craig1410
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 05:07 PM |
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Buying a BMW 535d tomorrow!
Hi,
Well I've got that scared/excited feeling after agreeing terms on a 2nd hand 2009 BMW 535d M Sport. I've not technically bought it yet but
have secured it with a deposit subject to my inspection when I fly to Bristol tomorrow afternoon. This will either be the best or worst car buying
decision I've ever made I suspect... 
Here she is:
http://www.carbase.biz/used/bmw/5-series/535d-m-sport-step-auto/for-sale-in-weston-super-mare-somerset/aetv81167975/
Anyone got any BMW, or even better, 535d specific things I should check? It's got a BMW service history and has had only one owner from new and
was a company car. It's got 71k miles on the clock with the last service at 58k so will need an oil change service quite soon. No need to tell
me that servicing on a 535d will be a bit more than my old Toyota Aygo, I know... 
I've already asked about tyre and brake disc condition and they are both nearly new apparently. It also comes with a 3 month RAC backed warranty
including parts, labour and breakdown recovery.
In other news, my wife bought a new Mazda 2 Tamura today and traded both her Altea and my Aygo against it. Picking it up on Wednesday.
Cheers,
Craig.
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Bare
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 05:18 PM |
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Looks great! Congrats.
Dunno about BMW 'reliability' though 'over here' on the wet coast of North America the Bloom is definitely OFF the BMW rose.
Tacky, expensive and above all Unreliable contraptions... even when Brand New.
But then there are virtually No diesel versions sold either.
[Edited on 3/8/13 by Bare]
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craig1410
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 05:23 PM |
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Hi,
Thanks for the reply, yeah I'm under no illusions about these things being perfectly reliable. I think that's where the
"scared" bit comes from...
We've got a family of 5 and a dog so we need something of this shape and size to get the job done. I'm not a "status symbol"
type of guy so that isn't a factor for me. From what I understand, it is the engine which makes (or breaks) this car as it is reputedly one of
the best diesel engines on the market. I'm not actually a fan of diesel engines but I specifically wanted to own a BMW 5 series to see what all
the fuss was about and there is so much more choice in diesels than there is in petrol cars of the same class. There also seem to be more stories of
reliability issues with the petrol models which is the opposite of what I would have expected intuitively.
Anyway, there is still time for me to get cold feet...
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sdh2903
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 05:27 PM |
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Very nice.
I have a mate with one who loves it. His is remapped to 340bhp and enough torque to pull down a house and still gets 40mpg on a run. It really does
have a surprising lazy turn of speed about it. Very comfortable too. Only issue he had was a fuel pump failure but luckily it was covered under
warranty as it was well into 4 figures to fix.
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craig1410
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 05:34 PM |
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Probably my worst nightmare would be the auto gearbox developing a fault as it's the steptronic "flappy paddle" gearbox on this and
probably costs the earth... It's also twin-turbo and probably still has those swirl-flaps which are a known issue. These can be quite easily
removed though and blanked off which is recommended. It also has a DPF particle filter.
Anyway, the 3 month warranty should cover me until I can get it serviced and checked over by an independent specialist or BMW themselves. I'll
also start reading up on the various Beemer forums.
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AndyW
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 05:46 PM |
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We used to have a few on our company fleet, one was a problem and threw its crank The others were spot on, lovely to drive, did well over 150,000
miles no problems.
Like all cars, you get good one's and bad ones.
Looks nice, very jealous!!!
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ianm67
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 06:00 PM |
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It looks the business..... I'm sure that it will provide you with many miles of pleasure.....
Always biting off more than I can chew.....
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stevebubs
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 06:54 PM |
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Nice...I've had an F10 5 series 4 pot diesel for nearly 3 years now and no problems at all...
[Edited on 3/8/13 by stevebubs]
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stevebubs
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 06:57 PM |
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One things I will say, though - check round it carefully for damage and/or leaks...
...had a walk around Cargiant off the A40 the other day and pretty much all the "reduced" cars had something significant wrong with
them...although they were all blooming obvious - body damage, puddle under the vehicle etc....
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perksy
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 07:00 PM |
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Fuel pump's also check to see if it has the latest software installed for the fancy gearbox.
also do these suffer the same issues with the swirl flaps as on some other BMW diesel models ?
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steve m
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 07:44 PM |
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Make sure the indicators work, as none round here do
Thats was probably spelt wrong, or had some grammer, that the "grammer police have to have a moan at
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Proby
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 07:50 PM |
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Looks very nice. Got a mate who had one and he loved it! I'm just deciding what to order as my next work vehicle, 99% set on a 118d msport
after having one on demo for a week.
Visit GraphicMonster
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rdodger
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 08:23 PM |
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Check
I drive, cracked wheels due to run flats, rear self level.
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jossey
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 08:35 PM |
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You will love it.
Just remember that the alloys can be brittle so be careful on speed ramps n pot holes
Great car though.
I have had a 520 then 525 then 530 but not played I'm the 535d
Snow tyres on the rear in winter n a bag of sand.
Thanks
David Johnson
Building my tiger avon slowly but surely.
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sdh2903
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 08:56 PM |
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Yep definitly check the wheels. The mv2 alloys are very hard and crack rather than bend. You need to check the inside edge of the wheels so take a
torch with you and move the car to view the whole rim. They can be welded but on a 16k car I would want them replacing if any cracks found.
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ashg
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 09:12 PM |
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the steptronic unfortunately is the main cause of them being stranded at the side of the road, have heard a few stories of them getting stranded stuck
in gear in carparks, but then you cant dwell of the what if's. i have got a 10plate 3series msport with all the toys and have to say its the
most sorted car i have ever owned, it handles, is fast, and its comfortable which is crazy considering its got 18inch wheels and sports
suspension.
enjoy
Anything With Tits or Wheels Will cost you MONEY!!
