FS 2001 BMW 540iT Touring Wagon, originally on BAT

[TXCatalyst]

NO LONGER AVAILABLE

I have ALL service records and receipts since new! The original owner of this car is Chris Carter who is the creator of the X-Files television series. The original bill of sale bears his name, as well as most of the receipts. There's even a Ten Thirteen Parking Pass in the glove box which is the name of his production studio.

I purchased this Wagon from the Bring-a-Trailer auction site exactly one year ago: https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2001-bmw-540-iat/

I am selling because I ended up purchasing my Dream Wagon from the original auction winner of this: https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1999-bmw-528it/ (Yes, that is THE LSx 427 E39 BMW 6-speed Wagon!)

Here are my 2 Wagons together:
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I see a small amount of bubbling in the Shadowline window trim in two areas, but I see this has been commonly reported by others. The rear bumper has a small 2" vertical crease on the passenger side, as seen in the pictures. The car has been in California or North (Dallas) Texas its entire life.

The service records are extensive and complete, from the original bill of sale, the options sheet, all dealership service and records since new. It has all receipts from the 2nd owner, as well as all records from my ownership.

I feel there are 5 major maintenance item considerations on an E39 540i:
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1. Entire cooling system overhaul every 80k miles (I have already done this for you)
2. Timing chain guides at first rattle or around 120-150k miles. (My car only has 95k miles and I drive 8k miles a year. I was not planning on doing them for 2 more years. I have already done the lower timing chain tensioner.
3. Valley pan gaskets (not critical and not difficult to do, only do this if you are losing coolant and if the coolant loss is not related to maintenance item #1 above) - I have no coolant loss since I did the overhaul.
4. Valve cover gaskets - With the plastic undercarriage tray off, after a few days you can see an oil spot a bit larger than a quarter on the ground. With the under tray on, I have not seen an oil spot on the ground. It is leaking from the valve cover on the driver side. I have already purchased pre-baked and black crinkle powder coated valve covers from a popular Bimmer forum member and it will be included with the sale. I understand I may get a lower sale price because I have chosen not to fix it, as it is not an urgent fix at this time.
5. Upper timing chain cover gaskets - probably done at the same time as #2, but I am not at that mileage yet.

In my 1 year and 6,769 miles of ownership, the car is in far better condition now and I have fixed the following things myself:
1. Fixed the parking distance control sensors (front and back) and PDC works 100%
2. I fixed ALL of the pixel issues, the car has no burnt pixels! I fixed the gauge cluster pixels, the MID pixels and the HVAC pixels.
3. I fixed the rear SLS air bags which sagged after 2 days of sitting. I replaced both rear air bags with OEM, it does not sag whatsoever.
4. I replaced the entire cooling system with the Turner Overhaul kit, this includes:
a. Radiator with upper/lower radiator hoses
b. Expansion tank and cap and hose
c. Thermostat
d. Coolant temperature sensor
e. Vent hose
f. Fan clutch
g. Coolant level sensor
h. Water pump
i. Transmission cooling hoses
j. O-rings, seals, hose clamps
k. Coolant return pipe
l. OEM coolant
m. I torqued to spec all values where specified

My receipt shows $798 for cooling-system parts for all of the above. I'm OCD and did all of the work above myself (minus the gauge cluster pixels, that I was not comfortable doing and paid someone else to do it).

Also, while I was there, per my research, I replaced the lower timing chain tensioner.

I've made 3 modifications, which is the Euro arm rest that is fully padded, but additionally slides forwards and backwards and OPENS to allow for storage. The stock arm rest has an uncomfortable plastic tray to hold a cell phone and does not slide and does not open. The other modification was wiring the Angel Eyes to be on when the ignition is on; I upgraded the bulbs to Umnitza leds.

The last modification is an actual black-dial-face M5 gauge cluster with WORKING oil temp gauge and red/orange leds instead of the stock yellow bulbs in the M5. This cost me over $500 just for the gauge cluster and DME programming to enable the oil temp gauge.

I have to say that this vehicle is in exceptional shape, not for a 16 year old car, but compared to a 5 year old car. The leather seats are in exceptional condition, including the driver seat and bolsters, everything about this car is clean inside and out.

The Hidden Treasure
======================
This car received a new BMW automatic transmission at 69,699 miles, as shown on the dealership invoice; Chris Carter paid over $7000 for it. So you can say the transmission on this car only has 25k miles on it.

540i Badge Placement Mystery Solved
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As pictured, the dealership receipt shows that at 463 miles, the rear hatch was loose from the factory and fell onto the roof and caused hatch damage (less than a month after ownership). The work was subleted to a body shop and they probably didn't have another Wagon for measurement. At that time, they put the 540 on the car in likely the correct distance for a sedan, but not for a Wagon. Please see the original BAT auction pics and comments. I personally added the "i" from a new part order, but unfortunately it seems the point size of the newer 5-series are smaller and the "i" is not of the correct point size from 2001.

In my 7000 miles of ownership in approx. 1 year of driving, I have spent:
1. $798 for the cooling system overhaul
2. $1100 for new (used) M5 wheels and tires
3. $500 for M5 gauge cluster with black dials and orange leds
4. $200 for MID and HVAC pixel fixes
5. $300 for air springs for the rear SLS suspension
6. $300 for crinkle-finish powdercoated valve covers
7. $150 for Umnitza Angel Eye LED bulbs
8. $60 for lower timing chain tensioner
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$3408 in total, that goes with the car; this is not counting any of my free labor

I hope now you can understand why I haven't gotten around to doing the valve cover gaskets myself...I've been busy!

Please feel free to contact me and I can do a Facetime video of the entire car.

Here is a Dropbox link to ALL PHOTOS:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/erhv2y6l9...K8jVeF1Pa?dl=0

p.s. You CAN fit 2 forward-facing Diono Radian RXT child car seats and a rear-facing Nuna baby car seat in the back --- as I have transported my 3 small kids to school/daycare for the past year.
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(Hmmn, so I can't insert more than 5 pics?? In any case, please go to the Dropbox folder for ALL pics)

I'm told that mobile devices don't see the Dropbox pics, so here are ALL PICS uploaded to Flickr:
https://flic.kr/s/aHsm3JvyNm

[TXCatalyst]

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[TXCatalyst]

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[TXCatalyst]

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[Mayorchuck]

Don't edit your original post. It keeps going into Moderated status when you do. It's the Spam filter picking something up due to your low post count, probably the links. I approved it again but we aren't around 24/7 to get it back on the board.

GLWS.

[TXCatalyst]

Thanks Mayorchuck! I edited my original post to add a Dropbox folder and Flickr album.

Also, my eBay ad met the reserve: http://www.ebay.com/itm/2001-BMW-5-S...e/122734778414 So I had to edit the original to say that I guess I'm obligated to the eBay auction now since reserve was met.