[BimmerFix]

Originally Posted by possib1edoc

Thanks all for the input!

If I order the 540...should I wait for the 2020? idrive 7, new digital dash and higher output engine?

But, when the 2020 gets released, would I get similar discount as I do now with the 2019? Close to 12-13k off MSRP now.

I would wait definitely , what just for a couple months. For the newer engine alone, I would. And I like the digi dash actually , this coming from an M4 owner. But to each his own I guess. And more than likely you won't get as good a deal on the 2020. See you can use the newer model as leverage against the dealer to get a good deal on your 19 model. But best believe they will use that same excuse to not give you as big of a discount % off MSRP on the newer model. But at the same time , it's not an LCI or anything either. So I think 10% off msrp , give or take is the margin

[AlteBMW]

Originally Posted by possib1edoc

Thanks everyone for the input! Also looking at consumer reports, 5 series got 2/5 in reliability? Very surprising

I have looked at Consumer Reports for years, and I would not base a car buying decision on either their surveys or their reviews.

[SteveinArizona]

Originally Posted by AlteBMW

I have looked at Consumer Reports for years, and I would not base a car buying decision on either their surveys or their reviews.

If you use CR carefully, it can be very useful. Yes...be wary of consumer surveys as anecdotal evidence is always suspect.

CR has a bias toward safety and safety as a standard, not optional, item. BMW tends to make it optional so that hurts its ratings. I don't care if it is optional or standard so long as I can get my car configured as I want it.

Read the different aspects of their reviews carefully. Road test is often fairly reflective of the actual driving experience.

[AlteBMW]

Originally Posted by SteveinArizona

If you use CR carefully, it can be very useful. Yes...be wary of consumer surveys as anecdotal evidence is always suspect.

CR has a bias toward safety and safety as a standard, not optional, item. BMW tends to make it optional so that hurts its ratings. I don't care if it is optional or standard so long as I can get my car configured as I want it.

Read the different aspects of their reviews carefully. Road test is often fairly reflective of the actual driving experience.

CR thinks cars are appliances that provide transportation. I consider cars to be more than that - not easily quantified. For me there's some entertainment value, some esthetic things (I like cars that look nice), and personal ergonomic issues. Einstein once said, "not everything that counts can be counted and not everything that can be counted counts."

[ST3]

Originally Posted by possib1edoc

MSRP's are correct based on how I optioned, for example on the M550i

Dark Graphite Metallic
19" M Double-spoke wheels - style 664M Cerium Gray w/all-season run-flat tires Cognac Dakota Leather w/contrast stitching/piping
Fineline Ridge Wood Trim

Executive Package$1,100
Parking Assistance Package$700
Premium Package$1,250
Heated front seats$500
Heated Steering Wheel$190
Space-saver spare$150

DESTINATION + HANDLING$995

TOTAL MSRP as Built $79,335 - with current discount from dealer 12-13k off this price

My .02

Get non runflats and the space saver spare.
Also, make sure you check out the dash comparisons. I'm a fan of the old trimmed gauges vs the new all digital...totallypersonal preference. Last consideration is the big HP bump for 2020.

Have fun shopping... you will land on the 550
...

[saporitj]

I'm sure CR would rate the Nissan Maxima much more reliable and a higher overall rating the say a McLaren. But which would you rather?
When you hand your Nissan keys to the valet you can say "but CR rated this highly". This photo is from my BMW dealership's service floor.

[krispykreme]

Originally Posted by joshuastein55

540i would be more reliable than the M550i, BMW V8's tend to have more problems (in a shorter amount of time as well). I'd also check out the A6, should be cheaper than the A7 and compares directly with the 5, more than the A7. Also take some time to test out the new touch screens, my sister was going to upgrade to the new A6 but found that the touch screen climate control was impossible to use safely while driving and went and bought an S4 instead.

Also, what are you looking for in your next car? are you looking for a sporty car? a luxurious car? a mix of both? To perfectly recommend a car its best to decide what you want in a car, and give some more info so we can all give you better recommendations. Oh and how about a 6-series gran coupe, the 640i's are very nice and stylish, and likely can be found discounted.

I have no issues with the V8 in my 2 M5. The F10 had the oil line recall. The F90 so far has been good.

[krispykreme]

I had/have a total of 7 of 5 series since 2001 (including 4 M5)

I had some minor issues. But in general all of them has been reliable. I would say it’s better than Honda/Acura. I really don’t think CR rating is that accurate.

My wife has been driving the 2018 530e since 12/17 and 20k miles so far it has been bullet proof.

I just picked up a 2019 530e as my daily driver today replacing my c-max energi (expired HOV tag).

I had a RS7 that was lemoned after transmission failed within first 1k miles.

I can honestly say since 2001 me and my wife has gone through 15 BMWs. All of them has been reliable.

[ksoze]

Originally Posted by ST3

Last consideration is the big HP bump for 2020.

The projected bump in 2020 is unclear as to its relation to the current engine in the M5550. The current engine appears to be severely underrated due to dyno's shared. If the new engine is more accurate in its published figures, it might not be so "big" an HP bump.

[ST3]

Originally Posted by ksoze

The projected bump in 2020 is unclear as to its relation to the current engine in the M5550. The current engine appears to be severely underrated due to dyno's shared. If the new engine is more accurate in its published figures, it might not be so "big" an HP bump.

Will be interesting to see...

Getting the 850 motor tune would be awesome. Even more interesting would be a dyno comparison between the current 550 and 850.

