BMW 5-Series Sedans

shipo

Thanks for the update, I knew they weren't correct, but they were in the ballpark. Errr, sort of. ;-)

Best Regards,
Shipo

hpowders

Yeah if the ballpark was the old Polo Grounds with centerfield bleachers close to 500 feet from homeplate!

inq

is it official that 550i will be available in the fall of 2005?

kyfdx

Yes..

jb_shin

I had my 530i with Comfort seats and they were the most comfortable seats in any car, except may be Volvo's. The seats are identical to the standard seats with the exception of the articulated seatbacks as Shipo mentioned. While I was a bit skeptical at first, I never felt the usual shoulder blade pain I have with most other cars. As much as I like the deeply bolstered sports seats on the M5, it is still not as comfortable on a long drive.

inq

you seem awfully knowledgeable about bmws; how so?

will the new 550i's rear be modified as was done with the new 7 series?

kyfdx

Too much time on my hands...

I haven't heard anything about re-doing the rear of the 5-series... IMO, the re-done 7-series rear-end changed it to look more like the 5-series...

hpowders

Hey KYFDX. Do you know when the cutoff date or month will be that I can order a 2005 545i without having to settle for what's already out there?
Thanks.
hpowders

fla528

Just had H&R sport springs installed.. and what a difference. They made my 2004 525 handle about 90% of a sport packaged BMW. Of course I will NEVER order a BMW without the sport package again. I was trying to keep my cost down when I ordered the car back in 12/2004 ( I traded a 2000 323 with sports/premium) .
However the lesson is : if you want a BMW then get the sports package , if you want a luxury ride ; buy Lexus...
Because there is no vehicle made that handles like a BMW... !!
History: 1984 318i , 1990 323. 1992 BMW 525i, ( went to Lexus SC400 from 1996 to 2000) 2000 323, and last but not least 2004 525i.

hpowders

No software glitches with your 2004 525i?

fla528

No software problems, the dealer actually installed the springs. Just took out the old and put in the H&R springs.. still do not have active steering or active roll stabilization. But the upgrade only set me back $1,1000. This was done by their motorsports department. This was a LOT cheaper than trading my 2004 for a 2006 525 with sports/premium/nav...

NOTE: anyone looking at buying a 5 or even 3 series... BUY the car with the sports option!.. ..you will regret it if you don't!

fla528

thats $1,100. not 1,1000........

khoon

Folks, sorry for the redundant question - I know its been asked countless times.....what is the lead time from order placement to delivery in Munich for the Euro delivery program? I'm planning to order the 525 Xi

rwenger

The sport package option on the BMW American site for the 530xi touring 2006 model lists only sport seats and the shadow trim. I have a couple of questions for you experts about this option. 1. Are there any other changes (e.g., more firm suspension) that are also part of the sport package option on this touring model that are not listed? 2. I have the impression (but not much information) that sport seats are not very comfortable. Is that the case? How different are they in comfort from the standard seats? I have seen the power thigh extension (or whatever they're called) that appear to come with these seats and liked those--but I don't want a very uncomfortable seat for longer trips.

Finally, on a different issue: When I was exploring getting a 5-series touring before the major model change a couple of years ago, I found a dealer here who seemed to be willing to set a price that was essentially the American invoice price minus the European delivery discount. That helps! Is that pretty common?

Thanks for your expert advice and opinions.

cmybimmergo

I'll defer to the experts for most of your questions, but I can tell you that a preference for sport vs comfort seats is entirely subjective: I have an 02 530 with sport, and I much prefer the stiffer sport seats. My neighbor has an 05 545 and he likes the comfort seats.

FWIW, I just took a trip to LI (from MD) this weekend, some 230 miles or so. On the way there, I sat on a pillow because my hamstrings have been acting up (baseball injury) and driving becomes uncomfortable after some 40 minutes. (At home I have found that sitting on a firm/hard surface is very uncomfortable after awhile but sitting on a pillow relieves the pain.) The trip was agony (6 hours of burning, shooting pains up and down my legs) anyway, so on the way back I ditched the pillow (I figured it couldn't be any worse without it). To my surprise, the trip home, while still painful, wasn't anywhere nearly as bad as the trip up. The moral of the story is that the sport seats might be stiffer than the other seats, but stiffer is not necessarily bad. The best way to know which you want is to drive the car with both seats and see which you prefer.

cmybimmergo

For those of you who have been waiting with bated breath--and you know who you are --here are my mileage numbers for my long-awaited trip to LI for my reunion:

For the trip up and part of the trip home, I went 356.6 miles and burned 12.554 gals of gas. 28.405 mpg. BUT--while I made excellent time cruising at 80 (and over) mph for the first 4 hours, I sat in miserable, nasty, stop-and-go traffic for the last two and a half hours . So I think 28+ is respectable. (I had thought I would try to make the entire trip on one tank, but I just couldn't pass up premium for $2.159/gallon.)

