Is there any reason you haven’t considered the skoda superb. Im biased but skodas are very nice…:D

I have had a look at a couple of Skodas, the Octavia was nice actually. The main reason for the BMW is because the Mrs works for them which means 50% off servicing and parts.

I must admit though, the Audi A4 estate I went to see really had me won over with practicality, and it wasn’t too big for an estate.

Buy it buy it buy it buy it…… 😀
Look at it like this…if you go to work and earn an honest crust why the hell not, if you can afford it, buy it, if the good lady approves, Bonus, if not, talk her round….you only live once. If you realise it’s an expensive mistake bollo@….learn from it and buy the next car with your head….Go for it….. :!:….life is too short

I find in my diesel octavia a slight blip of the throttle sees it speeding and its not really that powerful an engine.

Don’t blip the throttle and speed then… not really the cars fault if you press the pedal hard.

OP -buy the car you want to own and drive. The 530 is a great one.

If you didn’t drink coffee in Starbucks you could probly afford a brand new car! 😉

If you really want a powerful luxury car and feel you can afford it, then just buy one and be done… if it works out then fine, if not you’ve learned something.
Check out good advice for useful/scary info about your intended.

If you didn’t drink coffee in Starbucks you could probly afford a brand new car!

Needed the wifi 😉

Octavia Scout in your list of decent cars to buy? Given that your plan is to fire up and down the road to Glencoe and back of a weekend in winter you might find that the steel sump guard comes in handy when you’re trying to park the thing off the road.

I’d avoid the BMW even with the half price servicing and parts as with a car that age you wouldn’t really be wanting to get those done at a main dealer anyway.

dont be a badge snob, hundreds of cars out there for that price much newer and more than enough kit! 😉

lol, my Berlingo didn’t cost much less than that BMW – I’d still rather have the Berlingo though. If you’re into biking, climbing, camping and walking etc why not get something practical rather than something flash?

My suggestion, get something old-ish, large and boring (Mondeo 1.9 TD Estate or Audi A4 1.9 TDI?) for a year to start with so that:-
a) You get used to driving full stop
b) Driving a big car
c) When you do bump / scrape / kerb it (you will!) it wont be a nice car that cops it.
d) You get a bit of NCD built up and hopefully reduce your premiums a bit.

Even though you’re 31 you’re still male and a risk to the insurers.

Powerful RWD drive cars (BMW 530i) though ACE demand a bit of skill and respect. Get one of them fresh off L plates and you’ll be ditchfinding before you can say “damp spot on a bend”.

Not trying to be patronising, but I wouldn’t like to see a post saying you and your lovely missus have been in a car accident.

I wouldn’t bother taking a ten year old BMW with 100k anywhere near a main dealer for servicing.

I’d buy something off beat like a Citroen C5 estate and run it into the ground for a first car.

Good luck with the search

If you are bothered by what the mechanic has said then I would say do not buy it, as it suggests to me you are not prepared for the shock of big repair bills. A FSH is not the same as F BMW SH in my book.

Also, I can not really see why you want to buy it. I understand the 3.0 straight six attraction, but there seem to be a lot of downsides unless to need a big exec saloon?

Small cars can be fun. I have recently bought a VW Up!, and my Audi Quattro sits in the garage all week. For getting to and from work 40 mile round trip it is fine and I almost enjoy visiting the petrol station to fill it up. With technically no no claims as it is a second car it costs me 50p a day to insure.

All that said everyone needs to get the big powerful alpha male car out of their system. So best do it now so you can then enjoy years and years of cheap and practical motoring in the future. Took me 20 years to see the light 😀

In terms of regular scheduled maintenance that could work out cheaper than a diesel skoda. I have a 330i and the oil service interval is around 20K miles. The inline 6 is bombproof, especially the N52 model in that.

So I am spending less on servicing than my old octavia, but tyres and fuel have basically doubled. But I think I have less risk in terms of big power train repairs e.g. turbo/

I’d go for it, they are really nice cars, being in my 330i makes me happy, weather its wafting along in auto mode in traffic with the burble of the I6, or weather you are keeping it in the zone above 4.5K revs in manual mode absolutely pinning it with the howl of the I6 its great.

my first car was a Vauxhall Viva

mibbe something like that would suit sir better

I’ve owned a couple of 530d SPORT touring and they we just amazing. I put 280 & 175k on them and never had any problems. Main dealer survived mind.

