E61 V8 Bearding

[ATM]

I've gone for smaller lighter wheels which I know bucks the trend of bigger flash wheels. Every little helps.

Also I run mine on Tesco 99 because it definitely makes the car a bit more lively.

I had a gearbox oil service and it definitely helped the gear shift. It was a bit lethargic changing at higher revs with the old fluid. I paid someone to do it properly but now I have more experience with gearboxes I'd just suck the old fluid out and throw in some new.

[StuntmanMike]

alistair267 said:

I have had the 550 for 9 months now and tidied up the interior (although I still need to do a proper leather treatment).

Mechanically I’ve replaced and upgraded brake discs and pads.

Any other (cheap-ish) upgrades that people have done that make a difference?

Mileage is about to tick over to 110,000 so I do need to check how the suspension, bushes etc are getting on.

Hoping to still do the planned road trip in August with the family to the Alps and Provence which will be a good test of the beast.

CKS Tuning in Watford will put a dyno proven 40 bhp on it, remove the limiter and apparently improve fuel economy for 300 snots.

I don’t know reputable they are.

I have a Magnaflow exhaust on mine which makes it sound epic. But I have had to apologise to the neighbours for the noise when I have an occasional early start! It also sets off alarm on the VW Bora Opposite when it rumbles past.

[alistair267]

Thanks both, some things to think about!

[james_zy]

StuntmanMike said:

alistair267 said:

I have had the 550 for 9 months now and tidied up the interior (although I still need to do a proper leather treatment).

Mechanically I’ve replaced and upgraded brake discs and pads.

Any other (cheap-ish) upgrades that people have done that make a difference?

Mileage is about to tick over to 110,000 so I do need to check how the suspension, bushes etc are getting on.

Hoping to still do the planned road trip in August with the family to the Alps and Provence which will be a good test of the beast.

CKS Tuning in Watford will put a dyno proven 40 bhp on it, remove the limiter and apparently improve fuel economy for 300 snots.

I don’t know reputable they are.

I have a Magnaflow exhaust on mine which makes it sound epic. But I have had to apologise to the neighbours for the noise when I have an occasional early start! It also sets off alarm on the VW Bora Opposite when it rumbles past.

What exactly are tuners tinkering with in the ECU to get that sort of gain out of a NA engine? I know some NA engines leave the factory on a fairly lazy tune, but 370bhp seems quite reasonable to begin with (not much fat to trim).

[Nuisance]

Anybody own or had experience of a Japanese import E60/61? The odd 550 pops up on ebay every now and again and I could be tempted.


Is there anything about them that makes them tricky to live with? eg ICE/display info/settings etc being in Japanese script and not changeable to English?

I'm not so bothered about Nav functionality as I always use Waze on my phone anyway.

[benbuhagiar]

tobinen said:

What're the panel's thoughts on this?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-550i-TOURING-COMFOR...

I'm closely watching this on eBay. What do we think is a fair price? Not many around so hard to gauge. I'd think no more than £5k.

[ATM]

Nuisance said:

Anybody own or had experience of a Japanese import E60/61? The odd 550 pops up on ebay every now and again and I could be tempted.


Is there anything about them that makes them tricky to live with? eg ICE/display info/settings etc being in Japanese script and not changeable to English?

I'm not so bothered about Nav functionality as I always use Waze on my phone anyway.

I had a jap import e39 528i when I bought my 550i and started this thead. The jap import thing definitely has some advantages over a UK car like the lack of rust. The bottom of the car looked brand new. Also all the nuts, bolts, clips and clamps under the bonnet looked brand new. The bad news was the heat damage to the body, window seals and interior. I believe they don't use their cars a lot over there and they are well maintained. My e39 was tip top mechanically but it had some clear coat problems and the seats had been re-coloured before I bought it. Not rhe best job but I got the car really really cheap. It was super high spec with some options I didn't even know existed like folding mirrors and rear blind. I've had my standard UK 550i now for over 5 years and had very very little bother. With that in mind I'm not sure if the jap import thing really adds any value to a used 550i but i guess if you want low mileage then you'll think the jap import thing adds value. I think these big lazy v8 engines are hardly stressed at all from day to day driving so 100 or 150000 miles is nothing for these. So I'd say buy a UK car with a few more miles on it and forget about the jap import thing. Thats my advice.

