G30 5 series buying advice

[[TW]Fox]

And Europe too. Just the UK where it's standard across the range.

 

[Dr House]

For me it was HK and HUD I had a OEM reverse camera retrofitted for £350.

anything above that was a bonus when I was looking for a car.

 

[dlockers]

Oddly enough I have just bought a 67 plate 530e M Sport, 50k miles, for £20.5k. Reading through this thread has given me a bit of buyers regret but in all honesty I suspect I will be pleased coming from my 05 plate Fiat Panda run around Anything, really, is a step up form that so I guess it is a matter of perspective.

I do not believe it is an issue on the estate but I was on the lookout for folding rear seats which for reasons unknown were optional. Flappy paddles also may have been optional.

The Jaguar XF had optional folding rear seats. I was fuming when I picked it up, even more cross to see that it didn't have powerfolds. I came from a base spec Mercedes C180 coupe that had all of this, 3 years prior. Luckily the XF everything but the switch was fitted I wrapped a bit of single core flex around the latch and jobs-a-good-un. I daftly made the same mistake of not checking on my XE... and those were actually a totally different part, bolted upright

 

[[TW]Fox]

Luckily the XF everything but the switch was fitted I wrapped a bit of single core flex around the latch and jobs-a-good-un.

Amazing! Really makes you wonder why it isn't standard if they're going to do that, at least in BMW land the theory is some sort of 'oh the chassis rigidity is improved without them'.

I wasn't bothered whether I got them or not and my car happened to have them - turned out to be very grateful in hindsight.

 

[233]

just to update the thread,

deposit put down on a 530e will update with pics once i've been down to wales to collect


edit

may as well share it and get some critique. still time to run away

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-de...elivery-option=on&sort=relevance&modal=photos

 

[Spleen Sauce]

may as well share it and get some critique. still time to run away

Looks pretty nice that. When I was looking at the 5 series recently I wanted the following as a minimum:

• HK sound (the stock system is a bit flat)
• Apple CarPlay prep, or at least Enhanced Bluetooth so it can be retrofitted afterwards.
  
• Reverse camera. It’s a big car.

From what you’ve posted, as long as you don’t mind not having the ability to add CarPlay (don’t think it’s any different on the 530e compared to the others) and the lack of HK then it looks good.

I’d check those tyres, there’s a mix on the car by the looks of it. Also, the service history, worth checking if it’s main dealer or not.

 

[[TW]Fox]

Some pros and cons there.

I am not a fan of buying this sort of car with a 4d number plate and splitter on the front personally. Also bear in mind if you intend to use this car for long distances that the fuel tank is very small in the 530e and this combined with the fact it's a petrol mean the range is very poor for a 5 Series and you'll need to fill it up rather more than you'd hope. If its for more mixed driving this is less of a concern. You started off by saying you were after a 520d - a car that will routinely exceed 700 miles per tank. You'd be lucky to get half that with a 530e.

It is, however, amusing that despite the debate between myself and Clarkey above you've actually managed to find a car with Driver Assistant Plus. Which is enough of a bonus and rare enough to make me overlook the awful styling 'additions' more than I otherwise would...

 

[233]

email back from BMW this morning

hoping some of the more knowledgable here will spot anything interesting

only thing that really got my attention was the active cruise(that was one of my main things when car hunting)
my understanding is that car play can be added to the pro nav anyone care to confirm?

and Fox yes the 4d plates are god awful and will be removed as soon as possible (private plate to go on)



Ordered Options

01CA


Selection of CoP-relevant vehicles

01CB


ACEA/CO2 Coding

02NH


M Sport braking system

02PA


Security Wheel Bolts

02TE


Automatic transmission with gearshift paddles

02VB


Tyre pressure monitoring

021P


19" M Double-spoke style 664M alloy wheels

0230


EU specific equipment

0258


Run-flat tyres

03DE


iPerformance exterior styling deletion

0302


Alarm system (Thatcham 1)

0322


Comfort Access

0337


M Sport Package

04AW


Instrument panel in Sensatec

04K7


Aluminium Rhombicle interior trim with Pearl Chrome trim finisher

04NE


Blow-by heater

04T8


Exterior Mirrors - folding with anti-dazzle

04UR


Ambient lighting

0403


Electric glass sunroof

0420


Sun protection glass

0423


Floor mats, velour

0428


First Aid Kit & Triangle

0459


Elec Fr Seats + Driver Memory

0481


Sport seats, front

0488


Lumbar support, driver and front pass.

0494


Seat heating, front

05AV


Active Guard

05A1


LED foglights, front

05DF


Active Cruise Control with "Stop and Go" function

0508


Park Distance Control (PDC), front and rear

0524


Adaptive Headlights

0534


Automatic Air Conditioning

06AC


BMW Emergency call

06AE


BMW TeleServices

06AG


eDrive Services

06AK


BMW Online Services

06AM


Real Time Traffic Information

06NW


Enhanced Bluetooth with wireless charging

06WB


Digital Cockpit

06WD


WiFi hotspot preparation

0609


Navigation system Professional

0650


Single-disc CD Player

0654


DAB digital radio

0710


M Steering Wheel

0715


M aerodynamic bodystyling

0760


Exterior trim, High-gloss Shadowline

0775


Headlining, Anthracite

08KA


Oil-maintenance interval 24 months/30,000 km

08R9


Refrigerant

08SM


External Visible VIN

08S2


Coding of alarm siren (time limit)

08S3


Auto drive away locking

08TF


Active Pedestrian Safety

08TG


Dead-Locking Function

0812


GB Specification

0850


Add Fuel for Export Cars

0880


English Handbook


Standard Options

08EK


Control body

0853


Instrument Panel Letter

 