For the rest of the trip home (which I swear is entirely uphill)--and a little bit of local highway driving--I went 198.4 miles and used 7.410 gals. 26.775 mpg. Trip home took 3 hours 45 minutes. (I think I set some kind of record.)

I keep the OBC reading on range, and while I drive I keep an eye on what it says. My best range was either 555 or 560, which means at some point during my trip, I was getting a good 30-31 mpg.

Driving this car is a BLAST. I wish I had more long distance places to go...

cdnpinhead

Toldja so!

Glad it worked out.

shipo

Now yer talkin', them's the kinda numbers I would expect. So, in the end, what proved to be the problem? The ECU firmware?

Best Regards,
Shipo

cmybimmergo

That would be my guess. So nice to be vindicated...it drives me nuts when I know something ain't right and everyone is telling me I dunno what I'm talking about.

OBTW, the last tank of gas (okay, half tank) before the trip gave me 24.9 mpg on my (mostly) regular route. These numbers I can live with.

erickpl

are usually only appearance (seats, body moldings, etc). The xi's will have narrower tires to go along with the AWD theme. On my 325xi (and on the 330xi's) there is no sport suspension. It is the stock suspension only.

I sure would love to see that changed though...

-Paul

isthisall

I own a 2003 525i which i bought new, and although when not in the shop it is the most wonderful car I ever owned by far, nonetheless it ahs a very annoying problem with water persistently leaking nito the rear floor.

It is at the dealers for the 5th time in 22 months for the same p[roblem, and the rep there finally admitted it is a problem that is "well known in the 5 series".

I do not know if this is true since no one else here has written about it, but before buying a car from that series, up through 2003, i would want to see all the repair records.

If you get a trouble free one these cars are fantastic, but the one you speak of sounds almost like too good a price to be true to me, and may have a problem?

srfast

you are experiencing? I've owned my 2003 530i since 12/02 and have not had any problems (knock on wood) that has required dealer service.

Regards....JL

dabimmer

I have to "ditto" the previous poster's remark.... have had my '01 530i since 12/2000 and to this date have had no leaks or any other problems with this awesome car. Have had nothing but tremendous reliability and wonderful motoring. No, nothing at all.

div2

My wife has put 122000 miles on her 1997 528iA. Aside from a $45 trunk lock actuator, a $2 hose fitting, and a few bulbs, it hasn't required any unscheduled maintenance for over three years and 50000 miles. And no interior water leaks; in fact, no one on any of the E39 boards has heard of them either. I only wish the car was as exciting to drive as those race-bred Accords and Camrys... :P

ksccts

That's a good one! Race bred.... :shades:

jdkoch

I have a 2003 530i and had water leaking onto the rear floor. The
dealer replaced the door seal and the problem has not recurred.

shipo

"the rep there finally admitted it is a problem that is "well known in the 5 series"."

I had a service technician try to tell me that a certain problem that I had on my 1995 Passat was a, "Well known problem" in such a way that he was implying that I should just live with it.

My response to him was, "Well, if this is such a well known problem, then where or what is the well known solution?"

Best Regards,
Shipo

dabimmer

Bravo........ Shipo

abmwguy

Took my 06 530i to the dealer for a problem with an I-Drive warning that says " High battery drain".

It usually happens the first start of the day, but not every day. With the key in the ignition in position 2 but the engine not yet started. Becasue I start the car in my garage the head lights come on and if I have used the A/C is also comes on. I get an icon on the dash board that looks like a car on a lift (the dealers says this means maintenance is due) concurrently with an warning message on my I-Drive that says " High battery drain". The fault does not archive itself in the car memory/computer.

The dealer could not duplicate this fault. They said they had to email BMW for tech assistance.

Any one else having this problem?

It has now been 7 days since I have had the car in to the dealer and have heard nothing. Any one know how long it takes BMW to answer tech help.

johnsonlau703

I am looking to buy a new car for the family and we're looking at two very different cars. I want to see if anyone can help me with whether any of those two cars, the BMW 5 series and the Porsche Cayenne, will get any big changes (eg. cosmetic and mechanical changes) any time soon. This is because we are probably going to be changing another car after a year or two and I want to see which car we should be getting this year. Thanks in advance.