[hekki]

Originally Posted by joshuastein55

540i would be more reliable than the M550i, BMW V8's tend to have more problems (in a shorter amount of time as well). I'd also check out the A6, should be cheaper than the A7 and compares directly with the 5, more than the A7. Also take some time to test out the new touch screens, my sister was going to upgrade to the new A6 but found that the touch screen climate control was impossible to use safely while driving and went and bought an S4 instead.

Also, what are you looking for in your next car? are you looking for a sporty car? a luxurious car? a mix of both? To perfectly recommend a car its best to decide what you want in a car, and give some more info so we can all give you better recommendations. Oh and how about a 6-series gran coupe, the 640i's are very nice and stylish, and likely can be found discounted.

Seriously, how is touch screen impossible to use safely while driving? I mean you need to look down for climate unit with physical buttons as well. What is difference when you have physical button or touch screen? You can feel when you have pressed the screen.

[stein_325i]

Originally Posted by hekki

Seriously, how is touch screen impossible to use safely while driving? I mean you need to look down for climate unit with physical buttons as well. What is difference when you have physical button or touch screen? You can feel when you have pressed the screen.

Not really, with physical knobs and buttons muscle memory takes place and doesn't require any looking, each button is physical and has a texture/feel to them so you can tell what is what, and of course a temperature dial/knob feels different than the other buttons so you can easily change the temperature while driving without looking. Its like the iDrive knob and all of the shortcut buttons around it. Your finger can easily feel where each button starts and ends, with a glass screen, there is no different feeling between each "button" as its all glass.

Also, the screen does provide feedback, yes, but only after a firm press/selection, and there's no guarantee that you can get the correct button without having to look, unlike that of physical controls.

This is an example, but to turn up the temperature 10 degrees in a 5 series, all I would do is reach my hand over to the knob and turn it. In an A7 that's more difficult because your fingers can't feel exactly which button is what without looking, so you have to look down away from the road at the screen, find the plus button for temperature, and make sure to firmly press it 10 times, or slide it and swipe/hold (you have to firmly press to get feedback, you can't just tap like a normal touchscreen (you can only tap by turning off haptic feedback)).

My sister who's had tons of Audi's and has gotten use to the smart and ergonomic MMI scroll wheel and physical HVAC system so much so that these new Audi's don't appeal to her. She was considering getting another A6, but instead opted for the S4, mainly due to the new infotainment system . Of course everyone's opinions may differ and some may even find it easy to use, but the consensus from reviews and even on the Audi forums is that the new infotainment is a very mixed bag in how it works. I personally prefer my HVAC system to have it's own physical buttons/knobs, so I personally would never buy a new Audi or Volvo with their newest infotainment systems.



In my opinion, every Audi should have the A4/5's HVAC controls, they are so simple and easy to use and look great!

[clee1982]

I think touchscreen is good (say when you're in garage, fiddle around with iDrive, in that case just click on the screen is quicker than iDrive), but agree we should retain some physical button or the voice command has to be super smart, then I can see go without physical button.

[wheresmy5]

Originally Posted by possib1edoc

Looking to buy a new car within the week. Currently have a BMW X5 and Audi Q5.

BMW 540i xdrive, BMW M550, vs. Audi A7

The A7 MSRP is 84k
Positives: Getting 14k off, love the rear styling of the car, newly redesigned so won't be updated for 6-7 years, super quiet/comfy and feels more luxurious, outside/driving noise is minimal
Negatives: higher APR, more expensive than other two cars, less reliable (our Audi has given way more problems than BMW)

540/M550 MSRP 75/80k respectively with 12-13k off
Positives: More reliable, 540 is 10k cheaper, M550 is 5k cheaper, lower APR
Negatives: Outdated looks (in my opinion), 2020 models coming out soon but won't offer as high discounts - higher HP engines?

Any recommendations?
Also, is the M550 reliable?

You're getting 15%+ off an M550i? Where?

[possib1edoc]

Originally Posted by wheresmy5

You're getting 15%+ off an M550i? Where?

Originally Posted by wheresmy5

You're getting 15%+ off an M550i? Where?

Maryland dealer that one of the other users here recommended. Ended up purchasing an A7.

[jsf721]

I cross shopped Audi and Bmw extensively before settling on the 540i xdrive Msport.

This car will be my daily driver and see 15-18k per year.
My wife drives a 17 530i xdrive that she loves and has been bullet proof.

To me the Audi A6 does everything you need it to performance wise bit it does not feel, period. It’s a disconnected feel. Like driving a vacuum cleaner. The Bmw feels (good) and I like that. The driving dynamics’s are far superior.

The Q8 looks awesome and drives well but the throttle lag was just unacceptable to me and I drove it several times to try to get to a place i was ok with it because I loved the looks, size, newness and exclusivity (none on road) of the model but the performance coasting down and getting on the gas again was just dangerous and a big complaint of many owners who don’t pick this up on a test drive.

Then there is Audi service. Super super expensive and the service packages are also ridiculously expensive. Many bearing issues among those who drive them. Seems to me Audi drivers who lease for 10k /36 miles are happy. Any more than 25-30k and the service issues abound. Just my findings on Audi world forums. The MMI touch screens were not my favorite but not something I hated. The voice control handles most climate commands so no need to look away. The heads up display was only available on the prestige top of the line and I was forced to choose that because I wanted that feature. In the Bmw you can add that to any trim level.

The new interface glitches drove me from then X5 and I happily selected the 540 as the right mode for me. Would have loved the 550 but could not justify the expense at the time.

Audi is not a bad product it just was not the right choice For me for the above reasons.

[wheresmy5]

Originally Posted by possib1edoc

Maryland dealer that one of the other users here recommended. Ended up purchasing an A7.

That may be unicorn level, I've not seen a discount that high (not counting incentives).