Haynes Roadster (Finished)
Exocet (Finished & Sold)
New Project (Started)
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james h
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 09:30 PM |
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My dad has an early one ('05 535d M Sport Touring), he really likes his. I don't know if they would have sorted it by 09 (as the engine is
slightly different, and I assume a few other things will be too) but tourings appear to have a common issue with water ingress into the boot area
damaging wiring. Check to see the split tailgate works, and the parking sensors are all working (and the tyre pressure sensors too come to think of it
- a rear one seemed to go as well).
Other than that, enjoy it! Very comfortable, and quick. One of those cars which you can drive at what you think is a normal speed until you look at
the speedo and see you're in license losing territory all too easily 
James
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craig1410
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 09:54 PM |
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Hi guys,
Many thanks for all the replies and suggestions, some good stuff in there which I shall collate into a checklist for tomorrow. I'm unfortunately
not going to have as much time as I would like to do a major inspection as my plane only gets to Bristol at 15:05 and the place is 20 minutes away and
we'll need to do a test drive and sort out paperwork before they close at 5pm. Not ideal I know but not much I can do about it really. I suppose
the important thing is to check out the things that won't be covered by warranty such as wheel cracks as they will just say it happened after
the sale. Not sure how easy the cracks will be to see either but will give it a go.
I need to remember also to just take a minute and consult with my instinct. I've fallen into the trap before of being "too
organised" and somehow forgetting to just look and see. I'm sure you know what I mean.
Anyway, got to go and get organised for the trip. Keep the comments coming! 
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ashg
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 10:46 PM |
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if your dropping 16k into their pocket they will stay past 5pm. just make sure you sort the insurance in the morning asap as most insurance companies
close around 1-2pm on a sunday, nearly caught me out when i picked mine up.
oh and as for the licence losing statement.... yes very very true it will cruise at 120mph like a mondeo/vectra cruises at 60mph. i regularly find
myself getting pissed off because people are driving really slow then i look at the speedo and realise its not them. i used to look at bmw's
flying along and thinking nutters.. once you have owned one it makes sense..
Anything With Tits or Wheels Will cost you MONEY!!
Haynes Roadster (Finished)
Exocet (Finished & Sold)
New Project (Started)
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craig1410
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| posted on 3/8/13 at 10:50 PM |
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Good point on the insurance, I'll check on that in the morning. The dealer can arrange 7 days free cover via Swinton or I can switch the
insurance from my old car (Aygo) to the BMW. I intend to sort that out in the morning anyway as I've already traded the Aygo in locally and have
left the car with the dealer until Wednesday when my wife picks up her new car, a Mazda 2.
Yeah I'm sure they won't chase me away at 5pm. They are also picking me up from the airport which is handy. I just hope Easyjet are on
time...
Thanks,
Craig.
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IanG1
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| posted on 4/8/13 at 07:45 AM |
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Take your time mate and don't let them rush you. Looks a nice car hope it all works out for you.
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Barkalarr
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| posted on 4/8/13 at 07:57 AM |
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They're a super car. I had a 530d M Sport saloon 08 plate and it was an awesome car and a very big car too in comparison to the 320d I came out
of. You'll need to be selective in where to park it due to the size and scratch factor.
I had a couple of issues with mine in the 2 years I had it;
Tyre pressure alert would give me a hoax every now and then.
Sat nav was terrible to use, and the display malfunctioned a couple of times which was fixed with a new one from BMW under warranty.
If you took a hard left hander the gearbox malfunction light would occasionally come on.
Mine had a couple of electrical glitches really.
If you want complete piece of mind, then you can always get BMW warranty on it (its expensive) but their customer service is second to none - if you
get a flat tyre or lock they keys in the car, they will come and fix it within 30 mins. It's a really good service.
Only reason I swapped mine for a 120d M Sport was through health issues i was unable to drive and was also spending a lot of time in the local
hospital. SWMBO just couldn't park it, it was too big for her. In fairness to her, you need a tin opener to get put of the car in some of the
hospital parking spaces.
Beware - you'll not want another make of car now - they do make a superb product IMO.
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iank
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| posted on 4/8/13 at 08:09 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by craig1410
Good point on the insurance, I'll check on that in the morning. The dealer can arrange 7 days free cover via Swinton or I can switch the
insurance from my old car (Aygo) to the BMW. I intend to sort that out in the morning anyway as I've already traded the Aygo in locally and have
left the car with the dealer until Wednesday when my wife picks up her new car, a Mazda 2.
Yeah I'm sure they won't chase me away at 5pm. They are also picking me up from the airport which is handy. I just hope Easyjet are on
time...
Thanks,
Craig.
See if they can pick you up in the car, then the test drive can be on the back to the dealership.
Good luck - do you have a backup plan if it falls through?
[Edited on 4/8/13 by iank]
--
Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level, then beat you with experience.
Anonymous
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Simon
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| posted on 4/8/13 at 07:04 PM |
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Have you got it, are you home yet?
As I suspect most people know, I'm not a BMW fan, but that's a fine looking veeehickle
ATB
Simon
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craig1410
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| posted on 4/8/13 at 08:56 PM |
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Yeah, got the car and am more than half way home now. Going well so far and returning 42MPG at 75mph average speed. That confirms the notorious
thermostats should be okay... 😉
Bit of a stressful day so glad to be well on the way home. Just having a break before tackling the next leg.
Will fill you in on details tomorrow.
Thanks all,
Craig.
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