05 116i to 02 520i

Mena

Almost nervous to ask this question here... and it's probably (almost) a case of locking the door once the horse has bolted but... I've decided to get rid of the wife's 05 116i (only extras on it would be m/f steering wheel/sports suspension and climate control) and do an outright swop for a mint 02 520i with all the extras (Electric seats, cruise control, leather, climate control, automatic etc etc) with a FBMWSH.

The 116 has 50k on the clock while the 520i has 110 000. I drove the 5 for most of the day today and was well happy with it, to say the least.

The 1 series needs some work done on it, ABS/Traction control unit has failed (1.8/2k), deep scratch on the boot (500 ish), 2 rear tyres (200/270 ish) and a service which I had done this morning for 300 euro but will get refunded for. Going ahead with the swop and the dealer will take care of all of those at their cost.

So. From the experts: Am I mad? What am I missing? Always wanted an E39. Very happy with the 2.2l engine (not fussed about the 525 or 530's). So, hit me with it...

rocknchef

I would swap what ever makes you happy:D do it do it do it

jhegarty

Millage very high on the 520i. Apart from that I think it's a fair enough deal.

Mr.Diagnostic

There is a common problem with the ABS hydraulic units on them that costs the kind of money you are talking about but as far as I am aware the dealers are doing extended warranty on them, cost to you €400. That could change your figures a little.

rocknchef

110k mile for 02 with FBMWSH will go for another 200k

unkel

It's very hard to put a value on a car these days - a price that it would realistically sell for. So I don't know which of the two is worth more. It could be a couple of grand either way. Does it matter? No.

You like the E39, even though the engine is only a 2.2 it is still the lovely straight six. I have driven the older 2.0 with only 150BHP and it still was a superbly set up car. The handling was excellent for a saloon of that size and weight. A proper BMW, which I can't really say about the 116

Once you consider you won't be able to sell the 520 again except for peanuts (which I'm sure you fully realise), you'll be the owner of one of the best BMWs of recent decades. And don't worry about the mileage too much. All cars with big mileage on this countries roads will need some suspension work, but the car itself (including the engine) is built to last a good bit beyond 100k miles.

VolvoMan

That 520 doesn't sound like an Irish car to me with those options. Would it be a Singapore import by any chance?

unkel

VolvoMan wrote: »

That 520 doesn't sound like an Irish car to me with those options. Would it be a Singapore import by any chance?

Betya €0.99 that it is a UK import

Mena

Mr.Diagnostic wrote: »

There is a common problem with the ABS hydraulic units on them that costs the kind of money you are talking about but as far as I am aware the dealers are doing extended warranty on them, cost to you €400. That could change your figures a little.

Either way, saving that 400 and I could put it toward the additional tax she's going to cost me!

VolvoMan wrote: »

That 520 doesn't sound like an Irish car to me with those options. Would it be a Singapore import by any chance?

She is yes.

Cheers for all the advice everyone. Going to go ahead with it :cool:

VolvoMan

Mena wrote: »

She is yes.

Cheers for all the advice everyone. Going to go ahead with it :cool:

Well I'm guessing that you are probably already aware that these cars differ in specification to the ones we get such as a four speed auto rather than the 5 speed we get and a different fan and cooling system. If so, I wish you the best of luck with it. They really do represent good value with that amount of specification.

unkel

It is an import from Singapore? :eek:

How did you suspect that, VolvoMan? The options seem like common options a UK car would have had.

unkel

VolvoMan wrote: »

Well I'm guessing that you are probably already aware that these cars differ in specification to the ones we get such as a four speed auto rather than the 5 speed we get

4 speed? So not a steptronic then either? :eek:

VolvoMan

unkel wrote: »

It is an import from Singapore? :eek:

How did you suspect that, VolvoMan? The options seem like common options a UK car would have had.

Because in the UK you would never get a 520i with all those options, it would more likely be a 525i to have a spec like that.

