New M5 owner seeking help. - The Unofficial BMW M5 Messageboard (m5board.com)

HOVO · 23rd January 2006, 09:58

Hello everyone, I am new to this board and I would like to say I do enjoy reading all the threads. I have been saving for years now to get myself one of these cars and i finally did, im so excited,I bought myself a 2002 silver M5 with 68k miles on it, for about $37,000. (i shopped around for a good price here in LA area but most were goin for around 40k, I think I got a good deal on it) anyways, I do have one question since I am a new M5 owner. I am tossing and turning on this subject for days now and I dont know where else to go. the problem is that the car is in St. Louis Missori and im in LA california. Im thinking of flying down to St. Louis and driving it back home (~1900 miles) and saving myself about $600 which is alot for me right now shipping is costing me almost $1k compared to a plane ticket ($120 + $250 gas for the drive back). I am scared to put that many miles on this car at once. what would u guys do if you where me?
I bought the car from a private dealer that are telling me that the car is in very good condition (CLick to see car 1/2 way down the webpage). What do u guys think?

Thanks in advance

VancouverM · 23rd January 2006, 10:21

Welcome

I would line up an independent inspection of the car and have it performed as soon as you give the car a once-over and your approval. Assuming it's all good, do what the car is designed to do- drive!

(One way or other, you do need to be prepared to spend money on her...)

Frits · 23rd January 2006, 10:42

I agree with VancouverM:

* the car is designed to drive. I see no problem in driving the car home. I did the same thing with mine last year (was only 560km)

* be prepared to spend money on the car... When I just got mine, I had a few tiny little details that were broken. You get a 1000 € bill in no time really.

And welcome!

Salty · 23rd January 2006, 12:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by HOVO

Hello everyone, I am new to this board and I would like to say I do enjoy reading all the threads. I have been saving for years now to get myself one of these cars and i finally did, im so excited,I bought myself a 2002 silver M5 with 68k miles on it, for about $37,000. (i shopped around for a good price here in LA area but most were goin for around 40k, I think I got a good deal on it) anyways, I do have one question since I am a new M5 owner. I am tossing and turning on this subject for days now and I dont know where else to go. the problem is that the car is in St. Louis Missori and im in LA california. Im thinking of flying down to St. Louis and driving it back home (~1900 miles) and saving myself about $600 which is alot for me right now shipping is costing me almost $1k compared to a plane ticket ($120 + $250 gas for the drive back). I am scared to put that many miles on this car at once. what would u guys do if you where me?
I bought the car from a private dealer that are telling me that the car is in very good condition (CLick to see car 1/2 way down the webpage). What do u guys think?

Thanks in advance

Hi HOVO,

What they said.
Get a solid inspection done (BMW or AAA facility) no matter what the autobroker tells you. With all due respect to them, they know squat about an M5. Check the brakes & tires, check the diff for leakage around the drain bolts, check & smell the oil. If you don't have proof of the last oil change, it may not hurt to do an oil change before you drive it, or at the very least change the filter. The filter is on top of the driver's side fender in a canister - takes 30 seconds to change and about US$10.

I bought mine in Montreal and drove across the country to Edmonton in Oct 05. I loved every one of those 4100 kilometres!
Huge grins and zero problems!
You will be surprised at how good the mileage is for a "supercar".

I've seen this same car on Ebay. It does look nice in the pictures. I suspect that this 02 has no warranty, since it is being sold by a broker.
The M5 is not a cheap car to own. If $600 is a lot of money to you, this may not be the car for you.

Good luck,
Salty.

HOVO · 23rd January 2006, 13:21

well thank you for the replays I appriciate it... I cant go back now salty, I have already bought the car. Plus, Ive been saving for a few years now to get this this lovely car, Im too poor to afford a new one, or even the same one with lower miles so I guess I just have to do what i can to save money.

I come from the world of rockcrawling so I have spent much time beefing and swaping axles motors, trannys brakes etc etc... Im wondering is there anyway a shadetree machanic like me can perform a full maintenance as far as changing oils in motor tranny axles / lubing chassis / flush things like that asuming I do have a factory service manuel, I am aware that this car is very complicated and I would not wish to bite off more than I can chew.

