Time For Change

Just your normal general chatting in here..

Moderator: Moderators

User avatar
highlander
PowerFlow Shill
Posts: 3548
Joined: Sun Nov 09, 2008 5:03 pm
Location: Aberdeen

Time For Change

Post by highlander »

Hello all,

I've just posted an ad for my Coupe on the "For Sale/Wanted" section

I've had the pleasure of being the custodian of this beautiful and rewarding car since November 2010, so nearly 7 years - the longest I've owned any car. It's not always been plain sailing, but I've absolutely loved Coupe ownership. I loved having the 406 saloon before it, too.

Unfortunately I am starting to need a 4-door car again, and don't have the space or the means to keep the Coupe as a second car.

I'm picking up my 08-plated BMW 525i M-Sport tomorrow from a dealer in Glasgow. It's testament to the design and quality of the Coupe that I really, REALLY struggled to find a car I felt I could move to without "downgrading" in terms of the interior trim and kit list.

I plan on sticking around here and helping out as much as I can (I've learned a fair amount about the 406 saloon and 406 Coupe in the time I've owned them, but I'm no mechanic), so it's not really goodbye.

Maybe I'll fall back into Coupe ownership at some point in future - who knows?
2002 (D9) Peugeot 406 Coupe SE, 2.2 litre Petrol. Scarlet Red/Rouge Ecarlate/Rosso Scarlatto. Black Leather interior. SOLD :(
2008 (E60 LCI) BMW 525i M-Sport, 3.0 litre Petrol. Carbonschwarz Metallic. Black Dakota Leather and Myrtlewood interior.
User avatar
steve_earwig
Moderator
Posts: 19798
Joined: Thu Oct 04, 2007 6:09 pm
Location: Jastrebarsko, Croatia http://www.jastrebarsko.hr/lokacija/

Re: Time For Change

Post by steve_earwig »

What, you couldn't find a Volvo? :frown: It's a sad day but those of us not rolling about in piles of cash sometimes have to be sensible :(
Unskilled meddling sin©e 2007

The submitted form was invalid. Try submitting again.
User avatar
Doggy
Mod with a 2.2 HDi, De-Fapped!
Posts: 10710
Joined: Mon Oct 13, 2008 11:49 pm
Location: Northants

Re: Time For Change

Post by Doggy »

Sorry to see the coupe go, but I guess we all have to move on at some point.

Hope the Bimmer works out well for you.

Don't be a stranger Graeme.
2002 HDi 2.2 Exec Estate, (2008-12) (wonderful)
2003 HDi 2.2 6-speed Exec Estate (2012-19) (also a gem)
2009 Citroen C5 2.0 HDi VTR+ Estate (godawful heap)
2008 BMW E91 330i touring (great fun - murdered by a reversing SUV)
2007 BMW E91 325i touring (slower smoother quieter)
User avatar
highlander
PowerFlow Shill
Posts: 3548
Joined: Sun Nov 09, 2008 5:03 pm
Location: Aberdeen

Re: Time For Change

Post by highlander »

Not sure I'm old enough to have a Volvo yet, Steve!

The BMW is actually an epic cruiser; I'm quite enjoying it already. It has some features the Coupe didn't have built-in (front and rear parking sensors, push-button start, Bluetooth hands-free), but lacks some that it did (the seats seem to be manually-adjusted, and don't have heating elements (not that mine ever worked anyway)). I actually think the seats in the Coupe have better quality leather, and as for how it looks - the Coupe would win that beauty contest, hands-down.

It's a big heavy bus but buggering hell does it know how to shift. It makes going fast seem rather effortless.

It also cost just shy of £4500, which is an awful lot of car for the money. Though the bork factor does have me a little concerned, I must admit... I may take out a warranty, if I can find one that isn't stupidly over-priced.
2002 (D9) Peugeot 406 Coupe SE, 2.2 litre Petrol. Scarlet Red/Rouge Ecarlate/Rosso Scarlatto. Black Leather interior. SOLD :(
2008 (E60 LCI) BMW 525i M-Sport, 3.0 litre Petrol. Carbonschwarz Metallic. Black Dakota Leather and Myrtlewood interior.
User avatar
Welly
The moderator formally known as Welton
Posts: 15033
Joined: Tue Jan 10, 2006 12:52 pm
Location: East Midlandfordshire

Re: Time For Change

Post by Welly »

highlander wrote:BMW 525i M-Sport
Here, you'll be needing one of these:

Image
Cars in my care:
2021 Kia Spottage 1.6 Pez Turbo Dual Clutch Gearbox Trickery
2013 Renner Twingo - donkey work
User avatar
highlander
PowerFlow Shill
Posts: 3548
Joined: Sun Nov 09, 2008 5:03 pm
Location: Aberdeen

Re: Time For Change

Post by highlander »

It's surprisingly good on fuel, actually - probably to do with having a 6-speed manual gearbox.

