It's gone ... - The Unofficial BMW M5 Messageboard (m5board.com)

wiggis · 3rd May 2007, 21:37

Well, I've done what I repeatedly said I would not do, and I have parted with my E39 M5 after 4 happy years of ownership.

My car reached 110,000 miles with very few faults. But it was time for it to go. Fears over owning such an expensive to repair car outside of warranty, the fact that it was on its original clutch, the fact that it probably needed suspension bushes doing to cure a slight shake at 50 mph, the fact that it soon needed an Inspection II service, Insurance renewal was due, Tax was due, a couple of small irritating minor faults had started to appear, and worst of all, I wasn't using the car after buying a MINI as my daily driver and a Honda CR-V as our 'family car' following the arrival of our 2nd child in November last year. I could not continue to justify owning 4 cars, and the upcoming couple of thousand pounds worth of predictable expense let alone if anything went wrong was too much to consider for a car which wasn't being used any more. Growing concern over the number of speed cameras in the UK and the ease by which the M5 crept over speed limits without me really being aware was also in the back of my mind. I can't afford to be off the road with a ban with 2 children and a wife to look after.

Ultimately after much anguish, I realised that I no longer needed an E39 M5, and I could no longer take the chance of expensive repairs on a car I was barely using. Crank bearing failure would have written the car off - and that was something which spoiled the enjoyment of the car every time I took it out, and to get that enjoyment involved driving it beyond the speed limits. I really enjoyed driving my MINI Cooper, and set about thinking what car I would get if I blended the DNA of the MINI and the M5.

So, I bought myself a MINI Cooper S John Cooper Works GP. It has 218 BHP and weighs 1175 kilograms. Better power to weight than a series 2 Lotus Elise. It does 0-62 in 6.2 seconds, but the in gear performance is more staggering. By no means is it E39 M5 fast in a straight line, but it is great fun through the twisties, and I'm sure it'll be great on a track, and you get a real sense of performance at speeds which do not threaten your license. And it has 5 years free servicing, and 3 years warranty renewable, and a fantastic supercharger soundtrack, etc. It had to be done, even though I felt a twinge of abandoning a family pet when I finally walked away from the M5

I have as a result got for sale :

1) MK3 BMW Navigation Computer - perfect working order.
2) Voice Control Module - never used, my car didn't have the wiring harness
3) 2 VW MAF's from DavidS group buy along with the special 5 pointed .security TORX bit - used for about 20 miles before putting the BMW ones back in as I felt no real improvement.

Send me PM with your best offer if you are interested in any of these parts.

Perhaps when the replacement for the current ugly new M5 comes out with a manual gearbox I will be back

Finally, I would like to say thanks to you all for providing a friendly, intelligent community of car owners. I hope this community stays special for a long time to come.

I will miss you all, and I am missing the E39 M5, though not as much as I thought I would, as the JCW GP is also a special little car.

wilsodh · 3rd May 2007, 22:32

Well you were smart to dump her before saying anything on the board, as we surely would have talked you out of it!

Sorry to read of your departure. I enjoyed your contributions. Have fun with your new ride and best of luck!

Dave

m5hor · 3rd May 2007, 23:20

i can't even believe what i read..that makes me want to shoot myself..

Ashok Arora · 3rd May 2007, 23:40

Something tells me you'll be back in an M5 one day....

mottati · 3rd May 2007, 23:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by wiggis

I have as a result got for sale :

1) MK3 BMW Navigation Computer - perfect working order.
2) Voice Control Module - never used, my car didn't have the wiring harness

I will miss you all, and I am missing the E39 M5, though not as much as I thought I would, as the JCW GP is also a special little car.

the jcw gp mini is a pretty fun car, i'd imagine. I'm sending a pm about the VR module, i assume it's UK spec, so my voice recog lady would have that accent!
Mike

Cantresjr · 4th May 2007, 00:49

how much for the voice recognition module?

Darrin77 · 4th May 2007, 01:05

the ironic part is that my mini cooper s just went away for........ an m5!!!!

IRISH M5 · 4th May 2007, 02:33

Wiggis, nobody needs an M5, we just want one.

Hopefully you told your buyer about this board.

I remember back in Dublin in the mid 70's having a blast driving Mini Cooper's and modded Mini 1275 GT's. Great cars...

Guinness Rules...

ard · 4th May 2007, 07:30

W-

Sad to hear you've parted ways with your E39.

Don't be a total stranger- stop in when you can!

A

dave_gt · 4th May 2007, 13:18

Wiggis - sorry to see you go mate. That MINI wil be great fun though - I test drove a standard Cooper S when I was looking for a car for my fiancee and it was a right blast. It felt a bit like a gokart so the Works version should be a riot.

I'd like the set of MAFS if nobody has claimed them yet. I'll send you a pm.

Hope you'll hang around now and then, if not may I wish you all the best.

Habu · 5th May 2007, 00:35

wiggis,

If you're happy, that's the main thing. Drop by every once in a while.

Bob