RE: BMW's 'Star': Time for Tea?

[jumare]

I've got the DVD (or I may have loaned it and not had it back), there is some good making of footage on it.

The bit where the M5 goes airborne and the music changes is my favourite.

So I've re-watched the youtube, now listening to Blur guess next step is to look for the DVD....

[omgus]

Ta PH, just watched all of them again. Now to do a little work before people notice i've dont nothing today.

[soad]

Nors said:

Ah! A proper looking BMW!

Indeed.

[Aidayboy]

Erm, has no one noticed that in the large picture the "M5" seems to be missing a couple of tail pipes???

[Wills2]

Love that video.

[T.K]

Am I alone in thinking this was at the time, and remains, crap?

[benbackhouse]

Great video!
I've owned a 540i for last 9 years and I've always wondered how much quicker/more focussed an M5 would be to drive. The 540 isn't exactly slow..

[monthefish]

Excellent video! Never seen that before.

Quinten said:

Terminator X said:

They seem such a bargain in the for sale section albeit potentially ruinous I guess? Can current owners pls tell me that that is bullst then I can go out and buy one

TX.

Check my garage out and make up your own mind...

Better to regret the things you've done than the things you haven't!

That's a great blog. The car certainly likes its oil (but do you really wait for the light to come on before adding oil?)

[Quinten]

monthefish said:

That's a great blog. The car certainly likes its oil (but do you really wait for the light to come on before adding oil?)

Well, thank you.

It's not a light, but yes, once the check oil message pops up, I will do just that I like living on the edge

I did the blog because someone elses blog (sorry, can't attribute it anymore) about owning an M5 was such a great insight into the real-world (not friend of a friend of a mate) cost of ownership that I wanted to pass mine on to the world too. Everyone has got dire warnings about this, that or the other, and if I had listened to them 3 years ago, I would still wonder what it would be like... as it happens it was the best decision ever to buy one!

[cianha]

Bodyguard was played by the son of the chap who played Odd Job. According to the Jalopnik article, anyways…

[Aidayboy]

WeirdNeville said:

Aidayboy said:

Erm, has no one noticed that in the large picture the "M5" seems to be missing a couple of tail pipes???

Yes, about half the posters in the first 3 pages.

Apologies, missed that ONE post on the front page that mentioned it.

[e21Mark]

benbackhouse said:

Great video!
I've owned a 540i for last 9 years and I've always wondered how much quicker/more focussed an M5 would be to drive. The 540 isn't exactly slow..

I don't think your average driver would know the difference. Obviously they'd say they could but the fact is a 540 is probably just as quick in 'real world' terms and is an absolute bargain right now.

[BenGB]

e21Mark said:

I don't think your average driver would know the difference. Obviously they'd say they could but the fact is a 540 is probably just as quick in 'real world' terms and is an absolute bargain right now.

(for avoidance of confusion - username changed to BenGB)

You're probably right. I'm sure a drag race would be conclusive, but I've always been surprised at how slowly a car with 100 extra BHP pulls away once you are talking proper BHP levels (not 50 vs 150 obviously!).

The 540 is an auto and I love the fact that it's a complete slush barge when you are not in a hurry, but a snarly ball of bonkers when you slot it into Sport and floor it. It's a pleasantly telepathic gearbox too - almost always in the right gear.

You are right about it being a bargain too - I doubt I'd get £1,000 for it now (1999, 107k on the clock). Having said that, I paid £15K nearly 10 years ago for an originally-dealer demo car with all the toys, so less than £1,500 per year isn't too bad!

[Brendan Lennon]

benbackhouse said:

Great video!
I've owned a 540i for last 9 years and I've always wondered how much quicker/more focussed an M5 would be to drive. The 540 isn't exactly slow..

Dunno what 'real world' you're living it but a 540i wouldnt know which road an M5 went ! and it's not just the engine, brakes are a weak point, and apart from 400bhp easily overcoming and smoking the rear tyres at even the slightest provocation, you really have to be shifting to hit the limits of handling once your tyres are in anyway reasonable shape, it's the perfect balance between comfort & sporty driving, I've had mine over 180mph and leaving top of the line 1000cc superbikes in its wake, it only comes alive at +120mph and (in my experience) there isnt a subaru or evo than can stick with it well into 3 figures, supercar bargain of the century before BMW lost the plot with tiptronic/techo/rubbish-ology to keep the americans happy.

[shalmaneser]

tomellingham said:

Madonna couldn't even play herself very well. Terrible actress.

+1

+10000 for the M5 though.

[Mitch2.0]

Isn't that M5 missing a couple of pipes in the main picture of this article?

[sparks_E39]

If I remember right they used a few E39 540i Sports mocked up to look like M5's to shoot the majority of this. A few of them were totalled, especially the one used in the jump. It was all stunt work, very little if not no CGI. Great bit of film. An E39 540i featured extensively in Gone In 60 Seconds. I'm trying to think of other films the E39 has starred in. Mr and Mrs Smith... they didn't last long.

[Cemesis]

I jumped one of my M5's over a bridge some time ago. It was a childish and silly thing to do but the car came off OK. I doubt it left the ground by that much.

I also managed to have the same car up on two wheels at the Nurburgring when the car I was overtaking moved into the side of me. I had to hit the kurb hard and although the car seemed OK, it turned out the top of the suspension turret was bent and needed some hammering to get it back.

The E39 is a very solid car...until it rusts itself to death.

[DrRazzle]

Would they be able to sell this in Japan under Kei rules? I think there are some other requirements apart from engine though...

[Spoof]

Brendan Lennon said:

benbackhouse said:

Great video!
I've owned a 540i for last 9 years and I've always wondered how much quicker/more focussed an M5 would be to drive. The 540 isn't exactly slow..

Dunno what 'real world' you're living it but a 540i wouldnt know which road an M5 went ! and it's not just the engine, brakes are a weak point, and apart from 400bhp easily overcoming and smoking the rear tyres at even the slightest provocation, you really have to be shifting to hit the limits of handling once your tyres are in anyway reasonable shape, it's the perfect balance between comfort & sporty driving, I've had mine over 180mph and leaving top of the line 1000cc superbikes in its wake, it only comes alive at +120mph and (in my experience) there isnt a subaru or evo than can stick with it well into 3 figures, supercar bargain of the century before BMW lost the plot with tiptronic/techo/rubbish-ology to keep the americans happy.

It's quick yes, but unfortunately in reality, some modern diesels would give one a hard time these days.

http://youtu.be/GVa-_beJgIQ

Ironically - the E60 M5 came in manual for the yanks.