E39 540 for less than £2k, talk to me
Discussion
The recent SOTW E39 540 got me thinking that this could be an ideal way into my first V8 ownership! (lets forget that the car used was exposed as a bit of a dog..)
With the handing back of the company car due to a new job, a 540 could be an ideal everyday car.
There are a couple available at this price bracket, though I have to except this is bottom of the market.
What are the main issues with these cars and how to spot them?
Any advice re buying guides or sources of information would be great, also would be service intervals for major items (cambelt etc.). Not worried about super-high milers as long as they've been serviced properly!
Over to you lot :-)
With the handing back of the company car due to a new job, a 540 could be an ideal everyday car.
There are a couple available at this price bracket, though I have to except this is bottom of the market.
What are the main issues with these cars and how to spot them?
Any advice re buying guides or sources of information would be great, also would be service intervals for major items (cambelt etc.). Not worried about super-high milers as long as they've been serviced properly!
Over to you lot :-)
Heavy on suspension items (most under 2k will need 1k worth of suspension work) Extremely weak cooling systems and valley pan gasket issues is another to look out for.
Sucking a vacuum in while the dipstick is out with the engine running usually means OSV needs replacing.
Fuel tanks implode/crack and are about 1k to replace with a lot of work due to carbon canister recirc system clogging. (not common just something to think about at higher mileage.
Vanos* Costs a bomb to fix and will go wrong at some point. Best bet is to get a 4.0 or a 4.4 without Vanos (rare to find)
And of course last but certainly not least are sealed for life gearbox's which can go at 50k let alone the 120k you are probably looking at, torque converters as well, both cost a bomb to fix. Meaning there are no good high or low milers unless it's manual and the manuals usually cost 5k+ for this reason.
Thats some of the reasons why they are 2k but I still own and run my 740i on silly miles a year and love every minute.
Sucking a vacuum in while the dipstick is out with the engine running usually means OSV needs replacing.
Fuel tanks implode/crack and are about 1k to replace with a lot of work due to carbon canister recirc system clogging. (not common just something to think about at higher mileage.
Vanos* Costs a bomb to fix and will go wrong at some point. Best bet is to get a 4.0 or a 4.4 without Vanos (rare to find)
And of course last but certainly not least are sealed for life gearbox's which can go at 50k let alone the 120k you are probably looking at, torque converters as well, both cost a bomb to fix. Meaning there are no good high or low milers unless it's manual and the manuals usually cost 5k+ for this reason.
Thats some of the reasons why they are 2k but I still own and run my 740i on silly miles a year and love every minute.
Edited by ez64 on Sunday 27th January 13:55
Edited by ez64 on Sunday 27th January 13:56
Ozzie Osmond said:
Jakestar said:
What are the main issues with these cars and how to spot them?
Easy to spot!Look at the service history. If the car hasn't had a recent "Inspection 2" service you can expect a bill of over £1,000 (possibly sveral thousand) the first time the car goes near a garage.
If you don't mind a car with lots of foibles then get one, it may run well for a year or two, it may explode in a ruinous shower of repair bills within a month. No way of knowing I'm afraid...
I had a 530i SE Auto on 150K miles and to be honest, whilst it was a lovely solid, comfortable car, it just turned out to be utterly unreliable. Almost all the problems were related to suspension, if the car you view has a wobble coming through the wheel at 50-80mph then you have two choices-
1) Live with it
2) Replace the entire suspension system, shocks, mounts, all arms, track rods, steering rack, if you're lucky you might get rid of the problem.
With mine I worked through Control Arms (twice) ARB bushes, shocks, track rods, poly-Control Arm bushes and I was just getting ready to swallow a bill for a new steering rack when the autobox died (I had spent £2K on various repairs in the previous 3 months).
In a way, I was quite pleased when the box died as it meant I had a cast iron reason to get rid of it (you try parting with a car after spending THAT much cash in a short space of time, I kept thinking I'd have it cracked, just one more repair... etc.)
