rocking horse sh*t or e39 540i manual
Discussion
Olas said:
ge3t a box and fly from a 535i - they bolt straight up. take the prop whilst you're there. half a day to swap them over and you're done. maybe a full day if tyou want to put an LSD in at the same time (assuming you know how to preload and check engagement)
That would be far beyond my skills sadly but if the money's there i'd love to do it Olas said:
ge3t a box and fly from a 535i - they bolt straight up. take the prop whilst you're there. half a day to swap them over and you're done. maybe a full day if tyou want to put an LSD in at the same time (assuming you know how to preload and check engagement)
You do talk absolute nonsense. Is it half term where you are? TRW11 said:
That would be far beyond my skills sadly but if the money's there i'd love to do it
Back on reality street:The 540i box - a Getrag 420 - is the six speed unit and is strong enough for the 4.4 M62. The ZF 320 five speed in the 535i is borderline on the 3.5 V8 and not strong enough for the 4.4. It will just break. Flywheels are different and the 535i prop won't fit the 540i diff. That's because the 540i has the monster 210 diff and the 535i has the smaller 188.
A manual conversion takes about 2 days taking into account dismantling, cleaning up used parts, recoding the instrument cluster, fitting manual pedals, making/fitting brackets for the gearshift and clutch hose and fitting/bleeding clutch hydraulics etc.
It's big job. It only takes one rusted/seized exhaust downpipe nut to add an hour or two. Really, the 5HP automatic box was far better suited to this heavy old car but a manual one has an appeal.
One for sale over here in NI:
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C962484
Nothing to do with me I should add, just seen it on C&C.
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C962484
Nothing to do with me I should add, just seen it on C&C.
stevep944 said:
One for sale over here in NI:
https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C962484
Nothing to do with me I should add, just seen it on C&C.
185,000 miles though https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C962484
Nothing to do with me I should add, just seen it on C&C.
Dealer has had that for sale for maybe a year now.
MOT expired Feb 19.
I've got one...
Bought it from a guy on the Bargain Barge thread 8 years ago and have put 60k on it since. Trying to just use it for weekends now, as the uprated clutch is a pain in traffic.
It looks like any other 1997 Touring, but the others don't sound like this.
Bought it from a guy on the Bargain Barge thread 8 years ago and have put 60k on it since. Trying to just use it for weekends now, as the uprated clutch is a pain in traffic.
It looks like any other 1997 Touring, but the others don't sound like this.
Olas said:
ge3t a box and fly from a 535i - they bolt straight up. take the prop whilst you're there. half a day to swap them over and you're done. maybe a full day if tyou want to put an LSD in at the same time (assuming you know how to preload and check engagement)
Absolute load of rubbish - The 535i 5-speed box a small-case one not rated for the 4.4's torque and you would need a custom prop or a medium-case diff as well at which point you've just retrofitted a massively compromised drivetrain into your car. Beyond that manual converting an E39 is not as easy as just fitting the gearbox - the ECUs dont particularly like it and its a far more involved job than it is on an E34. A 6-speed Getrag box will set you back the best part of £1500 these days.There are a few manual 540i tourings around but they are few and far between unfortunately. A competent garage would be able to manual swap one for you if you lack the facilities but I would expect to be spending around 4k all in for the job (after spending a while sourcing parts) at which point its not really worth it imo.
Also what I will say, having had a manual 540i E34 before, an auto 740i E38, two auto E39 tourings and currently a manual 530i E39 saloon - the manual is nice (and I love manuals) but the auto in the E39s and E38s really is a joy to use and does suit the V8 as well. It has a different character but still enjoyable to use and is surprisingly satisfying to use when pushing on. I say this as someone who generally hates autos and loves curio manual variants of cars!
Edited by Gooly on Tuesday 10th March 12:29
Touring442 said:
Olas said:
ge3t a box and fly from a 535i - they bolt straight up. take the prop whilst you're there. half a day to swap them over and you're done. maybe a full day if tyou want to put an LSD in at the same time (assuming you know how to preload and check engagement)
You do talk absolute nonsense. Is it half term where you are? 
