SMOKEY - My 2005 E53 3.0D Run Sheet

[SMOKEY53]

Originally Posted by kvc

Vehicle presents very nicely. Should attract considerable interest IMO. Good luck with the sale - hope you get what it's worth (to you).

It's tricky, most people who are looking to buy into the prestige market at this lower price point are automatically drawn to the cheaper examples. If they don't have experience with owning a BMW of this vintage, it's hard to explain to them that a well maintained version at a higher price is the smarter economical move. At the same time, I refuse to engage in a 'race to the bottom' on price and sell it for a song. It's got another 4 months of rego on it so I'm not in a huge hurry, but I'm also not driving the car either, so it's a bit of a waste.

[crystalworks]

Originally Posted by SMOKEY53

It's tricky, most people who are looking to buy into the prestige market at this lower price point are automatically drawn to the cheaper examples. If they don't have experience with owning a BMW of this vintage, it's hard to explain to them that a well maintained version at a higher price is the smarter economical move.

Quoted for absolute truth! I've consistently paid more than book value for something I am not going to have to immediately get under/in to work on. It's either that or pay considerably under book and expect to pay $2-3k in maintenance/repairs right off the bat.

$21,400USD does seem ambitious though... but again we don't have diesels here so I am not sure what the market is for them. 74,000 miles is considered low mileage for the year here though.

Good luck with sale! Certainly a fine example.

[Skier1]

Hi Smokey , how many kms is on your vehicle and what sort of $ you looking for as I have a mate looking for one. Thanks. PM me if you wish .

[SMOKEY53]

It's got 119kms on it and is currently advertised at 27,950 negotiable.

It's on carsales , search rego 1EW9IW (personalised plates have been replaced)


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[SMOKEY53]

Thanks, it's on the high side for a diesel, but by no means the most expensive on the market. For a stock example with these km's you're looking at mid 20s. I've put over 10k into this car in the past 12 months, it owes me mid 30s so it's just a matter of waiting for the right buyer. Diesels are quite sought after as our fuel costs are reasonably high, so they tend to hold their value well against the petrol variants.

The new and used car market in Australia is a lot different to the U.S. for better or worse depending on if you're a buyer or seller! A current model f15 diesel you're looking at around $120k plus options. An X5 M will run you $210k plus.

[kvc]

That's not an unreasonable price, given all the work you've done on it, the low mileage and excellent presentation.
When I was looking for an X5, my preference was for the diesel variant. Sadly, all those I inspected didn't have the options I wanted, nor the colour combination, and were poorly presented with much higher mileage (almost all had the cream interior, which I simply couldn't have as it would soon become red given where I live). I ended up buying the '06 4.4 and I'm happy with the purchase although I have had to inject around $2K in maintenance & basic improvements thus far which brings my investment not far off what you're asking. E-53 diesels generally attract a premium of $2-3K over the V-8's and $4-5K over the 6 cylinders IMO. Some of the rubbish I saw at car dealers was a joke and 4 months later, they're still offered for sale.
The car market here in WA has crashed with a huge bang, due predominantly to the down-turn in the resources boom. You can see bogun rides for sale everywhere, along with jet-ski's, boats, camper-vans and more, all going cheap, cheap.... Next are the mortgagee sales....
Hope this is not the case for you over in the east!

[bandite53]

I too have noticed the prices of these plummet over in WA.
There are heaps of E53 's for sale.

I like Smokey have a well maintained Diesel E53, would hate be selling it at the moment .
The price is not unreasonable at all considering the car that you get.
look at a 100 series turbo , not even in the same league but fetching nearly 40k still.
Just have to wait for the right buyer.

[Salty_Dog]

Mate, there are 2001 and 2002 X5's in Vic for $9000.
Its nuts!
Some with only 150,000k's

Yep, they depreciate so hard, you only have to look at BMW 7 series of the same era to see the amazing value these vehicles represent to second hand buyers.

I'm not sure what you mean about "not selling at the moment"... Its never going to get any better.

[SMOKEY53]

$9k, ouch! I guess that's the difference between 'having to sell' and 'liking to sell'.

It's often a situation of someone been shown a repair bill that's worth more than the car - like my mate who recently got told it was going to cost more to repair his ML than it was worth on the market - so he's pretty much happy to hand the keys to anyone for a song now. I pointed out to him he's better off running the car into the ground.

I'm happy to hang onto the car. It just doesn't make sense for me to live in the CBD and have three cars (with 3 sets of rego and insurance) when it's just me and my girlfriend (and she catches a tram to and from work all week).

It's a silly luxury when I'm 2 years into a mortgage facing interests rates that may never be lower. The smart money says 'sell the X5 and put into the mortgage'.....so here I am.

[SMOKEY53]

Well - she's off to a new home.

Had to lower the price slightly to get the deal done - but as predicted - it was to a buyer who bought the car over the phone after a quick chat and flew from interstate to pick it up, prepared to pay more and travel the distance for a sorted example.

Lessons learned were:

- don't buy sight unseen
- don't buy black cars if you're OCD - it will put you in a padded room
- X5s are heavy on wear and tear parts (tyres, brakes, suspension)
- don't invest a huge amount of money into them; they are not an enthusiast car so don't command an enthusiast price - it's very difficult to stand apart from the shopping-trolleys at 10k less. It took 12 weeks to sell, and I came out 8k down after 12 months of ownership. I normally profit on cars, not much, but at least break even - this was the heaviest loss to date.

Best of luck to the new owner! I'll miss the black beast, truly one of my favourite cars to date.


-


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk