2002 E39 530i Touring - Japanese import

[d_a_n1979]

As per the BMW General thread:

Up to Glasgow on Saturday 2nd March to buy this

Decided that diesel and I do not get on; so the land-barge (E65 730D) went Friday 1st March and this was collected Saturday

These are pics from the seller; it's covered just over 85k miles and drives faultlessly... It's already had plenty of work to it (autobox oil and filter, suspension arms, brakes etc), just needs my touch














It's been up on my pals ramps today for a good look over underneath, it's spotless with no rust anywhere.

The oil filter housing gasket is leaking as they normally do, so that along with a new stat, water pump and main belts have been ordered today, to be fitted next Tuesday

Also have replacement Lunex 6000k xenon bulbs, Osram Cool Blue H7 main beam bulbs and 10w CREE LED halo lights to fit, alongside a K&N air filter, Hella carbon pollen filters and a full oil & filter change (TripleQX 5W40 & Mann filter courtesy of Carparts4less). I ran this oil & Mann filters in my previous E39s and E38 and never had any issues with it, more so as I'll change the oil 2/3 times a year as I do limited mileage

The interior needs a thorough clean (been lashing it down here since Saturday) and then new car mats and boot liner can be fitted, along with interior LED bulbs etc

Will update as I go along

Edited by d_a_n1979 on Wednesday 21st April 09:10

Edited by d_a_n1979 on Wednesday 9th March 07:58

[d_a_n1979]

martin mrt said:

I’m Sure I seen this for sale last week somewhere, at a handsome price too, but the condition looks to reflect the price.

Nice purchase

You might have done; I certainly didn't pay anywhere near the asking. It was bit of a cheeky price

[d_a_n1979]

Its immaculate underneath, not an ounce of rust... Did find the oil filter housing gasket leaking though, so that’s been ordered along with a new stat, water pump, coolant, the 2 main belts etc, oil and filter ordered also & booked in, next Tuesday, to have it all fitted 8)

Will get more pics up as things progress

[d_a_n1979]

spreadsheet monkey said:

Nice car OP, looks great.

I always keep an eye on the market for Jag XK8s (which are shockers for rust) and I see quite a few Japanese imports advertised. The lack of rust is appealing as most of Japan doesn’t use salt on its roads.

Are there any obvious spec or power differences between Jap and Euro spec E39s?

Specs can be different; for instance this is the alcantara interior, but other than that it's fairly standard

Lots of stupid Japanese wiring/aerials etc, so they'll all get snipped and removed

No parking sensors too, which I find odd, more so on a large car like this, so that's going to get looked into as well!

Re the rust; every import I've had have been rustless; so it's a great way to get an older car that's not falling to pieces etc

[d_a_n1979]

A fair bit of work done to the car so far; it'll be 2 weeks into ownership tomorrow, so I've not delayed in getting some essentials done

It's had, so far: new front tyres (Nexen N'Fera SU1s for now, as I'll more than likely be moving up to either OEM 18" alloys (Style 37s possibly) or aftermarket alloys (probably 19s via the likes of BMAutosport, just need to decide on which); a cooling system overhaul (stat, pump, coolant flush & refill), oil filter & oil change (ECPs Tripe QX 5W40 for now; it'll get another change soon too, using this one as a flush, so to speak), oil filter housing gasket replacement (explains the leak all down that side of the block and coating the underneath too), heater valve replacement (one side stuck open), new interior mats and boot liner, new genuine Hella headlights and OEM xenon retrofit (the OEM Hella xenons the car came with were in good condition but the adjusters were in pieces and I've not got the skill nor patience to replace these myself).

It's going to get OEM Mtec front suspension fitted sometime later next week; currently it's got OEM dampers but the springs look aftermarket and the front end is a touch bouncy, so they need swapping out ASAP really. Doesn't help both dampers are weeping slightly and the bump stops have more or less disintegrated!

I'm going to get it into a local window tinting company, get the silly dark tints off and some lighter tints fitted. They make the interior very dark and I'm not keen at all.

I've not had chance to give it my level of wash and detail; it's been bloody horrible here weather wise, so as soon as I get chance, I'll get the engine bay thoroughly cleaned and detailed and then give the whole car a deep clean and wax and get some more pictures up

[d_a_n1979]

Finally got round to actually washing the car myself; plus a full bottom inside (it needed it)


It's been thoroughly cleaned inside and out and given a good coating of wax too; wheels cleaned as best as I can, they're presentable for now, until I source their replacements  


A few shots of the alcantara interior too; it's a lovely place to be (until I wear my leaking Rohan gilet and there are feathers everywhere and they're a sod to hoover up)  






























It's in with BMW tomorrow for an airbag recall.

Then it's in for more suspension work next week (full front OEM Sachs shocks; OEM BMW Mtec springs or Eibach Pro-kit springs (haven't decided which yet), new front & rear top mounts, new front drop-links; an Mtec 82mm stud conversion and 15mm hubcentric spacers and then it'll get booked in for it's MOT

[d_a_n1979]

80quattro said:

That's a very clean E39. Best engine as well, but I would be biased. I upgraded my 17" Style 32's to 18" Style 37's, that along with lower profile tyres, made a significant handling improvement.

Yeah, my 3rd 530i now, previous 2 were saloons and before that, an E38 728i... The straight 6 is a love engine and the E39 530i handles the best too IMO, proper steering and not a box.

I’m looking for some Style 37s but they’re always stupidly priced unfortunately. Not desperate for them though, they’re not my favourite alloy wheel.

I may end up going aftermarket with alloys, quite fancy a set of BBS CH-Rs but need to justify their price. Other than that, I’ll keep my eyes on what BMAutosport have on their website etc

The E39s do handle the best on 18s, but this is a waft bus & the 17s give it a very smooth ride

[d_a_n1979]

Sf_Manta said:

Rather minty fresh that.

