BMW 530e vs 530i - Private purchase

[Casa1862]

My current Lexus IS300h is going to the wife, I've become a fan of the hybrid setup but fancy a change from Lexus.


I originally started looking with a budget of about £28k, I was quite surprised to find some BMW 530e 68 Reg less than 2k miles for £28/29k, any reason they have depreciated so much, the base car would have been over £50k?


I do mostly short journeys (20 miles commute) so the hybrid might be suitable and from my Lexus experience I don't see any downside to this setup, I only do about 10k per year. I tend to keep my cars for quite a while so just want to get something decent I can hang onto.


The other option is a 530i, similar age a miles go for about £30k, a little more expensive and less around, performance wise both cars seem to be similar, any opinions to go for one over the other?

[Jag_NE]

Casa1862 said:

My current Lexus IS300h is going to the wife, I've become a fan of the hybrid setup but fancy a change from Lexus.


I originally started looking with a budget of about £28k, I was quite surprised to find some BMW 530e 68 Reg less than 2k miles for £28/29k, any reason they have depreciated so much, the base car would have been over £50k?


I do mostly short journeys (20 miles commute) so the hybrid might be suitable and from my Lexus experience I don't see any downside to this setup, I only do about 10k per year. I tend to keep my cars for quite a while so just want to get something decent I can hang onto.


The other option is a 530i, similar age a miles go for about £30k, a little more expensive and less around, performance wise both cars seem to be similar, any opinions to go for one over the other?

Late last year I picked up a 67 plate 530d for 26k, similar list price when new to what you are looking at. The c.9 month old cars are usually ex rentals, sixt in my case. Basically the new list price is a bit of a nonsense that nobody ever pays. I’d probably take the 530i in your case.

[ninjag]

How clued up are garages when it comes to working on the bmw hybrids? I've heard they can be a bit tricky/complex.

[Casa1862]

Thanks for the reply, the new shape 530d seems to be holding its price better, there seems to be a lot of 530e around so might wait a bit unless a really good deal on a 530i comes up.

I know the list prices are normally off but would expect a £20k plus drop in 6 months. Can’t see many alternatives at the moment.

[Casa1862]

ninjag said:

How clued up are garages when it comes to working on the bmw hybrids? I've heard they can be a bit tricky/complex.

I’m hoping it’s as reliable as the Lexus hybrid setup but might be wishful thinking, I’m heading more towards a straight 530i. Just found out that the road tax for the hybrid is no less for the first 5 years.

[ninjag]

Being a PHEV I'm guessing you really need to be plugging it in to fully benefit from the battery and short trips? Sounds like a bit of a daily pain for such a short battery duration.

[ZX10R NIN]

Now there's another non PHEV answer:

Infiniti Q50h S

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

They also come in 3.0T 400bhp form too:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

[quinny100]

Sounds like your usage would be suited to a PHEV - short trips at lower speeds with regular charging are their forte. On long motorway trips the PHEV system is just 200Kg of ballast really.

Plugging in is no hassle if you’ve got a driveway and get a tethered charge point installed in the right location. It takes me 3 seconds to plug or unplug my C350e. If you’re using a 3 pin socket and the supplied granny cable then yes, it is a faff and you’ll be less inclined to do it.

On the whole the PHEV powertrains work very well for everyday motoring, but I wouldn’t say they are fun or enjoyable - with the exception of being very quick off the line due to the instant torque of the electric motor.

The only downside is they are fiercely complex machines that require an awful lot of sensors and other electronics to work. Generally they’re pretty reliable but if you have a problem even the dealers don’t really know how to fix them - they connect the diagnostic machine and do what HQ tells them to do. I wouldn’t run one out of manufacturers warranty.

[Casa1862]

quinny100 said:

S

On the whole the PHEV powertrains work very well for everyday motoring, but I wouldn’t say they are fun or enjoyable - with the exception of being very quick off the line due to the instant torque of the electric motor.

