RE: Shed of the Week: BMW 528i (E39)

[Bear-n]

Bit rusty?

[BFleming]

kellyt said:

helix402 said:

Badge delete was a no cost option.

I always assumed anyone with the badge delete had a tragic 520 and was embarrassed. 528 is perfectly respectable.

Badge delete still is a no-cost option on new BMW's. The mentality behind it differs from country to country though. In the UK it was always typically the low end BMW's that had deleted badges, so no-one would know what they are. In Germany however, it's the high end cars that get badge-deleted, so no-one will know what they are. They're more into Q-cars than the British it would seem.
Back onto the E39, I moved to Munich in 1993, and would see these driving around in prototype form. No fancy camo wraps in those days, just lots of black tape. Unfortunately no cameraphones in those days either. When they were eventually launched I thought they were the best looking car on the market at that time, and think they've stood the test of time very well. I came close to buying E39's twice - my son was born in 2001, and the sheer amound of stuff you allegedly need to bring with you for a baby was mind-blowing, so the Astra was sold, and the shortlist of cars to go & see was a 320i touring, 520i saloon and 528i saloon (all manual, 1996ish). The 320i was bought, mostly as it was a good one. The second one considered was a 2002 530i manual sport in red about 12 years ago, but I went for a 330i instead (which served me very well, despite a massive thirst for oil). I skipped the E60 generation, although I did drive a colleague's 2008 LCI 530d auto sport & thought it a marvellous car.
Vanos rebuilds are easy - I've done 2 (328i with M52TUB28 and 330i with M54B30).
With both the E39 and E60, I somehow always thought of them as overpriced when a couple of years old - or rather 'not depreciating quickly enough to my liking'. This week's SOTW is a fine choice - to the point where I strongly agree with the previous utterance of SOTY.

Edited by BFleming on Friday 30th November 12:35

[KillianB4]

mrbarnett said:

So far, everyone seems to be in agreement that this is one of those increasingly rare machines that is impossible not like / admire / love.

I am as much in awe of this machine as the next person but cumm'on, this is PH; where's the contrary opinion? Someone please come along and slag it off, just to restore normality.

Don't buy it, all 90s BMWs are kettles!

There, I called it out for overheating. Does that satisfy you?

[Triumph Man]

helix402 said:

Triumph Man said:

Would that fuel the rumours that these engines are sometimes (a lot of the time) more powerful than the manufacturer's data? The 530i manual with 230bhp was supposed to do 0-60 in 7.1 seconds so the 528i surely must have been running more than 193 bhp

The featured car has the M52tu B28. Power is restricted to meet German tax laws of the era I believe. The main restriction is the inlet manifold. You can fit the manifold from an M54 B30 to gain more power. Though you need an adaptor plate to fit the throttle body. These are available from Bimmertune. No remap is needed though you’d probably get more power if you did have one. You also need the B30 DISA valve.

Yeah I think you're right on the bhp - it probably translates into round PS numbers but Audi also had a 2.8 engine strangely putting out 193 bhp. I would imagine Mercedes did as well?

[pSyCoSiS]

Triumph Man said:

helix402 said:

Triumph Man said:

Would that fuel the rumours that these engines are sometimes (a lot of the time) more powerful than the manufacturer's data? The 530i manual with 230bhp was supposed to do 0-60 in 7.1 seconds so the 528i surely must have been running more than 193 bhp

The featured car has the M52tu B28. Power is restricted to meet German tax laws of the era I believe. The main restriction is the inlet manifold. You can fit the manifold from an M54 B30 to gain more power. Though you need an adaptor plate to fit the throttle body. These are available from Bimmertune. No remap is needed though you’d probably get more power if you did have one. You also need the B30 DISA valve.

Yeah I think you're right on the bhp - it probably translates into round PS numbers but Audi also had a 2.8 engine strangely putting out 193 bhp. I would imagine Mercedes did as well?

Yes, at the time Mercedes also had a 193 bhp 2.8 litre engine in their C, E, S and SL class models (as well as the V280).

[nicfaz]

kellyt said:

helix402 said:

Badge delete was a no cost option.

I always assumed anyone with the badge delete had a tragic 520 and was embarrassed. 528 is perfectly respectable.

