BMW 5-Series Sedans

cartesio · March 2001

If you go to www.bmwusa.com, the car you describe can be found under "Build Your Own" for $45,620. From reading this forum, I'd say you've probably gone as far as you can with BMW...

darreng1 · March 2001

Is the sport package on the 530 worth including, and what about the bigger tires on wet roads (rain or snow)any other input about this pkg.

nolefsu · March 2001

George.....
I'd like to contact Ally and see if she can do better. With this dealer I won't see my car until middle of April. Do you have a contact number for Prestige BMW? Where is it? I live in the Fort Lauderdale area. Dealers unheard of 1700 over invoice. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

Greg

smoothrunning · March 2001

It's www.530i.org

pmajor · March 2001

I am trying to decide whether to purchase the 1997 328i that I just found at a local non-BMW dealership. It's loaded with everything, a gorgeous car, and I can get it for $25K including tax and license. 73K miles, but I'm hearing that BMWs are "just warming up" at that mileage. Might this be the deal of the century, or should I be wary (or both). Are there problems with this car that I should watch out for? Can I really hope it will be reliable for another 300,000 miles? Unfortunately, $25K is my max at the present time. I'd appreciate any feedback or advice.
P.S. Were side airbags standard on this model?

div2 · March 2001

You simply MUST have a pre-purchase inspection performed by a knowledgeable BMW tech. The '97-up 5er is a magnificent car that will run at least 20,0000 miles with proper care. Make certain you get a good one. The price seems pretty fair; we just bought a one-owner 1997 528iA BMW CPO for my wife- with Premium Package, DSP stereo, and heated seats/wheel the cost was $27,366+TTL.

kechal · March 2001

Can anyone confirm that the 5.9% financing from BMW has been extended to the end of April? Thanks.

as4316 · March 2001

millerro3 · March 2001

5.9% on 3 series sedans and coupes, as well as the Z3's, through the end of april.

it has expired for the 5 series, though

Rob

54me2 · March 2001

I'm considering a 2001 530i but may wait if BMW is introducing a new model soon. Since the current model has been around a few years I'm wondering if they are introducing a redesigned model in 2002. Does anyone know?

Secondly, I'm undecided between the 3.0 six and the 4.4 v8. The v8 offers more torque and hp but very little in terms of 0 to 60 performance (.8 secs). Has anyone out driven both and could comment on the difference?

54me2 · March 2001

I'm considering a 2001 530i but may wait if BMW is introducing a new model soon. Since the current model has been around a few years I'm wondering if they are introducing a re-designed model in 2002. Does anyone know?

Secondly, I'm undecided between the 3.0 six and the 4.4 v8. The v8 offers more torque and hp but very little in terms of 0 to 60 performance (.8 secs). Has anyone out there driven both and could comment on the difference?

stevehh · March 2001

I am trying to get info from as many places as possible about a product called Kleen Wheels. It is a set of disks that go in the wheels and protect the wheel against dust from the brake pads. Has anyone used them? Do they work??? Do they warp brake rotors??

Thanks for any info,
Steve

merc1 · March 2001

The next generation 5-Series isn't due in the U.S. until the 2004 model year. The current car just got it's mid-life facelift. Count on summer 2003 for a new model here. Nothing major happening until then.

M

div2 · March 2001

www.bimmer.org/5series/messages/messages/39719.html
The bottom line is that the changer, mounting kit, and shipping came to $399 for my 1997 528i. Steve Diamond is a reputable guy and I don't think you can beat the price.

kelf · March 2001

Do you know when is the earliest date that if i order now a year 2002 525 station wagon, I could pick it up in Germany through Euro Del program?
Any special ED prices?

curtnheidi · March 2001

I am about to purchase a 98 528i auto with leather, heated seats, and premium sound. It has 26K miles. I wanted to know if the 528i series is reliable. Can anyone who owns that series or has experience with it please give me an idea of what ownership is like? How is the overall driving experience, ownership costs, and maintenance? This is my first BMW so I appreciate your advice.