Kirstie_H

A reporter is hoping to talk with recent buyers of new BMW and Mercedes vehicles who enjoyed a generous discount off sticker price. Please send relevant details and your daytime contact information to Pam Krebs at pkrebs@edmunds.com by Thursday, June 23, 2005

habitat1

"My wife has put 122000 miles on her 1997 528iA. ..... I only wish the car was as exciting to drive as those race-bred Accords and Camrys... "

Hey, watch it, I own one of those "race bred" Acura TL 6-speeds! And, as much as I am a fan of the 5-series, I would exactly be touting a 190 horsepower, automatic transmission 528i as the epitome of driving excitement (especially if it is without the sport package). The 550i 6-speed will be a different matter.

div2

Never said that a base E39 was "epitome of driving excitement"; it's a work sled-nothing more. Still, it's a rewarding car to drive-check out how many comparison tests the "lowly" base 528i swept in the late '90s. And Hondas aren't bad cars-I really like the S2000 and NSX. However, I'll take a moderately powered RWD car over most any FWD car-regardless of the BHP it might be packing. Just my personal preference. Anyway, if horsepower is everything, why not just get an SRT/4? You'll smoke almost everyone you line up against-for only $20K.

cmybimmergo

Maybe someone can explain what I did today to set off my (02 530i) alarm, because I would prefer never to do this again. After doing the food shopping, I parked the car in the garage, and (I thought) unlocked the doors with the central button. I opened the trunk and started removing the bags. When I got inside, I hung up my keys on their hook, and went back to get more bags. Meanwhile, my son came out to help, but discovered that the doors were locked. So I went around to the driver's side and opened the door to get at the central button...and all hell broke loose. A two car garage is not a good place to set off one's alarm (especially when one's daughter blocks the way to the keys to shut the darned thing off).

It seems I must not have unlocked the doors with the central button after all, but why did the alarm go off when I opened the driver's side door? It already was unlocked; it's not like I broke the window and reached in to unlock it (which would have set off the alarm on my Lexus).

shipo

It sounds like between the car, the trunk and the house with the hook you inadvertently hit the "Lock" button. I did it a few times on my 530i too. Since the car has an interior motion detector (that square box in the middle of the ceiling), it sensed when you reached inside the window and set off the alarm. If you ever find your car locked when you thought it was unlocked, your best bet is to unlock with the key.

Best Regards,
Shipo

cmybimmergo

I was all set to say that I didn't reach inside when I realized that I did. But the driver's door was unlocked, so how could the motion sensor be set? I thought the car had to be locked for that to happen.

millandj

Hope this is the correct forum. I just ordered a 2006 530i that should be available in a couple of months. I still have some time to adjust options and wanted to sound out some owners opinions. I currently have selected:
Premium pkg
Nav system
Cold weather pkg
Rear air bags
Black sapphire w/ black int

Appreciate any feedback from 530i owners out there. thanks! Red

habitat1

Can't dispute that RWD is preferable to FWD. It was the unfortunate compromise I made when I traded my S2000 on the TL last spring. But I have come to live with the occasional torque steer and still find the slick shifting 6 speed, Brembo brakes and stiffer suspension to provide a reasonably enjoyable drive.

So, here's a question I'm facing: Use $30,000 to buy a new Honda S2000 to supplement the TL and our SUV or use the same amount to jump up from the TL to a 550i 6-speed this fall.

A loaded question to ask in a BMW 5-series forum, but I'll enjoy opinions nontheless.

bmwccc

Kyfdx, Shipo, Kdshapiro, Hpowders, Nyccarguy, cmybimmergo & Others...........

I have narrowed down all the options on the 2003 540i I want and am starting to make some offers out there to dealers. Private party would be nice but the inventory is not out there yet. Most people who leased these guys did a 36 month lease and i think the earliest they could have picked up the 2003 model was in August of 2002. So the majority of those lease will expire in the next 0-6 months.

Here is my question, when I look at this car outfitted under Edmunds & Kelly BB with the options I want it comes out to be $39,000 for private party pricing and $43,000 for Dealer pricing. I understand the $4,000 difference between the private party and dealer is Dealer profit, insurance, advertising fees as well as the 125 point inspection and I assume adding the additional CPO 3 year or 50,000 mile warranty above and beyond the original 3 year 50,000 warranty is comes with at original purchase. The CPO then has a 6 year 100,000 mile warranty tagged with it.

