| Model year | 1994 |
| Year of manufacture | 1994 |
| First year of ownership | 2005 |
| Engine and transmission | 520 Manual |
| Performance marks | 8 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 9 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 10 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 9 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 3 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) |
7.8 / 10
|
| Distance when acquired | 116000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 125000 miles |
| Previous car | BMW 3 Series |
Summary:
Good looking car with style
Faults:
New discs.
New front shocks.
Has a small vibration at 55mph.
Track rod ends done.
Still trying to sort the vibration.
General Comments:
This is one good auto.
Dark metallic blue with white leather interior, stunning.
Runs very well, slow in first gear, but excellent on the motorway.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 11th December, 2005
| Model year | 1994 |
| Year of manufacture | 1994 |
| First year of ownership | 2004 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2005 |
| Engine and transmission | TD Manual |
| Performance marks | 7 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 9 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 9 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 8 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) |
8.3 / 10
|
| Distance when acquired | 152000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 160000 miles |
| Previous car | Citroen Saxo |
Summary:
A large luxury car with economy and reliability
Faults:
When I first had the car the a rear wheel bearing collapsed within two weeks. cost me £100 to get repaired with a non BMW replacement.
The MOT failed on a leaking fuel injector which was a pricey £300 to repair as a BMW only part.
General Comments:
The car is very comfortable and built for a long motorway drive.
Delivers excellent fuel economy at 70mph returns 40mpg+.
The torque dies a little at mid range, but pulls like a train from a standing start and has plenty of power for motorway overtaking.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 9th March, 2005
| Year of manufacture | 1994 |
| First year of ownership | 2003 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2004 |
| Engine and transmission | 2.5 tds Automatic |
| Performance marks | 8 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 8 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 9 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 6 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 7 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) |
7.6 / 10
|
| Distance when acquired | 124000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 128700 miles |
| Previous car | Mercedes-Benz 230E |
Summary:
One great economical family/flying machine
Faults:
Car failed to start after purchase due to faulty glow plugs. New ones replaced the originals and it started like a dream.
Banging noise coming from the back suspension. Rubber bushes
Windscreen wiper arm jumping and catching top of bonnet when on a sweep.
General Comments:
Apart from those minor problems the car drives exceptional. Just done a 1400mile trip and the diesel consumption was something to be admired.
One problem with the car is gets a slight vibration through the steering wheel between 45mph-60mph.
Tyres stupid prices £150 each, changed them for a nice set of 17" M5.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 3rd March, 2004
The shimmy you are getting through your steering wheel could be worn control arms (upper and lower) on your front suspension. Quite common. If getting replacement only specify Lemforder components.
Good luck
Don
95 520iA.
I've had the same shudder problems on my 525 tds at between 54-60mph too...
Mine used to have a strange start up problem when I bought it. Wouldn't start if the car was facing slightly uphill. Also smelt some diesel around the car... and a small puddle of the stuff. Got it fixed (at just under 270 UK pounds) as the injector had become leaky.
Otherwise very reliable car, excellent motorway cruiser. Great performance and somewhat reasonable economy (baring in mind my older diesel used to give me 38-45mpg) this tds gives me approx 25-30mpg. But then again I do have a heavier foot with the turbo! Has never let me down and it's fully loaded electrics are always working top notch.
Recommended.
| Year of manufacture | 1994 |
| First year of ownership | 2003 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2003 |
| Engine and transmission | Automatic |
| Performance marks | 1 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 0 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 1 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 0 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 1 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) |
0.6 / 10
|
| Distance when acquired | 82000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 83000 miles |
| Previous car | Ford Taurus |
Summary:
A mechanical nightmare
Faults:
The cylinder is losing compression badly. Problem was with the BMW design. Engine block made from Nikisil which reacts poorly with US gasoline. Scars the inside of the cylinder and causes leak down. BMW replaces engines if less than 100,000 miles or 6 years. They would not repair this model.
General Comments:
For a $50,000 car, this car is a piece of junk. Poor reliability, engine that blows up at 83,000 miles.
Poor acceleration. Reasonable handling, but rather heavy and clumsy.
Seats are completely worn out and hurt my back.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 8th July, 2003
You paid $50,000 Dollars for a 1994 BMW 530i in this year??? I don't think so.
If you take a look at http://consumerguideauto.howstuffworks.com/, you will see that your car in good condition costs about $11,000-$12,000. In average condition it costs about $9,900-$10,800, and in poor condition it costs about $5,900-6,500. And without a doubt you bought a BMW in pretty bad shape once you had a problem with the cylinders with only thousand miles. So I don't think you really paid all that price, for a used car in pretty bad shape. In fact, I don't think that you really own a BMW 5-Series, and you are just another American and jealous Ford Taurus owner, that still cannot accept the fact that the German cars are the best.
That's right bud! I own a 1994 BMW 530i Sedan metallic silver that my wife gently calls "German Silver Arrow", which I bought in July of this year as a replacement for an old, expensive, overrated and unreliable 1993 Ford Tempo GL 3.0 V6 sedan 4-door.
My Bimmer has never let me down so far. It's one of the most reliable cars I have ever owned, although I have known that German cars are generally expensive to maintain, but they never break down. I hope I will never have any kind of serious problem with my BMW, despite its age.