RE: New BMW M550d xDrive

[British Beef]

I have the old E39 M5 this thing is compared to in power output, theat they make a 3lt diesel as powerful and monster it in torque and delivery is impressive, but...the noise?

The noise alone stands the v8 head and shoulders above any diesel, even the diesel race cars at le mans sound a bit sh!t. Perhaps when I am older and go deaf........ I will need a louder v8.

[LewisR]

TheDrBrian said:

You'd think if they were really proud of the engine they wouldn't have hidden it under that slab of plastic

That slab of plastic is full of sound deadening material, to help stop it sounding like a canal boat.

[Shakermaker]

LewisR said:

TheDrBrian said:

You'd think if they were really proud of the engine they wouldn't have hidden it under that slab of plastic

That slab of plastic is full of sound deadening material, to help stop it sounding like a canal boat.

But imagine this engine in a canal boat, rather than the 2.4 litre 1990s Isuzu Diesel that I found last time I took to the water...

[urquattroGus]

4 turbo's on a Diesel engine, with all that plumbing and emissionisation.

Wouldn't fancy running that out of warranty!!

[underphil]

mylesmcd said:

underphil said:

mylesmcd said:

I'd like some back up on that stat!

1. Apply relevant filters on Autotrader
2. Do the maths

That is a pretty weak back up to be fair. I was expecting a link to a dodge website at worst!

so actual recorded mileages for the vehicles in question is weak back up regarding how much mileage is done on the vehicles in question??

[mylesmcd]

underphil said:

mylesmcd said:

underphil said:

mylesmcd said:

I'd like some back up on that stat!

1. Apply relevant filters on Autotrader
2. Do the maths

That is a pretty weak back up to be fair. I was expecting a link to a dodge website at worst!

so actual recorded mileages for the vehicles in question is weak back up regarding how much mileage is done on the vehicles in question??

Reference point A. Still no proof seen here. Still waiting.

[WCZ]

J4CKO said:

Understood, Golf GTI would be more fun ultimately, but could never call them st to drive, a Mk1 Fiesta 950 with worn suspension and a misfire would be st to drive, I would say these are perhaps less suited to your preferences ?

maybe I was a little OTT

[TurboHatchback]

The long term reliability was the first thought that sprang to mind. With all that stuff to go wrong, the looming banning of diesels from everywhere and the big purchase price I can't help thinking there will be some epic depreciation and they'll be on the scrap heap before they're 10yrs old. It's kind of interesting from a technical standpoint but totally uninspiring, I can't summon a scrap of desire for cars like this.

[GTEYE]

There's some really glass half empty people on here.

Personally I would rejoice at a car that as fast as it is wouldn't be ruinous to run if driven sensibly (ie most likely most of the time).

I'd rather put my money into one of these that might suffer higher than average depreciation than a 550i petrol that definitely will....

[StuH]

I was hoping the recent problems with diesel might herald a new era of petrol development but alas no. This will be just as dull to drive as my 535d was. No amount of extra torque will improve that.

Given the horrific costs of fixing this when it goes wrong and the nonsense mpg figure (I averaged 29mpg over 2 years of 535d ownership) who in their right mind would choose this over an RS6?

[underphil]

mylesmcd said:

underphil said:

mylesmcd said:

underphil said:

mylesmcd said:

I'd like some back up on that stat!

1. Apply relevant filters on Autotrader
2. Do the maths

That is a pretty weak back up to be fair. I was expecting a link to a dodge website at worst!

so actual recorded mileages for the vehicles in question is weak back up regarding how much mileage is done on the vehicles in question??

Reference point A. Still no proof seen here. Still waiting.

Rather than wait for me to prove it, I'm sure you have access to Autotrader and a calculator - you should do it and then you'll be satisfied that the method used was correct

[WCZ]

StuH said:

I was hoping the recent problems with diesel might herald a new era of petrol development but alas no. This will be just as dull to drive as my 535d was. No amount of extra torque will improve that.

Given the horrific costs of fixing this when it goes wrong and the nonsense mpg figure (I averaged 29mpg over 2 years of 535d ownership) who in their right mind would choose this over an RS6?

company car owners restricted to diesels or absolute lunatics

[StuH]

WCZ said:

company car owners restricted to diesels or absolute lunatics

You'd have to have a very relaxed company car policy and a dodgy accountant to justify that decision!

Just an utterly pointless car. The antithesis of what pistonheads is all about.

