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2010 2011 BMW 5 Series Forum F10 BMW 5-Series (F10) Forums General 5-Series Sedan and Wagon (F10 / F11) Forum 535i or 535d ?
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      09-05-2011, 11:39 AM   #1
MiguelAlvarez
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Question 535i or 535d ?

hello all,
I will buy a f10 in january 2012 but i hesitate between 535i and 535d.
i would some feedback from people who have tried the both.

i know that they deliver the same performance, but let me know about the driving feeling. In wich car you feel very well the power ?

Thank !!
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      09-05-2011, 11:55 AM   #2
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I ended up buying the 535D. The torque is awesome, coming from near idle wow. No need to downshift, just hit the throttle and off you go.
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      09-05-2011, 01:05 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mke1402 View Post
I ended up buying the 535D. The torque is awesome, coming from near idle wow. No need to downshift, just hit the throttle and off you go.
I've had my 535d with sport auto transmission for almost a year and never cease to be amazed at the low end power. I've driven the 535i and although the performance figures are near identical, you need to work the petrol engine hard to get the same thrust as the diesel. There's also a considerable difference in fuel economy.
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      09-05-2011, 01:29 PM   #4
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The 535d means effortless power delivery and relaxed cruising.
Like Jon said, You need to work the *35i harder to get the same level of performance. The overall experience is a bit more nervous. IMO the D suits such a big car better.

But, you gotta give both cars a try and see for yourself. The petrol sounds much better that's for sure.
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      09-05-2011, 02:28 PM   #5
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In the Top gear test they told that in everyday driving the 535d comes very close to the M5.

Off course if you work the M5 engine its faster, but in normal driving they feel pretty much the same.
Not that big a difference in torque between 535d and M5, but a lot of difference in torque if you compare with the 535i - same HP - almost 535i/535D.

I don't know if theres a diff in extras, the 535D has auto gearbox and advanced clime control.

The fuel economy is much much better in the D-model.
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      09-06-2011, 01:20 PM   #6
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thank for your feedbacks. The only thing which makes me hesitate is the diesel sound :-/

Like you say, i've to try the both to make a choice... but the problem in France is that in the most of BMW dealer there are only 520d or 525d or 530d or 523i i've never seen a 535d and 535i. So it is very hard to make a road test.
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      09-06-2011, 02:05 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MiguelAlvarez View Post

i know that they deliver the same performance, but let me know about the driving feeling. In wich car you feel very well the power ?

Thank !!
I've owned both and currently have the 535i. I would say that the 'd' feels faster in normal driving with a huge amount of low down thrust. It was also slightly more economical - I averaged 36mpg v 32mpg for the 'i'.

The main reasons I changed is that for the low miles that I now do the difference in economy is hardly a factor, especially as in the UK diesel costs quite a bit more. Also diesel particulate filters (DPF) hate short trips and low revs and start to clog up which can be very expensive.

The diesel sound is not really a factor - it's certainly not like a Peugeot 504 taxi if that's what you are worrying about! Most of the time when you are inside the car you would not know it was a diesel. Outside the car you can certainly tell but even then it's not bad.

However overall I think I prefer the 'i' because it's more refined and quite honestly plenty fast enough that you are going to lose your licence if you boot it!

I think if you can, try both and see which you prefer, taking into account the type of mileage you are likely to do to see if the 'd' will save you any money once you have factored in the extra purchase price and the cost of fuel.

What Car? Online has an excellent calculator which will help you work out the costs - http://www.whatcar.com/car-news/petr...heaper-/248139

Last edited by Snapper Chris; 09-06-2011 at 02:25 PM.. Reason: Added a bit about diesel noise.
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      09-06-2011, 02:05 PM   #8
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http://blogs.motortrend.com/bmws-bes...esel-7777.html
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      09-07-2011, 08:17 AM   #9
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Depreciation

In EU, depreciation on 535i will be much worse than on 535d..

To be honest, 535d will feel faster if this is what you're after.

[Real life story: we have a manual 2009 330d and I took my girlfriend on a ride in 2009 4.6 Mustang, which technically should do 0-100 in 5 sec. She said it felt slow.. ]

Last edited by michal12; 09-07-2011 at 08:26 AM..
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      09-07-2011, 12:34 PM   #10
MiguelAlvarez
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thank for all your feedbacks :-)

Yes i think the role of the torque is very important in the power feeling
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      09-07-2011, 03:25 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by michal12 View Post
In EU, depreciation on 535i will be much worse than on 535d..
True, but the 535d costs £5K more to purchase than a 535i initially so you have to factor that in too.
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      09-09-2011, 01:05 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Snapper Chris View Post
True, but the 535d costs £5K more to purchase than a 535i initially so you have to factor that in too.
But the 535d has the Automatic gearbox whereas the 535i has the manual gearbox so when you add the automatic gearbox or sport gearbox on the 535i the price of the 535i in almost the same.
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      09-09-2011, 01:21 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MiguelAlvarez View Post
But the 535d has the Automatic gearbox whereas the 535i has the manual gearbox so when you add the automatic gearbox or sport gearbox on the 535i the price of the 535i in almost the same.
Well the sport gearbox, which is more expensive of the two auto gearboxes costs £1640 in the UK so the two models are still approx £3400 apart.

