M5 Prices

[SDKeith]

Thanks, unfortunately I've found the car has major undisclosed issues. I've started a new thread asking for advice.

[june82000]

Hello All. I’ve had an ‘88 535is for 2 or 3 years now but happened upon someone with an M5 willing to part with it and was only a few miles away. I had never spoken the guy ever; he contacted me about some parts from a 528e I was parting out. Long story short, $3k and a ‘97 Boxster later the car is mine. A wee bit rough on the inside, a little corrosion that I will be dealing with and the car is generally neglected but runs and drives. Besides the exhaust system in very bad shape, it sounds ok. Did find a sticker inside for an independent service center so I might give them a call for some history down the road. First thing I do need is some exhaust if anyone can help me out. Stock used is all I need. Cheers!

[Burnze]

I just bought this junker for 16K.

Bad: Heavy sun damage because it was parked for years. I don't have records from 2008 to present, so I'm assuming it needs everything.
Good: No rust. 109K.

[TribecaNYcar]

Just saw an E28 M5 posted for sale on Craigslist for $35,000

Has 150,000 miles
Looks very clean

https://newyork.craigslist.org/wch/cto/ ... 97698.html

[88 M5]

This over 270k mile clean example just sold for 26k on BAT. Looks like a well-maintained car.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1988-bmw-m5-46/

[88 M5]

My 133k mile example did not meet reserve at 21k high bid, with a reserve of 25k. I don't see this as a downturn in value but rather an abhorrence to rust by BaT bidders, my license plate lights are toast. I'll get that cut out and replaced then drive it like I stole it for a few more years.

[hodgepodge]

Hi All,

I now have 2 E28 M5s and am happy to share.

I love what a small world it is. I bid against several folks in this thread on BAT for various M5s. Got winning bid on one (88 M5's car, I think), but it was RNM (Hard to bid against myself....). My goal was to get 2 M5s (one to rebuild and the other as reference and to drive). I'm happy to say I was able to do this and now have 2 E28 M5s. Both were once BAT cars so you can take a look at them there if you want. I call them the twins as I also have an E39 M5, as well as several other BMWs and a bunch of other cars, so it can get pretty confusing. Anyway, here's the scoop. When I buy a "classic" car to restore, I plan to spend at least $10k on it and usually more like $15k, sometimes more, depending on the car. When the restoration is done, I like to keep the reference car but that depends on the cars, the market, and what I want to restore next. I just enjoy restoring cars and would rather drive and have fun with my investments than have to log into Fidelity to see them on a screen. I am not a dealer. I do not do this to make ton's of money, but I try to do it so I don't lose money. The trick, or more accurately the risk, is in picking the right car(s). And I always try to set realistic expectations when buying and when selling a car.

For the M5s, the first one I bought was the 7/30/18 BAT car that did not make reserve. I'll call this the bottom-up car as most items under the car had been done. This car is nearly rust free, has original sheet metal except for the hood, has new seats, has the original hydraulic rear suspension and has all new bushings, bearings and suspension components. It also has a lot of records. But it needs a lot. It needs carpet and some interior/exterior trim, some door/trunk/window gaskets, it needs a replacement dash, it is missing ALL of the M5 specific NLA trunk panels (fortunately, having another car makes it easier to fabricate NLA parts...), and it needs a full paint respray. The non-OEM radio faceplate is missing but that doesn't matter because the amp and speakers are not hooked up. The original wheels have a peeling issue and will need to be refinished, but at least they are true. (I have an extra set of BBS RS 090 wheels that I might leave on the car...) A/C is said to be R134a, but it doesn't work and I'm going to have to open it up anyway, so it will be R134a and very cold when I'm done. The exhaust is a frankenstien of parts, some of which say TOYOTA! The car runs well, shifts well and drives like it is on rails, but a compression/leakdown test after I purchased it shows one marginal cylinder so the engine will require at least a valve job. For me, that probably translates into new rings, seats, guides, bearings and seals, or a complete rebuild, top and bottom. That's OK, though because at 224k miles, a rebuild is due. There are many other small things wrong with the car (seat switches, mirrors, a fusebox wiring issue) but most are easy for me to fix. The RNM price was $16k. I paid about $19k for it. I will have a lot of sweat equity in the car, plus at least another $20k by the time I'm done with it. But it will be almost as new. I had the car inspected before I bought it, of course, but they can't see everything. Fortunately, I got exactly what I paid for and pretty much what I expected.

