Did you recently take on (or consider) a loan of 84 months or longer on a car purchase?
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Another question: I notice that I can deactivate the DSC. Under what driving situations or conditions would I want to deactivate the DSC.
One more question: The owners manual says that the fuel tank holds 18.5 gallons with a 2 - 2.5 gallon reserve (depending on the car). What does this mean? Why not just say that the fuel capacity is 20.5 or 21.0 gallons? Why make note of a "reserve"? Is there some indicator that will let me know that I am in reserve? Note of course I do not plan to drive the car with an empty tank, but I am still curious.
My 3 series fog lights are the same as your 5. The fog lights do not work unless the full headlights are on. I don't have DRL's turned on, but it doesn't seem likely that would make a difference.
Some people deactivate the DSC to get rolling in snowy conditions or to get unstuck in snow. I also deactivate mine when I take the car on the track or skidpad since I want to control the car and I don't want the computers to do it. Otherwise it is safest to leave it on.
The low fuel dash warning light will come on with about 2 gallons of fuel remaining (the reserve). I believe the tank is, as the manual says, 18.5 gallons.
DSC off: BMW states you may want to disable the system if trying to free the car if it's stuck, since the system may intervene too much. Owners who race their cars at the track also like to turn the system off, so they can have more control over the car and allow for mild wheelspin and oversteer. But in reality, you should leave it on virtually all of the time. When I picked up my car in Spartanburg, we had the opportunity to drive around a soaked skidpad and trigger both understeer (by turning the wheel too much) and oversteer (by accelerating too hard into a turn). We practiced getting the car back under control with and without the help of DSC. With it on, it was exceedingly easy--the car practically straightened itself out. Without, it took much concentration, effort, and luck just to keep the car from totally spinning out of control.
As for the fuel tank, the "reserve" isn't a separate tank. It's simply how much gas is left once the gauge registers "0" on the dash. They refer to it as a "reserve" to save your butt if necessary, but they don't want to treat it as the "normal" part of the tank, if that makes any sense. Technically, yes, the tank is 20.5 gallons. Discussing this always reminds me of a Seinfeld episode where Kramer convinces a car salesman to take the car (a Saab) for a spin and keep going regardless of the fuel gauge. Eventually, of course, the car dies in the middle of the highway and Kramer just walks away. Cracks me up every time...
Thought I did know one thing: It is not recommended that one run out of fuel. So fuel up at or before the low fuel light and don't let it go below half a tank in cold weather. And it is best to use the recommended fuel.
http://schedule.2wglobal.com/GLWebApps.AppSchedules
Just as a note, all German dropoffs are trucked to the boat at Bremerhaven. If you have plans to visit Belgium, you can drop off in Antwerp and it will be trucked to Zeebrugge. Most boats go via Zeebrugge from Bremerhaven.
Side note on Fuel:
Not a good idea to starve the fuel pump by running the tank dry.
Cheers!
Regarding the fuel tank question, today I accidently answered my own question regarding fuel capacity and reserve. Had to run a number of rushed arrands and did not have the time to refuel until nearly out. The trip computer said 12 miles remaining on the tank when I put in 18.825 gallons (did not top-off the tank otherwise may have been more) at $1.859 per gallon. The $35.00 I paid is a record for most spent to fill the tank (but could have been more - am starting to see some stations getting $2.00+ per gallon again for premium). But the car went 461 miles on the tank (24.5 MPG) in combined city/highway driving. I know getting this low on the tank is very bad and therefore is a practice I hope not to repeat again. But I got my answer as to what reserve means (only indication is the low fuel light on the fuel gauge) and also approximately how much fuel will go in the tank.
Anyways, the miles remaining shown on the computer do NOT include the reserve.
Whatever "bad" effect (i.e. catalytic converter) this may have on the car is of little concern to my lease.
I just like to go as far as possible and then fill-it-up.
Best Regards,
Shipo
PS - Also amazing how fast folks are driving on I95 in NC and VA. Ave. speed must be up around 80-85. Fully loaded mini vans were passing me at 85, even taking in account the infamous BMW speedometer error :-)
I appreciate any information. I know the dealer will probably not be so forthcoming.
