ssbmw

Hi Richard, I have left a personal message for you. I have put together a register of 8's I know - and I know of around 30. Some are for sale and I can help you if you need assistance. Regards, SS

Isn't it amazing how fortunate we are in this country with comparatively cheap car prices. Over there they have 200km + E34 M5's often commanding $25k + whilst in NZ they have been going for between $12-$15k for the last few years. With that type of mileage / condition what is that car worth over here? I figure someone would pay over $30k. I know I would. I have a few BMW friends in Melbourne and they are constantly scratching their heads over how affordable our cars over here.

My old car....

Hi Ray, A friend of mine owns this car. He has wanted a E39 M5 for the last 3-4 years and finally secured this car around 6-7 weeks ago. The car was not for sale - he tracked down the owner and negotiated the deal. Quite frankly, this car is 'seriously' like new condition. It has no blemishes. I saw it the day he bought it and it was in incredible condition despite being on the road for 2 odd hours. The paint, wheels, and interior were all in sensational condition. When he got back to Wellington he had the front bumper assembly taken off and replaced the lower mesh grill as there were a few scratches and he wanted the underside of the front spoiler re-sprayed. He has also had the underside of the car cleaned, the insides of the wheels polished etc. The car is virtually like new. Because my friend is who he is, he is now wanting to get rid of it. The buzz has worn off. He wants something else. He has owned so many cars, and this is his mandate- he buys immaculate cars, somehow makes them better, and then sells them. He did the same with a 8,000km Sultan of Brunei Porsche Turbo prior to this - he drove it only a 100km or so. I would honestly say that you probably would not have to get this car checked. My friend was going to see Ross Lamb to have this car inspected, but when he saw it, bought it on the spot. My friend has seen so many E39's and was disappointed with every one for different reasons.. He has extremely high standards and he simply wanted the best one in the country and was prepared to pay big dollars for it. I doubt you will be disappointed with this car.

Hi mate, Interesting.....I have suspected something possibly odd about my friends old car as he recently told me that this car was registered as a E36 325i. He never questioned it at the time as it was his first foray into BMW's and thought maybe that the rego was done in-correctly. The rego on that car was UU4268. ERgards

Hi there, A friend of mine bought a 1993 Sterling silver ex Sth African E36 M3 several years ago. I recall that the previous owner was Kayne Scott (the race car driver) and it was anecdotally imported in NZ by Steve Daly of Sd European in Hamilton. It was a nice car and went very well- not sure about the engine being detuned though. It was sold to a guy in Invercargill about 5-6 years ago and the mileage was around 192000 kms back then. Regards, SS

Phil- you are spot on. Well, my friend is maniacal in making cars like new! I will discuss with you later. Regards SS

Hi Boris, The facelifted M5 for sale you see today is owned by a very close friend of mine. He is an absolute car enthusiast and has owned nearly as many cars as our fellow member Clinton here. He habitually purchases exceptional cars and then makes them better by spending all of his spare time (seriously - like - 20 hours a weekend) making the car even better. He has been wanting the best facelift M5 money could buy for 2-3 years now. He has seen many, many cars but they all fell short. Until this one. I saw this car when he bought it only a few weeks ago. It was in showroom condition. My friend has spent the last few weeks making it even better. As is typical of him, the buzz of owning it has worn off, and yes, 4-5 weeks later, it is for sale. Unbelievable, but there are people like him I can tell you now, this would have to be one of the best M5's in this part of the world. I have not seen a better one and I have seen a few. My friend has incredible standards, and if anyone wants the best E39 M5 they can buy (irrespective of the price), this is the car. It is the right spec, right colour, and hsa incredibly low mileage.

Hi Glenn, I think i know that M635csi - it was the car that came up for sale here in Hamilton 6 months ago. was part of a deceased car dealer's estate and the car was un-driven for 15 years so was driving real rough. EX UK car with no service history. Low k's around 72 ooo miles, but had too many issues to be compelling for me. Looked very straight though - the cream leather was immaculate. Sold to a guy who has a garage I think in Whangarei or somewhere around there. I am sure this is same car. The only other Bronzit beige M635csi that lives in NZ is another ex UK car that lives in Cch. Regards, SS

Hey Phil, Congrats man! Well done. A beautiful car. If you want a set of style 5's, the man who does them better than new (which may conflict with what you want) is a guy called Wolfe who runs a business in Germany selling refurbished wheels. Check out wokke.de A M6 owner from Melbourne that I know got a set from him, and they are unreal. REgards.

Hi Marcus, I sent a message to you, but I know the answer to my question now - you have bought James Katte's car! Nice vehicle - my mate Ross Lamb at BM workshop did alot of the work on that car. Ex Singapore with cream leather. Nice. Regards, SS

hi Paul, its cool, I was just identifying why I think this car has been struggling to be sold here - in my opinion they are a slightly enigmatic car and not appreciated for what they are... I think we all know why the E39 and E34 have such a following... All I think I was trying to do was express my opinion on why this car hasn't sold.....and why they don't have the same love.....I also think the NZ market is slightly different to overseas... I felt passionate about responding to the question because I know that car quite well... Sorry if you felt I was off tangent, wasn't my intention. Just love talking about some of the cars that hold some interest to me.....

I concur - in my world the E34 is the prettiest of them all. I love the exterior / interior design. Very proportionate.

You make a good point. However, one think you have to note is this. All the E34's for sale in NZ generally tend to have high mileage which may inhibit their marketability...I could be wrong but I wonder what a NZN E34 M5 would go for in NZ in great condition with say 130kms on the clock? Would that indeed be a $20k plus car? As for the E24's you will see that the ones that have been languishing on t/me for sub $20k are ex Japan LHD vehicles or EX UK vehicles with spotty provenance. The last NZN vehicle M6 that sold here (albeit with 92 kms) and special history sold for around $40k and most NZN examples in good nick have traditionally gone for $25k plus (and they never hang around on t/me for eternity). I personally think this E28 deserves to be sold for what the vendor wants. I have been in it, and know a previous owner very well and he sold it for $35k around 4 years ago. Weird that the market seems to see it differently- and it has been for sale at $26k for a log time.

