New to M5; pre-purchase questions

[gjg]

Hi, I'm looking to buy an M5 and had some questions. I've been trying to read up on this forum to learn more about these cars.

1. What is the maintenance schedule for this car? Is it roughly every 15K miles? How much does it usually cost or Service Level I and for Service Level II?

2. One car I'm looking to buy has 20" rims on it. The current owner thinks the rear wheels are 11" wide. These seem pretty big. Are others running 20" rims and if so, do you like the ride with them? Do they affect the handling or braking? For rims this wide, would the fenders need to be rolled?

3. Which car would be a smarter buy: 2001 with 40K miles, all original, or 2001 with 60K miles with brand new clutch and brakes? I usually buy the lower mile car, but in this case, it seems like already having a new clutch could save an expensive repair down the road.

4. I live in the Pasadena California area. Ive heard good things about an independent shop called 'The M Shop'. Is this the best local place to take an M car or are there other shops I should know about?

Thanks in advance for any answers or advice you can provide me. I'm really looking forward to finding the right M5 to buy. It looks like a great car.


Greg

[KevinM]

Ok I'll bite.

1. The car's computer generates the maintenance schedule supposedly based (at least partially) on your driving style. The official service intervals are approximately 12-14K miles. Basically 1200K break in service, oil change, Inspection I (approx. 26-30K miles), oil change, Inspection II (56-60K miles), etc. Most board members ignore the service lights for oil changes and have oil service performed every 5-7.5K miles. I'm not sure of exact prices of Inspection I and II due to my maintenance agreement, but I think Inspection I runs about $600 and II about $1000 (includes plugs).

2. I'd ditch the 20" rims. Most board members stick with 18", some run 19". 20's will degrade the ride quality and performance, add to the weight of the car, and look, well, rather "bling" (subjective of course). Most (I thought all, but this is seemingly not the case) M5s have rolled fenders standard from the factory.

3. This depends entirely on the condition of the car (how it was maintained, driven, etc.). A new clutch, while certainly nice, is not a make or break issue in my opinion. When you do need one, you can get a OEM clutch installed for < $3K.

4. The M Shop is a board sponsor. I have had no direct business with them (living in AZ) but the rep is good and they answer questions on the board.

Good luck!

[gjg]

Thanks for the info. It really doesn't sound too expensive to maintain. Being new, I hadn't realized they were a board sponsor. I'll take that as a good sign!

Thanks

Greg

[jclyman]

The M5 may NOT be expensive to maintain, but it CAN BE expensive to fix ... unless you're rollin' in dough.

[gjg]

That's why I asked which of the two cars is better to buy upfront, one with lower miles or one that has had very recent "major" repairs (clutch and brakes). Assuming both would pass a PPI to begin with...


Greg

[S62M5]

the breaks and clutch are not that important, the main thing you gotta worry about is all the sensors that go on the car, MAF, O2 ABS etc... they can get expensive. the breaks and clutch are simple fixes that don't require much trouble shooting, but electrical issues with sensor do.

i bought my car, having it replaced breaks, and 1000 Kms into it i had O2 sensor gone, and i think one of the ABS senors are gone too now.

[S62M5]

senosrs do go on higher milage cars as they reach their life spam

[intrepid one]

If the higher mileage car has had regular oil service and you buy it with new brakes and clutch, its a couple of things you know you will not have to do. My personal opinion is that MAF's, plugs, etc are DIY items that are not a total dealer item. I would probably go with the one that has the new brakes, etc if everything else (colour, interior and options were equal...

[wentouch]

personally, given alternatives, i would give more consideration to the m5 without the 20" rims (depending on duration they have been on) since larger rims (with smaller tires) place more stress & wear on the suspension along with a harsher ride. nearly all parts of the suspension are affected.

unless of course, the rims are nice. what kind of wheels are they? pics?

[mottati]

do you know if they also replaced the rear main seal on the car with the clutch job?

[gjg]

Mike, I will check on the RMS. It has not been mentioned to me. He did mention the flywheel was replaced.

Wentouch, the wheels are made by 'Axis'? I'm not familiar with that company so I can't comment on quality. If that turned out to be the better car for other reasons, would it cost a lot to go back to 18" stock rims or new 19s? For what it is worth, the 20" rims have only been on the car ~3000 miles.

Greg

[wentouch]

a lot of peeps prefer am wheels even at 20". its a good looking size but stocks perform better and maintain the car better imo. tires for stock 18 will cost you around $300 per tire while the m wheel is around $550 per wheel msrp. you can obtain them cheaper online and im sure many will be willing to trade.

keep them if you like em and end up with that car. some wheels are worth the additinal wear; its a personal preference.

are these the wheels?



these like pretty clean.

the only other "axis" that look nice imo are the decade. from the axis faq, sounds like a small time rim co (located in anaheim, began in 97) which likely manufactures somewhere in asia like RAC or Needz and designed for universal fit. they are light for 20". they are also cheap (in price); cheaper than stock.

http://www.axiswheels.com/wheels.php