Thanks.
Best Regards,
Shipo
Take care.
Joe W.
I suspect most of you will not be happy campers.
In a way its quite striking but, i cant get used to a flat hood on a BMW.
DL
When equipped with a manual transmission, the 525 moves out nicely; others here have put its performance roughly on par with a 528 automatic.
Unlike many Japanese cars, Legends and the like included, the high speed composure of many German sedans sets the standards for dry road performance suspension tuning. It's a cliche, but the home market conditions have a very strong influence on the product design decisions. In Japan, low speeds, infrequent / weekend usage, glass smooth roads, and long periods idling in stopped summer traffic with the a/c on full blast has produced comfortable cars that seldom overheat and function very reliably up to the mandatory and very rigorous 100,000 km inspection. Lots of japanese cars are exported to third world countries with 90-99k km on their odometers just to avoid that inspection.
German / European conditions put a premium on high speed highway composure on a variety of road surface types. The 528 you're considering will be a relevation as compared to the Legend the first time you have the chance to tackle some curvies at extra-legal (in the U.S.) speeds.
On the other hand, fwd and a serious front biased weight distribution have significant advantages when driving during an Illinois winter. Snow tires provide huge benefits, but not as much as fwd or awd. Therefore, you may wish to consider fwd alternatives such as a newer acura product, a vw / audi product, or (thinking way out of the box) one of GM's cars, such as a Saab 9-5,the mid-size Buicks with a 3.8 liter v-6, or a Suburu. The audi or saab would provide the best driving experience, but at the cost of vw's and saab's long term maintenance expenses. The Buick would be the cheapest to maintain in the 100-200,000 mile range, but you'd have to live with the inexpensive fabrics and plastics that GM uses on many of its domestic sedans. perhaps some Buick - labeled slip covers would add a dash of living room sofa panache?
Or going further down that track, there are some awd cars to consider. At the low end of the cost scale, the newer suburus are a very good value and offer good reliabilty . the audi A4 / A6 quattros provide exceptional slippery road performance, but are a wallet buster to maintain after the warranty is gone.
Conclusion: go drive a few of these cars and broaden your search horizon before making a decision. In particular, try a couple of the audis, and let us know what you think.
I strongly disagree. A well balanced RWD car outfitted with winter tires will do much better in snow than FWD with all season tires. I also believe that a RWD car with winter tires is safer than a AWD car with all seasons since stopping and maneuvering (read, safety) are both greatly enhanced by the tires and not which wheels are driven.
I haven't driven my BMW in the snow yet, but my Miata with winter tires was great.
-murray
They are going to hate me for saying this but you don't have to pay the approx. $400 fee they try to tack on at the end. I forget the name of it but it will be there when you sit down to sign the papers. Supposedly, "everyone" in Houston pays this but if you threaten to walk away from the deal, they should back down.
would be no haggling. This seems to be MUCH higher than what can be obtained by
looking around. Perhaps not in Houston, but.................
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2025 Camry SE AWD
Consider a panic stop situation - you're standing on the brakes and there is no power to any of the wheels - does it matter whether the car is FWD or RWD at this point? Its also disputable whether engine braking will help in a panic situation.
Having said that, BMW points out at bmwusa.com that RWD offers better handling by making the argument that FWD puts both tasks of steering the powering the vehicle on the front wheels. They say that by powering the rear wheels and steering with the front, you are dividing the tasks more efficiently. They also make the point that understeer and oversteer is better handled by a RWD configuration and that's why police cars are RWD preferred. I don't know from personal experience and find this debatable.
What I *do* know is that weight distribution makes a heck of a difference. I crashed my Integra (which has a 62-38 front-rear distribution) a few months ago during rush hour - they guy in front of me stopped suddenly on a curvy road. I stood on the brakes, but watched in slow motion horror as my car understeered all the way into the guy's rear end and onto the curb. This was at 30mph. I strongly believe that my Michelin XGTV4 tires were also culpable (but that's the subject of another flameout).
