530D or 535D?
 

ok I have narrowed my search down to one of these 2 as i can't stretch to an M5 at the moment but which one is the better choice?

Id go 535 everytime. Just make sure its 56 plate onwards as the older models have a pretty crap gearbox by all accounts

And try and go post 08 if possible (I think - best to check though) where they upped the power and torque to the same as the 335d.

The 35d engine is signficantly quicker and more "special" than the 30d unit.

I can't afford to go post 08 as that is M5 money it will be 05-06 at best

It's still very quick with less power (275bhp I think). Just watch out for i-drive issues - my inlaws one had to go back after four months (from new) because of i-drive/computer issues.

It was fun up until that point though!

I am hoping that with circa 50k miles on the clock any issues would have been sorted out :thumb: but i will ask the question when i begin viewing

It should be fine. Saloon or Touring?

The twin turbos really do give a brilliant "gap free" power delivery.

Given that there's only £1k - £2k difference in price (spec for spec), I'd pay the extra for the 535d (or get a slightly older/higher mileage one for the same money)

The BMW x35D's sound excellent but then I get put off big time with stories such as this;

335d Turbo Failure

TBH that's pretty unusual. The 335i unit suffers a lot more turbo problems.

I will be looking at the saloon

Ive just sold a 54 plate 535 m sport with 55k, real nice car, I had the ecu remapped took it to 350/560 so very fast for rear wheel drive ,

I would like to find one that has been remapped i must admit but its not the be all and end all as this car will just be an interim until i have saved enough to get a M5 :D

Think long and hard before you buy the M5, it is a very expensive car to run.

My average is 11mpg. Fantastic car though, can't wait for the new one to come out.

it's not going to be much worse to run than my spec c :D i only average 16mpg

my 535d turbo failed, it was the control flap thing in the turbo housing, but still needed new turbo, some sensor failed concerning the egr around same time, and also there was a small hole in my turbo downpipe flexi bend, the car was just out of warrenty, therefore cost me about £3500 to fix in total, then shortly after that I started getting driveline shunts, when accerating, so I got rid of that piece of german ****e as fast as possible!, I would never touch another bmw aslong as i live!, since then ive had a subaru forrester turbo, and that has been great, no problems atall

stick with the subs!

My mate at work has a 535d M sport 05 plate(silver with black leather) and its remapped and done 42k, very clean car and has really looked after it, he is looking at punting it to maybe get a 4x4, if you want his details let me know.

Mac

too far for me to travel but thanks anyway :) unless he wants to swap it for my Spec C ;)

just skip the 535D ...save a little longer and get the M5 , bargain of the year .
i just p/x mine for the new M3 regret its already !!!

yes they are expensive to run ........but you only live once , enjoy while you can :thumb:

Why not a 545/550i?

If you didn't know, we have a 545i on gas, 320miles/£33 and it's no slouch either!

Just a thought!

Sorry to hear that but seems a common fault to me. I keep considering what to replace my scoob with when I eventually move on and I keep looking at BMW's and Audi's. Both marques put me off big time with too many faults and too many things to go wrong and when they do go wrong outside of warranty it costs a fortune to fix!

Just remove the swirl flaps and it virtually eliminates any common failures :thumb:.I will be going for a remapped 535d which is quoted to chuck out 705nm torque (520ish lbft) which will be every bit as quick as an M5 once on the move but with much more miles to gallon ;)

spot on!

thats a myth!, if the m5 has the correct gear selected, it will punish the diesel 535d bigtime, and concerning fuel, mine never did any better than 27 - 32 mpg, which is better than a M5, but not that great for a diesel

lets stick to the facts boys

Indeed no 535d is an M5 baiter but it's a lot easier to live with and run - so long as it doesn't blow up (it's the older 35d engines that have the issues not the newer ones that match the 335d). And 30ish mpg is a lot better than 10mpg...

I have an 07 535d and before that a 530d. The 535d is an excellent cruiser and does have seemless power but the auto box kills any crispness from start and for me kills a lot of the enjoyment from the car (the steptronic or whatever they call helps a bit but the stupid thing changes down of its own accord when the revs drop which can really screw things up if you select a lower gear at the same time. Consequently you have one eye on the gear indicator in the dash when you actually need both of them on the road).

I've only had this one 6 months and have no issues so far but the previous one an 03 E60 was without question the most unreliable car I ever heard of never mind had the misfortune to own.

I haven't driven an M5 for the simple reason the diesel would probably have to go if I did. I have driven quite a few 5 series over the last couple of years and would advise you to be careful wrt to suspension and tyre/wheel combinations. The early SE was very soft and the Sport/Msport very harsh particularily with RFTs. A lot of the suspension issues seem to have been sorted with the LCI models ie March 07 build on (build date should be on the inside of the bonnet BTW). If you do splurge make sure you take it down every road you will encounter normally so that you are happy with the setup.

As an aside I took the Impreza down some A/B/Country roads yesterday and really enjoyed it, whilst I know the 5 would have felt numb.

Pat

budget is 18k tops so an 07 is out of the question.I am not in a hurry to find a replacement for the Spec C so i will bide my time and get as new as possible,afterall it is a buyers market :D

I don't think an 07 is out of the question for £18k. Apparently the auto improved a lot post 56 reg. Not sure exactly what it is now but if it's the same as the 335d (ZF 6 speeder) with flappy paddles, it's one of the best autos out there.

My inlaws had an 06 reg one and the box was a bit cack.

WRT tyre/wheel/suspension combo's, I found the M sport suspension with 19' wheels on NON run flat tyres works very well.
Quite compliant but not overly harsh.
Better than RFT's, 18" (as standard) with the M sport suspension.

cheers for your input so far guys,I think i will hold out for a march 07 model 535d.I would ideally like the m sport version but i might be a bit over stretched budget wise unless they start coming down in price with the introduction of the new 10 plate cars in march.
Fingers crossed eh :D