Please respond, I posted this a few days ago and had little response.

Thanks, Curt

cb44 · March 2001

I believe the '98 528 was a fine current body style car and yours seems to have fairly low miles. If it from dealer, make sure it is BMW certified with an extended warranty. I would also use Carfax and check the history and attempt to contact the previous owner(s).

The driving experience is a personal matter and I would judge this by your own hopefully extensive test drive. With the certified warranty, ownership costs should not be problems. Sounds like a great car, good luck.

ggoudeli1 · March 2001

Phone number is 201-327-2525. I wouldn't mention $1,700 over invoice right off the bat, just mention your competing offer (assuming it's close) and it just takes time. It took me almost 1 hour.

George

dantlo · March 2001

curtnheidi, you are buying the exact car my wife and I have, ours is a blk sport with 25K miles. Great car and probably the best BMW we ever owned. Very reliable, I had a 325is very similar engine with 120K miles when I sold it. Mostly minor problems such as sunroof and fan switch. We own another 2001 325i 4 dr also. I like the 528 handling over the 325, very tight.

habitat1 · March 2001

A couple of responses to previous posts:

54me2: Regarding the 3.0 six vs. 4.4 eight, I suggest you test drive both yourself. Although the 0 to 60 times are not that much different, the 540 pulls much stronger above 50. Road and Track has started listing 0 to 100 times in their "road test summary". Although that seems irrelevant given our speed limits, it really is a better stat for highway passing strength. Lots of cars aren't that far apart from 0 to 60, but the 0 to 100 times tend to separate the men from the boys, if acceleration is that important. After all, I could probably stay within a few yards of Michael Johnson in a 20 meter dash, but he would be lapping me in a 200.

For what it's worth, I have test driven the 530 5-speed extensively and think it is quite acceptable, given its lighter weight (and better gas milage).

Kelf: On eurodelivery prices, I advised somebody to check out eurobuyers.com. They did and are getting a european delivery car at $2000 over european delivery invoice (almost $1000 under US invoice). Good luck.

napoleonva · March 2001

stevehh,

I seem to remember reading a car magazine article about these not too long ago and the impression I got was that they caused excessive heating of the rotors. Can't remember which magazine that was in.

napoleonva · March 2001

I haven't driven the 530, so I'm probably not a good judge, but the first time I went to pass someone on the interstate in my 540, doing about 65, I stomped the pedal to the floor (like I would have in my previous 525) and it was like WHOA, NELLY! Truly amazing. On the other hand, the gas mileage does totally suck. I average about 16.5 (that's what the computer says) in mixed city/highway driving.

Love the car though.

hammond4 · March 2001

I'm looking for opinions on choice of color. I am having a hard time deciding between jet black and cosmos black. Does it come down to personal preference or are there advantages to the metallic paint?

Has anyone tries upgrading the base stereo by replacing the power amp with a higher quality one? I heard that this can make a significant improvement to the sound system.

cb44 · March 2001

Have owned both colors and both have their highs and lows:

Jet black looks the best immediately after being washed. You think you could put your fist through the car. Within minutes however, every pollen molecule and piece of dirt will be visible. Swirl marks will jump out and the fingerprints display would excite the detectives of CSI.

Cosmos black does have a metallic hue, which also looks great when just washed and holds it's good looks for a while longer than JB, because of the deeper color changes. In varying light, CB can look almost dark blue, but never looks as polished as a clean JB.

Bottom line is, jet black looks great new and will show every swirl and nick whereas cosmos will better hide the unavoidable results of the environment.

dhanley · March 2001

i expect the 530 performs similarly to my 328. I chose my 328 over a 540, one of my main reasons being the gas mileage.. I drove the 540 for a day, with a mix of highway and city driving ( trying to model my normal driving ), and i got a big 15.9 MPG. My 328 has averaged 26.7mpg so far this year with a city/highway mix, biased twoards city. OF course, part of that is manual vs automatic, so perhaps a manual 540 would have done better. That was another diff, these cars were used, and i had reason to think the automatic in the 540 might cause trouble later.

