E34 M5... worth it or waste of time

[SCOTT325SE]

discuss please.

[bss325i]

Deffo worth it! Go for a 3.8 though.

Last of the Hand built M cars!

[E30BeemerLad]

I'd go for the safer 3.6, is there a massive difference between the 2 in the real world?

[Ziggy]

I'd say it depends on whether you like E36 M3s. From what I gather, they're a lot less expensive to look after, and from an objective point of view fairly similar in most ways. I much prefer the E34 though, so if you're the same then go for it!

[cecotto479]

Superb value at the moment. Supremely capable. Probably BMW's best built car ever.

[bmwsport]

Defo worth it but suprisingly (with almost any older BMW models) there are lots of turds about. The best one i went to view was a Leicester special owned by a bruva , oil leaks, grey interior turned green, poor bodywork, noisy tappety engine, torn/worn leather door arm rests and worn seats etc the list goes on. Oh and it had apparantly only done 60k lol Yeah right. The deluded owner wanted 8k for it and it was only a 3.6 corpse. I pissed me sen when he said 8k so i walked away while he tried to show me the 'service' history. The best bit was when he took us for a test drive, he wouldn't let me drive and you know by way he had to ram the gears in why he wouldn't and eventually the illuminated (or was) gearknob came straight off into his hand He then said 'Hmmm, thats never happened before' ... MMMMM ok

[Blitz]

Brilliant car.

[djk]

A bargain to buy at the moment, but bloody dear to keep in proper fettle, by all accounts. There was a buying guide a few months back in TBMW, might be worth a look for a few pointers.

[DieselMeister]

Awesome cars but only buy it if you can afford running costs that equal those of Scottish castle.

Parts prices exemplify the phrase "M Tax".

I'm not an expert but looking at these over the last few years leads me to believe you need to spend at least £5k to get one worth having / saving and then potentially budget spending the same again in the first 12-18months. And that's conservatively assuming you won't have anything truly horrific occur (EDC failure, engine failure etc.).

In fact, going purely on running costs, I'd go as far as to say that a decent E39 is better value , if a completely different proposition in terms of the driving experience.

The E34s are supreme vehicles despite the expense though.

[zaust]

E34 is easier to live with every day compared to e39. I would go for the e39 540 though over the m5 e34.

[capri_rob]

They still look fantastic - I see an M-Reg Dark metallic blue one with the "throwing star" wheels most mornings - looks like a proper weapon

[SPADGE]

Having owned a 6 speed 3.8 for a while i can't really say i was over keen to be honest.
It didn't really feel that quick to me and the steering was bloody awful due to my cars dodgy steering box.
Front arms wear very quickly and if the car has the elctronic suspension you are looking at upwards of 700 quid a corner for replacements.
It was a car i had always wanted to own and it was a bit of a disapointment to me.

[DanThe]

Ask bigjoe about the steering box issues

[SCOTT325SE]

points noted gents.

please continue

[E30BeemerLad]

Awesome cars but only buy it if you can afford running costs that equal those of Scottish castle.

Parts prices exemplify the phrase "M Tax".

I'm not an expert but looking at these over the last few years leads me to believe you need to spend at least £5k to get one worth having / saving and then potentially budget spending the same again in the first 12-18months. And that's conservatively assuming you won't have anything truly horrific occur (EDC failure, engine failure etc.).

In fact, going purely on running costs, I'd go as far as to say that a decent E39 is better value , if a completely different proposition in terms of the driving experience.

The E34s are supreme vehicles despite the expense though.

I think this post says it all really mate.

The M5 is in a different league of performance and the parts prices reflect this. I've had similar experiences when going to the Soarer. Radiator £350, front lower wishbones £300 a side. They reckon to fully rebush a soarer with genuine toyota parts will cost you about £3k.

No matter what you buy it's still an old specialist car that will have issues to deal with and I'd say it's more about what you're comfortable spending each month on maintenance and upkeep, as well as unwanted surprises, oh and fuel consumption.

[SCOTT325SE]

well im moving in a few weeks and i'll be 4 miles from work, so will ride the bike to work every day, so not worried about fuel for the monday-friday grind. M5 would be for weekends so even if it does 20mpg on a run, I could live with that, and im actually quite light on the throttle believe it or not. i know full well that a trip to west wales and back would be £130sheets in fuel... im okay with this.

Bits that worry me were the whole electronic throttle thing that I heard fives have (can anyone confirm which years?) and things like brakes, as Ive heard these are major money. My driving style tends to enjoy brakes a bit... not coz i drive like a pussy but because i only brake when i really need to.

I am led to believe that the 34 is the last generation of Five that isnt completely over-run with electrickery.

I only comment from personal experiences, and seen as i've never owned a Five before, cant comment on them, hense me asking here.

Cheers again guys.

[Jesus325iTouring]

Go for it my sahn You've spunked 12 grand and on your Sport,why not spunk some on an M5

[SCOTT325SE]

Go for it my sahn You've spunked 12 grand and on your Sport,why not spunk some on an M5

well, ultimately "bankrupcy" is a pretty good reason.

Im contemplating sticking the 5 engine in the sport.... depends really.

[Jhonno]

and im actually quite light on the throttle believe it or not. i know full well that a trip to west wales and back would be £130sheets in fuel... im okay with this.

So you would be getting an M5 why?

It was a very expensive car in its day, and running costs will still reflect this

[320ise]

scott is your sport finished now? e34's are great cars the m5 must be awesome but the steering box really does let them down esp if there in bad shape. an m5 at this point mint for say 7k can only be an investment.

[bmwparts]

i have a k reg e34 m5 avus blue with oxblood interior bbs alloys silver dishes black centres looks awesome>

only got 65k from new with history and previous mots to back milleage will be up for sale soon

[spook]

If you can afford it, do it, your only here once

[Blitz]

If you really want an E34 M5 get it. You only live once.

[Benho]

theres that m5 engined e30 in the for sale section for 5k up in scotland. couldnt have come up at a better time eh?

[steve_k]

why not go for the e39? like this one

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1998-E39-BMW-5-SE ... 1|294%3A50

i know it's only a 535 but i havwe driven one a few times & they are very capable car's.

or there's this m5

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2001-facelift-BMW ... 1|294%3A50

mite be worth a look.

if i was in the market for one it would be a toss up between the two.