But ignoring the price for a moment I sense you lean towards the 535d anyway, which is fine and it's an excellent choice for many people.
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      09-09-2011, 02:14 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Snapper Chris View Post
Well the sport gearbox, which is more expensive of the two auto gearboxes costs £1640 in the UK so the two models are still approx £3400 apart.

But ignoring the price for a moment I sense you lean towards the 535d anyway, which is fine and it's an excellent choice for many people.
I have four month to make a choice.... I'm not able to choose
the sound and the refinement of the patrol or the power feeling ?
it's a dilemma so hard
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      09-09-2011, 03:20 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MiguelAlvarez View Post
I have four month to make a choice.... I'm not able to choose
the sound and the refinement of the patrol or the power feeling ?
it's a dilemma so hard
Ah yes, it is a very difficult choice, and one I had to make myself so I do sympathise with your dilemma.

I think maybe if you are doing a lot of kilometres then possibly the 535d is the way to go. If you are not I think maybe the 535i wins it mainly because of the issue with the DPF (Diesel Particulate Filters) , etc. You might find this article of interest and of some help too - http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/diesel-vs-petrol/

I hope that helps a little in helping you decide and good luck.

Chris
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      09-09-2011, 03:31 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Snapper Chris View Post
Ah yes, it is a very difficult choice, and one I had to make myself so I do sympathise with your dilemma.

I think maybe if you are doing a lot of kilometres then possibly the 535d is the way to go. If you are not I think maybe the 535i wins it mainly because of the issue with the DPF (Diesel Particulate Filters) , etc. You might find this article of interest and of some help too - http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/diesel-vs-petrol/

I hope that helps a little in helping you decide and good luck.

Chris
Thank

in fact the numbers of km is not a factor which influence me.
Even I do just 13000km per year (maybe a bit less) and you say me that the 535d gives me more sensation than 535i,then i take the 535d.

And even if i do more than 30000km per year and you say me that 535i gives me more sensation than 535d,then i take the 535i.

Honestly, i do between 12000km and 14000km per year with my car, i use it only in Week end and when i go to hollyday (i go generally to Spain, Itally, Netherland and Germany) the other time i take my wife's car.
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      09-09-2011, 04:40 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MiguelAlvarez View Post
Thank

in fact the numbers of km is not a factor which influence me.
Even I do just 13000km per year (maybe a bit less) and you say me that the 535d gives me more sensation than 535i,then i take the 535d.

And even if i do more than 30000km per year and you say me that 535i gives me more sensation than 535d,then i take the 535i.

Honestly, i do between 12000km and 14000km per year with my car, i use it only in Week end and when i go to hollyday (i go generally to Spain, Itally, Netherland and Germany) the other time i take my wife's car.
In that case, if the costs are not the main factor then I would summarise it like this:

535d
Pros - torque; can go further between fill ups of fuel
Cons - slightly agricultural sound (but still very refined for a diesel);

535i
Pros - refinement, smoothness at high revs
Cons - less torque than 535d
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      09-09-2011, 05:07 PM   #18
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Problem with diesel engines is their sound. Though looking at how diesel engines are progressing might be a fair price to pay for less consumption, besides from what i was told engine sound is not heard that much from the inside of the car and almost not at all at low revs.

I was actually between a 520i and a 520d and picked the 520d because of less consumption which again is less when comparing 535i with 535d.

On the other side is the torque of a diesel engine.

But mainly when picking from these 2 models i would say the 535d purely because of much less consumption and more torque.
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      09-10-2011, 01:06 AM   #19
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I have owned a lot of cars. Petrol and diesels.

The Sound in my 535D F11 is so sweeet and fantastic.

Sounds not at all like a diesel
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      09-10-2011, 02:35 AM   #20
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I have driven the 535i and a 530D Xdrive and I was most impressed with the 530D.
Both where automatic. I would say a manual 535i is more of a drivers car than an automatic 535D.
I am also considering both since the 535i is less money than a 530xD.
I am quite sure that if you go for a quicker trip the Diesel will be much more economic that the petrol, a Turbo petrol can probably consume huge amounts of fuel when driven hard, whereas the diesel will still not be over 1L/10km.
A search in Spritmonitor.de reveals a 20% increase in fuel consumption on the 535i over the 535d:
http://www.spritmonitor.de/en/overvi...35&powerunit=2
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      09-11-2011, 09:19 AM   #21
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535d for sure.
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      09-11-2011, 07:54 PM   #22
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If you can afford a 535i then why are you sweating about fuel economy. The petrol engine is faster, sounds better and is less money. Petrol is also less expensive than diesel today. I owned a Mercedes E320 Blue Tec and while the fuel economy was great, I ended up feeling I had compromised excitement for practicality. Boring!
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