OTOH, the 540 was faster and quieter.

dave

mokco · March 2001

I know that there are many people out there with a car on order. It is tough to find much on the lot these days, and in the configuration of preference. I was working with one of the most noted dealers in my area. In mid January, the dealer indicated that they could deliver by mid March. Not unreasonable. However, when I placed the order with them, they did not sign the slip or provide an order number - nor did they charge me for a deposit via a credit card until 10 days later. Although they had my credit card number upon the order. After checking with my dealer and BMW, the car is due in mid April.

Manufacturing is a scheduled science, especially for durable goods. I find it hard to believe that BMW is falling behind on scheduled productions - especially with no strikes or parts issues, etc. The speculation on the delay is any or a combination of the dealer having no clue about delivery dates, or was saying the right things to close a sale, or gave up the production car to someone else (who may have offered more.)

In talking to some people, I find that I am not the only one with such as experience. Being fed-up with the process, I searched around and ended up finding a car at another dealer with everything I wanted - just a different color and a lower price - a stroke of luck.

As the warmer months are coming and more cars are being ordered/purchased, just a word to say that if you placed an order for a car, get the order number and track it via the BMWUSA web site. This keeps the dealer honest and provides a good update to the status of your car.

rcoluzzi · March 2001

It all seemed easy and exciting on ordering my new 2001 530. This was my second BMW and was coming off a lease from a 528I. Went through the process with the sales person, base car, sport seats... oh you'll need the convenience package with that (OK).. xenon lights, leather... sports package.... and that was it. Due to my height of 6'4" a sun roof was out. This of course made it a special order. After waiting over 6 weeks the car came in and as my heart raced to see the car I noticed it had a sun roof. The dealer also caught this ( nothing get's by these guys). Tried the order again... and after waiting.... once again it had a sun roof. After discussions with BMW NJ and many with the dealer.... it seems that BMW had changed there option packages in mid stream. Now in order to get the sport seats not only do you need the worthless convenience package but you need to order a sun roof as well.... over 2k of options for the right seats. My ordered 9 weeks ago had the approved package.... and now my options are... pay a lot of bucks for a car that is uncomfortable..or get it without the sport seats.......Future BMW owners be careful in your ordering...It may not really matter what you think you are ordering.

When is to much to put up with for the "ultimate driving machine"...
I think after many years of BMW ownership..it's time for a Bimmer Break.....the AUDI A6 2.7T with sports package and seats may be an option

arcoates · March 2001

That's awful. The 530i is a new car- how could they change the specs so early? I love BMW, but I would walk away as well. That's unacceptable. I would skip the audi though, and get a nice E320. It just seems like a nicer car to me~ A.R.

cssonoma · March 2001

Does anyone know when the 530i Sport Wagon will be available in the US? It has been available in Europe for at least 2 years maybe longer. BMW European web sites list the 530i Wagon with complete details.

I'd speculate BMW is not offering the 530 Wagon in the US due to availability of the 3L V6 vs it's more in demand (aka margin opportunity) homes: X5 3.0 & 3 Series, Z3, etc.). Maybe a second order reason is the potential impact on 540i Wagon sales.

IMHO, The 525i Wagon is too little & the 540i Wagon is too much, but the 530i Wagon would be just right.

Thanks,
as

msingerbmw · March 2001

I saw that someone said you could follow the build of your ordered BMW on the BMWUSA web site. I looked in the web site but failed to see how this could be done. Any help out there on this?

stickguy · March 2001

I assume you mean ore=dered (read you topic heading) lol

Anyway, go to the owners circle. You need to register, which you can do with your production number (from the order sheet your dealer should give you). Once in, lookd at the menu options on the right side, look for order tracking. this gives you 6 options, including in order status, in production, waiting for transport, in transit, at prep center (port), and at retailer.

