Advice needed on buying a G30 5 series…
Discussion
I’m looking to buy a G30 5 series but unsure of which model - i’m considering a 530e, 530i or 530d…
Some useful info…
Budget is around £21k, so probably end up with a 2017-2019 model
Prefer an M Sport model
Live in a city and have a driveway
Do around 12,000 to 15,000 miles per year
Do the school run twice a day, which works out to around 80 miles per week and each run takes around 45 mins (so 90 mins daily)
Balance of yearly mileage is town driving - motorway driving probably accounts for 4,000-5,000 miles per year tops
Have previously (around 12 years ago) had a 530d E60 and loved it. My preference would be the G30 530d given it’s a 6 cylinder, but am mindful of fuel costs etc. If ended up with a 530e then would do my best to plug it in daily, but then there’s a one-off cost attached to getting power to the driveway (standard socket or dedicated charger?) and of course the on-going electricity costs - am on a standard tariff with Octopus. Am I right in believing that if the 530e isn’t fully charged then i’m using just c.185 bhp from the petrol engine..?
So, ideally would like the 6 cylinder but wanted to hear others on their thoughts… thanks in advance for your input!
Finally, would love a 540i but mindful of all of the above!
Some useful info…
Budget is around £21k, so probably end up with a 2017-2019 model
Prefer an M Sport model
Live in a city and have a driveway
Do around 12,000 to 15,000 miles per year
Do the school run twice a day, which works out to around 80 miles per week and each run takes around 45 mins (so 90 mins daily)
Balance of yearly mileage is town driving - motorway driving probably accounts for 4,000-5,000 miles per year tops
Have previously (around 12 years ago) had a 530d E60 and loved it. My preference would be the G30 530d given it’s a 6 cylinder, but am mindful of fuel costs etc. If ended up with a 530e then would do my best to plug it in daily, but then there’s a one-off cost attached to getting power to the driveway (standard socket or dedicated charger?) and of course the on-going electricity costs - am on a standard tariff with Octopus. Am I right in believing that if the 530e isn’t fully charged then i’m using just c.185 bhp from the petrol engine..?
So, ideally would like the 6 cylinder but wanted to hear others on their thoughts… thanks in advance for your input!
Finally, would love a 540i but mindful of all of the above!
G30 530d is a cracking car, had mine nearly 3 years, been faultless. M Sport is a must for me, the dechroming is worth it alone.
This is my 4th 5 series now, I miss the punch of my F10 535d, as sadly they dropped that engine set up for the G30, other than that, everything is an upgrade.
Go for the biggest central screen you can and highest spec. The lighter leather really lifts the cabin, black can be very austere.
This is my 4th 5 series now, I miss the punch of my F10 535d, as sadly they dropped that engine set up for the G30, other than that, everything is an upgrade.
Go for the biggest central screen you can and highest spec. The lighter leather really lifts the cabin, black can be very austere.
CrgT16 said:
My experience is with 530d, we have 2, similar spec. One with x drive other without. X drive spoils comfort and turning circle in my experience. RWD only preferred for me for comfort. I t shouldn’t matter but it’s our experience.
Out of interest why is the XDrive less comfortable? I’m currently looking at the 530d in estate form. Cheers. I have a 530d touring/G31 and bought it new for a song before things went stupid
It runs Dunlop winters from November-April and is safe and reliable in ice and snow
Its a lovely place to spend time munching miles and mine was ordered with the HK stereo upgrade which Id consider non negotiable and the comfort pack which gives leccy seats and mirrors, keyless (Im a fan) and a reversing cam - not essential but handy to have
The finance ends soon and Im going to buy it and run it for many years, its by far the most complete car Ive had in ages. The list honestly includes an MX5 and 335d
Cheers
Same dilemma except mine are mainly motorway miles. X drive seems more expensive but I live half a mile up a muddy track and tow things occasionally so would probably prefer one with X drive. I love torque so was gravitating to the 530d rather than 540i -
experience of the B58 engine in a M140i and would have thought underpowered in a 5 touring but interested in real world experience.
experience of the B58 engine in a M140i and would have thought underpowered in a 5 touring but interested in real world experience.