I'm currently waiting on delivery of a Mondeo and I can't bloody wait, it won't be as comfortable as the E39, but my god the parts are cheaper, and most importantly, I doubt it will need as many of them...
Proceed with caution, ask yourself if you genuinely can live with driving a bit of a nail, if you can, go for it. If you think you can't, then avoid, or else the car will just swallow everything from your wallet and then want the shirt off your back.
I had a 530i SE Auto on 150K miles and to be honest, whilst it was a lovely solid, comfortable car, it just turned out to be utterly unreliable. Almost all the problems were related to suspension, if the car you view has a wobble coming through the wheel at 50-80mph then you have two choices-
1) Live with it
2) Replace the entire suspension system, shocks, mounts, all arms, track rods, steering rack, if you're lucky you might get rid of the problem.
With mine I worked through Control Arms (twice) ARB bushes, shocks, track rods, poly-Control Arm bushes and I was just getting ready to swallow a bill for a new steering rack when the autobox died (I had spent £2K on various repairs in the previous 3 months).
In a way, I was quite pleased when the box died as it meant I had a cast iron reason to get rid of it (you try parting with a car after spending THAT much cash in a short space of time, I kept thinking I'd have it cracked, just one more repair... etc.)
I'm currently waiting on delivery of a Mondeo and I can't bloody wait, it won't be as comfortable as the E39, but my god the parts are cheaper, and most importantly, I doubt it will need as many of them...
Proceed with caution, ask yourself if you genuinely can live with driving a bit of a nail, if you can, go for it. If you think you can't, then avoid, or else the car will just swallow everything from your wallet and then want the shirt off your back.
also remember the abs pump and sensors can fail
the interior pixels can fail meaning the dash mileage cannot be read (some panic as this is an mot failure- I'm not sure myself??)
the key barrel can wear giving very odd electrical gremlins
a device called a hedgehog can fail giving odd electrical issues
heater which doesnt, or airocn which doesnt
The E39 540 was a fine car, but are really showing their age now. Having owned one, I now feel a V8 XJ Jaguar has less issues and is probably a better buy these days
the interior pixels can fail meaning the dash mileage cannot be read (some panic as this is an mot failure- I'm not sure myself??)
the key barrel can wear giving very odd electrical gremlins
a device called a hedgehog can fail giving odd electrical issues
heater which doesnt, or airocn which doesnt
The E39 540 was a fine car, but are really showing their age now. Having owned one, I now feel a V8 XJ Jaguar has less issues and is probably a better buy these days
Like you I came out of a company car scheme.
I went straight into a 540 Touring for a while.
It had more than a few issues, in the year I had it it needed a new rad, water pump, new fuel pump.
In addition to that it needed regular tyres, lucky to see 10,000 miles out of a set of four. Brake discs and pads at a similar interval to the tyres.
Ultimatley mine was a lovely beast, but the hoped for V8 roar and driving experience just wasn't there. Too heavy to chuck about, the tiptronic gearbox was slow and ponderous.
I sold it on, as I needed a car for work. I just could't be doing with it randomly not working, needing a week in the garage to get repaired, then pretty much 1 day a month on wear items.
I needed a car that started every morning, would get me round all the sites I needed to visit, and then home again in the evening. I guess it would be a different matter if I was just commuting back and forth to an office where I had a public transport alternative.
I went straight into a 540 Touring for a while.
It had more than a few issues, in the year I had it it needed a new rad, water pump, new fuel pump.
In addition to that it needed regular tyres, lucky to see 10,000 miles out of a set of four. Brake discs and pads at a similar interval to the tyres.
Ultimatley mine was a lovely beast, but the hoped for V8 roar and driving experience just wasn't there. Too heavy to chuck about, the tiptronic gearbox was slow and ponderous.
I sold it on, as I needed a car for work. I just could't be doing with it randomly not working, needing a week in the garage to get repaired, then pretty much 1 day a month on wear items.
I needed a car that started every morning, would get me round all the sites I needed to visit, and then home again in the evening. I guess it would be a different matter if I was just commuting back and forth to an office where I had a public transport alternative.
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