If you are really anal, some people find out the boat it is on, and use the shippers web site to tell where on the N. Atlantic the car is.

Actually kind of a neat way to pass the time waiting for your car, but the dealer can give you the same info.

stickguy · March 2001

Anyone have an opinion on how heavy the depreciation will be on a '01 525i 5-speed, relative to say a 530i or a '00 528i? Not sure whether it will be heavier, since it is the "lesser" model, or not as bad since the car is pretty agressively priced to start with (a new 525 is about the same as an '00 528i with some miles).

razteo · March 2001

Can anybody tell me when is coming the new 5 series? I heard is going to be in summer 2003.
A secon version that I heard is they will discontinue 5 series, and will upgrated to a 6 series, keeping only one coupe as 5 series. Is this true?
If not, how big will be the "face lift"?
Can anybody send me a information regard this subject? The problem is now I'm ready to purchase a 2001 525, and I'm not going to be happy to se my $42.000 going to depreciat in a year or so!
Thank you.

kechal · March 2001

The new 5 series design is supposed to be available in late 2003 for the 2004 model year. I have not heard anything about BMW getting rid of the 5 series in place of a 6 series. In fact, I doubt that would happen. As for buying now vs. later consider these points:

1. the car is going to depreciate regardless of when you buy it, plus I don't think you should view it as an "investment". It's a car and meant to be enjoyed.

2. I have not seen any good pics of what the redesigned 5 series will look like. Maybe you won't like the new body sytle as much.

3. The longer you wait to buy, the longer you delay the excitment of driving one of these great cars. I get my new 540 in about one month and I can hardly wait! Get it now! just my two cents.

darreng1 · March 2001

I heard the sport pkg. on 530 during inclimate is not so good, any views on this

cb44 · March 2001

The sports package is not the problem with bad weather driving, it is the summer tires that are part of the package.

The sport seats, trim and slightly lower stance do not effect slippery road performance. The wide, performance tires supplied will do poorly in ice and snow, but with a winter tire, it as good as any RWD sedan. (The sports pkg adds so much to the car, it is worth the few months for aggravation, IMHO).

cooper33 · March 2001

does anyone know what it should cost and what equipment is the best to use to goose up the stock bmw in dash cd and stereo system by adding some amplification? thoughts please. taking delivery of a new 530i 5 speed in 10 days. thanks

lukabracci · March 2001

I'm thinking about buying a '97 528i. This will be my first BMW. It has 65k miles, and is immaculate, has the premium and chrome pkg. The guy is selling it for $25K edmunds value is $27K, the guy is firm on his price.
I spoke with a mechanic and he said in general for 5 series BMW's the maintenance is about $1,500 to $3,000 per year, is this right???
Does anyone know what I should be aware of with 65K miles???

razteo · March 2001

You are right, is meant to be enjoyed! I'l probably buy one now, and have fun with it!
Good look with your new 540!

jfguerrap · March 2001

I plan on buying a BMW 530i sometime in the early summer. I know that maintenance is included the first 36,000 miles. After that, what should I expect cost wise in terms of regular maintenance (ie: oil changes, tune ups, "'x'thousand mile service", etc.

Thanks!

udencgb1 · March 2001

Just bought a nice '99 528i - only 10k miles and in perfect shape...

The sound system (stock) is a bit disappointing however...

I'd like to upgrade but don't want to spend thousands of dollars... would also like to keep the interior looking the same as new...