[Nuisance]

ATM said:

I had a jap import e39 528i when I bought my 550i and started this thead. The jap import thing definitely has some advantages over a UK car like the lack of rust. The bottom of the car looked brand new. Also all the nuts, bolts, clips and clamps under the bonnet looked brand new. The bad news was the heat damage to the body, window seals and interior. I believe they don't use their cars a lot over there and they are well maintained. My e39 was tip top mechanically but it had some clear coat problems and the seats had been re-coloured before I bought it. Not rhe best job but I got the car really really cheap. It was super high spec with some options I didn't even know existed like folding mirrors and rear blind. I've had my standard UK 550i now for over 5 years and had very very little bother. With that in mind I'm not sure if the jap import thing really adds any value to a used 550i but i guess if you want low mileage then you'll think the jap import thing adds value. I think these big lazy v8 engines are hardly stressed at all from day to day driving so 100 or 150000 miles is nothing for these. So I'd say buy a UK car with a few more miles on it and forget about the jap import thing. Thats my advice.

Thanks for that.

I've had several Japanese imports before so I appreciate the potential advantages of condition over UK cars. One of mine also had a slight paint fade issue on the bonnet, but it was a 1990 model so I forgave it that.

I'd actually consider a really nice imported E39 540i Touring too, it's definitely an estate that I'd want. I've actually followed the ownership of yours since you first posted it here so I have a good idea of how you've got on with it.

I definitely take your advice on board, cheers. It's just if a nice spec import appears I was curious if there anything in the day to day living with the car that doesn't translate so well to UK life. It was different with my previous imports which had no infotainment, no menus and sub-menus to navigate through to use the features of the car. I just wonder if it might be trickier in an E61.

[ATM]

So the only gripes I had with my e39 was the radio which could only get radio 2. The speedo was also in kph. That was about it. Both could be fixed by swapping parts. The sat nav didn't work and the TV tuner too but both of those could be ignored. Also the tyres on the car were useless so I wander if they are hot climate specific which don't grip in colder conditions. Some insurance companies ask if the car is imported too and then charge more. Thats all I can think of.

[Nuisance]

Yep, all the same issues I've had with my previous imported cars. All easily sortable/liveable.

Appreciate the input again mate.

[james_zy]

My least favourite combo (silver, black, pre-LCI), but this 550i just cropped up.

Only 55,000 miles, yet another Japanese import!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333638072983

[Nuisance]

james_zy said:

My least favourite combo (silver, black, pre-LCI), but this 550i just cropped up.

Only 55,000 miles, yet another Japanese import!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333638072983

After watching 550s for what seems like forever, that's actually the car that made me ask the question above.

More pics have been added to it today (there was only 8 when it was first listed)

[ATM]

Nuisance said:

james_zy said:

My least favourite combo (silver, black, pre-LCI), but this 550i just cropped up.

Only 55,000 miles, yet another Japanese import!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333638072983

After watching 550s for what seems like forever, that's actually the car that made me ask the question above.

More pics have been added to it today (there was only 8 when it was first listed)

Whats the big Square sticker on the windscreen in picture 2 right in the driver view out the window?

Also looks like something cut into the dash in picture 11 near where the HUD normally goes but off to the right?

...edited to add the pics

Edited by ATM on Tuesday 30th June 07:16

[ATM]

ATM said:

Nuisance said:

Anybody own or had experience of a Japanese import E60/61? The odd 550 pops up on ebay every now and again and I could be tempted.


Is there anything about them that makes them tricky to live with? eg ICE/display info/settings etc being in Japanese script and not changeable to English?

I'm not so bothered about Nav functionality as I always use Waze on my phone anyway.

I had a jap import e39 528i when I bought my 550i and started this thead.

Here she is

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

[ATM]

Nearly drove out of this bay earlier without realising. The balloon tyres really abstract you from the surface detail. It could have meant damage to the underside as there is more of a drop on the other side.

[Nuisance]

ATM said:

Whats the big Square sticker on the windscreen in picture 2 right in the driver view out the window?

Also looks like something cut into the dash in picture 11 near where the HUD normally goes but off to the right?

...edited to add the pics

I didn't even notice the dash. Possibly some sort of toll reader or something?

[ATM]

Nuisance said:

ATM said:

Whats the big Square sticker on the windscreen in picture 2 right in the driver view out the window?

Also looks like something cut into the dash in picture 11 near where the HUD normally goes but off to the right?

...edited to add the pics

I didn't even notice the dash. Possibly some sort of toll reader or something?

My e39 had a different rear view mirror with a credit card sized slot which I was told on here was for tolls. That was less intrusive. You don't want any gubbins right there where you watch the road.

[james_zy]

Anyone got £19k spare for a 2005 545i?

Not sure who the target market is for these sorts of things - hardly a collectors car!

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...

[ATM]

james_zy said:

Anyone got £19k spare for a 2005 545i?

Not sure who the target market is for these sorts of things - hardly a collectors car!

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202...

Silver hexagon and beige is awful.

[james_zy]

ATM said:

Silver hexagon and beige is awful.

Agreed - Hexagon are smoking the same crack that the first owner was when specifying it if they think they will get £19k for it.

It's a £12k motor at best