Which 535i to go with?

Dude, sport button is a wake up call for the bmw. But my gas goes down quick because my toes tends to stretch further. Anyhow, I tend to use my navi on my Samsung s3 rather than the ones in both of my vehicle. Why? Fast address and map loading and better graphic. By the time I finish entering the address with the idrive i could be half way to my destination with my phone. Speaking local that is.

Originally Posted by dev1983

Thanks...how can you tell if it has the sport package?...I've noticed the sport wheels (18") but some don't have the sport button on the gear shift console..

I'm new to the board, but let me share what I know.

The way to tell just by looking at the pictures if it has the sport pkg is 2 ways:
1. The sport steering wheel has the shiny metal on the sides of the 6 o'clock stem.
2. The front seats has the extra lower ham string support that extends out.
See photo

As for the M Sport Pkg, it has all the Sport Pkg stuff plus M Wheels, M Body Panels, M Steering Wheel, and also the Active Roll System for the suspension.

For premium pkg, it is harder to tell from pictures between real leather and leatherette. if memory serves me right, if the 535 comes with the Homelink on the mirrors, then it will have the premium pkg.

There is a difference between the 2010 n the earlier models in that 2010 and later ones are hard drive based vs DVD based. I think this is tied in to the iDrive system in that it boots up much faster.

IMHO, for this nice BMW you are searching for, might as well just get it fully loaded. You will not regret it. I was in the exact situation as you just 4 weeks ago. Started at looking at 07 335i, then 08 335i. Wife felt 3 was a little small and liked the 5 better. Looked at the 08 535i, after 3 weeks of searching, on New Year day, I just sprung for a 2010 550i M Sport, Premium Pkg (standard for 550), Cold Weather Pkg, Value Pkg, Nav, And Logic 7.

I hope this helps.

Forgot to add that the Sports Automatic Transmission is a real plus. Even if not used all that often, it is awesome to have.

10550i: The breakdown on what to look for helps alot! Thanks much! I'm only looking for 535i with sport with paddle shifters and premium. I can let go of the navi if need be.

Originally Posted by dev1983

I'm more interested the sport models with the button and paddle shifters, so in sport model with out the sport button, how would you put the car into sport mode? just by sliding the gear select to the left? Is it the same sport mode? I test drove a few with the sport button, and man it makes a difference.

The SAT is a very nice package. $500 sticker addon, but it sure does add onto the resell value.

The transmission in both Automatic and Sport Automatic are the same, however the programming is completely different.

The SAT also adds Chassis Dynamics when you hit that little button, decreases steering resistance, and feels more "precise" it also stiffens the chassis by stiffening the Anti-Roll system, as well as changes throttle mapping. When you hit the sport button, it also blips the throttle when you are downshifting, and shifts are MUCH MUCH faster and also "harder", feels like a SMG almost!

So essentially, the regular automatic has no paddles, and the SAT has paddles. The retrofit just for the paddles is nearly $500 due to the cost of the steering wheel and the wiring involved, the additional console button, different mappings is just the cherry on top in my opinion!

Try it out for yourself, leave the car in Auto, but hit the console sport, then compare it to Sport on the gear selector, but without the console sport enabled. Very different!

Originally Posted by dev1983

The vin decoder was an awesome idea. Thanks

There's one I checked out. Runs great. But ran autocheck and has a lemon/mfg buy back listed. Would that be a risky buy? Considering some issues I read online. It's CPO Until Jan 2014. Killer deal though

They got a lemon/buy back to pass CPO? That's surprising to me.

Recommend you open your search up to 2010, too. I was like you at first, looking at 09 and maybe 08's b/c I figured they'd be less $$ but 2010 was the last year of the model year and they had a lot of discounts put into options to sell the last year (you'll see a "value" package on the 2010's). I got my 2010 for only a few bucks more than the 09 I was considering and the 10 had another year of warranty remaining and year less of mileage. Plus BMW had another year to trying and get the injector thing figured out. Someone made the comment the 10's had less options...I don't agree. I was able to get everything I wanted (Sport, sport trans, nav, sat, heated front, premium, park assist). Smoker's package put the power adapter in the front and the back instead of cig lighters. I got comfort access and it was on my 'nice to have' list but don't think I'll be able to buy another car without it (or something that does the same thing). Only thing I would have liked to get and didn't was the fold down (or ski pass through) rear seat but I wasn't pass on the deal I was getting just for that option (plus I have a Jeep for that kind of stuff).