I've done it, again! BMW E39 540i Sport (Japanese Import)
Discussion
So... When I sold my previous E39 530i Sport Touring (also a Japanese import); I said I'd only ever visit another E39 if it was a V8 and another Japanese import...
And here it is
I sold the previous F01 early May and hadn't been looking too much at other cars (yeah, right
) and couldn't decide what I wanted. Whether to go higher in budget (c£12k upwards and go more modern/more toys but sacrifice on engine size etc) or pay less (c£8k & below) and buy a project that needs my 'touch' but that starts off as a very solid base with stuff that needs doing, but nothing major; mainly 'looks' and the necessities (ie suspension, brakes, wheels/tyres etc)
And here it is...
Titan silver 2002 E39 540i Sport saloon from the Land of The Rising Sun!
It's done 90k KM (55k miles); full black leather interior; heated front seats, OEM 16:9 head unit with all the Jap gubbins connected still (that don't work so will soon be removed)
Engine is very smooth; very powerful & pulls like a train! Autobox is very smooth/very quiet and changes through the gears superbly (in Sport & 'manual' too)
Cluster is still in KM and I'll be sending it off to AK Speedo to be changed to MPH and miles (properly)
The purchasing has already started too...
- New 18" tyres all round to be fitted Friday (for now I've gone with Nexen N'Fera SU1s (had them before and always found them to be very good) - alloys will soon be removed to be fully refurbed (powdercoated, NOT diamond cut)
- A set of 17x8 Style 66s sourced for winter tyres (will DIY refurb them in gunmetal grey when I collect them)
- ATE Powerdisc brake discs all round and ATE Ceramic pads all round ordered via Autodoc + new brake flexi lines all round
- Front suspension (all arms & drop links) ordered via Autodoc too (a mix of TRW and Moog)
- OEM BMW Anthracite velour car mats ordered and all new M external door trims ordered via BMW Cotswolds today
- 5mm hubcentric shims (for the rear alloys) and 15mm hubcentric spacers ordered as well as the Mteconline 82mm stud conversion ordered today
- Oil & Mahle filters ordered
- Washer bottle pumps ordered as they're fubar (piping needs to be replaced too; oh, what fun)
- Boot liner & carpet ordered also
- The powerfold wing mirrors are buggered; so wil get some standard mirrors for now and see if I can take the powerfold ones apart & fix them (with my sledgehammer)
As it stands the car is very solid & very straight; but it is a 6ft'er (ie any closer than that and you see all it's foibles); so they'll be addressed next (some areas need a decent professional polish, others need a full respray (door handles mainly)
The whole car needs a thorough deep clean & the leather needs an intensive cleaning & conditioning session (small steamer ordered today too)
And that's the start of this project
Enjoy the only pics I've got of it as it stands; I'll take more but only once I've had chance to give it my level of cleaning!
And last but not least; up the drive
And here it is
I sold the previous F01 early May and hadn't been looking too much at other cars (yeah, right
) and couldn't decide what I wanted. Whether to go higher in budget (c£12k upwards and go more modern/more toys but sacrifice on engine size etc) or pay less (c£8k & below) and buy a project that needs my 'touch' but that starts off as a very solid base with stuff that needs doing, but nothing major; mainly 'looks' and the necessities (ie suspension, brakes, wheels/tyres etc)And here it is...
Titan silver 2002 E39 540i Sport saloon from the Land of The Rising Sun!
It's done 90k KM (55k miles); full black leather interior; heated front seats, OEM 16:9 head unit with all the Jap gubbins connected still (that don't work so will soon be removed)
Engine is very smooth; very powerful & pulls like a train! Autobox is very smooth/very quiet and changes through the gears superbly (in Sport & 'manual' too)
Cluster is still in KM and I'll be sending it off to AK Speedo to be changed to MPH and miles (properly)
The purchasing has already started too...
- New 18" tyres all round to be fitted Friday (for now I've gone with Nexen N'Fera SU1s (had them before and always found them to be very good) - alloys will soon be removed to be fully refurbed (powdercoated, NOT diamond cut)
- A set of 17x8 Style 66s sourced for winter tyres (will DIY refurb them in gunmetal grey when I collect them)
- ATE Powerdisc brake discs all round and ATE Ceramic pads all round ordered via Autodoc + new brake flexi lines all round
- Front suspension (all arms & drop links) ordered via Autodoc too (a mix of TRW and Moog)
- OEM BMW Anthracite velour car mats ordered and all new M external door trims ordered via BMW Cotswolds today
- 5mm hubcentric shims (for the rear alloys) and 15mm hubcentric spacers ordered as well as the Mteconline 82mm stud conversion ordered today
- Oil & Mahle filters ordered
- Washer bottle pumps ordered as they're fubar (piping needs to be replaced too; oh, what fun)
- Boot liner & carpet ordered also
- The powerfold wing mirrors are buggered; so wil get some standard mirrors for now and see if I can take the powerfold ones apart & fix them (with my sledgehammer)
As it stands the car is very solid & very straight; but it is a 6ft'er (ie any closer than that and you see all it's foibles); so they'll be addressed next (some areas need a decent professional polish, others need a full respray (door handles mainly)
The whole car needs a thorough deep clean & the leather needs an intensive cleaning & conditioning session (small steamer ordered today too)
And that's the start of this project
Enjoy the only pics I've got of it as it stands; I'll take more but only once I've had chance to give it my level of cleaning!
And last but not least; up the drive
Mod edit: Japanese spelt out in full
Court_S said:
Looks well that Dan.
I love an E39, those are my favourite wheels for the E39 too. Add in a V8, and that’s a cracking car. Looking forward to seeing you crack on with it and get it looking A1.
It's a great base for a project palI love an E39, those are my favourite wheels for the E39 too. Add in a V8, and that’s a cracking car. Looking forward to seeing you crack on with it and get it looking A1.
The alloys are disgusting! They'll soon get refurbed, once the tyres have been fitted Friday etc
I'll probably collect the 17" Style 66s next week and then the car can sit on the drive whilst I get the Style 37s refurbished!
Undecided which colour; but thinking platinum silver again (although Ferric Grey springs to mind again); the purists may look to string me up though
MercedesClassic said:
Ah drat I was hoping you'd buy that E63 it looked mint. Did you enquire about it at all?
Nice BMW those, engine, alloys, colour all so good. Looking forward to seeing the progress.
I did but the bork factor settled it for me. Plus I’m very savvy with the E39s, my ‘comfort zone’ Nice BMW those, engine, alloys, colour all so good. Looking forward to seeing the progress.
& wanted a project really…
d_a_n1979 said:
Undecided which colour; but thinking platinum silver again (although Ferric Grey springs to mind again); the purists may look to string me up though
Sod what they think, it’s your car. I think the grey works really well on titanium silver plus a wheel colour isn’t exactly permanent.Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff