[bbethan69]

Hello there, been wanting another BMW, and have been looking recently, and quickly got glued to the F10 550. I've owned an F10 528i in the past, and have always loved the F10 design, so I figure I'd like to return to that generation of 5. From what I am seeing, these often sell used with <120k miles on them in pretty good condition for as low as $10k-$20k, so I'm wondering, with such a beauty such as the 445hp N63 V8, is it a reliability trap situation like how E60 M5s are cheap, but then the V10 tends to be a nightmare? Question can also apply towards other N63B44A/N63B44B owners, but I'm just wondering, how much maintenance do you guys do on your F10 550s? From what I hear the pre-LCI 2011-2014 B44As are quite a bit worse then the 2015-2016 B44Bs, but I would like to hear it from an owner's perspective, are there any primary big issues I should worry about? Anything that's prone to fail often? Because if these aren't an absolute nightmare to deal with, I'm extremely close to pulling the trigger on one.

[NikMN]

It's all depends on how it was treated by previous owners. If you really want one get the best you can find WITH maintenance records. Stay away from 2011-2013 models

[kohsin]

I have a 13' N63. Other than ccp repair and replacement, make sure you have the extended warranty if you want to keep one. Owning the car since 2013, my out of pocket cost is around $7,000 including the warranty cost. The ccp covered the valve stem , index 12 injectors and upgraded battery. The warranty covered the upper/lower valve cover gaskets , front thrust arms, fan blower and some misc. Sensors.
The major out of pocket was the replacement of the coolant and turbo hoses, around 3k.
Without warranty, I would've paid $14k. For all the above exclude the ccp service.

[bbethan69]

Originally Posted by kohsin

I have a 13' N63. Other than ccp repair and replacement, make sure you have the extended warranty if you want to keep one. Owning the car since 2013, my out of pocket cost is around $7,000 including the warranty cost. The ccp covered the valve stem , index 12 injectors and upgraded battery. The warranty covered the upper/lower valve cover gaskets , front thrust arms, fan blower and some misc. Sensors.
The major out of pocket was the replacement of the coolant and turbo hoses, around 3k.
Without warranty, I would've paid $14k. For all the above exclude the ccp service.

Interesting, you have one of the pre-lci, which from what I heard tends to be a bit more unreliable than the LCI, but haven't heard super great things about either yet. Considering you've had it since new that's not great, but not horrible considering it is a BMW V8. How many miles have you put on yours for all of this to happen?

[ezaircon4jc]

Originally Posted by bbethan69

Interesting, you have one of the pre-lci, which from what I heard tends to be a bit more unreliable than the LCI, but haven't heard super great things about either yet....

You want the latest iteration of the N63 (TUxx) you can afford; IF you're dead-set on getting the V8.

[kohsin]

[QUOTE=bbethan69;30881041]Interesting, you have one of the pre-lci, which from what I heard tends to be a bit more unreliable than the LCI, but haven't heard super great things about either yet. Considering you've had it since new that's not great, but not horrible considering it is a BMW V8. How many miles have you put on yours for all of this to happen?[/QUOT

All warranty repairs started in 2017 around 50k. You are correct, not horrible experiences. I do enjoy driving the car.
I guess it's a personal preference.

[bbethan69]

Yeah that's the thing, I'm not really set on the V8 just yet. Obviously not expecting the N63 to be bulletproof, since it is after all a BMW V8, but if it's TOO much then I think I'll look at 535i s instead. From what I'm seeing everywhere else, it just seems to be primarily luck based, but the TU does seem to be way better than the pre-LCI standard N63s, so if i DO get a 550i, it would be a 2014-2016. If anyone else with a 550 could share their experiences, especially if you have 100k+ miles, that would really help me figure out if the N63 is too much trouble for what it's worth or not.

[Highline-Autos.com]

Originally Posted by kohsin

I have a 13' N63. Other than ccp repair and replacement, make sure you have the extended warranty if you want to keep one. Owning the car since 2013, my out of pocket cost is around $7,000 including the warranty cost. The ccp covered the valve stem , index 12 injectors and upgraded battery. The warranty covered the upper/lower valve cover gaskets , front thrust arms, fan blower and some misc. Sensors.
The major out of pocket was the replacement of the coolant and turbo hoses, around 3k.
Without warranty, I would've paid $14k. For all the above exclude the ccp service.

