Finally upgraded to the E39!

[Jose E34]

I don't think my car is missing the reservoir as it squirts water when you wash the windshield. I don't have the headlight washers so I think that's a dedicated tank for that feature like auaq mentioned.

Ahh. Alright. I know mine is either empty or almost there, since the car keeps asking for it.

[bullard123]

Yeah its in this pic of my engine:

[OnTheFence]

Let's say you are thinking of buying a 2001-2003 E39 . It's been owned by a proper owner, but he's simply never had to do anything to fix it. He thinks it's a great car, and may or may not recognize that it's going to need a heap of servicing for the next 100k miles. In theory, say you bought a car that simply was never serviced beyond oil/tires/brakes. What can you look out for? Let's make a list!

Engine:

1. Air filter
2. Cabin air filter
3. New wipers
4. New Battery
5. New tires
6. Change all fluids: Differential oil, transmission oil, flush power steering fluid
7. Cooling system; water pump, radiator, thermostat and housing,
8. Sepentine belt, tensioners, pulleys, fan, fan clutch
9. Oil leaks: Oil Filter Housing Gasket leak, Valve Cover gasket leak.
10. Replace broken headlight adjusters
11. New brake pads and rotors
12. Bleed brake fluid
13. Replace all vacuum lines
14. Spark plugs & boots
15. Fuel filter
16. Replace power steering reservoir and hoses
17. Replace entire front suspension: Struts, control arms, thrust arms, sway bar bushings, etc.
18. Change DISA value (flap breaks)
19. SAP valve (Secondary Air Pump)
20. Engine and transmission mounts
21. Replace VANOS seals
22. Fix cluster pixels

Things you can replace before they fail:

1. MAF Sensor
2. O2 sensors (pre-cat)
3. Intake boots
4. Alternator
5. Fuel fump
6. Replace coils
7. Camshaft and Crankshaft Position Sensors

Set aside money for these possible failures:

1. Fix ABS Module
2. New Window Regulators
3. FSU (Final Stage Unit) Errant blower motor
4. CCV - Gets clogged. Rough idle
5. Center support bearing (CSB)
6. Guibo
7. Rebuild transmission
8. Catalytic Converters
9. New exhaust
10. A/C compressor
11. Broken sunroof

http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...5&postcount=14
http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...4&postcount=11
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...29&postcount=6

[Aryana]

That list has been printed and will hang on my shop wall. Thanks!

[Aryana]

Ok, finally got her all cleaned up to my standards and removed the dealer spam off the bumpers.

[E39540V8]

Sweet ride, well done

[auaq]

Apparently your car does not have the headlight washers and, hence, no reservoir ahead of the ABS unit. Heh, this makes my car cooler than yours!

[Aryana]

Mine is lighter! Bwahahaha!

Oops, I just had a burger so I guess we're even again...

[auaq]

Meh ... you may still have the mechanical fan while I don't, so I'm lighter.

[RuskiE39]

Great find, car looks super clean! Too bad its not a 5 spd eh?

- - - Updated - - -

Let's say you are thinking of buying a 2001-2003 E39 . It's been owned by a proper owner, but he's simply never had to do anything to fix it. He thinks it's a great car, and may or may not recognize that it's going to need a heap of servicing for the next 100k miles. In theory, say you bought a car that simply was never serviced beyond oil/tires/brakes. What can you look out for? Let's make a list!

Engine:

1. Air filter
2. Cabin air filter
3. New wipers
4. New Battery
5. New tires
6. Change all fluids: Differential oil, transmission oil, flush power steering fluid
7. Cooling system; water pump, radiator, thermostat and housing,
8. Sepentine belt, tensioners, pulleys, fan, fan clutch
9. Oil leaks: Oil Filter Housing Gasket leak, Valve Cover gasket leak.
10. Replace broken headlight adjusters
11. New brake pads and rotors
12. Bleed brake fluid
13. Replace all vacuum lines
14. Spark plugs & boots
15. Fuel filter
16. Replace power steering reservoir and hoses
17. Replace entire front suspension: Struts, control arms, thrust arms, sway bar bushings, etc.
18. Change DISA value (flap breaks)
19. SAP valve (Secondary Air Pump)
20. Engine and transmission mounts
21. Replace VANOS seals
22. Fix cluster pixels

