Considering buying 2002 E39 M5, need opinions

[mokrunka]

Hey all, I've found a 1 owner(!) E39 M5 locally that I'm going to go test drive this weekend.

Here is a link to the car http://www.fallcreekmotorcars.com/20...1/Details.aspx.

One of the things I've noticed is that they claim to have all of the maintenance records, one of which is a 2009 clutch replacement. The thing I'm a bit concerned about is that the clutch was reportedly replaced with a "850Ci CLUTCH CONVERSION WITH LIGHT WEIGHT FLYWHEEL AND SHORT THROW SHIFTER".

Do any of you have any knowledge, advice or feedback on this particular replacement? Is this a thing people do with this car? This is my first car of this era, and also my first M car, so I'm not sure how common something like this is.

Thanks for the help.

[windwagen]

Looks nice.... not sure about the mods but I think this is it...
http://www.uucmotorwerks.com/flywheel/V8/

Imo, the price seems a bit on the high side - maybe the condition is extremely good??? My m5 is 100% stock and I love it! Good luck!

[victoriabmw27]

I agree with windwagan about the price, seems a bit high. The car however does appear to be a clean example and I will say they are pretty great cars.

I have never seen a clutch from an e31 used in e39 M but short shift kits are a fairly common mod. At least give it a drive but I would negotiate with the price.

[mokrunka]

Great, thanks for the feedback guys. I also thought that the price was a bit high for the mileage, although it is one owner and appears to be in very good condition.

I'm going to try to get out there today to test drive it; I'll report back how that goes.

[AquilaBMW]

For such a clean car, weird that is missing the rear diffuser. While the price may be on the higher end, it is not completely off the charts, especially for a dealer car. Sub 100K cars go for similar price or even $20K+, this one only has 109K miles on it. One owner with full service history adds to the premium.

[angeleye540i]

If he has records of all sorts of preventative maintenance that price might be in the ballpark it really just depends it can seem to feel and drive like a perfectly good car and need thousands and thousands upon thousands of dollars of work

[angeleye540i]

A lot of people will sell their cars right before it needs its current mileage inspection/service... If it has a whole bunch of new parts on it though the mileage really doesn't matter if it's been taking good care of, I know it's probably almost impossible but if you had record of how often he changed the oil that would be one of the best things to look at as far as major stuff goes... If he has records for rebuilding suspension bushings sway bar links, any kind of motor mounts and tranny mounts are guaranteed to be needed to be replaced if they aren't already, cooling system every part of it... If all that stuff is done recently, and possibly a new alternator, I would say go for it

-- if not talk him down... Showing him retail prices for the parts it needs and est labor, as leverage if need be

[victoriabmw27]

For such a clean car, weird that is missing the rear diffuser.

Completely missed that, good catch!

[auaq]

Looks like it's got some mufflers and probably why the diffuser won't fit anymore.

[mokrunka]

Well, I went and test drove it today. FUN car to drive! I've never driven an M car before, and that was awesome. Fortunately, the salesdude didn't come with on the test drive . It does seem like a solid car, and it really pulls on the highway. My 335 has 80 mph at 12 oclock on the speedo, but the M5 has 100mph up there, which got me in trouble, ha. I'm going to think about whether I'm ready to have a ~$18k toy. There are some minor cosmetic issues, notably the sunroof liner is gone. The car ran very well though, and the short shifter the guy added was awesome. Fired right up on the first try, let it warm up, then did the fun part. I'll update this post if I decide to buy it. Thanks to all you guys for the feedback and discussion!

Also, I think the motor mounts would need to be replaced. When revving while sitting idle, it seemed like there was a fair amount of movement of the motor.

[windwagen]

I wonder if the sunroof liner is stuck in the headliner? When my sunroof is wide open, it dissappears completely. There must be some mechanism that pushes it out. Yeah - M5 can get up to speed with little effort.

[AquilaBMW]

For $18K, I'd say still keep looking to see if there are other options out there. Check on M5 Board to see what members have for sale. Usually, those cars have good history on them. You can get a really nice M5 for that kind of dollar amount.

[Kingpin025]

There are quite a few on M5Board for sale at any given time. I know that if I ever bought a 2nd e39 M5 that is where I'd start looking.