I’ve had over a dozen 6cyl petrol BMWs over the years. They were great at the time, these days I’d steer well clear, esp with the age and mileage your looking at.

It’ll be a money pit and you will end up regretting it. I wouldn’t bother with the Audi either, it’s relatively underpowered and drinks way more than you’d think. You’ll struggle to get low 30s mpg.

Iif this is the sort if thing you’re after, I’d try and seek out a well maintained 320d, it’ll be quicker than the audi and you’ll get mid 40s mpg, get an ex fleet car and it’ll have spent most of it’s life on motorways so the mileage won’t be an issue.

bigyinn – Member

My suggestion, get something old-ish, large and boring (Mondeo 1.9 TD Estate or Audi A4 1.9 TDI?) for a year to start with so that:-
a) You get used to driving full stop
b) Driving a big car
c) When you do bump / scrape / kerb it (you will!) it wont be a nice car that cops it.
d) You get a bit of NCD built up and hopefully reduce your premiums a bit.

Even though you’re 31 you’re still male and a risk to the insurers.

Powerful RWD drive cars (BMW 530i) though ACE demand a bit of skill and respect. Get one of them fresh off L plates and you’ll be ditchfinding before you can say “damp spot on a bend”.

Not trying to be patronising, but I wouldn’t like to see a post saying you and your lovely missus have been in a car accident.

Good advice…

I managed to spin a 2l twin cam Sierra Estate (rwd) off the road in the wet, so gawd knows what a 530i would be like!
Wouldn’t mind one myself, but petrol and parts prices would put me off.

I managed to 180 a Morris Minor in the wet at 17, just after passing my test, that had 48bhp, taught me a well learned lesson about rwd and the wet 😉

Good advice on both sides.

Buy the car and it’ll be great fun, cost you a fortune, and if you don’t crash it, it’ll quickly teach you some valuable lessons about driving in the wet and why you shouldn’t scrimp on tyres (which as already pointed out, will cost you a packet – did I mention the costs 😉 )…

Or, buy a cheap reliable barge. Actually have the privilege to afford to drive it at the weekend. Not stress every time you find a new dent in it courtesy of the nice motorists sharing Morrison’s car park. And generally be a pleasant and convenient form of transportation in every way, if a little unexciting.

Nothing wrong with either. I’ve recently went from the former to the latter. Some days I miss it. But I don’t miss the stress. And I enjoy having the money to spend on bikes. And go riding. Having a big car can take over your life a bit. It’s just a question of how bad you want it.

And do bear in mind that cars like that sell for next to nothing…It’ll not be the only one out there, or the cheapest.

Quattro with winter tyres would be awesome for the weekly Glencoe jaunts.

Really, you done much driving on snow then?
Quattro does actually work.
I had a A4 Quattro saloon and I didn’t get stuck in all the snow we had last year.
I’m in Aberdeen, btw, and made regular trips into the Cairngorms on often untreated roads. About the only thing that beat me was my mate’s Subaru Forrester.

And, yes, I’ve done quite a bit of driving on snow…

I realise you’re clearly different from everyone else who’s just passed their test.

Have you looked at real life fuel consumption figures for the 3litre petrol car? You’re looking at high 20’s low 30’s fuel consumption when driven cautiously. Prepeare to get on first name terms with the local petrol station staff.

Good advice

+1.

The very fact that you’re sat there on your long-legged equine going “oh, I’m immune from crashing if I drive a Polo then am I” would suggest to me that you need to stop getting caught in the swear filter and start listening to some of the advice here which, lest we forget, you solicited in the first place.

A 530i as a first car is, not to put too fine a point on it, retarded, for all the reasons Bigyinn suggested. You’ll be in a field rotating slowly on your roof before you can say “WTF happened there then?” because, all other variables aside, it’s a very unforgiving vehicle.

If you genuinely believe that you’re going to be safely mincing about in it like you were on your lessons, what on Earth do you need a 3L engine for? If you’ve got money to burn and want something ‘executive,’ there’s plenty of nice cars about that don’t deliver nearly 260PS to the bloody rear wheels.

