I'm new to the world of E39 M5, only been a owner for about a week, I'm having a lot of problems with proper shifting in the M5. This is actually only my 2nd car with stick, my only other stick was a '93 3rd gen RX-7 a decade ago, since it was heavily modified right after I got it, I guess I'm a little spoiled with metal clutch etc in my RX-7.
When I was driving the RX-7, the metal clutch engaged instantly as soon as I let go of the clutch, and I can hammer right down the gas without problem, but right now with the M5, I get heavy slippage if I tried to do the same. I watched Greg's video just now but yet, I still have lots of questions
Am I right that under aggressive driving, let's say if I'm shifting 6k rpm in 2nd into 3rd, I should let go of the clutch and WAIT for the rpm to drop before I can keep going on the gas??? Even if it's just half a second, how would it be possbile with the claim of 0-60mph in 4.7 secs? Since this is a sport sedan afterall, I guess there's no point of going metal clutch, and I need to learn this anyway... (I'm getting too old for metch clutch in normal driving too)
Another issue I have is matching the rpm when I'm downshifting, how can I know what will the downshifted rpm be? I know this sounded like a stupid question, but somehow I had no problem with my old RX-7 before Just not sure why I'm having so much trouble with the M5 under aggressive driving
I'm new to the world of E39 M5, only been a owner for about a week, I'm having a lot of problems with proper shifting in the M5. This is actually only my 2nd car with stick, my only other stick was a '93 3rd gen RX-7 a decade ago, since it was heavily modified right after I got it, I guess I'm a little spoiled with metal clutch etc in my RX-7.
When I was driving the RX-7, the metal clutch engaged instantly as soon as I let go of the clutch, and I can hammer right down the gas without problem, but right now with the M5, I get heavy slippage if I tried to do the same. I watched Greg's video just now but yet, I still have lots of questions
Am I right that under aggressive driving, let's say if I'm shifting 6k rpm in 2nd into 3rd, I should let go of the clutch and WAIT for the rpm to drop before I can keep going on the gas??? Even if it's just half a second, how would it be possbile with the claim of 0-60mph in 4.7 secs? Since this is a sport sedan afterall, I guess there's no point of going metal clutch, and I need to learn this anyway... (I'm getting too old for metch clutch in normal driving too)
Another issue I have is matching the rpm when I'm downshifting, how can I know what will the downshifted rpm be? I know this sounded like a stupid question, but somehow I had no problem with my old RX-7 before Just not sure why I'm having so much trouble with the M5 under aggressive driving
You are not alone...my 280 HP V8 540i has the same problems. Slippage is due to the fact that BMW installed a 9-5/8" clutch in the M5 that is way too small. Big street V8 cars need 10.5" or 11" clutch like you find in a $25K ponycar or more costly Corvette.
The difficulty in rev-matching is due to the heavy OEM dual mass flywheel with it's huge amounts of stored energy.
You are probably a good candidate for a UUC 11" clutch retrofit kit with lighter weight flywheel.
not a stupid question. i'd like to hear more on techniques others have found. i don't have problems driving manual in other cars (Ferrari, japanese...) but do tend to find the M5 tougher to drive right.
upshifting while trying to go as fast as possible is easy. but trying to accelerate moderately and smoothly i find tricky (i don't slip the clutch). downshifting while trying to go slower, like entering an off-ramp, i find tricky too.
i think all this talk about a weak clutch has made me over-cautious. maybe the other cars have lighter flywheels that makes it easier to match rpms?
I went from an RX-7 to an M5 about a month ago. I was slipping the clutch when aggressively shifting into third. I thought that the car may have a worn clutch (even though it only had 15K miles and was babied by the previous owner), until I read the 100 or so threads in this forum related to this exact 'problem'.
Bottom line - you can't powershift the M5 like you can with a lower-torque car like an RX-7, at least not without investing in a racing clutch. You have to back off the throttle when you drop the clutch, it will hook up instantly, and then you can put your foot to the floor and rest assured that the fast throttle response will throw you back into your seat again. If you bought the car strictly for drag racing then this may be an issue warranting investment, but if you just learn to come off the throttle and pause that extra fraction of a second before stomping on the pedal again you'll be fine.