The MPG gauge showed high 30s - 50+ on the cruise on the way back. Actually better than the Coupe in places.

I'll be keeping an eye on it as time goes on.

I nearly bought a 745i ...
2002 (D9) Peugeot 406 Coupe SE, 2.2 litre Petrol. Scarlet Red/Rouge Ecarlate/Rosso Scarlatto. Black Leather interior. SOLD :(
2008 (E60 LCI) BMW 525i M-Sport, 3.0 litre Petrol. Carbonschwarz Metallic. Black Dakota Leather and Myrtlewood interior.
User avatar
Welly
The moderator formally known as Welton
Posts: 15033
Joined: Tue Jan 10, 2006 12:52 pm
Location: East Midlandfordshire

Re: Time For Change

Post by Welly »

I was only kidding really, I remember they compared the 530i to the 530d and they weren't that different to run overall.

I like the 5's and may* have eyed up 535d's from time to time after someone told me how shiftily they shift.

I've had my Volvo 8 years and a tiny voice in my head keeps suggesting I should change it.......especially on Sunday when my eggsauce repair* has failed and revealed a 50% crack around the tubing. Just spent £300 on 2 x tyres (which went on the back before Doggy chirps up).

My 2.5 pez seems to do 28mpg now it's over 90,000 miles it does better (or I don't drive it so hard).

You did well to avoid the 745, unless they're brand-new they seem to come with an awkward image....like the owner of a Romanian Car Wash with a 13 year old 750iL :|
Cars in my care:
2021 Kia Spottage 1.6 Pez Turbo Dual Clutch Gearbox Trickery
2013 Renner Twingo - donkey work
User avatar
highlander
PowerFlow Shill
Posts: 3548
Joined: Sun Nov 09, 2008 5:03 pm
Location: Aberdeen

Re: Time For Change

Post by highlander »

Welly wrote:I like the 5's and may* have eyed up 535d's from time to time after someone told me how shiftily they shift.
The 6 cylinder petrol is butter-smooth, and the acceleration is very deceptive as the cabin noise deadening material is very good. Just apply a little pressure on the gas pedal, glance at the speedo and OH MY GOD I'M DOING 90 HOW THE HELL DID THAT HAPPEN

The only real disappointment I've had so far is that although the car supports hands-free calling via Bluetooth, it doesn't support music via Bluetooth, which is a feature of my old Sony head unit that got used ALL the time. I've bought a Bluetooth-to-AUX port adapter which should bridge the gap nicely (and cheaply) but it does feel a bit daft having to buy stuff like that for what is basically an executive barge that should really have had that built-in. The next generation 5 series (F10) does have it built-in but is still too new for me to have been able to afford one.

The dealership that had the 745i also had a 520d. The original purchaser of this 520d must have had exceptionally deep pockets because EVERY optional extra on the car had been specified - heads-up display, night-vision camera, heated and cooled seats, radar-guided cruise control, that feature where the car automatically stays in-lane, roller blind on the rear window, electric sunroof... the works. Didn't buy it because I don't need a diesel - if that car had the engine from the 745i then I'd have bitten the dealer's hand off in order to get it.

The 745i just had too many buttons and features; it just felt like there would be too many distractions to deal with. It was the short wheelbase (non-Limo) version, so still a car for the driver rather than the passenger. The 5-series interior just felt a lot more familiar. Everything is laid out in quite a similar way to the 406, and at no point so far have I thought to myself "what were they THINKING?"
2002 (D9) Peugeot 406 Coupe SE, 2.2 litre Petrol. Scarlet Red/Rouge Ecarlate/Rosso Scarlatto. Black Leather interior. SOLD :(
2008 (E60 LCI) BMW 525i M-Sport, 3.0 litre Petrol. Carbonschwarz Metallic. Black Dakota Leather and Myrtlewood interior.
User avatar
steve_earwig
Moderator
Posts: 19798
Joined: Thu Oct 04, 2007 6:09 pm
Location: Jastrebarsko, Croatia http://www.jastrebarsko.hr/lokacija/

Re: Time For Change

Post by steve_earwig »

highlander wrote:radar-guided tailgating control
Did you fix the indicators yet? (somebody had to :oops: )

T'wife's cousin bought a Bimmer a couple of years back (don't ask me what sort, my interest doesn't stretch that far), nearly new, shiny, shiny, shiny black. I just look at it and think I'd never want to leave it parked anywhere without an armed guard...
Image
Unskilled meddling sin©e 2007

The submitted form was invalid. Try submitting again.
User avatar
highlander
PowerFlow Shill
Posts: 3548
Joined: Sun Nov 09, 2008 5:03 pm
Location: Aberdeen

Re: Time For Change

Post by highlander »

steve_earwig wrote:
highlander wrote:radar-guided tailgating control
Did you fix the indicators yet? (somebody had to :oops: )
Somebody = me!