You say yourself in your OP, you know nothing about cars. Why not check the attitude and start giving some credence to those who do?

I can see the attraction of a nice big BMW, but then again I completely fail to see the attraction. The only resaon for buying a powerful car is to use that power, therefore:

1. You WILL have a scary moment in it either out braking yourself, or the back end going. As a new driver, I’m sorry but you either have a very big moment and scare yourself and passengers or crash big time.

2. You will buy this big powerful car and never have any scary moments, at which point why did you buy such a powerful car, where a 318/20 would have been just as good. (besides which I’d want a smaller car for driving up to Glencoe)

Personally I would buy a Mondeo Estate, much more fun to drive than an Audi, all the toys, and plenty quick enough.

Then if you think you want a sports car, buy an MX5, not loads of power, but will teach you how to drive and respect a rwd car without killing yourself.

Edit: Hadn’t realised cougar was posting the same sentiment

You can scary moments in any car. Mine was in a 1.3l Allegro Estate on a roundabout, it cost me a pair of tyres. A larger car is a better place to have scary moments, if you must have them.

Here’s my similar story. Passed my test a couple of years ago when I was 29. It was during that bad winter, girlfriends mum slipped on some ice, broke her wrist and couldn’t drive. I then had a 1.4 MG ZR that was off the road with a head gasket failure so mother in law to be suggested to lend me her 335 M-sport and pay insurance (her boyfriend owns insurance company) if I drove her around. So there I was 2 weeks after passing my test sitting in a 3 month old 300bhp (I think) £40k RWD car in the worse winter on record. I survived. I took it very easily and knew I was no driving god, far from it and didn’t look sideways at traffic lights as every boy racer saw that as an invite to a race. Mates said I would prang it when parking but I didn’t, I actually found it quite easy to park as there are plenty of reference points, I could hear my instructor in my head saying “slow car fast steering” “go slower than you think you need too”. Anyway the MG I had I decided to sell as a SORN, it was now spring and mother in law to be Kent me her MX5 while I got myself a new car, I took a corner a little bit too sharply and the back end just tucked around, thankfully I didn’t damage the car and only ended up facing the wrong way. I learned my lesson then that driver attitude is so very important. I’m not saying don’t buy the 530 if it’s the car you want just drive it very carefully, RWD and power is a risky commodity to green drivers and it can just catch you out. I dont think I would have been so lucky in the BMW.

The insurance is high on everything I’ve looked at, not a huge difference between wee cars and 3litre execs. It’s £1,380 on the 330i, or £1,100 on an x trail, decent engined Golfs are coming in at about £800

Since when was a £580 saving on insurance “not a huge difference”? Buy the Golf and a nice set of suspension forks with the saving.

Be aware that there’s no such thing as a cheap BMW. They are expensive cars to buy new and service, and this doesn’t change just because it’s a few years old.

Regarding the insurance I would hope that you have put your own name down as the main driver of the vehicle.

All with my mum and her partner as named drivers on the policy (reduced each quote by around 30%).

Because I am at home ill and bored I had a look around for you on the assumption you want a nice, large, well looked after estate, from somewhere near Glasgow for under 5k with agood service history. Have a look at

Sabb 95 estate with fsh

Not done much driving on snow, no.

Really it’s not that hard. You just drive gently and slowly. My first winter after passing my test was snowy, I had no trouble at all. Until I started deliberately pissing about and slid slowly into a ditch.

And it is possible to enjoy a powerful car without having to push the limits of traction.

Really it’s not that hard.

3litre, rwd petrol car in snow – no ta.

And it is possible to enjoy a powerful car without having to push the limits of traction.

Completely agree, but the fact is that in a rwd as an inexperienced driver you have no idea where that limit of traction is, and when they go, they go. Unlike a fwd car that gives a very gentle warning

Sorry but a 530i would be a fine first car for a 30 year old. With the traction control on you have to work very hard to get it sideways. Even with it off its a skill as the open diff will correct most slides fairly rapidly. You are just as likley to have a hairy moment understeering in a FWD turbo diesel IMO

I’d say ignore the nay sayers and get it bought.

