My BMW E65 745i

[E65Ross]

Picked up about a month ago and still settling in after sorting a few niggles.

Spec is relatively straight forward 7 series stuff (sat nav, dual zone air con, nav, cruise, hands free phone, heated seats etc as well as a few other bits like sun roof, electric automatic boot open/close etc)

Few niggles to start with were warped front discs causing juddering under heavy braking; slight vibration when going at 65mph steady due to slight buckle in a wheel (swapped for spare....getting all wheel refurbished soon); slight thud from the gearbox on kickdown (guibo unit/transmission flex disc/doughnut) but nothing major.

The car runs sweet as a nut and whilst it's not going to set the world alight it's not exactly a slouch. It's a magnificent motorway car, absolutely epic. It's been remapped for a sharper throttle and a little more power (i feel it's there, but not much but definitely there) and also the 155mph limiter removed and gearbox software updated etc etc.

anyway...pics

Silver nor the most flattering colours, especially on a cloudy day!











And what I'm in love with.....

[E65Ross]

Court_S said:

That looks like a great place to sit and cover a load of distance at naughty speeds.

What do the two silver buttons at the top of the steering wheel do?

It's a really nice place to be, the illumination at night is spot on, and it's so, so quiet even at, erm, naughty speeds. Even doing 130+ it's just so well refined and effortless.

Those buttons are for manual gear changes, there are also a couple on each side on the rear of the wheel as well.

[E65Ross]

Court_S said:

I can imagine. My uncle had one of the last E38 735's and that always felt quicker than it had any right to. You cold also hustle it pretty well for a big car.

Given how cars only get better, I can imagine that this is even more effective.

Well I used to have an E38 728i and the 745i is definitely a little bit quieter, the ride is a bit better and it handles a bit better....it's just, well, a bit better.

A few things I prefer on the E38 though (it was a "sport" model) is the gearbox was a bit smoother (the E65 was the first car to have an electronically controlled gearbox and it's just NOT QUITE as smooth) and I think the steering was better on the E38 as well. But I know the V8 steering on the E38 wasn't the same as the 6 cylinder ones so maybe the E38 steering wasn't any better in V8 models.

That aside I prefer just about everything else on the E65.

[E65Ross]

I wasn't sure on the sticker myself, it's been duly removed.

FlukePlay said:

This example looks absolutely spot on. Looks perfect and I hope you get some very happy motoring out of it. May I ask, how much was it, what year and was it a private sale?

I paid £5k for it, and it was a private sale.

It's got full BMW service history and was under full warranty until 100k miles (on 105k when I got it) so it never wanted for much. I've already put also 2k on it, largely because of a jaunt to Scotland! I it was pretty much the perfect car for the job!

[E65Ross]

Shaw Tarse said:

I think it was bought from a fellow PHer?

Yup. And I sold old E38 728i to a PHer as well!

[E65Ross]

DanielJames said:

All that car for 5k? wow

I hate to ask but... fuel consumption?

Depends how I feel

I'm around 22mpg at the moment. On a steady motorway cruise at 70 it will genuinely see over 30mpg, town driving and cold starts kill it. Driving with a lead foot kill it. Put it this way, driving sensibly on my commute (total 3.5 miles busy town and 12 miles motorway usually busy on the way in quiet on way home) I could get an average of 26mpg maybe a tad more but I don't see the point in owning a V8 and driving like miss daisy!

[E65Ross]

Baryonyx said:

The 'set of drawers from Ikea' interior in these is probably one of the bravest, boldest moves BMW have made in a long time!

And I tell you what, they're bloody useful. They feel quality, and the interior feels much more functional than the highly regarded E38. Aesthetically some may prefer the E38 interior, yet as an owner of both, I'd take the E65 interior every time after living with it and getting used to it.

[E65Ross]

bmthnick1981 said:

Looking good, glad the sticker has been removed!

Back to total stealth V8-ness

A couple of other massive improvements on the E38 are proper Cup holders and also Idrive is nicer.

