Discussion
A fortuitous contract win at work, a baby on the way and, another four legged addition to the family (Chocolate lab) meant a change in commute/circumstance and thus the departure of my wonderful manual 440i coupe.
At the end of last summer I picked up a 2017 Touareg R Line Plus which has been absolutely wonderful, handling my commuting to Cities on the south coast and Kent admirably, making the never-ending trips to the tip a breeze and, ferrying the little'n and dogs around at weekends in absolute comfort.
As the last of the line run out models of the previous shape, I think they represent remarkable value. All the bells and whistles, 22K miles, at a whisper under £23K.
To the subject matter....
I held out 6 months before the (selfish) need for something for ME kicked in
During this period I hit the big 4 0 so as much as I loved the drama (silliness) of the popping and banging that the MPPSK provided on the 440, I felt it time for something a little more gentlemanly.
With a budget of around £6K and like many of you, I spent hours and hours perusing the classifieds for something that took my fancy. Despite the left field thoughts and ideas I invariably (perhaps boringly) always seem to default to straight 6 BMW's.
I enquired and almost bought an E92 325i, only missing out as it sold before we could reach a deal.
While the searching continued I happened upon a few forum discussions regarding the BMW E63. Again, I'm sure I'm not alone in this sentiment, all those years ago I found the look of these cars awful! Now a little older, and with the popular opinion that everything more or less looks the same, I think they've aged very well.
The debate over which engine provided yet more hours of reading and, to clarify, I loved the idea of a stonking great V8 (valve stem seals and central coolant pipe aside). However, this came up in the colour and spec I broadly wanted and shortly after I picked her up.
And now the subjective bum!
Simple, functional interior
At work next to my colleagues new Audi A4... I thought the 6 was huge when they first arrived, now not so much
And finally next to her stable mates where she spends the majority of her time
Being the older N52 engine, I understand there's less to go wrong. I've had all manner of 6cyl BMW engines (M54, N53, B58) and this one too is creamily smooth.
What I hadn't accounted for, was spending approx a 3rd of it's value within the first 2 weeks of ownership!!
During it's first proper clean I noticed a small amount of oil pooling in a little crevice on top of the oil cooler, a quick google pointed out this was likely to be from the oil cooler gasket. Booked into my local indie I happily dropped it off for the 'hours' work expecting to collect it a short while later that day and being relieved of no more than £100.
3 weeks later I got the car back
Without boring you all with the details, whilst undertaking the repairs one thing led to another, my mechanic calling me up to view his findings. Now it didn't all NEED doing there and then but, while it was up on the ramp, in for a penny....
The culmination of work carried out as follows:
Oil Cooler Gasket
Oil filter housing gasket (another common failure)
Power Steering Reservoir and new fluid
Timing Belt
Tensioner
New Upper Control Arms
New lower Control Arms
New Steering Arms
Anti Roll Bar
Drop Links
Front Discs
Front Pads
What I have now is a wonderfully planted and tight BMW 630i that drives great. The turn in and lightness at the front is superb (apparently the lightest 6cyl engine in the world at that time thanks to use of magnesium alloy, and if you discount the Mazda engine which, apparently, BMW chose to ignore too).
For a 15 year old car the build quality is second to none. Again, I've had several BMW's over the years, and a few Jags, and none of them, even come close to the solid feel of this car. Not one squeak or rattle from anywhere. They really screwed these things together well.
It's not quick by any means, but the smooth linear power delivery of the NA 6 is lovely. The Hi-Fi speaker set up is perfectly adequate, and an AUX to lightning cable gives me phone and Spotify capability.
I love that there's no horrible EU warning signs etched in the sun visors (for some reason I HATE that on modern cars), and to me at least, it's a handsome old thing.
Just don't tell the missus which tax bracket it falls into!
At the end of last summer I picked up a 2017 Touareg R Line Plus which has been absolutely wonderful, handling my commuting to Cities on the south coast and Kent admirably, making the never-ending trips to the tip a breeze and, ferrying the little'n and dogs around at weekends in absolute comfort.
As the last of the line run out models of the previous shape, I think they represent remarkable value. All the bells and whistles, 22K miles, at a whisper under £23K.
To the subject matter....
I held out 6 months before the (selfish) need for something for ME kicked in
During this period I hit the big 4 0 so as much as I loved the drama (silliness) of the popping and banging that the MPPSK provided on the 440, I felt it time for something a little more gentlemanly.
With a budget of around £6K and like many of you, I spent hours and hours perusing the classifieds for something that took my fancy. Despite the left field thoughts and ideas I invariably (perhaps boringly) always seem to default to straight 6 BMW's.
I enquired and almost bought an E92 325i, only missing out as it sold before we could reach a deal.