Things you can replace before they fail:

1. MAF Sensor
2. O2 sensors (pre-cat)
3. Intake boots
4. Alternator
5. Fuel fump
6. Replace coils
7. Camshaft and Crankshaft Position Sensors

Set aside money for these possible failures:

1. Fix ABS Module
2. New Window Regulators
3. FSU (Final Stage Unit) Errant blower motor
4. CCV - Gets clogged. Rough idle
5. Center support bearing (CSB)
6. Guibo
7. Rebuild transmission
8. Catalytic Converters
9. New exhaust
10. A/C compressor
11. Broken sunroof

http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...5&postcount=14
http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...4&postcount=11
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...29&postcount=6

X2, I saved this as a guideline for when I purchase my e39. Thanks.

[Aryana]

5 speed would have been nice, but I'm stuck is traffic a lot here in the SF Bay Area for work and the slush box makes life really comfortable. I'm an old man now I guess

The SMG shift pattern on the 2003 Steptronic makes the slime shifter seem a little bit sporty at least!

[tmvE39E53Z32TT]

Nice E39. Look just like my 01 Anthracite in picture. I wonder if BMW change the paint name.

[Aryana]

Yeah, they look pretty close.

[Aryana]

Installed the manual sunshade today. I picked it up from the dealer and thought, "This looks easy! Only 2 nuts/bolts." Man, I was I way off..it took about an hour to get the shelf out and put it all back together, but I like it!

[Jose E34]

It looks nice. I was thinking about buying the back and the two for the back doors for mine. Not to postive about it though. Ill tint the windows first before buying them.

[Aryana]

Thanks. I would love to tint but CA doesn't allow the front side windows and I don't want just the rear tinted.

[auaq]

That's a good upgrade.

[Aryana]

The dealer told me the M5 floor mats will only have the ///M logo, but they came in and say M5...I still put em in though, and figure as long as nobody but me sees em, I won't be a poser.

They aren't a perfect color match like I thought they would be. These anthracite ones are just a slight bit lighter shade in color to the black original ones. Very hard to notice unless you have them side by side.

[Aryana]

Removed the ash tray and replaced it with the coin tray too.

What's under the sliding armrest that prevented them from putting more storage in the center console?

[cwise12]

The dealer told me the M5 floor mats will only have the ///M logo, but they came in and say M5...I still put em in though, and figure as long as nobody but me sees em, I won't be a poser.

It's a shame that you can't get ones from BMW that just say ///M. The only place to find them is on ebay, and the're almost certainly very poor quality. Interior looks flawless!

Under the center console are wires to connect to the bmw phone system, should you have installed it. You can purchase different arm rest units that actually have storage under them... all it takes is two screws to remove the arm rest!

[auaq]

I think I've seen a video where someone actually replaced the E39 armrest with an E38 armrest which I thought was a cool feature to do. You may want to give a try.

[Aryana]

The E38 armrest retrofit looks pretty good, and the euro E39 armrest with the storage below is a good option too. The storage gain with both is so minimal, I'll probably just live with the stock setup for awhile.

Next priority is the DICE module so I can get Bluetooth connectivity for my phone. In parallel, I'm starting to shop around and decide what to do on my cooling system rebuild. I'm leaning towards an all aluminum rad with an electric fan to eliminate the engine driven viscous clutch fan.

So much to do...I'm planning on documenting everything here so that the next person who gets this car has a good reference of the cars history.

[BMW540san]

Nice car and welcome. I found the used euro armrest and like the look and functionality much more than old USA only armrest.

[Aryana]

Very nice. It's worth it alone to get rid of that useless narrow tray on top.

I'm keeping my eye out for a euro slider in black leather now. Thanks!

[tmvE39E53Z32TT]

There's a member in Europe, who get them pretty often and posted in the classified section. eBay has some too.
Your E39 is CLEAN, Aryana.