Faults:

Oil leaks, ABS sensors, driveshaft whine, console display missing pixels, plus the usual wear and tear.

Rust starting at the wheel arches, but it is over 20 years old!

General Comments:

Loved this car - 2001 metallic black 520i SE - big, comfortable and reliable.

SE model has a nice interior, all electrics and comfy seats.

The car was amazing to drive - very smooth, could sit on the motorway for hours and still feel good.

2.2 petrol automatic had OK performance, not that economical though at around 30 mpg at best.

They are expensive to run, but worth it in my opinion; I sold mine to a BMW enthusiast last year, it needed some work but was way too good to scrap. This was peak BMW in my opinion (late 1990s/early 2000s).

Faults:

A lot of suspension parts needed replacing - front and rear arms, droplinks.

Brake discs kept distorting - went through four sets in 10k miles.

Cam cover gasket leaked and had to be replaced.

Driver's electric seat switch failed.

Front brake calipers failed (one completely went on the road).

Despite a full alignment and suspension check, uneven tyre wear meant premature replacement of the rears.

Exhaust was quite unrefined at medium to high revs - diagnosis was failing baffles (new exhaust required to fix this at over a grand - didn't bother).

Inlet cam sensor replaced.

New clutch and dual mass flywheel.

General Comments:

I needed an inexpensive workhorse that was comfortable and economical on long runs, so I sold my E39 M5 and got the 530i. Expectation was that running cost would be somewhat lower, but I think it would have been cheaper to have kept the M5!

The 530i was essentially a fine car, but I bought it just in time to get a lot of the usual BMW niggles at around 10 years old. This despite a good maintenance record.

If you get many of these problems, the car is expensive to run, not to mention frustrating. I got on top of most of them and the car had a lot of life left in it, but I'd just lost patience with it.

Performance is strong and is married to very good fuel economy.

If aligned just right, the chassis is very good with strong grip and comfortable ride on 17 inch wheels. Steering is excellent - possibly the car's best feature.

Low wind and road noise, but a worn exhaust meant a drone from the engine at motorway speeds - spoilt the refinement of the car. Eventually I judged the cost of restoring the car to what I wanted it to be was too great. A pity, but with old BMWs you take your chances.

Faults:

The M54 engine in this car used a lot of oil. I mean a lot - much more than it should do, especially for a car with a genuine (HPIed) 90k and full BMW/specialist service history.

Interior faults: trim around the rear hatch broke easily, wooden trim came away from dash, rear courtesy lights failed.

Front parking sensors stopped working.

General Comments:

Cheap to buy, considering it was £30k new.

Handles very well for a big estate car... don't expect a sports car though.

Feels solid, and is very practical and comfortable.

Extremely quiet in the cabin, which has some nice design touches and a good standard stereo.

Dreadful fuel consumption for a 2.2, much worse than expected. And I had low expectations.

Looks very solid, until you start to dig deeper. In retrospect, I don't think the E39 is all that well made, and there are some signs of poor engineering, especially in comparison to earlier 5 Series.

Buy with caution and check everything... twice!!! (Check forums for oil consumption issues with M54 2.2 engine.)

I think a '99/'00 528 is probably a better bet if you simply must have an E39... for people with no badge snobbery, a late Vauxhall Omega is a good alternative.