Thinking about a 1998 525i E39, opinions and help please
Discussion
Right, I have a few questions to ask any owners of this model. Any help would be great.
A bit of a step up, I'm coming from a MK3 1.1 Fiesta!!!
1) Reliability, whats good and whats bad, whats the engine like and what should I look for when buying one?
2) MPG, how good or bad is it? How much to fill a tank? I'll be doing mostly around town driving.
3) Is a budget of around £3500 -£4000 sufficient to get a great example?
4) How expensive/available are parts?
5) For my budget (max £4000) can I get any better with BMW, taking into consideration it has to be good on fuel?
6) What sort of mileage would a 1998 car expect to have?
Please feel free to contribute any other info, thanks.
A bit of a step up, I'm coming from a MK3 1.1 Fiesta!!!
1) Reliability, whats good and whats bad, whats the engine like and what should I look for when buying one?
2) MPG, how good or bad is it? How much to fill a tank? I'll be doing mostly around town driving.
3) Is a budget of around £3500 -£4000 sufficient to get a great example?
4) How expensive/available are parts?
5) For my budget (max £4000) can I get any better with BMW, taking into consideration it has to be good on fuel?
6) What sort of mileage would a 1998 car expect to have?
Please feel free to contribute any other info, thanks.
Edited by sparks87 on Thursday 20th December 00:12
Edited by sparks87 on Thursday 20th December 00:16
sparks87 said:
Right, I have a few questions to ask any owners of this model. Any help would be great.
A bit of a step up, I'm coming from a MK3 1.1 Fiesta!!!
1) Reliability, whats good and whats bad, whats the engine like and what should I look for when buying one?
2) MPG, how good or bad is it? How much to fill a tank? I'll be doing mostly around town driving.
3) Is a budget of around £3500 -£4000 sufficient to get a great example?
4) How expensive/available are parts?
5) For my budget (max £4000) can I get any better with BMW, taking into consideration it has to be good on fuel?
6) What sort of mileage would a 1998 car expect to have?
Please feel free to contribute any other info, thanks.
I used to have an E39 535, check my profile for the blog.A bit of a step up, I'm coming from a MK3 1.1 Fiesta!!!
1) Reliability, whats good and whats bad, whats the engine like and what should I look for when buying one?
2) MPG, how good or bad is it? How much to fill a tank? I'll be doing mostly around town driving.
3) Is a budget of around £3500 -£4000 sufficient to get a great example?
4) How expensive/available are parts?
5) For my budget (max £4000) can I get any better with BMW, taking into consideration it has to be good on fuel?
6) What sort of mileage would a 1998 car expect to have?
Please feel free to contribute any other info, thanks.
Edited by sparks87 on Thursday 20th December 00:12
Edited by sparks87 on Thursday 20th December 00:16
1) Engines/transmissions strong, complicated electrical systems generally reliable but if they go wrong expect big bills! Wheel sensors known to be a weak spot - malfunctioning ABS/TCS the symptom. Suspension wear is to be expected as they're big heavy cars. "Dead" pixels in the dash/on-board computer which make the messages and mileage difficult to read. Nikasil bore liners on pre-98 models - plenty of info on the web (or www.bmw5.co.uk)
The issues I had with mine were: dead pixels (didn't fix it as it was about £500 for a new speedo pod), wheel sensor failure (replaced but didn't fix the ABS, suspected problem in wiring loom. Got rid of the car soon after as quoted about a grand to fix!)
2) MPG on the 535 was about 18 around town, about 27 on the motorway. I'd expect the 525 to be mid-20s around town, maybe mid-30s on the m'way. Fuel tank is 70 litrs, so that's £70+ to fillup. Fuel was my single biggest expense!
3) Your budget will find you plenty of good examples and plenty of bad ones. Be picky. FSH is great, but get one where everything seems to work and it appears to have been looked after, otherwise you'll face big bills to try and rectify things. Don't be put off by a "shimmy" in the steering at around 50-60mph, "they all do that sir". Could be a number of things, including suspension bushes, tracking, alignment or tyre pressures. I'd say you'd be better off buying from an enthusiast who has looked after the car rather than from a garage. Leather is definitely a nice to have, automatic a personal preference (although be advised that it might be an idea to change the auto-gearbox oil at around 100k. Mind you, I didn't)
4) Parts aren't cheap but are widely available.
5) For your budget you might be able to get a diesel? Or a smaller engined 3-series. The E39 is a wonderful car (I still miss mine, especially on cold winter mornings!) but they're not without their faults and you do need to be prepared to put money in to them - even if yours is reliable, routine maintenance will be much higher than a 1.1 Fiesta! And fuel will scare you, especially now it costs > £1/litre.
Have you thought of E36 3-series? I've just bought a 318 Compact and been very impressed with it - good build quality and fun to drive. Unless you're desperate to get a barge, a 3-er might be a more "sensible" but equally interesting choice.
6) I'd expect the majority of 1998 cars to have over 100k miles, with the odd exception (mate of my Dad's has a 528 with 27k!). The mileage isn't a problem per se - just buy on condition. There are mint high-milers and tatty low-milers, just with all cars really.
