My 4.4i Sport - possibly heading for salvage

[AW8]

Within last fortnight service lamps told me oil inspection due plus brake fluid lamp came on.  Was planning to get the car serviced plus getting a new radiator (recent small leak) & new door window mechanism.

I was hoping that sorting the above would have seen the car good for a while, however........Today I noticed loud death rattle from timing chain area.....Near certain it's the timing chain guides on way out which means £500 for parts alone (engine out job).

Researched maths on speaking to indy indicates at least £1200 for the timing chain guides parts and labour. Adding the other service & repair work mentioned likely to push overall bill to £2k....and car is still on original gearbox !

Regardless of fact I have owned for 10 years, kept it looking great & wanting for little.... I suspect the car might struggle to command £3k used with above issues sorted. So thus considering saying goodbye.

Not sure what to replace it with.

Had been seriously looking at 2008> E70's, circa £13-15k based on me selling my E53 privately after E70 sourcing.

Now forced to revise the maths assuming my E53 will be sold spares or repair. So now budgeting for replacement nearer £10k (which is less than if I had sold privately when not needing work done)

£10k means E70 & F25 likely out of equation....so looking at either E53 facelift or E83 facelift.

Have even considered moving from BMW completely.

As yet undecided.

[X5Sport]

:cry1:  and just before Xmas too 

[graemeX5]

Sorry to hear the news re the poss timing chain issue, and you are probably right about the economics of the situation.

However, if looking at an E70 I think they are a step up from the E53 and although it's this time of year it could be an early Christmas present to yourself.

And remeber nearer it is to that poont the quieter the dealers get, so any sales are a bonus so it could work to your advantage, and if trading your car in you may get a reasonable offer on yours.

Graeme

[AW8]

Thanks Guys

I agree December can be a reasonable time to buy, albeit 4x4 values often higher in winter.

Ironically I had been actively trawling classifieds for E70's. The plan was to buy an E70 circa £13-14k then the sell E53 thereafter to bring cost to change as close to £10k as able.

I can't see any trader wanting to make an offer on my effective non runner -  so a useful to me p/x deal involving my E53 is out of the question.

An decent E70 will cost beyond £10k, so have resigned myself, (for now at least) , that E70 ownership is off limits.

[lezmtaylor]

So sorry to hear your news, your car is a very nice example.
There must be plenty of decent E53 cars around and going for silly money.
hope you find one soon.
I admit I am a bit worried about mine, but am  only doing 3,500m per annum (car mileage 92,000).
Had thought about fitting a prestart oil pressure pump system to charge the chain tensioner and engine oil pressure.
I have recently had  major foot reconstruction and am 4 weeks into 8 weeks of plaster to LH knee and NO weight on foot ( It is bloody booring, so much I want to do).

All the best,

Lez

[AW8]

Thanks Lez,

Sorry to here re your knee.

Re the pump......no idea if any good  - surely if the guides are old and tired it wont make huge difference.

As for sourcing an E53......the more one knows the fussier one can be whether it be due to price, condition, history, spec,  seller or all of the above ...Whilst E70 hunting a mint one owner 2005 3.0d Sport Exclusive with nice spec & sensible mileage caught my eye but has since SOLD.

[gmc15]

Bad news re the car

There are some around for 10-12k up North, depending on what sort of mileage you would go up to.

Here's a diesel one

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/ ... 000&page=5


Here's a petrol one

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/ ... ars&page=5

I'm sure something will turn up that meets your spec.

[AW8]

Thanks

Re E70 sourcing........

One reason I was taking time to source was spec....Ideally I wanted 3.0sd or 35d, 7 seats, 2008 onwards, black exterior, black interior, media pack or decent navigation & ICE upgrade. Mileage wise I was aiming for 90k max. SE with dynamic pack or MSport. Had seen a couple close to spec wishlist circa £13-14k one was 385 miles away the other was a private sale but lacked fhe 7 seats. Academic now as both cars I sought are now circa £3k out of budget

2007 & V8 cars ruled out due to VED band.

Re links

1st car prior considered as seemed to potentially have decent history. It eemed to be lacking on spec.......not sure re seat heating or media & wheels not my personal choice either

2nd car is a V8 - Made myself look away from these.....tempting but VED costly & more importantly may prove an issue come later resale. Also I might grow tired trying to explain my reasoning for buying it to ignorent others.

I am proper fussy without deep pockets when reflected in price......not many on here will remember my hunt for an E53 back in 2006 but it was a genuine mission.

Happy to sort a car with resolveable issues.......problem is many expect next owner to pay top money for cars needing  effort to sort.

[AW8]

gmc15

Apologies.....I meant to add my thanks to you for your input  btw - links appreciated

[gmc15]

No problem, but I thought you did at the start

I spend loads of time on autotrader just looking at all sorts of cars so your search just gave me something else to do. I have just been looking at ex police X5's and it looks like some are 40d's, but have very high mileages and poor spec. Like the look of some of the BMW 330d's - high miles but cheap as chips.

I had an ex police Senator 3.0 24v and it was superb

[AW8]

Oh well - you got double thanks.

I don't necessarily have issue with all ex police cars.....Some forces also used silver as fleet colour in more recent years. Most Police E70's are basic spec 3.0d. A basic car with some scars fine if I wanted a mere work horse but would have liked something nicer. An ex metpol traffic car might hve had some wear on the gearbox though. The issue over 150k will be tired bushes. The fully laden ARV'x carry some weight.

I would personally not buy a response car under 3000cc - mondeos  & the like.....they earn their keep, can get driven relatively hard.....left rear seat may benefit from a deep clean too.

Something like this would háve been ok

http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/ ... dr/6481828

My desired criteria listed in post above flexibe.....dont think the car I linked car has 7 seats anc its over 90k.

[AW8]

I had also found myself looking at this http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/ ... dr/6432860

[mogsyman]

Sorry to hear then was, your car has always been a great example of the model.

On a different note are we all meeting up soon for a rubi?

[Greydog]

Commiserations with the 4.4 it was this time last year when mine self destructed. It's a difficult decision spend money and save it or spend more and change completely.

Good luck with the hunt for the replacement, as always patience and a clear head will get you what you want combined with the knowledge you already have of the beast you are looking for.

Regarding the pre-oiling system, while my engine rebuild was underway I had the opportunity to examine the damaged parts in some detail. My conclusion was the engine temperature had at some time been to high (never overheated in my ownership it had 2 radiators due to splits) this does 2 things first it hardens the already fragile chain guides and second it anneals the small helper spring in the tensioner so there is insufficient pressure at cold start before the oil is circulating. The result in my case was an oil pump blocked causing major failure. The independent Warranty engineer echoed my thoughts, apparently BMW are not alone here.
After the rebuild I decided to try and make sure it wouldn't happen again by fitting an Insta-lube pre-oiling system, now when I turn on the ignition the oil light goes out before I engage the starter.

[graemeX5]

Hi

One thought as a stop gap could be to source and fit a replacement engine for the E53 but this could be as much as the car is worth if paying someone to fit it.

Alternatively assuming its definitely the timing chain then you could sell it as spare or repair a few old 330 on eBay where gearbox or turbo gone)

However looking at the E70 the SE has a nicer spec esp with comfort seats as well, but I like the look of the Msport more, but that is just me, as long as both are the lower tax band then you're fine.

Also it's still worth trying a trade in you never know and the worst they can say is no, and then just ask for a discount as you are now having to stretch the budget as you were banking on your trade in covering X amount towards the cost esp as it's near to Christmas, as for alll dealers it's a quiet time no matter what they say.

Graeme