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PS. Our Nubira is probably a better car than Camry I had!
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You must be referring to Nubira. It is my wife's car and so far she/we drove less than 3000 miles a year. At this rate we will be keeping the Daewoo until it rots and the wheels fall off(!) I would not call it perfect, but it a good basic transportation and had been reliable so far.
It has had numerous reliability issues most serious of which includes periodic stalling and then it will not re-start. The local dealer has replaced several ignition coils but the car remains unreliable. This is not my car but my brother's who is a physician and needs to have reliable transportation.
He has been forced to drive a rented car (usually Cavalier, Sunfire et al) and IMHO this is not what a C$50,000 car should be like. Judging from this board BMW and reliability are not two things that go together anymore. My neighbour has owned several of the previous 5 series cars and driven then between 300,000 and 500,000 each. I guess the good old Bimmers of old are no more.
My question is, are things getting any better? My brother is young and will likely buy 10-20 more new cars during his driving lifetime and BMW is his favourite to drive. But if they are all this unreliable should we be looking elsewhere?
I guess that means he'll have to find a replacement by Labor Day...
regards,
kyfdx
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PS. I am expecting the wheels fall off may be in 2026 since I am still driving my 1988 Accord.
This is the real final end of story. But you may continue jeweling as much as you are able to.
Best Regards,
Shipo
I made an appointment and brought the car in for the service manager to see. The service manager and I had a quick (3 minute) conversation about it, in which I was very low key. He just said to the service advisor to keep this customer happy order a new rim. Did I feel taken care of? Absolutely.
I have a stalling problem, too. But mine is more benign than the one you describe. Once in a while, usually in the morning, when starting the car the starter stops turning before engine starts. I have to turn off the ignition and try again, and the car starts.
Let me give you my experience on what had been done about this. First I described the problem to the dealer and asked them to look at it. They got back to me and told me that they could not find any codes stored and there was nothing they could do. Well, I did not think any codes would be stored anyway. Then I asked the "factory engineer" to check it. He thought it was something to do with fuel pressure regulator and replaced the regulator. I still have the problem. It comes and goes. Sometimes 2-3 times a day, sometimes nothing for 2 months. I think it has something to do with the computer/security system on this car but you cannot argue with the guy who fixes these cars everyday.
Your dealer was probably doing guess work when he replaced those ignition coils. I have seen dealers do similar things in the past when they were not really sure what the problem was. When only few cars have the problem (both your and my cases) it is usually not easy for a dealer to find the remedy.
There are probably "factory engineers" in your area, too. You may ask your dealer that you want the factory engineer to look at the problem if he has not done so yet. But of course there is no guarantee that he will come up with the solution as in my case.
I think in my case the replacement of the computer/immobiliser system would probably solve the problem. However, BMW is not going do it if only few cars having the problem and there is no publicity issue.
I like how my BMW drives on the highway (in the city, it is a clunking machine, in the stop and go traffic), however, my next car is not going to be a BMW. My 1988 Accord has 213,000 miles on it and still drives fine. I think my next car is going to be an Acura (TSX maybe) or a Mazda RX-8 if they fix the problems that I hear this car is having.
Actually, dealer service on the car has been good. The dealership is very patient, but the fact still remains that the car is horribly unreliable.
silvernubira: Thanks for sharing your experiences. My brother is not happy with his car as his problem always seems to happen on the highway, and he travels to the north part of our province often for work. However he still loves the car when it is working well and is not ready to give on the BMW brand, yet.
And for all the guys flaming our friend with the Daewoo, just because it is cheap does not make it a horrible car. My 1994 Hyundai Excel, arguably one of the least loved cars in recent memory, was bought new as a first car for my wife at a cost of C$6995 new plus tax. It was extremely reliable though not much fun to drive. Four years later I traded it in with 58,000 km for C$4800 plus tax. Now that's value!
I agree; a Daewoo isn't horrible because it is cheap-it's horrible because it is a Daewoo.
regards,
kyfdx
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It is my wife's car and she is a safe and SLOW driver. There is absolutely no noise under acceleration. One BMW dealer service manager indicated that there is no problem using 87 octane, in fact it burns "cleaner" than premium fuel with octane boosting additives.
Just curious...thanks!
-Thad
I really don't think I would damage my BMW with regular fuel, but I'll continue to use premium. I often think I'm just programmed to use premium in an 'upscale' BMW while a 'Toyota' should be fine on regular.
As for regular fuel burning cleaner, that is just an old wife’s tale that is completely untrue, assuming of course that your engine is designed for premium fuel. If your engine was designed for low octane fuel and you use premium anyway, then yes, extra deposits will collect in your engine due to the lower volatility of the premium fuel. It has nothing to do with the additives. The simple truth is that if your engine is burning all of the fuel introduced into the cylinders, there will be few if any combustion chamber deposits left behind.
