than a cheap one. Otherwise you'll end up with a bit of a scabby one and pay the 'saving' you made fixing things anyway.

Also note they are NOT cheap cars to run and neither are they bulletproof in terms of reliability. They are great cars but buy one and run it on a budget and it will bite you.

[sparkythecat]

Fox- said:

crofty1984 said:

Is needing to top up the oil on an E39 530 sport a common thing?
I'm thinking of buying one.
Dan

For your budget of less than £4k I'd be suprised if any 530 Sport you find isn't a smoking old nail that drinks more oil than petrol - cheap BMW's are cheap for a reason.

Big engined BMWs are cheap for very good reasons, other than oil consumption. Petrol is over £4.50 a gallon, Road tax is about to get a £200+ hike, the country is in recession and people are being brainwashed about this carbon footprint nonsence.

This all works in your favour. If you're patient, and look hard enough, you'll get a very nice car within budget that someone, somewhere is desperate to shift.

You'll find good advice on E39 Ownership and even a buyers guide over on this forum

Edited by sparkythecat on Tuesday 9th September 23:04