Discussion
Hi all, I seem to have an urge for an m5, currently drive a holden which I love but miss my rs6 power. I have never owned a bmw before but love big fast saloons!
Can't decide on the e39 or e60 at the moment, would be low mileage for the 39 but high on the 60, (13k spend limit).
My rs6 was always going wrong, will I be in the same boat with either of these or are the m5's as good as I hear?
Any help/advice appreciated, not in the market yet but probably soon!
Can't decide on the e39 or e60 at the moment, would be low mileage for the 39 but high on the 60, (13k spend limit).
My rs6 was always going wrong, will I be in the same boat with either of these or are the m5's as good as I hear?
Any help/advice appreciated, not in the market yet but probably soon!
I ran an E39 M5 for just over 4 yrs and never really had any problems, it was 100% reliable and could be worked on by myself.
I've had the E60 M5 for nearly a year and no problems at all so far. I only covered about 18k in the E39 and about 2900 in the E60 so far so not much use.
I did spend a little more on the E60 so it's covered by the BMW Mondial warranty plus mileage is only 54k.
Find an E60 that's had a recent clutch, brakes. I would have thought for 13k it will be over 100k miles and 2005/2006.
From what I've read I would have thought an M5 would be slightly cheaper to repair/maintain than the V8 twin turbo RS6. A guy in my village had an 03 plate avant RS6 that cost him a fortune to keep on the road. I'm sure it had a leaking oil seal on one of the turbos and the engine had to come out to renew the seal !
Simon.
I've had the E60 M5 for nearly a year and no problems at all so far. I only covered about 18k in the E39 and about 2900 in the E60 so far so not much use.
I did spend a little more on the E60 so it's covered by the BMW Mondial warranty plus mileage is only 54k.
Find an E60 that's had a recent clutch, brakes. I would have thought for 13k it will be over 100k miles and 2005/2006.
From what I've read I would have thought an M5 would be slightly cheaper to repair/maintain than the V8 twin turbo RS6. A guy in my village had an 03 plate avant RS6 that cost him a fortune to keep on the road. I'm sure it had a leaking oil seal on one of the turbos and the engine had to come out to renew the seal !
Simon.
I've quite literally bought an E39 M5 with getting on for 137K miles and it drives like new, feels absolutely bomb proof and is amazing cruiser one minute, super saloon the next and it cost me less than half your budget. Just had it serviced and was told car was A1.
Personally, I would save your money, and spend no more than £7,500 on a well looked after E39 M5, even if the mileage is high. There is one on autotrader in lemans blue with 129K in scotland which looks in cracking condition. I enquired after it when I was looking to buy but the seller wouldn't negotiate into my budget. He is living in the states and is now open to sensible offers. No connection whatsoever to me - here is the link.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...
Personally, I would save your money, and spend no more than £7,500 on a well looked after E39 M5, even if the mileage is high. There is one on autotrader in lemans blue with 129K in scotland which looks in cracking condition. I enquired after it when I was looking to buy but the seller wouldn't negotiate into my budget. He is living in the states and is now open to sensible offers. No connection whatsoever to me - here is the link.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...
Patrick Bateman said:
For a £13k spend limit I'd look for the best e39 you can find or else it's bottom of the barrel e60.
This. At 13K you could be playing with fire with an E60 IMHO. They have issues with clutches, throttle actuators & big end shells. Brakes are expensive and tbh, anything that needs repairing on them isn't cheap.An E39, with it being older, is cheaper to repair as you can get used parts etc if you want.
Patrick Bateman said:
For a £13k spend limit I'd look for the best e39 you can find or else it's bottom of the barrel e60.
Would one even be able to find a really good condition, reasonably low-ish mileage (sub 80k say) E39 m5 any longer though even being willing to spend £13-14k? I've been looking off and on for one but apart from the insanely priced hexagon ones (which probably have further problems having been stored up for the past goodness knows how long) never managed to find a decent one...isaldiri said:
Would one even be able to find a really good condition, reasonably low-ish mileage (sub 80k say) E39 m5 any longer though even being willing to spend £13-14k?
Yes. Here's a couple I'm considering at the moment, having contemplated the same thing as you (or £13-14k on a younger and lower mileage Z4 M Roadster):http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...
Higher mileage, but owned for 9 years by a BMW specialist mechanic...
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...
Zwolf said:
Yes. Here's a couple I'm considering at the moment, having contemplated the same thing as you (or £13-14k on a younger and lower mileage Z4 M Roadster):
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...
Higher mileage, but owned for 9 years by a BMW specialist mechanic...
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...
thanks, i did spot the old colonel cars car. Quite tempting it has to be admitted especially as I would prefer a facelifted car.. hmm... http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...
Higher mileage, but owned for 9 years by a BMW specialist mechanic...