I love that interior , is it Alacantia? Gah, can't spell it.

Thanks & yes, it’s alcantara

[d_a_n1979]

Mr Tidy said:

Nice car, but a bit too lardy for my liking.

And I much prefer heated leather to Alcantara!

Thankfully; it's not your car

I wanted Alcantara for a change, so that's one of the main reasons I bought it... And if you knew the size of me (I like picking up heavy rocks for a hobby), the car suits me to a tee!

[d_a_n1979]

New suspension up front today (Sachs dampers & OEM BMW Mtec springs with OEM BMW rubber seats and top-mount cups & Sachs bump-stop kit), new Meyle top mounts, new Meyle HD drop links also



Rear Febi top mounts fitted, but replacement dampers needed, so Sachs parts ordered this afternoon too  


Also fitted the Mteconline 82mm stud conversion kit and have fitted 5mm hubcentric shims for now until I get my replacement alloys on



































The car currently is sitting higher at the front; but the dampers were shot, it'll settle soon enough. Be good to get the rear end refreshed too  

[d_a_n1979]

Full clean MOT today

New Sachs rear shocks to fit sometime this week & hopefully my replacement alloys will land with me too

Will update with pictures when I can

[d_a_n1979]

Front suspension fettled today and new rear Sachs dampers fitted along with new bump stops and dust covers:













Car needs to settle onto the suspension a bit more; but it'll do that in its own time. Car drives and handles superbly though now with all new OEM/Sachs Mtec suspension

[d_a_n1979]

Sf_Manta said:

Must feel night and day different now.

I remember when i first updated to the KW suspension on my E46... what a difference that did

Top work

It drives really well, that fresh suspension feeling haha Just need a quick steering tweak next week as the steering wheel is slightly off, so my pal will sort that for me.

I’m trying to stay OEM with this E39 for a change, I did consider coilovers, but that may be an idea further down the line, mainly as it’s the front 2 that you get and then lower the rear via INPA etc. This is my first ever touring, so it’s a learning curve as well.

I’ve a replacement stereo to decide on yet and other bits I want to do to it as well, so the new OEM spec Mtec suspension will see me through nicely.

[d_a_n1979]

aaron_2000 said:

The only downside for me with Jap imports is they're usually auto, but for this one I could live with that. What a great buy. I'd probably go JDM if I was looking for one, they're getting too high mileage and rare here now. I won't ask what you paid, but did you have much change from £5k if any at all?

For me I’ll only go auto, just not interested in pudding sticks anymore, like to have easy driving and that waftability that you get with a decent auto

Mines only covered just over 85k miles, so they’re out there, probably best to speak to someone who imports cars and get them to find the spec you want.

Your guesstimated price isn’t far off at all, but I was happy to pay that due to its condition and rarity in this country. With the work I’ve done to the car, I’d get my money back and more on top, if I were to sell... But I’m not

[d_a_n1979]

andy43 said:

Bargain at that (approximate) price. The lack of rust on jap cars is a real shock when you get underneath them.
I had an E91 with the same seat materials - chose that car partly because of the Alcantara which I first experienced in a silver E39 Touring funnily enough.
Looks really tidy and you're really getting stuck into the running repairs. Like

Thanks; yes, the alcantara swung it a lot for me. don't get me wrong, I loved the black leather and heated seats in a previous slate green 530i; but the alcantara doesn't need it (but I've got a decent heated seat cover, just incase)

It's also nice to be able to hoover the interior clean and not have to worry about leather cleaning & conditioning too!

This cars spotless underneath; not an ounce of rust; amazing really. Another reason why I was happy to pay more. Plus it'd had all the suspension arms replaced (not a cheap job), so all I've done is refresh the suspension & drop links and fitted new headlights as they were sorely needed!

[d_a_n1979]

Court_S said:

That’s lovely. The E39 has aged very very well indeed.

Thanks; fully agree.

I do like the E39; it's roomier inside too compared to my father in laws F10 530D! That feels quite cramped in comparison

[d_a_n1979]

New boots fitted

Before:





After:





They’re OEM Style 37s from an E38, front ones are 8x18 with an offset of 13, and the rears are 9.5x18 with an offset of 25. They’ve been bored out to fit an E39 as well, the rears are fitted with 5mm hubcentric shims to get them sitting more or less flush. Final offsets are 8 up front and 20 on the rear.

They’re more or less a square set up with their offsets. Great for handling & a much better 'turn in' feel

It's still riding a touch high with the new suspension but I'm sure it'll settle soon enough.

It rides brilliantly though; but not driven it yet on the 18s, so that'll make a difference I'm sure  ;)

Edited by d_a_n1979 on Sunday 7th April 19:18

Edited by d_a_n1979 on Sunday 7th April 19:20

Edited by d_a_n1979 on Monday 30th November 22:13

[d_a_n1979]

Brake calipers wire brushed & painted in Hammerite satin silver... No more rusty eyesores behind the shiny alloys!

[d_a_n1979]

Engine bay detailed today; haven't touched it since I bought the car. It needed a good hoover first haha

DISA valve repaired with the X8R kit, the o-ring that should have been on the DISA when I removed it was non-existent So glad I did this job today, took me about 30mins all in including removing it and then trying to get the spindle apart; it was seized solid, so ended up gently hammering it out

Also fitted a Z3 3.0 intake boot section to replace the resonator section that comes on the E39s; sounds a bit throatier now

Cars had a quick snow foam, wash, rinse and towel dry too:

[d_a_n1979]

MRobbins1987 said:

That's lovely. I used Steve at Grinspeed to set up and fit the suspension on my EP3, certainly knows his stuff.

Cheers

Aye, the angry little man knows his stuff