Used 2008 BMW 5 Series Sedan Consumer Reviews
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Overcomplicated & Unreliable
samarthvader, 12/09/2013
2008 BMW 5 Series 535xi 4dr Sedan AWD (3.0L 6cyl Turbo 6M)
37 of 40 people found this review helpful
My 2008 535xi has 50,000 miles on it. There always seems to be something going wrong with it every few months. It has been one of the most unreliable cars I've ever owned, but when it is working it is a blast to drive. Even the simplest repairs are ridiculously expensive, and you are often forced to going to the dealer as most independent shops cannot work with the BMW computer system. I don't know what they were thinking when they designed idrive. It takes an engineering degree to change radio stations through idrive. I guess over engineering is the BMW way. This will probably be my 1st and last BMW...
Just love it!
Sufi, 08/31/2008
2008 BMW 5 Series 528xi 4dr Sedan AWD (3.0L 6cyl 6M)
12 of 12 people found this review helpful
Finally took the plunge and bought 528xi with Premium Pack (comfort access, xenon, usb audio integration, etc.). I must say I absolutely love it. Also test drove the GS350 AWD, and it gave good competition to the 528xi but in the end, just the sheer driving pleasure swayed me towards the 528xi. Features for features, the GS350 had more toys, but it doesn't come close to the performance and the drive that 528xi offers. No lack of power. Just awesome!
Should not have bought first model year
DHecker, 02/03/2016
updated 08/10/2022
2008 BMW 5 Series 535i 4dr Sedan (3.0L 6cyl Turbo 6M)
43 of 48 people found this review helpful
(Updated August 10, 2022.) It died around Christmas. Shop wasn't sure what it was ut figured it would not be cheap to fix. Would have done it anyway, I think, but it still leaked when it rained hard. Donated it to a local radio station. (Updated February 6, 2020.). Still running at about 120,000 miles. Starter just died and I have had cooling hoses break on the highway twice since my last review. But I keep getting it fixed and it runs well when not in the shop. [Updated 8/08/19.] About a year ago the car needed maybe $1500 or so of work. I was getting ready to just throw in the towel but asked my independent repair shop what they thought. The owner said that most owners of 535s throw in the towel around 150,000 miles because at that point the car needs lots of expensive work. He said the good news for me is I already had just about all of that done. So I decided to put the money into the car rather than buy a new one and continue to drive it. I think that has been the right decision. I really do like the car when it is driving well. It is smooth, powerful, quiet and remarkably at 11 or 12 years old still looking quite nice. My bottom line is to be careful buying the first model year of any complicated highly engineered car like this one. My guess is a year or two later BMW had figured out some of the common problems and those cars would have better repair records. [Original review.] The most telling example of the problems I've had with this car is the following. The BMW has warning signals for many different things, including that the outside temperature is now 37°. However, it does not have a warning signal to say that for whatever reason a seal in the transmission has blown and all of the fluid is leaking out. Leading to the need for a new transmission. I have had innumerable problems with the engine, electronics, lights, you name it. I also have had to replace one of the turbos at only 80,000 miles and of course replaced the other one at the same time. $3,200 later it is running fine. But there is still that $1,400 oil pan that will need to be fixed soon enough. Which I decided just to fix rather than continually worry it would implode on me 100 miles from a reliable repair shop. I bought the car in 2011 with only 25,000 miles on it. If I have not spent $20,000 in repairs since then, I would be surprised. Don't waste your money. On the positive side, when it is working and especially on the highway it is a lot of fun to drive. It gets mediocre mileage around town (it is quite heavy). But it gets somewhere around 33 miles per gallon on the highway.
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Sweet car
Manny, 11/02/2009
2008 BMW 5 Series 528i 4dr Sedan (3.0L 6cyl 6M)
10 of 10 people found this review helpful
Interesting to see all of the problems with the twins 535i. On BMW number 3, first 528i after two 3 series a '99 and a '06. Traded up from the '06 325i with 16" run flats, and could not stand the ride anymore, although it cornered like it was on rails. Chose the 528i because I did not want run flats tires on the next bimmer. Car runs great and has only needed one oil change thus far. Drove a 1200 miles round trip averaging 30 mpg at 80 mph. If not sure, stick with the aspirated inline 6s they are bullet prove. Ask any service center mechanic and they will tell you that the 5s are the most trouble free BMWs in the line up. Good solid car.
BMW 528XI 2008
Rocky Deodg, 07/26/2016
updated 08/09/2023
2008 BMW 5 Series 528xi 4dr Sedan AWD (3.0L 6cyl 6M)
34 of 38 people found this review helpful
Just turned 330,000 miles, added new tires and wheel, valve cover, new fuel injectors, shocks, and springs. It is like driving a new car for less than 5 k. Love it, great job BMW
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