The only downside is they are fiercely complex machines that require an awful lot of sensors and other electronics to work. Generally they’re pretty reliable but if you have a problem even the dealers don’t really know how to fix them - they connect the diagnostic machine and do what HQ tells them to do. I wouldn’t run one out of manufacturers warranty.

I'm not sure on the long term reliability, I certainly have no issues with the Lexus/Toyota hybrid setup as that's well tested, been told probably the most reliable part of the car.

I would be suited to the hybrid as I do relatively short trips and there are plenty around, still going more towards the 530i. Two examples below:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-search?advertisin...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

[Casa1862]

ZX10R NIN said:

Now there's another non PHEV answer:

Infiniti Q50h S

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

They also come in 3.0T 400bhp form too:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Thanks, they seem like great performance cars, not keen on the interior. I like the 5 series and the prices are lower than i thought they would be.

[ZX10R NIN]

No problem I just thought I'd give some leftfield options

[Pintofbest]

I've got the 530e although as a company car. I can get just over 20 miles from a full charge and on my commute to work (c35 miles, some fast, some slow) it averages anywhere from 70 to 90mpg. On longer runs you can either charge as you drive (and get an average of about 30mpg) or just drive normally and it'll do somewhere around 45mpg. I'm on 17k miles now.

I like driving it, it's not a race car but handles very well - mines an Msport plus model so on 20's but as it is not Msport suspension it is really comfy. Inside all but silent on petrol or electric, loads of toys - if you go for a test drive and want to see how fast put in in sport mode on the gearbox and change with the paddles, it is much faster that way but I just leave mine in comfort and take it easy. Plenty fast enough for me.

[Casa1862]

Pintofbest said:

I've got the 530e although as a company car. I can get just over 20 miles from a full charge and on my commute to work (c35 miles, some fast, some slow) it averages anywhere from 70 to 90mpg. On longer runs you can either charge as you drive (and get an average of about 30mpg) or just drive normally and it'll do somewhere around 45mpg. I'm on 17k miles now.

I like driving it, it's not a race car but handles very well - mines an Msport plus model so on 20's but as it is not Msport suspension it is really comfy. Inside all but silent on petrol or electric, loads of toys - if you go for a test drive and want to see how fast put in in sport mode on the gearbox and change with the paddles, it is much faster that way but I just leave mine in comfort and take it easy. Plenty fast enough for me.

Cheers, thanks for the info. I won't benefit from any of the tax benefits company car users get hence why I'm undecided if this or the 530i would be a better options. Have you had or heard of any reliability issues?

If I get a near new one I don't think I benefit much from the lower road tax for the first 5 years, I'm assuming my electric bill will go so for the 20 miles of EV is it really worth it, it will come down to how they drive and reliability, I don't think there will be much in it for a private buyer.

[Pintofbest]

Casa1862 said:

Cheers, thanks for the info. I won't benefit from any of the tax benefits company car users get hence why I'm undecided if this or the 530i would be a better options. Have you had or heard of any reliability issues?

If I get a near new one I don't think I benefit much from the lower road tax for the first 5 years, I'm assuming my electric bill will go so for the 20 miles of EV is it really worth it, it will come down to how they drive and reliability, I don't think there will be much in it for a private buyer.

Not heard of any reliability issue, mine has been faultless. Not sure on road tax but congestion charge is £0 which is a bonus.

For electricity, I've just made an all electric trip across Milton Keynes - car says 2.8miles/kwh so at 12 p/kwh that's about 4p per mile. If a 530i gets say 30mpg (generous across MK) @£6/gallon that works out at 20p per mile, they are surprisingly cheap to drive on electric.

[Casa1862]

Thanks, I can't get hold of a 530e to test drive but I'm sure it will be fine, in fact out of the 10 cars I've had I've only test driven 1. My wife loves the Lexus Hybrid as it so smooth, I'm assuming the 530e will be similar.


The fit and finish looks very good. I'm going to do a little more digging on the PHEV's reliability and make a decision between the e or i