Had the engine bay professionally cleaned today after my, erm, incident and I'm not exaggerating when I say this it genuinely looks like a brand new engine bay. They've done that good a job. Steam cleaned, degreaser, dressed etc. Looks spot on! Next is wheels being refurbished!

[E65Ross]

bmthnick1981 said:

My v12 is debadged but i'm debating whether to re-badge it, the v12 badges for the c pillars are pricey tho. I want to clean my engine up, might have a go at it myself this coming weekend having done the interior and exterior last weekend. Goes in for wheel refurb tomorrow, get it back Thus PM, 2 days without it will save me some fuel!

Be cheaper getting the wheels refurbished than driving it for a day or 2

I was tempted to rebadge mine, £22 for the badge(!) and I'd get my indy to do it as I wouldn't want it messed up! Unsure though, I've decided against it for now. Asked about it when I got a new bonnet badge.

[E65Ross]

dave828 said:

ive got an E65 730d in trade & ive been using it the past week, its probably the best barge ive ever had, dont want the thing to sell!

Only thing i hate is the damn screen wash function, water always sprays back onto the screen after wiping
I've gotten over the bangle butt & fugly front end and actually find myself looking back at it after walking away from it in the carpark

Can't say I get that issue at all, the screen is fine after washing it. Your wiper blades clean?

[E65Ross]

dbdb said:

I'm interested to see the economy you're getting. My brother has a facelifted 740iL which he bought in 2006. It has been a great car for him; super reliable and huge inside.
He regrets not getting the 750iL though. He finds the 740 underpowered so he needs to thrash it. Fuel consumption is rarely out of the teens. I like the car. Really, the only critisism I would make of it is the ride which isn't great - the 7 series is outclassed by my XJ40 for smoothness on the road. His 740 is excellent at everything else though. If your 745i is anything like as reliable as my brother's car you will be very happy with it - and so much car for the money now!

Edited by dbdb on Wednesday 20th November 10:20

See above, I'm getting around 21-22mpg at the moment over the last 1500 miles or so.

Is his a "sport"? Mine is an SE on 19 inch wheels which will ride better than the sports on 20's, secondly the "Li", I think, has air suspension which I've heard isn't quite as good as the SWB set ups so that might be a reason.

I'm very happy with the ride quality, it's amongst the best I've been in. I'd say other great cars with good ride quality I've been in include a BMW E34 535i SE, Mercedes 190e and also the W221 S class. It's up there, not the best but you'd be insane to call it uncomfortable or too firm.

[E65Ross]

As said, the gearbox isn't as smooth as I'd like so went to a very well regarded automatic transmission specialist today who came with me and drove my car and the guy immediately knew the issue, he said there is a rubber damper which helps smoothness of gear changes (especially noticeable on slow speed down changes) which wear, as well as some aluminium plug things so it's booked in to get those replaced as well as new gearbox oil and filter in 2 weeks today.

Suspected cost £5-600 Inc vat. He said the gearbox itself is fine and not about to go bang at least

Going to cost a lot over the next few months but once sorted properly it'll be very nice indeed.

[E65Ross]

Well here's a bit of an update for anyone interested in this or E65s in general.

The gearbox service was a bit over £600 but TOTALLY transformed the gearbox. It's so smooth now it was worth every penny. They also changed the sump so changing the oil in the future is a much simpler job if I still have the car in 30-40k miles (not sure, who knows!)

I had a major scare at the beginning of January when a warning light came on the Idrive claiming insufficient engine oil pressure!! The engine sounded fine, oil level was fine and fortunately it turned out just to be the oil pressure sensor/switch which cost the grand sum of £13 plus about £30 for fitting!

At that time it was due a "vehicle check service" in 2k miles so decided to get this done at the same time which revealed a few minor issues such as perishing rubber on the CV joints, very minor engine oil leak (put it this way, in the last 1500miles it's used approx 100ml or so of oil.... That's including any it naturally burns) so no worries on that.

