needforspeed

Heiss - nice to see we are on the same wavelength - shame we are a few thousand miles apart or we could have had a drag race

Your right about the economy - IMO this only really makes a difference if you have high annual milage - I expect to run 25000 miles a year (high in the UK) which will make the diesel the safer choice.

Another point for me is that my car is 2 years (2nd hand purchae) and I intend to sell in perhaps another 3. So at that point it's going to be 5 years old with 130,000 miles on the clock. I reckon a diesel will sell for about ?7k in that condition, petrol for half that.

I think the Audi is just an indication of what COULD happen in years to come - it works for long distance races due to less frequent fuel stops.

Heiss5

I'd love to do a drag race, maybe some day.

I only put on about 10,000 miles a year, so the 530i works for me.

You really think you're only going to get about ?7K for your car after 5 years? I bet you could probably get about ?10K depending on it's overall condition. Granted 130,000 miles is quite a few, but there are people selling 2001 530i's with 100K+ miles on them for ?10K on ebay.

2wheels

Heiss5 Sorry for not articulating my point, I did not intend to confuse

My point was simply that the diesel engine enables power to be more easily obtained without the need to work the gearbox. In this case driving it fast would be easier in the real world.

It is very common to hear owners of 520d and 525d claim their cars are as quick as their previous 528i or 530i

The drag race would certainly be worth a ticket

Heiss5

Ahhh, I see. Good point, and based off of everything we've learned I would say you are most certainly correct. In 4th gear the diesel accelerates from 50-70 mph a full 1.5 seconds faster, which is quite the difference.

If there are enough people interested maybe we should start selling tickets, yes?

needforspeed

?7k is the 'what car' estimate and would be a trade in value. I could beat that private sale, but probably won't bother.

norham

Don't get me wrong I'm a diesel supporter and until this e60 had diesel audi's. mine is Feb04 and checking Parkers online valuation our cars have depreciated about the same over the past 2 years. However where you have an advantage is diesels will sell quicker than petrol especially here where I am. But in my case I couldn't justify the extra for a diesel when I'm only doing approx 6000 miles a year. This argument is an ever evolving one some say that with the difference in the prices you are paying for your economy up front when you buy a diesel car or like me you pay as you use the petrol hence the less milage you do the less you pay. But I do firmly believe that BMW do not engineer their diesel engines with economy as the primary object but for power hence the 535 was introduced. I'm not a fan of top gear but their recent comparison with 535/540i proves the point practically the same in performance but the figures clarke quoted for their track day with the 535 of 12 something mpg was scary. This is just my opinion and I'm sure some will disagree. Another point am I right in thinking Bmw have just made Diesels available in the USA now there's a question why is that.

needforspeed

If I only did 6000 miles a year then I would have probably thought twice about a diesel - theres no significant financial benefit for you at that mileage.

I also agree that BMW diesels are engineered for power (but I do think they are still quite economic) as is easy seen when you compare stats with other makes.

In terms of depreciation what car say this:



The 523 depreciates in a very similar way to the 530d (i guess cause both are economic in use), but in comparison 530i takes a bigger hit.

This reinforces my expectation that a 5 yr old high milage diesel will be easier to sell than a similar petrol car.

norham

Yep diesel cars second hand will always be easier to sell. In our respective cases I may well have the equaliser in the lower milage But I am a firm believer cars with 100 +k have nothing wrong with them in fact my friend has a Toyota jeep with 239000 yes 239000 miles and its as smooth as a baby,s b***om.

needforspeed

Is it a HILUX like the one top gear tried to destroy:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/topgear/prog28/toyota.shtml

pedrollo

What Car figures gave a retained value for my 535d E61 as about 64% from memory, which would make it very economic to own. When I showed the figures to a dealer (three actually) they all laughed and suggested that 50% was more realistic.

Time will tell of course, but I have serious doubts about some of the magazine projections. My e39 530d sport touring was the undisputed leader in its class according to every magazine going, but I lost more on that than any other car I have ever had.

Intelligence is supposed to be defined as learning by your mistakes , oooh dear!