In the end, my advice is to do both your car and your wallet a favor and feed your car premium fuel.
Best Regards,
Shipo
What did you do with your problem?
I have noticed that when i stop at the light and car is in 'D', The car starts in 2nd gear instead of 1st.
The way I checked was to put it in manual when the car was stopped, and showed 'M 2'. I do not get that pep when starting at the green light. So I discovered that it always start in 2nd gear.
Is that a problem? or how the car is programmed?
I get really lousy gas mileage driving in city as well, about 14. I think that is connected with my auto tranny shifting at 2nd gear?
I talked to dealer service writer. he has no idea if car should start in 1st or 2nd when in automatic mode!!.
Not happy with this car. Any suggestions PLEASE.
I average about 24 in my day to day commute, which is about 10 miles local street driving and 10 miles highway. On the highway going a steady speed with a light foot* between 65-80 I average between 32-34.
*light foot - avoid full throttle for every pass.
why would they design to start in 2nd? I thought it would be conservative to start in 1st. because in 2nd you dont go that far with same amount of gas?
i envy your mpg. best i have got in city is 15 and cruising hwy driving 26.
is your 04 automatic 325i?
would you recommend to change oil before their recommnded 15000 miles? does not make sense to me.
since they pay for oil change, they may be cutting corners by changing at 15000 miles intervals. your thoughts please.
anyway I appricate your input. thanks
But I'd like to say you should do what you feel comfortable with. More oil changes won't hurt the car, only your wallet.
That MAY be cosmoline. That is the yellowish gunk they spray on the engine and undercarriage to protect the car during transport from overseas. It protects the car from sea salt, etc. If so it may be heating up and dripping. They are suppose to remove it all during prep at the service center at the port of entry but they never get all of it.
If not that, then coils... Both simple fixes.. and usually no further problems.
regards,
kyfdx
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-Paul
Two things are conspiring against your car: 1) the performance tires included in the Sport Package are of a softer stickier rubber than standard All-Season rubber (found on non SP equipped cars) and 2) BMW sets up their suspensions (especially the Sport Suspension) in such a way as to enhance handling, at the expense of tire wear.
I too have a 530i with the SP, and I will be happy to get 24K miles on my tires. Some folks get as much as 30-35K miles, others get as little as 8K but I believe the norm is between 20K and 25K miles. My previous BMW did not have the SP and when I turned it in at the end of the lease it had well over 40K miles on the original rubber with plenty to spare.
A final thought, ever since I can remember, BMW has been including the following text in their sales literature regarding cars equipped with the Sport Packages, "Due to low-profile tire, please note: wheels, tires and suspension parts are more susceptible to road hazard and consequential damages."
FWIW, I have always sort of translated "consequential damages" to mean "accelerated wear", and not just of the tires either.
Best Regards,
Shipo
I see you live in Lexington.. Do you put winter tires on her car, or does she go year round on the stock tires?
regards,
kyfdx
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At AutoZone bought a tube of 3M Plastic Emblem and Trim Adhesive. I then bought three 4" clamps, got a ruler, towels, newspaper, bucket and some soapy water. I cleaned the inside of the molding, getting as much old glue out as I could, then I covered the door (to avoid scratches in case a clamp were to come loose and fall). I liberally applied the glue into the molding (not too much you don't want it squishing out when you press the molding back into place, but plenty enough to set and hold). I wrapped the ruler into newspaper and pressed it against the molding to hold it into place, then I put newspaper over the chrome trim area outside the top of the window (so the clamps wouldn't scratch the car)and clamped the ruler firmly, you will have to be careful here so the clamps don't hurt your car. I left it clamped for about an hour then removed them and the molding was back in firm. I've had no trouble since. The 3M is great stuff! If you do it as I did you shouldn't have much trouble though your car looks Yugoish with the newspaper, clamps and towels hanging off it but hopefully you won't be visiting a dealer concerning this particular shortcoming. I've read several posts from different forums concerning this problem. I hope this helps.
I have been in pretty dangerous drives with terrible rain and could not see the highway or road I was driving in. The only way to make them start is getting off the road and turning engine off. But once they start again, then they stop. My mechanic tried replacing the windshield motor but the problem continues. I have never heard of something like this. My mechanic kept the car for over 2 days running the windshield while pouring water over it and he said they never stopped. Anyone out there can help? Mabel
-Paul
Any ideas what it could be? It's done this inconsistently 2 or 3 times now and the dealer can't duplicate it.
Given that you've gotten 49K out of your brakes, they don't owe you a dime. ;-) Get new rotors and pads and swap those suckers out.
Best Regards,
Shipo
Problem two: Half of the dash lights (door ajar, turn signal indicators, etc.) went out when the odometer turned 50K. The clock in the radio stayed at 8:36pm (when the 50K happened). Anyone ever had something like this? Oh! all fuses were OK. When I re-installed them everything came back on ... all computer data was lost.