2011 535i -- Last BMW for me

oozlefinch

Bought 2011 535i in July 2010. Traded it in on a 2011 Mercedes E550 Sport yesterday. After owning three BMW's, I will not have another one. This car was in the shop 3 times in 3 months. Two days after the second visit the car quit in the middle of an intersection. From day one the car hesitated upon a slow acceleration, the transmission seemed to search for the right gear when driving slow through a parking lot, the transmission did not shift smoothly through the lower gears during a slow start, and the engine seemed to cause a vibration and sounded like an old under powered 4 cylinder Chevrolet when trying to maintain a constant speed up hill until one pressed down on the accelerator to force the transmission to down-shift. The car has already been recalled for a faulty fuel sensor which could cause one to run out of gas with the fuel guage still indicating 1/2 full. If this is the "Utimate Driving Machine" then we better walk or fly. The lack of quality is a real concern.

The Mercedes is fantastic. For an MSRP of only $3k more it has much more power, lots of low end torque, rides much better, is more comfortable, accelerates and shifts very smoothly. There is no comparison. Dumping the 535i is one of the best moves I have made.

el168

I had the complete opposite experience. I "upgraded" from a problem Mercedes after having numerous electrical , transmission , mechanical, etc.( you name it, it was not working right) . After having it "fixed" by the dealership 7 or 8 times (spent thousands for a fix), the last straw was when AAA refused to tow my Mercedes because we were over the limit in tows.
Got my car a few weeks ago and I am very impressed with this car and did not encounter any problems yet.
In fact, I love my new 5 series so much that I may buy another one next year for my wife.
I would never ever buy another Mercedes again even if they were on sale. Once you drive the "Ultimate Driving Machine", you will forever be hooked!

oozlefinch

Hope you continue to enjoy your BMW and don't experience the same issues I dealt with.

How old was your Mercedes and which model? Mercedes had a few substandard years during its stint with Chrysler and attempts to save money. It has apparently recovered. The 2010 E Sedan has very high marks from Consumer Reports. My 2008 Mercedes was absolutely trouble free during the 2 1/2 years that I had it. I decided to try the BMW because of a much better deal cost wise than on the new Mercedes and all of the hype about the redesigned 5 series. That was my mistake.

BTW, my dealer is both a BMW and Mercedes dealer. One of the folks there suggested I look in the service area. In his words, they repair old Mercedes and new BMWs.

There is no comparison between my 2011 BMW 535i and my 2011 Mercedes E550. The Mercedes rides, handles, and performs like a sport luxury sedan. The BMW failed miserably.

abacomike

I owned a 2005 BMW 525, 2006 BMW 530, 2007 BMW 530, and 2 BMW 535 in 2008 because BMW had to buy the first one back because of all the problems I had and then replaced it with another 535, and had the same problems with that one. I wouldn't own another BMW if it was given to me at no cost. I have a 2011 Mercedes E350 Sport and it performs and handles so much better than a BMW. I've had it with BMW's, and now I buy only Mercedes Benz Vehicles, better built and more reliable since the new 2010 body change. AND...the E350 Sport with Premium 1 package, tire and wheel package and fold down rear seats is thousands less than the BMW 535 with even more equipment and luxuries. I agree, the E class Benz is far superior.

westcarolyn22

I leased a new 528i this year and it is the best car I have ever owned. The eight speed transmission shifts smooth and flawlessly and it handles so much better than the e-class i drove. The full maintenance package is a real plus with this car as well, my cousin is always spending $1000 or two on his Mercedes for normal servicing. After driving my 528i, I don't know why anyone would consider a Mercedes.

jezzy

I am Nissan and Bimmer man, my third BMW 2nd 535I series and i love it, it did have a recall that was handled right away, other than that it's a Great car, excellent fuel economy, Great power and Great looking, and my other car is the Nissan Maxima a excellent car also almost half the price of the BMW an well worth every penny.

westcarolyn22

Well I just checked the sales numbers and it seems that the Mercedes has lost its luster and now is in third place in sales below BMW and Audi. This is an indication that people are buying quality instead of price as Mercedes continues to lower the cost of its vehicles to catch up. The interiors and quality as well as the sound system does not compare to the one in my 528i and I bet it doesn't get anywheres near the 24.3 mpg I am getting driving back and forth to work.

lawcar

I have a 2009 528i and have not had any problem with it at all (except for some strange reason I've had more nails in my tires with this car than all of my other cars combined). I'm getting a MB E350 as I want to try something new, there are good incentives now and I've heard good things about it on the forum. It seems that with all cars there are those who have good luck with them and others who have problems. I've seen that with BMW and MB.

jed525i

I own a 2005 BMW 525i with 63K miles and a 2007 MB CLS550 with 64K miles. The 2005 BMW 525i has had so many repairs it is starting to get sickening. I have replaced the transmission at 48K miles, the alternator at 55K miles and the AC Compressor has just gone out. These are just three of the largest ones and counting up the smaller ones it is coming out to around 6K per year to maintain. That is just an average since the transmission alone was over 7K. I have not had a thing go wrong with the CLS. I hear more and more stories about BMWs with issues - the quality is just not there any more.