hanyoung

Hello,
I am new to the forums!

I have been looking at sporty wagons, with the A4 avant in mind, but stumbled across a used 535xiT at our MB/Audi dealership. I will be honest and have always thought the E60/61 front looked a little "librarian with funky 60s glasses," but have seen what everyone has done to their wagons and am excited to see the possibilities! My dream was to have a 335 wagon come to the states, and the 535 maybe a great car to fill into that spot!

The info on the local car is here: http://www.carouselmotors.com/used-i...PT73548CX00763

Pros:
- Great engine. Always have loved turbo engines (I am coming from a Subaru WRX)
- Options I would want (sport, nav, etc)

Cons:
- High mileage (due for 60k service).
- Not a fan of run-flats. Would likely buy a summer rim combo and switch these tires for winters
- Looks are subjective, but would think about replacing the front bumper with M5 replica (cheesy?)

?:
- After research, I know to check for HPFP recall, and possible sunroof leak
- I plan to keep this car for 5+ years. I put on at most 10k per year of mileage. Am I crazy for thinking about buying this car, re: maintenance?
- What should I look for on carfax, research?
- Price? This car has been on the lot for a while. Any recs on offers?

Thanks so much!

vanos

I don't think the A4 Avant and 5 Series Touring is a fair comparison. It is more like the A6 Avant vs the E61. I went full circle over the past 11-years. Had a BMW E39, went to an allroad and now back to BMW. I love wagons and picked up a 530xiT over the A6 Avant primarily based on the drive of the BMW > A6 and I wanted to go back to BMW.

The price seems high for a 60k mile car, then again I wouldn't be concerned about high mileage German cars because they are rock solid. I would focus on the history/past maintenance on the car. Definitely check the drains, these cars suffer from HPFP failures (check if the HPFP has been replaced on this particuliar car). Get rid of the run flats if used, you will get a much better ride on standard high-performance tires. Get a spare.

Like any German car do your research, look at the history of the car, set money aside for maintenance, and enjoy the ride because when they are tidy these cars are great!

As for the looks, I much prefer the E61 over the looks of the E60.

On a side note, my wife recently mentioned she prefers the looks of Audi's because they are more rounded and feminine. She finds the E61 very manly, which is a compliment.

gummysDad

The HPFP has a separate warranty up to 10 yrs / 120k miles. That said, you're relying on the dealer to identify the issue as the HPFP, and not something else they WILL charge you for once the car is out of warranty. There is a new seal you can get for your sunroof for less than $50 I think, do a search. That should keep leaks at bay.
Tire change is very simple, I think changing the bumper to M5 or M-Tech is a must, so much better looking.
Only concern I have with mine [also a 08 xit] is the cost of repairs down the road once CPO is out. The whole car is one big computer, so an electrical glitch late in the cars life could cost a bunch to even identify.

Lotus99

For the HPFP, there's a recall out on them (as well as on fuel injectors), so if it hasn't been done, that should be an easy, no hassle, thing to do, even if it's not been done. Even after it's replaced, BMW put out a 10 year warranty on them, due to the issues they were having (prior to issuing the recall), so I'd think cost wise, you wouldn't have a concern in terms of it costing you anything to fix down the road.

It's a super easy diagnosis too. Pumps dying you start getting longer crank times, and sometimes errors that are read by their diagnostics. I wouldn't think they can screw up the diagnosis much, if you've thrown codes. I've not read many complaints of that happening on E90Post, where a lot of 335's are. If you just go in with the complaint of long cranking, sometimes that might not be easy for them to just replace the HPFP, and they might try a software update first to see if it fixes it. Rarely I've read the LPFP gets replaced, when someone was having fueling issues.

norsecarnut

The mileage itself isn't an issue for me but I'd rather be buying from a bmw dealer where you could be getting the same car including a 6/100 warranty. Often this will also bring with it new tires, brakes, possibly already replaced hpfp, etc.

