hey guys , 97 540i auto. I have been noticing in just the past 2 or 3 years peoples reaction to my car. Guys still love it mostly , especially when they hear the exhaust note with the muffler delete. I get compliments on the sound wherever I go. Often asked if i have an Ls1 swap lol. Anyhow, I notice women dont seem to like my car very much? I often see peoples faces when im at a light and they pull up behind me. Women are usually chuckling for some reason. The angel eyes on the front often make people look like they are unconfortable too. BTW these lights are right at home on an e39. E39 was one of the first cars in the world way back in the day to come with halos or LED lights. Everyone else copied. Anyway, why would someone laugh at an e39?
Electric Fan conversion, 840Ci thermostat, Dinan style CAI,de-screened MAF, Dinan transmission chip, 255lph LS1 fuel pump, drilled slotted rotors, 3.15 differential, Bel rx65 radar (hard-wired). Hemi Killer!
I haven’t noticed anything like that. My wife cares for cars with a little less enthusiasm than she cares for the dishwasher. One day we timed coming home together at random, with me following her. She said she noticed a really good looking car behind her, then eventually realized it was mine. Other than the ridiculously ugly, I think that is the only time I’ve heard her comment on a cars appearance.
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2001 Salvage Title 540i
My build thread: https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...toive-decision
My current gf also says she liked this dudes 2015 VW jetta 4 cylinder much better than mine, i asked her why and she said it looks newer.
Electric Fan conversion, 840Ci thermostat, Dinan style CAI,de-screened MAF, Dinan transmission chip, 255lph LS1 fuel pump, drilled slotted rotors, 3.15 differential, Bel rx65 radar (hard-wired). Hemi Killer!
I wondered if the “newer” might be at work. With a new Honda Civic looking like a flying cloud of knives, and everything trying to be an angular, aggressive looking race car, I guess our cars might finally start to look dated (the fact that this took 20 years to happen speaks to how ahead of its time the design was). I’ll stick with dated, thank you
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2001 Salvage Title 540i
My build thread: https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...toive-decision
yes I hear you man, this car is a blast to drive and more comfortable than anything newer I have tried. I drove a buddy's newer 535i twin turbo and it felt like any other new luxtury car nowadays. If you blind folded me it could have felt like a caddilac or a Camry.
Electric Fan conversion, 840Ci thermostat, Dinan style CAI,de-screened MAF, Dinan transmission chip, 255lph LS1 fuel pump, drilled slotted rotors, 3.15 differential, Bel rx65 radar (hard-wired). Hemi Killer!
I don't think anyone cares about my e39. Sometimes other e39 tries to race me. My GF only knows about it because I gave her my old 528.
If I get anything newer than this beamer, it would have to be a 550i or something with the N54 engine with a Jb4 lol . My 540i already beats my buddys 535i with the N54.
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I get a slew of cars trying to race me or "traffic race" me every time i drive it. Its usually pick up trucks that think they are fast or new 4 cylinder cars or v6 sedans. Ocassically a Dodge Charger hemi. People have no clue
Electric Fan conversion, 840Ci thermostat, Dinan style CAI,de-screened MAF, Dinan transmission chip, 255lph LS1 fuel pump, drilled slotted rotors, 3.15 differential, Bel rx65 radar (hard-wired). Hemi Killer!
Teenage kids (boys) on bicycles tell me my car is cool. Random women don't care. The wife hates it. Her exact words: "I hate that F****** car!"
I always get a little excited when I see another e39 though.
2003 540i/6
I had a couple, younger man and woman in their 20's, give my Touring a couple of long looks and smiles on the highway heading home a few weeks ago. I had the cruise set and was chillin in the right lane as they accelerated by and slowed down a few times and as they did, they kept looking my way. I'm thinking the smiles were ones of appreciation and not ones of "hey check out that funny looking dude in the funky wagon." So I'm thinking...haha!
BTW, my wife thinks it's cool. She likes the power mainly. She's not a fan of the wagon.
Last edited by Rossagge; 03-08-2019 at 12:09 PM.
Ed
________________________________________________
-2002 540iT Sport-
Previous Bimmers. - 2000 540iA Sport | 2000 540i6 Sport | 2000 M5 | 2000 740i customized | 2000 323Ci | [Bikes 2012 f800GS | 2014 R1200GS]
Current Stable - 2011 VW Touareg TDi | 2016 Mazda 3 Hatch | 2019 Ram 2500 6.4L Hemi 4x4 Big Horn Off-Road
Keep on modding and fixing!..
Who cares what other morons think about when they see your car....
Set the controls for the heart of the sun
I've only ever gotten compliments on my E39's from other car guys, otherwise women don't seem to care. Which is fine because I've been with my girlfriend for 9 years now and have no need to attract random females. My girlfriend doesn't seem to care about them either, she's mostly concerned over whether the car has heated seats or not (even in Phoenix she's always cold) and that the doors are really heavy. For what it's worth, my girlfriend likes my current E46 a lot more, she says it feels way newer inside and she likes the more functional stock cupholders haha
1995 525i 5-speed - Thread
Most people are too self-absorbed to notice you. Enjoy the car.
"Newer" cars to me make me think that the owner is likely foolish with their finances..
