Talk to me about the V8 E65 ...

[msm]

See many post facelift E65's going for sub R300K. The pre facelift are sub R200K (most just out of MP though). Seems to be about R100K difference on a car with MP left. I guess many people are afraid to drive these cars after MP has expired.

Anyway, what is the ownership of these things after MP. Particularely between 100K and 200K KM's on the clock. I'm considering a 740i/750i in about a years time and want to do a bit of research on them from now. Always wanted a V8 and the 7 series prices make them attractive, over an equivalent 5 series.

I'm aware that there's a lot of electronic gadgets on these cars, but are they reliable. Did they have any strange stuff (e.g. air suspension) that is bound to break and cost $$$.

Don't really want to consider the 730d, as the cost of cleaning/replacing injectors (which is bound to happen between 100k and 200k KM) alone nullifies the fuel savings on the diesel vs V8 petrol. Also, from the reviews I've read, the newer E65 V8's were quite frugal (relatively speaking off course).

So anyone want to share some experiences on these cars ....

Just to put this in context, my other option would be a E60 5 series

 

[freerider]

I know that the e60 545 suffers from some problems with the active steering, which can be quite pricey. Taking into consideration the lower models all adopt their technology from the 7's, I would expect the same problem to affect them as well.

Bear in mind as well that everything on a 7 will cost double if not triple what it would cost for the 5.

 

[zaleonardz]

The 7's from 02 to 03 were probematic, the entire lot of them avoid at all costs.

There is also a significant issue with a coolant pipe that runs through the block on the V8's that perishes, and starts leaking, and that means motor out, although I have read an howto on how to do it without pulling the motor

Other then that, its the usual stuff, gearbox issues due to the high torque, logic 7 amp's, the BMW internal radio or ASK unit, control arm bushings bla bla

You can spec a model without the adaptive suspension and so on, without the logic 7 amp, and you should have quite a nice car. GET THE COMFORT SEATS !!!

My research told me at the time that the diesels are the most reliable, and are recommended from a couple of BMW mechanics (based on months of googling), as they last longer then the v8's who are prone to oil leaks, provided you preform a swirl extraction,

Also the nice thing is that they share the same N57N (in some cases N57N2 after 2004), which is essentially the same motor out of the 330d,530d meaning that spares are easier to get too.

Otherwise the 730d delivers 500Nm torque which is plenty, and at 169kw its not the fastest, but its not slow either. Turbo lag up until about 2,500 but then it pulls like a train, and suspension in general is awesome, you expect boatlike handling, but thats not the case.

Further the reason for the price differance between the facelift and the non face lift is the trade prices, there is a huge differance between these two, so its not just a motor plan consideration.

I can recommend this car in a heartbeat, its sexy as hell, and its really one of the most comfortable rides you will ever have, even without the adaptive suspension is has electronic damper control and the six speed auto box is really nice throughout the range, and its the standard ZF boxes, meaning that you can get spares.

WHat I did is bough a car, and extended the motorplan, and I included that in the finance, so my 7 still has a good few km's of trouble free motoring, and I am using that to fix up anything that I THINK may break, and motorplan has been good to me so far.

Hope this helps, my opinion only of course, but this is based on my reading, I WOULD LOVE a E65 750IL i gotta tell you that

LZ

 

[BimmerMan]

I am pretty much not in the best mood to be commenting on the 7 Series right now, but here are a few observations I have made over 2 years of ownership...

Bearing in mind, I have an E38, not an E65...

EVERYTHING is expensive on these cars...Radiators, brakes, sensors, tyres...EVERYTHING! As Freerider says, most of the items are double the price of what they are for a 5 Series.
When something breaks...it usually cripples the car, so become a member of the AA !
If you can...buy some sort of warranty because you will need it at one time or another... (If not, probably be prepared to put away about R2000 - R3000 a month for a rainy day)

They are amazing cars and I can only imagine that an E65 is tons better than an E38...its just the continous expense to keep it going that ruins it all for me