More than FWD vs. RWD, it is traction control that helps more. Don't be fooled by AWD - once underway, AWD is subject to the same physics as another 3000+lb vehicle (ask me - I have a Lexus RX300 AWD). Perhaps you can avoid situations if you can detect them sooner, such as if you have the help of traction control. That's why the 5-er with its ASC/DSC is a much safer option than just having the RWD configuration. There have been tons of auto reviews where drivers have tried to cause the car to under/oversteer on the skidpad with traction control on, but found it incredibly hard to do so. Not that traction control is infallible, but it does offer a compelling argument and better safety net than drivetrain configuration alone.
Not your usual point of view on FWD/AWD/RWD huh?
Best Regards,
Shipo
Boy, hearing and seeing the latest info on the next 5er, I'm so glad I opted to jump to the 530i now instead of going with another 3 series and moving up later. If the I-drive rumor and styling cues on on target, I don't think I can overlook the interior and exterior for the "BMW feel" when this lease is up.
Best Regards,
Shipo
Thanks
Yes, I would buy another, but, I would follow the advice of the guys on Car Talk and lease one, and not keep it one day longer or one mile over the warranty period. These are some of the most expensive cars in the world to fix. And mine was not particulalry reliable.
I had a complete automatic transmission replacement at 3,200 miles (yes, 3,200 miles -some major electronic failure that took the car out of commission for 2 weeks, although they gave me a nice 330 to drive); a thermostat replacement at 7,000 miles; three trips to the dealer to reset "check-engine" lights; one "very careful" trip to the dealer replace the airbag sensor switch after the airbag warning light came on; and on one trip, the mechanic noticed the jack plates on the side-bottom corners of the car were missing - they were never installed, which meant it would have been impossible to use the jack to change a tire had I had a flat! Not a very good post-build inspection.
All in all, 7 non-scheduled dealer visits in 3 years and 34K miles. The service manager did a thumbnail estimate that they did about $7,000 worth of warranty work on it (granted the new transmission was the largest chunk).
So, yes, I loved driving the beautiful 528, and was darn glad all the maintenance and repairs were fully covered. And that's the only way I'll drive another.
Joe
One recommendation is to consider the Sport pkg. While my 530i doesn’t have this option, I do regret not ordering it. The standard setup is good but the Sport pkg adds to the driving experience.
Good luck on your decision.
Chris
I appreciate everyone's contributions.
I drove both cars for about two months before I was able to sell the Ac' and they have similar performance, with the BMW being slighty faster and more substantial feeling (I had a friend race me) but the Ac' engine feeling stronger (more torque and hp).
I wouldn't recommend a used BMW, period. I've said it a few times on these boards. If your used to the reliability and cheap maintenance of the Legend, you'll be angry and broke with a used BMW. New ones come w/full warranty and free maintenance (including the $100 synthetic oil changes).
However, I don't know much about that snow/RWD issue. (I'm in Los Angeles) But, I would say the FWD on the Legend was definitely more predictable and I'm still getting used to RWD. Good thing there's std. traction,braking, and stability control systems on the 5 for times when I forget its RWD.
Good Luck.
That said, the 530i is a significant improvement over the power of the previous 528i and, equiped with the sport package, handles as well as any sedan I've driven, other than the M5. The roughly $8-10k difference in purchase price to jump from the 530i to the 540i would be difficult for me to justify. I had considered both cars before postponing my decision by buying a Honda S2000 as a third car last fall. I will likely be back in the sedan market in another year or two and, if I had to make the choice now, the 530i 5-speed sport would be my pick. Good acceleration, great handling and relatively affordable to purchase, insure and maintain.
P.S. Supposedly the redesigned 5-series will include an even more powerful V-8, and a V-10 M5. Having driven the current M5, I find it hard to believe that someone would need even more power in a two ton sedan that can already keep pace with a 911. How much power you need is up to you, but beware that we are in a bit of a horsepower war and that whatever you get today will probably be surpassed in a year or two.