I have a 530e touring
Tech is great
Amazing comfort and ride (it’s a M sport, with adaptive)
Great looking
When the battery is depleted, it keeps enough in reserve to still give a function called xtra boost (10 seconds of battery assistance thus a total of 288 bhp) - this might only be available on LCI cars.
Accelerating hard on the motorway can feel both laboured and be noisy.
Without xtra boost, the car feels a lot slower than a 520d I had a few years ago, the stats suggests without electric assistance it only has something like 60% of the torque per tonne of the 520d.
In many ways it’s one of the best cars I’ve owned, but I’d happily upgrade it, if they did a 6 cylinder hybrid.
Tech is great
Amazing comfort and ride (it’s a M sport, with adaptive)
Great looking
When the battery is depleted, it keeps enough in reserve to still give a function called xtra boost (10 seconds of battery assistance thus a total of 288 bhp) - this might only be available on LCI cars.
Accelerating hard on the motorway can feel both laboured and be noisy.
Without xtra boost, the car feels a lot slower than a 520d I had a few years ago, the stats suggests without electric assistance it only has something like 60% of the torque per tonne of the 520d.
In many ways it’s one of the best cars I’ve owned, but I’d happily upgrade it, if they did a 6 cylinder hybrid.
When I plug mine in via a 3 pin socket, it will add just over 6 miles of range an hour, so be fully charged in 3 1/2 hours. We are on std rate so about 12p a mile.
However the advantage with hybrid is silent running and less visits to the petrol station.
However the advantage with hybrid is silent running and less visits to the petrol station.
Edited by Wilmslowboy on Tuesday 11th April 07:08
JQ said:
Out of interest why is the XDrive less comfortable? I’m currently looking at the 530d in estate form. Cheers.
Ours are estate form. First one was pre facelift second one facelift bought new. The facelift was not available RWD only so we got the x drive. Similar spec, wheel combo. The x drive just is more crashy and drives worse. Maybe the difference is small but because we had them back to back we notice it more. You may test drive one and find it great.We never felt the need for more traction with the RWD. X drive only helps moving forward. The mpg is worse than the first one so no real benefit. Why put more drag on the drivetrain?
Anyway they are great cars but if we were buying again with what we know now we would have not bought the x drive one and look at something different. I think this only applies because we replaced the RWD with x drive so was a back to back comparison.
CrgT16 said:
JQ said:
Out of interest why is the XDrive less comfortable? I’m currently looking at the 530d in estate form. Cheers.
Ours are estate form. First one was pre facelift second one facelift bought new. The facelift was not available RWD only so we got the x drive. Similar spec, wheel combo. The x drive just is more crashy and drives worse. Maybe the difference is small but because we had them back to back we notice it more. You may test drive one and find it great.We never felt the need for more traction with the RWD. X drive only helps moving forward. The mpg is worse than the first one so no real benefit. Why put more drag on the drivetrain?
Anyway they are great cars but if we were buying again with what we know now we would have not bought the x drive one and look at something different. I think this only applies because we replaced the RWD with x drive so was a back to back comparison.
I have never had x drive, my colleague at work insisted it was vital….I asked why, he couldn’t answer, other than it was more expensive so must be worth having!
I use mine every day, mainly tarmac, but do” have some clients down long dodgy driveways and farms, never had an issue with traction, so I see no need for it, other than one thing….
Snow.
When the snow comes, I’ll leave it on the driveway and take my wife’s mini, as the five series turns into a sledge, massive wide tyres don’t help. Ironically, my colleague with the X drive, also brings his wife’s car when the snow comes.
I would say it is far more important to pay for options, you can enjoy and make the experience better, rather than something you will probably never experience.
For me, those are oyster seats, tech pack, keyless, pro Nav screen and 20” alloys that properly fill the arches.
