USED BMW 5 Series Saloon (03 - 11)

My car

I bought the car new in September 2006, and the thing that stands out is fuel economy. For such a big car my manual averages 48mpg, the saving from this more than covers the cost of tax and insurance when doing 20,000 miles a year. Handling and performance are good, better than the E Class which I had on loan for a week after being rear-ended on the motorway (the brakes on the 5 series are also good, much better than the Mondeo that hit me!),the 5 series build quality is superior to and E class which was the reason I moved from MB to BMW. I have the full satnav and communications system with voice control which I initially saw as a bit of a gimick but now I can't function without it, one point on the I-Drive is that it is easy to use, so nobody should be put off by this. Because of the European Sat Nav, excellent motorway crusing capability, fuel economy and size, the car really came into it's own when we took the kids to Disneyland Paris. On the down side the interior is a bit cold and (like most BMW's) even with wood and leather and it's slow pulling off in 1st gear. Having said that, given the choice again I would still buy the same car.

My car

Just taken delivery of my 525d M Sport Saloon. I had a three year old 525d M Sport Tourer and this new saloon knocks the old model into a crooked hat!

The new efficient dynamics engine line up means a 3.0ltr goes into the new 525d and you can tell immediately. The economy and power is a vast improvement on the old model, I'm averaging 42 mpg, nearly 10mpg more than the old engine! Refinement and practicality is up there with the best of them, I did look at the new Jaguar XF, but there's still something not quite right about the Jag, maybe it was a bit too 'away from the norm' and I suspect that it will look a little too Lexus like after all the fuss has died down about the fact it has blue cabin lights! Anyway, my latest BM is fabulous, especially with privacy glass and 19" mixed rims.

Don't waste your money on the 530d, it's less than a second quicker, costs £4k more and unless you're on a track and have money to burn, the 525d is more than refined and powerful enough for anyone. I like the new favourite buttons for the I-Drive, it saves a lot of time. So sorry Mr Jaguar, my money is on BMW to carry on the domination of this market, especially when the new 5 Series hits the road in 2009.......awesome!

My car

absolutely fanatstci saloon awesome power. Initially requires a lot of patience to learn how to drive it as the gearbox is not smooth. You don't need paddles on the steering wheel unless you are on a track - a gimmick for wannabe F1 drivers. It is jerky around town regardless of setting and with hillstarts you have to rev the engine with the handbrake on and then let go of the handbrake, otherwise you end up jerking the car. But on a motorway or an open road, hit the M button and watch it fly and start smiling - engine noise superb and surprisingly quiet in the cabin. 10mpg around town is the realistic figure and 17 miles on motorway. Its the town driving that makes it a 4 star rather than a five start car. You can physically see the fuel needle dropping like a clock hand. But there is nothing better on the road. It beats the M3, golf GTI's, civi-R's etc etc and an absolutely beautiful beast of car. so you put up with its bad points even if the idrive is awful (it is that bad). It is a super car though and a fantastic beast.

My car

Im still not sure exaclty what i think of this car. It is awesome when you rev it hard - but for the bits in between, well they're not so good. Lets put it another way. The ride is so uncomfortable i bought an e63 AMG. The suspension on the m5 is rock solid. Great when you're in race mode. But for the other 90% of the time it really annoyes you. And because of the hugely torquey engine in the e63 AMG it will lose this at the lights or on the motorway anyday. Although, granted, the m5 is better round corners - but you don't get many corners on publice roads : ( Mercedes E63 AMG all the way.