[mdar1]

I’m in the market for a daily driver and the 2017-2018 540i xDrive has become my top choice by far. I’ve seen many for sale 60-70k miles for ~$20,000. To me, that much car for such a low price seems too good to be true - is it?

What are some things I should look out for? And how is the reliability for a higher mileage 540i? I don’t want to spend much more than $25k for the car, is this unreasonable? I’d love to hear some advice. If you need more info let me know, thanks.

[G30fan]

I think I'm well suited to answer this having owned both a 2017 540xi to 89k mi and a 2018 540xi to 90k+ mi. I got the 2018 after totaling the 2017 (nothing mechanical I just drive like junk).

Anyway -- they both had very, very slight coolant leaks. You may see that. The 2017 needed to be topped off once every 6 months with coolant and the 2018 is even more frugal. Maybe once a year. Anyway it's small and minor. Many others have this with their 540i.

Other than that? Nothing. No engine issues. No active shutter issues for me (covered under warranty for G30). No brake issues. Some vibration in the dash in 2017 that was corrected in 2018 (and there's even a retrofit for 2017).

The price? I know. It's ludicrous but it is true -- you have come upon one of the most best values on the used car market today, imho. I paid 30k for the 2017 540i xDrive with 24k miles in 2020. Then in 2022 I paid 27k for 2018 with 28k miles.

I would not even think twice about the car you are considering. Make sure the features and interior are what you like, because you are stuck with that of course. I very highly recommend "Driver Assistant Plus" -- DAP -- it will keep the lane for you etc. Very helpful and not over bearing like some other manufacturers.

I think the 'Cognac' brown leather interior absolutely wears the best in these cars -- I've had it in both of mine. The black and white leather will show wear and dirt faster.

I personally like the 18" wheels and regular suspension so I avoid M-sport when looking at the G30. I also avoid adaptive suspension in general as it's so pricy if something does happen. Probably just me.

Anyway, go for it and don't settle for more than 25k. The market is down and you are in at a good time for a stellar car.

[Bostongio]

2018 here with nearly 70k and zero issues with the car. Change the oil when it asks for it, and a few sets of tires, front brakes just were done, and that's been it. No problems with the interior or electronics whatsoever; I've never experienced any kind of electronic glitch in the car. Seats and all interior parts seem to be holding up well.

I would look for a car with the multi-contour seats -- they are the bomb. And at least the HK sound system (base sound sucks). I enjoy the car with the M Sport suspension, but it may be a bit firm for some people (I don't notice it). My car came with the soft-close doors, gesture control, and trunk foot switch. Nobody knows how to use the soft-close doors since they're not used to them, so I would pass on those. Gesture control was always a gimmick that rarely works reliably for me, so I disabled it. Use the trunk foot gesture switch all the time with no issue.

FWIW, I regularly transport lumber in this thing for home projects! As long as you protect the seats with towels, the back seats fold down and make for a lot of carrying capacity.

It is a rock solid daily driver for me. YMMV.

[BlueSander]

I'm the rare one who actually like the gesture control. I set the 2-fingure gesture as mute. Most commonly used gesture to-date. 2nd must be the waving to the right to ignore incoming calls/notifications. The active zone for gesture is a bit toward the driver. Play around with it a bit. I can do the gesture so quick now that my passengers don't even notice. The system has a bit of a delay so adjusting vol isn't ideal here.

Soft-close is awesome! but yes, nobody knows so expect your doors getting slammed as usual and find yourself not closing doors properly when driving another car.

Dynamic Handling package is nice to have. The car turns much better in tight space with so much less input needed from driver. Your car turns flatter through curves. However, I understand exactly what most ppl's complaints. Because of your rear wheels move as well so you loss that "sure foot" feel while driving. My personal take on it is like when you walk, one foot needs to hold in place while the other foot moving forward. Now, imagine your walking on a slippery surface or maybe a treadmill, your "in place" foot also move a bit. It's weird! when you set it to Sport, the system is more responsive and everything is fine. However, in Comfort, there is a little delay from your steering input and when the rear axle moves. Imagine driving on a little twisty road, constantly adjusting to stay between lanes, factor in that delay, you feel like you are floating on the road. Not fun but something you can get used to.

Overall, great car to have! The straight 6 is one of the most reliable engines BMW have ever made to date.

[Neusser]

Mine's been good. 2019. The only issue so far has been minor coolant loss on the original fill, but it might have been a factory-fill issue, or the car might just use a small amount of coolant. Not worth visiting the shop.

Routine maintenance otherwise. Gets driven hard-ish on the Autobahns and country roads here. As someone mentioned above, M-Sport is a bit stiff for some with the runflats. If you get Goodyears as stock tire, run them at 30 psi as Goodyear suggests--this transforms the handling and fixes the issue of center-wear. There have also been reports of these tires blowing out, and I suspect it is due to overfilling.

[BWilson263]

I have a 2019 with 29,000 miles and no issues yet. The B58 engine is a solid engine that can be modify to produce 450-475 hp safely.

[FGRAZA]

Originally Posted by mdar1

I’m in the market for a daily driver and the 2017-2018 540i xDrive has become my top choice by far. I’ve seen many for sale 60-70k miles for ~$20,000. To me, that much car for such a low price seems too good to be true - is it?

What are some things I should look out for? And how is the reliability for a higher mileage 540i? I don’t want to spend much more than $25k for the car, is this unreasonable? I’d love to hear some advice. If you need more info let me know, thanks.

Well I just bought me a 2018 540i xdrive about 3-4 months ago and I love it. What I looked for was a one owner that had its service records. I paid 21k for mine but they were asking around 23k. I drive it daily to and from work and it’s about 40mins each way. I haven’t had any issues except for a battery replacement for the emergency call system or the SOS. The only thing I’ve done so far is change the wheels from 18’ stock to 19’OEM Wheels off a M550.

[Joe-BMW33]

Originally Posted by FGRAZA

Well I just bought me a 2018 540i xdrive about 3-4 months ago and I love it. What I looked for was a one owner that had its service records. I paid 21k for mine but they were asking around 23k. I drive it daily to and from work and it’s about 40mins each way. I haven’t had any issues except for a battery replacement for the emergency call system or the SOS. The only thing I’ve done so far is change the wheels from 18’ stock to 19’OEM Wheels off a M550.

Congrats, my OCD (and my neck) made me fix your pictures.