BMW E39 M5 | The Masterpiece M Car

I'm here with Greg he's the owner of Chicago auto pros which we've started to work with on detailing and washing but he's also the owner more importantly the owner of this what is this tell me about it this is a 2000 BMW m5 it's called an e39 if everyone knows what an e39 is I've owned it for about four or five years and it's a car I just I've always wanted it's a super badass sports sedan it's fast it's quiet and it's nice it's a nice sleeper it's uh you can drive down the road and nobody knows what it is it doesn't scream that my mother didn't hug me enough it's still a badass sports car [Music] [Music] [Music] it's remarkable and frightening how quickly time moves on I remember 20 years ago sitting at my computer desk dreaming of one day sitting in this car or driving it in here I am better late than never now that I'm inside the 2000 m5 there's a few things I noticed clearly aesthetic design on interior spaces has changed a little bit but not as much as you would think now let's talk about something that stands out physical controls the physical control structure on the centre stack it's timeless everything works volume knobs tuning knobs you know shortcut buttons eject buttons track select buttons the HVAC controls all are intuitive you know exactly what's going on and you have a separate digital display to know your temperature and you know what all of this translates to today anybody can get in this car whether you're young or old and know exactly what the hell's going on the thing that has not aged well is the electronics or the tech that they tried to pile in here now the granite this was cutting-edge at the time you had a cd-rom based navigation unit obviously it's not online this was before telematics and all that before they had USB or micro storage devices so you literally had to put all that map data on a CD which meant it's pretty much frozen in time the LCD screen here is non-touch you use a rotary knob which you can see was kind of the starting point for I Drive now you did also have your DSP or EQ settings on the screen which removed it from the physical realm so a lot of this was the foundation of how it all started but it does not age well and this is one of the things that I talk about on modern cars people get so hyped about electronics and this is exactly the same thing you're gonna see in newer cars in about 10 years all of this stuff is gonna be outdated all the things that still work are the tried-and-true physical stuff and one of the best things about this as well is it had integrated self phones designed by Motorola for BMW so you could press this eject button you get this star tech phone from moto and you can pick up and make a call and of course the battery is dead and I found a spare star tag battery but it's dead I mean it's been geez over 20 years since I used it but it's just a cool piece of history that sits here and also annoys the hell out of me because the eject button for this damn phone is right on the center of the armrest so it always pops up when I'm driving but everything else is classic BMW stuff the stitching on the dash the suede headliner everything is so solid and quiet in here it's exactly what you would expect from an m5 and honestly this car feels way better than I thought it would after 20 years in fact you would never guess it it might even be a five-year-old car with the way that it's put together and I think you know we could talk about all the other stuff like the wood that you know the gauge cluster is kind of the same as it's always been now there are some things that don't work like the LCD readout on the gauge cluster starting to bleed the numbers and letters are running together this only has a tape deck on the inside the CD players in the trunk or the six disc changers on the trunk along with the GPS navigation data so I mean basically everything works on this car from a mechanical perspective except some of the technologies starting to fail now I can bore you with all the details in here but let's put this on the lift and talk about some of the mechanical aspects of what made this m5 so special back in the day we're underneath the e39 m5 on the Ben pack lift jack and this is old-school BMW this car this generation came out of 97 I believe the m5 variant this came out in 1998 it's a Bavarian masterpiece in every measurable way when you look at this this is very 90s its 90s in terms of design even for BMW look at suspension simple I mean there's some aluminium here but this is one of the generations they went to struts in the front if you look at modern m5 s or v series they're all double wishbone but you don't have adjustable dampers you have traditional sway bars no electronic sway bars I mean it's just a very simple looking vehicle yes a McPherson strut multi-link rear car which BMW spent a ton of money trying to distinguish the m5 from the regular 39 525 and 540 I was unique in the front for this car other than the bigger brakes and the use of aluminum is the 540i and the m5 did not have rack and pinion steering there's a recirculating ball in the front is that because of the v8 for packaging reasons because of the dry sump system in the m5 they could not fit the right convenient steering so a huge complaint with this car is that it does not have the directness of more modern m5 s at least in the steering wheel so you got an 80s steering rack on this car and a 90s car design but that's what's interesting when you go back and look at how where the new cars kind of evolved from this but let's take a look towards the rear of the car so mark we made is the back of the e39 m5 you see something you like I do I see this little heatsink or dissipation or airflow device attached to that differential what do we got so you have a mechanical clutch based limited-slip in this car attached to that 6-speed manual because the Holy Trinity of enthusiasts cars it is by far my favourite generation m5 and there were some unique engineering decisions they had to make well when you look at the rear suspension it is advance for the time period you have these monstrous lower control arms that are aluminum your knuckles