Am i being a bit silly....?
Discussion
To save racking up the miles on my girlfriends civic, would we be crazy to look for an E34 5 series for about a grand to use for some distance work?
Perfomance isn't a concern, but the ability to go on and on and on is quite important!
Will we be looking at complete dogs for the money?
Cheers
Perfomance isn't a concern, but the ability to go on and on and on is quite important!
Will we be looking at complete dogs for the money?
Cheers
nellyleelephant said:
To save racking up the miles on my girlfriends civic, would we be crazy to look for an E34 5 series for about a grand to use for some distance work?
Perfomance isn't a concern, but the ability to go on and on and on is quite important!
Will we be looking at complete dogs for the money?
Cheers
You would be crazy NOT to look for it Perfomance isn't a concern, but the ability to go on and on and on is quite important!
Will we be looking at complete dogs for the money?
Cheers
but they seem to be a bit thin on the ground, for one reason or another a lot are either poorly modified or neglected. If you're not bothered about perfomance it is definitely doable, much easier to find a fresh 520 or even 518 than a 525. Prices are all over the place, a friend recently picked up minty-mint 518i with something like 70k miles on the clock, it really is quite spectacular and cost something around £750. Do leave some budget for small jobs such as replacing a worn suspension component (or seven if you've not had a test drive!). Steering wheel vibration is quite common at speeds of 60-70 mph, cured by replacing worn suspension components and/or cleaning the braking components. forum.bmw5.co.uk for more info Although we're not too bothered about 0-60 and top speeds, the ability to cruise on French motorways at 80 (ish) with revving the thing to death is quite important.
any idea what the engine in a 520 is doing at those sorts of speeds? I'm guessing that the larger engined cars will be revving less.
any idea what the engine in a 520 is doing at those sorts of speeds? I'm guessing that the larger engined cars will be revving less.
nellyleelephant said:
Although we're not too bothered about 0-60 and top speeds, the ability to cruise on French motorways at 80 (ish) with revving the thing to death is quite important.
any idea what the engine in a 520 is doing at those sorts of speeds? I'm guessing that the larger engined cars will be revving less.
Not entirely sure, the 5-specific forum is certainly a better source of information. If the gearing is similar to e30 then 520 should be doing in the region of 3200 rpm at indicated 80mph. Don't forget they might come with older 12v m20 engines in pre '90 cars and newer 24v m50 engines in post '90 ones, m50 being the faster and more economical one.any idea what the engine in a 520 is doing at those sorts of speeds? I'm guessing that the larger engined cars will be revving less.
TheEnd said:
from about 91, the 520 and 525 swapped to the M50 engine, which was a 24valve.
150 and 192 bhp respectively.
for motorway cruising, you could try an auto, as it'll have a 5 speed overdrive box to keep you at less than 3k revs.
What are the autoboxes like? I'm guessing they work better with the larger engine in the 525?150 and 192 bhp respectively.
for motorway cruising, you could try an auto, as it'll have a 5 speed overdrive box to keep you at less than 3k revs.
The added complication puts me off a bit, are they fairly reliable boxes?
cheers
i'd say they are pretty reliable.
my first car was a 520 24v auto, and it was pretty limo-like.
i had a 320 auto after that, and did have one problem with the autobox, which was an electrical sensor giving intermittent signals, which is the probably the most common problem one would have, except for low oil, and oil changes using the wrong oil.
my first car was a 520 24v auto, and it was pretty limo-like.
i had a 320 auto after that, and did have one problem with the autobox, which was an electrical sensor giving intermittent signals, which is the probably the most common problem one would have, except for low oil, and oil changes using the wrong oil.
If I had less than a grand to spend on a car, I would probably go for an E34. I've had a variety of cars from 520i to 540i and found them to be reliable and enjoyable to own. But let's not forget that was over ten years ago. The best all rounder was probably the 525i which is still relatively quick, but economical. Manual and auto are both good. These cars are more solidly built but less complicated than many modern cars. I would still have one today drive space permiting! 
nellyleelephant said:
This is getting more complicated than i first thought!
BMW don't do simple when it comes to their engines do they!!
Anyone have a list of the different engines that were used with each model code / year??
Thanks
click.BMW don't do simple when it comes to their engines do they!!
Anyone have a list of the different engines that were used with each model code / year??
Thanks
ETA. Oops, you're taking 5s: click2.
Edited by LordGrover on Thursday 19th March 16:39
LordGrover said:
nellyleelephant said:
This is getting more complicated than i first thought!
BMW don't do simple when it comes to their engines do they!!
Anyone have a list of the different engines that were used with each model code / year??
Thanks
click.BMW don't do simple when it comes to their engines do they!!
Anyone have a list of the different engines that were used with each model code / year??
Thanks
ETA. Oops, you're taking 5s: click2.
Edited by LordGrover on Thursday 19th March 16:39
Anyone know anything about the 4x4 version?
nellyleelephant said:
matt21 said:
my manual 1994 touring is on 225500 not missed a beat in 23k yet!
Would you feel confdent making 9 - 10 trips to France a year, about 1000 miles a trip?That's what we'd be using one for.
Cheers
For 1k you can never guarantee reliability but if I had to do what you are doing I would choose a 525i. Mine does 30-32mpg on a run dead comfy and manual is fine, I barely change gear anyway its so torquey.
As people have said keep an eye on suspension, keep it well serviced and it should look after you!
sniff diesel said:
matt21 said:
my manual 1994 touring is on 225500 not missed a beat in 23k yet!
You're only looking after it for me untill I buy it off you Matt 
In all honestly this car is great.
I almost 2yrs it has never let me down but needed the following:
2 front discs
4 pads
4 services (I keep the oil regularly changed)
2 rear shocks
and thats it! great reliable car
Plan to keep it now I have bought a house to 250k (although I have a bad feeling about the MoT next week!)
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