My wifes heart is set on a BMW 5 series and I must admit they do seem a good 2nd hand buy now. With a maximum of £6000 to spend we have been looking at a number of high mileage 1996/97 cars. I am not considering anything without a lot of history but I am just wondering if anyone has any hints or tips as to what to look out for? I have seen mentioned the problem of premature bore wear and that this was solved by steel-lined bores. How do I check if this has been done or needs doing?
Any hints, tips or advice of any kind would be much appreciated.
Andy
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In my experience...
If you go for one with a steptronic 'box, be prepared for dreadful fuel economy. Leather trim - slippy & like sitting on boards. Poor lights. Expensive to maintain.
Sorry to be so negative, but that's what I found...
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My personal view
Buy post 98 - all bore problems solved after that
Avoid air con: extra expense if it goes wrong .. or budget £500 for repairs.
Check disks- rust at rear - scores at front.
Usual clonks etc..
Personally I would not buy a high mileage one without a Full BMW SH..and recent service MUST be in last 6 months (or what horrors have been left to fester?)
madf
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Many thanks for the advice. It looks like I'm going to have to stretch the budget a touch further.
Thanks again
Andy
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Avoid air con: extra expense if it goes wrong .. or budget £500 for repairs.
I don't understand why the aircon being an expense if it goes wrong a reason to avoid cars with it?
Surely a car with non functioning aircon is just the same as a car without air conditioning?
So what possible reason have you got not to buy a car with it incase it goes wrong? Worst case scenario you get a months nice use out of it, then it dies, leaving you in a better situation than you would have been had you bought a car without it, because at least you can repair it should you wish.
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Dear BMW buyer
Its a same you couldn't squeeze to about £7k.
£7000 was all the trade was willing to pay for a 2000/W
BMW 528SEI manual with 84k at Manheim Leicester 2 weeks ago.
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Is this the Manheim at Shepshed? Do they get a lot of 5 series through the doors?
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Correct - Manheim Shepshed Charnwood Road
The numbers vary but you see them at every sale. Note
that automatics are generally more desirable. Opinion
varies but the best all rounders are said to be the
528 and the 530V8 derivatives. Some of the Blackbushe
cars in HJs reports also look quite promising.
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As a quick aside, what do you think of the prices at Shepshed? They usually seem on the high side to me. Gets me wondering how many people there are traders, and how many private buyers.
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Good question.
Prices can be unpredictable. In February prices went skyward
whereas in January some real bargains were to be had. March-April fairly steady. It partly depends on who the vendor is and remember that Shepshed's close proximity to the M1 means that people attend from miles around. Im going back on the 27th.
Most Shepshed customers seem to be in the trade judging by how
few people approach the rostrum with the £300 deposit for non-account holders. Of the few that do some will be traders from the 'twilight zone' which means I'd say Private buyers there are few and far between.
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...but the best all rounders are said to be the
528 and the 530V8 derivatives
Sorry to be picky but the 530 (and 528) is a straight six. The V8's can be (even more) expensive if they go wrong.
A couple of good sources for info:
www.bmwland.co.uk
s3.invisionfree.com/5series
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Yes you appear to be correct there. The 530
appears to be a six from HJs notes. However
I was aiming for substance not technicalities.
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Use HJ's list of what to check when buying. (FAQ section).
Look for pristine body, good tyres (in terms of wear and make -if they are budget, likelyhood is that the care and servicing may be skimped).
All reciepts with FSH also important.
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I have a friend who has a 165k mile 96 P Reg (i think) 528i. Got it at 80k miles. very little has gone wrong - only things associated with wear and tear. hasnt lost much in depreciation over 4 years either
He said he will most definitely buy another.
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Blackbushe cars, what are these then?
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