late e39 520: a good buy?

F

funcar62

Active Member
hey guys,

just want your advice. i'm thinking of buying a used late model (aug 03) 520i exec E39 body. good values now. 60-80k kilometer cars going at 92 - 94 thousand. Thats on a high paper value of 75K or more (OMV of 55k plus)

If i do the math, depreciation annually would be really cheap. looks like the export value of the car has gone way down. do you think maintenance of these cars would be high? i would think since its a late model e39, any glitches would be ironed out by now.

need your comments!
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

Search the net for common faults of the e39..... use that as a guideline when you check out the car..... the e39 is still a very handsome car.... doesn't look out of date.... Well, maybe the interior.... but the drive is more important......

However, realise that the e39 520s are not the fastest things on the road.... if that's important to you, I suggest you look elsewhere......

Just my two cents....
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

If you're looking for a well-engineered (more like over-engineered) car that's comfortable and yet possess great handling attributes, an E39 is a fine machine.

My friend has a year 2000 one and he's passed 100 000kms. Other than the usual wear and tear items, nothing major has gone wrong, and it doesn't feel like anything will anytime soon.

But like TheNew7 said, it ain't about speed, although there are plenty of things that can fix that...
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

It's a fine car with no inherent faults except for the Nikasil problem that affected 1996 to 1998 cars. I am currently running a late 2002 525iT which has done 30k km. Other than a camshaft sensor failure, nothing has gone wrong. It must be one of the most wallet-friendly cars out there.

One thing to note is that the wheel hubs are different from a lot of other BMWs so if you plan to do an upgrade, you have to get wheels that are specific to the E39.

I think you might want to find a lower mileage example. I had a 1996 520i that needed a new gearbox at 100k km and that cost several thousand dollars. High mileage will also negatively affect its attractiveness to car exporters.
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

funcar62 said:
hey guys,

just want your advice. i'm thinking of buying a used late model (aug 03) 520i exec E39 body. good values now. 60-80k kilometer cars going at 92 - 94 thousand. Thats on a high paper value of 75K or more (OMV of 55k plus)

If i do the math, depreciation annually would be really cheap. looks like the export value of the car has gone way down. do you think maintenance of these cars would be high? i would think since its a late model e39, any glitches would be ironed out by now.

need your comments!
Click to expand...
though export value has gone down, still a decent buy as paper value for that yr/mth made is higher than usual.

maintainance wise, don't compare with asian made cars but compare to other conti brands, pretty decent pricing & of course DOIN' OUTTA pml. with regular svc, one will save more in the long run.

apart from wear & tear, the last batch of e39 exec is pretty much a stable & reliable car to owe, so no worries. If we're talking about speed, there are plenty stuff that can be done to the il6 m54's.
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

I have one of the bullet-proofs E39s, 2002 batch....and has been faultless since day 1. Yours should be the end of life too and all the faults gremlins would have been ironed out.

It is one of the best cars I have ever owned. Drive is a tad more sturdy than the E60, IMO...and that is the main reason I am holding back upgrading...Wife still prefers current ride too.

Go for it. These cars are a real steal now, and are real value for money. AS for the design, you can see that it has that classic executive look, pretty timeless.
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

Bro,
Go for it , good buy , I'm having my 3rd e39 since year 2002. Never get sick of it. Of course need some minor mod up.
Cheers
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

gp, very nice set-up you've there.
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

AC Boy said:
gp, very nice set-up you've there.
Click to expand...


Thanks bro. But sayang got to scrap it in a few months time as it is nearing 5 year mark. So must enjoy every moment of it now...
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

Thanks for the feedback, guys. Right now, i'm looking at three different cars - all titanium silver "exec" models with similar paper values. Mileages are 60k, 70k, and 80k respectively. Also, during test drive, all drove pretty similarly well. I'm worried though because when i l.ooked at the service booklet, only the first oil change was "stamped" on the booklet... with no record of Inspection 1 or 2. Is this common? Usual, PML would stamp that if the car was serviced there right? or would it just be recorded on the computer
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

great car to drive, been wit me for 7 years. More than 200k of travel, no major damage xcept wear n tear...
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

fc62

it'll be pml's record each time a svc is done. in this case, prolly the owners wud have svc at their own workshops.
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

gp said:
Thanks bro. But sayang got to scrap it in a few months time as it is nearing 5 year mark. So must enjoy every moment of it now...
Click to expand...
ha, i got another yr + to drive, guess de-modding & letting go the car will be just as painful ...
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

Radon39 said:
I have one of the bullet-proofs E39s, 2002 batch....and has been faultless since day 1. Yours should be the end of life too and all the faults gremlins would have been ironed out.
.
Click to expand...

wow, why u need bullet proof car?
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

Radon39,

Juz sell your car to funcar62 lah. Got GPS some more. Time for u to move on anyway.
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

aiya...i thought u really got bullet proof car. if yes, my dad will be interested to get it from u. ha
 
Re: late e39 520: a good buy?

hitmee said:
aiya...i thought u really got bullet proof car. if yes, my dad will be interested to get it from u. ha
Click to expand...

eh..your dad Kofi Annan ha:lol2: :lol2:


Kofi's car is bullet-proof
 
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