I may have been much luckier on the 2nd (reference) car but I won't know for sure until later this week. I reached out on this BB with a WTB and got a couple of responses. One car was listed on BAT back in 2015 and was actually the first E28 M5 BAT ever listed. I had the car inspected. The images and report came back pretty much identical to the BAT auction detail from 2015 and the car only had a few thousand more miles on it since then. It looked really, really good as that BAT seller had done a top-down refresh on the car. Paint, interior and engine compartment are excellent. Mostly original sheet metal (I think one fender might be a replacement), zero rust. All gooahjez and switches work including the sunroof. BBS RS 090 wheels with nearly new (but 2014 date code) tires. All very good. But the car has no air (is still R12) and an E36 radio that is hooked up but doesn't work. I'll be running a compression/leakdown test tomorrow. There is a small "bounce" in the drivetrain, which could be a guibo, mounts or something else, and I hear a slight whine when driving it that I think might be wheel bearings. The exhaust is original but there is a heat shield rattle at about 1100 RPM. There is a small shake in the engine at idle, which to me means there may be a valve seat issue or an injector or two, but I will know for sure tomorrow. (A perfectly running, fuel injected BMW 6 should have zero shake.) This car also has roughly 225k miles, so a valve job would be due anyway if it hasn't been done recently. I do not yet have all the maintenance history paperwork on this car as I just took delivery of it on Thursday. I paid roughly $25k ($10k more than the 2015 BAT price, but it sold once since then) for this car and it was worth every penny. I'm prepared to put some sweat equity and another $10-15k into it to make it pretty much perfect.

So there you have it. Two cars, two prices and a nearly complete rundown of the issues those cars have. Somebody else said a sub $20k M5 is a project M5. I'll adjust that to say that will get you a running project M5. I'll also say that one way or another, $40k-50k is a reasonable number to spend on a very nice E28 M5 if you are starting today. You either spend that gradually as you restore the car yourself, or you spend it all up front, trusting that the critical work to restore the car was actually and correctly done. Depends a lot on how handy you are and how patient you are. In general, if you see rust or any hint of rust (even if you can weld), at least pause, but probably run. Most other things can be addressed and, even if the parts are NLA, can probably still be resolved. The single greatest thing about BMW, besides the cars, is the community and everyone's willingness to help. I've owned a lot of other brands of cars, but no group can keep a car on the road like the BMW owners group can.

Take care,

Scott

[fred633]

Was $4,600 a good deal for a 1988 BMW M5 from a tow yard in Kansas City? The VIN is WBSDC9308J2791417 if anybody knows anything about it. Also found online the name Barbara Zmiewski if that helps any.

[tschultz]

Can't really go wrong for that price, but that exhaust pipe sure sure raises some questions.

[wkohler]

Gee, I don’t know. Was it?

[Ken H.]

As anyone who has owned one of these things can testify, pricing on an M5 can be a real trip down the Rabbit Hole. At one end, we see examples from EAG getting into six figures; on the other, someone like Mac's buddy scores one for less than 5 Large. Who got the better deal may be in the eye of the beholder.

Having owned mine from new (absent 3103 dealer demo miles) and gone basically nutso on what has been done to it, whatever I am offered for it will not, repeat, not recover the dollar investment. OTOH, it beats serial purchasing of Corvettes. Or Porsches, for that matter.

[Zanzibar996]

I also have been looking at M5’s and just recently learned that one of the first cars I viewed is still for sale at same dealer 4 years latter
This tells me much about the high end of this situation

[M5BB]

I've owned one for 10 years and it's a show level car. Currently insured for $48000.

I think it should be more as I watch the values go up on BAT.

There was an extremely nice car on there last week that sold for low 50's.
I thought it should be more.
The seller didn't have a leak down test posted and I think the engine health and potential rebuild cost is the single factor that keeps the prices down.

There are so few people capable of rebuilding these engines correctly.
I happen to be lucky enough to be one of those people.
Look up my build on here. M5bb.
Gary

[RoyW]

Had some fun getting caught up on this thread (it had been a while)... I especially liked the comments by one poster who likes to spend $10k or even $15k to "restore" these classic cars .. LOL That's a riot! Replacing a few parts isn't restoring a car, it's maintenance! To properly restore a vintage BMW takes many 10's of thousands of dollars. depending upon starting condition and end goal.

RoyW

[prizefighter]

Roy,

Agree. I took over an '85 Euro M that had been well cared for since new. It benefited from good early owners, was a show car from about 2002 to 2005 with an owner who lavished attention and expensive on the externals. It then had a knowledgeable and capable owner from about 2006 to 2009 who had revamped mechanicals with care in intelligence. I took over the car at 106,000 miles in 2009 and have driven it some 20K miles since then.

