No.39 - 1995 BMW E34 M5 UK Limited Edition #39/50

No.39 - 1995 BMW E34 M5 UK Limited Edition #39/50

Author
Discussion

Gad-Westy

14,521 posts

212 months

Tuesday 15th December 2020
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Jonny-Jimbo said:
I do love an E34, 'the thinking mans E30'. Honestly I think they handle better than the E30, and with a decent engine are much, much faster.

Of course it's more comfortable too for long continental runs. I did a 'under-shell' rebuild on my 540i/6 a few years back after it had been laid up by the previous owner for 10 years or so. Two days after finishing the build me and a mate drove it to Austria, non-stop in 26 hours. Pretty good on fuel too, 39.9mpg at 85mph+.



Done a few track day etc too, plus a few visits to the ring, well worth it!



I'd like an M5, but as has been said, the values now are going mental, and I don't think I could justify an M5 and a 540...
That’s a lovely car. Great colour.

But 40mpg at 85mph+.... is that a typo?!

I wouldn’t get near that even in 6 cylinder BMW’s. My v8 e39 would have been mid 20’s at best at that sort of pace!

There is something about the E34. To me it is an absolute design high point for BMW. The proportions are perfect. I love the e30 but it has a slight look of flimsiness about it compared to the e34. The e34 loses none of the classic detail but looks taught and solid.

Jonny-Jimbo

294 posts

76 months

Tuesday 15th December 2020
quotequote all
Aye, it's Orient Blue with bison leather interior.

We did genuinely get that, at least on the in-car computer. When we left home it was saying 12MPG, and it gradually ticket up as we cruised. It wouldn't break the 39.9 though. Once in Austria and running the mountain roads it soon dropped again!

Agreed, E34s are very good value overall when you consider how much an E30 M3 costs, an E34 M5 is still pence.

Aluminati

2,475 posts

57 months

Tuesday 15th December 2020
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James Hay said:
Aluminati said:
Had number 30, sold with regret .

Looks great, I much prefer them with a boot spoiler, hoping to fit one to mine at some point.

I believe I know of this car, a father & son owned/still own it?
Not sure, sold it in 2015 after spending a fortune on it including a steering box refurb to a fella up north.

Saw a mint one a couple of years ago up for 35k !


James Hay

Original Poster:

100 posts

39 months

Tuesday 15th December 2020
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RS Grant said:
Enjoying all the E34 content here, saw a late E34 M5 a year or so ago, just pedalling round an industrial estate normally and it still looked amazing. I've fully missed the boat on these due to price, but I'm happy to live vicariously through threads like this. cool
Hopefully I'll keep you entertained with updates!

James Hay

Original Poster:

100 posts

39 months

Tuesday 15th December 2020
quotequote all
Gad-Westy said:
Jonny-Jimbo said:
I do love an E34, 'the thinking mans E30'. Honestly I think they handle better than the E30, and with a decent engine are much, much faster.

Of course it's more comfortable too for long continental runs. I did a 'under-shell' rebuild on my 540i/6 a few years back after it had been laid up by the previous owner for 10 years or so. Two days after finishing the build me and a mate drove it to Austria, non-stop in 26 hours. Pretty good on fuel too, 39.9mpg at 85mph+.



Done a few track day etc too, plus a few visits to the ring, well worth it!



I'd like an M5, but as has been said, the values now are going mental, and I don't think I could justify an M5 and a 540...
That’s a lovely car. Great colour.

But 40mpg at 85mph+.... is that a typo?!

I wouldn’t get near that even in 6 cylinder BMW’s. My v8 e39 would have been mid 20’s at best at that sort of pace!

There is something about the E34. To me it is an absolute design high point for BMW. The proportions are perfect. I love the e30 but it has a slight look of flimsiness about it compared to the e34. The e34 loses none of the classic detail but looks taught and solid.
I've never driven an E30 so can't comment on the handling (although I was brought back from hospital in one after being born if that nearly counts!), but it's a shame the E34 and E32 don't get as much interest, I think they're just so much cooler. Maybe personal opinion as generally speaking I've always liked bigger cars and the refinement, maturity and presence they bring. If I was looking for an older compact saloon that drives well I'd much prefer an E36, hence I've owned a couple.

That sounds like an awesome trip, I'd love to do something like that one day, maybe head down to the Italian lakes. I must say I thought that economy figure was a typo as well, impressive! I used to average about 23mpg in the M5 which I thought was poor until I bought an XJ40 4.0 and barely scraped 19mpg...!

Completely agree also on the styling, the E30 is a little dainty and delicate looking for my taste, still a great looking car but the E34 and even more so the E32 have a certain 'substantialness' about them.

