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Seeking advice from M5 owners

3K views 21 replies 15 participants last post by  Mr. Grinch 
#1 ·
I know this is off topic, so if you'd like to direct me to another forum to discuss this further, I'd be more than happy to oblige.

OK. I love the M5 but can't quite afford it. Besides that, I think the M3 might be the right size for me. So what I'm asking you M5 owners is for any advice you might share on picking the "right" options for the M3, picking a dealer, and negotiating a price among one or more dealers.

The dealers want $5k up front to put one on order. This would seem to prevent me from doing any shopping around after I've put down the $5k. So I guess I need to contact the various dealers (Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Regina, Saskatoon) and see if any of them would be willing to deal.

I realize none of them may want to budge at the price. Did any of you M5 owners find any flexibility at all? I'm hoping at least for them to include some of the sales and delivery charges, or perhaps include a few options like a cheaper set higher-profile wheels/tires ($1000 - $2000) for winter, or perhaps maintenance costs.

I really want to arrange the best deal possible. But I've got no idea what it takes to arrange a purchase like this. Clearly, many of you M5 owners have been through this experience, and anything you could share would greatly be appreciated.
 
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Discussion starter · #22 ·
Thanks to everyone for the helpfull info!

I've put a deposit down for a 2001 M3 at Brian Jessel BMW in Vancouver. I am dealing with Francis Poon. We shall see what happens with availability now. Hopefully they do have better allocation.

I may put down another deposit at Dilari BMW in Regina. Supposedly they have not taken any deposits yet... no allocation?

I'm looking for more advice from you M5 owners... comments appreciated.

Trim:
I saw the aluminum trim in an M5. Looked like it showed fingerprints and scratches too easy. This plus the earlier problem people complained about with it "wearing off" has me concerned. Who knows what trim the M3 will come with? But I want the most durable. So likely some form of wood trim? If I had a choice, it would be all black, with leather on shift knob / hand brake.

Color:
Again, the only color we are sure of is phoenix yellow for the M3. But Ti metalic and Jet black are likely. I don't know. I'm kind of partial to white... more durable against UV, hides dust and dings, and my current vehicle is white. But lots of people say sports cars don't look good in white.

I'm looking at 330 coupes in the various colors to try and get an idea. But it's no comparison to the real car in natural light.

If I had a choice, it would be the M3 show car silver. Wow. But it won't be available in production. A friend of mine who paints cars would like to get a closer look at that show car with a paint analysis laser. Would be interesting to see what he could cook up.

Block / Engine coolant heater:
How well do M5 start in cold (-30C) weather? Does BMW offer any sort of block heater or coolant heater in-line with the radiator hose? I guess the synthetic oil would help to some degree?

Winter wheels / tires:
I guess the smallest wheels you can get for your M5 is 17 inches? I'm guessing the same for M3. First I'm wondering where I could find the cheapest 17" wheels in Canada steel with covers maybe? Then it's a matter of finding the best winter tire in that size.

I've read elsewhere on the board that the 17" wheels with Michelin winter tires were not acceptable. My experience with Michelins is the same. However, I've found the Yokohama GuardX and Brigdestone Blizzaks.

Yes, handling on dry roads does suffer with winter tires. But the occasional snow is a fact of life here and I'm hoping an M3 can be a daily driver.

Fuel:
Any comments from M5 owners on what octane ratings work or don't work well? The highest octane you can easily get here is 91. Some places offer 93 or 94, but it's a grain methanol / gasoline mix that can have nasty effects on some injector systems and fuel system gaskets.

Interior space:
I'm curious if one or both of the M3 rear seats will fold down. I'm guessing it would be similar to the 3 series coupe? Whats the story with the M5 trunk and seats?

Tint:
Is window tinting a factory option or a dealer option? Is it the same as the "Privacy Glass" option?

Thanks again for the info, M5 owners. I hope you don't mind sharing your info with someone who's hopefully getting an M3. I really appreciate it.
 
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