hi guys

after years of wanting a bmw i placed a deposit on a 2002 520i auto today and have some queries you could maybe help with....

the car has 101k on the clock and a fsh. i searched high and low for a decent one.

the car is not without some issues however. i have read through some old threads for answers already but im still not sure.

1. the interior heaters dont work very well and no cold air. the garage said they will look into this. i have found a few posts on this and will pass on my findings to the garage.

2. the back passenger side wheel has excessive tyre wear on the inside half and is down to the steel belts. i have asked for a full 4 wheel alligment to happen.

3. there seems to be oil on the bottom of the engine after i stuck my head under for a look. the car seemed to run fine and there was no blue smoke. i didnt mention this to the garage as my friend who is a mechanic said it wasnt anything to worry about....not neccesarly an oil leak.

4. the car seemed to rumble about inside a bit under a cold start then went away after a test drive. is this anything to worry about. im not sure what to make of this....prob just me being overly cautious.

thanks for the help in advance

shaun

oh i forgot to say the tv isnt working either. is this easy to set up/fix?

Erm... personally I would have gone for one in a better condition. All the issues can be fixed but any bigger problems could cost a fortune (more than what the car's worth) from BMW.

When I started driving mine, I went in for a service and it ended up costing over a grand and that was only for brakes, 2 brake discs, hand brake, and typical service checks.

Not sure about the heating element, but with the cold air, a simple air-con re-gas should do the trick (if I'm correct haha). I re-gased mine and it pretty much has a blizzard coming out :P

As for the more technical stuff I'm not that sure about I'm afraid :(

Did you look through all the service booklets and all that stuff? I mean if it's been well maintained then all you need to do is give it some good old fashion TLC :)

They're lovely cars to drive and once you get yours in top condition again I'm sure you'd feel the same, but it'll cost you!

Richard :)

without taking months to find the perfect car this is the best in my price range. the car has a full service history and the niggles it has are just wear and tear. the possible oil leak concerns me though! regarding the back tyre wear im just worried the garage bangs a new tyre on and tells me its sorted....6 months later im replacng a tyre and possibly something more like suspension etc. the brakes on the car are solid and they have been replaced recently. brakes are easy to diagnose but engine issues can hide in many places. i fully intend to book it into a local independent specialist to give it a once over once ive picked it up. i havent paid for the car in full yet till im happy with the works that i have requested.

Thanks for your reply.

Hi Shaun...

1- Aircon needs re-gassing and maybe the Hedgehog resistor may need changing too !

2- Suspension bushes/shock/alignments need a good look at... Accident????

3- There IS a leak !!!

4- Rumble? Please explain further ;)

HTH

hi jack

what is the part name for this hedgehog thing? i assume they will try regasing the aircon before they start checking other things.

the suspension/wheel alignment is getting looked at.

i called the garage today and they told me they have replaced the cylinder head gasket and oil pan gasket a while back. the car is known to the garage and the last owner traded the bmw in for an audi. they have told me they will clean all that up and check it again....best an answer i could ask for. the car is coming with a 12 month warranty!

is booking the car into a specialist once ive bought it a good idea? just to check it over with someone who knows bmw's inside out. i would rather do this before buying or buy off a specialist but this is the real world and things dont always work out that way. i dont have any bmw specialists who sell cars in my area

You don't need a "Specialist" matey... Just a friend who knows cars ;)

BTW the SatNav will be a module issue... Get a fault-code assessment or buy a tool and come back with result(s) so we can help more ;)

With regards to the aircon they won't just re-gas it before anything else, they will first check the whole aircon system to make sure its not going to leak because they will of course be filling it with refrigerant gas.

Im a snap-on dealer so no probs with diagnostics ;-)

And i know plenty of mechanics. I try and learn as much as i can myself though. My dad drives nothing but bmw's and i grew up with them. I know now why my dad likes them so much...another bmw driver for life with me i think. The 5 series is just another game all together from any other cars ive driven. I found the 3 series to sharp with regards to the steering and the suspension to hard. The 5 series is just right.

the satnav seems to work but from what ive read the tv needs updated to digital. Are those 50 quid jobs from ebay any good?

I read you can get updates for the auto box....is that an ecu update?