James Hay

Original Poster:

100 posts

39 months

Tuesday 15th December 2020
quotequote all
Jonny-Jimbo said:
Aye, it's Orient Blue with bison leather interior.

We did genuinely get that, at least on the in-car computer. When we left home it was saying 12MPG, and it gradually ticket up as we cruised. It wouldn't break the 39.9 though. Once in Austria and running the mountain roads it soon dropped again!

Agreed, E34s are very good value overall when you consider how much an E30 M3 costs, an E34 M5 is still pence.
Orient is great, I had an E46 in that. Such a lovely deep colour, very classy.

True, the E30 M3 to me seems poor value comparatively, but then to be fair if I could afford it I would be straight down to Classic Heroes to buy that low mileage 850csi, I think it was last advertised at £130,000. So much more car than an E30 M3, but very different and for a different kind of driver. The 850csi to me is the ultimate BMW, I think the only one I could consider changing my M5 for.

James Hay

Original Poster:

100 posts

39 months

Tuesday 15th December 2020
quotequote all
Aluminati said:
James Hay said:
Aluminati said:
Had number 30, sold with regret .

Looks great, I much prefer them with a boot spoiler, hoping to fit one to mine at some point.

I believe I know of this car, a father & son owned/still own it?
Not sure, sold it in 2015 after spending a fortune on it including a steering box refurb to a fella up north.

Saw a mint one a couple of years ago up for 35k !
I have a feeling it's the same guy.

I suppose if there was a low mileage one say under 75,000 miles with great paperwork then yeah £35,000 I don't think would be out of the question!

Jonny-Jimbo

294 posts

76 months

Wednesday 16th December 2020
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Aye, the 8-Series is quite something. I found an old issue of Practical Classics magazine whilst tidying some boxes of junk from my parents house a few months back, with an advert in for an 850, converted to manual. 10 months MOT AND Tax, and the advert said 'Due to not selling quickly price is reduced from £2500 to £1750...

I'd guess that the magazine was between 15 and 18 years old.

James Hay

Original Poster:

100 posts

39 months

Wednesday 16th December 2020
quotequote all
Jonny-Jimbo said:
Aye, the 8-Series is quite something. I found an old issue of Practical Classics magazine whilst tidying some boxes of junk from my parents house a few months back, with an advert in for an 850, converted to manual. 10 months MOT AND Tax, and the advert said 'Due to not selling quickly price is reduced from £2500 to £1750...

I'd guess that the magazine was between 15 and 18 years old.
I do love a tidy E31 but I'd heard that some repair costs can be astronomical, although so can elements of an E34 M5...!

Ah the good old days when you either got a bit of tax with the car, or if not use that as a negotiation factor.

Under £2,000 wow, I suppose that must have been the time at which they were at their lowest. Bargains.

Jonny-Jimbo

294 posts

76 months

Thursday 17th December 2020
quotequote all
Yes indeed, it would have been when they were rock bottom and 'just old cars' and not considered classics. Most of the cars in the mag were cheap by today's standards, Escorts, 911s etc. Thing is some things like XJ40s etc have stayed about the same!

The costs etc dont put me off having one, but they certainly mean I cant go and just buy one with the money down the back of the sofa!

James Hay

Original Poster:

100 posts

39 months

Thursday 17th December 2020
quotequote all
Jonny-Jimbo said:
Yes indeed, it would have been when they were rock bottom and 'just old cars' and not considered classics. Most of the cars in the mag were cheap by today's standards, Escorts, 911s etc. Thing is some things like XJ40s etc have stayed about the same!

The costs etc dont put me off having one, but they certainly mean I cant go and just buy one with the money down the back of the sofa!
Nobody at the time had any idea that this era of cars was viewed by a lot as the pinnacle. Funny you mention XJ40s...



When I put the M5 into storage for a few months I bought this off a friend as I needed a 'sensible winter daily' so obviously I thought this would be absolutely ideal considering I was doing upwards of 18,000 miles per year at barely 19mpg... A beautiful car though, and compared to a lot I've since seen this one was in extremely good condition. To be honest I should have held onto it as it meant more to me than the amount of money I sold it for, but it wouldn't have had a purpose.

Edited by James Hay on Thursday 17th December 21:00

g3org3y

20,606 posts

190 months

Thursday 17th December 2020
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coolcloud9

Dave Moore

183 posts

74 months

Thursday 17th December 2020
quotequote all
James Hay said:
Nobody at the time had any idea that this era of cars was viewed by a lot as the pinnacle. Funny you mention XJ40s...