HOVO · 23rd January 2006, 13:28

oh, and also, I am going to do as u guys said, once I get down to California I will have the car inspected by a BMW dealer perferably Rusnak of Pasadena CA (closest to me). the car is now 4 years old and has over 68k miles i talked to the broker that sold me the car and I am made aware that the car has NO warranty whatsoever, furthermore the dealer is not prividing any sort of temporary or 30 day warrenty on the car, all they are telling me is "its in good shape". I am a little affraid about this because I have never bought something with so many miles driving out the door with no warrenty whatsoever. God forbid something freakish happens and the motor just decides to blow 10 blocks after i leave the showroom, im in deep sh*t.

how much am i looking for extended warrenty on this vehicle? or am I even elegible for warrenty since the original warrenty on the car has expired.

Frits · 23rd January 2006, 13:36

Just be aware that the parts can be expensive.

I bought my car in Germany a year ago. It had 113.900 kms. I had no warranty either. I think the initial costs were around 1000 euros. So far I replaced instrument cluster, some exhaust sensors, ABS sensor, rear wheel bearing.

The rest of the costs were upgrades. According to my bokkeeper, I spent 7000 euros on 'maintenance and repairs', and 5000 euros on fuel. That's for 35.000 kms.
The 'maintenance and repair' includes coilovers, tires, partial respray, tow bar (yes, I have a tow bar... I really needed one. In fact I went to a dealer first to check if a tow bar for the M5 existed, before I bought the car).

Good luck, and enjoy the car, you'll like it!

Ashok Arora · 23rd January 2006, 13:57

Congrats & welcome aboard!

wilsodh · 23rd January 2006, 14:29

Congrats and welcome to the club.

Expense anxiety is no stranger to many on the board.. If you get to Missouri and find the car is not to your liking, you should have an out on the purchase. BTW... love the interior.. looks just like mine!

Cheers,
Dave

oneway · 23rd January 2006, 15:43

congrats and welcome to the club. i agree with everything already said. you say that you have already purchased the car. as long as you have not aready given them the full amount and have no recourse to get your money back, i would get an inspection done at a local dealer there in missouri. as long as it successfully passes that and no significant fixes are necessary i would fly out there with your valentine one and enjoy a great drive home through the mountain states, it will an exhilarating experience that will show you that your car has been worth the weight.

if you have no further recourse with the dealer - ie they already have all your money - i would ship it and then take it to a local reputable bmw dealer - simply ask some of the board members and they will stear you in the right direction. after that i would set aside a day and pick some nice routes there in california and have that drive that you have been waiting for.

bryon

m5admirer · 23rd January 2006, 16:23

Having purchased one last week myself (an '01 with 40K miles), I can understand what you are going through. I did a check of the VIN with a BMW dealer to find out the history of the car, had a BMW dealer do an inspection (2 hour CPO one) that included a good going over with a compression test. I also did a test drive.

Car looked good to me but when the dealer gave me the report it had a few items that needed attention. Power steering hose was leaking, valve cover gasket was leaking, AC belt needs changing, rear sway bar bracket is broken, rear tires are almost done, and few other items I cannot remember at the moment.

Not a cheap car to operate but the joy it brings when you drive it is worth it to most. As far as doing stuff yourself I look at it this way: man made it, man fixes it. If you are a mechanically inclined person and have some experience then get yourself a shop manual and give it a try. If you are not comfortable doing something then ask for help or take it to an independant expert or the dealer.

If nothing else take the car in for an inspection to make sure that it is road worthy. The worst thing would be to have a breakdown in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night for an item that could have been taken care of at your convenience.

All the best and enjoy the first drive. I still remember mine like it happened last week.

Rob.

JTinAZ · 23rd January 2006, 18:07

I just bought a 2000, its in VA and I'm having it shipped to AZ just because I dont feel like putting 2500+ miles on it...the car has an existing CPO warranty on it, and I paid for a dealer inspection b/f making the final offer. there were 3 issues, 2 gaskets that were leaking (oil pan and head gasket) and a rubber bushing on some shaft, all 3 were fixed under warranty, and I got a free oil change...anyways, my car is on its way here now, and I cant wait.
congrats on the new car! but the inspection and warranty saved me some $$$