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/b...
isaldiri said:
Would one even be able to find a really good condition, reasonably low-ish mileage (sub 80k say) E39 m5 any longer though even being willing to spend £13-14k? I've been looking off and on for one but apart from the insanely priced hexagon ones (which probably have further problems having been stored up for the past goodness knows how long) never managed to find a decent one...
Personally I think only going for a lower mileage one is very short sighted. If ever there was a car that should be bought on condition and previous maintenance... Don't let a higher mileage and high number of previous owners put you off a good cae, always buy on condition.
These cars will sometimes go through owners quickly as some people don't realise how much they cost to run or don't want to learn how to drive an SMG box so move them on in a short space of time.
If you buy wisely, you may be able to pick up an E60 for the money you want.
I think you need to ask yourself which car you would ultimately want to own and if you decide it's the E60, then you'll more than likely keep lusting after the car you actually want after you've bought an E39.
Good luck in your search.
These cars will sometimes go through owners quickly as some people don't realise how much they cost to run or don't want to learn how to drive an SMG box so move them on in a short space of time.
If you buy wisely, you may be able to pick up an E60 for the money you want.
I think you need to ask yourself which car you would ultimately want to own and if you decide it's the E60, then you'll more than likely keep lusting after the car you actually want after you've bought an E39.
Good luck in your search.
Gruber said:
Give Glenn a ring at GMS Cars on the outskirts of Guildford. He's always got a couple of nice e39s in stock - he's well regarded and the prices aren't crazy.
have done so cheers. Patrick Bateman said:
Personally I think only going for a lower mileage one is very short sighted. If ever there was a car that should be bought on condition and previous maintenance...
Yeah usually I'd be the first to agree with you on this but in this case I guess I'm being a bit picky and paying a bit more so would try to find a low mileage one in top condition! 
When I picked up my Alpina at the weekend, 4 Star Classics had just taken into stock a really nice Le Mans blue e39 with black heritage leather. It was pre-facelift. Very, very tidy car. Apparently drives spot on. Can't remember the mileage but definitely sub-80k. Might be worth giving them a ring too.
Gruber said:
When I picked up my Alpina at the weekend, 4 Star Classics had just taken into stock a really nice Le Mans blue e39 with black heritage leather. It was pre-facelift. Very, very tidy car. Apparently drives spot on. Can't remember the mileage but definitely sub-80k. Might be worth giving them a ring too.
Firstly, which Alpina did you go for as I saw loads down there around a week ago? There was a lovely B10 Bi Turbo in red that caught my eye.I think the E39 you're talking about is out of this guys range as the whole car has been overhauled. The paintwork has been resprayed by BMW and there are literally no swirl marks, it looks awesome.
I have a feeling the owner spent in excess of £40k getting it to this standard......Unreal.
longfellow said:
Firstly, which Alpina did you go for as I saw loads down there around a week ago? There was a lovely B10 Bi Turbo in red that caught my eye.
I think the E39 you're talking about is out of this guys range as the whole car has been overhauled. The paintwork has been resprayed by BMW and there are literally no swirl marks, it looks awesome.
I have a feeling the owner spent in excess of £40k getting it to this standard......Unreal.
Mine's the Silverstone e39 B10 V8 in my profile.I think the E39 you're talking about is out of this guys range as the whole car has been overhauled. The paintwork has been resprayed by BMW and there are literally no swirl marks, it looks awesome.
I have a feeling the owner spent in excess of £40k getting it to this standard......Unreal.
That black car you saw is a different example and they've already sold it. As you say, it had had a crazy amount spent on it and was on their website for £17k.
As per my post, the new car they've got in is Le Mans blue.
Ultimately, the e60 is faster. And the top end of the rev range has to be experienced to be believed. It is a truly phenomenal engine.
But real world UK driving, you won't get that much chance to explore all that, so the difference shrinks.
And (playing to the stereotype) if you take into account the amount of time the e60 spends being fixed or being fuelled, the e39 might well be the more fulfilling ownership proposition.
But it this way... There's no way I'd own an e60 without a very robust warranty. And I'd be expecting continued depreciation. Whereas an e39 is like money in the bank (value wise) and I'd be happy to run one unwarranted with a couple of grand in a slush fund.
But real world UK driving, you won't get that much chance to explore all that, so the difference shrinks.
And (playing to the stereotype) if you take into account the amount of time the e60 spends being fixed or being fuelled, the e39 might well be the more fulfilling ownership proposition.
But it this way... There's no way I'd own an e60 without a very robust warranty. And I'd be expecting continued depreciation. Whereas an e39 is like money in the bank (value wise) and I'd be happy to run one unwarranted with a couple of grand in a slush fund.
Gassing Station | M Power | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff