I've been looking for a really high spec 535d for a long while now but I've been unsuccessful. However, I've stumbled upon a really high spec 525d which was not what I was ready to buy but it has now become a serious possibility. I'm trying to get a realistic market value for the car but Parkers.co.uk do not list prices for cars this new. Any opinions on the true market value?

Car: 525d LCI Auto M Sport Saloon
Reg date: October 2008 (58 plate)
Colour: Carbon black
Miles: 7k

Main options:
Dakota Leather
19" 172M wheels
Visibility pack
Bluetooth phone prep + telematics
DAB digital radio
Dynamic Drive
Elec Fr Seats + Driver Memory
Ext. mirrors - folding. auto dimming
Head-up Display
Hi-Fi system LOGIC7 Professional
Navigation-system Professional
Night Vision
Seat heating. front
Steering wheel heating
Universal remote control
USB interface
BMW ConnectedDrive-Assist and Online
Metallic paint
Auto gear box
Rear side airbags

This is a massive spec for a 525d and thus it is the only reason for it even being an option for me. I do feel a bit disappointed that it doesn't have Comfort Seats which I always thought would be a mandatory option for me. However, this car has dynamic drive which is as rare as rocking horse crap so I've over looked this aspect. The power difference between the 535d is very large (to be expected) but the increased MPG is very welcomed.

Brand new list price for this car is ~?49k (includes ~?14.5k of options).

Anyway, any ideas on 2nd hand market value in the UK?

 

Carbon Black is sweet!

 

wow, logic7 is pretty rare too

 

Great options for a 525d, especially the HUD, how much is it advertised for? Looking on autotrader similar cars are around ?28k. In current conditions your likely to be able to get around 5% off quite easily, Goodluck

 

It's listed at ?34k. I've had a look through autotrader and there aren't any 525d's that are anywhere near as spec'd out as this one. For example, there is no other LCI 525d that has Logic 7, HUD, Night vision or Dynamic drive but this 525d has all 4.

Even moderately spec'd out 525d's seemed to be closer towards the ?30k mark. It's quite hard to find the correct search criteria on Autotrader so if there are any specific ones then could you link them so I can compare.

Having said that, I will not be paying the full ?34k as it is over priced but I've not gotten round to the negotiation part.

Thanks.

 

My car is nearly indentical spec to that, except I have comfort seats.

I would consider selling you them with a part ex on your standard sports seats as I also have Black Dakota Leather, mint condition.

I would have to have a sit and look at the standard seats first tho , oh and I live up the road in Sleaford nr Grantham so not far away

 

In price terms 34k would be in the ball park vis-a-vis the overall car type/year/mileage and specification ? it would not appear to be over-valued per se in my view; the value depends on the seller and your negotiation standpoint.

Here?s a view on the options you list that are seducing you from the prior preference for a 535d with comfort seats etc.......

HUD ? a useful option to have and worth going the extra mile for.

Night Vision ? I have this on my 7er (came as no cost to me); it is not worth the price of entry so to say, it?s a cut above a toy maybe, however not that important to me, novelty value only.

Dynamic Drive ? I have DD on both my e60 and e65; both benefit greatly from the active roll bar function. The e60 is a SE model hence the softer suspension which provides greater roll/pitch is massively aided here; the e65 being a very heavy beast which also has sport suspension does ?require? the DD and works well on such a lump of a car.

As for the 525d m-sport you mention here I?d not be so sure that it is worth the money to have this fitted on an m-sport. I drove a 530i m-sport last year with DD and it did not appear to be greatly different to a std. m-sport model under ?normal? road driving.

Logic 7 ? a very worthwhile option in my view; far better than std.

Comfort Seats ? worth every penny; my view is do not compromise on this; the std. seats are plainly awful, the sport seats are not that brilliant either, I can?t say anymore here..........

 

Thanks for the advice. I agree with everything you say except for DD. I've test driven e60s with and without this and I really notice the difference. I live in Milton Keynes which is just full of roundabouts so I would benefit massively from the decreased cornering roll. I don't want to compromise on Comfort Seats but the possibility of a retro fit is what may make me seal the deal. Anyway, thanks for the second opinion on the car value.

 

As part of the purchase deal for this car, I may be able to get free software updates for any bits that I need doing. Here is my list of things:

1. General software update of iDrive software to newest version.
2. Software update to enable extra features following retro fit of SAT
3. Software update to make the wing mirrors fold in upon locking the car.
4. Software update to enable Extended Voice Control.
5. Software update to allow retro fit of heated Comfort Seats to work

Are there any other software updates that I should consider or retro fits that may require a software update as part of it.

Thanks.

 

Hey techno sorry for the late reply, your right, the cars i was comparing it with did not have the HUD or logic 7, night vision or DD, but were similar mileage, age, and had media package, 172's etc. Personally i think 34k for that right now is overpriced, and dont forget most the cars on autotrader i was comparing it with were also bmw used approved cars, and forecourt prices are generally higher than private or auction sales. Getting it down to around ?30k would be more than 10% off, so may be a little difficult, but at that price its a great buy.