After 7 years with my trusty 528SE my new 535d Sport has arrived, I kept the 528 as I hardly drive it (43k) and I just could not justify changing it. I believe that when you load a car with extras it changes the economics of used car values.
Three bits of advice / thoughts please
1. Do I de-badge it?
2. I need to install a camera / radar detector but need to be fitted discretly, with possible radar unit behind front grill. Who is the best manufacturer of this type of unit.
3. Or do I get dealer to fit Trafficmaster
As an aside it looks like SWMBO will pick up the car as I have been in the Yemen drilling for Oil since 27 Dec and it looks like I won't be home until April.......rats rats rats.
For you diesel drivers it was this forum that started me thinking (PU and his 530d), I ordered a 530d with head up display but BMW could not supply and then 535d was launched, so every cloud has a silver lining.
Rgs
Jim M
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Is it possible to radiate envy ?
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Not into a wadi with 500 ft cliffs, if it was, you guys would have felt my envy when you are talking about Little Chef fry ups - I've been eating Halal for since I got here
Jim
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Well, what spec ? What colour ? Run flat tyres or not ? Big or std wheels ?
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have you found the oil yet?
;-)
lucky get, 535d = nice wheels myson
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PU - comms pack (prof nav bluetooth etc) , visibility pack (Xenons etc), heated seats for Aberdeen, sun roof for not Aberdeen.
Black with red (ruby?) leather
Did not specify fancy steering as salesman said it was good but Ladies had problems as steering wheel movement is not constant.
BMW seem to be selling "packs" maybe too many people balking at cost of extras. No dark glass - 2 Weimararners (?) solve the security, also as with your dog ours like to help drive... We do put seat belts on dogs and they will sit better than kids!!
VTirdeyes - sorry no Oil on this one which is a shame a local people really good (despite looking fierce) and they need some income / jobs ...Looks like 5 million dollars for nothing.
We have one more well in Yemen actual industry hit rate for drilling is 10%, then if you hit is it big enough to economically produce? Not exactly sure of economics for land as this is my first land well after 31 yrs drilling offshore.
Cheers
Jim
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If your new BeeEmm is just half as great to drive as the 528 then you will definitely be extremely satisfied - but I suspect I don't need to tell you that...:-)
Mind you the 525 (actually a 2.3) was within a whisker in top speed, 0-60 etc as the 528 and was considerably cheaper at the time.
In my humble opinion the mid-1990s 5 Series was one of the finest (generally affordable) cars ever to be found in a showroom.
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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PS
No doubt there will be some outraged disagreements...:-)
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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Stuartli Couldn't agree more except I prefer 528, somebody will get a bargin.
PS thanks for suggestions with Skype, I use it all the time for personal calls.
Jim
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Won't find me disagreeing, mine was in last of the beautifully shaped 5s before I swapped it for the current one. As near perfection in a car as one could hope. I feel strongly about people who hate Beemers simply of what they are. A well specified 5 is difficult to fault on any level - one being attracting ill-informed prejudice.
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I feel that I must confess to having a dislike / non-appreciation for BMs. I was once part of the 'Whats so special about 'em' brigade - and whence I test drove my brother-in-laws 02/52 330d Sport - in those few minutes my whole life changed ;) I now have a beautiful 330 SE with a some tasteful trimmings and would now never buy anything other than another BM. It truly is a driver's car and close to perfection - amen.
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2. Do not recommend fitting any radar camera detector behind any grill or otherwise. a: they are a pain and do not work properly, and b: they are soon to be banned.
Go for a GPS Camera detector, easy to fit yourself.
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Dunno about Trafficmaster either, is it worth it ?
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I find Trafficmaster definitely worth it, though not sure about the more expensive variants. Mine is the basic machine (£75 initial cost then £25 per annum to renew licence - may have gone up: I'm just about to renew mine).
All it does is tell you where the hold-ups are on M-ways and main roads so that you can divert if you want to. That's all I need as I have one of those big Navigator atlases - 1.5 inches to a mile.
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Have a look at www.smartnav.com, which is upmarket Trafficmaster. Then search the forum for my opinion (and others)
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Thanks - I checked back (as I should have done before asking the question)it looks like I will go for smartnav with speedsafe. The system will negate the BMW nav (which will confirm to SWMBO that it was ordered as a toy) but smartnav will be user friendly for my wife. We have decided to get rid of her car and just use mine so the more user friendly the better (she has 6 points). I guess as RF points out radar detectors may well become illegal as in France but I may well change my mind if she picks up more points.
BTW - no comments from the panel on de-badging ;+)
Cheers
Jim
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For interest - it rained in the desert last night (full bifta thunder and lightning), had guys out checking for running water from plateau into wadi. Got plenty of toys though, a big Caterpiller front loader for pulling trucks out of the mud, if that fails have got a D9 bulldozer if that fails non of us should be here :+(
Sun is shining this morning :+)
Jim
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Jim, I hope you are going to keep it a proper BMW, and that you won't go and muck it up by fitting either the indicator pack or the headlight off-switch ...
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Ah yes, the no indicator and headlamp off switch pack - IMHO seem to be more popular on the 3 series. Not being at home too often and driving in some rather unpredictable parts of the world my driving habits are scrutinised by my "little Miss Perfect" daughter and my wife. Any variation from their standards causes much consternation and the words "let me drive you are still in, where ever I have just come back from". Funny enough though, I think they have a secret switch where they can turn the aformentioned option on ;+)
Jim
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Don't debadge it - normally for the smaller engined varients aspiring to greater things.
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Still undecided, the comment about stealing to order is something I had not thought of. Q car mentality also appeals to the child in this 51 yr old. But mosy likly I will go down the path of least resistance and leave badges on.
I'm sorry I did not reply correctly to your question. I have not changed spec on wheels, run flats get bad press and I am sure I will notice, but the advantage for me would be that my wife could get home safe, When I am away my main concern is that everything is OK at home, small things become disasters, big things I never hear about until I get home.
Cheers
Jim
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Make sure wife, daughter et al let it idle for 90 secs before switching off so they don't cook the turbo bearings.
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Regards stealing to order, these guys know their onions and de-badging should not be an issue. Make sure that your significant other is aware not to lave keys anywhere prominent in the house, a trend these days is to break in and nick the car and keys. Not even break in in some places, they fish them through the letter boxes.
Yours should be fitted with Tracker (unless it was dealer offer with mine)this should decrease insurance premium if that's an issue (!)
HJ may correct me if I'm wrong but cooking the turbo is less of an issue with the 3.0litre than the 2.0 litre.
I am sooooo envious.
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Cooking the turbo is an issue with any turbo charged engine, wise to let the bearings cool with oil still flowing through them, particularly after a fast run, i.e. if pulling into a motorway services.
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I've debadged every BM that I could. Not for any form of theft deterrence (for the reason PU gives) but because it reduces the prevalence of traffic light F1. If everyone thinks I'm an aspirant in a 316i, no-one bothers racing me. Which leaves me safe & smiling.
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