BMW 530d [Tralee mechanic check]

The Waxbill · 02-09-2015 11:31AM #1

Hi guys, I'm going to look at a BMW 530D on Friday. I'd like to bring it to a mechanic who could give it the once over before I buy, preferably a BMW mechanic. Can anyone recommend somewhere in Tralee I could bring it?

drunkmonkey · 02-09-2015 11:34AM

What year is it? You could probably have a word with one of the mechanics in Aherns in castleisland, they might look at it after work.

The Waxbill · 02-09-2015 11:58AM

Thanks, it's an 04. Castleisland might be just a bit too far to take it from Tralee though but thanks.

littlevillage · 02-09-2015 12:06PM

Main dealer will charge you for the privilege and you may have to book it in, in advance...you can't believe how fussy they are :-(

Might be better to bring it to a sympathetic local garage that you have some relationship with Or failing that maybe bring along a friend/acquaintance who already drives that same car ... he will be able to tell you quick enough, if its 'on the level' or not.

The Waxbill · 02-09-2015 12:10PM

The problem is I'm not from Tralee, I'm driving form Clare, I was hoping someone might be able to recommend a good mechanic to bring it to down there?

drunkmonkey · 02-09-2015 12:49PM

If it's the one with 97k on it I'd be checking for service history, nct certs etc. milage is very low for year. If milage is genuine it should feel very tight, should be very smooth on the road, no knocks, bangs or slappy feeling...drivers seat should have no tears or look shabby.
Look for dust under paint to show accident damage.
Have you access to one to have a play with the obc, check car is coming up to temperature on test drive, if not 1 or 2 of the thermostats could be shot which might hint at other problems caused because of it.
Check parking sensors if it has them.
It should go like the clappers if not pulling hard, could be turbo trouble, make sure drive it up and down the gears in the manual box as well as auto.
Should be no smoke.

bazz26 · 02-09-2015 12:58PM

The closest BMW indy I am aware of in that neck of the woods is Bavarian Auto Technik back in Abbeyfeale which is even further away from Tralee than Castleisland.

The Waxbill · 02-09-2015 01:03PM

Drunkmonkey, that's the one, thanks very much, very helpful. You sound like you know what you're at, fancy coming for a spin lol? To be honest I'd really need it thoroughly looked over by someone who know what they're looking at and frankly I'm no that person.

The Waxbill · 02-09-2015 02:16PM

bazz26 wrote: »

The closest BMW indy I am aware of in that neck of the woods is Bavarian Auto Technik back in Abbeyfeale which is even further away from Tralee than Castleisland.

Thanks Bazz26, like you say a bit too far away.

02-09-2015 02:22PM

The Waxbill wrote: »

Thanks Bazz26, like you say a bit too far away.

tralee to abbeyfeale isnt that far. it would give you a chance to get the car warmed up. if you are genuine the seller would have no problem with letting you away with it for a few hours
If you are buying a car like that its worth getting someone like that to look over it to be sure.

ION08 · 02-09-2015 03:28PM

9935452 wrote: »

if you are genuine the seller would have no problem with letting you away with it for a few hours
If you are buying a car like that its worth getting someone like that to look over it to be sure.

I dont know about you but as a seller I wouldn't be letting a complete stranger away in my 530d for "a few hours" :rolleyes:

With the amount of scams happening at the moment, I'd be just as weary of a Buyer as I would be of a Seller.

ION08 · 02-09-2015 03:31PM

@OP Car looks tidy enough bar a few marks on the body in the pics.

I notice that it has an MSPORT steering wheel yet it's an SE. I'd be asking why it was changed, did the Air Bag in the old one go off?? Was it replaced to hide wear due to high mileage???

My main concern really would be the Low Mileage, without documented proof of this (Service History / NCT reports) I'd say walk away from it.

Likely to have double the mileage.

The Waxbill · 02-09-2015 05:40PM

Thanks again all, I'll take all that into consideration, good tips there.