First thing I checked was if the original owner had ticked the optional extra for "directional indication lights". Oddly enough, he had - bonus! :cheesy:

I even use them
2002 (D9) Peugeot 406 Coupe SE, 2.2 litre Petrol. Scarlet Red/Rouge Ecarlate/Rosso Scarlatto. Black Leather interior. SOLD :(
2008 (E60 LCI) BMW 525i M-Sport, 3.0 litre Petrol. Carbonschwarz Metallic. Black Dakota Leather and Myrtlewood interior.
User avatar
highlander
PowerFlow Shill
Posts: 3548
Joined: Sun Nov 09, 2008 5:03 pm
Location: Aberdeen

Re: Time For Change

Post by highlander »

So that went well.

Less than 2 weeks in, I start getting a sort of light juddering on idle, but fine when driving.

2 days layer, I get the Engine Management Light. *sigh* Out comes the trusty generic ODB2 reader, which tells me that the mixture is running lean on bank 1 and bank 2. A quick bit of Google searching later tells me that this is fairly common on N53 engines, and signifies either a leak in the air intake system, or a fault with one of the two DISA adjuster units (these are sort of like extra throttle bodies built into the air intake manifold that are designed to allow the car to change the length of the manifold at different engine RPM in order to provide better acceleration throughout the rev range).

That same Saturday, I take the car back down to the dealer in Glasgow. They take my car and give me a Peugeot 207 HDi as a courtesy car. This poor little bugger has had a hard life, and is as a result, the worst car I have ever driven in my entire life. More on this later...

They phone me the subsequent Tuesday to tell me there's a problem with the NOX sensor, so they've ordered a replacement part. This turns up on the Thursday afternoon. They fit it on Friday and phone me (as I'm on my way down to Glasgow for unrelated reasons) and tell me that there's a leak in the air intake system somewhere, but they can't find it.

So on Saturday the Wifely Person and I turn up at the dealer. We are told that they will be taking the car to their local BMW specialist, a company called MTek first thing on Monday. The Wifely Person says that the courtesy car they gave us is terrible and we want a better one. The guy (different guy than the one who gave us the 207) says we shouldn't have accepted it in the first place. Hmm, I kind of thought that maybe they shouldn't have offered it, if that's the case? So we get to go home in a BMW 320d. More on this later.

Today, I get a phone call saying that they've figured out the cause of the problem - there's an air leak in a diaphragm that is built into the rocker cover. The diaphragm is part of the breather system. But the diaphragm is apparently not sold separately from the rocker cover. The solution is to replace the entire rocker cover with a new part from BMW. BMW do not have any rocker covers in stock, so one will need to be ordered in. And the dealer's mechanic is on holiday until Wednesday of next week, so that's the soonest a rocker cover would be fitted anyway. Apparently it's a hell of a job to replace the rocker cover on the BMW 5-series; you're talking hours of stripping parts. As a result, I will not be getting my car back this weekend. May not even get it next weekend, knowing my luck.

So this is the story of how I buy a BMW to replace my so-called "unreliable because it's French" Peugeot, and then find that the dealer gets to keep my new car for more of the first month of my ownership than I do.



The Peugeot 207 HDi - red paint, after-market black multifit alloys, 3-door. Cloth seats, CD player. Tired suspension. A gear shift like stirring a cauldron of porridge. An utterly gutless engine. 4 entirely different floor mats. A tendency to lurch to the side randomly when (eventually) driving at motorway speeds. Reasonable fuel consumption, though. I got it home, parked it, and then phoned the insurance company to get my Coupe re-insured, and used that for the remained of the week before taking the 207 back.

