A colleague is currently deciding whether to go for a manual 2000 pre-facelift 523iSE 2.5L or a manual 2000 post-facelift 520iSE 2.2L
His budget is under £10,000 and he wants leather. He does not want to pay the extra insurance or petrol bills of a 525i, 528i or 530i as he spends most of his time in London, though he soemtimes enters road rallies with me.
He asked me if there is any difference between the facelifts in terms of
1) interior equipment and decorations
2) performance
3) fuel economy
4) gearbox & suspension
I really don't know what is the difference, if any, as my only drive was a 1996 520iSE, which was good but could do with a little more power.
Thanks, Gazza
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I think the face lift was just that, a facelift. It comprised of cosmetic changes such as halo headlights, celis tailights etc. If I had his choice I would go for the pre-facelift 523i. It is much easier and cheaper to add the facelift components to the larger engined car than a larger engine to a facelifted car. Has he thoroughly researched insurance and fuel costs?. From what I understand, after spending quite a bit of time on BMW forums, the 523 and 528 actually offer the same or better overall fuel economy than the 520 and that actual insurance quotes differ very little between the models.
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I think there is a bit of confusion here caused by BMW badging.
The post-facelift 520i is a six-cylinder, 2.2 litre, with 170 bhp. The 523i is a 2.5 litre, with 170 bhp. A pre-facelift 520i has I think a 2 litre 6cyl engine but with only 150 bhp in any case.
If insurance is a real issue, I would probably go for the facelifted 520i, because adding different alloys and lights may not please the insurance company. However I wouldn't rule out a later 525i which, as the name suggests, is actually a 2.5 litre, if one can be had in budget. (Difficult, even at auction, at semi-sensible mileage, with leather).
I've never driven a BMW of any description, so if anyone has direct experience of these cars, I'd bow to it, but I suspect there is very little to choose between them so, all other things being equal, I'd go for the facelifted 520i if he prefers the styling. I suspect, in practical terms, he'd actually get a better car for his money if he were looking at 523s though.
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Sorry, there is no confusion in Gazza's post, I didn't read it carefully enough.
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Just to clear up the lack of confusion:
[i]
BMW Specifications
BMW E39 Sedan
Model: Engine: Power: Topspeed: Year:
520i M52 6 cylinder 150 HP 220 km/h 1996 - 2000
520i M54 6 cylinder 170 HP 226 km/h 2000 - 2003
523i M52 6 cylinder 170 HP 228 km/h 1995 - 2000
525i M54 6 cylinder 192 HP 238 km/h 2000 - 2003
528i M52 6 cylinder 193 HP 236 km/h 1995 - 2000
[/i]
Seems I was wrong in thinking that of the two cars mentioned in Gazza's post the 523 would be more desireable because of more power. As can be clearly seen it has the same power as a post 2000 520i, so in such circumstances tell him to get the colour he likes best 8-)
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He has finally made up the decision to find a 523i on the basis that he does not care about the difference in look between the facelifts. We went to Cargiants after work and there is no difference in the interior between the two. Also, both have the same 16-inch multi-spoke alloys anyway. He cares about how it drives but 0-60 times and top speeds are irrelevant to him so we analysed that for 523i 2.5, it does 30 mpg in real life and 30-70 in 8.2s. For 520i 2.2, it does 31mpg and 30-70 in 9.2s; thus the 2.2 is significantly slower in mid-range. Also, the 2.2 has a shorter top gear for cruising.
Thank you very much for everyone's comments.
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IIRC it was around 1999 that BMW upgraded the variable valve timing units on their 6cyl engines from "single" to "double" VANOS, this certainly gave a better mid-range and (perhaps marginally) better economy.
So if it's a 523 from that period make sure it's got double VANOS.
Chad.
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