BMW E63 M6 Coupe.... How insane
Discussion
So. It feels a bit like a now or never moment with these.
I'm tempted to swap my 987 Cayman S for one of these. Yes, a very different car.
Looking at them, it appears if you buy one thats been looked after, they aren't absolutely disaster zones (coming from a 987 with bore score woes and a 996 with its own problems too!). Preventative maintenance like rod bearings, using a good specialist, being prepared for expensive clutches, awaiting the throttle actuators plastic cogs dying..... that sort of thing feels manageable.
I'd love to hear from people who've had one.
I'm tempted to swap my 987 Cayman S for one of these. Yes, a very different car.
Looking at them, it appears if you buy one thats been looked after, they aren't absolutely disaster zones (coming from a 987 with bore score woes and a 996 with its own problems too!). Preventative maintenance like rod bearings, using a good specialist, being prepared for expensive clutches, awaiting the throttle actuators plastic cogs dying..... that sort of thing feels manageable.
I'd love to hear from people who've had one.
I had one for 4 years or so. It was a great car to enjoy, although naturally you had to get your head around the gearbox and how to get the most from it.
It drank fuel like you would not believe. 13mpg was fairly common for me, but it was a fun car and so I used it as such. In a run over 20mpg would happen.
I sold mine eventually as I had a wheel wobble at 70mph and I suspect was the steering rack (a lot of investigation and even brand new wheels did not solve it), but there are no new steering racks available at the moment. A refurbished item would have sorted it, but I'd had enough and using non new oe parts would have invalidated my BMW warranty.
The engine is magnificent, the handling balance is great for such a heavy GT, so much so it was good fun on track too.
Go try one, but make sure you buy on condition and have a comprehensive history of work.
It drank fuel like you would not believe. 13mpg was fairly common for me, but it was a fun car and so I used it as such. In a run over 20mpg would happen.
I sold mine eventually as I had a wheel wobble at 70mph and I suspect was the steering rack (a lot of investigation and even brand new wheels did not solve it), but there are no new steering racks available at the moment. A refurbished item would have sorted it, but I'd had enough and using non new oe parts would have invalidated my BMW warranty.
The engine is magnificent, the handling balance is great for such a heavy GT, so much so it was good fun on track too.
Go try one, but make sure you buy on condition and have a comprehensive history of work.
They're priced very well at the moment, I would say they're slightly under priced given what you get for the money.
They are ridiculously fast, the scream all the way up to and past license losing speeds is insane. The noise is infectious and with a few mods they sound even better.
If you've never driven smg you will hate it, but once you're used to it, you can live with it. I find it's slower than the smg2 in the e46 but smoother when left in auto than the smg2.
The fuel just evaporates, 220 is about as much as you will get from a full tank. On a run the best I've had is 26 and it was a boring drive, it usually sits around 10 when being used properly.
Remember they're a GT car, it's not built to hurtle down B roads it's for covering long distances at alarming rates. They do handle but remember it's a barge.
You've got the right idea about looking out for well maintained examples, ultimate velocity are a good specialist to speak to regarding examples coming up for sale as he deals with a lot of V10s.
If I was buying again I would want, rod bearings, high pressure vanos line and injectors taken care of. The latter being a difficult part to source.
Other issues with the V10s are clutches they last about 60k, so factor this in when looking and try to find one that's already had it replaced as again they're nla and bmw will have your pants down.
Other problems you can run into are, Idle actuators these are a bmw part only, throttle actuators shared with the s65 m3 and rebuild units are easy enough to source and fit, vanos solenoids fail and there's 4 to replace.
General servicing and consumables are pretty reasonable considering these were once north of 70k new.
As always buy based on condition and do your homework as above, having had one now for a few years it's hard to walk away from that noise and when they do work well they're a joy to be in or around
They are ridiculously fast, the scream all the way up to and past license losing speeds is insane. The noise is infectious and with a few mods they sound even better.
If you've never driven smg you will hate it, but once you're used to it, you can live with it. I find it's slower than the smg2 in the e46 but smoother when left in auto than the smg2.
The fuel just evaporates, 220 is about as much as you will get from a full tank. On a run the best I've had is 26 and it was a boring drive, it usually sits around 10 when being used properly.
Remember they're a GT car, it's not built to hurtle down B roads it's for covering long distances at alarming rates. They do handle but remember it's a barge.
You've got the right idea about looking out for well maintained examples, ultimate velocity are a good specialist to speak to regarding examples coming up for sale as he deals with a lot of V10s.
If I was buying again I would want, rod bearings, high pressure vanos line and injectors taken care of. The latter being a difficult part to source.
Other issues with the V10s are clutches they last about 60k, so factor this in when looking and try to find one that's already had it replaced as again they're nla and bmw will have your pants down.
Other problems you can run into are, Idle actuators these are a bmw part only, throttle actuators shared with the s65 m3 and rebuild units are easy enough to source and fit, vanos solenoids fail and there's 4 to replace.