Surely you put up with the crap driver involvement of low-revving oil burners because they offer low running costs and because the torque makes for easy driving with an auto for a motorway slogger / practical family wagon? All this car does is then throw away this only advantage over an equivalent petrol by trashing its economy and making it so complex that I'd rather have my E60 m5 back out of warranty! Add in the new motorway speeding fines and you've got a major white elephant.

BMW - please stop blowing the R&D budget on this tat and invest in making your cars 500kg lighter and 5 inches narrower so they are fun to drive again on typical European roads like the previous generations.

[GTEYE]

StuH said:

WCZ said:

company car owners restricted to diesels or absolute lunatics

You'd have to have a very relaxed company car policy and a dodgy accountant to justify that decision!

Just an utterly pointless car. The antithesis of what pistonheads is all about.

Surely you put up with the crap driver involvement of low-revving oil burners because they offer low running costs and because the torque makes for easy driving with an auto for a motorway slogger / practical family wagon? All this car does is then throw away this only advantage over an equivalent petrol by trashing its economy and making it so complex that I'd rather have my E60 m5 back out of warranty! Add in the new motorway speeding fines and you've got a major white elephant.

BMW - please stop blowing the R&D budget on this tat and invest in making your cars 500kg lighter and 5 inches narrower so they are fun to drive again on typical European roads like the previous generations.

But it appears in your own comment just above you bought a 535d? Most of your negative comments apply to that as well. Did you not drive one before you bought it?

[PurpleTurtle]

greghm said:

I will never understand why people who can afford to buy these big engines would bother trying to save money on gas...

My ex-girlfriend's mum: incredibly wealthy, but as tight as a gnat's chuff. She'd buy one of the these for the status it gave her at the golf club (doesn't mind shelling the £70k for that) and the fact it returns nearly 50mpg, so she'd have to give the Treasury less thanks to fewer fill-ups. Also lived in the sticks in Cornwall where it was a 30 mile round trip to an expensive petrol station, so mpg was all she wanted to know about.

[greghm]

PurpleTurtle said:

My ex-girlfriend's mum: incredibly wealthy, but as tight as a gnat's chuff. She'd buy one of the these for the status it gave her at the golf club (doesn't mind shelling the £70k for that) and the fact it returns nearly 50mpg, so she'd have to give the Treasury less thanks to fewer fill-ups. Also lived in the sticks in Cornwall where it was a 30 mile round trip to an expensive petrol station, so mpg was all she wanted to know about.

Haha, I hope you did not suffer too much from her avarice. But it is interesting how she would bother with a 5 liter diesel instead of a 2 liter as I am guessing she is not that into high torque.

[C7 JFW]

Great idea this car and no doubt a brilliant big mile cruiser.

It does seem strange how whenever we see a new diesel released, someone immediately says 'remap' - is 400bhp in an everyday insufficient for 95% of the owners? No.

Surely the stock map on these will be incredibly good.

[Ninja59]

greghm said:

Haha, I hope you did not suffer too much from her avarice. But it is interesting how she would bother with a 5 liter diesel instead of a 2 liter as I am guessing she is not that into high torque.

5 litre diesel? Do you not mean 3 litre?

As for MPG my 6 is currently around 35 MPG, take it on a longer motorway run it is near enough 50 MPG. Ultimately sadly it comes down to the types of miles you do and how many of them. If you are doing short trips then why bother with a diesel. Diesel still has an advantage for those doing larger miles.

Is there an issue with mine being auto and a 3 litre engine, no because I did not want a 4 pot again, I specifically wanted at minimum a 6 cylinder engine which for my miles I do personally only lends itself to diesel.

[greghm]

Ninja59 said:

5 litre diesel? Do you not mean 3 litre?

I just read in fact the specs now, and I thought it was a 5 litre. Stupid being me converting 550 to 5 series - 5 litre. I will stay away from this car anyway. Thanks for the heads up.

[StuH]

GTEYE said:

But it appears in your own comment just above you bought a 535d? Most of your negative comments apply to that as well. Did you not drive one before you bought it?

Yes, and as per my earlier comment it was mind-numbingly dull after the fast diesel novelty wore off after a week! I came out of an e39 m5 and thought (mistakenly) that with good power and torque it would be a good alternative. It wasn't, like all diesels it completely lacked for driver involvement. So I chopped it in for another m5, e60 that time