jpm

Hello everyone,

Can you tell me please - i'm thinking of buying either an E60 2003 530d or a 2004 525d with a budget of about 22k, both in auto form and not sure which one to get.
Power is fairly important but economy is of equal importance what sort of figures do you get from either car in auto form in real world conditions? Is anything else better about one or other?
Any advice you can give me will be much appreciated......

Thanks,

JPM

Ricracing

530d, best choice of all E60's!

Hope the car is a A and equipped with what you need to have.

07530d

My 6 week old 530d (231) auto is 34mpg ave (2K miles) which includes some fast periods. However, I test drove a 530d (218hp) (pre Sept 2005) and it was very harsh and noisy but still very fast and powerful. Tested a 525 d manual and it felt weak compared to the 530 (218). I'd wait till you can afford a post Sept 2005 530d - it is amazing

mr_djurgarden

I would go for the 525d. It's newer.

colejl

True. The 525d is apparently more refined than the 530d of that period - but the 530d is the choice for power. As already mentioned the 530d has received the block and injector update from Sept. 2005 - this hasn't hit the 525d yet...

In regards to economy there probably isn't much between them in auto form. I'd bet in real-world conditions that they'd be the same unless you're really nailing it...

MrTrilby

I recently bought a 2004 530d, and test drove the 525d and 530d to work out which one I wanted.

I found the 525d was noticeably more refined than the 530d, although both are much worse than a petrol and much better than a 4 pot diesel.

I found the power differential between the 525d and 530d to be huge - the 2.5 feels "adequate", the 3 litre quick, and is a lot more confident overtaking.

Economy wise, I drove both cars back to back over the same route (country A roads). The 525d got 27MPG and the 530d got 32MPG. Both were autos. The MPG and performance swung it for me. Didn't see any point saving a bit of money up front only to get worse economy and less power.

Over more varied driving conditions, my 530d is getting between 34 and 38MPG depending on how hard it's driven, and the balance between town and motorway driving. 36MPG seems a good average to work from, then adjust up depending on how you think you'll drive it.

Best thing to do though is to find a dealer with both models on the forecourt, and drive them. I found the dealer really helpful when they thought they might sell me a car - they just chucked me the keys for both and let me play for the afternoon. (They also offered the keys to a 535d, but my wallet declined the offer).

colejl

I held back from saying the 530d would actually be better than the 525d because when you do a load of 525d owners jump in and protest!!!

It can be indeed true that a car can be 'underpowered' and actually make the engine strain and have to work harder thus hitting consumption...

needforspeed

Personally - 530d - it's going to be more expensive to begin with, but will sell for more as well.

I bought a March 04 530d in Jan 06 for ?24,000.

But ... be careful getting an 03 model with no warranty left - if your budget is absolute, then you might be better getting a 525d with a years warranty remaining. Having said that, I would suggest you find a bit more and get the 530d - you only live once.

bruce_miranda

Think about the 525d and then DMS it upwards.

MTRHEAD

I'd say it also depends on whether you are new to Diesel ownership. I never ever thought I'd be driving a diesel AND enjoy it but I'm so pleased I went for the (218) 530D rather than the 525D. The sheer grunt from the 530D makes up for drop in refinement in moving over to Diesel in the first place. I'm getting about 36mpg mixed and its fun,fun, fun to drive. If the new 530D is more refined I'd go for another one in an instant (well that is until I could afford the 535D!)