E39 M5 Buying advice...
Discussion
Hi all.
I'm looking at getting a new car, something that is interesting, and hopefully won't depreciate too horribly over the next couple of years. On the shortlist are an E39 M5, E39 Alpina B10 V8, and an E65 750i (different but appeals quite a lot- depreciation aside).
This is one I'm looking at: http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b... The mileage doesn't bother me personally if it drives fine, but I do wonder about re-sale once I've put 10-15k on it. And I also worry about using it during the winter- I know it's not going to fall to bits, but equally I don't want to ruin it with road salt if they are particularly rust prone. Who on here uses theirs as a daily, or have most of them dropped into Sunday car duties by now? Is the maintenance likely to be a total pain if used as a daily driver? I have a girly soft top thing as well, but that won't be out the garage until spring, so we're probably looking at 6k a year on the 5. I can't afford to sink more into it to get into a lower miler- is this a false economy?
Some owners insights would be much appreciated before I hear the V8 fire up at the weekend- I suspect that'll have me reaching for my wallet before I've thought it through properly!
Cheers
Craig
I'm looking at getting a new car, something that is interesting, and hopefully won't depreciate too horribly over the next couple of years. On the shortlist are an E39 M5, E39 Alpina B10 V8, and an E65 750i (different but appeals quite a lot- depreciation aside).
This is one I'm looking at: http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b... The mileage doesn't bother me personally if it drives fine, but I do wonder about re-sale once I've put 10-15k on it. And I also worry about using it during the winter- I know it's not going to fall to bits, but equally I don't want to ruin it with road salt if they are particularly rust prone. Who on here uses theirs as a daily, or have most of them dropped into Sunday car duties by now? Is the maintenance likely to be a total pain if used as a daily driver? I have a girly soft top thing as well, but that won't be out the garage until spring, so we're probably looking at 6k a year on the 5. I can't afford to sink more into it to get into a lower miler- is this a false economy?
Some owners insights would be much appreciated before I hear the V8 fire up at the weekend- I suspect that'll have me reaching for my wallet before I've thought it through properly!
Cheers
Craig
men3cac said:
Hi all.
I'm looking at getting a new car, something that is interesting, and hopefully won't depreciate too horribly over the next couple of years. On the shortlist are an E39 M5, E39 Alpina B10 V8, and an E65 750i (different but appeals quite a lot- depreciation aside).
This is one I'm looking at: http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b... The mileage doesn't bother me personally if it drives fine, but I do wonder about re-sale once I've put 10-15k on it. And I also worry about using it during the winter- I know it's not going to fall to bits, but equally I don't want to ruin it with road salt if they are particularly rust prone. Who on here uses theirs as a daily, or have most of them dropped into Sunday car duties by now? Is the maintenance likely to be a total pain if used as a daily driver? I have a girly soft top thing as well, but that won't be out the garage until spring, so we're probably looking at 6k a year on the 5. I can't afford to sink more into it to get into a lower miler- is this a false economy?
Some owners insights would be much appreciated before I hear the V8 fire up at the weekend- I suspect that'll have me reaching for my wallet before I've thought it through properly!
Cheers
Craig
Good choice I'm looking at getting a new car, something that is interesting, and hopefully won't depreciate too horribly over the next couple of years. On the shortlist are an E39 M5, E39 Alpina B10 V8, and an E65 750i (different but appeals quite a lot- depreciation aside).
This is one I'm looking at: http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b... The mileage doesn't bother me personally if it drives fine, but I do wonder about re-sale once I've put 10-15k on it. And I also worry about using it during the winter- I know it's not going to fall to bits, but equally I don't want to ruin it with road salt if they are particularly rust prone. Who on here uses theirs as a daily, or have most of them dropped into Sunday car duties by now? Is the maintenance likely to be a total pain if used as a daily driver? I have a girly soft top thing as well, but that won't be out the garage until spring, so we're probably looking at 6k a year on the 5. I can't afford to sink more into it to get into a lower miler- is this a false economy?
Some owners insights would be much appreciated before I hear the V8 fire up at the weekend- I suspect that'll have me reaching for my wallet before I've thought it through properly!
Cheers
Craig
I wouldn't worry about resale values, as I feel they are on the up in any case.
You point out rust as an issue, which is true and mainly a concern on and around the jacking points. Easy to inspect and if not too far gone, to repair and protect for the future.
The biggest killers on these cars are the rod bearings that can spin and then you have a big problem. There have been enough occurrences of this failure for me to consider it a good preventative maintenance step. (Circa £1100 all in job).
Next are the timing chain guides which can fail causing major front end engine damage. Again I feel this should be done (CIrca £1500 from memory, I can reconfirm).
Of course you could try your luck and not have these things done if you are going to sell in a year. But you don't really want to be carrying the baton if it does occur.
Apart from those points its all pretty much straight forward maintenance. Parts can expensive though but there is wealth of information on a dedicated M5 site that I won't name here.
