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Thread: Danny's Japan Rot 540i Touring Thread

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    Danny's Japan Rot 540i Touring Thread

    Hey guys,

    At the risk of sounding like a lunatic, I present to you my latest acquisition: a 2000 BMW 540i touring. It has 174,000 miles, a Japan Rot exterior, a Sandbeige interior, Sport package, rear dog net/cargo cover, DSP audio, M-Pars, rear PDC (no front PDC since it's a 2000), and rear self-leveling suspension. It's not fully loaded by any means, but it's nicely equipped for what it is. The engine runs really smoothly, the transmission shifts well, the paint is extremely nice, the interior is relatively clean (for a sandbeige interior at least), and it has brand new Pirelli P-Zero tires on all four corners. I didn't get too many service records, but the car is in pretty good shape so it doesn't really bother me.

    Photo Jul 06, 12 04 41 PM.jpg

    Photo Jul 06, 12 04 25 PM.jpg

    I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE the color. This is the first E39 I've bought where I've loved the color instantly. Grays and blacks are cool, but nothing pleases my eye like a bright red E39. The blacked out sport trim looks awesome, and even though it's a pre-facelift E39 it still looks pretty sweet.

    Currently, there's not much wrong with it:

    - Cluster pixels are missing all over the place. Good thing I have an M5 cluster laying in my garage. I'll probably get Blackknight530i to code it for me.
    - Oil filter housing rubber mounts are broken. Super typical issue with a super easy fix.
    - The AC blower blows at high settings by default with no change, even if I manually try to adjust the fan speed. I can make it blow harder, but the lowest setting is like 75% power. Bad FSU perhaps? If I have to tear apart the whole dash I'll replace the FSU and the blower since it's such a hassle to get in there. Maybe I'll throw in a black dashboard while I'm at it. On the bright side, the AC is painfully cold.
    - Cupholders are half-broken. Not surprised.
    - Right passenger mirror has some de-lamination going on. Should be an easy junkyard fix.
    - Wheels aren't staggered, and two are replicas. The two real ones are fronts, so maybe I'll look into getting a set of rear E38 M-Pars.
    - Brakes feel kinda spongey, but they do stop relatively well. It might need some new fluid and maybe some stainless steel brake lines. Maybe pads too.

    That's pretty much it, and I'm nitpicking for some of those. One thing I'll be doing ASAP is replacing the old style M-Sport steering wheel with the newer one that I bought for my M5 (I'm selling my M5 with the original wheel it came with). It's a 2000 so it's dual stage and therefore should be a plug and play swap. Eventually I'll put in facelift headlights and taillights and M-Sport bumpers front and back, but I'll be doing that after I sell my M5. Right now I'm just going to enjoy the touring as it is.

    Right now I'm in Long Beach, CA. I flew in from Phoenix last night, slept at a friend's apartment, and got the car this morning. I have some work to do for my day job at the moment (I work remotely nowadays) so I'll be driving the touring home later tonight. It's a 5 hour drive in a car that I've barely driven, so that'll be fun. I'll give it a more thorough inspection before I hit the road, just to make sure all the fluids are good.

    (Yes I know I could have posted this in the touring section, but almost nobody goes there, and I like attention. That's why I like red cars.)
    1995 525i 5-speed - Thread

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    Want to trade tourings?
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    Like a lot. Love that color.


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    Quote Originally Posted by dk500 View Post
    Givin it a week

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    HAHA, you really have a thing for 2000 models, huh? Beautiful car Danny. I'd be happy to get your DME programmed to make the M5 cluster work and get the M5 cluster properly mileage corrected and coded for you, just let me know when

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    Hi Danny,


    Welcome to the Touring club !

    We have our own section too ! and yes, plenty of us are there as well as in this main section - some of the Touring specific goodies are discussed and sorted out there - the 'sedan' guys don't need to know !

    Once you spend a bit of time with this and tidy up the necessary bits to make it run well and reliably, you've got the potential to make it look stunning! a nice set of awesome 18 or 19's and a touch lower and a few other bits and pieces ! Any interior shots ?

    JP5 Touring - Another one !

    Cheers, Dennis!

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    Dennis, I know, wtf. He's killing me,,, Still have yet to see another one in person. Just on bf.c


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    I guess you beat Aquila to it!

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    Quote Originally Posted by ColtonBH View Post
    Want to trade tourings?
    Hahahaha no.

    Quote Originally Posted by dk500 View Post
    Givin it a week

    jkjk
    I know it might seem weird coming from me, but I really do want to keep this one. I really really love the color.

    Quote Originally Posted by jp5Touring View Post
    Like a lot. Love that color.
    Of course you do

    Quote Originally Posted by ndz View Post
    Nice Japan Rot!
    Thanks!

    Quote Originally Posted by ColtonBH View Post
    If you change your mind, I will seriously buy it, although I'm sure it's over my price range
    I actually didn't pay all that much for this car, what I paid was more or less average good condition 540i pricing, without the touring tax haha.

    Quote Originally Posted by Mach540 View Post
    Six speed swap??
    Maybe in the future, but I'm enjoying the automatic for now.

