E39 M5 Tips when Buying
Discussion
Aside from the usual:
- BMW Warranty
- Sat Nav
You can do without one or t'other (mine doesn't have sat nav for example) but just be aware that without satnav resale will suffer, and without a warranty you could be forking out every so often for mechanical bits and bobs.
Look out for the clutch - when I was going to sell mine last year that was the first thing a potential purchasing garage did - just a quick test drive to check that it didn't slip in 4th/5th should be ok. If it goes, i'm told they aren't cheap. And i've heard about some going at low low mileages.
I'd recommend driving more than one - mine had the cylinder block replaced as it's a fairly early one (2000/V) which suffered from the 'nikasil' problems. And when I got the car back i'd say it felt 20% faster. So you need to try and drive them back to back and you will be able to get a feel for a good or potentially bad car. Also if it's an early car like mine, check for smoke on full acceleration and high oil usage (gawd knows how you'll check for that!). Simpler to get a warranty! But both will point to the bore wear/nikasil issues.
Rear cup holders break frequently as do rear anti-roll bar mounts. The ARB mounts are £1 each and a doddle to fit. Nothing much else on the interior suffers I don't think - they're built pretty well.
Can't think of anything else off the top of my head ..
- BMW Warranty
- Sat Nav
You can do without one or t'other (mine doesn't have sat nav for example) but just be aware that without satnav resale will suffer, and without a warranty you could be forking out every so often for mechanical bits and bobs.
Look out for the clutch - when I was going to sell mine last year that was the first thing a potential purchasing garage did - just a quick test drive to check that it didn't slip in 4th/5th should be ok. If it goes, i'm told they aren't cheap. And i've heard about some going at low low mileages.
I'd recommend driving more than one - mine had the cylinder block replaced as it's a fairly early one (2000/V) which suffered from the 'nikasil' problems. And when I got the car back i'd say it felt 20% faster. So you need to try and drive them back to back and you will be able to get a feel for a good or potentially bad car. Also if it's an early car like mine, check for smoke on full acceleration and high oil usage (gawd knows how you'll check for that!). Simpler to get a warranty! But both will point to the bore wear/nikasil issues.
Rear cup holders break frequently as do rear anti-roll bar mounts. The ARB mounts are £1 each and a doddle to fit. Nothing much else on the interior suffers I don't think - they're built pretty well.
Can't think of anything else off the top of my head ..
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