02-09-2015 07:30PM

ION08 wrote: »

I dont know about you but as a seller I wouldn't be letting a complete stranger away in my 530d for "a few hours" :rolleyes:

With the amount of scams happening at the moment, I'd be just as weary of a Buyer as I would be of a Seller.

Sure down this end of the country we are quite honest so would think nothing of that.
The car im driving now was bought over the phone without seeing it. Asked was the car right and was there anything wrong . Told it was right and have been delighted with it.

Maybe the op could ask the seller would he meet in in abbeyfeale to check the car out .

Blazer · 02-09-2015 07:44PM

ION08 wrote: »

@OP Car looks tidy enough bar a few marks on the body in the pics.

I notice that it has an MSPORT steering wheel yet it's an SE. I'd be asking why it was changed, did the Air Bag in the old one go off?? Was it replaced to hide wear due to high mileage???

My main concern really would be the Low Mileage, without documented proof of this (Service History / NCT reports) I'd say walk away from it.

Likely to have double the mileage.

Its possible to get the sport wheel (without the m badge) on an SE model..my previous 520D SE had the sports wheel option when I bought it.

mfceiling · 02-09-2015 07:50PM

9935452 wrote: »

Sure down this end of the country we are quite honest so would think nothing of that.
The car im driving now was bought over the phone without seeing it. Asked was the car right and was there anything wrong . Told it was right and have been delighted with it.

Maybe the op could ask the seller would he meet in in abbeyfeale to check the car out .

You bought a car without seeing it and asked the seller was it right over the phone!! Then you bought it when he said it was ok!!

I've a great car for sale here...completely right and nothing wrong with it...you interested??

The Waxbill · 02-09-2015 07:56PM

Blazer wrote: »

Its possible to get the sport wheel (without the m badge) on an SE model..my previous 520D SE had the sports wheel option when I bought it.[/quote

I've been looking at a lot of photos today myself and I have to admit it looks like an SE steering wheel to me too...

02-09-2015 07:58PM

mfceiling wrote: »

You bought a car without seeing it and asked the seller was it right over the phone!! Then you bought it when he said it was ok!!

I've a great car for sale here...completely right and nothing wrong with it...you interested??

i knew the seller and trust him . There are only a few lads i trust like this though.

Gumbo · 02-09-2015 09:30PM

ION08 wrote: »

@OP Car looks tidy enough bar a few marks on the body in the pics.

I notice that it has an MSPORT steering wheel yet it's an SE. I'd be asking why it was changed, did the Air Bag in the old one go off?? Was it replaced to hide wear due to high mileage???

My main concern really would be the Low Mileage, without documented proof of this (Service History / NCT reports) I'd say walk away from it.

Likely to have double the mileage.

It's not quite an msport steering wheel, it's the sports option for the SE model.
It's very similar to the msport in shape but different material and no indent for the M logo.

Put red lights on and put it into reverse, and go round and listen to each PDC sensor, they should have an audible fast ticking sound.

Go through the I drive and make sure it's smooth, it should be as the biggest problems were with the pro mac system, not the standard I drive system that's in this E60.

Check the service history and check mileage against dates and call a garage or two to confirm. Cross reference with old not certs if available.

The Waxbill · 03-09-2015 02:01PM

Well I had the car booked into Bavarian Auto Teknik in Abbeyfeale for the morning for a check up. Unfortunately the seller was unwilling to let me take it to Abbeyfeale myself and wasn't willing to meet me there.

Fair enough Abbeyfeale is a bit of a distance for him but if he really wanted to sell the car, I was prepared to hand over cash pending the result of the check up. That was a deal breaker for me so as they say I'm out.

Thanks to all for the help on this thread.

ION08 · 03-09-2015 05:11PM

The Waxbill wrote: »

Well I had the car booked into Bavarian Auto Teknik in Abbeyfeale for the morning for a check up. Unfortunately the seller was unwilling to let me take it to Abbeyfeale myself and wasn't willing to meet me there.