The car is about 90% of whatever perfect is, there are few things left to do (just sourced some new Euro headlight wiper motors out of Germany and will put them in this Fall, this will bring the car up to 92% - as an example of how I think about this) but it's in pretty good shape. I just threw some recent pictures up in the eye candy section. The car is only driven in the summer and spends probably a good two months every year in the shop (a dealership where I live has a group of people who understand and appreciate the car). I'm a fairly meticulous person by nature and apply a level of attention that I hope is consistent with the energies that went into the creation of these cars. This means something, entropy is constant and if you want to fight it, there will be resources that are needed.

Just the other day after taking the car out of a stay in the shop I totaled all repair, restoration and maintenance bills for this car from 2009 - 2019. A little over 70K during this time period.

Well worth it, in my opinion, the car keeps growing on me. But it's important to have a realistic understanding of what sort of undertaking this can be.

[austin8753]

I won't reveal what I paid for my 107k mile, (formerly) Dinan Turbo M5, but it was a steal, in today's market.

2791066
12/1986
107k miles indicated, which I believe to be accurate
Very presentable interior
Repaint in Lagunengrun-metallic :/
Dinan turbocharger setup and low compression engine (very little remains of the Dinan parts)
Dinan stage 3 suspension setup - sway bars, Bilsteins, blue springs and (I believe) fixed camber plates, strut bar, etc

After finally getting it running decently, the head gasket popped. After tearing it apart, we found that the cylinder head had a few cracks, and wasn't really cost effective to repair.

I pulled the engine and all turbo components out (with no intention of reinstalling) and sourced a 110k mile long block, and am currently (as we speak) doing a basic regasket/refresh so I can install it in the car. The turbo setup was super hacked together, by someone/people who had no idea what they were doing, with very little remaining of the original Dinan setup - my interest in reinstalling those parts was minimal, at best.

Mechanically, it will be very sound, once this engine stuff is all buttoned up. I have a new set of Spax dampers and springs to install, to replace the worn out Dinan setup. Still needs a paint job (big "fuck you" to whoever painted it green), but the body is fairly straight, never been in a collision (wears all its VIN matching original panels); however, the interior is very presentable, which is surprising, given how the car was cared for, over the last 25 years.

I hope to bond with the car this summer, as I really never had a chance to before. Goal is to have it back on the road for 5erWest.

I wouldn't sell it for less than $50k (my "not for sale" price) and it isn't worth anywhere near that. The E28 M5 is the car I lusted after pretty hard, in high school, and now I own one, so it makes a small part of my cold heart happy.

[vandiesel]

Funny I was just discussing your exact car last night with my friend Wes who used to work on when some shysters owned it. I saw it at JJ motorwerks years ago and felt sad to see it in a sad state. I'm glad to hear it is in good hands I hopefully will see you at 5er west.

[austin8753]

Funny I was just discussing your exact car last night with my friend Wes who used to work on when some shysters owned it. I saw it at JJ motorwerks years ago and felt sad to see it in a sad state. I'm glad to hear it is in good hands I hopefully will see you at 5er west.

Lol, I have talked to no less than a dozen people, who have worked on this car over the years. All have shared the sentiment. The previous owner was a really nice guy (to me), but the shop owners have not felt the same way... where did your friend work?

DJM had absolutely zero business working on this car. Still can't believe the PO had them working on it. Loose bolts and orange silicon gasket maker everywhere, on things they touched.

[VZehn]

In all of calendar year 2018 there were 19 E28 M5s on sale on BAT, but only two on BAT so far in 2019 - until now, bang, there have been four for sale in the past three weeks!

Of the 12 that sold on BAT in 2018 the average winning bid was $26,657. The four sold on BAT so far this year run from a $21k higher mileage runner (247k miles) to a well sorted black-on-black example at $45k (126k miles).

With so few examples sold recently, and with several of them at higher mileage, it's hard to judge if the market is stable or something else.

[KRsM5]

Offloaded my rusty example end of August...not sharing price (lower than most I've seen here); the buyer knows what he's doing and I hope it'll bring it some life. Sad to say goodbye but I wasn't able to treat her well anymore.

[boomvader]

Offloaded my rusty example end of August...not sharing price (lower than most I've seen here); the buyer knows what he's doing and I hope it'll bring it some life. Sad to say goodbye but I wasn't able to treat her well anymore.

