Eagle

You can get full Meyle front and rear kit for $1500 landed, even cheaper if you customize it. Doesn't appear much cheaper to me given the quality.

I find pickle forks are harder to use without a hoist etc. I use something similar to that repco one at home. You can always use a hammer to whack it also if its not breaking once you have wound it up the pressure, sometimes you can leave them for a couple of mins and they will crack themselves under pressure.

Yeah likely on mostly original parts but that's nothing new. Its only the real enthusiasts who spend $ doing preventative maintenance.

If the red line is where the original spring end sat then its just standard procedure to put it back in the same place but given its a new spring it may sit in a slightly different position and there maybe some leeway as stated. Given i didnt install the springs so i can only guess that they were seated properly and not binding up on the inner lip causing them to sit high. They appear ok from the photos but its only so much you can tell from the internet. If the ride heights are relatively even as you say suggest then personally id give it more time\use before dismantling.

As i stated lower pads in these E46's like E39's etc don't use a stop. Your photo 'spring end' and the OP photos show roughly the correct position which the spring end actually sits, which inches away from the 'end stop'. There is leeway in positioning the spring also before the spring starts to bind up against the inside lip of the pad https://blog.bavauto.com/18698/bmw-how-to-e39-5-series-525i-528i-530i-540i-m5-strut-spring-seat-and-spring-alignment/

If you can DIY then its decent. If not then you are just gambling with a big potential money pit if its got no proven history.

Yeah i eventually figured it out. Drivers side spring does appear to need rotating clockwise slightly like others have but is the new spring sitting in the original position of the old spring on the pad? Is the other side the same? These lower pads don't have any stops and have some leeway when positioning the spring. When you buy new pads you don't have any reference so they can be clocked slightly either way. As long as the spring isn't riding up on the inner ledge of the spring pad causing it raise up then i don't see it as a problem.

Not saying they arent and OE ones could well as you say but i had a quick look and cant evidence of them being side specific, esp aftermarket stuff These picture angles are messing with me

Im betting once the wet surface sets in. Assuming you aren't putting a big mark up on it then i agree it's probably a good thing you bought it as it mitigates much of the risk for the new owner.

I read Glenns post as front struts are either left or right, not the actual springs. They would have to be labelled if they were somehow specfic.

Haha looks obvious now. I had it in my head they were L or R like the E39's, everything else is shared. Guessing these aren't marked L\R like OE stuff is.

Hopefully it will stay in good nick.

Doubt you could install them upside either with the bottom being eggs shaped

Were they fully seated down into the clamp\pinch bolt? Hard to install them incorrectly otherwise when using old pads. Your install looks fine, the spring doesn't rest against the stop unlike the top and is mostly inline with the indent. Id give them more time. I drive around for at least a week to ensure thing are settled before going for a proper alignment.

Exhaust setup and wheels to a lesser extend would difficult to find or be unobtainable and are certainly worth a premium, but otherwise i don't see these as expensive cars to sort if you bought one in poor condition from DIY perspective. If you had to pay labor for everything like this example then yeah 24k may not cut it. E34 540i6 is still the best pick by a long shot

+1 more lowering to pull off those wheels. E12 based suspension is just too old to worth the hassle though.

Well E36's are the new E30. People buying another box instead of repairing them and MX5 guys fitting them is going to push prices up also.

No reason why you couldn't do it, its more labor than skill based. Having someone program the new key makes it even easier and saves you some $. Money well either way given its sometime you are using all the time. Yes IR key should work fine as spare.

IR is garbage and belongs in the bin with all the other jap import 'features'. Converting to RF shouldn't cost more than $200. RF Antenna, run a few wires, key cut then swap transponders or cut and reprogram new ones with AK90.

Sounds like you need the right 32mm spanner, the one i use is 420mm long, and near 10mm thick at the jaw. Combined with a whack from a mallet or sledgehammer they are always defeated.

I sold mine in '14 which was very similar spec to this, good refresh of most parts but had clear coat damage on boot and roof. With that in mind and 340,000 on the clock it sold for $6000. I would expect 10k to be reasonable price for one in decent nick without any mods. They are certainly trending up in value and are hard to source but that's almost what i would expect an M5 to fetch.

Shipping is cheaper than i expected. Although they are listed for $61 usd now.

How much are new ones? Local I assume?

Ive had success with the shudder fix along with new filter and fluid as soon as the issue appeared. It never completely fixed the the problem but improved it significantly enough that it was only noticeable on hills in conditions Glenn stated. Did at least 20,000km without it getting any worst but it surely would have to be rebuild at some point if i didn't scrap it.

Average km's more like it. Appears reasonably priced for the work done, but its not a msport so would be expect it to be cheaper.