Faults:

Head gasket went about 3 months after I got the car. The dealer paid half the cost of the repair! Interestingly the mechanic commented that when he had the head off there was no sign of wear (on an engine that had done well over 200,000 miles!).

Apart from that just the usual servicing and running repairs (bulbs, pads, etc.

General Comments:

This is a fantastic car! It is ultra reliable, very comfortable and looks great in it's glossy black paintwork. I can't believe a car that's worth only £800 could be this good! It gets envious looks from drivers of Ford Mondeos that cost ten times that.

Faults:

I had the head gasket go at 170k miles, it caused the head and exhaust manifold to warp and therefore they needed to be skimmed, and more recently it developed a huge oil leak, this turned out to be the sump gasket, the car now runs just as smoothly as it did when I bought it and is a credit to BMW engineering, that's why I will be changing it later this year for the newer series 5 model.

The car has always started on the button, and gives very good miles per gallon, the interior has also stood up very well with just the drivers seat showing signs of wear.

Faults:

Oil leak from cylinder head gasket.

Battery failed.

Very squeaky brakes.

General Comments:

A very expensive car at the time (£31,000) so was disappointed that anything went wrong.

Very expensive dealer servicing (£150 for an oil change!). "Service Indicator" prevented me from servicing the car myself (£15 oil change!).

Not the car's fault of course, but at one year old, someone with a grudge against my employer jumped up and down all over it causing £10,000 damage. Repaired by dealer, but was never the same again.

Faults:

Windscreen wiper connector rod fell off.

Seat fabric tore.

Fuel line rusted.

Minor body rust.

Jacking point rusted through.

General Comments:

This car is fantastic value - I only paid £1000 for it, and have spent less than £500 to fix it up.

It drinks fuel, however - you get 25mpg on the motorway, but it can dip below 10mpg around town. Avoid it if you have a jammed commute every day.

The performance is incredible; it's very smooth and sounds amazing. I used to think that automatic gearboxes were for granddads, but I would never go back now. It's much more relaxed when you're just getting from A to B, and when you're in the mood, or next to a GTi at the lights, just flick it into 'sport' mode, and it holds the gear up to the red line - fantastic!

I'd heard a lot about great handling on the 5 series, but without an airfield all you experience is endless grip at both ends. This could be a result of the wider tyres on the Sport version. A second consequence of this is that a new set of tyres will set you back £1000 (they're metric sizes, unfortunately). It feels very assured on all roads, and is great for munching motorway miles.

With 200,000 miles on the clock, it's a little tatty around the edges, but is generally very solid, and shows no sign of giving up the ghost. The full service history showed that it has been well looked after throughout its lifetime.

Be patient when you're looking for one, there are plenty around, but they tend to be sold within a day or two if they're at the right price.

I would thoroughly recommend this car, and will never go back to a small engine again.