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i am about to purchuse my first BMW... i reallly love the car and i test drove it and drove nice. one main concern was about 50-60Mph steering shake abit, and with breaking as well. not alot but noticable amount..
i really want to buy it, but i know cost wise is alot of money to maintain..
can i get some input what common probs i might be runnin into with this particular model.. or maybe i should recosider ..!! it got 100k on it, but clean in/out. the guy have maintain it at dealer mostly, he says...
IT IS A 97 528I
THANK YOU VERY MUCH ON YOUR INPUTS.
I had my family with me when this occured so we drove the car home (approx. 5 miles) I only drove 40 MPH. The transmission seemed to shift differently, however there were no abrupt jerks.
Does anyone have an idea pertaining to what my problem may be!
Make sure the car has had all the scheduled oil changes. Ask the seller what dealer has maintained it, and then ask that dealer about the service history. If it has been well maintained, the engine is good for at least another 100K. If I were you I'd take the car to an independent BMW mechanic for an inspection. It should cost around $100.
I've found it to be a very reliable car, and needs no more repairs than other cars. Parts are not expensive. It's pretty easy to work on. I do my own oil changes.
bmwtips.com, E39 forum, is a good place to get more information on these cars. The 97 - 03 5 series is called E39.
Good luck!
The plugs are the original plugs. Highest octane I can get here is 91. The car came from New Jersey (I'm in CA)--maybe they have 93 there so the car got used to it?
Is DME the knock sensor? I've been wondering if maybe there is a problem with the knock sensor. I've asked 3 different BMW mechanics (2 independents and one dealer)and none of them have eany idea of what could be causing the detonation. One suggested intake cleaners, but no help.
Anyway, it's a great car and I'd like to drive it forever. I think that taking care of this detonation will probably add to the life expectancy of the engine.
Thanks for your help.
You might try adding a large bottle of Techron to your fuel @400 miles before your next oil change; Techron is one of a very few products that can actually reduce valve and combustion chamber deposits..
Has anyone out there installed one?? How well does it work? I understand I can still use the volume controls on my steering wheel. Please let me know ; it sounds almost too good to be true.
It's light pinging while accelerating, only audible with the window open. I can eliminate it by staying in lower gears, but I am not lugging the engine.
The OE plug is NGK with 4 electrodes. Would a cooler plug help? Any recommendations would be much appreciated.
Davismaxx
1999 528iT
5 speed
Siena Red/Sand Leather
Premium package/non-sport
100K
11/98 build date
Bought a 1999 528iT wagon w/ 45K. Do I really need 91 octane or can I get away with 89 or 87? I'm buying it used from a non-BMW dealer. He wants to sell me a 3y bumper to bumper (including wheels and tires) for 3K. Is it worth it?
THX
janetk
As regards the warranty, there is an Extended Warranties board somewhere around here; you might want to read up on them before you decide (post #1464 on the Prices Paid and Buying Experience board has the link). Company reputation and solvency are important. FWIW, I paid three grand for a 7 year 125,000 mile warranty when I bought my 5.
The day I picked up my 06 530i the SOS broke. They had to replace the unit and then I had to take it back again so they could reprogram it....they didn't do it right the first time.
I just traded in my 97 528i purchased new and put about 105k on it before trading
for 2001 740il. I replaced most of the AC at about 98,000 condenser, etc.
Also, the o2 sensor went out and your problem with the shaking in steering and
when braking may be a warped rotor(s). I was beginning to spend $ for repairs
after 90,000 (steering hoses, AC, o2 sensor) and decided to trade. Also,
watch out for problems with the transmission (if automatic) around 100k to 120k.
Overall, from time of purchase to about 90k, this was the best car I ever owned.
When outside is not hot (out side temp at 65 F; climate controls both driver & passenger set at 65 F with A/C off), my driver side vent is blowing cool air (i.e. Ambient air). However, passenger side vent is blowing hot air.
I took it to BMW dealer and they said it is normal. At the dealership, driver vent was reading 98F and passenger side read at 112F at idle with 67F outside temperature (14 degF difference between driver and passenger side).
The dealership's explanation is that 5-series passenger side is always hot ( ~ 10 degF). Therefore, you need to run A/C if want cool air on passenger side.
Do you think this is right diagnosis OR Does dealership has no clue how to fix this problem? :lemon:
Any help / suggestion would be appreciated.
Can any 525 owner try this set up (out side temp at around 65 F; climate controls both driver & passenger set at 65 F with A/C off and feel the difference between driver and passenger sides vents)?
Thanks in adavance.
The problem was a faulty Engine Hood Contact Switch. Once that was replaced the problem went away.
Vehicle then behaves normally for the rest of the day unless I let it set for a long period. Then the rough idle problem occurs again.
