Which BMW?

[Lozw86]

Hi all. I am just about to hand back my F30 BMW 328i M Sport after 3 years of enjoyable and trouble free use. Due to an upcoming property purchase I do not want to take out another PCP or lease and have therefore set myself a £3,000 cash budget to buy another car.

I have rounded the choices down to a few BMW models, but no matter how long I spend perusing Autorader, Pistonheads, Ebay etc I am having trouble deciding between them. They all have merits and disadvantages, but I think all will offer me some level of enjoyment. I realise these cars will seem more dated than my current F30 and that being older cars they are likely to need a little work and maintenance.
The options are.. E39 5 series 540i Sport / E60 5 series 530i SE / E38 7 series 740i / E65 7 series 730i or 745i

One of the 5 series models seems the more sensible choice, the E60 probably the most sensible being the youngest, but there is real appeal of in the E39 with the 4 litre V8. The E39 is widely regarded as one of the best cars to be produced and is my current favourite
I like the retro appeal of the E38, again with the V8 motor. The E65 could probably be the most ruinous, and the least sensible option, but what a lot of car for the money, and relatively modern luxury

I intend to test drive all of the above, but am interested particularly to hear from people who have driven and lived with these cars

Which would you choose and why?

[kiethton]

540i is a great shout.

Good day to day:



but can be quite fun too!



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRHCBonFOgE

[KevinCamaroSS]

Have you test driven any?

[Vitorio]

Is an e90 an option? assuming a 3 is big enough for your needs for the coming years id consider a 325/328 more sensible then a 5 or 7 series, but still gets you the lovely straight 6 and RWD.

Out of what you list i'd have the e60 by the way, ive grown to love the looks of them, and a modern 7 series would scare me with more bork potential.

[shalmaneser]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

Having said that if you threw a grand at getting the suspension tip top on an e39 and it was lowish miles you'd probably get your money back when you came to sell.

Only really works with the 540i though. Even more so if it's a manual.

[Lozw86]

Yes the E39 looks like a good choice, provided I buy wisely. I don’t mind completing some remedial work to keep the car usable for 2 – 3 years. I have read up on common issues.. the cooling system weaknesses seemingly the most prevalent

I have test drives planned for this coming weekend

The E90 is not in budget I don't think, and I don't fancy an E46 - Something more 5 or 7 series size would be ideal and offer an air of "waftiness"

I wonder whether an E60 530i will feel slow after my F30, it’s less powerful, heavier and has an older gear box

I want to rule out an E65 but I keep being drawn to them. Deep down I know it’s a bad idea

[kiethton]

Lozw86 said:

Yes the E39 looks like a good choice, provided I buy wisely.

Exactly, they can be ruinous

Try and find one that some poor sod has spent a fortune on previously....thought I'd managed to do so but have still spent ~£2.5k on non-service maintenance in the 3.5 years & 20k miles I've had mine (gearbox rebuild, alternator & hedgehog). This was despite £6k of work being done on the car 6 months before my purchase (full suspension refresh (all bushes, dampers, control arms etc.), full cooling system, inspection 2, disc's & pads, tyres, etc.....)

They are also prone to a little rust around the rear/front arches, boot lights and behind the sill covers.

Mine is spot on thankfully - mine was in your budget when I bought it and is a last of the line '03 sport with 110k miles on purchase so they can be found!

[sparks_E39]

I can reccomend an E39 certainly, but they are very expensive cars to run properly. Troublesome electrics, awful cooling system and rust, lots of rust both cosmetic and structural. Budget a minimum of £1000 a year for non routine service items.

Good luck trying to find a decent E38 for £3k, they seem to be fetching a bit more than that now.

[counterofbeans]

True, I seem to have spent £1500 on my 77k mile 540i sport this year:-

Inspection 2 £500
Paint £300
Gearbox service £250
Battery / hedgehog £250
Brakes £200

[sorin1987]

Vitorio said:

Is an e90 an option? assuming a 3 is big enough for your needs for the coming years id consider a 325/328 more sensible then a 5 or 7 series, but still gets you the lovely straight 6 and RWD.

Out of what you list i'd have the e60 by the way, ive grown to love the looks of them, and a modern 7 series would scare me with more bork potential.

You will never find an e90 325 for that money. Not in a decent condition anyway. The 5 series loogs quite good and maybe you can find one that was taken care of. I had a colleague at my last job that had a 2002 530d with around 180k miles that was running perfectly still. But he spared no money when it came to car care.

[Dimebars]

Get this one. It's a bit out your budget mind you..........

http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...