150k mile E39 M5... daily

[5 In a Row]

d_a_n1979 said:

My pals M5 is Titansilber and he's gone with a bright silver / sparkle lacquer finish on his Style 65s and they look absolutely superb...

He should have it back from its rebuild in the next 3-4 weeks (full rebuild ground up, £12k in the engine alone)! Its only done 42k but it'd been sat for 5 years in a not very weather proof lean-to and it rusted badly on the rear valance, front jacking points and rear sill edges

The lad who did his wheels (somewhere in Germany as that's where he's based (UK E39, M5 though) did all 4 in different variations of shadow chrome and none of them 'wowed'; he re-did 2 in the Ferric Grey (55 and 58 i think they are) and they looked much better and then did one of the rears in bright silver with sparkle lacquer and that won... Just stand the details of the wheels out so much better

I'd like to see that.
Mine is Le Mans Blue so I reckon the silver would look even better against that.

[d_a_n1979]

5 In a Row said:

d_a_n1979 said:

My pals M5 is Titansilber and he's gone with a bright silver / sparkle lacquer finish on his Style 65s and they look absolutely superb...

He should have it back from its rebuild in the next 3-4 weeks (full rebuild ground up, £12k in the engine alone)! Its only done 42k but it'd been sat for 5 years in a not very weather proof lean-to and it rusted badly on the rear valance, front jacking points and rear sill edges

The lad who did his wheels (somewhere in Germany as that's where he's based (UK E39, M5 though) did all 4 in different variations of shadow chrome and none of them 'wowed'; he re-did 2 in the Ferric Grey (55 and 58 i think they are) and they looked much better and then did one of the rears in bright silver with sparkle lacquer and that won... Just stand the details of the wheels out so much better

I'd like to see that.
Mine is Le Mans Blue so I reckon the silver would look even better against that.

My pals being a knob and not sending any pics until it's fully back together

He'll trailer all the parts/wheels etc separately back from his digs in Germany; the car itself (inc engine) is due back next week to his Dads I think

It'll be a superb car once it's back together; he's already had some silly (as in a lot of £££) offers for it with it being so low miles and now being fully rebuilt with all new OEM parts...

Not sure if he'll keep it & enjoy it or sell it to make a bloody good profit and then look to buy a new toy...!

Hope he keeps it TBH; there's no cars these days built like the M5!

[RichE60]

Amazing work and commitment. The car is fantastic, well done.

I went on the same journey with a 2000 silverstone blue 2018-2021. You probably know this stuff, but here are a few things I learned in that period.

- You can use 7 series catalytic converters
- You can remove secondary air assembly and code out the related EML
- polybushing all engine, suspension and transmission bushes with yellow power flex doesn't ruin the ride
- Heating matrix resistor can cause parasitic battery drain as can traffic module and amp
- ABS Module is 1800 new if you cant refurb it
- Silicone lube/gummi pflegdesift (no thats not a typo!) and velcro tape are good for all the rattles and seals
- Gtechnique for the plastic trim bits to make them black again for a bit longer
- Pete in the UK E39 Facebook Group for headlight restorations and upgrades
- If you want an M5 Boot Mat - US Facebook M5 group called (Shady) who does all sorts of upgrades
- Spit and Polish can do the correct shadow chrome effect on the wheels
- M539 Restorations on YouTube has an M5 resto project (and loads of others)
- Rotrip in Alton are a friendly E39 breakers

Maybe some of those might be useful for you or anyone doing the same. I really enjoyed my car and drove it every day.

[therusterman]

d_a_n1979 said:

Isn't there a wheel specialist that everyone who wants the correct colour; sends their wheels too?

Remember it being mentioned a few times on the previous 5 forums; but they're dead in the water now, so can't find who that said company was

Lepsons possibly?

[seiben]

RichE60 said:

Amazing work and commitment. The car is fantastic, well done.

