BMW 520dA Touring or VW Passat Variant 2.0 TDI 170PS DSG6?

[gianton]

Hello all!

I live in Greece and currently own a BMW 520i A E39 '97 model upgraded to 2.6 216PS / 270NM. Not so happy with this car, quite a lot of problems when new, luckily it was under warranty for 3 years.

I will be buying a new car pretty soon and want to move on to a diesel engine. So my best options are at the 2.0 litre range, either one of the following:

1. BMW 520dA Touring with a price around €55.000 (a selection of needed extras)
2. VW Passat Variant 2.0 TDI 170PS DSG6 with a price around €40.000 (full of extras, almost anything available!)

I was almost tempted to go for the Passat until I read some topics at several forums that the car has quite a lot of problems and that in the first months! Maybe the model has to "mature" a couple of years.

Anyway I'm glad I joined this great forum and hope I get some useful replies.

Regards.

[gianton]

Any suggestions?

[Huweth]

I would buy the passat as it's so much cheaper.
All you are really loosing is some image by not having the BMW. I would look at my 15,000 left in the bank and not care about any potential Passat problems, remembering also that I have a warranty.
Don't forget, your current BMW has had it's problems too.

[gianton]

I would buy the passat as it's so much cheaper.
All you are really loosing is some image by not having the BMW. I would look at my 15,000 left in the bank and not care about any potential Passat problems, remembering also that I have a warranty.
Don't forget, your current BMW has had it's problems too.

Thanks for your reply.

Would yo consider a second hand BMW maybe one year old, a better choice over the new Passat?

[Huweth]

It depends if you can get a BMW with the specification you want, and the right mileage, price etc...
I would say that a BMW will hold it's price better in the long run, and it's price will be a lot cheaper than when it was new.
It probably comes down to personal preference between the 1 year old BMW, and the New Passat.
I've never been in either of the cars, so I don't really know what they are like. Try and take long test drives in the cars to make a good comparison, and then decide if it's best for you to get a used BMW, or a new Passat.
It really is down to which car you like best.

[gianton]

Thanks for your input, will think about it after some road test of the BMW.