The BMW 320d - "sparkling graphite metallic" paint. E90 model, from 2007. 4-door saloon. It's clean, quiet, and comfortable, but I get the impression the original purchaser took one look at the sheet marked "optional extras" and went "Naaah" and shredded it. No sat nav, no Bluetooth, no iDrive system, doesn't even appear to be a method to adjust the position of the steering wheel ... the car is the same size as the 406, but has a smaller (narrower) boot than my Coupe does. The wheels look like rollerskate wheels. Not sure what size they are but I think the car is as base spec as can be. I think the 3 also sits lower on its suspension than the 406 does, because I may have scuffed the sills a little on the stupid "patch"-type speed bumps that litter the road outside my flats. The steering on the 3 also seems to be really heavy in comparison to the much bigger 5 - not "power steering failure!" type heavy, just not as light as I think it should be. A bit of Googling tells me that this is entirely normal for the 3 series; BMW intentionally made the steering heavier to improve road feel. Weird, but it's definitely a better car all-round than the poor, bedraggled little 207 they gave me the first week.

Both of these cars were taken straight off the dealer's lot. They want someone to buy that 207 for £1595, and the asking price for the 320d was somewhere about the £6k mark (more expensive than my 525i was, but diesel and lower mileage). As my Coupe hasn't sold yet :( I might see what that garage would pay for it. It's in better mechanical condition than the 207, and is in much better shape (except the paintwork).
2002 (D9) Peugeot 406 Coupe SE, 2.2 litre Petrol. Scarlet Red/Rouge Ecarlate/Rosso Scarlatto. Black Leather interior. SOLD :(
2008 (E60 LCI) BMW 525i M-Sport, 3.0 litre Petrol. Carbonschwarz Metallic. Black Dakota Leather and Myrtlewood interior.
User avatar
Welly
The moderator formally known as Welton
Posts: 15033
Joined: Tue Jan 10, 2006 12:52 pm
Location: East Midlandfordshire

Re: Time For Change

Post by Welly »

I thought BMW's never go wrong? or am I thinking of VAG cars? :cheesy:

It's a VERY GOOD JOB you're getting this done under warranty, I bet they'll be looking at over £500.00 for this repair.

I've had ropey (straight from stock) loaners before, they give you the shonky ones for a reason.......they don't care so much if it gets totaled.
Cars in my care:
2021 Kia Spottage 1.6 Pez Turbo Dual Clutch Gearbox Trickery
2013 Renner Twingo - donkey work
trufflehunt
3.0 24v
Posts: 552
Joined: Sat Aug 25, 2012 9:15 pm
Location: Axbridge, Somerset

Re: Time For Change

Post by trufflehunt »

Long, long ago my then main car, a 405, went in for a service. The dealer gave me
a loan car for the day.

A Citroen AX. it was quite the thinnest, tinniest car I've ever travelled in.
I felt like a stone rattling around inside an empty baked beans can.

Got me and to and from work that day, though, all that was required.
2006 Toyota Yaris 1.0 T3
1993 Mazda MX5 Mk1 1.6
2000 "W" HDI 110 Executive Saloon (Recycled).
User avatar
highlander
PowerFlow Shill
Posts: 3548
Joined: Sun Nov 09, 2008 5:03 pm
Location: Aberdeen

Re: Time For Change

Post by highlander »

Welly wrote:It's a VERY GOOD JOB you're getting this done under warranty, I bet they'll be looking at over £500.00 for this repair.
Agreed! Though it does make me worry A LOT about what will happen once they say "here's your car back, it's now past the statute of returns under Sale of Goods Act, you're on your own now".

Here's me thinking "It's not an M5 so it probably won't be too expensive on parts". Apparently I'm stupid!

Apparently the rocker cover from BMW is £350 + VAT, not including fitting. What's it made of, titanium?
2002 (D9) Peugeot 406 Coupe SE, 2.2 litre Petrol. Scarlet Red/Rouge Ecarlate/Rosso Scarlatto. Black Leather interior. SOLD :(
2008 (E60 LCI) BMW 525i M-Sport, 3.0 litre Petrol. Carbonschwarz Metallic. Black Dakota Leather and Myrtlewood interior.
User avatar
Welly
The moderator formally known as Welton
Posts: 15033
Joined: Tue Jan 10, 2006 12:52 pm
Location: East Midlandfordshire

Re: Time For Change

Post by Welly »

trufflehunt wrote: A Citroen AX. it was quite the thinnest, tinniest car I've ever travelled in.
I felt like a stone rattling around inside an empty baked beans can.

Got me and to and from work that day, though, all that was required.
Fact: We had a Citroen AX for transporting our 2yr old and 5yr old kids around for 2 years! and no-one died. That thing was ace actually, didn't want for anything (and didn't get it either). Nowadays as soon as a woman reaches 5 weeks pregnant they have to go out and buy a battle tank to be 'safe'......
Cars in my care:
2021 Kia Spottage 1.6 Pez Turbo Dual Clutch Gearbox Trickery
2013 Renner Twingo - donkey work
Post Reply