I have ran one as a daily driver since January 2008 to October 2014 and put 75,000 very hard miles on it. I have gone over the top on the maintenance side (not really necessary but nice if it is going to be a keeper and my one is a keeper for sure) and I have also modified it quite a lot ...read supercharged and over 600 HP.
Don't worry about weather conditions etc etc. Start it up every morning and drive it hard come rain or shine. It will pootle in town and blast down autobahns on the same day and is a true JOY !
I am happy to assist you with your search !
Edited by M5 London on Wednesday 25th November 17:10
Rust is a live issue with all E39s. Corrosion in the jacking point areas is a worry but can be rectified if not too advanced. Rust in most other areas is mainly cosmetic and many live with rusty arches, boot lid & fuel filler. Finding an E39 without any corrosion is now quite difficult.
Running an M5 as a daily driver should be no problem as long as the car you buy is a good one which has had regular servicing and proper maintenance. An M5 driven regularly may well prove to be more reliable than a 'week-end' car since there are innumerable rubber components and hoses that will benefit from regular use. My M5 is a 'garage queen' from late October to early May and I'm scheduling quite a few hoses etc for replacement just for this reason.
A cheap 'project' car is, however, unlikely to be an inexpensive-to-run and reliable daily driver. (I couldn't get that link of yours to work BTW)
VANOS/timing chain guides/rod bearings can be expensive issues......for some owners. Problem is you only ever hear about ones that have had problems.....and very little from the vast majority of owners who haven't. Expensive if they go wrong but there are quite a few stories of owners who have run their E39 M5 to 200k+ miles with little else apart from regular servicing and maintenance. A few American owners have run their cars to north of 300k miles without VANOS, timing chain problems or rod bearing issues. (If you're an E39 M5 owner reading this who's had these problems....then I feel your pain....but I think you've been unlucky rather than the victim of a widespread mechanical problem common to these cars).
You really need to plan for winter tyres if you're going to run an M5 right through the winter. It's a 400hp car remember and that's a lot of power to keep under control through the rear wheels on cold and/or snowy roads. I've also got an E39 530d which I run throughout the winter up here in the Scottish Highlands but only on winter rubber; it's pretty much undriveable on summer tyres when the weather gets severe. If the weather is mild this winter then you'll be fine on regular rubber but you'll be the first to struggle for traction when the weather turns really wintry.
They are truly intoxicating cars to drive and utterly, utterly addictive.
Running an M5 as a daily driver should be no problem as long as the car you buy is a good one which has had regular servicing and proper maintenance. An M5 driven regularly may well prove to be more reliable than a 'week-end' car since there are innumerable rubber components and hoses that will benefit from regular use. My M5 is a 'garage queen' from late October to early May and I'm scheduling quite a few hoses etc for replacement just for this reason.
A cheap 'project' car is, however, unlikely to be an inexpensive-to-run and reliable daily driver. (I couldn't get that link of yours to work BTW)
VANOS/timing chain guides/rod bearings can be expensive issues......for some owners. Problem is you only ever hear about ones that have had problems.....and very little from the vast majority of owners who haven't. Expensive if they go wrong but there are quite a few stories of owners who have run their E39 M5 to 200k+ miles with little else apart from regular servicing and maintenance. A few American owners have run their cars to north of 300k miles without VANOS, timing chain problems or rod bearing issues. (If you're an E39 M5 owner reading this who's had these problems....then I feel your pain....but I think you've been unlucky rather than the victim of a widespread mechanical problem common to these cars).
You really need to plan for winter tyres if you're going to run an M5 right through the winter. It's a 400hp car remember and that's a lot of power to keep under control through the rear wheels on cold and/or snowy roads. I've also got an E39 530d which I run throughout the winter up here in the Scottish Highlands but only on winter rubber; it's pretty much undriveable on summer tyres when the weather gets severe. If the weather is mild this winter then you'll be fine on regular rubber but you'll be the first to struggle for traction when the weather turns really wintry.
They are truly intoxicating cars to drive and utterly, utterly addictive.
Edited by Depthhoar on Wednesday 25th November 22:17
Haha, a supercharger must make them fairly exciting!
Thanks for the replies. I was aware of the chain tensioners, but not the big end bearings. Bit worrying, I'll be double sure to listen out for any untoward noises.
The link is here. Sorry, I don't use this forum much, I didn't realise pasting wouldn't work.
I'd be interested to hear your opinions. I'm aware that it'll be far from idea as a winter hack- I've got a 325i touring currently which I have run on winters, but the
s nicked them. I might have to get some winters for the MR2- probably cheaper!
Thanks for the replies. I was aware of the chain tensioners, but not the big end bearings. Bit worrying, I'll be double sure to listen out for any untoward noises.
The link is here. Sorry, I don't use this forum much, I didn't realise pasting wouldn't work.
I'd be interested to hear your opinions. I'm aware that it'll be far from idea as a winter hack- I've got a 325i touring currently which I have run on winters, but the
s nicked them. I might have to get some winters for the MR2- probably cheaper!Gassing Station | M Power | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff