520d Buying BMW 520d 2012/2013. Need your expert opinion.

Prime · August 6, 2019

Guys,

I have never used an euro car nor driven one. Last 15 yrs or so I have driven only Jap cars and vans. This time I thought about buying a BMW because I want to experience so called 'Ultimate driving machine'. Actually I don't like numb driving experience of Toyota and want to drive a mid size sedan. So my questions are,

1. Is it wise to choose 520d 2012/2013 for driving pleasure?

2. How reliable the car is?

3. What are the common faults of this car?

4. Is timing chain issue frequently seen in Sri Lanka?

5. What should be specially looked for, when buying 520d?

6. What is the reasonable market price for this car? I know asking this is stupid. But I have seen ads quoting from around 7.5 mil to 10 mil for 2012 manufactured car.

7. What are the alternatives for above car?

iRage · August 6, 2019

1. Yes

2. As far as you find a well taken care of unit and continue to take care of it...it will be kind to you. (This applies to all cars)

3./4./5./6. : There are other BMW connoisseurs in the group..I will let them answer.

7. Audis are fun to drive....having said that...sounds like you have driven the normal average Japanese/Toyota econo boxes. Look at the following:

- Toyota Mark X...there are a very few GRX130s around in SL and seen a few for sale recently on the quick site. One of the very few fun to drive RWD sedans to come out of Japan. There are plenty of X120s around but I feel you are looking for something newer ?

- Lexus IS...same as above...few around..but haven't seen any for sale.

- Mazda 6 quite a few around but a decent one is harder to find...

- Nissan Fuga, Skyline, etc are also nice to drive but you do not get newer models around in SL.

Prime · August 6, 2019

On 8/6/2019 at 1:28 PM, iRage said:

1. Yes

2. As far as you find a well taken care of unit and continue to take care of it...it will be kind to you. (This applies to all cars)

3./4./5./6. : There are other BMW connoisseurs in the group..I will let them answer.

7. Audis are fun to drive....having said that...sounds like you have driven the normal average Japanese/Toyota econo boxes. Look at the following:

- Toyota Mark X...there are a very few GRX130s around in SL and seen a few for sale recently on the quick site. One of the very few fun to drive RWD sedans to come out of Japan. There are plenty of X120s around but I feel you are looking for something newer ?

- Lexus IS...same as above...few around..but haven't seen any for sale.

- Mazda 6 quite a few around but a decent one is harder to find...

- Nissan Fuga, Skyline, etc are also nice to drive but you do not get newer models around in SL.

Expand

Thank you iRage. Yes. I've driven premio s for last five years. No fun at all. Currently driving a vitz. I will look into mark X as well. Mazda 6 2l ones are available. But didn't see 2.5l one recently. I think 2.5l version is the better one. But how about acceleration? Lexus and others are difficult to find and my mind is really set on f10 now. Audi A6 was another consideration. But 520d looks better.

iRage · August 6, 2019

The thing is there are a lot of F10s that were brought down under for the permit by a whole lot of people who should not have bought them (sorry to sound like a vehicular racist here)....they just bought it for the sake of trying to be posh and did not take care of the cars at all....so be extremely picky about it...

Prime · August 7, 2019

On 8/6/2019 at 6:16 PM, iRage said:

The thing is there are a lot of F10s that were brought down under for the permit by a whole lot of people who should not have bought them (sorry to sound like a vehicular racist here)....they just bought it for the sake of trying to be posh and did not take care of the cars at all....so be extremely picky about it...

Expand

That's true. I know about permit holders and how most of them take care of their cars(mostly toyotas). It will be very difficult to find a good specimen at a reasonable price. Saw that Mark X on quick site. Thank u very much for feedback iRage. How is the pulling power of Mazda 6 2.5l? Does it feel underpowered?

kush · August 7, 2019

Actually it was the mudalalis and their siblings who bought the F10 on permits sold by the holders. There are few who bought the car for their use knowing what was on offer. It was the best option for the permit at the time considering the actual cost of the vehicle and what you actually paid.

If it is with the original owner, maintained by the agent with a decent mileage this will be the best way to go for a Euro. You could also look at E200 however will not give the same performance and the economy.

Engine is known to be one of the best and i have herd of a one with over 250k with no issues, maintenance is the key.

Look at the undercarriage for damage, with the long wheelbase and the low ground clearance it was prone for scraping.

F10 will be better to drive if rear seating is not a big issue.

Expect to pay premium for a well maintained car with good records.

iRage · August 7, 2019

On 8/7/2019 at 12:51 AM, Prime said:

That's true. I know about permit holders and how most of them take care of their cars(mostly toyotas). It will be very difficult to find a good specimen at a reasonable price. Saw that Mark X on quick site. Thank u very much for feedback iRage. How is the pulling power of Mazda 6 2.5l? Does it feel underpowered?

Expand

The Mark X has V6 with a standard 6speed AT....that is quite quick and has a very raw feel to it. The X120 has the same engine, gearbox (same everything except the body and some of the safety features actually...) and it was quite economical for its size.

The 2.5L Mazda...no...quite quick just like the Mark X....however the engine feeling is a bit more subdued than the Mark X...

