[groovemasterj]

Having been an E60 driver for the last three years, I'm thinking of getting a used (two-three year old) E65 as a replacement (probably the 730d sport), simply because I'll get a lot of car for reasonable money.

Given that I'm in the UK (smaller roads, expensive fuel, etc.), is this a good idea, or should I simply jump into another 3 year lease with an e60?

What are the pros and cons (more interested in the cons) of a used E65?

TIA

[Hawkwing]

groovemasterj, on Jan 21 2009, 10:05 PM, said:

Having been an E60 driver for the last three years, I'm thinking of getting a used (two-three year old) E65 as a replacement (probably the 730d sport), simply because I'll get a lot of car for reasonable money.

Given that I'm in the UK (smaller roads, expensive fuel, etc.), is this a good idea, or should I simply jump into another 3 year lease with an e60?

What are the pros and cons (more interested in the cons) of a used E65?

TIA

I picked up an e65 (730d-Sport v/low mileage) in the later part of 08. I had an e60 prior which I used as an everyday/work vehicle.
My reasons for the change to the e65 were relative value with a view to purchasing a car that had the features I required, comfort, pace ,ok mpg etc. – my 530d had high mileage of 92k, a few minor issues were surfacing and I was not prepared to ‘invest’ circa 46-48k in a replacement e60 that would be an old model soon (F10 due circa 14-18months-ish!) - I ‘donated’ the e60 to my family for their use as they will not put that many miles on it now.

As to the e65; we’ll it’s what you’d expect - a very good boulevard cruiser! Mpg of 36 is similar to my previous 530d (38/39mpg). I’ve did have a MB S500 which I drove on UK roads with no problems, the e65 is easier and much more fun to drive than the MB – it’s a quite cruiser that has performance too - most of my journeys are longer distance hence it suits me fine.

There are some annoyances like voice command and Nav that in my view are not as friendly as my old 2006 530d. If you considered the e60 a large car then the e65 will provide a challenge, if not then you will soon become used to the ‘additional’ size; this in truth is not, in my view, an issue because the e65 is more manoeuvrable than say the MB S500, however you will notice the difference to the e60 (not an issue for me.)

As you allude too you can obtain a high spec car for a reasonable outlay, presently that in my view is a positive. My 730d is a 2008, I’m not sure what an earlier e.g. 2006-ish will fetch – that said there are a number of e65’s, many are 730d-Sports, on the BMWUK web-site that are ex-demo’s/BMW employee cars with low mileage right now - When I picked up mine they were ‘keen’ to off-load these asap. Mine is high spec, 60k when new, I negotiated down to 29k! The car has depreciated like the proverbial stone, as always since first registered, the dealer has taken that loss not me! Thus now there is a high relative car type/spec value right now. A v/low mileage 730d Sport for that sum was an opportunity!

Perhaps you might try one of those 2008 730d ex-demos, that are still under warranty, from BMWUK – dealers are willing to offload presently. Also you should be able to lease (in UK on a PCP) one of these cars.

Good fortune.....................

[rafa7]

go for it, you won't regreted.

reliability is always a problem, make sure is CPO or get a warranty