are aluminum the upright and your shock bodies are also aluminum but the thing is the springs are it's a coil or design these Springs are not detached from the shock body so it makes it easier to replace these nothing is electronically controlled there's nothing fancy about this which was also part of the interesting part of a 90s car design there was computerization that had come in obviously but not like today everything is designed any other simulation or computer because it's cheaper to develop that way they didn't really do that here for the M suspension on this car today no they use the mechanical jig and this car has the unique problem about being a good highway cruiser and it also had to be a good pseudo track car so the suspension from day one was compromised and I mean that in a good way this car rides very very well yeah and that's something traditional that we're finding or you you already know but we've forgotten driving new cars suspensions in the 90s were a lot softer a ton of it has to do with tire technology you didn't have the ultra rigid sidewalls you didn't have super low-profile tires run flats then there was a lot more mechanical design that went into it so they didn't over spring cars they weren't over dampened like they are today so the side effect is yes there's a lot more roll but there's more mechanical grip from that because they're using the the that's higher so much to do that rolling and giving you that tire-contact patch from the way that all this is set up and it's very it's it's so cool to see it in retrospect and appreciate just how well it rides the last thing to bring up when you're underneath this car is notice this particular model Greg's car has almost no rod underneath of it at all it's almost perfect however 39s as a whole if you're buying him in areas where they put down salt and there's a lot of snow they rot out extremely quickly all the bushings and wiring and tubing all the rubber based components underneath these cars rot out as well yeah you'll burn through fuel pumps it's an expensive car to keep on the road yes and that it's supercard right and that that's true I mean that could go that could be said for any car that was in the Midwest at this point but if you're looking to buy this car definitely get pictures of the underbody if it's at a dealership they can put it on a lift take a look at the subframe area the suspension components if you see rot anywhere here or anywhere in the back or the front half that I would walk away it wouldn't be worth it I am afraid to even come next to this paint because I think Gregg will break my kneecaps with a baseball bat if I even smudge this up this has to be one of the cleanest and finest examples you could possibly see in the Midwest you'd be fooled into thinking this is like a two-year-old car yeah it's mint but more importantly mark do you know what this engine is called it's probably something like the ass 7000 it's the s60 - oh okay so tell me about it it's a 4.9 liter v8 it's naturally aspirated it revs all the way to 7000 rpm and it is ITBS mm that now you're getting my attention that sounds good to me I'm assuming the individual throttle bodies are under this cover yes it is a very technologically advanced engine for late 90s design it is not without its problems though like all BMWs from this generation just remember you are buying a 20 year old ex pseudo supercar so this is gonna have all your oil leaks that are used to valve cover gaskets you'll have all your hoses need to be replaced because they grow brittle and old they've got some cooling problems with radiators failing but the main issues and mind you these are nowhere as serious as you get on an e 92 m3 or or as catastrophic as some of the newer ones yeah or the e60 m5 that replaced this which is a spectacular motor but as we've talked about before ticking time-bomb this has broad bearing issues but they're far less severe and on far fewer cars than there are on the Oh later m5s and then this says oil consumption issues and lifter failures or lifter issues and make a lot of noise and then your hydraulic timing chains the tensioners fail it's an age issue as well okay but you know what given the cost because this car is gonna be sold or somewhere around twenty to twenty-five thousand dollars and I think if you're buying into that you're buying a lot of the cool factor of this being one of those the last pure m5s that you can get it's more simple they didn't get this was before everything went crazy and if all I had to do was worry about carrying around a quart of oil to dump it in here every time I'm going along John Silver I'm totally up for that because there this is something special it really is I'm hoping that when we drive it I'm not put to sleep by it at least on paper this is my favor [Music] little mark starting out from the e39 m5 and this is a particularly row car of mine and I know it's for you as well right yeah it's one of those rare cars that when I was younger I thought I had to be in this and I talked about that earlier and I think the big surprise getting behind the wheel I expected a lot more theater and a lot more drama from this and what I really got was a lot of refinement great ride and quietness yeah I wanted this to be a like a German super analog like hell caddish sideways machine and it's not that at all no it's not at all it is like the embodiment of this Autobahn style cruiser that you don't know your speed you don't feel much it's quiet isolated it's a luxury car it really is yeah through and through this car is a amazing cruiser and the owner is right he says that this car is best between 80 and let's say 140 miles an hour and he's right that's where this car shines it does I think when you when you look at it objectively okay this steering is not good the braking is soft the manual transmission has minimal feel and this car has some more in 3rd and 3rd and 4th gear synchro so it's a little bit more difficult to drive but it's surrounded by typical amazing BMW motor in this v8 is what this machine is all about yeah it's extremely smooth powerplant with limitless character it's it's badass it is it really is and I