1997 540i....

[Cyrix2k]

Nice. I know a lot of people hate on green, but I love oxford. And I wouldn't worry about the chain guides, the early (97 & 98 model years) M62s don't have many problems on that front.

This is mine from a few years back. 6/96 build 540i/6, one of the very first.


It's getting a bit beat with 195k on the clock but still runs great. Fairly reliable too.

:edit: Before anyone gets smart, those aren't the factory wheels. It had style 19s

[ross1]

Decent score, too bad it's auto. I would find some used E39 sport package springs and slap those on there and find some 17" wheels.

Also, here is what you have to look forward to w/ engine maintenance. This is one of my current projects. t-chain guides shattered, chain jumped, valves slapped pistons, etc...

Correction; You are performing engine repair, not maintenance. Had the later been done the former wouldn't need to be.
Sadly, this is all to common and probably tied with auto. trans failure as the primary cause of death with these and E38s.

[ross1]

Awesome. That is a ton of car for $3k.

This^

[Cyrix2k]

Correction; You are performing engine repair, not maintenance. Had the later been done the former wouldn't need to be.
Sadly, this is all to common and probably tied with auto. trans failure as the primary cause of death with these and E38s.

not really. A) there doesn't seem to be a universal failure period B) the "maintenance" is almost as much work as the "engine repair." The difference is if the engine survives or not, but replacing the chain guides is not a fun job.

[ross1]

not really. A) there doesn't seem to be a universal failure period B) the "maintenance" is almost as much work as the "engine repair." The difference is if the engine survives or not, but replacing the chain guides is not a fun job.

Good point.
The engine in the pictures looks to be clean inside, how many miles?

[iamsam]

Good point.
The engine in the pictures looks to be clean inside, how many miles?

160k. well yes, it was engine repair, now it is engine disposal. Turns out a bunch of the shredded t-chain guides got in the cylinders and gouged up the cyl walls, so this engine is beyond reasonable repair.

so anyway, as far as the repair/maintenance debate, sure, replacing all the t-chain guides would have averted this disaster, but how do you know they are about to catastrophically fail? There is no easy way to just check if they are getting brittle.

[OnMy2ndE30]

Bit of an update with my car. The wife had been driving it and on the way home from work one afternoon, she called me saying there was a loud squealing from under the hood, then a bunch of smoke started pouring out from under the hood. I thought "great, blown engine". Got there and checked it out. Seems the bearings in the water pump seized and immediately puked all of the coolant out of the engine. She said she pulled over immediately and the car didn't have a chance to overheat. Parts are enroute from autohausaz as we speak. New water pump, serpentine belt, aluminum pulley for the pump and fan blade as I broke 2 blades off the old fan during disassembly. D'oh! Will update after repairs are completed as to true condition of the engine.......

[Asbradley21]

Yep, the cooling systems in e39's are a total bitch. I just picked up an 98 528i/5 and am SOOO glad the PO had the entire cooling system replaced 10000 miles ago. You may want to look into running a lower pressure cap. You may also want to check your radiator for cracks and leaks, particularly the plastic bits and particularly if its original to the car.

[OnMy2ndE30]

Yep, the cooling systems in e39's are a total bitch. I just picked up an 98 528i/5 and am SOOO glad the PO had the entire cooling system replaced 10000 miles ago. You may want to look into running a lower pressure cap. You may also want to check your radiator for cracks and leaks, particularly the plastic bits and particularly if its original to the car.

The radiator was replaced by original owner, but I need to see when. I have complete documentation of everything the original owner did to the car through the dealer. One of the reasons I bought it......

[OnMy2ndE30]

Nice. I know a lot of people hate on green, but I love oxford. And I wouldn't worry about the chain guides, the early (97 & 98 model years) M62s don't have many problems on that front.

This is mine from a few years back. 6/96 build 540i/6, one of the very first.


It's getting a bit beat with 195k on the clock but still runs great. Fairly reliable too.

:edit: Before anyone gets smart, those aren't the factory wheels. It had style 19s

I gotcha beat, mine is a 03/96 build date...

I am currently waiting for my expansion tank and fan shroud to come in. I had to get 4 different water pumps before I finally got the right one. I started driving it, and then developed a coolant leak on the back of the tank against the shroud. Found a crack on the back of it. So, I should be getting my parts this weekend to get her back on the road. Damn, I miss that beast.....

[Cyrix2k]

I gotcha beat, mine is a 03/96 build date...

I should have been more specific. It's one of the very first six speeds built. There are quite a few older automatics floating around :) I only know of one earlier build six speed than mine.

I am currently waiting for my expansion tank and fan shroud to come in. I had to get 4 different water pumps before I finally got the right one. I started driving it, and then developed a coolant leak on the back of the tank against the shroud. Found a crack on the back of it. So, I should be getting my parts this weekend to get her back on the road. Damn, I miss that beast.....

if you haven't yet, you should replace ALL the cooling system parts. Hoses, wp, fan, fan clutch, radiator, thermostat, expansion tank, and valley pan gasket. What WP brand did you go with?

[OnMy2ndE30]

Then yes, you do have me beat with the 6 in it, lol.

I have replaced the water pump with a Graf replacement unit from Autohaus AZ, fan(because I broke the damn thing when I was taking it off the old water pump...D'OH!!!), fan shroud, thermostat, expansion tank and cap for tank. The radiator was replaced by the dealership a while back by the PO. I need to check when it was done though. The hoses look good and don't have any swelling to them. I am not sure about the valley pan gasket, but it isn't leaking right now. The CCV on the back of the intake has been done (there are the traditional worm drive clamps on all the hoses instead of the crimp clamps used by the factory. I replaced the valve cover gaskets, but they are still leaking because the coating on the valve covers sucks and isn't sealing right. Plus the vc on the driver side looks like someone drove over it at some point and tried to straighten it. One of the mounting studs for the coil pack on one of the cylinders is busted off that vc and only one mounting point holding the coil pack in there.

I am now trying to figure out the damn traction control and abs lights on the car. I have replaced both rear speed sensors and cleaned the heavily corroded connector for the abs pump under the hood. The brake light isn't on, but the cruise is inop, lettimg me to believe that the rear pass side sensor is squirrly....hell, I just drive the shit out of it and have a blast....

[Alpina]

I have had 2 of these E39 540.. both auto one with CLOTH manual,,sport seat,, M-Tech susp. ,, the other was so fully loaded i just can remeber 2 things that needed to be completly FULL FULL ,,, double glazing and standheizung ((engine heater))

the weight difference was also 200 kg .. or 440lbs


The E39 540 is a stunning 4door performance DD,,, loads of torque,, and drives effortless
on long-distance cruising in Europe,, you can get a amazing consuption ,, the diif is 2.81
and on 130 km speed you are getting 9L@100km,,,,, really impressive

some maintenance,, is there,, ABS sensor fails often,,, and in COLD/FREEZY conditions ,, the door locks often start to have some negative issue,, it is the same on E38 and X5 e53

valvecover gasket ALWAYS leak.. so i would change that also,, camshaft sensor sometimes fail,, and MAF also

but otherwise it is a fantastic car