E61 535d M Sport
Discussion
My trusty Alpina D3 was starting to get a bit long in the tooth and with having the dog, I thought I'd trade it against a 5 series touring. I searched for about a month before I found the spec I wanted, you'll know the frustration of seeing adverts with 'fully loaded' as the cover title, only to find rather basic spec. This one really stood out and after a test drive, a deal was done and it was sold.
Spec includes;
Heads up display
Harmon Kardon Logic 7
Comfort seats, heated and cooled front/rear
Panoramic roof,
Hydraulic tailgate,
Adaptive lights,
Radar guided cruise,
As far as I can tell, the only option it lacks are the individual stereo and corner adapting seats.
First thing I checked when picking it up was the coolant temp (hard to check with modern BMWs as they have no conventional temp gauge anymore). It as running a good 15'c too cool on a motorway run. I ran it like this for a week and saw an avg MPG of about 34, now with the thermostats changed (yes there are two) its doing a decent IMO 40 mpg.
Ride with the run flats and the M Sport suspension was horrible, so last week it had 4 Michelin Pilot Super Sports fitted which has transformed the car. I also had the rear camber reduced from -2' to about -1.4' which seems to have little effect on handling but will hopefully help reduce inside edge tyre wear that they're renowned for.
Performance is quite something for a diesel, with the D3 I would get in the AMG and revel at its superior overtaking ability and role on acceleration, the difference is a lot less noticeable now and for a B road overtake, I dare say the 535 is on a par, or at least feels it.
Not much else to report at the moment. It's going to become a high mileage commuter so I'll keep updating for those who want to know typical running costs of higher mileage big diesels. For now, all I can say is, if you're thinking about it, you won't be disappointed.
Obligatory pics:
Spec includes;
Heads up display
Harmon Kardon Logic 7
Comfort seats, heated and cooled front/rear
Panoramic roof,
Hydraulic tailgate,
Adaptive lights,
Radar guided cruise,
As far as I can tell, the only option it lacks are the individual stereo and corner adapting seats.
First thing I checked when picking it up was the coolant temp (hard to check with modern BMWs as they have no conventional temp gauge anymore). It as running a good 15'c too cool on a motorway run. I ran it like this for a week and saw an avg MPG of about 34, now with the thermostats changed (yes there are two) its doing a decent IMO 40 mpg.
Ride with the run flats and the M Sport suspension was horrible, so last week it had 4 Michelin Pilot Super Sports fitted which has transformed the car. I also had the rear camber reduced from -2' to about -1.4' which seems to have little effect on handling but will hopefully help reduce inside edge tyre wear that they're renowned for.
Performance is quite something for a diesel, with the D3 I would get in the AMG and revel at its superior overtaking ability and role on acceleration, the difference is a lot less noticeable now and for a B road overtake, I dare say the 535 is on a par, or at least feels it.
Not much else to report at the moment. It's going to become a high mileage commuter so I'll keep updating for those who want to know typical running costs of higher mileage big diesels. For now, all I can say is, if you're thinking about it, you won't be disappointed.
Obligatory pics:
Edited by Spoof on Friday 5th July 12:16
HUD can display Speed , Nav directions and distance, Cruise control settings (speed set/distance from car ahead) and warning messages, like when the temp is less than +3'c it chimes and displays for a few seconds.
Roof seems fine so far, but I'll keep an eye out and include it in the post if/when it become a problem.
Pictures are from the Oracle yeah, I'm about 20 minutes away, just up the road towards Marlow/Cookham.
Roof seems fine so far, but I'll keep an eye out and include it in the post if/when it become a problem.
Pictures are from the Oracle yeah, I'm about 20 minutes away, just up the road towards Marlow/Cookham.
One other thing I've remembered. The centre brake light had a few LED's out which really bugged me after a friend kindly pointed it out. Cheers Matt if you're reading.
That cost me £50 from BMW and took me all of 5 minutes to change, unfortunately its a whole unit that needs replacing as the individual LED's can't be changed.
That cost me £50 from BMW and took me all of 5 minutes to change, unfortunately its a whole unit that needs replacing as the individual LED's can't be changed.
)Spoof said:
Track car comes back out of hibernation this week ready for Combe, you need a go in that thing Stedders. MRG are doing a cambelt change and service for me then I'll probably use it for work if the weather is nice, so I'll be down your way in it.
My car is at MRG at the moment, and i'm collecting it on Saturday if you're near by 
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