I went on the same journey with a 2000 silverstone blue 2018-2021. You probably know this stuff, but here are a few things I learned in that period.

- You can use 7 series catalytic converters
- You can remove secondary air assembly and code out the related EML
- polybushing all engine, suspension and transmission bushes with yellow power flex doesn't ruin the ride
- Heating matrix resistor can cause parasitic battery drain as can traffic module and amp
- ABS Module is 1800 new if you cant refurb it
- Silicone lube/gummi pflegdesift (no thats not a typo!) and velcro tape are good for all the rattles and seals
- Gtechnique for the plastic trim bits to make them black again for a bit longer
- Pete in the UK E39 Facebook Group for headlight restorations and upgrades
- If you want an M5 Boot Mat - US Facebook M5 group called (Shady) who does all sorts of upgrades
- Spit and Polish can do the correct shadow chrome effect on the wheels
- M539 Restorations on YouTube has an M5 resto project (and loads of others)
- Rotrip in Alton are a friendly E39 breakers

Maybe some of those might be useful for you or anyone doing the same. I really enjoyed my car and drove it every day.

Thank you Rich. Some of that I knew, some I didn't, so a very useful post I'm sure I will refer to in future

Anyway - the car's been sat in the garage again while the wheels were being redone, so I took the opportunity to do a job I've been putting off for a long time. The windscreen surround.

As usual my pics are severely lacking, but suffice to say this is the least favourite job I've ever performed on this car. The old rubber was hard as nails and I spent the entire time terrified I would exert just a little too much force and crack the windscreen.

What we were working with:



And the end result, after what felt like several hours of frustration, several cups of tea and a trip to the local builder's merchant for a better set of pliers:



fking thing had better last another 20 years

I also did a little cold start video getting it back out of the garage.... because why not?

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ZXus1CxX-rc (I can't embed, apparently, because it's a 'short')

Anyway, none of you care about that, you're here to see the wheels!

Here we go. New centre caps, M badges, a DIY ceramic coat.... and a 50 mile drive into central London on a slightly grotty day



That's a bit more like it, I'd say!

[bolidemichael]

Are those the twice refurbished alloys? They do look proper, now.

[d_a_n1979]

seiben said:

RichE60 said:

Amazing work and commitment. The car is fantastic, well done.

I went on the same journey with a 2000 silverstone blue 2018-2021. You probably know this stuff, but here are a few things I learned in that period.

- You can use 7 series catalytic converters
- You can remove secondary air assembly and code out the related EML
- polybushing all engine, suspension and transmission bushes with yellow power flex doesn't ruin the ride
- Heating matrix resistor can cause parasitic battery drain as can traffic module and amp
- ABS Module is 1800 new if you cant refurb it
- Silicone lube/gummi pflegdesift (no thats not a typo!) and velcro tape are good for all the rattles and seals
- Gtechnique for the plastic trim bits to make them black again for a bit longer
- Pete in the UK E39 Facebook Group for headlight restorations and upgrades
- If you want an M5 Boot Mat - US Facebook M5 group called (Shady) who does all sorts of upgrades
- Spit and Polish can do the correct shadow chrome effect on the wheels
- M539 Restorations on YouTube has an M5 resto project (and loads of others)
- Rotrip in Alton are a friendly E39 breakers

Maybe some of those might be useful for you or anyone doing the same. I really enjoyed my car and drove it every day.

Thank you Rich. Some of that I knew, some I didn't, so a very useful post I'm sure I will refer to in future

Anyway - the car's been sat in the garage again while the wheels were being redone, so I took the opportunity to do a job I've been putting off for a long time. The windscreen surround.

As usual my pics are severely lacking, but suffice to say this is the least favourite job I've ever performed on this car. The old rubber was hard as nails and I spent the entire time terrified I would exert just a little too much force and crack the windscreen.

What we were working with:



And the end result, after what felt like several hours of frustration, several cups of tea and a trip to the local builder's merchant for a better set of pliers:



fking thing had better last another 20 years

I also did a little cold start video getting it back out of the garage.... because why not?

