Hi all! After months of procrastinating, I joined BMW CCA. I live a bit south of Charlotte near Waxhaw and the Providence Road Racetrack (more than once I've caught myself going just a bit over the speed limit ). I have a 2002 E39 525 with the sport and premium packages in blue water metallic. While not a stop light racer, it sure does handle well! I've admired BMW's for many years. As a teenager in the sixties, I was introduced to the car culture via drag racing. One day, my Dad was running an errand and brought me along. He stopped at a news stand to get some smokes and also picked up Car and Driver for me to read and not be a pest. Well, a whole new automotive world opened up and, via a subscription that I begged for, I learned about handling (oversteer, understeer, caster, camber, etc.) and began to prefer cars the could handle vs. accelerate. I read with enthusiasm when CD reviewed the 2002i model and drooled over the Bavaria. Unfortunately, a new one was out of my price range and family came along and so ownership of a BMW was put in the background for many years. The enthusiasm was re-kindled when we purchased a used Passat for my son. I drove it once to work and was impressed as to how much better this used German car was when compared to my new Civic. When I told my wife I wanted a BMW, she wasn't real pleased but allowed it as long as it was an even trade (that ruled out an M5!). Soooooo, I traded in my 2 year old Civic for the 525.....the only cost being the extended warranty CarMax offered which came in handy last year.
Welcome! I have been reading C&D since the 60's as well. If you have been reading that long and sentenced to Honda driving the whole time, you have earned this bimmer! By the way, Nice color on a nice car you have there! Hope you will post some images for us to see.
Here's a one taken while doing the brakes on the front. I guess I'll have to get a 'portrait' done, LOL! This was also the first use of the floor jack. The first one I brought home wouldn't even lift me up. I wasn't real happy when I took it back. The salesman swore they were good jacks and so I brought the same model home. I really like it as it can easily lift the entire front of the car. Makes it easier to get the jackstands under there! Bob
Nigel Yeungling? Nathan Yootmire? Norbert Yiepelfrot? It might by "YN"... Yale Nagillicutthie? Yarbrough Nifizlebaum? Yeats Nablonsky?
LOL!!!! I'm sure you're all well aware that the plate is for the hated New York Yankees. Having been raised on stories of Ruth and Gehrig and then watching Mantle and Maris as a kid, my blood became blue pinstripe. BTW: The E39 was kind of an accidental purchase. When looking at BMWs, price was the first object (unfortunately!). Next came ease of entry and exit so for someone my size, 3 series sedan was too small (at the time, couldn't find a 3 series coupe in my price range that I liked), the 7 series too expensive, but the 5 was just right for Goldi-NY-locks. I was also able to get an extended 3 year warranty for $2200 which has almost paid for itself as last year the expansion tank split open and I was also told the rack and pinion had to be replaced, the oil pan gasket, and the oil filter housing gasket. They also said the belts were in need of replacement so I said okay and total cost to me was $175. As they had to drop the pan, an oil change was also included.
Good news on the extended warranty! Things can get expensive when your original warranty expires (said the guy whose CPO warranty ran out in February!).
