1996 BMW 5 Series 540i review from Germany
"A great vehicle, the best in its class!!"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
From the first week I had the car, there were strong vibrations when air-condition was on, later even when air-condition was off. Gear-box was changed, but the fault continued. Two months ago the entire engine has been replaced with a new one. Both gear-box and engine replaced at no costs!
Car wouldn't start - and I had to get a new battery. Next time the car did not start - the entire CPU had to be replaced. All at no cost!
Heater in driver's seat did not operate properly, and was fixed by the dealer.
One aircondition vent was misaligned, and repaired by the dealer.
General comments?
I owned a Camry 300sei, a Volvo S70 T5, and an Infinity Q45. I did have some troubles with those vehicles, but not as much as I had with my BMW.
Yet the dealer's service was outstanding, and I am deeply impressed by the way he took responsibility on all the faults. Eventually, I only paid 50% of the new battery cost, and nothing else.
As soon as the engine had been replaced the car is a dream: an incredible performer, the electric comfort-seats are the best I have ever experienced, the navigation-system is a wonder and everything is absulotly great! It is also a most elegant car, with its wood and leather trim.
I will definitely buy another BMW in the future - if not for the car, the service I recieved is good enough a reason.
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|
| An excellent and surprisingly efficient high performance cruiser and potential sports car! |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Year of manufacture | 1996 |
| First year of ownership | 2003 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2003 |
| Engine and transmission | V8 Automatic |
| Performance marks | 9 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 10 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 10 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 10 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 4 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 124650 kilometres |
| Most recent distance | 126400 kilometres |
| Previous car | Infiniti Q45 |
| Date of Entry | 16th April, 2004 |