E39 M5 vs E60 M5

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Naqib

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Joined
Sep 23, 2009
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31
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Dear Gents,

I'm keen to buy one of the older M5's as I'm not a turbocharge fan for weekend use. Personally, I've driven both but they are not mine. Fortunately, both were aggresively modified. There's 1 E39 that is on the market by sifu See Wai and there are a few E60's on carlist and Mudah.

Back in 2008, my cousin bought an E60 M5; it was mod to have open port K&N air filters, full Tubi straight exhaust system, BBS LM Michael Schumacher 20 inch wheels and reformatted ECU. He only kept it for a year because he couldn't stand the maintenance and roadtax; that is what he claimed but he only paid once so i don't think it's relevant.

At the end of 2014, a dear family friend who has 2 E39 M5s trusted me to keep 1 running as he drives the other one. This has Dinan manifold, Dinan straight pipes, Ac Schnitzer mufflers, upgraded Brembo brakes, E60 M5 rims, and also upgraded ECU, open port BMC air filters. I'm not sure of the mods in the M5 that he drives.

I'm keen of the E39 because it has 6 speed manual gearbox which means less gearbox headache, less electronics, and I prefer the design of the exterior and interior. However, as far as I'm concerned, only 9 or 10 units of E39 M5 that was sold in Malaysia. That means, the parts especially the engine parts cannot be obtained from the half cut shops.

On the other hand, the only extra point the E60 has is it's newer and slightly better chances to get parts from half cut shops as it's not a three pedalled car.

Any thoughts?
 
It all boils down to your personal preference bro.

My personal preference would be the e39 M5. Love the timeless and sleeper look (means please please oh please dont add in those side vents if u decide on this). Was eyeing one a couple of years back, found one but it had some serious issues (owner mentioned it has con-rod issues, had it changed, dropped down the price, and threw in another S62 engine - which he already has, with the deal). It had Bilstein PSS9 coilover on. Great power, loved the manual. Could not seal the deal as owner asked to deal with an intermediary/broker.

But my judgement could be biased as i hv never driven an e60 M5, as the e60 was never my cup of tea.

Yeah..... get in touch with See Wai...... his is one slick ride.....
 
gendong said:
It all boils down to your personal preference bro.

My personal preference would be the e39 M5. Love the timeless and sleeper look (means please please oh please dont add in those side vents if u decide on this). Was eyeing one a couple of years back, found one but it had some serious issues (owner mentioned it has con-rod issues, had it changed, dropped down the price, and threw in another S62 engine - which he already has, with the deal). It had Bilstein PSS9 coilover on. Great power, loved the manual. Could not seal the deal as owner asked to deal with an intermediary/broker.

But my judgement could be biased as i hv never drived an e60 M5, as the e60 was never my cup of tea.

Yeah..... get in touch with See Wai...... his is one slick ride.....
But See Wai has installed the side grills :'( I have spoken to him. His price is higher then some E60 M5. But the grills.
 
hmmm.... last i saw him (on the road with the m5) was without grills......

pics are fm 2012 here

anyway all the best in ur hunt bro!!
 
I am no M5 expert but S85 got extra 100 ponies compare to S62, but then again the E60 most probably heavier and got more electronics compare to E39.
My vote goes to E39 simply due to its timeless beauty.
 
EEEE30 said:
I am no M5 expert but S85 got extra 100 ponies compare to S62, but then again the E60 most probably heavier and got more electronics compare to E39.
My vote goes to E39 simply due to its timeless beauty.
I second you on the timeless beauty
 
i have driven an m5 before, the sound of the v10 is awesome! the one that i drove also had a tubi exhaust and it sounded like a ferrari! The SMG is something you would have to get used to, I personally really like it, but maintenance would be higher. I like the e39, but if I had the cash, I would probably go with the e60 m5, not as a daily driver, but as a weekend car.

BTW I would never buy parts from local half cut shop, i would rather source parts from ebay.
 
gimli said:
i have driven an m5 before, the sound of the v10 is awesome! the one that i drove also had a tubi exhaust and it sounded like a ferrari! The SMG is something you would have to get used to, I personally really like it, but maintenance would be higher. I like the e39, but if I had the cash, I would probably go with the e60 m5, not as a daily driver, but as a weekend car.

BTW I would never buy parts from local half cut shop, i would rather source parts from ebay.
That's 2 votes E39 and 1 vote E60.

Thanks gimli. Both sounds monstrous with the right exhaust system. With the extra 100 ponies, and technology, no doubt E60 wins hands down. I got to say i'm stuck with the E39 design. Even the F10 is a far fetched for me.

I rather take a slower drive in the E39 or E38 (off topic) compared to any other cars.

Yeah the half cuts are a high risk. The E39 I was driving is in the workshop for almost 2 years now due to lack of parts. I understand that it's less risk to buy online. However, some things may need to be tested before being ordered. After installing, then you start finding fault in other things, and it keeps going. The E39 went to the workshop for air-cond leaking, and then, misfiring, changed the plugs, and then still misfired, changed the coils, and then still misfired, suspected vanos, and then found out that the chain and tensioner is bad, and then found out that the chain rail is bad, and then.....it just goes on....
 
My vote for E39 but I'm biased. I like timeless designs. E39 is a total sleeper. If not for the 4 tailpipes, you can't even tell it's an M5. Chassis-wise, there's no increase in rigidity from E39 to E60.

The series of issues you described is something that happens to every car when they're old enough. Not just M cars. But M car-specific parts are probably harder to come by. Perhaps wanna consider buying a half-cut for parts. Need space to keep it though.
 
ALIAS said:
My vote for E39 but I'm biased. I like timeless designs. E39 is a total sleeper. If not for the 4 tailpipes, you can't even tell it's an M5. Chassis-wise, there's no increase in rigidity from E39 to E60.

The series of issues you described is something that happens to every car when they're old enough. Not just M cars. But M car-specific parts are probably harder to come by. Perhaps wanna consider buying a half-cut for parts. Need space to keep it though.
True. E38, E39, E46, are the best design in my opinion. E65 came like what happened? E66 was acceptable. The headlights and the tail lights is so wrong. So is E60 and E90. My father still keeps the E46. My brother still keeps his E38 despite it hasn't been used for 8 years now. The Fs and Gs are....well the new 7 looks like the new Camry from far. I mean no insult but....you know....

Unfortunately I don't have any space to keep half-cut parts. Thanks for the vote though. That's 3 votes E39 1 vote E60.
 
definitely the e39, but i'm biased towards the 39.

I've not read anything good about the e60 m5 in terms of reliability i.e. rod bearings and SMG are notorious
 
gendong said:
Which car are u looking at currently bro?
There's only 1 E39 for sale out there in the market bro. I would presume E60 is an easier approach.
 
If you're thinking about M5s, then ebay or new parts are your only choice. Not much half cut parts here. But that only applies to the engine part, the transmission i believe is shared with the 540i manual so its more readily available.

Body and interior part are shared across the model so thats easy.

Another vote for the e39 M5.

Note: seewai's car came with the side grill and a CF sticker/black painted roof (cant remember which) when he bought the car. Both has been removed and changed to stock as far as I know. Fender has been changed to new fender and not welded/filled to remove the side grill mods. Correct me if I'm wrong this was 2 or 3 years ago.
 
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