    Quote Originally Posted by blackknight530i View Post
    HAHA, you really have a thing for 2000 models, huh? Beautiful car Danny. I'd be happy to get your DME programmed to make the M5 cluster work and get the M5 cluster properly mileage corrected and coded for you, just let me know when
    I'll certainly be getting in touch with you soon

    Quote Originally Posted by DennisCooper View Post
    Hi Danny,


    Welcome to the Touring club !

    We have our own section too ! and yes, plenty of us are there as well as in this main section - some of the Touring specific goodies are discussed and sorted out there - the 'sedan' guys don't need to know !

    Once you spend a bit of time with this and tidy up the necessary bits to make it run well and reliably, you've got the potential to make it look stunning! a nice set of awesome 18 or 19's and a touch lower and a few other bits and pieces ! Any interior shots ?

    JP5 Touring - Another one !

    Cheers, Dennis!
    Thanks for the welcome! You already know how I feel about 19's on E39's... I'm probably going to keep the M-Pars because I love them.

    Quote Originally Posted by jp5Touring View Post
    Dennis, I know, wtf. He's killing me,,, Still have yet to see another one in person. Just on bf.c
    When I saw it on Craigslist I immediately knew I was going to get it. Red sport tourings are extremely uncommon.
    1995 525i 5-speed - Thread

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    Quote Originally Posted by dannyzabolotny View Post
    I'm probably going to keep the M-Pars because I love them.
    Nice car and color! M-Pars on the touring do look great! Congrats.

  14. #14
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    At some point in the drive back, I needed to get a phone charger so I stopped into a CVS, and then I saw a 2003 Jet Black M5. I talked to the owner for a little bit, he was pretty cool.



    And then I found an In N Out in the middle of nowhere. It's where the wind farms are around the I-10.





    I'm loving this color so much that my girlfriend is getting mildly jealous. She likes the color too!
    1995 525i 5-speed - Thread

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    I hope you hit the junkyards in CA first! It's E39 graveyard status lately.

    Congrats though.
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    Good luck bro! Looks fantastic. If you don't mind me asking what are you asking for on the M5? 2000 isn't really a bad year sucks they couldn't have given the facelift couple months early saved enthusiasts a lot of money. Personally, not a huge fan of tourings but that looks great in that color. And I hope I have the chance to check it out sometime.

  17. #17
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    Congratulations! I have finally met my match.



  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dking078 View Post
    I hope you hit the junkyards in CA first! It's E39 graveyard status lately.

    Congrats though.
    I didn't have time to hit up any junkyards, I just got the car and then drove straight back home.

    Quote Originally Posted by justinca540i View Post
    Good luck bro! Looks fantastic. If you don't mind me asking what are you asking for on the M5? 2000 isn't really a bad year sucks they couldn't have given the facelift couple months early saved enthusiasts a lot of money. Personally, not a huge fan of tourings but that looks great in that color. And I hope I have the chance to check it out sometime.
    I just got the repaired Vanos solenoid board from Dr. Vanos today, so if that fixes the Vanos issues I've been having then I'll clean up the M5 and list it for sale. It's just been sitting in my garage for a few weeks now. I'm thinking of listing it for like $12.5k, I think that's a fair price considering that it'll be mechanically perfect. It has fairly good paint, new tires, new brake pads/rotors, the whole suspension has been replaced and feels super right, new rod bearings, new valve cover gaskets, non-leaking power steering, etc.

    Quote Originally Posted by AquilaBMW View Post
    Congratulations! I have finally met my match.
    Oh man, it's funny how things went full circle. Remember that Japanrot 540i that you scooped up from Phoenix like a year ago? I remember posting in that thread being like "man I wish I could do that." Lo and behold, I just flew out to buy a Japanrot 540i touring from California.

    I finally got home at around 11pm, what a looooong drive that was. I left LA at like 1:30pm and I still managed to get myself stuck in some pretty awful traffic. It happens literally every single time I'm in LA. On the bright side, I brought my cassette tape adapter so I was able to listen to music the whole drive home. The DSP system sounds fairly decent in the touring, and that's with a crappy cassette tape adapter. It'll probably sound even better with CDs or if I set up some Grom-type interface for my phone.

    The touring drove flawlessly. It never gave me any problems, all I had to do was put gas in it. The sport seats in this one are oddly comfortable, unlike the terrible seats I had in my M-Sport. The more I look at the car, the more evidence I see that it was pretty well cared for. The wood trim is not faded or cracked at all, the rear cargo area is really clean, the seats have no rips or tears at all, and the car came with more than one key. It's a 3-owner car that has lived in California from day one until now.

    I drove it home fairly quickly, dipping into triple digits here and there. Despite all that, it returned decent gas mileage. That was with the AC on full blast turning the inside of the car into a refrigerator.



    I know those OBC figures are pretty optimistic, but my M5 never even got close to that. And in a way, this lets me have more fun with the touring, since I can push it without worrying about single digit gas mileage. I really don't know why I care about gas mileage with a large V8, but it kept nagging at my soul every time I drove the M5.