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ZXus1CxX-rc (I can't embed, apparently, because it's a 'short')

Anyway, none of you care about that, you're here to see the wheels!

Here we go. New centre caps, M badges, a DIY ceramic coat.... and a 50 mile drive into central London on a slightly grotty day



That's a bit more like it, I'd say!

Good job well done on the windscreen trim; both my previous E39 530i touring and E39 540i Sport from Japan needed them doing as soon as I got the cars; both the front & rear on the 540i were shot; but fortunately easy enough to remove, hoover out all the crap, clean the grooves and then lathered the grooves with water & fairly liquid spray and they slid in once the corners were pressed in

Your wheels look spot on now; it's a gorgeous car

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ZXus1CxX-rc <<< sounds fantastic

[seiben]

bolidemichael said:

Are those the twice refurbished alloys? They do look proper, now.

Yep. This is the *checks notes* fifth set of paint these wheels have had since I bought the car. Is fifth time lucky a thing?

[Bobupndown]

Wheels looking fantastic now that's the colour they should have been initially.

[Accelebrate]

Much better, glad you got there in the end!

[Hammy98]

Looks lovely with the wheels in that finish, top work!

The E39 is so well proportioned compared to the later variants.

[Roger Gerbil]

I love that you still have this!

My old oxford green 2003 is coming up for sale on Collecting cars.

I’ll have to do everything in my power not to buy it back

[CB 987]

Roger Gerbil said:

I love that you still have this!

My old oxford green 2003 is coming up for sale on Collecting cars.

I’ll have to do everything in my power not to buy it back

I’ll be bidding too! I actually missed the chance to buy when you sold it in early 2015, by sheer chance a colleague met the chap you sold it to a few months later and he offered it to me, but the timing was terrible. I said no and I’ve regretted it ever since. I did track the current owner down in approx. 2021 and asked him to let me know if he sells it. I can’t blame him for trying the Collecting Cars route to maximise the exposure, but I’ll have to fight it out and try not to get too carried away!

Cheers.

[Chris x]

RichE60 said:

Amazing work and commitment. The car is fantastic, well done.

I went on the same journey with a 2000 silverstone blue 2018-2021. You probably know this stuff, but here are a few things I learned in that period.

- You can use 7 series catalytic converters
- You can remove secondary air assembly and code out the related EML
- polybushing all engine, suspension and transmission bushes with yellow power flex doesn't ruin the ride
- Heating matrix resistor can cause parasitic battery drain as can traffic module and amp
- ABS Module is 1800 new if you cant refurb it
- Silicone lube/gummi pflegdesift (no thats not a typo!) and velcro tape are good for all the rattles and seals
- Gtechnique for the plastic trim bits to make them black again for a bit longer
- Pete in the UK E39 Facebook Group for headlight restorations and upgrades
- If you want an M5 Boot Mat - US Facebook M5 group called (Shady) who does all sorts of upgrades
- Spit and Polish can do the correct shadow chrome effect on the wheels
- M539 Restorations on YouTube has an M5 resto project (and loads of others)
- Rotrip in Alton are a friendly E39 breakers

Maybe some of those might be useful for you or anyone doing the same. I really enjoyed my car and drove it every day.

Do not use st & Polish! :-)

[seiben]

I headed over to a nice little car show and autojumble in Newbury on BH Monday, the first official meet set up by a guy who runs the 'DadCars' youtube channel. The weather was st and one of my boys managed to get carsick on the way, but other than that it was a great way of spending a morning

Something I particularly liked, as a dad of three-under-three, was the amount of thought gone into keeping the kids happy and entertained. Got to have some incentive to keep the next generation of car nerds happy!



