[dreamingat30fps]

So I just bought a new to me 2011 550i. I'm having them fix a couple of issues I found with the car before taking delivery. Honestly I never really even considered this car, but was in the market for a comfortable sedan since my gf recently got rid of her XTS. So I narrowed my search down to a few cars I liked and I was able to get the best deal on this 550i.

Of course right AFTER I jumped on here and started reading about it to keep me busy while I wait for it. So of course now I'm definitely worried. After my 335i I said I would never get another turbo BMW as out of all the cars I've owned that one has been by far the most unreliable one I've had. However currently I don't drive much and we have 2 others cars so I plan to do most of the maintenance and whatever repairs I can myself.

Anyways... long story short. Anything I should be looking out for, any preventative stuff that should be done on the 550 to avoid future problems. Car has around 60k miles on it.

Thanks

[DDD31]

Congrats on the new car and welcome!!!

First thing I would definitely find out is if the CCP (Customer Care Package for N63 engine) has been done on your car.

My second piece of advice would be to look into an extended warranty. Unless you have bags of cash just laying around for expensive repairs, an extended warranty is a VERY nice thing to have with these cars.

Preventative maintenance wise, I would look at more frequent oil changes than BMW recommends.

[dreamingat30fps]

Originally Posted by DDD31

Congrats on the new car and welcome!!!

First thing I would definitely find out is if the CCP (Customer Care Package for N63 engine) has been done on your car.

My second piece of advice would be to look into an extended warranty. Unless you have bags of cash just laying around for expensive repairs, an extended warranty is a VERY nice thing to have with these cars.

Preventative maintenance wise, I would look at more frequent oil changes than BMW recommends.

Thanks! Would the CCP show as a recall? I know it has one open recall for a fuel pump.

What companies do you guys recommend for extended warranty? I looked at the first two that came up on a Google search and the price was crazy. Over $3k for the minimum package. I will probably only put around 5k miles a year on it.

Another question, this car has the surround camera and some front facing cameras, however is there no way to see a normal backup camera view?

[DDD31]

You would probably have to go to a BMW dealer to find out if the CCP has been done since it should show up in their computers.

You should be able to activate the backup camera in the iDrive system. With the camera view shown on the nav screen just choose the option with the R in a camera symbol (see pic below). With that option, you can also choose whether the surround view or backup camera view is displayed when you put car in reverse.

[dreamingat30fps]

Originally Posted by DDD31

You would probably have to go to a BMW dealer to find out if the CCP has been done since it should show up in their computers.

You should be able to activate the backup camera in the iDrive system. With the camera view shown on the nav screen just choose the option with the R in a camera symbol (see pic below). With that option, you can also choose whether the surround view or backup camera view is displayed when you put car in reverse.

Awesome thanks! That's probably why I couldn't get the backup camera, the idrive controller was broken and would not press, this is part of what they are fixing.

[phefner]

My buddy has the same model yr 550..bought it new and he hasn't had any issues.

[Mbbrewer]

Originally Posted by dreamingat30fps

So I just bought a new to me 2011 550i. I'm having them fix a couple of issues I found with the car before taking delivery. Honestly I never really even considered this car, but was in the market for a comfortable sedan since my gf recently got rid of her XTS. So I narrowed my search down to a few cars I liked and I was able to get the best deal on this 550i.

Of course right AFTER I jumped on here and started reading about it to keep me busy while I wait for it. So of course now I'm definitely worried. After my 335i I said I would never get another turbo BMW as out of all the cars I've owned that one has been by far the most unreliable one I've had. However currently I don't drive much and we have 2 others cars so I plan to do most of the maintenance and whatever repairs I can myself.

Anyways... long story short. Anything I should be looking out for, any preventative stuff that should be done on the 550 to avoid future problems. Car has around 60k miles on it.

Thanks

Too late to give it back? This car is going to be a big headache for you.

[dreamingat30fps]

Originally Posted by Mbbrewer

Too late to give it back? This car is going to be a big headache for you.

Its mine for better or worse. I got the service history of the car from BMW and it doesnt seem to have had many warranty issues. Just regular service. I do see the CCP on there so that was done.

[Simple5]

I'm in the same boat you are. Between the wife and I we have 2 other cars. She has her weekend car a Mazda CX-5 and a company car a Ford Focus. I have my 550i and a daily Protege5.

I have owned the 550i for over 2 years now and not 1 hiccup engine wise and just recently I was due for the oil change (I put around 5k miles a year as well). The ONLY repair I've had to make is the trunk spring went out..

We have the luxury of babying our cars while others dont. Drive the hell out of her and enjoy! You will read horror stories here but these things haven't happened to everyone but it does give you something to check for every once in a while like coolant leaks etc..

We get to live the dichotomy of cars. I daily a cheap ass slow car with 0 refinement that makes every noise a ghetto car can at one point or another and when I hop in the 550i she always brings a smile to my face with the speed and luxury.

[dreamingat30fps]

Originally Posted by Simple3

I'm in the same boat you are. Between the wife and I we have 2 other cars. She has her weekend car a Mazda CX-5 and a company car a Ford Focus. I have my 550i and a daily Protege5.

I have owned the 550i for over 2 years now and not 1 hiccup engine wise and just recently I was due for the oil change (I put around 5k miles a year as well). The ONLY repair I've had to make is the trunk spring went out..

We have the luxury of babying our cars while others dont. Drive the hell out of her and enjoy! You will read horror stories here but these things haven't happened to everyone but it does give you something to check for every once in a while like coolant leaks etc..

We get to live the dichotomy of cars. I daily a cheap ass slow car with 0 refinement that makes every noise a ghetto car can at one point or another and when I hop in the 550i she always brings a smile to my face with the speed and luxury.

Yeah I work from home so I just don't drive much at all. My gf drives her Ford Cmax to work because she only has to put gas in it like maybe once a month. My "regular" car if you will is a 2016 Camaro SS which I love but it's not very practical since it's basically a 2 seater. So the 550i will basically just be our around town/road trip car.

I got to take it out on the highway yesterday and I love it. Only issue I have is I guess previous owner got a flat and saw those RFT prices and said hell no. Put some Nexen pos tire on the driver side rear and I can totally feel it at higher speeds. Debating if I will replace that one with another Bridgestone RFT or just swap them all out for none RFT and sell the ones on the car since they still have decent meat on them.

Also found out car doesn't have comfort access which is ridiculous for a car that was probably over 60k new. Even my gf cmax has it. However for what I paid for it I can live without it.