E60 manual or auto?

MojoMaker

I've always had auto E39's and they make sense the bigger the engine but looking now for opinions on how the manual box works out in the smaller-engined E60 5-series, specifically the 523i from 05/06 vintage.

Would it be a waste of time trying to live with the manual version as it is with manual in any large engined petrol or does the manual suit the 523i, also any observations on resale manual vs auto in the smaller lump?

Test drive was decent and the manual felt at home but can't help feeling this target market is 100% auto-sensitive or am I over-reading this?

Some difference between the E39 and the E60 on the road, drive like different animals altogether - E39 more driver focused, E60 more barge-like, albeit a much more luxurious barge it goes without saying. Interior up at least two notches over the E39 and I suppose it's where you spend all your driving time etc.

Fire away....

matt-dublin

i would have through you inda get the best of bothe worlds with the e60, doesnt the auto come with tiptronic as well?

i also think the auto gearboxes are more efficient than they used to be and run smoother than they used to now in the smaller engines.

im looking for an e60 myself and will probably go for a 520 msport auto

Mr Benevolent

It depends on where you live and what your urban/motorway/rural mileage split is. If you drive in a lot of urban traffic you'll quickly regret buying a manual. Similarly, motorway traffic jams make everyone I know who drives yearn for an auto. The only route which favours a manual is twisty country back roads, and even then that will probably only be a small % of your journey.

Bottom line, if you're used to an auto, stick to it. Chances are you won't even need to use the tiptronic, but it's nice to know it's there.

Gumbo

Personaly speaking i would have an auto in the E60.

Anan1

Auto every time, unless the car is really underpowered.

enviro

Manual all the way imo. More control, easier on fuel, less expensive if something goes wrong.

Although if you want something thats easier to operate and have that "go kart" style drive, especially around town go with the auto.

MojoMaker

Points taken. Let me ask another one then - how sensitive is the market to manual boxes in the E60 regardless of engine? When buying dealers will tell you all about control, driving dynamics, fuel savings, and when selling they'll tell you all about comfort, ease of driving, auto suiting the chassis and torque characteristics etc.

Is it madness to consider a mid-range E60 in manual trim even with the rest of the goodies - sat nav, leather, xenons, park assist etc?

Anan1

If you're happy to put up with manual and it's cheap enough to buy then go ahead, but a 6 cyl manual E60 will be hard to shift come resale. A 520d manual might appeal to the meanies, but anything nicer will be an oddball without auto.

MojoMaker

I remember the E39 530D being more popular in manual than auto form, anyone at all like/drive larger petrol lumps with manual? Or is it more to do with the market segmentation of the E60 vs the E39 - i.e. older profile etc?

R.O.R

We have a manual 2007 523i SE that came back to us after giving the driver numerous issues. Not fully loaded, but Leather and Bluetooth above the standard SE trim. With an Auto box we may have stood a chance of shifting it on, but with the manual transmission the offers we were getting were stupidly low.

Having driven it a few times, and Auto equivalents, I'd say you would need to buying it at an absolute steel. To me, the Auto version in any of the 5 Series models is much better than the Manual. An 08 520d in manual makes a little bit of sense because of the low road tax, but the Auto version is so much nicer to drive.

I'd also be wary of any BMW petrol engine built after the middle of 2007. The 523 above has had all the injectors replaced twice and the last time I drove it, it was running on 5 cylinders as one of the coils had packed in. We also have about 6 or 7 318i and 320i models from late 07 / early 08 that have had the same work done. Coil failure or injection failure is a major issue on petrol BMW's from that time.

Leonard Hofstadter

R.O.R wrote: »

I'd also be wary of any BMW petrol engine built after the middle of 2007. The 523 above has had all the injectors replaced twice and the last time I drove it, it was running on 5 cylinders as one of the coils had packed in. We also have about 6 or 7 318i and 320i models from late 07 / early 08 that have had the same work done. Coil failure or injection failure is a major issue on petrol BMW's from that time.

I was ridiculed for telling someone here recently not to buy an 09 320i because I said that it was a POS for reliability, I'm glad I wasn't imagining that it's unreliable. What's new to me is that the newer 6 cylinder petrols are equally bad, AFAIK there is a class action being brought ahead in the US over the HPFP in the 335i(because it supposedly goes wrong all the time). Why the hell are modern cars so bloody complicated, what was wrong with IDI petrols? I've never heard of anyone complain about the 1.6 turbo(which also has DI) or the V8 with DI though .

What are modern BMW diesels like, specifically the newer 177 hp 2.0 diesel?

Do they actually work now?

MojoMaker

R.O.R wrote: »

We have a manual 2007 523i SE that came back to us after giving the driver numerous issues. Not fully loaded, but Leather and Bluetooth above the standard SE trim. With an Auto box we may have stood a chance of shifting it on, but with the manual transmission the offers we were getting were stupidly low.

Having driven it a few times, and Auto equivalents, I'd say you would need to buying it at an absolute steel. To me, the Auto version in any of the 5 Series models is much better than the Manual. An 08 520d in manual makes a little bit of sense because of the low road tax, but the Auto version is so much nicer to drive.

Good info ROR, thanks. So regarding what represents a steal - how does 12k for a manual 2005 523i non-SE but with leather, bluetooth, xenons, and park assist and 60k miles sound?

Leonard Hofstadter

MojoMaker wrote: »

Good info ROR, thanks. So regarding what represents a steal - how does 12k for a manual 2005 523i non-SE but with leather, bluetooth, xenons, and park assist and 60k miles sound?

All 5's since the current model came out are SE's(or else M techs).

There is nothing to worry about reliability wise with the older 523i's - it's the ones that came out in 07 when they changed the design of it that give all the trouble.

R.O.R

MojoMaker wrote: »

Good info ROR, thanks. So regarding what represents a steal - how does 12k for a manual 2005 523i non-SE but with leather, bluetooth, xenons, and park assist and 60k miles sound?

Would sound pretty good for the Auto. I'd be trying to get the manual at that mileage for around €10k.

MojoMaker

Interesting, the dealer average for that mode/year/mileage irrespective of gearbox varies about 16-22k so I thought 12 sounded good, given it's a manual.

MojoMaker

Seeing a few more manuals about the place now. I'm thinking the man vs auto debate is more prevalent with newer cars in the price brackets for new or nearly new buyers with large wedges to spend. So thinking now I was over reading this - back in the sub-15k territory there appears to be buyers who wouldn't have a preference either way or actively seek out manuals as solid used purchases for sensible money.

rabbitinlights

In my opinion, a manual driver would probably consider an auto for their next car but a previous auto owner would never consider a manual for their next car.

S.