think when you understand that and you understand that this was kind of predating well it was a time before BMW decided that they were gonna go all-in on maximizing tech and reduce or maximizing tech and complexity over simplicity that's where this car is really cool because it it does feel like a 90s machine and a lot of the 90s traits that people love are still here and one of is well it just kind of it kind of goes sideways with almost no not for me Oh which you don't typically get in modern cars everything would be you'd feel power being reduced you'd feel the traction stability control always cutting in in this car literally if you want to go sideways if you want to kill yourself you can and it's got the 90s ride quality it was before everything was over dampened over sprung you don't have concrete tires on this car so it just glides over everything and yeah there's a little bit of body roll but I would say that this rides better than most pretty much any modern luxury car this rides better than the most modern competition m5 we drove recently this year I mean this is a very comfortable car and it's nearly silent I thought there'd be a lot more exhaust and engine noise and there's not no there's absolutely nothing no sound at all just like alright I'm gonna go to sleep you better you better have your eye mask on this this variant Church in there yeah I think that's the thing for me you know I I definitely expected something that it I expected more from this and put on in the backseat screaming yep it's not that it's not that car at all ultra refined so I think the takeaway is people ask well you know would you take this and I think if you have the nostalgia like I do I would love to have this in the garage it has that style and look to it before they messed it up and also it just has a cool factor I don't know what it is it just looks cool this is the best looking modern em comfort easily it's the it's the best styling it's the right size yeah but at the end of the day I would still buy an e 90 m3 over this objectively objectively yes you want to sedan you want a BMW M car with one of the best motors they've ever made at the e90 92 is it I would have to take that over this and not for any other reason then it really is a better car it really is but this motor the way that this car feels feels like this was the the e90 was the evolution of this and every single way that a better trans better chassis better feel higher revving motor has more exhilaration than this car does but it doesn't ride as quiet and it's not nearly as smooth as this I'm gonna take you off the line here you can have a quick listen to the motor I don't want to kill this car it's an owner's car so let's let's have a listen [Music] yeah as you can tell it just has that classic BMW v8 sound to it and that's what I love effortless acceleration smoothness and refinement in our website it does it revs to about 7,000 rpms and you know that may not seem like a lot and you just have to put in perspective the time period this car was made yeah the thing you know the fastest sedan period in 2000 or 98 or whatever else that came out yeah it was supercar territory right no right to fifth and avoid those that synchros I just sitting here on the edge of my seat [Music] but now's a good time to get into the final thoughts where we can sum up everything from our experience with the m5 final thoughts on the e39 m5 and I got to tell you when I was a younger gentleman I was indoctrinated by the BMW films with Clive Owen where he was driving this car and throwing Madonna around in the backseat that was done by Guy Ritchie and Greg the owner of this car wanted it or loved it for the same reason but the difference was when I got in it it's a totally different experience than what I thought it was gonna be in fact it is so refined it's so smooth it's the ultimate highway Cruiser the naturally aspirated v8 is just it's just like butter I mean you literally feel nothing when it revs out it's super smooth it has that kind of if you've ever been in the e90 you 92 m3 that v8 feeling to it it has that sense but just a little bit more restrained the ride quality is amazing we've talked about that to death it's just so supple over every pavement type any speed it just feels quiet and that's kind of how I would sum this up Greg says it's a sleeper and it is if you know what the car is this is a vehicle you absolutely have to have in your garage at some point and you know at the $20,000 to $25,000 price range if you can find an ultra clean one like this just do it but you're gonna need to set some money aside for little things you know to replace electronics oil leaks like in Greg's case second and third gear need to be rebuilt in the manual trans but really that's about it and I really enjoyed driving this car definitely check it out if you're if you're on the fence just do it but let's head back to Greg he's gonna talk about a promotion that Chicago auto pros has when we started working together with Chicago auto pros and savage geese it was - a really beneficial partnership because we were trying to teach you guys how to help people take better care of the cars that you clearly know so much about and I know absolutely nothing about taking care of cars from the exterior option and that's all I know how to do so it's a it really is beneficial to both of us and the people that are watching because I think they do get a lot out of it absolutely so you have a promotion that you're trying to set up right now through November 15th we're doing a thousand dollar giveaway on car guys supplies calm where is you can go and you can enter and then there's lots of additional ways that you can get more entries into the raffle by going to watch one of your videos by going to our Facebook page or checking out our Instagram page a lot of ways to win you can get $1,000 and free car care supplies and who doesn't need more car care supplies especially you see what you have yeah rubbing alcohol yeah I'm on my laptop right now this is the gentleman you're leaving before very well I hate the savage geese I'm gonna show you how to get rid of them just like this [Music] you [Music]