Apparently different countries have a different cultural approach to debadging. Here in the UK it tends to be people who bought the 520i Msport want to make out that it's better than that, in Germany it tends to be the exec who bought the 550i who doesn't want to be seen as too profligate and anti-environment.

[edited to say sorry to BFleming who beat me to it!]

[BFleming]

nicfaz said:

[edited to say sorry to BFleming who beat me to it!]

It's not a competition but nice to know it's more recognised than I thought.

Edited by BFleming on Friday 30th November 10:30

[Baddie]

I might be a mild dissenter.

Had a 2002 530i Sport. Great car, apart from I had to be nearly falling off the road to feel like I was approaching it’s limit, and I really disliked the throttle pedal’s calibration, 90% load at 50% travel (to make it feel “sporty”) made it difficult to modulate the very light pedal over undulations and when going for it.

I’ve had two E34’s, M5’s admittedly, and much preferred the more analogue steering, handling and accelerator calibration. It was ultimately less capable, but I enjoyed brisk road driving more in the E34 more than the E39. The E34’s also broke away more progressively than any Z-axle BM I’ve driven, depsite semi-trailing arms at the back. No stability or traction control in the E34, but even with 340 hp, neither were needed whatever the weather.

Still, the E39 is one of the last BM’s you can probably still run into the ground without major electronic bork factor. Major components are durable, and it won’t blow a turbo after 50k miles. It also felt much more structurally solid than the E34, was quieter and more stable at legal speeds. When permitted, the E39 would cruise at 85. Which was dull, so nudge the cruise control gradually upwards and at about 110 it felt “right”.

And yes, 193 BHP was probably conservative for domestic market tax reasons, even with the restrictive manifold. Though I suspect the 530 wasn’t quicker off the line than the 528 due to longer gearing in chase of fuel efficiency.

[SD_1]

Bear-n said:

Bit rusty?

Doesn't look that bad really, although I had an early E46 so maybe my standards are lower
FWIW I had the jacking points welded on my E46 and got change from £200, I can't imagine it is a difficult job on these if it fails an MOT on them. The arches themselves look ok.

[Baddie]

Triumph Man said:

helix402 said:

Triumph Man said:

Would that fuel the rumours that these engines are sometimes (a lot of the time) more powerful than the manufacturer's data? The 530i manual with 230bhp was supposed to do 0-60 in 7.1 seconds so the 528i surely must have been running more than 193 bhp

The featured car has the M52tu B28. Power is restricted to meet German tax laws of the era I believe. The main restriction is the inlet manifold. You can fit the manifold from an M54 B30 to gain more power. Though you need an adaptor plate to fit the throttle body. These are available from Bimmertune. No remap is needed though you’d probably get more power if you did have one. You also need the B30 DISA valve.

Yeah I think you're right on the bhp - it probably translates into round PS numbers but Audi also had a 2.8 engine strangely putting out 193 bhp. I would imagine Mercedes did as well?

The 2.3 Kompressor 4 pot put out “193 BHP”

[rallycross]

Bear-n said:

Bit rusty?

]

Its 18 years old of course its going to have some bits like that.

[anonymous-user]

kellyt said:

I always assumed anyone with the badge delete had a tragic 520 and was embarrassed. 528 is perfectly respectable.

I read a Doug DeMuro article where he mentions debadging in Europe. He said that people debadge their 114i so that people might think they have a 116i

It's certainly very rare that I see a car with a decent engine debadged, but it's so rare to see a proper engine in any modern car it cheers me up to see or hear one with or without badges.

Mind you I was behind a new Mercedes this morning that had a clear 2.5 feet of badges on the back. It was one of the estates that looks like a slug in black with tinted glass. It put me in mind of the tragic rep special Cavaliers that said "automatic" and "16 valve" and "injection" and "abs" on the back. Surprised Mercedes didn't find room to tell me it had three 12V sockets and a USB port for the back seats too. I think I'd have to order something like that without the idiotic badges.

As for the shed, what can you say about the E39 that hasn't been said before? Peak saloon car.

[Limpet]

SD_1 said:

Bear-n said:

Bit rusty?