My second car was a 330, easy car to drive IMO but sure you could get yourself in trouble if you drove like a muppet – that’s more maturity than driver skill though.
Not sure I’d go for a 530 @ 100k though assuming it’s anything like the 330, mine was starting to fall apart slowly at 80k (various sensor failures and genuine faults, exhaust near end of life and was a 1-piece unit to replace, starting to drink oil etc. etc.) Over it’s life it was actually pretty cheap to run (apart from tyres) but the graph of cost vs time was definitely on an steepening upward curve.

I almost killed myself first day after my driving test as i was given a hire car, it was a spanky new 320sport (why i don’t know). Up the M40 without realising i was in prison territory after a lorry pulled out on me. Anyway, i almost went with a new Bimmer a couple of years ago after i changed jobs which required more driving around -i was (still am) driving a 12 year old Primera (last of the old shape) 2.0 sport thing. Annoyingly after 2 years the £700 car is still going strong and returns an average of 42mpg’s and wont break down forcing me to buy a proper motor. it has plenty of toys on it too and to be quite frank drives better than a considerable number of new cars from Ford, PSA, Renualt, Merc and BMW (also drove that **** horrid new minni the other week – what a pile of sh!te). Save your money, get on old hatchback that’s on the last of the line as it will have all the endurance issues sorted.

Be aware that there’s no such thing as a cheap BMW. They are expensive cars to buy new and service, and this doesn’t change just because it’s a few years old.

+1

You’re looking at a £5k car with £50k car service bills. If you can live with that then fine, but expect stuff like £1000 bills for 4 tyres, and being RWD it’ll eat them all at the same time, at least FWD cars eat the fronts double quick and the rears at a glacial pace so you only ever have to deal with 50% of them at once. And then there’s lots of expensive BMW bits to go wrong although arguably an engines an engine so it will only be 50% more (assuming it’s the 6cyl?) than a 2l car.

As for the “you’ve just past your test get a rusty POS city car brigade……………..

I bought a MG midget, it taught me 4 things:
1: how to go quickly round wet roundabouts
2: how to go slowly round wet roundabouts with even more fun from the noisy pedal
3: not to go quickly off humpbacked bridges in a lightweight car
4: how to replace bump stops.

I never ended up in a tree/ditch/lampost unlike 75% of my fiesta, corsa, metro, and polo owning mates.

Be aware that there’s no such thing as a cheap BMW. They are expensive cars to buy new and service, and this doesn’t change just because it’s a few years old.

Rubbish, I’ve had my 2002 330CI Sport for 18mths and in that time it’s cost me £25 on a new thermostat (which I fitted myself).

Now rolling on 117,000 miles

Previous to this I had another 2002 330CI Sport for 18mths. I had no issues with that either.

The 3.0 engines are robust and regularly hit high high miles without issue.

but expect stuff like £1000 bills for 4 tyres, and being RWD it’ll eat them all at the same time

Good tyres can be had for a lot less than that (& yes I am talking 225 18″ rears)…and please clarify ‘eat them’…mine are not wearing fast at all.

Just use independants (or as the OP states…he gets 50% off at BMW so it won’t be anymore expensive to use them)

Looked OK to me…but I guess you’re too late now.

Christ, its only a 530 – you won’t kill yourself nor will you have massive bills to pay. I’d be tempted to go for something smaller as a first car, just so you can get used to driving and parking but there’s nothing nicer than getting in a big comfy car when you’re knackered after a long ride.

That looks a bit expensive though. I’d be more tempted by the older shape (e39) for a bit less cash.

Rubbish, I’ve had my 2002 330CI Sport for 18mths and in that time it’s cost me £25 on a new thermostat (which I fitted myself).

So in 3 years of BMW ownership, you’ve never paid for a tax disc, service, tyre or a tank of fuel? One of us is indeed talking rubbish…

By way of comparison, in the last 2 years of Ford ownership.

2 annual services ~£200
1 new tyre ~£70
2 tax discs £180
2 insurance premiums £800
15,000 miles of fuel at ~55mpg = ~£1700

How about you?

Did you read the rest of his post? He mentions tyres.

Of course I shouldn’t care, if you are happy in your econimical little shopping car, thats cool