Watch the videos at http://www.bmwm5.com/greg/school/ and you'll see that you can perfect this method and still get some very fast shifts.
Now if I can just learn to control my launches without breaking the wheels loose in the first 2 gears I won't be spending so much time fretting about tire replacement....
Had the same problem with mine, slipping when power shifting into third. I suggest replacing as soon as possible before other damage results. By the time I got mine to the dealer the clutch was worn to the rivets, it doesn't take much in the M5. You have to shed the revs when shifting.
Re: starting with DSC on or off? I hate the DSC when trying to take off line quickly as the computer shuts the motor down causing some pretty jerky starts, with it off all you have to worry about is how much new tires are and replacement clutchs!
I'd been a little shy about asking the same question so its nice to see I'm not alone.. I think the M engineers could have also made the transmission allot smoother during shifting.. Sometimes I feel like Im driving a big rig ! Shifting can be so rough and notchy sometimes..
It took me a while to figure out it was best to not drop the hammer immediately after each gear change to minimize slippage.. Actually it took me a New clutch and Flywheel to figure it out..
2000 E39 M5 Carbon Black / Imola Red (SOLD, engine failure!)
2005 Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 8 MR FQ-400 (SOLD, complete nightmare in everyday use!)
2000 TVR Tuscan S 4.0l (SOLD, unreliable)
1999 BMW 323i Coupe (gave to the missus)
2001 Porsche 911 GT2 (993 mwah!)
I'd been a little shy about asking the same question so its nice to see I'm not alone.. I think the M engineers could have also made the transmission allot smoother during shifting.. Sometimes I feel like Im driving a big rig ! Shifting can be so rough and notchy sometimes..
It took me a while to figure out it was best to not drop the hammer immediately after each gear change to minimize slippage.. Actually it took me a New clutch and Flywheel to figure it out..
Hi, everyone. I'm new, too, although I've had two 540s and I've now had a 2000 E39 for a year and it is still under warranty, despite now having done 67K miles. Increasingly, it had been feeling as if there was no synchromesh on 1st and 2nd and the gears were generally awkward: often difficult to engage, sometimes sort of slippy and, sometimes, even, popping out. The BMW dealer said it was the clutch. He also said that it was a case of normal wear and tear, so it could not be replaced under warranty. I complained to BMW who agreed with me that this was not normal, so the dealer was told to replace it under warranty. However, whilst this has made things slightly better, it does not actually solve the original problem – it still feels like there’s no synchromesh on 1st and 2nd gears. So, oh wise ones, is it the gearbox?!fficeffice" />
First off, welcome to the board! If the gears are not meshing smoothly, there might be an issue with the synchros. Will the car go into 1st gear while rolling at 10mph? If it wont go into first then, or goes in with a crunch, it might be bad synchros. Or you might have a dragging clutch. If it cruches, fails to engage when the box has warmed up, then there is a synchro issue. Sometimes a bad synchro will cause the car to pop out of gear under load.
When upshifting a car with a weak clutch, make sure the clutch is hooked up and not slipping before power is applied. This means leading the gas with a lot of clutch, as when there is a difference of rpms the clutch will slip when it sorts it out. Make sure the car is in gear and the clutch is hooked up before there is any power application, or it will slip. Try it, as there is a good method to shift any car fast, but it takes time to learn.
If you dont know where to blip the rpms for downshifts, start to memorize what rpm the car is at in certain gears at given speeds. After awhile once you are able to blip to the correct numbers, you'll get the skills for knowing about where to blip, and then after that you'll be able to rifle out downshifts within 50rpm each time. As always, practice practice practice.
DSC should be off for performance launches. DSC kills wheelspin, and when you are doing a hard launch you want some wheel spin for many reasons.
I think the M engineers could have also made the transmission allot smoother during shifting.. Sometimes I feel like Im driving a big rig ! Shifting can be so rough and notchy sometimes.. 
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