I LOVE the looks of my old 95 M3 but get way more compliments, comments, and stares in my Impreza RS.
Dropping kids off at school, I guess they care what their parents drive and chat about it.
Once again they all love the Impreza and the X5 with 20's is a decent hit too but I'm told the M3 just "looks like a regular car".. They are nutz!
I like the M3 looks the best but I guess it just flies under the radar of the normies..
The Porsche might actually get driven some this summer for the first time besides just testing runs and I'm curious to see what reactions it will get..
Hopefully people will think it's slow
I wouldn't be upset about what other people think of your car. It's just proof that you know something they don't..
Last edited by fasteddie313; 03-08-2019 at 01:37 PM.
E36 M3 S50 - E53 X5 M54 - 1980 Porsche 931 - 2001 Impreza RS25
To most people, there are 3 kinds of vehicles: cars, trucks, and Ferraris. They only notice the last one, and everything else might as well be a beige 2001 Camry.
An old BMW is the same as a beige 2001 Camry to people who aren't old BMW enthusiasts, it doesn't matter if it's a pristine E31 8-series or a beater E36, it's still the same as a beige 2001 Camry.
Last edited by MotorMouth93; 03-08-2019 at 01:50 PM.
Women usually wet their panties when they see my interior in person.
As one other response mentioned, over-tired, lifted pickup truck types want to find out they are still trucks, and not fast.
I don't know about other women, but my wife loves it, and won't let me sell even though we now have too many cars after an impulsive Porsche purchase.
Note to Ninetyseven1: these are "bimmers." "Beamers" are motorcycles!
I live in the town of Franklin indiana and people are 50 50 with my 99 540 cat back.
One time I was driving home from Whiteland and a guy in a new chevy was following close. After I gave it a few good stomps we met at a light. He got up next to me. (my windows were already down) he rolled his window down and said the car sounded great.
Then again 80 percent of the people that I work with(mechanic shop) say it sounds like crap. Then again they give bmws the nick name Big Money Wasted.
When I cruze in first and second through down some people look at me sour. Some men just stare with a blank face...
I consider my car to be the only non stock 540 e39 in town besides one other guy who drives a fully stock mtec style 540 pre face lift....
One time me and him met at a gas station after I had seen him drive around town alot... This was our first time meeting.
He said he hates how my bmw is louder then his and he said he rather perfure super quite. But he loved my halos and my 19 inch rims...
Idk I honestly think that it's because it's 2019 and bmw has ruined alot of its reputation after the e39, e46, e38 years.
My girlfriend was a mustang chick and now all she wants after meeting me is a e46 or an e36
We will be buying her one here soon.
I feel like people are too quick to judge before they actually see the cars and live with them and treat them properly.
My 540 is my 3rd bmw. I've owned a focus roush and a Honda accord. Fox body mustang... The only cars I will ever buy for the rest of my life are bmws. Bmw is now in my blood and my kids and family will have bmws.
There the ultimate driving machine / pleasure for a reason. Just gotta be a good diyer or have good chunks of labor money
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My wife loves our e39. I even got her to pose with it.
I do not believe in a risk free society where the thrill of living is traded for the safety of existence. Nick Ienatsch
The law does NOT determine "right" from "wrong". They are unrelated.
If you put cheap parts on your car, you will soon have a cheap parts car.
i bought mine cuz its what i wanted, not for others opinions of it. while its nice to get compliments (theyre usually from other bimmer owners), its not something i seek out. my grumpy old fa*t moment.
I still get lots of compliments on my car. Although the front looks a little dated, from the rear 3/4 view the car looks awsome, especially when it's just been washed.
I do not believe in a risk free society where the thrill of living is traded for the safety of existence. Nick Ienatsch
The law does NOT determine "right" from "wrong". They are unrelated.
If you put cheap parts on your car, you will soon have a cheap parts car.
Loud pipes doesn't do this for you?
girls (4).jpg
Last edited by ross1; 03-09-2019 at 05:07 PM.
If you can leave two black stripes from the exit of one corner to the braking zone of the next, you have enough horsepower. - Mark Donohue
A friend of mine told me, last winter, that she loved the "cool headlights" (the angel eyes) on me 530i5. So far, she has been one of the few who has been interested in my car, but many people notice it--they just don't say anything for a while. People do ask me how I keep it so clean (especially with all the snow and sand on roads around here in winter), and I tell them the key is having a car that breaks frequently, and therefore it is always sitting broken in the garage when the weather is bad!
I also have a leather Porsche crest on my key chain (I know, I know... I say I like the color) and some girl came up to me and said: "Wait, do you really drive a Porsche?!?" I felt like a bit of an a**, although she thought the E39 was pretty cool too, though.
Check out my car blog here: exhaustfumes.blog
Gone: 1995 525i5, 1995 740iA, 2006 S60R 6MT, 2000 540iT, 1999 ML320, 2007 335i6
The E39 is classy and understated, best presented when kept maintained, clean and OEM+. My green 2001 530i I sold to my father still gets lots of looks and compliments in his town, it is unusual to see a clean 18 year old 5 series these days. On the flip side, my wife has never liked any of my E39's and says it's an old man's car, which I don't disagree with. We buy into the E39 for it's build quality, drive, comfort, and relatively easy DIY not the attention it gets from young women (which is not much lol).
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