RWD · August 7, 2019

On 8/7/2019 at 6:03 AM, iRage said:

The Mark X has V6 with a standard 6speed AT....that is quite quick and has a very raw feel to it. The X120 has the same engine, gearbox (same everything except the body and some of the safety features actually...) and it was quite economical for its size.

The 2.5L Mazda...no...quite quick just like the Mark X....however the engine feeling is a bit more subdued than the Mark X...

Expand

you have to watch out on for cracked dashboards for mark x's in Sri Lanka. Common problem on the GRX 120's possibly because of our climate- not sure about the 130's.

That 130 on the quick site looks a beaut- if only it was an S package rather than the premium and I had some spare change lying around I'd buy one in a heartbeat.

Prime · August 7, 2019

On 8/7/2019 at 2:35 AM, kush said:

Actually it was the mudalalis and their siblings who bought the F10 on permits sold by the holders. There are few who bought the car for their use knowing what was on offer. It was the best option for the permit at the time considering the actual cost of the vehicle and what you actually paid.

If it is with the original owner, maintained by the agent with a decent mileage this will be the best way to go for a Euro. You could also look at E200 however will not give the same performance and the economy.

Engine is known to be one of the best and i have herd of a one with over 250k with no issues, maintenance is the key.

Look at the undercarriage for damage, with the long wheelbase and the low ground clearance it was prone for scraping.

F10 will be better to drive if rear seating is not a big issue.

Expect to pay premium for a well maintained car with good records.

Expand

On 8/7/2019 at 6:03 AM, iRage said:

The Mark X has V6 with a standard 6speed AT....that is quite quick and has a very raw feel to it. The X120 has the same engine, gearbox (same everything except the body and some of the safety features actually...) and it was quite economical for its size.

The 2.5L Mazda...no...quite quick just like the Mark X....however the engine feeling is a bit more subdued than the Mark X...

Expand

On 8/7/2019 at 8:45 AM, RWD said:

you have to watch out on for cracked dashboards for mark x's in Sri Lanka. Common problem on the GRX 120's possibly because of our climate- not sure about the 130's.

That 130 on the quick site looks a beaut- if only it was an S package rather than the premium and I had some spare change lying around I'd buy one in a heartbeat.

Expand

Thank you everyone. Rear seating is not a big issue for me. This time I'm looking for better driving experience. I will consider both Mark X and Mazda 6 if I cannot find a good f10 specimen.

Please experts I need your experience on common faults of f10 520d.

top tip · August 9, 2019

Well finding a decent F10 that has been well cared of is a difficult find. few months ago even i was after one but got tired with the way how our locals have treated them. If you want a good specimen then despite the age you will have to be willing to pay a premium for a well maintained one with low miles, mind you these are hard finds, also these cars are close to eight years old. then comes the matter of resale value because even if you buy a proper car with a service history, selling it is going to be a burden as you would have paid a higher than market price in the first place so with the age and mileage you will have to sell it at a considerable loss when compared to a market price car that was available during the time of purchase but then these specimens will be thoroughly abused though.

Another thing that i found was either these cars are driven by drivers working for their bosses or buy the owners son. both these parties abuse the car ones the owner is not there, i inspected quite a few and they had strange rattling noises which is not common to a common rail engine.

Built quality wise i found the W212 E-class to be more solid, F10 when parked in the sri lankan hot sun will have sticky door handle plastics and the window tints peeling off and problems with the rubber beading being out of shape. one thing we have to understand in the first place is these cars are much suited to the european conditions than srilankan. in fact i have inspected close to ten cars and found the sad state they were in. they were owned by people who should not have even touched euro vehicles.

I think it is advisable to look for a euro that is less than five years old, or buy a mid-size Japanese sedan and drive to the sunset. because ive heard that maintaining a BMW is much costlier than a Merc.

Edited August 9, 2019 by top tip

Prime · August 9, 2019

On 8/9/2019 at 12:05 PM, top tip said:

Well finding a decent F10 that has been well cared of is a difficult find. few months ago even i was after one but got tired with the way how our locals have treated them. If you want a good specimen then despite the age you will have to be willing to pay a premium for a well maintained one with low miles, mind you these are hard finds, also these cars are close to eight years old. then comes the matter of resale value because even if you buy a proper car with a service history, selling it is going to be a burden as you would have paid a higher than market price in the first place so with the age and mileage you will have to sell it at a considerable loss when compared to a market price car that was available during the time of purchase but then these specimens will be thoroughly abused though.

Another thing that i found was either these cars are driven by drivers working for their bosses or buy the owners son. both these parties abuse the car ones the owner is not there, i inspected quite a few and they had strange rattling noises which is not common to a common rail engine.

Built quality wise i found the W212 E-class to be more solid, F10 when parked in the sri lankan hot sun will have sticky door handle plastics and the window tints peeling off and problems with the rubber beading being out of shape. one thing we have to understand in the first place is these cars are much suited to the european conditions than srilankan. in fact i have inspected close to ten cars and found the sad state they were in. they were owned by people who should not have even touched euro vehicles.

I think it is advisable to look for a euro that is less than five years old, or buy a mid-size Japanese sedan and drive to the sunset. because ive heard that maintaining a BMW is much costlier than a Merc.

Expand

Thank you very much. I cant afford an euro that is less than 5 years old??. I ll start hunting from next month on and will see how it goes.