I am about to become 40 in a week and some b*****d has just written off my V70 by T-boneing me. So I thought it's time for a change. I am undecided between E61 and E91 but favour E61.

The car will need to be pretty inexpensive therefore I'll go as early as I can within reason. I will have a 3 litre engine and despite only doing 10k miles a year I think I am moving towards the diesel as I like the low down torque of turbo engines and it is so much easier to get another 20% out of them (chipping).

I have seen some threads in this forum (guys, you really keep a good and very informative panel here, congratulations) that suggest some horror stories with the M57TUD30 but also news of an upgrade around September 2004(?) Is this date correct and has it solved the known problems?

Also can anyone give me an idea about the servicing costs of the 3 litre petrol and diesel engines?

I am also hankering after an auto, are there any horror stories, are there any updates to the auto boxes since the introduction? I ask because I thought there was only one 6 speed auto but someone is advertising a 530d with a 5 shifter. Maybe the ad is wrong?

I will be going for an SE with leather and heated front seats (hopefully) and alu interior. Are there any other optional extras that I should be looking out for?

To summaries, 330 or 530, petrol or diesel, which box, what date of manufacture between 2004 and 2006 (depending on serious mechanical upgrades) what extras.

I apologise if this is a too common request and ends up boring some of you. I promise that I will post more interesting items once I have my Beemer.

 

Welcome to the forums!

Sorry as I am to hear about the V70, you'll certainly not regret the move to an E61, I am sure.

This is by no means the most exhaustive reply, but here are some quick points and observations:

- There was an engine update in Sep 05, I think. The 3.0d went from 218ps to 231ps. In many markets, this update brough the particulate filter and Euro-4 emissions compliance. You can normally tell these cars from earlier ones by straight tailpipes (as opposed to downwards-curved ones) and the appearance of the start/stop ignition button.
- As far as I am aware, there has never been a 5-speed manual on the E60/E61.


I have a 2006 530d, manufactured in October 2005, so it has the updated engine and the start/stop button, and it's an auto. Thus far, not a single problem with the car or the auto box, with the exception of a period late last year when the 'box seemed ponderous. A software ugrade took care of that problem. My car hit 80k km on my way into work this morning, and I have run it long and hard, including lots of autobahn runs and multiple Amsterdam-Milan-Amsterdam trips.

The 5er depreciates a lot quicker than the 3er so, buying used, you're probably going to get much, much more car for your money if you go down the E61 route. Of course, the 3er is more "sporty" as compared to the 5er, so there's personal taste/requirement in there too. Also given that you're looking at a used car, spend the time looking for one that has as many of the added extras as possible, as you're probably not going to pay much of a premium to get them. In my book, the ones that make a difference are:
- Satnav Pro (this has the 8 inch screen with moving maps)
- 6-disk changer
- Logic-7 audio

I'd download a 5er borchure from the BMW site and look over the different packages and options lists and form an opinion of what you'd like to see on the car and then go shopping. Here in the Netherlands, the bottom has fallen out of the 5er market (to the extent that many BMW dealers are resitant to taking in a 5er in p/x), so there are many, many bargains to be had, and I'm guessing the UK market is the same.

Can't comment on servicing costs other than the fact that they will vary from dealer to dealer, so you'll need to shop around. I'm sure some of our UK members can provide more on these.

 

Thank you MacSid. The market is certainly much softer in the UK too. You can usually get a similar age and spec of 3 and 5 series for the same money despite the E61 starting at much higher.
I appreciate your comments and look forward to hearing from other afficinados.
Cheers

 

How inexpensive?......helps to know this before people start throwing out advice that may be beyond your situation. Good luck with the hunt and

 

Hi Phil, thanks for the 'welcome'. In the UK I have seen high mileage 2004 530d SE's starting from ?10k. But decent looking late 2005-2006 cars start from ?13k. I have up to ?15k for the very right car.

 

I just bought a UK E61 525 d se manual 2005, metallic paint, 80K, beige leather, comfort electric seats, panoramic roof, poplar wood, upgraded hi-fi ... ?9,500.

There are no buyers with CASH ? just be patient, and ? the ROOF is a MUST ! Its wonderful ?

The 525 d is awesome ? I wanted the 530, but quite honestly can't ee why I would need more power ? Perhaps with auto box this would be needed.

If you are going to go for an automatic, dont touch anything with more than 50K (actually, dont buy a second hand auto ? full stop) ? imho !

 

Thanks for the post Frost015. I suppose I am used to 260bhp on a lighter car and don't want to go back. 530d has 231bhp and I hear that it is safely chipable to 290ish. I read a lot of posts mentioning B & W of Hounslow, so I might give them a call once I bought the car. Can anyone post me the contact numbers please.
Thanks

 

Why would you need more with an auto and why don't touch an auto second hand?

 

Yeah, the auto box of the 530d is quite durable. I've owned a remapped 530d with 120k mls. on it, which shifted as new. The only auto transmission that has durablity problems is the 5-speed auto of the X5 and the e39.
I would definetely buy the auto!

Also, I prefer the following extra's:
- Anything but the standard seats => sport seats or comfort seats
- If you like music, make sure you have the upgraded audio system (hifi or Logic 7)