E63 M6...any ownership experience here?

[Frances The Mute]

I’m have a dilemma. I’m looking to change my Vantage this year and I’m struggling to decide the next step. My head says 997/ooh Turbo Pork and my heart says M6.

As an old - school BMW nut, the M6 is appealing to me more - especially when it ticks a V10 box - but my knowledge of the newer cars is somewhat scant. I’ve read plenty of conflicting views (as you’d expect to find on the net) so I thought it would be better to hear it from the mouths of the owners.

I’m looking at 2006 onwards to benefit from SMG3 so what else should I consider...are the engines as prone to failure as what is suggested? What is the feasibility of getting warranty coverage on this age of car? Is it better to go for a higher mileage example? Are there any UK specialists who work on them etc etc etc

Edited by Frances The Mute on Friday 16th March 09:25

[Prinny]

You’ll probably get better feedback if you move the thread to the M section.

Regardless, I took the plunge back in November. No regrets yet, but all the stories about range are true. Averaging 14mpg over 2500 miles so far.

So long as you’ve a Full service history ( doesn’t have to be BMW, but does need to use BMW parts, and have all that documentation available) you should be able to get the BMW warranty (Mondial). I’m paying £114/mo for a 52k miles car. There’s a step up in cost at 60k which can be avoided if paying monthly, and the cover becomes more limited after 100k.

They’re special engines, no doubt, but bearing shells/vanos appear to be the weakness, these guys get good feedback should the worst happen.

http://www.cpcpe.com/

Other than that, the clutch/release bearing is a bugbear. I can drive all day as smooth as you like, and then at a set of lights, just tickling the throttle can result in a thump from the rear as the bearing doesn’t release smoothly - it happens about 1 in 100, so I’m not too concerned yet.

You can see a bit more about mine in my rr thread, (also look for James_B thread).

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

The majority of the info in the e60/61 thread linked above is relevant too (things like touring tailgates can be skipped, obviously....)

If you’re ever up around N Manchester, welcome to come and have a look, etc...

[Frances The Mute]

Cheers, Prinny. Some very helpful input there. Thanks for the offer of taking a look at it, too. I’m in the West Midlands so a bit of a stretch.

After all these years, I didn’t realise there was a specific M section...