[srinitdas]

Many Congratulations.

Excellent review. I almost felt like having driven the car without ever having actually touched a 530d.

Keep driving. Home is where the road is...

[ravi_xx]

GTO, compliments truly on an incredibly detailed and well thought-out review. I won't be surprised if a lot of people, including me, reach out to you by default the next time they want to buy a pre-owned car.

You or someone else SHOULD send a link to this review to the folks at BMW. Like someone else rightly said, this could almost be a small training docket for their sales staff.

Your thought process through the purchase period was impressive. Did learn a couple of things from reading up on it.

Wish you many miles of safe and enjoyable driving.

Ravi

[aerohit]

Old times

Originally Posted by GTO

Of all the cars I’ve test-driven in the last 12 months, the Manza & Fortuner have impressed me most.

New times

Originally Posted by GTO

The Fortuner impressed me 6 years back. But not today. It's time is up and the next-generation couldn't be coming too soon. After a highway drive, I actually got tired...its bumpy ride, heavy steering & the basic interiors wore me down. I can tell you that doesn't happen too often.

Times change, things change...

[psispace]

Hearty Congrats on your latest acquisition GTO !

And I must say Wow! What a review!
It took me three days to go through your whole post and pictures.

The A4 3.0 TDI and 530 D were the cars I aspired to own at one time. These are the most practical cars you can drive on a daily basis. And also have near supercar like performance on hand when you are in the mood for it. There are others too, but for this kind of performance, one would have had to opt for the petrol versions which were sensitive to fuel quality. Although these cars were relatively affordable at one time, the on-road costs of brand new versions of these are now eye-wateringly high. You are quite lucky to get such a well maintained pre-owned company car.

The F10 5 series, in my opinion, is the best looking and most balancely proportioned car among the present BMW sedans. And the 530D in M sport trim, is definitely the post practical way to have an 'M' car in India. You don't have to worry about ground clearance or premium fuel.

Wish you loads of fun and many years of 'Sheer Driving Pleasure'( in the true sense of those words )!

[AlphaLamb]

Wonderfully crafted review, GTO. Only you could have gone into so much detail, as other have stated before the review is not something one could go through in a single sitting.

Congratulations on the acquisition and may you enjoy all the driving pleasure derived from such a top notch vehicle.

[Ricci]

Superb review , mouthwatering photographs and a gorgeous beauty/beast of a machine, you have there, GTO !

It looks like a very well cared for machine by the previous owner, and for sure the new one !

All said, the backseat legroom is still a shock, it's barely agreeable in the 3 series , for a 5 there's no ground for the shortchanging. How did they get the front seats that thick, knowing 5 series owners are more often back seat.

Here's a toast to a long, smile inducing journey with the beast!

[jayguar]

A noob question. How is the ride quality of the 530D M Sport in different modes when compared to the Honda Civic?
And also the rear legroom between the two?

[GTO]

Originally Posted by SRKHYD

1. Check what appeals to eye (like the 530 ':-'D ). You definitely want something which will please you for time to come.
2. Weigh in What you Like Vs What you Don't Like. At this point of time this is just on paper.
3. Research the market, with set of 'Likes' you have.
4. Get some references about the pre-worshipped car history. General feedback from other owners / service record will definitely help.
5. Be patient. This allows to pick a car which is in good life cycle state.
6. Who / How was the car driven effects the longevity. Keeps car rattle free to an extent.
7. Paid pre-purchase inspection is a must. Kind of PDI for pre-worshipped drives.
8. Insurance check - just to double check the owner claims.
9. Color of the car doesn't weigh up as much as mechanicals do. In doubt always give preference to tight car than 'colorful' car.
10. Know yourself all this info (like our MODs / fellow BHPians have) or know somebody who understands this info

You, sir, have condensed our entire used car checklist into 10 points!

Originally Posted by PlatzdaTurbo

Over the years i remember reading about your love/admiration for the 3.2 fsi / 3.0 tdi cousins from the B8 A4 bandwagon. So my question is...didnt consider a preworshipped A4 3.0 ???

Love those high-powered A4s! But I love the 530d more.

Originally Posted by viren83

Ohh. I badly need a fix for that. Any ideas (apart from pairing mobile with HU)?

No clue. Sorry.

Originally Posted by DCharger

We recently opted for a A6 35TDI, that's chaffeur driven most of time and comes no-where-near your beast in driving pleasure.

Congratulations - no one designs cars as beautifully as Audi does. The A6 is the best of the lot (A4 = too small, A8 = too big).

I see many of the members including support team and moderators(GTO, Vid and Ajmat, etc) haven't updated their garage(View My Garage) in long time. GTO's white beauty is on verge of departing but still hasn't featured in his garage

My bad. Indeed time to update the garage!

Originally Posted by petrolveins

Though it is none of my business, why would someone sell a car within 5000 KMs/within 2 years of run?

I've never met the owners of my last 3 cars. Honestly, as long as the car is clean and passed through all the tests, I don't care why he wants to sell it. Could be that:

- Looking for an upgrade
- Bought a car he didn't end up liking
- Claimed two years of depreciation, now wants a change
- Owner is moving out of the company / abroad
- You and the car were made for each other
- etc.

Originally Posted by mahesh_sn

So, now that you have a 4 cylinder (Civic), a 6 cylinder (530d), can we expect an 8 cylinder few years down the line?

I certainly hope so!

Originally Posted by aerohit

Old times

New times

Times change, things change...