There are no codes set as a result of the rough startup idle
When I leave the office in the evening I turn on my air conditioner using the automatic mode. When I park my car in the garage after my drive home I turn the air conditioner off with the "off bottom" and get an orange light showing the system is off. When I start the car the next morning the air condition comes on automatically. The same is true if I use the vent system.
Is there a way to set the controls so when I turn the air conditioner or vents off they stay off until I want to turn them on.
Thank you
I guess you are the one I need to contact in case of any problems with my 525i.
Appreciate it.
I have realized this morning that the above-quoted answer I posted some days ago is wrong. I wrote that by memory, without checking it in the car :mad:
It is not the 'auto' but the 'snow' button you have to disconnect in the dash. In any case, the central '0ff' button is to make temporal changes that only hold until the engine key is switched off.
Regards
We did this the second time but it did not help. I read in the latest edition of Bimmer that this could be related to the hydraulic valves. They indicated it was irritating but not in need of repair. Should I have it checked out or just continue as if it is normal?
This same edition also noted that this particular engine and transmission were prone to problems - anyone taken one over 150k yet?
has anyone else experienced this? and if it is the transmission, am i in for an expensive trip to the repair shop?
Thanks in advance.
I would be grateful to hear of any thoughts re a common problem / fix, thanks.
Does the warranty cover it? Please advise. Thanks.
I'm not sure what the pitfalls of purchase might be, but my own car is nearing the end of its useful life, and I'm wondering about buying the BMW.
I would welcome any thoughts or suggestions anyone might care to share, regarding the things to worry about, such as what problems age can cause, even though the car has been sitting idle.
Sincere thanks.
I purchased 2 of the BMW power systems that keep all the electronics in proper order for storage and they work fine. However, if my brother cannot take the vehicles out for exercise the brake rotors can get far out of spec.
All else should be fine assuming proper synthetic spec oil has been regularly changed.
A minor issue can appear if the speed rated tires are not left over inflated. Flat spotting can be an issue with some of the tires.
Apparently there is some kind of electrical malfunction that is causing the iDrive screen to be so dim that it cannot be seen, and the "High Battery Drain" warning message comes on intermittently. Has anybody else experienced this problem? The dealership does not seem to know what is going on and is working with BMW to resolve it.
They first gave me a Neon to drive, but are switching me to an X3 -- but all is want is for the 5 to be fixed.
Beautiful car, but I wish it worked out of the gate. Now I have friends sticking posters on my office window at work saying "My other car is a new BMW, but at least my Neon gets me to work!" -- how cruel they can be :-)
Oh well, all the waiting and then this -- I hope I get it back soon.
BMW NA is familiar with the problem. My invoice says they found a fault 2DED in DME and replaced the ISB. They gave it a PUMA case number of 4859917.
The car has been working ok for the past 3 weeks.
When I pick-up the car, I was told BMW just put out a service bulletin that day not to replace any parts becasue BMW was working on a fix.
Like you I was crushed. I have had my new 06 back 4 times in less than 2 months. The other day I got a low oil light........I called BMW customer service and they said the dealer failed to do a proper inspection before they delivered the car. I added one quart of oil............so then I checked the anit-freeze to find it was at the minumun level...I filled it up.
This is my first BMW.....I am not impressed.
Hope this helps.
Sorry to hear of your troubles --- good luck with getting them resolved. Let me know what happens........
2. For all 5-series owners in the northeast. Do all of you change to snows in the winter, or did some of you brave it with the non-sport package all season tires? And how did you do.
3. Finally, do the 06's have the aux input like the 3-series for i-pods and or mp3 players?
Thanks.
djocks
Other than this sad start, I absolutely LOVE the car. Great driving, I have no issues with iDrive (I work with computers all the time), and LOVE the Heads-Up Display (thought it would be a gimmick but it is actually VERY useful and strikes me as being a real safety feature).
I can go on with the small problems and annoyances of this car, but it's really frustrating! Next entry will be about the sport tire and rim packages (now that I've had to replace three rims after only 12K miles! They also tried to get me on the car not 'aligning properly' for another $700!
I took delivery of a New 525 XI and the second day I got the "High Battery Drain" warning message and thought that I did not lock the door overnight, not sure what the problem is again this msg. seems to appear almost everyday. I plan to take it to the dealership to get this rectified. Any input will be appreciated.
Rahul
??Is this the Ultimate driving machine??
Can you see your iDrive screen? That's what they replaced in my 530xi and things seem to be ok now. I say "seem to be OK" because the High Drain error still shows up once in a while and then goes away. I am an engineer and I don't believe BMW or the dealership really knows what is going on here -- they are probably (hopefully) trying to find a permanent cure for this right now while they replace whatever they have to replace to get these new cars on the road.