Robert - Expat buying a E61

[rdougan]

Hoi!

I'm a (dirty) expat living in Haarlem. I have a Nissan S14a which I mostly use as a track car, but my wife and I are travelling more and more and it is not a comfortable car.

We've decided to get a E61. I've looked at a few but haven't chosen one yet. Probably maybe a 335d, maybe a petrol. Time will tell.

Looking forward to figuring out some of the Nederlands E60 DIY threads!

[avdakker]

A 335 isn't a E61 but a E91. Perhaps you're talking about a 535? Anyway, a 3 serie is the E90 or E91 and the 5 serie is a E60 or E61.
Make sure to check some issues before buying one. The 535 is a car with a lot of troubles according to what has been reported trough the years.
Make sure to check if the swirl flaps has been removed. Another one is the DPF, it can be removed afterwards so it's a cost around 500 euro that needs to be calculated to your amount.
Have a great search, and we're looking forward to some pictures of your "new" bimmer.

[rdougan]

Oops, I meant 535 thanks for the welcome!

Yes I've spent the past few weeks reading the Internet about the various issues. The latest 535 I've looked at has had the DPF replaced. But it has very high km (360k). I'm not sure I'm too worried about the mileage but I will see.

[Bart70]

Welcome here !

Hopefully you find one soon and we can look at the pictures here, we love them

If you have answers about this forum, you can always contact a moderator, we will try to help you as soon as possible

When you're looking for info about certain problems or issues with the car, try the search engine on this forum first, in that way most times you can prevent starting a topic that already is available here.

Again, very welcome and we will soon see you back with car we hope

[rdougan]

I finally got one!

I've spent the past 6 weeks researching the E61 and ended up looking at over 10 cars. I wasn't sure which model to get, but ended up choosing the 535d. The one I got has quite high km (360k), but it is by far the cleanest model I viewed (for around 9k). It is like a new car, inside and out. And it runs really well.

Here is the only picture I have right now:



I pick her up on Monday. I've very little plans for the car apart from maybe changing the wheels (I just do not like these wheels, for some reason).

Looking forward to driving it!

[Bart70]

Looks good !

Hopefully the car is ok and you don't get any problems with the car, the engine, 535D is really nice

Did you buy it with warranty on it ?

I wish you all the luck with the car and keep us posted

[rdougan]

Looks good !

Hopefully the car is ok and you don't get any problems with the car, the engine, 535D is really nice

Did you buy it with warranty on it ?

I wish you all the luck with the car and keep us posted

Thanks!

Nope, no warranty. I'm definitely taking a gamble, but I believe in the car. I know they are fairly reliable engines if they are treated well, and I believe this one has. Only time will tell!

Though after owning a modified Nissan 200sx, I think everything will be reliable... haha

[Bart70]

Hahahaha, okay, is indeed a big risk, hopefully the historie of the car is known then, with that you know a little bit more

Good luck

[avdakker]

Even history does not makes it a better car. I've seen some garages making more troubles to a car then fixing the issue. That's why I'm doing the most of it by myself. In that way I'm sure that the maintenance is being done in a correct way, and because of the low price it happens a lot more than people that uses a garage!
So, good luck with your great peace of quality. And lets hope you can enjoy it fully, withing the next years you'll driving around in this "bimmer".

[rdougan]

Even history does not makes it a better car. I've seen some garages making more troubles to a car then fixing the issue. That's why I'm doing the most of it by myself. In that way I'm sure that the maintenance is being done in a correct way, and because of the low price it happens a lot more than people that uses a garage!
So, good luck with your great peace of quality. And lets hope you can enjoy it fully, withing the next years you'll driving around in this "bimmer".

Yup, true. It is also a lot to do with the previous owners of the car. I think there is only 1 previous owner with this, and it really looks like it was never used... yet the high KM.

Anyway, looking forward to driving it!

[Bart70]

That is what i meant with knowing the history

[Quadrantz]

Nice E61 you found there with a real nice engine .

Do you know if the Swirl flaps are removed? (take a look on the forum about this issue, it can cost you a new engine ). And does the car has a Panaroma roof? There are also some issues with that which can cost you a lot.

I hope you bought a good one! Have fun with it

[rdougan]

Nice E61 you found there with a real nice engine .

Do you know if the Swirl flaps are removed? (take a look on the forum about this issue, it can cost you a new engine ). And does the car has a Panaroma roof? There are also some issues with that which can cost you a lot.

I hope you bought a good one! Have fun with it

Nope I haven't had a chance to look at the swirl flaps, but will be checking straight away. Thankfully easy.

It does have a panaroma roof. I've read about all the issues I'll be checking this as soon as I get it on Monday as well.

[Degids]

You should check your engine coolant temperature with the hidden menu.
youtube video for instance.

Mine didn't go up beyond 68 degrees celcius on the highway. This way your engine never really gets up to optimum operating temperature and that is bad on several levels.

Also watch out for bad torque converter.These 535d pack a really good punch in the torque department (560 Nm) and the torque converter is designed for 600 Nm max torque. So that doesn't leave a lot of room. There are many cases of 530d's and 535d's that have faulty converters. You can spot it when your rev counter needle is not steady and rocks back and forth when driving at constant speed (cruise control for instance) between 80 and (in my case) 128 km/h. Also very noticeable when I'm accelerating with light throttle. It's caused by the converter not being able to execute the lock-on. It tries (revs go down), but it fails (revs go back up). And that continues to happen, very annoying! Mine stops doing that at 128 km/h cruise control speed.
Luckily I have a 6 month warranty

[rdougan]

...

Thanks!

I've read about the secret menu and intend to check that when I get the car. Thankfully isn't too expensive to buy replacement thermostats, and easy to change. the roetfilter was changed not so long ago, so that is something.

As for torque converter- I had not heard of that! I did not notice the bumping dials when testing the car, but perhaps I missed it. I shall check, thanks!