Any ideas for a $500 to $1,000 budget?

div2 · March 2001

The mechanic you spoke with is at best uninformed and at worst an imbecile. The E39 528i requires service at @9000 mile intervals. Oil changes are performed at 9K and 27K- about $90 from a good independent BMW tech using synthetic oil and an OEM filter. A minor service-Inspection I is performed at 18K- $150-$300 depending on where you go. The major Inspection II service comes at 36K and costs $350-$700. Brake fluid must be flushed every two years($70) and engine coolant every three($100). So, if you run your 5er 0ver 36K per year it MIGHT cost $1500 to service it properly. At 62K you may be looking at a water pump in the near future(no big deal). Overall the E39 5ers are pretty stout. For the record, I just bought a BMW Certified 46K 1997 528iA with Premium Package, heated seats/wheel and DSP audio for $27366. You might want to go that route if you feel more comfortable with a warranty.

razteo · March 2001

Is the "sport pakage" coming with a much firmer suspension that the regular one?
BMW it is a "firmer suspension" kind of car; is not going to be to rigid after adding the "Sport Package"?

The reason I'm asking this, is my very soon purchase will be a 2001 525, and I live in West LA, where the road condition is incredible poor. I'm allready sick about my old Nissan rigid suspension, and I will like to know the diference between the Sport Pack. suspension and the regular one.
Also, I'm sure 99%of my driving time will be in traffic, so not to much chances to enjoy the nice part of this sport suspension, but a lot of holles, and broken streets, to shake my kidneys!

So after all, except the realy very beautiful spoke wls., is not going to be desapoining the ride, afected by the "Sport Suspension"? It will be better for me the regular suspension? But then it not going to be to expensive to replace the rims?

stickguy · March 2001

I believe that you can't get the sports suspension package on the 525 (only the 530). I might be wrong, but I know you can't get the 3 spoke wheel.

If you are concerned, go with the standard suspension and higher profile tires. The sports package still gives a good ride, but will be firmer and less compliant over bumps.

6872 · March 2001

does anyone know if the type of steering on the 540 recirc. ball?, is different than that on the 530 and 525. I have driven them all and each feels a ad bit different. thank you for any info.

cb44 · March 2001

The 540 does indeed use a recirculating ball steering unit. I believe this was done due to lack of space when the larger V8 was fit into the engine compartment of the e39 body.

brian525 · March 2001

My 2001 525i does indeed have the Sports/Premium package...

Suspension not too firm; just right for excellent handling...

Getting a BMW w/o a Sports Package is almost as bad as getting it w/o a manual tranny..

Enjoy!

lukabracci · March 2001

Thanks for your help. The price for the 528i is $24,995. It's a pretty good price and I would get an extended warranty to 100K miles. I can afford the car however, if I had to have maintenance on it of $1,000 to $1,500 every year I don't want. I would put maybe 15K miles on it per year. I live in AZ, and the mechanic was telling me that these cars don't do well in the AZ heat, do you know? Are you a mechanic or just a knowledge BMW owner...
Someone also told me to get the struts checked out.

div2 · March 2001

What you really need to do is have a buyer's check performed by a qualified BMW tech. That should ensure that any major problems are discovered before you buy the car. I doubt that the struts/shocks are in need of replacement, but the inspection can tell you for sure. What does the guy mean when he says they don't "do well"? Obviously you need to keep an eye on your fluid levels as well as belts and hoses, but I've driven street BMWs on the track for hours in +95 degree heat with no problems. I'm not a mechanic, but I've owned and worked on BMWs since 1983. I've had six and currently run two; the 5er I mentioned as well as a 318ti toy/track car.

klws · March 2001

Hello all -

Just wanted to say how helpful this board has been in my 5-series search. I just confirmed a deal for a 525i (Auto, Prem., Conv, Cold Weather, CD) in Titanium Silver/Gray.
It is a dealer transfer that should arrive in a week or so.
The info on this board was very helpful in getting a decent price. I ended up with $2000 off sticker, which isn't quite as good as some posted here, but only over by $200 or so. Using the information here I call a few other dealers to see where the market was, then went back to my local dealer and they were willing to match it.

Thanks again, I'll come back to post once my car comes in!

BMW 5-Series Sedans

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