Old M5s!

Holy ****. Thats me! Except i'm 18 now. Thats how i was when i was 16. Wanted an old M3 or E30 M3 sooo bad. You talk about priorities, you need to understand that with these big cars come big repair bills and big $$$ for insurance. I'll never forget what someone said to me (on here if i remember correctly). "You gotta start off with crap to appreciate the good stuff". Start from the bottom and it'll make that drive so much better when you finally have it.

Just my .02


Btw, the old M5's are nothing compared to the E30 M3's




~Chris

 

The old M5's were great cars. The first ones were very exciting to drive as they felt more sporty than the newer ones. The torquiness of the inline engine was astounding compared to other cars the same year model. It really performed a lot better than the 256hp it claimed.

Maintenance is a paramount issue on these cars. Oil changes on a regular basis and regular service done on a 7500-9000 mile rotation. Count on more extensive services at the 30k,60k,90k and over range. Keep the service up and you should not have any real problems. Just one word on service though--expensive....

Good luck on your search. I do question this car as a first car as it could be a real handful in some situations and the shifter is rather notchy and without some real time behind the wheel you could get yourself into trouble very easily.

I was with BMW from 1984-2000 before moving to Ferrari and was the GM at a BMW dealership out is west Texas from 1986-2000 so I have a real love for the cars. Still drive a 1986 325 daily that has over 210,000 miles on it and has never had the head off. Maintenance, maintenance, maintenance.....just do it!!!!!

 

The e34 is atleast here in europe great value for money, that is if you find one that hasn't gotten a good beating. For some reason I am affected to the e34 evo 3,8l 6speed wagon.

Here are some good enthusiast for all the model years of M5 http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/

 

If I remember correctly, replacing the timing chain is a real financial killer. Other than Audiguy is correct as for everything else. These cars are indeed classics, the M6 is still one of my personal favorites.

 

Yes, the last iteration of the e34 M5, the 3.8litre Nurburgring specs is awesome.Sounds heavenly, and looks the business. But as the above post said, replacing the timing chain and associated gubbins ( every 100k miles) is a real 'bank account draining' exercise. Great cars the e28/34 M5s are, make sure you're not committing financial suicide at such an early age.

 

I bought my wife an e34 M5 about 10 years ago and she used it as her daily driver for several years. The BMW M5 I-6 has to be one of the best sounding engines in the world! I wish BMW would have stayed with the I-6 in the later e39 and e60 M5s.

 

glad you dtiched the turbo teg idea! Get a real car like the M5.......also the m5 with 165k miles will be way more reliable than a turbo'd teg.

 

Seriously- it's one of the few engines that I can recall even many years later. A buddy of mine had a (rare?) green '93 E34 that was a very entertaining ride.

Check out the movie "Ronin" for a good M5 chase scene.

 

We are more alike than you know. Its not mine, its my Dads and he too says there is no way i'm driving it a lot.

 

Like Audiguy who posted here I also sold both those M5 versions when they were new at the BMW dealer I worked for.

Problem with owning one now is still the same as it was when the car was 4 years old and just came out of warranty......BMW Motorsport low volume production specific parts (of which their are a lot of on that car) are veeerryyyy expensive. We just did a timing chain in our shop on an 88 M5......$$$......I've seen people buy cosmetically perfect M6's and M5's for $25K CAD and spend an equivalent amount in the shop.

I love the MY88 M5's.....they ran like snot and were the true sleeper concept personified, as no one back then knew what the "M" badge meant.

 

An M535is is not a bad alternative. Guys, thoughts? It's basically a higher output of the 5 series with a sport bodykit, mostly cosmetically indistinguishable from the M5. I'd love to own one of these M5's, but insurance would eat me alive.

 

I guess you'll have to get a newer 5er then.

 

For probably similar price to a useable/driveable not run into the ground e34 M5, you could opt for a newer 97ish 540i sport 6 spd - not quite the M in terms of rarity, suspension, power, etc, but the torque is nice, and Dad should be ok with the reliability, safety, and repair costs (newer 5's are shockingly cheap to fix, parts are cheap, and if you find a good indy mech, so is labor). Lots of airbags, classy, just not the 'vintage' M that you were discussing. If 8 cyl isn't your cup of tea, even the 525, 528, and 530 are interesting, but harder to find manual trans and you lose a cog.

If you need 4 doors, e36 M3 sedan would be a nice alternative, cheaper to repair than other M cars, good reliability. Audi S4 biturbo would be another to keep in mind since Dad likes airbags and safety. I'm inferring from your interest in higher mile e34's that you're working on a 10-15k budget, would that be a safe assumption?

 

Shoot, if you're looking at sedans, the pricing should be in the 8-12k range (particularly since you were willing to consider a 165k M5; a 165k M3 sedan should not only be relatively bulletproof if maintenance is up to date, but should also be 7-10k at most)...remember, while advertised prices on these may be high, they are NOT selling very well, it is not an overtly loved car, especially in the boy racer crowd, and they tend to sell quite cheap. If you like to play a bit, stick with a 95, make sure the water pump update is done (plastic impellers through 96, 97 or 98 depending on who you believe) and you have an OBDI car that takes to smaller mods like chips and intakes and exhausts pretty well - if you prefer stock, I'd recommend the 3.2L from 96+ as it's a little more enjoyable in stock form but not as shining when modified.

The problem is you won't find an airbag classic...unless maybe you go with a 190e 4 cam or something like that...maybe a 560sel but I'm not familiar enough with the older benzes to know if they were airbagged (my 89 Porsche is so I'd have thought that the e34's would have been pretty well safety equipped as well but I assume that maybe he insists on side airbags since you mentioned "not enough")...however, parts and repairs will likely cost more than on the bimmers, plus it's a lot harder to source a manual transmission car which it sounds like you prefer from the cars you've mentioned. Again, if airbags are a must for dad, I think the closest to a 'modern classic' you'll find would be the e36 m3, the 98 and 99's should have side airbags as well, not sure about earlier cars, and they do have a more classic feel than the 5 series (though dollar for dollar I'd still prefer the 540 personally)...

 

Sounds like 95 would be great, but you have to check on whether side air bags were available for the earlier cars, I don't remember off the top of my head. Budget-wise they'd work, and I've played with a few - they're great cars, cheap parts, easy to work on, handle great, and are a great car to go from garage to track in; plus you can sell dad on the fact that as an M brand car, you could probably sell it in a few years when it's time to upgrade and won't lose your shirt (or his)

If you want, I helped a buddy of mine with a 98 M3 when he came to visit, and I think I remember seeing a black sedan around my area...not sure your time frame, but I could check and see if it's still around...

 

Overpriced, but a nice looking car!

 

Kelly is a way for dealers to overcharge in some cases - in this case, it's just not reflective of the market; any $8500 e34 is going to be a hunk of crap - it is NOT indicative of the real world market on either side of the equasion. When you're ready, let me know, I'll give you an idea of what they are bringing wholesale at auctions like Manheim and you can work from there...at least you'll have some ammunition.