BMW E39 M Sport, Talk to me

[Kos]

You can't buyba car when you're dead

[DanThe]

You cant regret anything when your dead either

Check it out Jon -



I dont see 18mpg very often,,,,

[bss325i]

thats missing the electric seats and sat nav plus an engine. The 523's are a road block, the 525's not alot better. A manual might be bearable but these lower capacity 6 pots use the same fuel as a 530 bar the 528i which is probably the pick of them but the oldest

Even the alpina 6 pots don't come in the spec you mention. Only the V8 tackle and the manual ones are always SE's in crap spec/colours. I think i've seen 1 540i sport manual e39

I just took a look at the MPG figures for various 5's and if my source was accurate I'm shocked.....

523 - 30mpg
525 - 29mpg
528 - 27mpg
530 - 27mpg
540 - 23mpg

if those figures are about right then I could run a 540 or a 530 with ease. I assume they are long run MPG's and would drop to about 16-18 around town in most cases

Those figures are way off.

Having run a 525i, 528i, 530i and 540i, all autos they were more like

525, 25mpg
528, 25mpg
530, 22mpg
540, 18mpg

All average and obviously they could be bettered on a run but my figures are real world mixed driving.

[Simon13]

You cant regret anything when your dead either

Check it out Jon -



I dont see 18mpg very often,,,,

auto gearbox makes a huge difference compared to the manuals. Even on the 540's

[DanThe]

Yeah auto box would knock a couple of mpg off, plug the LPG drops it by about 20% before the engine is running so its not far out really. If I reset the consumption while on the motorway it will sit at about 25 most of the time

[scott180gtb]

The wife averages 28-30 mpg on the local school run in the 530d We can only squeeze 38-40 mpg on a good run.

I used to run a manual 530d before the touring auto. If driven like a nun it would show 50mpg on the trip!

I've considered converting the auto to manual but I cant be arsed messing with scrap anymore.

The older diesel stuff is just not worth it unless its VAG PD

[DanThe]

I reckon on the whole the vadge stuff is a lot cheaper to repair too

[Andyboy]

The wife averages 28-30 mpg on the local school run in the 530d We can only squeeze 38-40 mpg on a good run.

I used to run a manual 530d before the touring auto. If driven like a nun it would show 50mpg on the trip!

I've considered converting the auto to manual but I cant be arsed messing with scrap anymore.

The older diesel stuff is just not worth it unless its VAG PD

My 320d shows 55-60m on the trip, but in reality it averages around 35 mpg. That's the 3 mile run to work and the odd run up to Full Sutton.

Diesels aren't worth the aggro now. However a 530i Sport manual is a nice thing, even today. Forget about shite like electric seats, high OBC and crap like that, just look for a tidy car that's the right money (£1500 is plenty) and spend a few quid on it as and when. Common issues are the rad and electronic stat - use a decent aftermarket rad like Nissens, but only ever a genuine BMW stat. Replacing the water pump with a 30 quid metal impeller job at this age is a good plan.
We just bought one in for £500, an Orient blue 2001 Sport Auto with 210'000 miles. It's got the usual bootlid rust but it's still on the original BMW battery and runs like new.
IMO, it's not worth paying 3 grand for a lower mileage example unless you really want a car to run for the next 5 years. Lower mileage is no guarantee that the box won't go tits up.
The most common issue on these things is the ABS ECU. Good used ones can be had for around £100 and you can get a brand new Bosch one for £245 plus VAT.

[DanThe]

The most common issue on these things is the ABS ECU. Good used ones can be had for around £100 and you can get a brand new Bosch one for £245 plus VAT.

Or if you know the people in the know you can have them re-conditioned for reasonable money

[pacerpete]

The most popular BMW in all the local frag yards is the E39 and none of them are accident damaged or particularly rotten. That tells you everything you need to know about trying to keep one running to a GOOD standard on a budget. Most are now just old complex worthless turdz

[DanThe]

That is a great thing if you want to keep one running on the cheap Pete, no good for you though, as the people that run them wont want to be paying you to fix them

[pony]

The most popular BMW in all the local frag yards is the E39 and none of them are accident damaged or particularly rotten. That tells you everything you need to know about trying to keep one running to a GOOD standard on a budget. Most are now just old complex worthless turdz

The funny things is the E39 was once upon a time considered the best executive saloon in the world. Winner of What Car Award up teen times. The ones that are worth keeping as you know are the nice standard low mileage low owner FBMWSH high spec etc etc. At least in the future etc these are most sought after.
Shame a lot of ppl have short term thinking .... Oh isn't worth much .... But is a good car .... I know .... I am a cock .... Let's scrap it
Values of E39 one day will rise
But I don't recommend getting one just for that is a fantastic car in it own right
M5 or 540i FTW

[bss325i]

It will be a loooooong time before an non M5/Alpina E39 is worth good money.

Non M5/Alpina E28's have only just started to be worth anything and that's because there are not many left.