While the searching continued I happened upon a few forum discussions regarding the BMW E63. Again, I'm sure I'm not alone in this sentiment, all those years ago I found the look of these cars awful! Now a little older, and with the popular opinion that everything more or less looks the same, I think they've aged very well.
The debate over which engine provided yet more hours of reading and, to clarify, I loved the idea of a stonking great V8 (valve stem seals and central coolant pipe aside). However, this came up in the colour and spec I broadly wanted and shortly after I picked her up.
And now the subjective bum!
Simple, functional interior
At work next to my colleagues new Audi A4... I thought the 6 was huge when they first arrived, now not so much
And finally next to her stable mates where she spends the majority of her time
Being the older N52 engine, I understand there's less to go wrong. I've had all manner of 6cyl BMW engines (M54, N53, B58) and this one too is creamily smooth.
What I hadn't accounted for, was spending approx a 3rd of it's value within the first 2 weeks of ownership!!
During it's first proper clean I noticed a small amount of oil pooling in a little crevice on top of the oil cooler, a quick google pointed out this was likely to be from the oil cooler gasket. Booked into my local indie I happily dropped it off for the 'hours' work expecting to collect it a short while later that day and being relieved of no more than £100.
3 weeks later I got the car back
Without boring you all with the details, whilst undertaking the repairs one thing led to another, my mechanic calling me up to view his findings. Now it didn't all NEED doing there and then but, while it was up on the ramp, in for a penny....
The culmination of work carried out as follows:
Oil Cooler Gasket
Oil filter housing gasket (another common failure)
Power Steering Reservoir and new fluid
Timing Belt
Tensioner
New Upper Control Arms
New lower Control Arms
New Steering Arms
Anti Roll Bar
Drop Links
Front Discs
Front Pads
What I have now is a wonderfully planted and tight BMW 630i that drives great. The turn in and lightness at the front is superb (apparently the lightest 6cyl engine in the world at that time thanks to use of magnesium alloy, and if you discount the Mazda engine which, apparently, BMW chose to ignore too).
For a 15 year old car the build quality is second to none. Again, I've had several BMW's over the years, and a few Jags, and none of them, even come close to the solid feel of this car. Not one squeak or rattle from anywhere. They really screwed these things together well.
It's not quick by any means, but the smooth linear power delivery of the NA 6 is lovely. The Hi-Fi speaker set up is perfectly adequate, and an AUX to lightning cable gives me phone and Spotify capability.
I love that there's no horrible EU warning signs etched in the sun visors (for some reason I HATE that on modern cars), and to me at least, it's a handsome old thing.
Just don't tell the missus which tax bracket it falls into!
Lovely machine! Like you I thought these were hideous when they first came out but I'm finding myself increasingly intrigued by them 
Mr Ben said:
Timing Belt
I surely hope that was the aux belt (driving the alternator, power steering and A/C) as there is no timing belt on these engines.
Great looking cars and agree that they have aged very well - I am biased as I have one as my daily (albeit a diesel...)
Build quality is great as you say - had mine 2 years and no issues at all, just usual servicing. The only issue i have is the runflat tyres - i repalced them upon purchase with new runflats and they make the ride a bit harsh, next time non-runflats will be fitted! At first i thought it was a car a bit beyond my years (same age as you) but its great to waft in!![](https://thumbsnap.com/sc/gwKnrkia.jpg[/img]</a> <a href="https://thumbsnap.com/R6sKXj3a" Target="_blank" rel="nofollow">[img]https://thumbsnap.com/sc/R6sKXj3a.jpg[/img]</a> <a href="https://thumbsnap.com/6dEyYBm2" Target="_blank" rel="nofollow">[img]https://thumbsnap.com/t/6dEyYBm2.jpg)
Build quality is great as you say - had mine 2 years and no issues at all, just usual servicing. The only issue i have is the runflat tyres - i repalced them upon purchase with new runflats and they make the ride a bit harsh, next time non-runflats will be fitted! At first i thought it was a car a bit beyond my years (same age as you) but its great to waft in!
Mr Ben said:
A fortuitous contract win at work, a baby on the way and, another four legged addition to the family (Chocolate lab) meant a change in commute/circumstance and thus the departure of my wonderful manual 440i coupe.
At the end of last summer I picked up a 2017 Touareg R Line Plus which has been absolutely wonderful, handling my commuting to Cities on the south coast and Kent admirably, making the never-ending trips to the tip a breeze and, ferrying the little'n and dogs around at weekends in absolute comfort.
As the last of the line run out models of the previous shape, I think they represent remarkable value. All the bells and whistles, 22K miles, at a whisper under £23K.
To the subject matter....
I held out 6 months before the (selfish) need for something for ME kicked in
During this period I hit the big 4 0 so as much as I loved the drama (silliness) of the popping and banging that the MPPSK provided on the 440, I felt it time for something a little more gentlemanly.