Good point. However though, at $26k for the last year , it is definitely off the mark. Worth $18k? If it was a NZN car with FSH, it would have to be worth more......

Hey man, I have been thinking about adding a post about this car for awhile. Th bottom line is this - yes they are rare in rhd (187 for the rhd market, excluding 96 for the Sth African market (CKD I think) and that lends itself to keeping values up. Yes it was the first of the iconic M5's and has its place in M power history. Even with 4 of them in NZ ( 2 NZN, the other 2 imports, including this Sth African example by way of Japan), I think they struggle to sell at international levels because they are misunderstood in this country and probably doesn't have the optical appeal to command much demand. Unlike it's sibling, the E24 M635csi that has a following because of its looks; these are simply not that pretty, and do look old. I have driven one of these, and I actually think they are marginally quicker than the M635csi because they are lighter (echoed by my friend who owned this particular car who owned a M635 prior to the E28 M5). This car has been for sale on and off for 5 years and was originally marketed for $35k. It has had a complete respray and has its suspension replaced. Probably needs a timing chain though. It is a good example though with the body kit that most of the UK cars lacked In Australia, these go for about what this guy wants - mid to high $20's. The E34 M5's over there go for around $20k (even though they got around 70 3.6's delivered to OZ). In this country, I don't people can justify spending big money on an old-looking sedan when there are so many other choices. Besides, it will be probably serve as a weekend toy, and there alot of people who would probably spend that amount of money on a classic sports car or GT. Just my thoughts....in NZ one can get a HSV or Falcon that is newer that could probably (in some people's eyes )provide more kudos...... Shame......

Hi Jonathan, Great to hear about your car. The guy I go to is Ross Lamb at BM Workshop in Botany. He is has helped me immensely for years. Great knowlege on E31's, and I take my one there. Regards, SS

Hi there, I have a friend, Alan who is the oracle of all 70's and 80's BMW's (not to mention modern ones too) who may be able to help with your query. Alan is a member too, but not sure that he reads the topics here too often. He has a blue E9 csi. I will ask him to respond to your query...

Hi mate, I have spoken to the owner and he seems a nice guy who has spent a fortune on making it even better - it has had a re-spray, new suspension, and has a new exhaust etc. Look, what impresses me about this car is the history, condition, and mileage - only 70,000 miles (around 130kms). Where are you going to get a 635csi with that type of mileage these days - most have 200 kms + on the clock. There are some other fantastic examples of Highlines around in NZ including my old one and a friend of mine's black example, but none have mileage like this. There are a few late model 635csi's in this country - but none were given the full "Highline" spec - they did not have the leather dashboards - that was unique to the UK spec cars. All it needs is a set of Style 5's.

Hi guys, Check this car out - one of approximately 5 ex UK 635csi Highlines (that I know of anyway) in the country. One of the last so was given ample leather and has the revised bumpers. This car was sold on trademe about 4 years ago (for around $14k) and I thought it was ridiculously cheap. At $16k, I still think it is. I once owned one of these - fab looking car and this looks wonderful in Lachs silver ? Nogaro silver?. A worthy addition to someone's collection. http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/C...n-289388237.htm

Hey man, Are you saying that the Dakar car has been sold? The advert on trademe implies that it never reached reserve. Interested to know as I am trying to put together a E31 register. The Dakar vehicle is ex Singapore and has been in the country for quite awhile. The guy who has been marketing the car, James, has owned it since it arrived here when it had quite low kms. I too prefer the Tobago blue example. It is also a ex Singaporean import and has the M-technic bodykit / mirrors that first appeared on the fire-breathing 850csi.That spec became standard on the later 840 ci Sports. The colour / bodykit coupled with the Style 5's makes this car stunning. Drove it many years ago when it was on the yard at Tradin Post. Like the Dakar example, both very original vehicles. and look like they are in good nick.

Hi Phil, I live in the Tron but only use Ross Lamb at BM Workshop in Botany for any work on our BM's. I have known him for 11 years and he is the only guy I trust implicitly. I know a few people have used SD European here in Hamilton for pre-inspections. A friend however got a M5 inspected there and was disappointed with the things they missed out on. Apart from that Coombes are the only ones in HAmilton I would ever use. Martin who is the manager of the workshop is a BMW trained mechanic from England and has ample experience with older vehicles.

Boris you are so right. I have a friend who uses his E34 M5 as a DD (daily driver) and he is pedantic about maintenance and never skimps on spending money on his car.. Costs him $4k-$5k atleast a year. On the b-side, if you only drive it on a sunday, the annual outlay could be considerably less!

Hey man, I think Audio enz is a good forum (from memory)

I agree with you Brent, but saying that in the dry they are not that bad at all. Additionally, how many people these days drive their nice E24's on trashy days? Additionally, I think if you are trying to restore a car like Ron's, the best case scenario is to make it as original as possible. There are more than a few E24 purists who will only have metrics sitting on their car as they were factory. Another problem is what do you get that looks right? Being objective here, there are very few wheels that look right on a E24 M6. Style 5's are the ultimate option in my books but they are relatively expensive. I have seen a few E24's with 17" genuine Schnitzers which look kind of cool. Alpinas are fantastic too. However when you buy the genuine thing, all of these quite are expensive options. However, too many E24's look naff in my opinion because the wheels they sit on just don't look like they suit the age of the car.