Doesn't look that bad really, although I had an early E46 so maybe my standards are lower
FWIW I had the jacking points welded on my E46 and got change from £200, I can't imagine it is a difficult job on these if it fails an MOT on them. The arches themselves look ok.

Had a look at these on Autotrader recently. Most have visible grot where the sill meets the rear arch, and a lot have bubbling mid-panel on the rear wings as well. Sills are usually relatively straightforward to repair or replace on most cars, as long as the rust hasn't eaten too much else away.

A reminder, I suppose, that the oldest of these are well into their 20s now.

[SD_1]

dme123 said:

It's certainly very rare that I see a car with a decent engine debadged, but it's so rare to see a proper engine in any modern car it cheers me up to see or hear one with or without badges.

I hadn't really thought about that until recently but I think there is a lot of truth in that. My A4 3.0 TDI used to belong to my Dad for the past 10 years and is debadged, and it was only when he was talking about his new car with his mate that his friend realised the old Audi was a V6! He thought it was a 2 litre all that time

[1974foggy]

Thats nice- and that colour was/is sought after. The 2.8 was always thought of by many as one of the best all round engines from BMW (performance/economy/reliability ratio). Still looks so good and they are built incredibly well, and I miss mine as you can tell! If i had space id be tempted.

[1974foggy]

Bear-n said:

Bit rusty?

Looks like its from the damage though, sill looks bent probably from a careless jack/ramp.

[80quattro]

This is my 530i SE manual with grey leather, 17" staggered wheels, sunroof, sports seats, CD changer and sports suspension. I paid £2000 for it 2 years ago and have done 20k miles in it. The 3.0 does suffer quite heavy oil consumption, other than that, its been a fabulous car. I've fitted some 18"s since, just to sharpen up the handling and fill the arches a little more.

[Jon_S_Rally]

Another voice of descent here, sorry.

As soon as I saw this article, I knew it was going to be people tripping over themselves to tell the world that it's the best shed, nay, the best car ever conceived. I've driven an E39. It's a nice enough car; fairly handsome (in facelift M-Sport form at least) but, other than that, I am just left feeling a bit "meh" by it. The subsequent models appeal to me far more.

Weirdly, if you read the list of potential faults at the end of the article, I can't help but think that, if this car had any other badge on it, a lot of people would be saying "wouldn't touch it with a barge pole". A car with suspension known to disintegrate, electric faults and the ability to rust with the best of them does make me wonder where the "best saloon car ever" thing comes from.

Don't get me wrong, it's a nice enough car, but I think people do get a bit over-excited about them. I'm obviously missing something.

[crofty1984]

kellyt said:

Yes, yes, yes!!!

After some unappealing (to me) sheds, finally something I definitely like. Nice spot, a car worth caring about. A good drive and seats that still rate as comfortable now. Everyone that I've spoken to that had one of these regretted selling theirs. That kind of tells you a lot.

I had a 530 and went though 6 countries in 12 hours. It was a great car. I'm trying to think of a justification for buying this shed. It looks great.

[Triumph Man]

Jon_S_Rally said:

Another voice of descent here, sorry.

As soon as I saw this article, I knew it was going to be people tripping over themselves to tell the world that it's the best shed, nay, the best car ever conceived. I've driven an E39. It's a nice enough car; fairly handsome (in facelift M-Sport form at least) but, other than that, I am just left feeling a bit "meh" by it. The subsequent models appeal to me far more.

Weirdly, if you read the list of potential faults at the end of the article, I can't help but think that, if this car had any other badge on it, a lot of people would be saying "wouldn't touch it with a barge pole". A car with suspension known to disintegrate, electric faults and the ability to rust with the best of them does make me wonder where the "best saloon car ever" thing comes from.

Don't get me wrong, it's a nice enough car, but I think people do get a bit over-excited about them. I'm obviously missing something.

I get your point, but apart from the rust I've found most of it easy enough (well relatively) to fix. I've done the front suspension myself, brakes, thermostat, and subsequent cooling system bleeding. Other jobs have been done by a garage, but mostly due to time (although some rear bushes did need a special tool). Although they can be fragile, they aren't beyond the wit of man to fix.

And show me an 17 year old (as my E39 is now) Ford or something that doesn't have issues.