    I couldn't resist taking a picture right after sunset
    Last edited by dannyzabolotny; 07-07-2016 at 03:32 AM.
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    Curious I do wonder what is the rarest color ? colors ? Japan Rot has to be up their.


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    Congrats Danny! I love m-pars. Wish my 540i6 had them.

    Anyway, you need facelift headlight, m bumpers and the LED tails and your car will look even better.

    Hope you keep this one.

    Also, I think you can list the m5 a little higher. It only has 100k miles, correct? I was thinking list it at $14k or so
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    Quote Originally Posted by AquilaBMW View Post
    Congratulations! I have finally met my match.
    Lol last year you went to AZ for a Hellrot touring, now Danny took one out of CA.Danny getting back what the Killa done took, there is balance in the E39 universe !!

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    Quote Originally Posted by amancuso View Post
    Super nice!
    Thanks!

    Quote Originally Posted by gmak View Post
    I think I speak for all when I say that it's a good thing your hobby is BMWs and that it isn't body modification.
    Oh yeah. I've been wanting to get a tattoo sleeve on one arm for a while now, but I'd rather spend money on cars at the moment. Plus I still have no idea what I'd want tattooed on me, haha.

    Quote Originally Posted by jp5Touring View Post
    Curious I do wonder what is the rarest color ? colors ? Japan Rot has to be up their.
    Not sure what the rarest color is, but it would probably be an individual color. Japanrot was a color that had to be specially ordered, but it wasn't an individual color, per se. I think RVAE34's wagon is a lot more rare in terms of color, since it's an individual in Mohave Brown.

    Also, Dennis mentioned that in the UK the police often bought Japanrot E39's for use as police cars, so they're quite common over there as used police cars. In general, I'd say red E39's are more common in Europe, because a lot of Europeans were fine with ordering and waiting for the right configuration, whereas most Americans walked into a dealer lot wanting to buy whatever was on the lot, which is why most E39's in the US are black, white, and shades of silver/gray.

    Quote Originally Posted by cnsorial View Post
    Congrats Danny! I love m-pars. Wish my 540i6 had them.

    Anyway, you need facelift headlight, m bumpers and the LED tails and your car will look even better.

    Hope you keep this one.

    Also, I think you can list the m5 a little higher. It only has 100k miles, correct? I was thinking list it at $14k or so
    M-Pars are seriously my favorite BMW wheels. If I were to keep the M5 I would put M-Pars on, I actually prefer their look to the style 65's. M-Pars are also incredibly easy to keep clean and quite cheap to refinish, which makes them a very practical daily driver wheel.

    I'm definitely putting in facelift headlights at some point soon, that's probably going to be the first visual modification I make. The current headlights have non-working adjustors and are hazy beyond belief from 16 years of highway driving. I know I could polish them but I don't even like them all that much so I'll just replace them. I also plan to get Euro facelift taillights, I think the clear/white indicators will contrast and look a lot better than all-red indicators on a red car. Right now the taillights kinda blend in with the color of the car. Schmiedmann has the Euro tails for pretty cheap, so I'll go that route. M-tech bumpers will come after that— OEM M5 bumper for the front and Umnitza M-Sport bumper for the rear. Once that's done I'll also get a Magnaflow to replace the super quiet stock mufflers, along with dual tips. That'll enhance the exhaust sound in a subtle way and shave off some weight too.

    I thought about listing the M5 higher, but the seats are in pretty bad shape, so it would be kinda hard to justify that pricing. The mileage situation is weird too. The cluster says 101k, the title says 101k actual miles, there's no tamper lights of any kind, but the Carfax/Autocheck report shows that at some point it had 170,000 miles. Quite the discrepancy. The M5 doesn't feel like it has that many miles though, it drives like a much younger car. With that in mind, my target audience for this car is the enthusiast, rather than the collector. Plus the 2000 M5's really don't sell for much, because you can buy a 2001 M5 for the $14k range.

    - - - Updated - - -

    And I just got a call from AutohausAZ, saying that my parts are ready. I ordered a new FSU to fix the random fan speed problem, as well as a power steering reservoir lid o-ring, new oil filler cap, and oil filter housing mounts. That's pretty much what I do with every new-to-me E39, since those parts always seem to be broken or leaking.

    After doing some more inspection on the engine last night, I have good reason to believe that the timing chain guides were done on this engine. It runs very quietly, starts with almost no rattle on cold startup and zero rattle when warm. It almost freaks me out with how normal and not M62tu-like the startups are. I also looked inside the engine through the oil filler cap, and the main timing chain looks shiny and quite new, with non of the varnish that you would expect from a 176,000 mile car. At some point I'll buy a boroscope and take a look inside, but I feel pretty good about this engine right now. I guess most of my maintenance money will be going to refresh the suspension instead
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  25. #25
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    OH man that red is killer! Come on over to the touring section, its fun and weird over there.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote Originally Posted by dannyzabolotny View Post
    I guess most of my maintenance money will be going to refresh the suspension instead
    Im completeing my suspension overhaul this week...its sooo worth it.


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