Hahaha, good one! What really changes though is the competitive outlook. More comfortable SUVs like the XUV500 on one side and the Santa Fe on the other took the Fortuner off my favourites list.

Originally Posted by Ricci

All said, the backseat legroom is still a shock, it's barely agreeable in the 3 series , for a 5 there's no ground for the shortchanging. How did they get the front seats that thick, knowing 5 series owners are more often back seat.

It's actually the beefed up rear bench that is really responsible.

Originally Posted by jayguar

How is the ride quality of the 530D M Sport in different modes when compared to the Honda Civic?

5-Series is definitely more mature.

And also the rear legroom between the two?

The Civic is surely more spacious.

[fiat_tarun]

A repetition of what every one has said, but man WHAT A REVIEW ! I started reading this at office yesterday, could not finish it and actually put my laptop on hibernate so that I could continue later !

I have been lucky enough to have been driven in a 640D Gran Coupe with it's monster 3.0-litre straight-six that produces 313PS of max power and a whopping 630Nm of torque. I had a stupid smile on my face for days after this and I can imagine what fun you must be having owning this beast.

Congrats on this super acquisition and wish you an awesome ownership experience.

[mukul32]

Ah! Really amazing ride there, GTO!! Congrats a ton!! That's one of my favorite luxury cars in recent times. And an even more amazing review!! Only shows how detailed a car review should be. Read it thrice now, and still mighty impressed!
The best part though, the price!! That good an F10 fifer for ~40L!! :clap She looks almost brand new there. And that with all papers and accessories straight. Factory warranty in. Wow! If that isn't a deal, I don't know what is. The Cadbury gentleman must surely be missing it. (if he hasn't switched to a 7 already, that is!)

Anyway, there are two things I really like about the F10, even without having driven or sat in one ever (In that case, the first one would've been the dynamics).
One is, exactly as you said, the styling, especially at the front. It looks better than both the E60 from the past, and on this side the F30 3-Series and co. as well (However, I was totally stunned by the new G12 7-Series having the same design language). In fact, it is one of the most balanced designs on a sedan I've seen recently. This car will surely go into the history books of BMW, right along legends like the the E30 M3 or the E38 7-Series.
The other is the dashboard. Somehow, I always found that dash way more appealing than both the E-Class and A6. The 5-Series' dash just has a very studio-like, elegant feel, a sense of occasion to it, that perhaps no leather-swathed rival could match. Not even the A6, for all its tech and style.
And your car totally nails both! Not only does the body look really elegant in that shade of paint, the dash looks really classy in the black and beige as well. And more importantly, it is proper black and beige. Not grey-beige, or brown-beige, coffee-beige, or the horrible all-beige you can get in that car. I liked it much better than even the black and red combo you pinned a link to in the review.

But at the same time, I was shocked to see the rear seat pics. I may have read a dozen F10 reviews, and though many mention it's just not as spacious as rivals, no one actually showed the reality as clearly as you did. That is seriously cramped back there!
F10 owners around would be deliberately needing to mention 'Short man required' in 'Driver wanted' ads!!
BMW should've had the audacity to bring the LWB version down here from China with the straight-six diesel under the hood, at least in the top-spec car, given most of our luxury sedans are chauffeur-driven. Those who would spend the extra dosh over the 520d would've as well liked to spend some more for some much-needed rear seat space.
Though, the cramped back could be a seriously good excuse for many to conveniently leave out family and kids on casual drives out, and fully enjoy the straight-six alone!

Anyways, excellent car, Congo again, waiting to hear more of it!!

[bhuvan_prasad]

Wow! What a thread, intricately detailed, and for an equally deserving car. If only I had a penny for the number of times, my friend's and I have tried scouting/discussed buying a sparingly used, well maintained 530d.

Congratulations GTO !! I am sure this car will keep a wide grin plastered on your face for a very, very long time. It looks so new and fabulous, it could feature in a BMW ad, like the intro to the 7 series one they recently ran.

Great to learn that you still have 2 years warranty left, your major expense for now will be on the rear tyres . No surprise that your family asked you to take it easy on the highway, with that much torque anybody with even an iota of car-sickness, will get dizzy. The best part of the 530d when compared to the 535i, in the efficiency you get, with the same level of performance.

I will be frank here, I did spend a considerable amount of time online looking for 530d's the past two nights, after seeing your thread. For 40 Lakhs this is great value, might not be as sharp as the previous gen car, but given our roads, that is a good trade-off for better ride and passenger comfort.

Wishing you tons of happy miles with the Beemer!

[v&v]

Congrats GTO.

Even I was looking for a BMW and finally bought one last month.. Will start a thread soon..

[SRKHYD]

Originally Posted by GTO

You, sir, have condensed our entire used car checklist into 10 points!

Coming from the GoTO guy of TBHP, truly humbled sir.

[katami]

I was also considering buying a pre-worshipped BMW 530d (preferably from Deutsche Moteren, Delhi). But i was also enamoured with the latest offering with 360 degree programme. Any suggestions? Buying a brand new BMW 530d for about 40 Lakhs (for 3 years) or buying a pre-worshipped BMW 530d for about 40 Lakhs??

[venom_op]

Congrats on the car, GTO!! It truly is a wonderful beast!!

Just a query:

Originally Posted by GTO

• Because the car is so loaded, and I have a 6-year warranty, the 530d will probably remain stock for the longest time. It's even got a body kit. This is one of my rare personal cars which isn't going to be modded for a long time. A tubeless tyre swap will be the only change.

Won't this void the warranty, though?