I use mine every day, mainly tarmac, but do” have some clients down long dodgy driveways and farms, never had an issue with traction, so I see no need for it, other than one thing….
Snow.
When the snow comes, I’ll leave it on the driveway and take my wife’s mini, as the five series turns into a sledge, massive wide tyres don’t help. Ironically, my colleague with the X drive, also brings his wife’s car when the snow comes.
I would say it is far more important to pay for options, you can enjoy and make the experience better, rather than something you will probably never experience.
For me, those are oyster seats, tech pack, keyless, pro Nav screen and 20” alloys that properly fill the arches.
SuperCharged V6 said:
I have never had x drive, my colleague at work insisted it was vital….I asked why, he couldn’t answer, other than it was more expensive so must be worth having!
I use mine every day, mainly tarmac, but do” have some clients down long dodgy driveways and farms, never had an issue with traction, so I see no need for it, other than one thing….
Snow.
When the snow comes, I’ll leave it on the driveway and take my wife’s mini, as the five series turns into a sledge, massive wide tyres don’t help. Ironically, my colleague with the X drive, also brings his wife’s car when the snow comes.
I would say it is far more important to pay for options, you can enjoy and make the experience better, rather than something you will probably never experience.
For me, those are oyster seats, tech pack, keyless, pro Nav screen and 20” alloys that properly fill the arches.
See aboveI use mine every day, mainly tarmac, but do” have some clients down long dodgy driveways and farms, never had an issue with traction, so I see no need for it, other than one thing….
Snow.
When the snow comes, I’ll leave it on the driveway and take my wife’s mini, as the five series turns into a sledge, massive wide tyres don’t help. Ironically, my colleague with the X drive, also brings his wife’s car when the snow comes.
I would say it is far more important to pay for options, you can enjoy and make the experience better, rather than something you will probably never experience.
For me, those are oyster seats, tech pack, keyless, pro Nav screen and 20” alloys that properly fill the arches.
Mine runs winters in winter and the only thing that restricts it is clearance when its REALLY deep
In contrast I had a 335d xDrive that was unusable in snow and dodgy in sleet - it found traction but was unable to brake or steer
Tyres are everything
Cheers
EDIT: mine is 2wd
Edited by numtumfutunch on Tuesday 11th April 10:13
Billy_Whizzzz said:
I love torque so was gravitating to the 530d rather than 540i -
experience of the B58 engine in a M140i and would have thought underpowered in a 5 touring but interested in real world experience.
Having just added an M240i to our household, i'm very surprised you think a 540i touring would be underpowered based on driving an M140i. Not the low down torque of the diesel but certainly not underpowered. 4.7 to 62 is pretty decent against any benchmark.experience of the B58 engine in a M140i and would have thought underpowered in a 5 touring but interested in real world experience.
OP - 530d is the nicest of your selection. 530e is very quiet and smooth but once the battery is used the economy isn't great. Low to mid 30s mpg is quite likely compared to 45 or so in the 530d.
numtumfutunch said:
See above
Mine runs winters in winter and the only thing that restricts it is clearance when its REALLY deep
In contrast I had a 335d xDrive that was unusable in snow and dodgy in sleet - it found traction but was unable to brake or steer
Tyres are everything
Cheers
EDIT: mine is 2wd
Good to hear, I am sure winters would solve it, but given we get a couple of days a year maximum I cannot drive it, the inconvenience of changing and owning two sets of tyres/wheels, vs using the Mini I think is acceptable. Mine runs winters in winter and the only thing that restricts it is clearance when its REALLY deep
In contrast I had a 335d xDrive that was unusable in snow and dodgy in sleet - it found traction but was unable to brake or steer
Tyres are everything
Cheers
EDIT: mine is 2wd
Edited by numtumfutunch on Tuesday 11th April 10:13
What is very interesting is that you would have winters/rwd over x-drive based on owning both, so I think that answers the OP’s question about whether to pay for x-drive, winters or not??
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