E61 V8 Bearding

[ATM]

No not me. Pics might help.

[james_zy]

I saw that one too Steve. Something doesn’t look quite right about it, and this is somewhat confirmed by the amount of time it has been on the market. On the one hand it could be a good buy to put some work in to bring it to standard, on the other could be a money pit!

[six wheels]

james_zy said:

I saw that one too Steve. Something doesn’t look quite right about it, and this is somewhat confirmed by the amount of time it has been on the market. On the one hand it could be a good buy to put some work in to bring it to standard, on the other could be a money pit!

It is a very, very long time to be available.

The V8 M-Sports are very rare though. I don’t think there are any others available. Actually very few 530i’s too.

I was hoping someone on here would know - or have owned - this specific car.

[tobinen]

What're the panel's thoughts on this?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-550i-TOURING-COMFOR...

[JakeT]

I'd rock that. Seller likes a bit of a waffle when they should do some more tidying of the car for sale. The MOT history doesn't have anything that bad on it, and if the history is as good as they say it should be fine to (literally) smoke about in for a while.

The interior needs a good cleaning though, a day with the cleaning gear and it should come up nicely. Were I buying I'd try and offer closer to a 6-6.5

[tobinen]

Thanks. I think a 550 is over budget for me right now. Prices seem fairly firm not that there are many about.

545i, a much reduced price but looks to me as doom blue. £3,285 though.

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

[TurboRob]

No panoshambolic roof on the 545i either - gets my vote.

[ATM]

Do we think a small sofa would go in the boot of these? Only need to go a few miles so boot doesn't need to be closed properly.

[alistair267]

I reckon you could get a small sofa in - particularly if you can leave the glass hatch open. Think I'm going to a dump run today in mine.

A blue 57 plate 550 SE has popped up on AT - 84k miles but seems quite pricey at £10,490

[ATM]

Its encouraging to see prices rising a bit as an owner here.

[StuntmanMike]

tobinen said:

Thanks. I think a 550 is over budget for me right now. Prices seem fairly firm not that there are many about.

545i, a much reduced price but looks to me as doom blue. £3,285 though.

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

One thing that stands out is it has the basic Idrive. That would be a deal breaker for me.

[james_zy]

alistair267 said:

I reckon you could get a small sofa in - particularly if you can leave the glass hatch open. Think I'm going to a dump run today in mine.

A blue 57 plate 550 SE has popped up on AT - 84k miles but seems quite pricey at £10,490

I saw that one - I think they have reduced it down to £8990:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...

Doesn't have a sunroof like yours though!!

[alistair267]

I replaced my rear discs and pads yesterday to match the fronts I did a few weeks ago and at the same time replaced the brake fluid, which was due.

Looking forward to actually driving it for a decent distance at some point.

[alistair267]

james_zy said:

I saw that one - I think they have reduced it down to £8990:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...

Doesn't have a sunroof like yours though!!

It’s also very brown inside!

[gizlaroc]

I think that is poor photography, this was my old one...

https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0VGI9HKKGKmo7...

[alistair267]

gizlaroc said:

I think that is poor photography, this was my old one...

https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0VGI9HKKGKmo7...

Your photos are definitely better. is that the same interior colour scheme?

[StuntmanMike]

I have asked this elsewhere but never received a reply!
Can you fit 650 clocks into a 550?
Before anyone suggests realoem they will be different part numbers.
The 650 has a oil temperature gauge.
Both cars would be pre LCI.

[gizlaroc]

alistair267 said:

Your photos are definitely better. is that the same interior colour scheme?

Yeah, not sure why he has made it look so dark and.........brown.

[james_zy]

gizlaroc said:

alistair267 said:

Your photos are definitely better. is that the same interior colour scheme?

Yeah, not sure why he has made it look so dark and.........brown.

Both of yours have the sunroof - makes a big difference when photographing, especially with a basic camera.

Will be interesting to see what it looks like when the dealer has cleaned it up a bit. An LCI 550i is a great thing - I’d want the sunroof though

[alistair267]

I have had the 550 for 9 months now and tidied up the interior (although I still need to do a proper leather treatment).

Mechanically I’ve replaced and upgraded brake discs and pads.

Any other (cheap-ish) upgrades that people have done that make a difference?

Mileage is about to tick over to 110,000 so I do need to check how the suspension, bushes etc are getting on.

Hoping to still do the planned road trip in August with the family to the Alps and Provence which will be a good test of the beast.