While I was there, someone who is actually good with a camera got some snaps of the M5. If I'd known he was coming I'd have cleaned the mud off the tyres











Photos credit: TierOnePhotos

Edited by seiben on Tuesday 11th April 12:19

[bolidemichael]

Chris x said:

RichE60 said:

Amazing work and commitment. The car is fantastic, well done.

I went on the same journey with a 2000 silverstone blue 2018-2021. You probably know this stuff, but here are a few things I learned in that period.

- You can use 7 series catalytic converters
- You can remove secondary air assembly and code out the related EML
- polybushing all engine, suspension and transmission bushes with yellow power flex doesn't ruin the ride
- Heating matrix resistor can cause parasitic battery drain as can traffic module and amp
- ABS Module is 1800 new if you cant refurb it
- Silicone lube/gummi pflegdesift (no thats not a typo!) and velcro tape are good for all the rattles and seals
- Gtechnique for the plastic trim bits to make them black again for a bit longer
- Pete in the UK E39 Facebook Group for headlight restorations and upgrades
- If you want an M5 Boot Mat - US Facebook M5 group called (Shady) who does all sorts of upgrades
- Spit and Polish can do the correct shadow chrome effect on the wheels
- M539 Restorations on YouTube has an M5 resto project (and loads of others)
- Rotrip in Alton are a friendly E39 breakers

Maybe some of those might be useful for you or anyone doing the same. I really enjoyed my car and drove it every day.

Do not use st & Polish! :-)

Actually, Spit and Polish have recently been bought by Lepsons. They did the diamond cut on my Merc alloys and whislt not perfect, was better than previous efforts. Having said that, the Astral Silver finish for the refirb on the winter alloys that was done at the back end of last year wasn't bad, either.

[Court_S]

Car looks good OP; the latest wheel finish better looks like it should.

Those photos are nice.

[JonnyWhitters]

seiben said:

I headed over to a nice little car show and autojumble in Newbury on BH Monday…

While I was there, someone who is actually good with a camera got some snaps of the M5. If I'd known he was coming I'd have cleaned the mud off the tyres


Photos credit: TierOnePhotos

Edited by seiben on Tuesday 11th April 12:19

Sorry, only just seen this for some reason. Was great to meet you and grab pics of this awesome machine.

Thanks for the kind words about the pics too. Hope to see you at another one soon!

[seiben]

JonnyWhitters said:

Sorry, only just seen this for some reason. Was great to meet you and grab pics of this awesome machine.

Thanks for the kind words about the pics too. Hope to see you at another one soon!

It was great to meet you too! I'll be keeping an eye out for the next event, for sure

M5 life has been ticking along nicely these past few weeks. I remembered to get a pic of it in super-saloon-bike-transit mode, complete with a nice layer of general grime now it's back in daily duty:



Then, this weekend just gone we had the annual classic car rally hosted by my local town. It's a very sweet event that kicks off with 300-odd classics from all eras parading around the town, through the centre and then onto the green for a car show that lasts the rest of the day.

As ever, my own photos do the car very little justice, but there was a good snap from someone in the crowd!



I like this pic for a variety of reasons....
1. The car looks great after a proper clean and wax
2. You can just see the nose of Pete's bright yellow Monaro behind me - this is shortly before we had the inevitably childish V8 noise-off in the town square
3. There is a rich variety of expressions from people in the crowd - some wondering how this boring looking car snuck into the event, some laughing at my two-year-old twins who were sitting in the back madly waving flags at passers by, and the odd person going "ooh... it's an M5". I feel the roof-rack really added to the general sense of confusion

What's up next? Well the MOT is next month, and I'm going to see if it'll nudge over 180k before that happens. Looking at these photos reminds me that I need to source some OEM grills because the black ones look a bit naff, which is particularly bothersome now the rest of the car looks so good. I also want to do something about the stereo - it has a really naff Eonon unit installed, which looks OEM but sounds terrible. The results of the MOT will define whether this is something that happens soon or not!

[JakeT]

Looks fab.

Is that Wallingford? I could swear it’s familiar.