When I put the M5 into storage for a few months I bought this off a friend as I needed a 'sensible winter daily' so obviously I thought this would be absolutely ideal considering I was doing upwards of 18,000 miles per year at barely 19mpg... A beautiful car though, and compared to a lot I've since seen this one was in extremely good condition. To be honest I should have held onto it as it meant more to me than the amount of money I sold it for, but it wouldn't have had a purpose.

Edited by James Hay on Thursday 17th December 21:00
You real should getting another one of those love

James Hay

Original Poster:

100 posts

39 months

Sunday 20th December 2020
quotequote all
Dave Moore said:
You real should getting another one of those love
I did love it, but the fuel bills were just appalling for a daily...!

James Hay

Original Poster:

100 posts

39 months

Saturday 9th January 2021
quotequote all
Last week I went to move No.39 out the garage and the clutch pedal wouldn't spring back and sat on the floor. I must say I should've investigated earlier as occasionally it would need an extra pump or two when manoeuvring as pressure would gradually slip away, and it was getting worse. There's always been enough fluid in the reservoir so I thought it unlikely air had been drawn through but a nice little puddle under the car confirmed my suspicions of a leak.



Fortunately the master cylinder hasn't leaked into the cabin which makes me 90% sure the slave cylinder has burst it's seals. I've ordered a rebuilt kit from AutoDoc but will inspect all parts of the clutch hydraulics when I refurb the slave. The only other cause could be corroded metal line or split flexihose which I doubt, but we'll see!

Update to follow once the weather gets to a reasonable temperature in Cambridge!

e28525e

462 posts

140 months

Saturday 9th January 2021
quotequote all
James Hay said:
Last week I went to move No.39 out the garage and the clutch pedal wouldn't spring back and sat on the floor. I must say I should've investigated earlier as occasionally it would need an extra pump or two when manoeuvring as pressure would gradually slip away, and it was getting worse. There's always been enough fluid in the reservoir so I thought it unlikely air had been drawn through but a nice little puddle under the car confirmed my suspicions of a leak.



Fortunately the master cylinder hasn't leaked into the cabin which makes me 90% sure the slave cylinder has burst it's seals. I've ordered a rebuilt kit from AutoDoc but will inspect all parts of the clutch hydraulics when I refurb the slave. The only other cause could be corroded metal line or split flexihose which I doubt, but we'll see!

Update to follow once the weather gets to a reasonable temperature in Cambridge!
As if you needed an excuse to rip the front end of the car off and replace everything with shiny stuff..

I reckon you should fix the clutch slave and do some driving! wink

James Hay

Original Poster:

100 posts

39 months

Saturday 9th January 2021
quotequote all
e28525e said:
As if you needed an excuse to rip the front end of the car off and replace everything with shiny stuff..

I reckon you should fix the clutch slave and do some driving! wink
biggrin

Thing is...I'm pretty sure it needs front springs for the MOT, if I'm doing springs it would be dumb not to do dampers, and to do the lower arms the dampers need to come off the little carrier plate thing. So, if I'm doing all that I might as well strip off and refurb the ensure front axle/steering/subframe biggrin

Leins

9,421 posts

147 months

Sunday 10th January 2021
quotequote all
Fabulous car James, love these LEs. Keep the updates coming please

I had a 5-speed 3.8 for a number of years, and still miss taking that car into work every Friday when the traffic was a bit lighter. Still my favourite BMW engine I think, but that car always seemed to need attention. Funnily enough the last fault I had fixed on it was the clutch pedal on the floor due to the slave too


Alfred Pina

183 posts

74 months

Sunday 10th January 2021
quotequote all
James Hay said:
biggrin

Thing is...I'm pretty sure it needs front springs for the MOT, if I'm doing springs it would be dumb not to do dampers, and to do the lower arms the dampers need to come off the little carrier plate thing. So, if I'm doing all that I might as well strip off and refurb the ensure front axle/steering/subframe biggrin
Have they snapped? If not, they’ll pass!

2021 is the year for driving no.39 smile

James Hay

Original Poster:

100 posts

39 months

Sunday 10th January 2021
quotequote all
Leins said:
Fabulous car James, love these LEs. Keep the updates coming please

I had a 5-speed 3.8 for a number of years, and still miss taking that car into work every Friday when the traffic was a bit lighter. Still my favourite BMW engine I think, but that car always seemed to need attention. Funnily enough the last fault I had fixed on it was the clutch pedal on the floor due to the slave too

Thanks, will do!

I can't wait to get it back on the road, hoping to be able to enjoy it this summer. Yes they're of that age now aren't they where there's always something, I'm hoping that with all the work I'm doing it will be trouble free but I'm yet to have the biggest thing looked over...that engine. It's got 18 service stamps throughout it's 26 years and 127,000 miles so it seems to have been well cared for and felt strong when I was using it as my daily.