I hope that helps. I'm by no means an expert but I understand the lure these cars have on people and I think my ownership experience is a useful one to note. They are pretty special cars, but go in with your eyes open and don't be blown away by leather seats and perfectly-damped ashtray mechanisms!
just seen your reply in my "some t
t dented my 5-series thread" 
im 22, was 21 when i got my 525i touring. mines an e34 tho, bought for £400 with 202,000 on the clock. it has been amazing. i own a 2005 mini cooper s and was getting worried about leaving at uni so had a desire to buy a heap of shit which i turned out NOT to do!
the bmw is insured by my dad for £150 and I drive it TPF&T on my policy. i have done 8000 miles since april and has been faultless. been all over the country (car often doesnt get used weeks on end due to the mini) in the 8mths ive had it and averaged 29mpg. not bad i reckon although this time of year has dropped to 27mpg.
it is so comfortable, so well built such a barge. not the most fun to drive, and as someone has said IS a barge but hey cant get much more for your money.
been looking at e39's for when mine goes bang and you can get a lot for your money, about 4-5k will get you a good solid 525. this engine, in 192bhp form, is fantastic, smooth, not bad economy and very torque and quick. i looked at lots of e34s with 100k on the clock that, tbh were pretty dead. however mine had had 3 owners, FBMWSH, very well looked after and had survived its 202k very well. imo on cars like this condition, history etc is more important that mileage. these lap up the motorway but not town driving so 100k generally would mean it may have had a harder life than one with double the mileage. you will also pay much less.
good luck and go for it
t dented my 5-series thread" im 22, was 21 when i got my 525i touring. mines an e34 tho, bought for £400 with 202,000 on the clock. it has been amazing. i own a 2005 mini cooper s and was getting worried about leaving at uni so had a desire to buy a heap of shit which i turned out NOT to do!
the bmw is insured by my dad for £150 and I drive it TPF&T on my policy. i have done 8000 miles since april and has been faultless. been all over the country (car often doesnt get used weeks on end due to the mini) in the 8mths ive had it and averaged 29mpg. not bad i reckon although this time of year has dropped to 27mpg.
it is so comfortable, so well built such a barge. not the most fun to drive, and as someone has said IS a barge but hey cant get much more for your money.
been looking at e39's for when mine goes bang and you can get a lot for your money, about 4-5k will get you a good solid 525. this engine, in 192bhp form, is fantastic, smooth, not bad economy and very torque and quick. i looked at lots of e34s with 100k on the clock that, tbh were pretty dead. however mine had had 3 owners, FBMWSH, very well looked after and had survived its 202k very well. imo on cars like this condition, history etc is more important that mileage. these lap up the motorway but not town driving so 100k generally would mean it may have had a harder life than one with double the mileage. you will also pay much less.
good luck and go for it
Actually you wont be getting a 525i. The 525i died with the E34 when the E39 replaced it in 1996. It didn't return again until the E39 range was facelifted in late 2000 and moved to the newer M54 engines.
1996-2000 E39's will have 2 litre 520i's, 2.5 litre 523i's and 2.8 litre 528i's.
It is the 528i I would recommend. Noticebaly more pace than a 523i but the running costs remain the same - BMW Sixes all seem to return the same sort of fuel economy, and of course they all cost exactly the same to repair, service and buy parts for.
So, get a nice 528i.
£4k won't buy a good facelift E39 - only a scabby one with questionable history so go for a nice 96-2000 example with the 2.8 litre engine.
Reliability is ok - but stuff can be expensive to fix. The cooling system is rubbish, so you'll probably need at least a new radiator at some point.
Fuel economy - my 530i (Like I said, most Sixes are the same) returns 20-22mpg around town but upwards of 35mpg on Motorway trips. They don't like cold starts, but deliver impressively excellent economy when warm.
Insurance - 528i is Group 17 (Same as my 530i - I paid £1k when I got it, aged 22).
Watch 17 and 18 inch wheels - tyres are expensive. £550 for a premium set of 18 inch tyres, £450 for 17's. 18's were NOT common (infact were they even an option?) on 96-00 cars so if it's got 18's its probably been modified by its previous owner. 17's and 16's are normal fayre.
1996-2000 E39's will have 2 litre 520i's, 2.5 litre 523i's and 2.8 litre 528i's.
It is the 528i I would recommend. Noticebaly more pace than a 523i but the running costs remain the same - BMW Sixes all seem to return the same sort of fuel economy, and of course they all cost exactly the same to repair, service and buy parts for.
So, get a nice 528i.
£4k won't buy a good facelift E39 - only a scabby one with questionable history so go for a nice 96-2000 example with the 2.8 litre engine.
Reliability is ok - but stuff can be expensive to fix. The cooling system is rubbish, so you'll probably need at least a new radiator at some point.
Fuel economy - my 530i (Like I said, most Sixes are the same) returns 20-22mpg around town but upwards of 35mpg on Motorway trips. They don't like cold starts, but deliver impressively excellent economy when warm.
Insurance - 528i is Group 17 (Same as my 530i - I paid £1k when I got it, aged 22).
Watch 17 and 18 inch wheels - tyres are expensive. £550 for a premium set of 18 inch tyres, £450 for 17's. 18's were NOT common (infact were they even an option?) on 96-00 cars so if it's got 18's its probably been modified by its previous owner. 17's and 16's are normal fayre.
Edited by [TW]Fox on Sunday 23 December 01:05
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