I think I almost bought it from your buyer. It was rough in the rust/rot category, but otherwise well maintained in other areas. In the end, I was relieved not to take on such a project. I can deal with most anything, but rust/rot is the worst. I was looking at a re-chassis and a 'Clone M5' project at best. If it's the same car, it ended up going to a body repair guy in the end.

[MattyCV]

Bought an M5 with 233k miles (swapped E34 M5 head) with an unoriginal (but from Canadian M5 I believe) black interior. Classic Euro Parts euro bumpers. Some rust here and there, nothing that would tell me to run away, though. Bought it from Asheville, NC. $22k.

[M5BB]

My black on black (Black Betty after the song) continues to give me and her visitors great pleasure.
A little over 180000 now and driven at least a couple times a month.
She lives a sheltered life in my garage with a dehumidifier running in the summer. Atlanta humidity produces mold very quickly.
She is insured with Hagerty for $60k.

If you don't know me I have been a regular on here since 2003 when I owned my white 533i. I bought the M5 in 2007.
I built a pretty amazing engine for mine in 2009 when I burned a piston in her doing DE's at Road Atlanta. Made it to 140 on the back straight.
Currently has 361 HP at the crank, 325 Ft lbs of torque. It's as fast as my DD E46 M3.
Look up my build under M5bb.
Prices are going up and really good clean original cars are getting hard to find. EAG has one for over $100k. Under 50k miles.
Originality is the way to go with this car. Mine is not but tastefully modified. I have NOT done the euro bumpers because of the one of 30 black on black M5's. You can read all about it in the section I started about black interior M5's.
Hope to see you all after this crappy virus is over. Black Betty went to a meet at a brewery on Sunday and got lots of attention. At least from the guys that know what it is. Many under 30 don't have a clue. LOL.
Later,
Gary Beck
Atlanta, GA

[M5BB]

New on Bring A Trailer.

Pretty nice car. If I didn't have too many I would buy this one.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1988-bmw-m5-76/

[SeattleGuy]

New on Bring A Trailer.

Pretty nice car. If I didn't have too many I would buy this one.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1988-bmw-m5-76/

I pity your situation!

[Ordnator]

Nice looking RHD Euro M5 for UK £85,000.00

https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C1411686

Best regards,

Mick

[gray635]

I've been meaning to update this thread with my latest M5 purchase, so here goes.

Back last May, I was looking around for a nice euro M30-powered 5 series. Couldn't find what I wanted. Charlie Kindel (cek on the board), hooked me up with a former co-worker of his who had a really nice euro-ized M5. About 84K with a Hartge body kit and 17" covered lug Alpina wheels. Chris Kohler called it the "M5 with an identity crisis", which I thought was pretty funny. Long-term ownership by a fellow in Prescott Valley, AZ, who sold it to Charlie's friend in Redmond, WA.

Here's the link to my thread regarding my search, which includes a link to some photos of the car as of the time of sale: https://www.mye28.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=154635

Quality glass-out repaint in 2013 with all exterior trim parts replaced. Seats reupholstered to a high standard. Valve job and new Shrick cams, rebuild AC system, etc., etc. and LOTS of M5-specific spares. Purchased for $60K and had it shipped to Perry. I considered it a fair deal for both parties.

It is a very nice car. However, as seems to be the case with any of these old cars, in spite of the considerable "investment" by the last 2 owners, the car had some needs - at least to my very particular eye. Since acquiring the car, I've probably spent close to $25K getting it to the point that I am satisfied with it. This includes the very unnecessary expense associated with acquiring 5 16" BBS RS211 wheels, having them refurbed by Ehrlich Wheel Works with new Michelin rubber. Just got those put on the car yesterday and it really looks spectacular.

About to get the windshield replaced with OE glass to (hopefully) put a stop to nagging leaks in the corners of the windshield. Once that is sorted, she should be in pretty good nick.

The car now has about 86.5K miles and is a real pleasure to drive. A real looker, too, in my opinion. I just love these old things.

[F250runner]

So I’m looking at a black on black m5 with a manual and still has the factory bbs wheels, car is 100% original. They want 2k. Unknown engine condition. Paint is about 4/10, interior6/10

[wkohler]

What is the vin?

[1st 5er]

So I’m looking at a black on black m5 with a manual and still has the factory bbs wheels, car is 100% original. They want 2k. Unknown engine condition. Paint is about 4/10, interior6/10

Ask if they have 2?