Since that it's been fine, it was put through its MOT Saturday just gone which I got for £20 and passed with flying colours.

The next service due is a coolant change which the computer is showing 6 months and then after that is 10k miles for an engine oil and filter change. I'll probably get both of these done at the same time in 5 months or so.

Other than that I've just taxed it for 6 months, life with the E65 745i is good. It's quiet, comfortable and over the poor weather we've had its just been so sure footed and confidence inspiring.... It really makes you feel almost cocooned when it's cold outside and it's chucking it down with rain and you're inside with the heated seats on, the lovely interior ambience etc... It's just a nice place to be.

I must admit that despite this I still browse the classifieds from time to time but I've now spent around £2k on this since early October getting it to where I want it to so I'd be mad to sell it now. It's still not perfect for my liking, I'd like to get the wheels refurbished as they are quite bad but other than that there's not really anything it needs which is nice.

I largely browse the classifieds just for the sake of it as it sure we all do!

It's now on 111300 miles so I've done just shy of 6k miles since collecting it and driving it home to Southampton from just outside Glasgow in October.
If anyone is interested I'll post up details of exactly what been done and it's cost and any items mentioned to look at.

Must get some more pics up!

Thanks for reading!

[E65Ross]

Neil.D said:

Lovely car Ross.

Where did you have the gear box serviced? I need mine doing.

Specialised transmission services in Southampton.... Very much recommended!

http://www.specialisedtransmissions.co.uk/vehicle-...

[E65Ross]

Neil.D said:

E65Ross said:

Specialised transmission services in Southampton.... Very much recommended!

http://www.specialisedtransmissions.co.uk/vehicle-...

Thanks. Sorry to hijack but do u know what they did? Was it simply an oil change or did u have an overhaul?

Certainly not just an oil change. There are some rubber dampers and some aluminium plugs in the box itself which were changed, something like connecting plates were changed and a few other bits and bobs as well but it has totally transformed the box. If you want I can have a look at the invoice and let you know what it says was done. I think the guy there is called bob, either that or bill.... Begins with a B! He really, really knows his stuff!

[E65Ross]

kiethton said:

Interesting, what was the box like before?

Mine is rumbling when at a constant speed under 2.5k rpm and occasionally juddering/slipping under light throttle?

It was very jerky on down shifts, especially 2nd to 1st gear in traffic or on kickdown. It was just a generally nasty gearbox. Lovely now though.

[E65Ross]

kiethton said:

E65Ross said:

kiethton said:

Interesting, what was the box like before?

Mine is rumbling when at a constant speed under 2.5k rpm and occasionally juddering/slipping under light throttle?

It was very jerky on down shifts, especially 2nd to 1st gear in traffic or on kickdown. It was just a generally nasty gearbox. Lovely now though.

Oh, mine can be like that too....but the main problem was the above - so may need what you had plus torque converter I think?

where did you have your work done - recommended?

Already mentioned where it was done above totally recommended, wouldn't hesitate going back for any gearbox related issues in the future.

[E65Ross]

Gave the car a wash and a hoover today, and also treated the dash plastics etc to a trim dressing (I use 303 aerospace protectant, doesn't leave a nasty glossy finish)

so some more up-to-date photos (excuse the poor phone camera pics....I must get out the decent camera and take the car somewhere nice for some shots some day!!


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and the old man asked me to clean his, but i couldn't be bothered and it's not that dirty

[E65Ross]

[E65Ross]

0a said:

Can you get him to remove that M badge in the grill. I know it's standard, it just annoys me so much when I see one (I don't know why, but it looks like the aftermarket badges of old. Have M cars ever had a grill badge before?!).

E65 looking nice and the shape is growing on me.

As you say, the small M6 badge (not just "M") is standard. Yes, M cars have had them in the past. The E30 M3, E24 M6 (in UK this was the M635csi), the E28 and E34 M5s all had badges on the front, it's really nothing new.