...... Got Shut Down 
Zener said:
Touring442 said:
Olas said:
ge3t a box and fly from a 535i - they bolt straight up. take the prop whilst you're there. half a day to swap them over and you're done. maybe a full day if tyou want to put an LSD in at the same time (assuming you know how to preload and check engagement)
You do talk absolute nonsense. Is it half term where you are? ...... Got Shut Down 
He also had some great advice here: https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&... , about how to deal with cars obstructing a road outside a school at drop off and pick up times:
Olas said:
FIRST - Paint double yellow lines on both sides of the road, along the entire length of the road in question
SECOND - Arrange for pedestrians to stand on the pedestrian footpath at intervals less than the length of the cars concerned so cars cannot park on the footpath
THIRD - Make false 999 calls giving the address of the school
watch how quickly the LA take action
Great advice: Illegally paint double yellow lines on a street, and make a fake 999 call! SECOND - Arrange for pedestrians to stand on the pedestrian footpath at intervals less than the length of the cars concerned so cars cannot park on the footpath
THIRD - Make false 999 calls giving the address of the school
watch how quickly the LA take action
Care in the community has a lot to answer for!
TRW11 said:
Pure pipeline dreaming here but are there any manuals around? I know there's an estate on pistonheads but they're asking m5 money. Does anyone on here have one? Would love to see pictures if so.....
E39 540i SE manual has just come up for sale on the BMW E39 Buy/Sell page on Facebook FYII use my 98 540i manual as a daily driver. It’s been in the family for 21 years and mine for 4. When it’s working properly it is a great car especially as a long distance mile muncher. I drove it from Bergerac to home in a day and arrived home having thoroughly enjoyed myself. People think it’s just a mangy old bimmer but it’s still fast by modern standards.
I don’t do my own repairs and like any 22 year old car they need money spending on them. And it will simultaneously inconvenience you and bite you financially. They rust (£1100 fix), cooling systems need fettling and unique bits are expensive (hvacs unit was £295 alone), the suspension rebuilds have been 4 figures each time, the headlights are pants compared to modern led systems.
If you’re willing to spend money and time on repairs and finding bits to look after it then good luck. If you expect to run one on a shoestring then look for something more modern.
I don’t do my own repairs and like any 22 year old car they need money spending on them. And it will simultaneously inconvenience you and bite you financially. They rust (£1100 fix), cooling systems need fettling and unique bits are expensive (hvacs unit was £295 alone), the suspension rebuilds have been 4 figures each time, the headlights are pants compared to modern led systems.
If you’re willing to spend money and time on repairs and finding bits to look after it then good luck. If you expect to run one on a shoestring then look for something more modern.
jamesb2001 said:
I use my 98 540i manual as a daily driver. It’s been in the family for 21 years and mine for 4. When it’s working properly it is a great car especially as a long distance mile muncher. I drove it from Bergerac to home in a day and arrived home having thoroughly enjoyed myself. People think it’s just a mangy old bimmer but it’s still fast by modern standards.
I don’t do my own repairs and like any 22 year old car they need money spending on them. And it will simultaneously inconvenience you and bite you financially. They rust (£1100 fix), cooling systems need fettling and unique bits are expensive (hvacs unit was £295 alone), the suspension rebuilds have been 4 figures each time, the headlights are pants compared to modern led systems.
If you’re willing to spend money and time on repairs and finding bits to look after it then good luck. If you expect to run one on a shoestring then look for something more modern.
Sounds like a typical E39 TBH, more so now at this age. I6s and V8s (oil burners too); they all have their quirks/niggles but usually can be ironed out easy enough with quite a few £££ spent here & there.I don’t do my own repairs and like any 22 year old car they need money spending on them. And it will simultaneously inconvenience you and bite you financially. They rust (£1100 fix), cooling systems need fettling and unique bits are expensive (hvacs unit was £295 alone), the suspension rebuilds have been 4 figures each time, the headlights are pants compared to modern led systems.
If you’re willing to spend money and time on repairs and finding bits to look after it then good luck. If you expect to run one on a shoestring then look for something more modern.
When you say suspension rebuilds have been 4 figure sums each time? Is that just shocks/springs/top mounts; or do you include the bushes/links/arms in that too?
Neither should be 4 figures really; unless there's a lot of labour cost in there too (or unless you've gone for all OEM BMW parts in which case yes, that really adds up quickly)!
Decent makes such as Lemforder, Meyle HD, Febi Bilstein, Moog et all are all very good and I'd personally use them everytime over OEM BMW (bar the front top mounts TBH & any necessary sensors (MAF, cam/crank/SLS etc)
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