Originally posted by Eric S.+Mar 15 2005, 10:14 PM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Eric S. @ Mar 15 2005, 10:14 PM)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteBegin-SNOhprexd@Mar 15 2005, 10:44 AM
:wave hi, noobie here, have had my first bmw for 1 year now, e34 525,am now looking for the one i really wanted, and e39 540, do any of you know if there are any problems with the 98-99-00 range, also someone has got to fill me in on this lifetime fluid business, i previosly owned a 86 merc 420 with 480,000 on it original transmission, no rebuilds. are they trying to tell me that bmws can do that without even changing the fluid?
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Excellent choice of motorcar, the 540, especially the 6-speed. A good source of info on common issues would be
http://www.540i6.com/probsfixes.html. Do your homework and note that the stick weighs significantly less than the automatic.
Make sure you get the "Sport" package. The 6-speed E39 will come with that as standard fare.
I am at 109K miles on original trans and diff fluids on my 1999 540/6 but may soon change out the fluids on those. It seems to me that over time some metallic particles would become suspended in the fluid and that you'd want to get that stuff out of there.
Regarding model years, the E39 540 ran from 1997 thru 2003. I group them as follows:
1997-1998 - Initial years, M62 V8, lowest used market pricing right now
1999-2000 - M62TU V8 (different Bosch control sys, same HP peak but at lower RPM, moer torque), arguably slighly more reliable, multiple small equipment upgrades (DSC, side curtain airbag, etc.)
2001-2002 - Still more monir upgrades, updated lighting (less amber)
2003 - Similar to '01-'02, but since it was the last year it had the most refinement and best reliability, I made it a standalone year. Also had a modest upgrade in HP (8 more I think).
All represent great values in their respective price ranges; it depends on what you can spend. I think the 1999-2000's represent the most compelling value at this point in time, and can be found for under $20K US. With oil skyrocketing TOWARD record prices (it would have to top something like $3.09 per gallon to EQUAL 1980-1981 prices, adjusted for inflation, which is something the biased media pundit naysayers overlook), the 540s are selling at below book in most areas.
As long as you can spin your own wrenches, go for it! Good luck to you!!
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great write up eric, thanks for doing this to help the newbs! :thumbs :thumbs :cheers