My question is how they then add another $4,000 above the $43,000. This comes out to $8,000 above private party pricing and $4,000 above the stated Dealer pricing.

Can you guys shed some light on this and let me know what a fair price would be to pay for this vehicle.

Thanks
bmwccc

div2

Well, it's you decision of course, but as for me, I'd go for the S2000-no question. I just think that the 5ers(starting with the E39) have gotten a bit too porky; in fact, my wife announced that replacement for her 5er is going to be either an E90 diesel or a Mini Cooper. As for me, my next vehicle is only going to have two wheels and three or four cylinders.

kyfdx

I don't really follow late-model 5-series pricing all that much... Just keep in mind that dealer prices (and all prices) are just asking prices..

Dealers have to leave room to roll in negative equity from trades, over-allowance for people who have no realistic idea what their trade is worth, etc...

Go to Real World Trade-In Values

Give a description of your hypothetical car.. Let Terry know that you are looking to buy one from a dealer, and ask him what a fair price would be...

regards,
kyfdx

cmybimmergo

Have you looked at the bmwusa website? Prices for 03 540s are all over the map, from the high thirties to the high forties.

The dealer who sold me my 530 sells only used bmws and is known for fair pricing and excellent quality. He has two 540s listed on his website for 43,950. But unlike other dealers, his prices are firm. So the bmw that starts at 47 somewhere else just might run you closer to your 43 by the time you are done dealing.

bmwccc

Thanks kyfdx, I sent him a message.

bmwccc

cmybimmergo

I have scoured the bmwusa cpo section across the country. Prices are all over the board but sometimes hard to compare when cars are outfitted with different options etc.

I think you are right about the profit of $47k down to $43k. That is the only explanation I can think of and the dealer I am working with cannot give me a reasonable answer as well. In fact, she mentioned that some cars come in and need a little more re conditioning such as new tires and brakes etc. Bunch of b.s. I am sure. So this car started at $48k then dropped after 2 weeks down to $47k. I contacted them and after multiple email conversations offered $43k and they replied that had an offer already for $44k. Obviously wanting me to match that offer or better it.

Sounds like to me they are getting pretty close to the $43k that Edmunds and Kelly Blue Book pins the car at for Dealer Retail. My thought is at $43k, they are still making a killing. Almost think I should consider a private party price of $39k then add an extended warranty myself for $1,000 and have the same car for $3k less.

Thanks

bmwccc

So is Dealer Retail Pricing on a used CPO car relatively the same as MSRP for a new vehicle?

Thoughts?

kyfdx

Lease residual for '03 540i.. for lease ending this coming September

A 3yr/36K lease taken out in September of '02 had a residual of 62%. This will at least give you an idea of the residual values of the '03 models coming off lease in three months... Of course, now you have to find out what these models had for an MSRP>..

cmybimmergo

Good extended warranties ain't cheap. My 7 year/125K mile warranty cost me three grand. Be very careful about which company you choose; some are less solvent (not to mention reputable) than others.

sergeym

Lease residuals for 5-series are highly inflated. My 2002 540 (MSRP $60,720) at the end of 3/36 month lease had a residual value of $37K. According to my salesperson they could buy my car from BMWFS for around $28K, make the exterior look perfect, certify it, put new tires and sell for mid-forties.

bmwccc

cmybimmergo

wow, $3,000! Didn't realize so expensive. So I thought you purchased your bmw through a dealer. If so, didn't it come with the extra 3 year 50,000 mile warranty on top of the original 3 year 50,000 mile warranty totalling 6 year 100,000 miles?

If you purchased through a private party, did you check to see if you could purchase an extended warranty through bmw?

Thanks

cmybimmergo

The dealer is not a franchise dealer. He sells only used bmws, and is recognized by bmwusa as being the largest independent reseller of bmws in the country for the past six years (the plaques line the walls of the showroom). His cars undergo a 250 point inspection, and he includes both a five day-250 mile money back guarantee and a six month powertrain warranty with no deductible, but he does not offer a bmw warranty. I bought my warranty through him, though, because I felt that the ones he offered were reliable. The companies have solid reputations, as far as I could tell, and they are solvent.

Oh--and I had two months to rescind the warranty if I chose. I used those two months to ask around, and decided to stick with it.

FWIW, he sells to individuals all over the country (no charge to deliver to Phoenix) and according to his website will "SOON" be opening a place in Arizona.