General servicing and consumables are pretty reasonable considering these were once north of 70k new.
As always buy based on condition and do your homework as above, having had one now for a few years it's hard to walk away from that noise and when they do work well they're a joy to be in or around
Redish have a bunch of prices listed for parts/fitting - https://www.redish-motorsport.com/E60E61M5S85SMGCl...
I had one for 3 ish years and used as a daily commuter car (100mile round trip), so put just over 50k miles on it. I was visiting the petrol stations every 2 days - they have a stupidly small fuel tank.
Only problem I had with it was that the stereo amplifier broke. Replaced it with an aftermarket item that worked with the factory head unit. They are brilliant cars, but I suspect they like to be used rather than sitting for a few weeks at a time and then being taken out for a 2 hour blast.
I managed to fit 4 adults on shortish journeys, also once 2 triathlon bikes with all the triathlon kit for 2 of us inside the car. Very very versatile.
The SMG box is critised but I loved it, I thought of it as a manual without a clutch pedal and the violence of the upshifts on the most agressive settings was very addictive. And that exhaust note..heavenly. Mine was a convertible so can really hear it singing.
It's the one car I wish I had kept and I occasionally look at them on Autotrader and think about getting anther one - but prices are creeping up. If I bought one I'd either buy one with bearings done (at reputable place) or get them done straight away. Wasn't aware of the lack of availability of some parts, that could be a worry.
Only problem I had with it was that the stereo amplifier broke. Replaced it with an aftermarket item that worked with the factory head unit. They are brilliant cars, but I suspect they like to be used rather than sitting for a few weeks at a time and then being taken out for a 2 hour blast.
I managed to fit 4 adults on shortish journeys, also once 2 triathlon bikes with all the triathlon kit for 2 of us inside the car. Very very versatile.
The SMG box is critised but I loved it, I thought of it as a manual without a clutch pedal and the violence of the upshifts on the most agressive settings was very addictive. And that exhaust note..heavenly. Mine was a convertible so can really hear it singing.
It's the one car I wish I had kept and I occasionally look at them on Autotrader and think about getting anther one - but prices are creeping up. If I bought one I'd either buy one with bearings done (at reputable place) or get them done straight away. Wasn't aware of the lack of availability of some parts, that could be a worry.
They need regular use, which in turn means regular trips to petrol stations.
Ultimately 500 horses requires 500hp worth of fuel to produce them …
Epic cars, but more likely to be ruinously expensive to run, even when compared to a bore-scoring 987.
My best day (fuel wise) was 3 tankfulls and took in a very high speed loop of central and north Wales.
Peak BMW M division IMO.
Ultimately 500 horses requires 500hp worth of fuel to produce them …
Epic cars, but more likely to be ruinously expensive to run, even when compared to a bore-scoring 987.
My best day (fuel wise) was 3 tankfulls and took in a very high speed loop of central and north Wales.
Peak BMW M division IMO.
Great cars but my advice would be try to buy one with under 60K miles then add the BMW Insured Warranty, it's very expensive over 60K.
Mine was on 37K miles full BMW service history, cruising along at 75 on the M25 and it dropped a valve. The bill would have been £7K were it not for the warranty.
SMG is amazing when driving hard but will make you look like a learner if you have to reverse uphill into a parking space. I used mine daily but ultimately sold it because the SMG was such a pain in normal use. Replaced with an M6GC which was better in every aspect except aural pleasure
Mine was on 37K miles full BMW service history, cruising along at 75 on the M25 and it dropped a valve. The bill would have been £7K were it not for the warranty.
SMG is amazing when driving hard but will make you look like a learner if you have to reverse uphill into a parking space. I used mine daily but ultimately sold it because the SMG was such a pain in normal use. Replaced with an M6GC which was better in every aspect except aural pleasure
I've a friend who owned this one...https://oldcolonelcars.co.uk/listing/bmw-m6-v10-e63/
You have to remember, a bit like 911s, that they act like they were new in servicing costs so unless you buy one that has been owned by an enthusiast who has maintained it regardless of cost (the one in the link is just that I understand), then you need to have a decent maintence budget from day one - there are some horror stories, like all expensive cars, but they are relatively few I think.
Like all cars they need to be driven but I've been chatting with friends and they reckon they are massively undervalued currently and the values should be moving up as the a V10 family road car is a rare thing
PS with an Eissenman exhaust the noise is even better
You have to remember, a bit like 911s, that they act like they were new in servicing costs so unless you buy one that has been owned by an enthusiast who has maintained it regardless of cost (the one in the link is just that I understand), then you need to have a decent maintence budget from day one - there are some horror stories, like all expensive cars, but they are relatively few I think.
Like all cars they need to be driven but I've been chatting with friends and they reckon they are massively undervalued currently and the values should be moving up as the a V10 family road car is a rare thing
PS with an Eissenman exhaust the noise is even better
Edited by MrC986 on Friday 21st March 15:13
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