After a used 5 series tourer
Discussion
Hello gentlemen!
Ok, Ive never owned a BMW but always liked the look. Always been a VAG person tbh :-D
After 13 years of being self employed gas and heating engineer ,Im going back PAYE into construction management for a large player in London.
Current project is in Sutton and whilst I have a 57 plate LWB transporter I dont fancy driving south coast to Sutton every day.
Therefore im looking for a 10 year old 5 series. Would prefer Estate and am looking for Sat nav and leather and pref bluetooth option. Auto box as well
Its in my head that the 520d would be ideal but would the 525 or 530 be a consideration or are they more to run?
Is the 530 6 cylinder?! ( Ive had VR6's and R32's so im no stranger to a 6pot!)
any advice would really be appreciated
Ok, Ive never owned a BMW but always liked the look. Always been a VAG person tbh :-D
After 13 years of being self employed gas and heating engineer ,Im going back PAYE into construction management for a large player in London.
Current project is in Sutton and whilst I have a 57 plate LWB transporter I dont fancy driving south coast to Sutton every day.
Therefore im looking for a 10 year old 5 series. Would prefer Estate and am looking for Sat nav and leather and pref bluetooth option. Auto box as well
Its in my head that the 520d would be ideal but would the 525 or 530 be a consideration or are they more to run?
Is the 530 6 cylinder?! ( Ive had VR6's and R32's so im no stranger to a 6pot!)
any advice would really be appreciated
I had a 2014 520d ZF 8 speed auto as a loaner , found it underpowered so with an inferior gearbox a circa 2007 touring (BMW speak for estate) I fear would be the same or worse.
530 is six cylinder , not sure exactly what a 525 was at the time.
Obviously you pay more in fuel , trade off for better performance, but it really depends on miles how significant that is.
No idea how far your commute is , but if less than 20k miles p/a, do you even need a diesel? Worth considering six cylinder petrol models if cheaper to buy.
530 is six cylinder , not sure exactly what a 525 was at the time.
Obviously you pay more in fuel , trade off for better performance, but it really depends on miles how significant that is.
No idea how far your commute is , but if less than 20k miles p/a, do you even need a diesel? Worth considering six cylinder petrol models if cheaper to buy.
You may find a 520d fast enough in which case, a nice lowish mileage M47N engined car (great engine) is the one to have - an M Sport version looks great and both the 6 speed manual and 6 speed autos are good.
I would be wary of a later 6 cylinder petrol with the direct injection - can be a LOT of aggro. The 523i is a waste of time anyway. 525d is a detuned 3 litre and very good.
As if by magic:
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...
8 grand is strong money, but they're really very good.
I would be wary of a later 6 cylinder petrol with the direct injection - can be a LOT of aggro. The 523i is a waste of time anyway. 525d is a detuned 3 litre and very good.
As if by magic:
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...
8 grand is strong money, but they're really very good.
Edited by iSore on Thursday 24th August 21:22
I had an LCI 525D Touring on a 57 plate. It was a 3.0 6 cylinder and a nice place to spend time.
I think I had it for 2 years from 2010 - I traded it in for an F11 530d and the guy that purchased the E61 used to post here - he had a few minor issues after purchase, but no deal breakers.
I don't recall the fuel economy being particularly good (about 35?), but it certainly wasn't terrible.
The 525d made around 195hp, so about the same as my wife's 20d now - personally I wouldn't want the older 20d to haul it around as I think it might feel a bit sluggish.
I think I had it for 2 years from 2010 - I traded it in for an F11 530d and the guy that purchased the E61 used to post here - he had a few minor issues after purchase, but no deal breakers.
I don't recall the fuel economy being particularly good (about 35?), but it certainly wasn't terrible.
The 525d made around 195hp, so about the same as my wife's 20d now - personally I wouldn't want the older 20d to haul it around as I think it might feel a bit sluggish.
At 2007 you're looking at the changeover year between the pre-LCI and the LCI models. 525d was a 2.5 6pot (what I currently have) and changed to a 3.0 6pot. 530d is a 3.0 6pot for both. Economy is not great (I get around 29mpg out of mine) but they are fairly reliable. Good to drive and quick enough. I don't know what the 2.0 is like but the 6 cylinders are lovely 
Quick update.
I was up in Sutton Friday morning gone and went further on to a used car place and test drove a grey 08 plate 530d with 125K on the clock, sat nav and pano sunroof. Like it. Felt strange being so low down in comparison to out Tiguen and Touran before it.
It was on for just shy 5K. Wanted to pay by credit card but the bloke said it would be either 5 or 7 percent on top. Now the as a gas man whos business has had a card machine the most Ive ever seen is 2.75%. He asked his boss by phone what it was for the 530 BMW.
Call me old fashioned but it should matter WHAT car I was buying from them.
I walked. Thanked him for his time though
I was up in Sutton Friday morning gone and went further on to a used car place and test drove a grey 08 plate 530d with 125K on the clock, sat nav and pano sunroof. Like it. Felt strange being so low down in comparison to out Tiguen and Touran before it.
It was on for just shy 5K. Wanted to pay by credit card but the bloke said it would be either 5 or 7 percent on top. Now the as a gas man whos business has had a card machine the most Ive ever seen is 2.75%. He asked his boss by phone what it was for the 530 BMW.
Call me old fashioned but it should matter WHAT car I was buying from them.
I walked. Thanked him for his time though
gasfitter72 said:
It was on for just shy 5K. Wanted to pay by credit card but the bloke said it would be either 5 or 7 percent on top. Now the as a gas man whos business has had a card machine the most Ive ever seen is 2.75%. He asked his boss by phone what it was for the 530 BMW.