I also happen know that cars are very heavily taxed in Singapore, and only the likes of the base BMW 520i over there (or today's equivalent) or the Merc E200 Kompressor, etc. They are usually loaded with spec though.

unkel wrote: »

4 speed? So not a steptronic then either? :eek:

I heard that was the case with the E46 3 Series over there, so I'm presuming it's the same on the 5 Series. It is to do with their slow moving traffic over there or something along those lines.

Mr.Diagnostic

Mena wrote: »

Either way, saving that 400 and I could put it toward the additional tax she's going to cost me!

Your maths is a little suspect there. the ABS problem was goin to cost you €1.8/2.0k and could now cost you €400 results in a much bigger saving than €400.

the figures on the deal didnt add up in your first post and even less so if your current car is worth €1400 more due to lower repair costs.

jdf

The road tax on a 2.2 520 is the same as a 525 so you may as well get some value for your money and drive a more powerful car. You get pretty much the same mpg too.

Mena

unkel wrote: »

4 speed? So not a steptronic then either? :eek:

It's a 5 speed with steptronic.

Mr.Diagnostic wrote: »

Your maths is a little suspect there. the ABS problem was goin to cost you €1.8/2.0k and could now cost you €400 results in a much bigger saving than €400.

the figures on the deal didnt add up in your first post and even less so if your current car is worth €1400 more due to lower repair costs.

Maths was never my strong point, my passion for the car however outweighs the maths and thus I resort to "Man Maths" to justify these things. Sure, don't we all when it comes to cars?

Edit: Here it is

unkel

jdf wrote: »

The road tax on a 2.2 520 is the same as a 525

Not quite. It's €823 for the 2.2l and €935 for the 2.5l, but granted, there is relatively little in it.

milltown

Maybe I'm being too suspicious about the SGP import business but rather than take the garage's word for it, make absolutely sure it's the 2.2l engine in it. My sister had an '02 318Ci from SGP and it had the old 1.9l engine that as far as we knew was gone by September '01. If the tax is that punitive in Singapore does that mean they keep the slightly smaller engines selling over there for longer?

OP says he's happy with the drive in the 5er but the 2.2l M54 is a good bit better than the older 2.0l M52.

Mena

milltown wrote: »

Maybe I'm being too suspicious about the SGP import business but rather than take the garage's word for it, make absolutely sure it's the 2.2l engine in it. My sister had an '02 318Ci from SGP and it had the old 1.9l engine that as far as we knew was gone by September '01. If the tax is that punitive in Singapore does that mean they keep the slightly smaller engines selling over there for longer?

OP says he's happy with the drive in the 5er but the 2.2l M54 is a good bit better than the older 2.0l M52.

Well it felt like a 2,2 to me . Documents all appear in order as well.

How exactly would I physically check this?

Rowley Birkin QC

Mena wrote: »

Well it felt like a 2,2 to me . Documents all appear in order as well.

How exactly would I physically check this?

Pretty simple really. Just a matter of removing the head of the engine, making sure the pistons are at their lowest point and filling the cylinders to their capacity. Once filled remove the liquid from the cylinders by using a pipette and measure the amount of liquid you remove. Shouldn't take more than, oh say six hours.

:P

Nice choice by the way and I'm glad to see someone else that isn't too worried about the first two digits on the numberplate of their car.

Voodoomelon

You can get your ABS module refurbished for $300.

http://www.modulemaster.com/

Matt Simis

Voodoomelon wrote: »

You can get your ABS module refurbished for $300.

http://www.modulemaster.com/

Yeah, this is a common Bosch failure (not BMW specific), I got one remanufactured from BBA Remain (on eBay and Web) couple years ago.

Like the colour of that e39 too OP.

Mena

bigkev49 wrote: »

Pretty simple really. Just a matter of removing the head of the engine, making sure the pistons are at their lowest point and filling the cylinders to their capacity. Once filled remove the liquid from the cylinders by using a pipette and measure the amount of liquid you remove. Shouldn't take more than, oh say six hours.

:P

Nice choice by the way and I'm glad to see someone else that isn't too worried about the first two digits on the numberplate of their car.

Ah sure, I'll do it on the way into work tomorrow .

As for those two digits... they mean nothing to me . She's a beaut and the heart always wins over the mind, in my case.