With a budget of around £6K and like many of you, I spent hours and hours perusing the classifieds for something that took my fancy. Despite the left field thoughts and ideas I invariably (perhaps boringly) always seem to default to straight 6 BMW's.
I enquired and almost bought an E92 325i, only missing out as it sold before we could reach a deal.
While the searching continued I happened upon a few forum discussions regarding the BMW E63. Again, I'm sure I'm not alone in this sentiment, all those years ago I found the look of these cars awful! Now a little older, and with the popular opinion that everything more or less looks the same, I think they've aged very well.
The debate over which engine provided yet more hours of reading and, to clarify, I loved the idea of a stonking great V8 (valve stem seals and central coolant pipe aside). However, this came up in the colour and spec I broadly wanted and shortly after I picked her up.
And now the subjective bum!
Simple, functional interior
At work next to my colleagues new Audi A4... I thought the 6 was huge when they first arrived, now not so much
And finally next to her stable mates where she spends the majority of her time
Being the older N52 engine, I understand there's less to go wrong. I've had all manner of 6cyl BMW engines (M54, N53, B58) and this one too is creamily smooth.
What I hadn't accounted for, was spending approx a 3rd of it's value within the first 2 weeks of ownership!!
During it's first proper clean I noticed a small amount of oil pooling in a little crevice on top of the oil cooler, a quick google pointed out this was likely to be from the oil cooler gasket. Booked into my local indie I happily dropped it off for the 'hours' work expecting to collect it a short while later that day and being relieved of no more than £100.
3 weeks later I got the car back
Without boring you all with the details, whilst undertaking the repairs one thing led to another, my mechanic calling me up to view his findings. Now it didn't all NEED doing there and then but, while it was up on the ramp, in for a penny....
The culmination of work carried out as follows:
Oil Cooler Gasket
Oil filter housing gasket (another common failure)
Power Steering Reservoir and new fluid
Timing Belt
Tensioner
New Upper Control Arms
New lower Control Arms
New Steering Arms
Anti Roll Bar
Drop Links
Front Discs
Front Pads
What I have now is a wonderfully planted and tight BMW 630i that drives great. The turn in and lightness at the front is superb (apparently the lightest 6cyl engine in the world at that time thanks to use of magnesium alloy, and if you discount the Mazda engine which, apparently, BMW chose to ignore too).
For a 15 year old car the build quality is second to none. Again, I've had several BMW's over the years, and a few Jags, and none of them, even come close to the solid feel of this car. Not one squeak or rattle from anywhere. They really screwed these things together well.
It's not quick by any means, but the smooth linear power delivery of the NA 6 is lovely. The Hi-Fi speaker set up is perfectly adequate, and an AUX to lightning cable gives me phone and Spotify capability.
I love that there's no horrible EU warning signs etched in the sun visors (for some reason I HATE that on modern cars), and to me at least, it's a handsome old thing.
Just don't tell the missus which tax bracket it falls into!
Lovely car these At the end of last summer I picked up a 2017 Touareg R Line Plus which has been absolutely wonderful, handling my commuting to Cities on the south coast and Kent admirably, making the never-ending trips to the tip a breeze and, ferrying the little'n and dogs around at weekends in absolute comfort.
As the last of the line run out models of the previous shape, I think they represent remarkable value. All the bells and whistles, 22K miles, at a whisper under £23K.
To the subject matter....
I held out 6 months before the (selfish) need for something for ME kicked in
During this period I hit the big 4 0 so as much as I loved the drama (silliness) of the popping and banging that the MPPSK provided on the 440, I felt it time for something a little more gentlemanly.
With a budget of around £6K and like many of you, I spent hours and hours perusing the classifieds for something that took my fancy. Despite the left field thoughts and ideas I invariably (perhaps boringly) always seem to default to straight 6 BMW's.
I enquired and almost bought an E92 325i, only missing out as it sold before we could reach a deal.
While the searching continued I happened upon a few forum discussions regarding the BMW E63. Again, I'm sure I'm not alone in this sentiment, all those years ago I found the look of these cars awful! Now a little older, and with the popular opinion that everything more or less looks the same, I think they've aged very well.
The debate over which engine provided yet more hours of reading and, to clarify, I loved the idea of a stonking great V8 (valve stem seals and central coolant pipe aside). However, this came up in the colour and spec I broadly wanted and shortly after I picked her up.
And now the subjective bum!
Simple, functional interior
At work next to my colleagues new Audi A4... I thought the 6 was huge when they first arrived, now not so much
And finally next to her stable mates where she spends the majority of her time
Being the older N52 engine, I understand there's less to go wrong. I've had all manner of 6cyl BMW engines (M54, N53, B58) and this one too is creamily smooth.
What I hadn't accounted for, was spending approx a 3rd of it's value within the first 2 weeks of ownership!!
