Faults:

- Water leaks in the back foot well.

- Passenger seat belt locks when pulling more slack.

- Rear speaker blown/buzzing.

General Comments:

@80km/hr I get 40 mpg.

Driving it really hard I get 25 mpg combined hwy/city.

Normal driving I get 27 mpg combine hwy/city.

Likes:

- Heated steering wheel

- Stereo (business cd) is amazing, clear, loud,

- Trunk closes with no bars, crushing your junk

- Quiet interior

- Bright low beam head lights

Dislikes:

- Doors are heavy

- Cruise control is not as good as early e34 BMWs

- The engine is too quiet for spirited driving, doesn't sound special

- Cup holder doesn't hold your coffee, cup actually hits the 'Max A/C' button

- Clutch slips sometimes, needs replacing soon

Overall:

I am actually overwhelmed by the performance of this car. I'm having a blast!

I am going to get into trouble with this car if I don't grow up. I'm 27 but I find myself driving like I did when I was in high school! It is extremely fun to drive with the manual transmission and very fast.

Faults:

So far, nothing.

General Comments:

-Just picked up an alpine white 525i with the premium, sport, and cold weather packages. The exterior design is attractive, and the gray leather interior is classic BMW style, designed with the driver in mind. Perhaps the only reservation I have with this car is the engine performance. When I originally test-drove the 525i, I thought the engine felt lively enough. In fact, I decided that there was no point in looking at the 530i with its bigger 6 cylinder engine because the output from the 525's 2.5l was good enough. Now, however, I realize that I was wrong; the engine feels short of torque during town and city driving and gets rpm-winded on the highway. Getting the sport package speeds things up a bit, but if you've got the cash you should go with the 530i. Before deciding on the 525i, I looked at cars such as the Audi A6 3.0 and the Volvo S80 2.9. I didn't feel at ease behind the wheel of the Audi, and according to Consumer Reports S80's were unreliable.

In conclusion, if you decide that a 5 series is right for you, but don't think you have the money to get the best model, try to fish out the extra dollars to get the 530i. If you can't, you'll still get an attractive, reliable, and fun to drive sedan.

I also currently own a 1999 Acura Tl and a 2003 Ford Ranger. Both are highly recommended by me.