Voodoomelon wrote: »

You can get your ABS module refurbished for $300.

http://www.modulemaster.com/

Cheers for the tip, but I am going to say I simply could not be arsed. I'll swop it over and let the dealer sort it out.

Matt Simis wrote: »

Like the colour of that e39 too OP.

I'm not too taken with the colour at all, but the wife loves it. Then again, I will rarely see the colour sitting in the drivers seat so I don't really care.

Again, cheers for all the tips.

Voodoomelon

I think that E39 is a little too highly priced, closer to €10k-€11k would seem more reasonable.

Mena

Voodoomelon wrote: »

I think that E39 is a little too highly priced, closer to €10k-€11k would seem more reasonable.

I tend to agree, but meh, still very happy with the decision. I'm sure the dealer will make a couple of grand out of it. Maybe it'll keep someone in a job for another month :cool:

Now to start planning the changes:

Cradle for an E51 ( 25 euro )
DICE iPod integration kit ( 160 ish )
Replace the tape deck unit/radio with a Sat Nav 16:9 display ( ouch ). Not sure about this one, OEM looks the nicest but is old, newer kits are far superior but just look totally out of place... Will put this on the long finger I think.

Eric Cartman

im glad to see your putting in the nav, when i saw the ad i was just saying its a pity it doesnt have the satnav option, but your getting that sorted, that sir is a lovely car

Mena

Eric Cartman wrote: »

im glad to see your putting in the nav, when i saw the ad i was just saying its a pity it doesnt have the satnav option, but your getting that sorted, that sir is a lovely car

Why thank you

To be fair, it may be a while before I get that sorted. 5 minutes worth of Google tells me it's around the 1.8k mark, without fitting, something I sure as hell ain't qualified nor brave enough to attempt.

If I can convince the wife that she does not really want an Audi TT them maybe I can do it sooner

Eoin

Mena wrote: »

Replace the tape deck unit/radio with a Sat Nav 16:9 display ( ouch ). Not sure about this one, OEM looks the nicest but is old, newer kits are far superior but just look totally out of place... Will put this on the long finger I think.

I would be surprised if you came out with any change from 1200 for this if you go OEM, I looked into it myself.

Best of luck with the car.

cianclarke

Fab car with a nice spec level, high miler wouldn't suit me but otherwise a nice purchase!
If you're going satnav, I'd try go OEM if you can afford it? Maybe you can retrofit from an E60..?

Eoin

cianclarke wrote: »

Fab car with a nice spec level, high miler wouldn't suit me but otherwise a nice purchase! ?

The advert says 110,000 kilometres, not miles - OP, which is it?

Mena

eoin wrote: »

The advert says 110,000 kilometres, not miles - OP, which is it?

Kilometres. Being from Singapore it's all Km related. 110k Miles would have made me a little more nervous.

Eoin

Mena wrote: »

Kilometres. Being from Singapore it's all Km related. 110k Miles would have made me a little more nervous.

Cool, well as I said, best of luck. I don't know what the 1 series is like, but I know the e39 is a cracking car.

cianclarke

Ah, I thought it was miles - that's feck all!

alpina

It's the wife's 116 (?) so presumably she will be the one driving it, how does she feel about the difference in size/manouverability/parking/tax & petrol difference? Be sure to look at all of these prior to changing...

Mena

alpina wrote: »

It's the wife's 116 (?) so presumably she will be the one driving it, how does she feel about the difference in size/manouverability/parking/tax & petrol difference? Be sure to look at all of these prior to changing...

Used to be. Lease ended on my e90, I stole the 116, swopping for the e39 and have to get the wife either a Z4, Z3 or Audi TT. She's after the TT now though...

As to her thoughts on the e39, hated the idea, drove the car and promptly told me to make the switch asap . She loves it.

Voodoomelon

Thought it was miles too, not a bad deal then at all.

L-M

Voodoomelon wrote: »

Thought it was miles too, not a bad deal then at all.

+1

Had some one try trade in a 3 series last year from Singapore. First I'd heard of it. Car had been painted a few times and the mileage didn't check so that was that, lol.