Congratulations on the extended warranty win!

Trenton O. Gibson
tgibson@highline-autos.com
Highline Autos
Direct: 602.909.9216
Office: 480.348.0777
www.highline-autos.com

[Stinkyxy]

I bought a 2014 550ix with 150k miles and minor issues. The car had full records and 90% of usage was highway. 2 owners and both had warranty coverage.

There were 22 records for the car over 4 years and almost everything was replaced:

- engine had 2k miles after having bmw care package
- suspension including shocks and rear coils, normal wear arms in the front
- I replace plugs. Coils, and battery. Only item not touched
- nothing electrical was touched
- axle boots
- brakes
- etc
- total cost excluding engine was about 15-20k, mostly covered by warranty.

I don’t expect issues because most that could go wrong was taken care of. Most of my driving is light. Expect 5k miles per year so it works for me. Will need to replace solenoids soon and maybe bearings.

Bmws are costly to own outside of warranty. Sometimes ppl are lucky.
Maybe wait a little and buy a 2017. I king of think that if you want a 550 f10, the engine will need work.

[SummerallGuard04]

I'm the second owner of a '16 550. I bought it 2 years ago with 16k miles on it as the original owner did not drive it much. That said, I searched...AND searched for one in this exact condition. It's a great car and I have only had to sink money into tires (they were original) and PM items such as fluid changes. I work remotely from home and don't drive everyday and when I don't drive it, I have it hooked up to a battery tender and will sometimes sit for 2-3 days. But, I *specifically* bought a 550 knowing that I won't rack up a ton of mileage on it. I am fully aware of the nuances that the n63tu engines have and know, one day, that I will need to sink some money into keeping up with the car and making sure that it's at it's best. I set aside $xxx a month for future, unexpected repair costs (because they will come). I looked into route 66 extended warranty but opted not to go that route. I am *METICULOUS* on keeping a dated log on any and everything that I do to the car. I had an oil analysis sent off last year to make sure everything checked okay there. Do you see where I'm going with this? It's a high-maintenace car and if you're DD'ing it, racking up 12k-15k miles a year and are oblivious to the repair costs for when (not if) things go wrong, then the 550 is prob not for you. But I do love the car and appreciate the TTv8 and will hang onto this for another decade or so. I also know that when I go to sell it one day, I won't want to sell it to just anyone...I'll look to sell it to someone who will appreciate its documented history and preservation efforts.

Good luck and I hope this gave you some perspective.

[jared21927]

Originally Posted by SummerallGuard04

I'm the second owner of a '16 550. I bought it 2 years ago with 16k miles on it as the original owner did not drive it much. That said, I searched...AND searched for one in this exact condition. It's a great car and I have only had to sink money into tires (they were original) and PM items such as fluid changes. I work remotely from home and don't drive everyday and when I don't drive it, I have it hooked up to a battery tender and will sometimes sit for 2-3 days. But, I *specifically* bought a 550 knowing that I won't rack up a ton of mileage on it. I am fully aware of the nuances that the n63tu engines have and know, one day, that I will need to sink some money into keeping up with the car and making sure that it's at it's best. I set aside $xxx a month for future, unexpected repair costs (because they will come). I looked into route 66 extended warranty but opted not to go that route. I am *METICULOUS* on keeping a dated log on any and everything that I do to the car. I had an oil analysis sent off last year to make sure everything checked okay there. Do you see where I'm going with this? It's a high-maintenace car and if you're DD'ing it, racking up 12k-15k miles a year and are oblivious to the repair costs for when (not if) things go wrong, then the 550 is prob not for you. But I do love the car and appreciate the TTv8 and will hang onto this for another decade or so. I also know that when I go to sell it one day, I won't want to sell it to just anyone...I'll look to sell it to someone who will appreciate its documented history and preservation efforts.

Good luck and I hope this gave you some perspective.

This is almost quite literally my same situation. WFH, do my own meticulous maintenance, document everything, etc. Car has been stellar for me. No issues at all. I've changed MAFs, Plugs, Coils and Tires just for peace of mind. Want to do brakes and probably suspension later this year again, just for peace of mind. I'm also stage 1 BM3 and stage 3 Xhp. I love the car and thankfully haven't had a single failure of anything. I see you're in Fort Mill, hello neighbor!