During it's first proper clean I noticed a small amount of oil pooling in a little crevice on top of the oil cooler, a quick google pointed out this was likely to be from the oil cooler gasket. Booked into my local indie I happily dropped it off for the 'hours' work expecting to collect it a short while later that day and being relieved of no more than £100.
3 weeks later I got the car back
Without boring you all with the details, whilst undertaking the repairs one thing led to another, my mechanic calling me up to view his findings. Now it didn't all NEED doing there and then but, while it was up on the ramp, in for a penny....
The culmination of work carried out as follows:
Oil Cooler Gasket
Oil filter housing gasket (another common failure)
Power Steering Reservoir and new fluid
Timing Belt
Tensioner
New Upper Control Arms
New lower Control Arms
New Steering Arms
Anti Roll Bar
Drop Links
Front Discs
Front Pads
What I have now is a wonderfully planted and tight BMW 630i that drives great. The turn in and lightness at the front is superb (apparently the lightest 6cyl engine in the world at that time thanks to use of magnesium alloy, and if you discount the Mazda engine which, apparently, BMW chose to ignore too).
For a 15 year old car the build quality is second to none. Again, I've had several BMW's over the years, and a few Jags, and none of them, even come close to the solid feel of this car. Not one squeak or rattle from anywhere. They really screwed these things together well.
It's not quick by any means, but the smooth linear power delivery of the NA 6 is lovely. The Hi-Fi speaker set up is perfectly adequate, and an AUX to lightning cable gives me phone and Spotify capability.
I love that there's no horrible EU warning signs etched in the sun visors (for some reason I HATE that on modern cars), and to me at least, it's a handsome old thing.
Just don't tell the missus which tax bracket it falls into!
Great purchase 
I test drove a few 630i E63s and a V8 650i back in 2018 before I bought an E65 730D; I absolutely loved the 630i ride and handling, it sounded superb to my ears too
The V8 was superb, but felt heavier and not as agile to me... The sound was epic though (he had an aftermarket JP of Macclesfield exhaust on it)I do still keep my eyes on these; still fancy one, just not sure how well I'd cope with only 2 doors
Lovely car and agree with what you say about the quality
I drew the short straw and went V8 and soft top but not regretted it (so far)
Weird problem with boot release last week but a £7 replacement used catch from Ebay and stripping down and greasing of cables etc seems to have sorted it out
I drew the short straw and went V8 and soft top but not regretted it (so far)
Weird problem with boot release last week but a £7 replacement used catch from Ebay and stripping down and greasing of cables etc seems to have sorted it out
Mr Tidy said:
That's a lovely car.
I wasn't sure about the looks but I think they have aged really well.
Another fan of the N52 engine here. I'm currently on my 4th but it's in a manual E90 330i, so thankfully it has Hydraulic PAS but still sneaks into Band K for Road Tax.
Looks are obviously a subjective thing and, when I'm looking out the window or giving it a weekly wash, I do wonder what the hell he was thinking at the rear I wasn't sure about the looks but I think they have aged really well.
Another fan of the N52 engine here. I'm currently on my 4th but it's in a manual E90 330i, so thankfully it has Hydraulic PAS but still sneaks into Band K for Road Tax.
A slip of the pen, who knows... Maybe ahead of his time.I do however appreciate the boldness of design, and where the difference between marques and certain models seems to be blurred, it stands out.
My first experience with N52, I have to say the more I drive it the more I'm beginning to appreciate its characteristics.
Coming from the B58 in the 440i, at first it seemed overwhelming lazy, with no real sense of acceleration. Glancing at the speedo tells a different story, and as you climb up the rev range it just gets sweeter.
It is, somewhat muted. I've dabbled with aftermarket exhaust set ups in the past with varying degrees of success. I certainly don't want to take away from the characteristics of the engine or indeed the car as a whole package, but do wonder if even replacing the centre silencers with an X pipe etc might not free up a few decibels.
From research, and this perhaps tells me all I need to know, this model doesn't seem to have been fettled with much?
I agree it's arse end is the best angle, this one's mine after a polish.
I agree with other comments, when these first came out I thought they were hideous, now though I really think they are a nice looking thing. I don't know if it's aged well or just I'm getting old and my eyesight is going
Thanks for posting up the info on the stereo upgrade that looks spot on. I was looking at the dension unit as a potential upgrade but that's even better. I've just fitted a separate dab/Bluetooth adapter into the aux for now while the finances make a recovery.
I agree with other comments, when these first came out I thought they were hideous, now though I really think they are a nice looking thing. I don't know if it's aged well or just I'm getting old and my eyesight is going
Thanks for posting up the info on the stereo upgrade that looks spot on. I was looking at the dension unit as a potential upgrade but that's even better. I've just fitted a separate dab/Bluetooth adapter into the aux for now while the finances make a recovery.
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