Fair enough Abbeyfeale is a bit of a distance for him but if he really wanted to sell the car, I was prepared to hand over cash pending the result of the check up. That was a deal breaker for me so as they say I'm out.

Thanks to all for the help on this thread.

Did the car have a service history?

Also out of curiosity, how much were Bavarian Auto Teknik charging you for the check up?

goochy · 03-09-2015 06:23PM

dont blame seller at all. could the garage not travel and do inspection maybe as a nixer ?

goochy · 03-09-2015 06:23PM

dont blame seller at all. could the garage not travel and do inspection maybe as a nixer ?

The Waxbill · 03-09-2015 06:31PM

The car seemingly has a full service history. It's actually back on, I'm bringing it along to Bavarian in the morning.

They are charging 45 euro to do the check on the car which I think is very reasonable. I'm not exactly sure what it involves but they said it would take around an hour so should be comprehensive.

Hachiko · 03-09-2015 06:47PM

The Waxbill wrote: »

Well I had the car booked into Bavarian Auto Teknik in Abbeyfeale for the morning for a check up. Unfortunately the seller was unwilling to let me take it to Abbeyfeale myself and wasn't willing to meet me there.

Fair enough Abbeyfeale is a bit of a distance for him but if he really wanted to sell the car, I was prepared to hand over cash pending the result of the check up. That was a deal breaker for me so as they say I'm out.

Thanks to all for the help on this thread.

sounds like he had something to hide, you did the right thing in walking away.

If the seller was genuine I would have had no problem personally driving the potential buyer to abbeyfeale to sell the car. Its not like he was asked to drive to belfast.

*just seen last post, be interesting if they find anything up with it.

The Waxbill · 03-09-2015 07:14PM

The guy seems genuine enough but he did mention one thing that has me a bit worried. He said there's a fault light and it's to do with some kind of sensor to do with the gearbox. Said it doesn't affect the cars driving and that the sensor will cost 90 euro to replace.

We'll see what Bavarian say, if it's anything major I'll be walking. I just hope I'm not going on a wasted journey tomorrow.

03-09-2015 07:28PM

The Waxbill wrote: »

The guy seems genuine enough but he did mention one thing that has me a bit worried. He said there's a fault light and it's to do with some kind of sensor to do with the gearbox. Said it doesn't affect the cars driving and that the sensor will cost 90 euro to replace.

We'll see what Bavarian say, if it's anything major I'll be walking. I just hope I'm not going on a wasted journey tomorrow.

If it is a sensor , they could have it in stock or knowing the amount of cars they have in the yard , they could borrow one off another car to see if it is a sensor.

Why did the seller have a sudden change of mind with bringing it to abbeyfeale?

the_syco · 03-09-2015 07:46PM

The Waxbill wrote: »

Said it doesn't affect the cars driving and that the sensor will cost 90 euro to replace.

Always suspicious on why such parts were not fixed beforehand, if "only" a couple of quid.

The Waxbill · 03-09-2015 07:52PM

the_syco wrote: »

Always suspicious on why such parts were not fixed beforehand, if "only" a couple of quid.

Hopefully it is just something small but it's going to cost me 45 euro and a 130 mile round trip to find out. As I said though I won't be shy about walking away if there's anything dodgy.

bazz26 · 03-09-2015 07:53PM

It does make you wonder why a seller would not just replace a €90 sensor rather than give the buyer an opportunity to make it a sticking point of the the sale and stack the cards in the favour in negotiating a higher amount off the asking price. Lets hope it is just a sensor as a replacement gearbox will cost alot more.

Out of interest where has the car been serviced up to now? Alot of owners in southern country Limerick and northern Kerry travel to Baveria to have their car serviced. If it was serviced there and worth asking them about it's history, I'd also ring Aherns in Castleisland, it might have some main dealer service history too.

The Waxbill · 03-09-2015 08:17PM

Hi Bazz, I asked Bavaria already but the car has never been with them. I might give Aherns a call in the morning.

BMW 530d [Tralee mechanic check]

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