Why are you not a fan of run flats, because that's the thing to say these days? The newest rft designs actually feel fine, apparently much unlike the older versions. I have them on for winter and they feel great, I don't know what people are complaining about except maybe they were riding on ones not as good as the ones I got? I'm also sticking with 18" wheels though and that allows for some sidewall and possibly nicer overall feel. There is no full size spare in bmw's, which you may have appreciated in the A4 and many other Audi cars so keep in mind the picture of what you'll be doing when a flat occurs and what makes sense for your needs. Personally, I'm not keen on waiting days for a special tire when I'm on a trip of any sort. Nor am I a fan of not getting to where I am going on whatever day it could occur. I travel with a full size spare.

"5 PLUS years" ? Well, then maybe you are the ideal candidate for giving yourself a little more time to find one with 100k warranty. Think about the money and time frame. Lower mileage upon purchase is going to be your best route as well as cpo. People who switch out in 3 yrs don't benefit as much from the higher up front cost. Even if you run past the warranty in time while you have it, you also got some time to work out any issues which ought to make for less trouble down the road.

For example, mine is fairly well optioned, had a msrp of $67k and it's a manual, so it's also rare which contributes to sale pricing. It had only 29k miles, cpo, perfect condition, and my out the door price was $38k, or 39. Is 70,000 miles of warranty and 2.5 years coverage worth $5000 to you? Well if not, don't worry, the automatics like you're looking at are priced lower. Well, they may be priced high but they sell lower. Mine was priced at $42k.

As for the car itself, with you having been looking at the Audi, much smaller and completely different handling car, what are your real needs or purpose here? I would actually more closely compare a bmw x5 than an A4 Audi Avant. If you want something sportier feeling, but just enough space for some practicality, then the e61 is not the best solution, even though I love mine. What's more fun to drive though, without even being close, my Audi S4 Avant. If you want the best mpg, then don't bother, but if you only drive 10k / yr and want a higher fun factor, the S4 Avant could blow your mind in terms of it's overall package. You can get 07-08 S4 Avants as cpo from dealers for that same price range you are considering but the manual is extremely rare, more rare than with the e61.

The best overall in terms of cost, fuel economy, useability, etc, could in fact be an Audi A4 Avant, 2.0T, and manual. Cheaper up front cost, cpo too 6/100, with option to get coverage at Audi dealer for 7 yrs, 110,000 miles (this is because some dealers sell an extended warranty which adds it's miles on rather than capping it at 100k even. i.e., a car with 48k miles, adding a 4yr/60 k = 4 years from start date and 108,000 miles) I'm sure some bmw warranties can do this too but I never hear of them.

So there you go, I love the bmw, and it's my primary driver now because the Audi got taken over by my partner. However I'm not going to feed you cool-aid just because this is a bmw forum.

norsecarnut

Mine was cpo, and I remember seeing some notes about injectors so I guess those were done. However, the dealer where I bought it, Leith in Raleigh, NC, only farted around with the hpfp software first, which led me to a mid cross country trip to my nearest dealer. No, the car didn't "die" or need a flatbed, but the warning message can sure freak you out. Then I got to spend half the day at a dealer, which could have been worse. I was fairly annoyed the initial dealer didn't just f-ing fix it when it was a known likely failure.

norsecarnut

The 08 A4 Avant, cpo, is a lot cheaper, but then again it was a lower msrp too:

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...standard=false

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...standard=false

Lotus99

I wouldn't compare the A4/S4 Avant size wise though to the 5 series. The A4's trunk (and I assume same goes for S4 that's the same platform) is quite a bit smaller. No?

norsecarnut

Agreed on the tough comparison. For the larger wagon sizes, the BMW handles much better than the A6/Allroad size Audi. But then again, I found our e91 tighter than an A4, but the S4 has a much better suspension and handling than the A4 due to completely different springs and dampers, and the brakes are far better too, oh and the exhaust letting you hear the v8 growl

I think you are right on the appearance of the e61, however I also think it's more about who's driving them. Do either of these really appear more or less "his" or "hers" :

luigi524td

I would definitely have a BMW dealer pull service and maintenance records and check the VIN against all recalls and service records. Also verify warranty coverages including any extended service programs that may be in place for this car. You might find a surprise that the original owner prepaid for optional coverages! And if they did, those coverages follow the car NOT the owner!

Good luck with your decision!