[BBQ]

Hey everyone, I just recently purchased a 2008 Manual E60 M5 with 89k miles on it.

I didn't know a ton about these cars before going down the rabbit hole, I'll admit it was a bit impulsive. Lots of people saying they are unreliable money pits, then others who say they are expensive to maintain, but take care of them and they will be fine. I love BMW, I love V10s, and every car I've owned as been manual.

I got a Pre-Purchase inspection of the car before making a deposit, and it needed a few things, including front brakes and control arms. It also had a CEL for Throttle Actuators. I purchased the car and had all of that work done + alignment, then flew out halfway across the country to pick it up. Drove it home just under 1000 miles and it went very smoothly, no issues, and I was so comfortable.

I knew that the car had at least a Dinan Exhaust, Intakes, and performance spring set, but after calling Dinan with the VIN I found out that it also has a Dinan Stage 3 Tune. Apparently that typically requires the throttle bodies, though I can't confirm that visually.

After getting it home, I made an appointment to get some new tires on and rod bearings done pre-emptively due to the mileage and some unknown history. I'm glad I did, as the ones in the car currently had some serious wear. In addition to the bearings, I also got Spark Plugs done, and unfortunately some coil packs that were broken, as well as a motor mount that I didn't know about.

I am thoroughly enjoying the car and try to find every excuse that I can to be driving it. I work remote so it won't get daily driven, and honestly that was a big reason that I felt comfortable getting this car (especially with gas prices).

Looking forward to more memories with it, and if you're going to MPACT at Pocono this year, come say hi, I'm registered for the infield show in the Green Lot.

And I can't finish this without some glorious sound clips - enjoy!
Tunnel Pull
Downshift and pull
Fly by 1
Fly by 2

 

[BBQ]

Welcome! The car sounds great, glad to hear it ended up in the hands of someone that will take care of it. They definitely require proper maintenance but won't give you issues if you do. I had the same exact thought process as you, I thought I wouldn't be driving the car much given I take the subway to work but here I am, 6000 miles in 6 months. Definitely feeling the gas prices but I can't help myself, I've been aching to get back into a manual car for years.

Thank you, it was well cared for previously, too. Nothing too out of the ordinary or alarming so far. Definitely hard to not drive. I've gone out for an hour or two at a time with no destination several times already.

Wow, that thing looks like it hauls with those mods, especially the down shift pull. Awesome. Looks really good and I bet running it won't cost you as much as you think, c'ept gas

Thanks, I was pretty surprised at how hard it pulls. And it just pulls, and pulls, and pulls. Yeah, it's definitely a bit more than other cars to maintain, but not so much more different than other similar cars.

Congrats and welcome to the 6 speed club! It sounds like you have a Stage 3 tune, but do you have a stroker? A Dinan S3 e60 6 speed is a rare find!

I’d check to see if you have a Dinan 3.91 and if you have a Dinan Section 1 and 2 on your exhaust. The Dinan Section 1 and 2s are no longer available, so you might have a nice little surprise.

The next time you have you’re plenum off, the Dinan TB will have a Dinan logo etched on them.

Congrats again!

Thank you. Dinan confirmed the tune with me, but they said that any records of other parts were maintained by hand unfortunately, and they don't have any records of the VIN aside from the software log.

I don't think it's a stroker, but I'm also not that familiar with the cars. I know the tune was loaded in 2011 and the car was still being regularly serviced by BMW every 6 months at the time. Same with the 3.91 diff. Regarding the exhaust, it's definitely a Dinan exhaust and it looks like the secondary cat was also deleted, so maybe?

It's at a shop right now that's pretty specialized in these cars, I'm sure they would notice if it was a stroker. The rod bearings just got replaced yesterday. When I get it back I can get it up on a lift and look for some specific things, I just don't know what to look for.

And I'm planning to do a Carbon Plenum, so when I do that I will check for the TBs.