Alan, I tow with a 2000 530D tourer and it is excellent. Self leveling suspension meams it always tows at the same height. You can load stacks of things in the boot as well. It has loads of torque and power and stil returns almost 30mpg when towing.
It has an unladen weight of about 1740kgs so it can tow most vans out there.
Make sure it has fsh and check the turbo does not sound rough - this is one of the problems on 530's.
I got a Bosal detachable towbar fitted and when it is removed you can't tell the car has any towbar fitted.
Alan - go for it! I had a 2002 525d SE Touring Auto from almost new, changed it for a new one 6 weeks ago. The first one did 131,000 fault free miles. Very economical - 40mpg solo, 22-24mpg towing. Get one with cruise control & auto to make life really easy. The Sat Nav's great, but only tow with it programmed to "fastest route" as this will keep you on A roads & M ways.
The only time it went wrong was when I stupidly filled it with petrol by mistake - very expensive.
Make sure you get a BMW FSH with it and you won't go wrong. Very good on tyres too, being perfectly balanced & RWD - only had to buy 3 sets. The 530d is even better with another 40BHP on top of the 525d's.
Good choice, though it is definately worth having the auto gearbox fluid changed - BMW says it doesn't need this, but it has been known to fail at around 120,000 miles if this hasn't been done. Take it to a good independent and save a few pennies. Otherwise, I'm jealous. My dads old 5-Series diesel is still going strong at 10 years old, so yours will have plenty of life left in it I'm sure.
i have a 2001 530d touring it pulls my Senator Indiana fully loaded with no trouble at all. Agreat car with all the goodies. Self levelling etc and with a 90kg nose weight. If the one your looking at has FSH it should be ok,
thanks to all who replied,got myself a 1999 530 d tourer,58,000 full service history,manual,1 owner,detachable towbar,retired chap,caravaner,has had it from new,havent towed with it yet but so far looks good...once again thanks for all your help
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