One of my dad's friends is finally letting his '96 528i go and he's giving my mom a really good deal on it. She's considering letting go of the Camaro for it. The thing is, my friend has a 740iL from the same era, and it's riddled with electrical gremlins. He only uses it a couple months of the year, and he has issues. Of course, the E39 is one of my favorite cars of all time (probably the best all-rounder ever made in my book), so I'm tempted to tell her to go for it. So are there any issues I should know about?

My friends 3 series from that era (1995) has so many electrical gremlins that it has become a joke (to everyone but him). Also a significant number of interior trim pieces are falling off. That being said I'm right there with you in terms of your love for these cars, and would jump on it if I were you.

In comparison to the Camaro, its probably less reliable with all the extra stuff stuck to it. Its also certainly more expensive to maintain and repair.

dont do it moe, think with your head and not with your heart when buying a car. you saw what happened to me

Maintenance costs aren't an issue, frequency is.



Your car wasn't in good shape, and you bought it knowing that because it was meant to be a project. This car is well maintained by a friend of my dad's. He's even offered to get any known issues sorted before he sells it to us (the only issue at this point is a glove compartment that locks itself). Also, the car probably won't see more than a couple thousand km a year.

The newer ones are supposed to be pretty bulletproof, but I'm not sure about the older ones. Don't you all have cheap oil over there? What would prevent you from getting a 540i?

V8 5-series are extremely rare. After all, this is the only region in the world where the 7 outsells the 5, and the 5 outsells the 3. Where going for the 528 because as I explained, it belongs to a friend of my dad's, so we know the history of the car, any faults, and he's giving it to us cheap.

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/carreviews/us...mw_5series.html

^ Thanks a lot RallyCat, I really appreciate it.

I do however, think that theyre one of the best looking sedans ever made. Hands down.

^ Amen to that.

^ Best looking 5-Series to date. My dad had a 530i and ran it for about a year and a half. Only once did it not want to start for some or other reason(can't remember right now) and had to be towed.
But what a fantastic car, and oh so sexy to look at.