I also bought a 2011 528i at the beginning of this month and did a ton of research the last 4 months. The 2011 528i is going to be the most reliable of the F10 models (at least here in the US) because it has the N52 engine and ZF 8 speed transmission. As long as you stay on top of recommended service intervals and preventative maintenance, these engines and transmissions can easily last 300k+ miles. Common issues with these cars: - Valve cover leaks: either the gasket fails, or the plastic valve cover develops a crack. Keep an eye on any leaks and fix them before they get too bad because the oil can drip down onto other parts and cause issues. For example, oil can leak down into the spark plug wells and cause a misfire. It can also leak down onto the serpentine belt, increasing the likelihood of the belt slipping off of the pulleys and potentially causing engine/radiator damage. There have even been documented cases of the belt getting sucked into the engine through the crankshaft seal. - Oil filter housing gasket leak - Plastic coolant flange (Also known as Mickey Mouse flange) failure: Because this flange is made of plastic, it becomes brittle over time with the heat cycles of the coolant. Eventually it will break and you will lose coolant and potentially be stranded on the side of the road. I would recommend replacing this flange with the Rein aluminum replacement. You can find it on Rock Auto for about $23 shipped. www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/bmw,2011,528i,3.0l+l6,1446424,cooling+system,coolant+hose+connector+/+flange,11566 - Water pump and thermostat failure - Vanos solenoid failure: The Vanos solenoids commonly fail at around 70,000 miles. There are two of them and sometimes they just need to be removed and cleaned out with brake cleaner and have their seals replaced. If that does not work they will need to be replaced. - Oil pan gasket leak Here is a useful link with regard to common n52 issues: bmwtuning.co/bmw-n52-engine-problems/#toc-rough Below are some recommendations on service intervals and preventative maintenance schedules: - Engine oil and filter: 5,000-7,500 miles/1 year - Engine air filter: 20,000-25,000 miles - Spark plugs: 30,000-60,000 miles/3years - Ignition coils 60,000miles/10 years - Water pump and thermostat: 60,000-80,000 miles - Transmission fluid and filter: 62,000 miles/8 years (As recommended by ZF, don't trust BMW's "lifetime" fluid.) - Rear differential oil: 62,000 I recommend changing this at the same time you change the transmission fluid and filter. - Serpentine belt, idler, and tensioner: 60,000 miles unless the belt has cracks/wear marks, tensioner is wobbling, or oil has leaked onto the belt. If you keep on top of these, the car should be very reliable from a drivability standpoint. Of course, you will have the occasional electronic malfunction/failure. If you will be working on the car yourself, I highly recommend getting an ENET(~$20) or ICOM($$$) cable and ISTA+ or another BMW diagnostic program as it will provide much more information than your standard OBD reader.
@@nickw2392 thanks mate we are on the same boat iam enjoying it but the only worry some thing is the engine operating temperature cause ive got an audi A6 2009 V6 fsi that thing runs at a very low temperature and ive had it for more than 5 years and ive only been doing oil and filter change
Recently bought one how is its reliability on the long run
I also bought a 2011 528i at the beginning of this month and did a ton of research the last 4 months. The 2011 528i is going to be the most reliable of the F10 models (at least here in the US) because it has the N52 engine and ZF 8 speed transmission. As long as you stay on top of recommended service intervals and preventative maintenance, these engines and transmissions can easily last 300k+ miles.
Common issues with these cars:
- Valve cover leaks: either the gasket fails, or the plastic valve cover develops a crack. Keep an eye on any leaks and fix them before they get too bad because the oil can drip down onto other parts and cause issues. For example, oil can leak down into the spark plug wells and cause a misfire. It can also leak down onto the serpentine belt, increasing the likelihood of the belt slipping off of the pulleys and potentially causing engine/radiator damage. There have even been documented cases of the belt getting sucked into the engine through the crankshaft seal.
- Oil filter housing gasket leak
- Plastic coolant flange (Also known as Mickey Mouse flange) failure: Because this flange is made of plastic, it becomes brittle over time with the heat cycles of the coolant. Eventually it will break and you will lose coolant and potentially be stranded on the side of the road. I would recommend replacing this flange with the Rein aluminum replacement. You can find it on Rock Auto for about $23 shipped. www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/bmw,2011,528i,3.0l+l6,1446424,cooling+system,coolant+hose+connector+/+flange,11566
- Water pump and thermostat failure
- Vanos solenoid failure: The Vanos solenoids commonly fail at around 70,000 miles. There are two of them and sometimes they just need to be removed and cleaned out with brake cleaner and have their seals replaced. If that does not work they will need to be replaced.
- Oil pan gasket leak
Here is a useful link with regard to common n52 issues:
bmwtuning.co/bmw-n52-engine-problems/#toc-rough
Below are some recommendations on service intervals and preventative maintenance schedules:
- Engine oil and filter: 5,000-7,500 miles/1 year
- Engine air filter: 20,000-25,000 miles
- Spark plugs: 30,000-60,000 miles/3years
- Ignition coils 60,000miles/10 years
- Water pump and thermostat: 60,000-80,000 miles
- Transmission fluid and filter: 62,000 miles/8 years (As recommended by ZF, don't trust BMW's "lifetime" fluid.)
- Rear differential oil: 62,000 I recommend changing this at the same time you change the transmission fluid and filter.
- Serpentine belt, idler, and tensioner: 60,000 miles unless the belt has cracks/wear marks, tensioner is wobbling, or oil has leaked onto the belt.
If you keep on top of these, the car should be very reliable from a drivability standpoint. Of course, you will have the occasional electronic malfunction/failure.
If you will be working on the car yourself, I highly recommend getting an ENET(~$20) or ICOM($$$) cable and ISTA+ or another BMW diagnostic program as it will provide much more information than your standard OBD reader.
@@nickw2392 thanks mate we are on the same boat iam enjoying it but the only worry some thing is the engine operating temperature cause ive got an audi A6 2009 V6 fsi that thing runs at a very low temperature and ive had it for more than 5 years and ive only been doing oil and filter change