adentonmiller

On Dec 13th, I ended up driving my 9 month old E61 530D M-Sport into what I thought was merely a deep puddle, but ended up being a flash flood that had caused road subsidence. The car cut out and wouldn't start again..... The car was in about 18 inches of water, so it was sucked into the intake and also flowed up the tailpipe!

I ended up getting a recovery vehicle to take it to the local UK main dealer, who looked at it and said it would be ?14K to repair - needed a replacement engine, turbo, exhaust and carpets (although no water came inside the car)

Last week, the insurance assessor went to look at it and ended up writing the car off - apparently it was a "Class D Uneconomical Repair". They say that becuase it was flood damage, there is no guarantee that if they do repair it, it won't fail again some time later and trigger another insurance claim!

So - boo hoo......no BMW for me right now.

On the plus side, I get a new one!

So - what has changed in the E61 world in the last 9 months since I bought the last one? I am looking at buying exactly the same car again as the old one was fantastic, despite it's aversion to water.

530D E61 Platinum Grey
Sports Auto transmission
Full M-Sports kit (wheels, bodykit, sport suspension, black trim, anthracite headliner etc...)
Media Pack
iPod/USB adaptor
Black Dakota leather
Anthracite Bamboo trim
Heated seats
Side window blinds

The only thing I would add this time around is the Xenon headlights. I had those on my old E60 and they are much better than the standard halogens.

Any new options or colorways I should consider this time around?

Tomba

I feel bad for you

Maybe you should add some color to the interior, I myself prefer to beige dakota leather and trims with brushed aluminium.. Isn't it a bit distracting when the interior is full black?

luigi524td

+1 on the Xenon!

Is Comfort Access available in the UK? I've grown to like it a lot even though BMW charges too much (IMHO) for it - I think it should be standard in a car of this class!

I don't think the beige interior would complement the Platinum Gray exterior ... but the gray leather would be a nice option. And, what upgraded radio would you choose to get the MAX from your IPOD/USB option? Not sure what the "media package" in the UK includes ... Like HD or Logic7??

Oh ... one other feature ... order pontoons and life jackets for all seating positions.

Tomba

Forgot the exterior color..
Yeah, silver/black combination would be good. Just not full black!

SteveNotto

Sun protection glass for the rear + heated rear seats if you have children.It is bloody cold in the UK at the moment !

Did you take out GAP insurance to enable you to buy a brand new car ?

How much was your car valued at after 9 months depreciation ?

adentonmiller

The leasing company is making me up a list of similar spec cars in the UK available for immediate delivery, or I can go for a factory order again. I hope the factory leadtimes have come down from last year. I think it took 22 weeks then.

For the colour...I could maybe go for a little bit of lightness - like perhaps a lighter wood or aluminium interior trim. Maybe a lighter leather. But I really liked the mean look of the old car.

The iDrive/USB combo was excellent as well - although the stereo was only the "business" edition, but sounded good enough. A stereo upgrade would be good, but they are normally silly money.

adentonmiller

Well....it's a company car so I don't know the insurance details, but the figure I heard was a ?35K+ valuation ( on a ?45K new car)

I had the side blinds instead of the sun glass for the rear (but would quite like the whole tinted glass rear look), and the kids are in car seats anyway so I didn't bother with heated rear seats. Just warm bums in the front.

BigMike

Good to hear you'll be getting a new one!

LW78

Make sure that you get the new satnav (professional) with the built-in hard drive. It looks much nicer than the old one!

In my country (The Netherlands), we have a great deal on 530d M-Sport. This a package is also available in Germany (called Edition Sport). It's not mentioned on the Dutch BMW website, but my dealer showed it to me. Ask your dealer about it!

Every country has their own Edition models, but make sure that you buy one of those models!

Imho, you should order at least the following:
- M-sport package
- Satnav Pro
- Hifi upgrade
- Blue tooth
- Xenon
- Sport-auto
- Seat heating
- Comfort seats
- if you have small kids: side window shade's

adentonmiller

Oooh.... I didn't know there was an HD satnav! I had the Professional system with full telematics and voice control on my old car but it was DVD based. When did they introduce that?

As for the other bits, I agree on all except the comfort seats. For some reason i prefer the Sports seats myself. I also had the blinds on the old car and I'd order them again as I do have small children. Although - the Sun Protection Glass option would probably do the same,


I visited the dealer today and there are a few cars in the UK that I could get next week. One in particular is a carbon black 530d mSport, SA with black dakota leather and the full media (Pro Nav, BT, voice etc) and vision package, sun protection glass, detachable towhook, heated seats, etc...

It doesn't have the USB audio option, but they said they could fit one for me for free.

As for the "Edition" versions, I didn't know about those, but I've just checked and there's a "Business" edition available for new 530d MSports (?1,750) with:

Dakota leather upholstery
Navigation system - BMW Professional Multimedia
Bluetooth telephone preparation with telematics
USB audio interface
BMW ConnectedDrive - Assist
BMW ConnectedDrive - Online
Door sill finishers with Edition designation (SE Models only) or M Sport designation
19" light alloy wheel upgrade on M Sport models
Voice control

Which seems an excellent deal compared to the price of doing it separately and is almost exactly the spec I want if i add in heated seats, sun glass or blinds and the headlight pack.

Nice tip - thanks!

What does the "Sport" edition have different to the base mSport car?

Now my dilemma is whether to get a car next week, or in a couple of months time instead.....