Channel: savagegeese

Views: 208,646

Rating: 4.9369388 out of 5

Keywords: cars, cargurus, carfax, used cars, affordable, best used car, 2019, 2000, best suv, suv, trucks, honda, ford mustang, chevy, corvette, comedy, fun, diy, worst used cars, problems, bmw problems, funny, f150, reviews, tech, android, google, apple, ios, iphone, BMW, M5, F90, Competition, AMG, C63, Porsche, m2, supra, toyota, e39, f10, e60

Id: cgwIE7OnHUI

Length: 22min 7sec (1327 seconds)

Published: Mon Nov 04 2019

Reddit Comments

[u/MDA123]

Pretty much all of this commentary applies to the E46 M3, in my experience. I owned and daily drove one for years and it's a different world compared to modern cars, for better and for worse.

[u/Nariek]

My takeaways from the video

1, also as a professional detailer I absolutely love seeing 20+ year old cars in as perfect shape as possible(while still being a driver of course.)

2, I'm not a BMW guy by any means, but this is absolutely the best looking modern era BMW, the evolution of decades of design, before Bangle had his way with them.

3, With the quietness, its so strange now how luxury cars are clearly better isolated than these era cars were, but they decided to add all the fake engine or exhaust noise, where as with the E39 and other similar cars, you knew what you were getting, you bought a fast luxury car to bomb down the highway in serenity. Obviously it isn't even in the same league of performance, but those are reasons why I love my LS400 so much, its fast enough being a 98 model, and its so absurdly quiet and smooth even with 18" wheels installed over the stock 16s. 90s luxury cars ride so much better than most cars I'm in and out of today.

[u/irridisregardless]

The 2000 E39 used the MKIII Nav but by 2003 it was upgraded to the better widescreen MKIV nav that was DVD based and it's what was also used in the E46 and Z4, and last used in the 2010 X3. New map DVDs were made until about 2014.

My car had it and I kinda appreciated it for its simplicity. I've used newer nav systems that had more features but were more annoying to use.

[u/tyrone737]

It's weird how much cooler BMWs get as they age. I don't know if that means they're getting worse these days.

[u/e39hamann]

Perfect way to start my morning! I love the E39, although I may be a bit biased as I've always had one. My 528i made a great first car and now being able to have an M5 is icing on the cake.

Edit: after watching the video I noticed it was mentioned the E39 M5 has a dry sump oil system, but this is not the case.

[u/Elfish-Phantom]

Dream car for me. Learned about this car from this commercial.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFIbuFUqJM0

[u/paperwaller]

One of my closest childhood friends bought one of these in 2006 or 2007 after getting his army $$ after a year or so along with saving for a bit prior to that. It had under 20k miles on it and was in incredible condition exactly like this car but over a decade newer at the time. I can't put into words how amazing driving that car felt in every way and it was by far the best all-around balanced vehicle I have ever driven. It sounds amazing and feels like it revs forever. About a week after he got it he went through a T intersection on a country road directly into the woods going over 120mph. It was just a straight up T where the road ends and you would have to turn right or left.

He ended up having horrible injuries and crawled the 250-300 yards while both of his ankles/feet/lower legs had severe compound fractures, several shattered vertebrae, broken ribs, shoulder, both arms and major skull trauma. He crawled to the edge of the road @ 1am where a passerby saw him and called 911. He wrecked sometime around 11 - 11 30pm. The fact he survived was a miracle but the most amazing thing is he is able to walk, drive and generally function like a normal person despite the many surgeries with rods, screws and plates holding him together. It was a long road to recovery and I ended up driving him to pick up his Hummer H2 when he was finally able to drive again. We all thought that was a good choice. One tough SOB and he never bitched about his condition once or blamed anyone or anything but himself for driving like a reckless fool.

[u/[deleted]]

I used to own one and loved mine, in fact I regret selling it. That being said, Im not in on "lAsT rEaL BmW" train. Yes newer Bimmers are not as analog as older ones but IMO they just changed their way, not lost their way

[u/111111121212111]

The e39 was built like a vault, interior that barely aged. The equivalent E53 2002+ bmw X5 had interior that was compatitive with cars 10 years newer.