E39 face lift in Imola
Discussion
Hi all...
I'm looking to get into an e39 m5. What I'd really like is an Imola red car but the only couple I've seen for sale have been pre facelift.
Before I spend the rest of my days searching for something that doesn't exist can anyone confirm that Imola was available on facelift cars?
Otherwise I'll have to buy a blue one... Which won't be a bad thing, just not a great thing.
I'm looking to get into an e39 m5. What I'd really like is an Imola red car but the only couple I've seen for sale have been pre facelift.
Before I spend the rest of my days searching for something that doesn't exist can anyone confirm that Imola was available on facelift cars?
Otherwise I'll have to buy a blue one... Which won't be a bad thing, just not a great thing.
There are relatively few E39 M5s around now and finding a post facelift Imola Red one is a steep challenge since it was never a popular colour in the UK. ASAIK there were only 79 Imola Red E39 M5s produced in RHD during the 4 year production run - 1999 to 2003.
Best advice is ignore colour and find one in the best condition you can irrespective of colour. A complete respray will cost say (guesstimate) £3k which is a drop in the ocean in overall M5 ownership costs. Prospective owners also often fuss about trim options; truth is you can switch a lot of the interior trim from breaker cars at 'relatively' little cost.
So go out and buy a good 'un then play around with the aesthetics at your leisure.
Buying a dog of a car in Imola Red will be way more expensive (and give you massive headaches & sleepless nights) than buying a well-sorted Titan Silver, or whatever, whose colour you can change for what amounts to loose change in the grand scheme of running an M car.
Best advice is ignore colour and find one in the best condition you can irrespective of colour. A complete respray will cost say (guesstimate) £3k which is a drop in the ocean in overall M5 ownership costs. Prospective owners also often fuss about trim options; truth is you can switch a lot of the interior trim from breaker cars at 'relatively' little cost.
So go out and buy a good 'un then play around with the aesthetics at your leisure.
Buying a dog of a car in Imola Red will be way more expensive (and give you massive headaches & sleepless nights) than buying a well-sorted Titan Silver, or whatever, whose colour you can change for what amounts to loose change in the grand scheme of running an M car.
Sorry to hijack your thread Nurburgsingh. However, after watching an episode of Wheeler Dealers I started thinking about how viable it would be to run one of these as a daily driver.
I currently lease something new every couple of years to use as a daily driver. It's tempting to get something more interesting to keep for four of five years.. I cover about 10,000 miles per year and I am not bothered about fuel consumption. It's more about how much fun how and rewarding the drive is. I am quite handy with the spanners. How viable is this as a proposition? Financially ruinous or something worth pursuing?
Appreciate any input from those who have done it.
pp
I currently lease something new every couple of years to use as a daily driver. It's tempting to get something more interesting to keep for four of five years.. I cover about 10,000 miles per year and I am not bothered about fuel consumption. It's more about how much fun how and rewarding the drive is. I am quite handy with the spanners. How viable is this as a proposition? Financially ruinous or something worth pursuing?
Appreciate any input from those who have done it.
pp
Definitely doable.
I ran mine for about 80,000 miles over 5 years before retiring it as a garage Queen. Fundamentally they are very reliable, so long as you keep on top of things like MAFs and suspension components. If you start with a car over 100K and are planning to do reasonable miles, probably worth getting the big end bearings done as a precaution and checking the state of the chain guides.
I ran mine for about 80,000 miles over 5 years before retiring it as a garage Queen. Fundamentally they are very reliable, so long as you keep on top of things like MAFs and suspension components. If you start with a car over 100K and are planning to do reasonable miles, probably worth getting the big end bearings done as a precaution and checking the state of the chain guides.
I currently run a carbon black E39 M5 with a black and red interior which looks great. Running cost are pretty reasonable and so far, nothing more than fuel and routine servicing have come my way.
Question to OP, why facelift? The differences are pretty minor and pretty easily changed if you feel so inclined. Get the best one you can and the spend the money to make it like you want.
S
Question to OP, why facelift? The differences are pretty minor and pretty easily changed if you feel so inclined. Get the best one you can and the spend the money to make it like you want.
S
I currently run a carbon black E39 M5 with a black and red interior which looks great. Running cost are pretty reasonable and so far, nothing more than fuel and routine servicing have come my way.
Question to OP, why facelift? The differences are pretty minor and pretty easily changed if you feel so inclined. Get the best one you can and the spend the money to make it like you want.
S
Question to OP, why facelift? The differences are pretty minor and pretty easily changed if you feel so inclined. Get the best one you can and the spend the money to make it like you want.
S
Pickled Piper said:
Sorry to hijack your thread Nurburgsingh. However, after watching an episode of Wheeler Dealers I started thinking about how viable it would be to run one of these as a daily driver.
I currently lease something new every couple of years to use as a daily driver. It's tempting to get something more interesting to keep for four of five years.. I cover about 10,000 miles per year and I am not bothered about fuel consumption. It's more about how much fun how and rewarding the drive is. I am quite handy with the spanners. How viable is this as a proposition? Financially ruinous or something worth pursuing?
Appreciate any input from those who have done it.
pp
Being handy with the spanners (and enjoying that element of ownership) will be an important factor.I currently lease something new every couple of years to use as a daily driver. It's tempting to get something more interesting to keep for four of five years.. I cover about 10,000 miles per year and I am not bothered about fuel consumption. It's more about how much fun how and rewarding the drive is. I am quite handy with the spanners. How viable is this as a proposition? Financially ruinous or something worth pursuing?
Appreciate any input from those who have done it.
pp
A well sorted E39 is hugely refined and luxurious for motorway driving and has plenty of character for when you're on the A and B roads. This Jekyll and Hyde character is what the M5 is all about.
Funnily enough my two young sons are obsessed with that episode of Wheeler Dealers and they know more about the M5 alternator and suspension top mounts than me. I spent this afternoon with my kids under my car (pretending to be Ed China) replacing the front lower wishbones. An absolute pleasure to work on:
Cheers chaps. Some good points to consider.
I owned a 528 for 10 years. I never intended keeping it for so long, but it was so good I just found I modern variants could not match the quality. Always hankered after a M5. My problem is that I am fastidious with my cars. I would end up spending a fortune to get it perfect.
Some man maths to do.
pp
I owned a 528 for 10 years. I never intended keeping it for so long, but it was so good I just found I modern variants could not match the quality. Always hankered after a M5. My problem is that I am fastidious with my cars. I would end up spending a fortune to get it perfect.
Some man maths to do.
pp
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