Discussion
Im not advocating modifying it as such, but i cant help thinking slightly larger wheels would balance it out a bit, but they'd have to be bmw ones though. I'd possibly shadowline the guttering too, just to crisp it up a little.
Still cant knock it for that price though, such a lot of car for the money.
Still cant knock it for that price though, such a lot of car for the money.
tali1 said:
Max M4X WW said:
Budleigh said:
It's also got the sports kit and steering wheel, which is nice.
What is the sport kit on these then? I know they all come with sport suspension and the front lip anyway.This one does seem to have some skirts and a rear lip which I've not seen before though.
Nice looking car! Always wanted one to go alongside my E39.
Never seen a 540 with it before
Max M4X WW said:
tali1 said:
Max M4X WW said:
Budleigh said:
It's also got the sports kit and steering wheel, which is nice.
What is the sport kit on these then? I know they all come with sport suspension and the front lip anyway.This one does seem to have some skirts and a rear lip which I've not seen before though.
Nice looking car! Always wanted one to go alongside my E39.
Never seen a 540 with it before
Mine just had spoiler and steering wheel added from the factory.
BMW dealer will be able to supply the OP with a build sheet if he asks nicely. It's how I found out mine had an LSD
Edited by Six Fiend on Thursday 15th September 11:59
Edited by Six Fiend on Thursday 15th September 12:00
Y282 said:
Any under bonnet pics?
I'll try and get some up in the next day or so..Regarding comments about the bodykit etc, I was told by the last owner that the original owner had the kit fitted to the car early in its life.
A question for any fellow e34 owner..kickdown in 'e' mode, is it exactly the same as in 's' mode?
Erm no under bonnet pics yet sorry!!
Car is averaging 25mpg, which is a mix of driving though mainly A roads with a fair few roundabouts (ie. an excuse to use kickdown and hammer it).
Very comfortable ride which I don't want to ruin...which means that I won't be changing the wheels even though they look a bit small. The interior has no rattles at all and feels as you would imagine a German barge of this era to be. Rock solid.
Car seems vibrate slightly at around 30 - 35 mph. It sort of sounds 'choppy' if you have the windows down. I am wondering if this is wheel balance or tracking or something more sinister....
Only other thing is that the dash lights occasionally disappear and then come on again usually 5 seconds later.
Car is averaging 25mpg, which is a mix of driving though mainly A roads with a fair few roundabouts (ie. an excuse to use kickdown and hammer it).
Very comfortable ride which I don't want to ruin...which means that I won't be changing the wheels even though they look a bit small. The interior has no rattles at all and feels as you would imagine a German barge of this era to be. Rock solid.
Car seems vibrate slightly at around 30 - 35 mph. It sort of sounds 'choppy' if you have the windows down. I am wondering if this is wheel balance or tracking or something more sinister....
Only other thing is that the dash lights occasionally disappear and then come on again usually 5 seconds later.
Lovely.
The 540 has the ZF 5HP30 box. it has a few tricks up it's sleeve you've pobably discovered, such as pre-emptive down-shifting if you brake downhill (nice!) In 'S' mode it will also properly hold a gear if you accelerate, back-off, then pile it on again - such as winding country 'B' roads; it really works well there... i.e even if you wind it right up, back off to brake for a bend you'll still find yourself in the same gear at 5K+ rpm on exit - it's bloody great for an auto!
Anyway - other subtleties - there are about 9 learned modes it offers between 'laziest' and 'S', depending on how you drive it. Most don't last long, it defaults down towards 'lazy' if you leave it in 'A/'E'. This means 95%+ of the time on 'A' it will pull away from a stop in 2 not 1 - it's a refinement/economy thing, but blunts oof-the line stomp (if you want that, engage the naughty switch)
And - the actual answer to the question asked : most of the time kickdown will drop a gear and go. In S mode, the box will drop as many gears as it can - 2 ratios or more as single block change. So, say you peg it at 35mph in S mode on a B road to go around a caravan - it will try 1st, not 3rd... (mind the hedge on your way out)
I have a 540iA and love it still. 3yrs+ blog in my profile if you're interested.
strangehighways said:
A question for any fellow e34 owner..kickdown in 'e' mode, is it exactly the same as in 's' mode?
No, not quite.The 540 has the ZF 5HP30 box. it has a few tricks up it's sleeve you've pobably discovered, such as pre-emptive down-shifting if you brake downhill (nice!) In 'S' mode it will also properly hold a gear if you accelerate, back-off, then pile it on again - such as winding country 'B' roads; it really works well there... i.e even if you wind it right up, back off to brake for a bend you'll still find yourself in the same gear at 5K+ rpm on exit - it's bloody great for an auto!
Anyway - other subtleties - there are about 9 learned modes it offers between 'laziest' and 'S', depending on how you drive it. Most don't last long, it defaults down towards 'lazy' if you leave it in 'A/'E'. This means 95%+ of the time on 'A' it will pull away from a stop in 2 not 1 - it's a refinement/economy thing, but blunts oof-the line stomp (if you want that, engage the naughty switch)
And - the actual answer to the question asked : most of the time kickdown will drop a gear and go. In S mode, the box will drop as many gears as it can - 2 ratios or more as single block change. So, say you peg it at 35mph in S mode on a B road to go around a caravan - it will try 1st, not 3rd... (mind the hedge on your way out)
I have a 540iA and love it still. 3yrs+ blog in my profile if you're interested.
PS - re : choppy running / vibes
The usual supect for vibration is the front-end, upper control -arm bushing. Usually starts as the dread 'shimmy' at 55 or so. Replace the bushes with powerflex, job done forever more or less. Lots of information online.
Rough-running can be all sorts of things - but the usual suspects on the M60 motor is (1) leaky valve cover gaskets leading to oil seeping into the spark-plug wells on eithe rbank or (2), much rarer, intake vacuum leaks. If you can wield 10/13/15mm sockets and spare an hour or two, it's all easy DIY. Oh, and (3) clean out the PCV at the back of the inlet manifold and the idle control valve on the front with some squirty carb cleaner.
PS - this car has the easiest oil filter change you have ever tried
The usual supect for vibration is the front-end, upper control -arm bushing. Usually starts as the dread 'shimmy' at 55 or so. Replace the bushes with powerflex, job done forever more or less. Lots of information online.
Rough-running can be all sorts of things - but the usual suspects on the M60 motor is (1) leaky valve cover gaskets leading to oil seeping into the spark-plug wells on eithe rbank or (2), much rarer, intake vacuum leaks. If you can wield 10/13/15mm sockets and spare an hour or two, it's all easy DIY. Oh, and (3) clean out the PCV at the back of the inlet manifold and the idle control valve on the front with some squirty carb cleaner.
PS - this car has the easiest oil filter change you have ever tried
Fun Bus said:
They did a 3.0 V8 too didn't they?
ETA: Red piping on the seats? Individual spec?
According to the last owner (2nd owner), the 1st owners (a group of solicitors) had the interior redun with new leather seats and the red piping, which matches the paintwork. It looks a bit silly if you ask me because it does not go at all with the walnut dash. They also had the body kit fitted so I am guessing it came without one when new. The 2nd owner also said that it has a LSD.ETA: Red piping on the seats? Individual spec?
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