E34's are still worthless.

[pacerpete]

E39s, while once worthy , are now just an old car. People that can afford to maintain one properly, generally do not have a Y plate. This is the same with all mass market cars. Once it leaves the showroom, its a slippery slope with the final destination China .

In years to come,when there are none left, nice low mileage good spec cars will have a value but the days of people buying them to cherish is still some way off .

[DanThe]

Keeping an E39 for potential future investment is one of the stupidest things ive read in a long time

[andyp]

you kind of hit the nail on the head, a lot of car for not a lot of money motoring

[pony]

Keeping an E39 for potential future investment is one of the stupidest things ive read in a long time

Would be a long time before value rises but that was a side point to what I mentioned

[Andyboy]

The most common issue on these things is the ABS ECU. Good used ones can be had for around £100 and you can get a brand new Bosch one for £245 plus VAT.

Or if you know the people in the know you can have them re-conditioned for reasonable money

Assuming it's not completely wankered - lots of them are beyond repair.

[pac1982]

Where does the 535 fit in to all this?

[Kos]

It's not even worth it.

Get a 540i instead unless you find a really good 535.

[Simon13]

535 or 540 is the same as the 325 or 320 argument. The 540's really motor when you get the hammer down loads of grunt like you expect in a big car with a big v8.

[bss325i]

535i is little faster than a 530i but uses the same fuel (25% more) as a 540i.

[DanThe]

You cant even call them a poor mans 540, more like a losers 540

[jimbom30cab]

What about one of these, I like this....a lot

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-550-4-8-a ... 35c76258b6

[DanThe]

What about one of these, I like this....a lot

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-550-4-8-a ... 35c76258b6

Id suffer an E60 in that getup

[bss325i]

What about one of these, I like this....a lot

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-550-4-8-a ... 35c76258b6

Id suffer an E60 in that getup

A manual 550i is preferable to an E60 M5

I did consider a grey 550i manual touring when i was looking at M3's but thought better of it.

[zd3bx]

What about one of these, I like this....a lot

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-550-4-8-a ... 35c76258b6

Quite rare to see an E60 550i, let alone an estate, but it would have to be an M-sport

With regards to E39s, they are definitely old (especially pre-facelift ones), so like any old car, you'll need to keep an eye on everything and look after it day to day.

Although, like some already mentioned, there's no point of going for a 525i or 528i, because while 2.5 or 2.8 may seem like a big engine, but they are "not enough" for the weight that E39 is carrying...Of course, it depends on your driving style, some people are happy with their 520i.

So ideally, it either has to be a 530i or 540i.

Forget about going after an ideal spec - it's more important to know that the car has been looked after properly and the body is solid, rather than to have electric seats or satnav...

Overall, they are lovely cars, but due to high insurance costs and simply age-related factors, they are no longer in value, with exception of clean examples and of course, 540i Msports and M5's.

[jimbom30cab]

I read somewhere that BMW only sold 5 e60 550i manual tourings, if true that would be a hard car to find again.

[jimbom30cab]

in the UK

[Kos]

I nearly bought one a year ago, it was an epic spec as well.

[DanThe]

High insurance costs? Mine is supposedly insurance group 36 and the best quote I had was £400 fully comp

[pac1982]

What about one of these, I like this....a lot

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-550-4-8-a ... 35c76258b6

not keen on that shape and I'm tight, I dont like taking a loss on cars. That's still got about 6k's of depreciation to hit it and rather soon I would imagine for a rather bland looking car with an engine of that size.

think I've made my mind up on a 540 but would drop to a 530 or 528 should an ideal spec pop up.

Much appreciated for all the help folks especially bss325i a wealth of knowledge as always

[scott180gtb]

Andy or Anyone for that matter.

If you get wind of any 530i touring Msports in manual flavour then give me a shout.

[zd3bx]

High insurance costs? Mine is supposedly insurance group 36 and the best quote I had was £400 fully comp

Well, it's high compared to lower class, more common cars, like Fiestas, Polos, Golfs, etc.

A 5 series is a mid-sized saloon/estate, so matter how old it is, it will be always more expensive to insure compared to a same age lower class car.

[pac1982]

Andy or Anyone for that matter.

If you get wind of any 530i touring Msports in manual flavour then give me a shout.

didn't you try to flog me your diesel a few pages ago, and now your looking for a petrol, speaks volumes lol

High insurance costs? Mine is supposedly insurance group 36 and the best quote I had was £400 fully comp

Well, it's high compared to lower class, more common cars, like Fiestas, Polos, Golfs, etc.

A 5 series is a mid-sized saloon/estate, so matter how old it is, it will be always more expensive to insure compared to a same age lower class car.

not always when I got my first BMW a 325 coupe E36 my insurance went down to what I was paying to drive a Renault Clio

Often insurance company's see big family/saloon cars as sensible cars for sensible people and cost them accordingly