As anyone compared 258hp 530i aginst 231hp 530d mainly in terms of performance? Advantages/disadvantages of the two? I noticed, for instance, that acceleration 80?120 km/h on 530d is even faster then 550i (!). On the other hand, I really like the smoothness of the 3.0L petrol engine, etc.

 

It's been discussed alot on the forum.
Big advantages for the petrol: smoothness, soundtrack and more revs and that's pretty much it.

 

PS: Yes diesels are very well known for their ability to pull in gear. In gear they are very fast and faster than most petrol models because of all the torque. But a petrol model is designed to rev to get the juice so it will probably, in real life, use kickdown or downshift. Or also in reallife, you can catch him unprepared and gain a big advantage. I for one vote for the diesel.

 

you would not catch me unprepared
my hands are always on the paddles ready

 

I like the diesel soundtrack when you're 'giving it some'

 

In EU the best E60 buy is the 530d!

 

Yes it's got nothing to do with the diesel we all got used to, the old ones. It sounds more like a big V8 from inside. From the outside i don't think you can hear anything too special except a reved engine and some turbo noise. I never heared a BMW diesel on full throttle from the outside, passing by.

 

I recently went through this decision, voted for diesel, but my experience is a little different. For whatever reason, my auto 530d seems as eager to kick down as its petrol brother, if not more so. The throttle pedal is extremely sensitive and it doesn't take much to persuade it to kick down one or more gears.

It's a bit silly because if you put it in manual and force it to stay in gear, I find the torque is there to use, it's just that the autobox seems to be stuck in a constant battle with itself over whether it should be in a high gear to save fuel or low gear for some fun. It does seem to take rather more concentration on how much throttle you give the car to progress smoothly at speed than you would expect from a premium auto.

That said, I found the petrol a bit too quiet when driving it hard, so no matter how nice the engine sounds, it's a bit wasted, and although the diesel might not actually be any quicker, the low down torque makes it feel quicker. The economy when you're not pushing on is also rather handy too.

Oh, and on my 218BHP iron blocked diesel, you definitely feel the weight in the nose if you push it in a slow corner.

 

Agreed - I want to try the newer 'light' block 231ps version!

 

I thought the latest "light" block using magnesia compound is 258hp ?