DFWRaider

Picked up the 545 on Monday (black/black, steptronic, non-sport, premium sound, cold weather pkg, auto rear shade) after 18 months of driving an almost identical 530i. I loved the 530 (Dec 2003 build), but because of it's great handling it made me thirst for more performance and speed. I made a casual inquiry to my sales guy several weeks ago, and after a week of negotiations (via back and forth emails), he made me a deal I couldn't refuse. (My sales guy also took the time to locate a car that had the exact same colors and options as my 530; the only thing I wanted that he couldn't find was a 6-speed manual -- apparently there aren't alot of them floating around right now and I didn't want to sacrifice my good deal by ordering a car to be built).

After a couple of days of driving, I have to say that the 545 is an absolute BEAST on the road. My 530 was certainly respectable (it blew away many a GS330 during "stop light racing"), but the increase in power is amazing. When I first drove the 545, I almost gave myself whiplash because I punched it in Sport mode without realizing what I was asking for. In fact, when driving at 65 on the freeway I almost gave myself whiplash again when I punched it to pass another car. The handling is incredible at high speeds (like the 530), and the brakes are far firmer and more responsive than the 530's.

In Steptronic Sport mode, there is a huge difference between the 530 and 545. The 530 at times didn't seem to be all that different between normal and sport mode; it didn't rev much higher in S or drive all that differently. The 545, on the other hand, is MUCH different in S -- it revs extremely high and absolutely goes on a tear when the pedal is punched. It's a major league head rush.

Inside the car is very similar to the 530, but there is more wood paneling on the dash and the quality of materials is somewhat better (I'm assuming this was an E60 improvement for MY 2005). Also, my interior door handles are wood paneled whereas they were metal in the 530.

All in all, the 545 is everything I expected and more. I'm having to watch myself during the break-in period so I don't rev it too high. Today I let one of my coworkers (an Audi A6 owner) drive back from lunch, and he was in awe. He said it was the fastest car he's ever driven bar none (I have a hunch driving an Audi makes many cars seem fast though).

In any event, I highly recommend the 545. Right now there are great deals on them since the 550 is coming out in a few months, and I can't see the extra 30 hp making enough of a difference to justify increase in price and terms that will probably come along with it. I loved my 530 more than any car I had owned to date, but the 545 is simply a different animal altogether on the road.

Here are a few pics...

TitaniumGray5

Congrats...very nice!

stream

Congrats--enjoy!

Asahi

Congrats...the car looks great. The 545i is the best of both worlds....luxary and performance.

Great color....enjoy...

alohalc

congrats, dfwraider ! if you don't mind telling us, what kind of deal are you getting?

Bokke

Congrats!

Which Dealer?

530iii

Good move! Reminds me of some other members on this board.

It'll be tough getting thru the break in period.

After that's over with, you can unleash the beast.

ChaseCIA

Super ride......enjoy!

DFWRaider

Moritz in Arlington. They are absolutely a first class, totally ethical operation. When I came into sign the paperwork it was exactly as promised to the penny, no hard sell, no cheesy tricks, etc. I've had the same sales guy for both my cars, and he is the ultimate in providing customer service before and after the sale.

Almost two years ago when I first ordered my 530, I first went to another area dealership in Richardson and it was the worst experience I've ever had buying a car. I put a deposit down, waited three months for the car to show up, and it came in with several thousand dollars worth of extra options I never ordered, plus they tried to charge me double for leather seats (they charged me for "premium package" which included leather plus another $1500 for leather seats). After it came in, the dealership tried to strong arm me into buying it, never apologized, and their sales manager called me repeatedly at work threatening me because I posted about my experience on roadfly.org. A coworker who had a 528 had warned me about them, but I went to them anyway because they were close by and found out the hard way.

Moritz is the exact opposite, and I've been nothing but pleased with them. I live in Far North Dallas, but whenever I need service they drive a loaner car to me at work, pickup my car, and return it when it's ready. I highly recommend them.

Bokke

Moritz is great! I got my M5 from them. It's just to bad they are so far for us - Far North Dallas as well. Had a similar experience with the Richardson dealer.

Hope to see you on streets of DFW...