Owners' Stories

I bought used 2003 525i and it has been a nightmare. Twisted seat, LED display, pulley coming off, cracked radiator, belt replacement, fuel filter, brakes, heated seates, cup holder, headlight, brake light, shocks, loss of hp, service light, leaking oil, leaking power steering fluid and other problems have all be taken place in the short 6 month time I have owned it. No wonder there are so many you-tube videos on how to fix a BMW. I would never recommend a BMW. i am sticking to American Made next time.

I am holding this bmw 525i model 1993. I am having problem in replacing ac regulator. Can anyone guide me how to replace the same? Also how to remove radiator, dynamo belt, fan clutch, plugs and injectors along with the photographs.

I own a 2001 BMW 525i my battery is not holding a charge it is fairly new I believe my alarm has something to do with my battery draining do to it being so sensitive. my alarm goes off at night and I don't hear it when it goes off, in which it continues to sound. by morning my battery is low and my car wont start without a jump. my question is if I have my battery fully recharged at a shop would that help. I did have my alarm toned down at the dealer.

Fun to drive but the electrical glitches will drive you crazy. Purchased with 110,000 miles on the ticker. Replaced upper and lower chains and tensioners, VANOS was rebuilt and the anti rattle fix installed. Replaced brake pad sensors, calipers, rotors, pads, reaer window regulators, TPS, speed sensor, tranny was fushed and filled. All for a grand total of $3600(including the purchase of the car itself.) Now to remove that @#$%! speed limiter.

I love my car. It is a 2004 525i. I just put M6 take offs on it and it runs perfect. until i recieved the transmission error on the dash. Do i need a whole transmission? BMW said that they would beglad to help at a tune of 6500.00. Any other solution to look at first?

Once ny transmission is warm, it begins to slip. The shift is hard when i stop. i have to feather the pedal to speed up so the car wont jerk. I have taken it to BMW several times and the "RESET" the transmission. A few days later it goes back to slipping. Any suggestions?

This is the best car that I have ever owned. It rides great after 7 years and 60,0000 miles. I have spent approx. $2,000.00 on maint. now using a mom & pop BMW cert. mech. oil changes run $80.00 Ken Baker Originals uses all OEM parts. Located in Myrtle Beach, SC and Wilmington NC

love the car, hate the expense

I have a 91 went I do oil change after a 1 month my car need one core of oil again any suggestion I need to fix this problem.

i'm a 2nd owner but still very pleased with the performance. got it 2005 and still running good in 2010. just minor changes. all i did was took care of the mengine oil every 4000 miles using synthetic oil. lots of friends still say "nice car".

trouble free and an outstanding "driving machine." My next car will be a bmw...Joe Lucas

No problems for the first 6 years, now they are starting to mount @ only 75,000 miles

This car is a nice car for a 18year old car

This car is very reliable, I purchased it new in June 2005. The body style is still the same in 2010, so most cannot tell the difference between my 2004, and a 2010. My 525i is a great value. If you check newspapers and car lots, you will rairly see one for sale. They're keepers.

Learning the interior controls requires the owners manual. All controls pivot around the center control knob and the display screen. It takes a few times to find all the hidden areas to go, which control, navigation, radio, A/C and heating, trip information.

I've been very, very pleased with my '02 BMW 525i ever since I purchased it new. Perhaps the most incredible thing is that it's still fun to drive and I still get some people saying, "nice car!" The one down side is the high cost of repairs.

I love my car with some minor problems.

This is an excellent and reliable vehicule. Very good millages confortable. good value for resale.But there is no raison to sale it i expect to draw an other 3 to 5 years from it easy by doing regular and normal maintance. Louis55

Overall a highly exceptional Ultimate Driving Machine. I have 70K miles (95% of this is long distance intense Highway driving) since brand new in 2001 and i do not drive it like 'there is no tomorrow'. Most people with any major complaint on this fine machine likely abused it by thinking it better built than Titanic. If I have choice between a 3010 BMW 528i and 2001 525i version I'll sure will pick my 2001 all over again! Since 2001 I have replaced 3 things in the care: end stage resistor blower; left low headlight beam; and front brakes (at 40K miles on extra Warranty) . Car is garaged and I still have my ORIGINAL Continental tires (I'll change it this year 2009 after 8 years of use for safety reasons since rubber eventually can break down more quickly after many years). Long live my 2001 525i. I do my oil change/service regularly, never had tires aligned (they wear perfectly evenly well) and had rotated/balanced tires only twice.

The best kept secret about this car is the fact that it's so easy to work on. Anyone that can turn a wrench can fix the rare problem that this car has. I've had mine for over 5 years now, and I've replaced camshaft position sensors, and changed the fluids in the transmission and differential. I replaced the entire cooling system (radiator, water pump, thermostat, hoses, etc...) just because it seemed like good preventive maintenance and I couldn't believe how easy and cheap it was to do ($400). One word of caution, if you find you need to replace a sensor- do it yourself and don't buy a FEBI Germany (made in China actually) replacement. Get all sensors from a BMW Dealer, they are not that much more expensive than the Chinese knockoffs and they actually work. Nothing worse than when a new sensor you just installed is dead and you have to do it all over again. Buy the cheap code scanner from Autozone to read the check engine light codes- it works perfectly for this car. The Bentley Service Manuals pay for themselves the first time you do a repair- GET THEM! Parts are easy to find for this car too- Autohausaz.com and Bavauto.com are the two best (in that order) places to go. This is one of the best cars ever built. Very reliable and very mechanic friendly!

great car but expensive to keep even though its old.this seems to have been a very bad year for heating and ac. I almost had to leave at the repair shop but he loved the car and replaced the head gasket and other things after much searching

the best car ever made....

generally good