[dlockers]

e
and Fox yes the 4d plates are god awful and will be removed as soon as possible (private plate to go on)

Talk about jumping out of the coals and onto the fire

 

[Slackworth]

I'm assuming that car probably has NBT Evo ID5 or 6 so Carplay can be added in several ways - it also depends on what version of I-Step the car is running as to whether it's split screen or full screen (you can get this updated but main dealer will charge you 1-2 hours labour):

- Buy the provisioning off the Connected Drive store - I vaguely recall for between £250-300
- Buy FSC code from one of the various resellers on the web - around €350-400 - obviously a pointless option
- There's lots of cheaper "patched" options available on the web for anywhere between £35-100 - these work just as well as the genuine options but a) void any warranty around the Evo unit if it goes wrong and b) is a bit of a pain if you take your car to a dealership as you need to unpatch the unit, take it in for work and then re-patch when it comes back. Many people take this route as the cost is more reasonable but just be aware of the pitfalls.

 

[[TW]Fox]

That'll be an Idrive 6 car.

 

[Slackworth]

That'll be an Idrive 6 car.

Above instructions should work then - ID5 and ID6 hardware wise are 99.9% identical - just differences in the way the software looks mainly.

 

[Spleen Sauce]

my understanding is that car play can be added to the pro nav anyone care to confirm?

As the others have said above, as long as the car has ‘Enhanced Bluetooth with wireless charging’ and the ‘Wifi Hotspot preparation’ options then you can get CarPlay. I’d be buying it from the ConnectedDrive store personally if you have warranty or want to buy an extended warranty.
I took one of the ‘less official’ options with my F54 Clubman (had the NBTEvo head unit) because there were no official routes I could take and while it worked really well BMW/Mini would have almost certainly told me to do one if anything even remotely related to the head unit had a problem.

 

[[TW]Fox]

I took one of the ‘less official’ options with my F54 Clubman (had the NBTEvo head unit) because there were no official routes I could take and while it worked really well BMW/Mini would have almost certainly told me to do one if anything even remotely related to the head unit had a problem.

Did you still need WiFi hotspot preparation for this?

 

[Spleen Sauce]

Did you still need WiFi hotspot preparation for this?

Its the wifi antenna that you need, those with it generally have this option listed.

 

[233]

Did you still need WiFi hotspot preparation for this?

according to BMW it has wifi prep and extended wifi

 

[[TW]Fox]

according to BMW it has wifi prep and extended wifi

Sorry I was hijacking your thread with a more general question

Anyway, did you get the bit about the fuel tank? It's a consideration at least.

 

[233]

getting on a bit now dont really fancy doing the stupid 20+ hour days i used to do. its mainly going to be cover for the taxi business and a bit of exec stuff pootling between edinburgh and Glasgow with the odd jaunt north and south as required.

i really wanted a 530d but the market is really changing and a lot of clients are at least expecting a nod towards sustainability and eco awareness. we all know its a complete copout as it will only do 20 miles on electric on a good day. but thats enough to trundle mr exec from Glasgow airport to the city in electric silence and on the longer stuff at least make it look like we're doing out bit. even though common sense says a 520 or 530d is by far and away the better car for the work we do. a lot of it is theatre, meet the customer in the terminal make a show unplugging the charging cable and at least pretend we're doing out part.
Unfortunately the client base that would appreciate a 540i with minimal silencing is few and far between

 

[Slackworth]

Sorry I was hijacking your thread with a more general question

When I activated Carplay on the other half's F54 Clubman, the guy said that BMW fitted the Wi-Fi antenna to around 95% of cars as standard so you're really unlucky if you didn't get one with it. Doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reasoning as to those that did or didn't......

getting on a bit now dont really fancy doing the stupid 20+ hour days i used to do. its mainly going to be cover for the taxi business and a bit of exec stuff pootling between edinburgh and Glasgow with the odd jaunt north and south as required.

i really wanted a 530d but the market is really changing and a lot of clients are at least expecting a nod towards sustainability and eco awareness. we all know its a complete copout as it will only do 20 miles on electric on a good day. but thats enough to trundle mr exec from Glasgow airport to the city in electric silence and on the longer stuff at least make it look like we're doing out bit. even though common sense says a 520 or 530d is by far and away the better car for the work we do. a lot of it is theatre, meet the customer in the terminal make a show unplugging the charging cable and at least pretend we're doing out part.
Unfortunately the client base that would appreciate a 540i with minimal silencing is few and far between

I brought my 530d just a month before Covid happened annoyingly - knowing what I know now, I'd have probably gone for a 540i myself but still love the 3.0L diesel and it'll keep me going for a few more years before I bail out of the black stuff. Not sure I'm ready for electric yet - need a stupidly powerful petrol to get it out my system before I make the move - especially if I don't go back to high mileage I was doing before

 

[Clarkey]

Some pros and cons there.

I am not a fan of buying this sort of car with a 4d number plate and splitter on the front personally. Also bear in mind if you intend to use this car for long distances that the fuel tank is very small in the 530e and this combined with the fact it's a petrol mean the range is very poor for a 5 Series and you'll need to fill it up rather more than you'd hope. If its for more mixed driving this is less of a concern. You started off by saying you were after a 520d - a car that will routinely exceed 700 miles per tank. You'd be lucky to get half that with a 530e.

It is, however, amusing that despite the debate between myself and Clarkey above you've actually managed to find a car with Driver Assistant Plus. Which is enough of a bonus and rare enough to make me overlook the awful styling 'additions' more than I otherwise would...

It doesn't actually have driver assist plus, it has adaptive cruise without the rest of the driver assist stuff (lane assist etc). I've never seen one with that spec it's certainly unusual.