BMW 520i E60 M Sport Manual Advice

Nigel041

Looking for a bit of advice on buying this car guys don't see a whole pile here about this model, I can see from other threads that the 523i & 525i are a better car am I right?
Reasons I am considering this are:

1) I know the guy fairly well that owns it and he has it since 2007 it's a 2005 btw and he only really uses it at wknds the wife uses it during the week doing short runs to school there is just gone 100k (miles) on the clock and it has always been well looked after and never abused which is a big plus, afaik he has never had any issues with it nothing major anyway.

2) I'm getting it at a very good price as he wants to move up to a family wagon

3) I have been driving diesels for years now and currently drive a 2006 Jaguar X-Type 2.0l diesel which is starting to show signs of both injector and flywheel trouble and I don't want the expense of fixing it, really nice car to drive tho I have to say also my annual mileage has nearly 1/2 in recent months so I don't mind a slight increase in fuel, would there be a massive difference in fuel economy and performance? I'm at a stage now where I want something that isn't gonna cost me a fortune on repairs and I don't seem to have had much luck with the diesels in recent years..

Bare in mind I'm choosing this car cuz I think its a beaut to look at, it has cream leather and the main thing is I know the car and know it's been looked after plus the price I can get it for is appealing also..

Would it be a good car to buy and what are the mpg and performance of it compared to a 2.0l diesel..

Thanks

bazz26

The E60 520i is not the liveliest of cars especially if you are used to the torque of a diesel. Also the M Sport suspension is very stiff and if the car has run flat tyres it can make the ride very firm, some people like it whereas some don't. You really need to give the car an extensive test drive and make sure you are happy with it.

Moneymaker

As it's been said the 520i is a little underpowered. You're better off with a 520d or a 525i or better if you want a petrol.

tom_tarbucket

Nigel041 wrote: »

3) I have been driving diesels for years now and currently drive a 2006 Jaguar X-Type 2.0l diesel which is starting to show signs of both injector and flywheel trouble and I don't want the expense of fixing it, really nice car to drive tho I have to say also my annual mileage has nearly 1/2 in recent months so I don't mind a slight increase in fuel, would there be a massive difference in fuel economy and performance? I'm at a stage now where I want something that isn't gonna cost me a fortune on repairs and I don't seem to have had much luck with the diesels in recent years..

I like you drove a lot of diesels and loved the low end torque on them. I have now switched to a 2006 BMW 523i SE automatic. Mainly becuase of my driving style and diesel engines being more complicated, dpfs, my short journeys etc

And no, it dosent have the "shove" that diesels give you when it accelerates and feels slower then my old diesels, maybe that's cause I don't get that big shove you get from a diesel. All i can say is, the petrols are a different driving experience than a diesel, you have to rev them a lot more to get them moving, but they are a lot quieter than a diesel and more refined.

I know your looking at a 520i but for my 523 i automatic : in around town I get about 20 mpg, but bear in mind, this is in heavy traffic with loads of lights and speed bumps, out on the motorway on a straight line on a flat road at 75 mph, I can get close to 40 mpg. Mine is automatic so the manual should be a few mpgs's better that this. My average mpg on the computer is 24.5 mpg in 6 weeks of ownership, my average mpg on my older 320 d automatic was 30.5 mpg, so as you can see not a whole lot of difference, all boils down to driving style, if you are in city with lights, bad traffic etc, your mpg is going to suffer no matter what car you have IMHO ( unless electric of whatever )

The 523i in automatic form is not the quickest yoke in the world, but its grand, for the amount of times I need that bit of power, its not worth it to go for a 530d etc

I picked up my 523i for a decent price too, compared to diesels, yes I know the MPG is worse, petrol is dearer, and will be harder to sell, but there ya go

Nigel041

Thanks for the detailed responses there guys, Loads to think about there..

Would having non run flats on it make the ride any smoother? I don't mind a bit of firmness anyway but I noticed there some1 said it will be stiffer on the road with run flats and I do know this guy put 4 new run flats on it last December @ approx €1200

What would I expect to achieve mileage wise baring in mind it's a manual I think 6speed and doing a 20mile round trip each day not a lot of traffic on that route and a fairly straight run.. I wouldn't have a heavy foot but wouldn't be crawling either, I just dont need a diesel or it's potential hassles anymore..

Also are there certain issues these cars give that I'd need to check before buying like common faults with the 520i M-Sport, think I read somewhere the can use a lot of oil?? Am I right..

Thanks

tom_tarbucket

Nigel041 wrote: »

Thanks for the detailed responses there guys, Loads to think about there..

Would having non run flats on it make the ride any smoother? I don't mind a bit of firmness anyway but I noticed there some1 said it will be stiffer on the road with run flats and I do know this guy put 4 new run flats on it last December @ approx €1200

What would I expect to achieve mileage wise baring in mind it's a manual I think 6speed and doing a 20mile round trip each day not a lot of traffic on that route and a fairly straight run.. I wouldn't have a heavy foot but wouldn't be crawling either, I just dont need a diesel or it's potential hassles anymore..

Also are there certain issues these cars give that I'd need to check before buying like common faults with the 520i M-Sport, think I read somewhere the can use a lot of oil?? Am I right..

Thanks

Personally I hate the run flats, only a cod of a thing. I think non run flats make things smoother, but I'm sure others don't notice. They are too dear to replace also.

As for what to expect mileage wise, the tank is 70 litres which is 15.4 uk gallons. Let's say you get 28 mpg. That would mean 430 miles out if a tank.

bazz26

The run flats can be ditched for normal tyres when they wear out. Most owners will tell you putting normal tyres on improves the ride and handling immensely.

Nigel041

Yeah I had taut that alright bout ditching the run flats, there still practically new tho!

28mpg? That's pretty poor for a 6speed manual 2.2 isn't it? I was hoping to expect atleast 35mpg.. Bit of a guzzler arnt they?

Anyway my main thing I think is the reliability issue if there a a good reliable car I think I'd suffer the extra mpg with a lot doing less miles now then I was...

tom_tarbucket

Nigel041 wrote: »

Yeah I had taut that alright bout ditching the run flats, there still practically new tho!

28mpg? That's pretty poor for a 6speed manual 2.2 isn't it? I was hoping to expect atleast 35mpg.. Bit of a guzzler arnt they?

Anyway my main thing I think is the reliability issue if there a a good reliable car I think I'd suffer the extra mpg with a lot doing less miles now then I was...

Nigel, I just threw 28 mpg out there as an estimate, you may well indeed get better, but at the end of the day the E 60 is a relatively big heavy car like.

or maybe im just being too cautious with my figure, but I think not

bazz26

Nigel041 wrote: »

Yeah I had taut that alright bout ditching the run flats, there still practically new tho!

28mpg? That's pretty poor for a 6speed manual 2.2 isn't it? I was hoping to expect atleast 35mpg.. Bit of a guzzler arnt they?

Anyway my main thing I think is the reliability issue if there a a good reliable car I think I'd suffer the extra mpg with a lot doing less miles now then I was...

The reality is that the E60 is a heavy car, the 2.2 litre 6 cylinder engine is not the most frugal in it. 28mpg is probably about right for mostly urban driving, early 30s would be realistic on long runs. Coming from a diesel then anything less frugal is going to be an initial culture shock.