BMW 520d E60 (used) - OK or should I stay away due to known issues?

sham09

Folks,

Looking for your advice – I am in the market for a new motor, I’ve always wanted a BMW 520d. I have been doing my research online and have read the E60 model was prone to a lot of issues with the diesel engine….

The key issues I’ve read about relate to:

• Timing Chain
• Turbo

Some questions on my mind:

• Are these big issues/create a big problem if they happen or break?
• Should this put me off buying a 2008/9 520d?
• Is there anything else I should be looking out for?
• If these have been replaced / fixed by the last owner would it be safe to say the car would be OK ?
• Mileage – I’ve noticed on Donedeal majority of cars are high milers (expected for age), what is an acceptable mileage for a car I would use for next 3 years?
• Would one of these cars last until 200k miles?
• Buy Local or Go to UK - for my budget would I be better off trying to buy locally & negotiate with the seller or do you reckon there is value in going to the UK?

Overview of what I’m looking for below:

• Year = 2008+ onwards
• Fuel = Diesel
• Gearbox = Automatic
• Budget = 5-7K EUR

Any advice / recommendations would be gratefully appreciated !

Cheers

Wailin

You'll do well to get a decent one for that budget I reckon. I had an 09 E61 for 2 yrs, never had any issues but it had only 50k when i bought it. Frequent oil changes are the key with these cars. Every yr or 10k. Make sure it's an auto too, timing chain supposed to be more prevalent on manuals but not strictly.

Couple of low mileage E60s at colm quinn motorstore that come with 2yr warranty for peace of mind. But not cheap.

I just found this vehicle on Carzone.ie http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/bmw/5-series/used-2008-bmw-5-series-520d-se-sa-westmeath-fpa-187337076024561

I just found this vehicle on Carzone.ie http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/bmw/5-series/used-2008-bmw-5-series-520d-se-sa-westmeath-fpa-125446504469505

Leonard Hofstadter

If you were willing to consider one of the six cylinder diesels (525d upwards) you wouldn't have anything to worry about - they still used the older design engine right until the E60 was retired and there are no reliability issues with these engines.

Being six cylinders they will be much quieter and more refined, they sound nicer and will be faster as well - the drawbacks of these engines are the higher tax and increased fuel consumption.

bazz26

I'd agree about a 525d/530d but it's hard to find a decent 08+ for 7k.

AhHaor

captainspeed wrote: »

If you were willing to consider one of the six cylinder diesels (525d upwards) you wouldn't have anything to worry about - they still used the older design engine right until the E60 was retired and there are no reliability issues with these engines.

Being six cylinders they will be much quieter and more refined, they sound nicer and will be faster as well - the drawbacks of these engines are the higher tax and increased fuel consumption.

Having owned a 525i m-sport auto for 2.5 years and about 30k km it broke my heart. Amazing engine, but everything else caused issues!

Radiator, front suspension, water pump, boot spring (250 euro!!!), battery mangament ICE. There's others but I've forgotten them.

colm_c

Don't buy a cheap BMW and expect it to be cheap to run.

They were originally a 50k car and so the maintenance costs can be expensive if something goes wrong, which inevitably will for an almost 10 year old car.

A lot of people try to run them on a shoestring and end up with a poorly maintained car.

I would have a good independent bmw mechanic look at the car before buying so you at least know what you're getting into.

It does sound negative, but own and have owned a number of 520i/520d's and when they are running well, they are a great car. Just go in with your eyes open.

ION08

I really don't understand peoples fascination with 520d's

As mentioned previously, go for a 525d, you will get a much sweeter 6 cylinder engine (more powerful, smoother, quieter) and none of the issues associated with the N47 for slightly higher tax and consumption.

You might not find one in ireland because of people's said obsession with 520d's but if you're willing to travel to the UK, you should be able to land a relatively decent example of a 525d for in or around your price range.

example: https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201711081057158

bazz26

The 520d is not just an Irish obsession, the 320d/520d outsell any other variants in the much bigger UK market too, just like the smaller variants of the A4/A6 and C/E Class.

There is also usually a fair price difference even in second hand prices between the likes of a 520d and 530d when these cars are new, something like 10k between a 520d and 530d. Hard for most people to justify spending an extra 10k for something different they probably won't get the extra benefit from. Obviously second hand, the price gap diminishes over time as these cars get older but if less people are buying the larger engined cars new then there are less of them available second hand.

Super B

Stay clear.. Bought a 07 one in Feb 2017 off a 'reputable dealer' in Athlone. 4 months later the steering wheel locked while driving. Issue was fixed only for something similar to happen. According to the dealer the car is perfect.

millington

Budget an extra 1000-1500 euro and get the chain done straight away. Mechanically they are very good otherwise although sensors & control units can play up sometimes. The turbo is no more or less reliable than any diesel cars.

cavemeister

I agree with most of the comments here. If you are getting a 5 Series, I would go for 2.5L and up only.

For the timing chain. Keep the oil topped up always and get a full oil change every 10k and you will never have a days problem with it (assuming previous owner did the same) - A mechanic will be able to give an indication of chain wear.

Turbo on the BMW is reliable and assuming you get the car serviced to the BMW recommendations, you will be fine.

Remember though, these cars are NOT cheap to fix if things go wrong. No matter how cheap these cars become, they are still premium autos and what can seem as a simple fix could end up bankrupting you.

Best of luck though, they don't call them the ultimate driving machine for nothing!

coolbeans

cavemeister wrote: »

For the timing chain. Keep the oil topped up always and get a full oil change every 10k and you will never have a days problem with it (assuming previous owner did the same) - A mechanic will be able to give an indication of chain wear.

That's a big statement to be making. Regardless of maintenance the '20d BMWs of that era give timing chain bother and will likely need to be replaced. It's an inherent design flaw. Timing chains should never need attention.

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime

Have a 2009 520d myself, UK import se business edition

Bought it with 200kms on the clock and I racked up another 60kms on top of that.

The only thing I've had to do is service it, and during one of the services I threw on some front brake pads and discs


I rang BMW about the chain, they took my engine code, vin etc and said the car I have was not effected by the timing chain issue, but also any cars that were, there was a recall campaign done to get the issue resolved.

But other than that, mine is an auto too and I didn't think it was going to be as good on diesel, I was expecting worse mpg but pleasently surprised at how good it is..... In saying that I do 80% motorway.

The only thing I don't like about them is, people paint all BMW drivers with the same brush ..... I.e. bad

I mean who do they think we are ? Audi drivers ? !!!

galvo_clare

cavemeister wrote: »

For the timing chain. Keep the oil topped up always and get a full oil change every 10k and you will never have a days problem with it (assuming previous owner did the same) - A mechanic will be able to give an indication of chain wear.

Nope. I babied mine and at 85k and 8 years there were signs of wear. I got it done under the BMW programme.
I bought the car from new in 08 so I know how well it was treated. Hit 100,000km earlier today.