Call me old fashioned but it should matter WHAT car I was buying from them.
Ha! Didn't you know that when the card machine contacts Worldpay it automatically identifies the product in question and applies the appropriate surcharge. Lucky you weren't buying an Audi as they are 9%... Call me old fashioned but it should matter WHAT car I was buying from them.
I bought a pre LCI 535d estate with 120k on it a year ago, and am a fan of BMW Tourings having had an e46 330i Touring previously. This is a summary of my experience.
It's been brilliant over 14,000 miles, which includes a four up plus luggage trip through France and Switzerland. I replaced the run flats for normals and bought a can of tyre sealant which makes it ride noticeably better. The recent MoT picked up handbrake and front shocks, so cost a bit, but to be expected on an old/high miler, right?
Otherwise it's been brilliant. 75mph is 1800rpm in 6th ratio and it pulls like a train. Mpg is not great in low 30s but if you can afford an LCI they got a better gearbox and fueling so you should get slightly better economy.
And doing some reading the 535d had some parts which give better reliability like a cast iron intake manifold which is less prone to cracking than other diesel 6 and 4 pots, and IIRC the twin turbo set up is fixed geometry which is less likely to fail than the variable geometry set up on the single turbo cars.
Having said that I have had a few issues, which are common to the e60/61. There was a big bust up with the dealer over the failure of the air pump to the rear suspension legs. Check that the rear bags inflate in about 5-7 secs when you start up. It's a well known issue on all Tourings caused by a rubbish installation by BMW, best get it checked at first service/MoT because replacing a failed intake pipe and filter (about 10 quid) can prevent the pump failure.
Also the electrics on these are horribly complex and can be difficult to work with. I had a 'high rate of battery discharge' error warning come up every time I started the car for months, which I eventually tracked down to the failure of the telephone module, this in turn stopped the car shutting down properly (full electric shutdown on e60/61s can take up to 1 hour - I kid you not). The removal of the fuse stopped the problem, but it could have been any number of other things which caused it - failure of the Intelligent Battery System under the boot floor by water ingress is a common one. And the iDrive boots up one day in three - another well known problem. I'm lazy - repair is about £200 but I can live with it for now, then again it is a pain because when the tyre pressure sensors go off erroneously, about once a month (another well known problem) I have to wait to reset them.
These electricals are all annoyances though, and would affect any e60/61, largely regardless of age/mileage. None of them have stopped me driving it though, and it is epic to drive. There's just so much surge under acceleration, which doesn't relent until well over 100mph. It also handles remarkably well for a big non-M car with a big heavy engine up front. And of course it swallows the entire family and all our stuff transporting us serenely down the peage all day and into the evening.
Good luck with your search! 535d Tourings are rarer, but IMHO worth seeking out.
It's been brilliant over 14,000 miles, which includes a four up plus luggage trip through France and Switzerland. I replaced the run flats for normals and bought a can of tyre sealant which makes it ride noticeably better. The recent MoT picked up handbrake and front shocks, so cost a bit, but to be expected on an old/high miler, right?
Otherwise it's been brilliant. 75mph is 1800rpm in 6th ratio and it pulls like a train. Mpg is not great in low 30s but if you can afford an LCI they got a better gearbox and fueling so you should get slightly better economy.
And doing some reading the 535d had some parts which give better reliability like a cast iron intake manifold which is less prone to cracking than other diesel 6 and 4 pots, and IIRC the twin turbo set up is fixed geometry which is less likely to fail than the variable geometry set up on the single turbo cars.
Having said that I have had a few issues, which are common to the e60/61. There was a big bust up with the dealer over the failure of the air pump to the rear suspension legs. Check that the rear bags inflate in about 5-7 secs when you start up. It's a well known issue on all Tourings caused by a rubbish installation by BMW, best get it checked at first service/MoT because replacing a failed intake pipe and filter (about 10 quid) can prevent the pump failure.
Also the electrics on these are horribly complex and can be difficult to work with. I had a 'high rate of battery discharge' error warning come up every time I started the car for months, which I eventually tracked down to the failure of the telephone module, this in turn stopped the car shutting down properly (full electric shutdown on e60/61s can take up to 1 hour - I kid you not). The removal of the fuse stopped the problem, but it could have been any number of other things which caused it - failure of the Intelligent Battery System under the boot floor by water ingress is a common one. And the iDrive boots up one day in three - another well known problem. I'm lazy - repair is about £200 but I can live with it for now, then again it is a pain because when the tyre pressure sensors go off erroneously, about once a month (another well known problem) I have to wait to reset them.
These electricals are all annoyances though, and would affect any e60/61, largely regardless of age/mileage. None of them have stopped me driving it though, and it is epic to drive. There's just so much surge under acceleration, which doesn't relent until well over 100mph. It also handles remarkably well for a big non-M car with a big heavy engine up front. And of course it swallows the entire family and all our stuff transporting us serenely down the peage all day and into the evening.
Good luck with your search! 535d Tourings are rarer, but IMHO worth seeking out.
mcbook said:
gasfitter72 said:
It was on for just shy 5K. Wanted to pay by credit card but the bloke said it would be either 5 or 7 percent on top. Now the as a gas man whos business has had a card machine the most Ive ever seen is 2.75%. He asked his boss by phone what it was for the 530 BMW.
Call me old fashioned but it should matter WHAT car I was buying from them.
Ha! Didn't you know that when the card machine contacts Worldpay it automatically identifies the product in question and applies the appropriate surcharge. Lucky you weren't buying an Audi as they are 9%... Call me old fashioned but it should matter WHAT car I was buying from them.
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