BMW E39 M5: Talk to me about them.

but not so unusual for GRM

Playing zombie thread resurrection...

Keith, did you ever drive yours on snow? Not the aaargh where's my truck kind of snowstorm type snow, just regular snow after the road's been cleared?

I'm seriously considering bailing out of the Talon and while idly window shopping, came across a 2000 M5 for reasonable money with reasonable miles...

Of course there's also a one owner E28 M5 that's suddenly appeared on the radar but I'm not sure I'd want to drive that year round.

I'd not be able to get rid of the disaster area that is my CJ7 this year anyway so I'd have 4WD backup in the form of the CJ and the wife's XJ.

I guess it might be more sensible to get an E36 M3 as that's (a) a little cheaper and (b) could be used as a track car as well, meaning I didn't need another car for track use. With an M5 that would probably be still a requirement.

Not a lot of snow here, but I did take the beast to the ice climbing festival in Ouray a couple of years back and got a bit of white stuff under the high-performance all-seasons that are on the car. I'd want a set of winter tires for it if I were to do that on a regular basis, but then I wouldn't be too concerned. No worse than my old Golf was, really.

One of the good things about the M5 in snow.. Limited Slip Differential. After 1996 1/2 only the M Cars got them.. the rest got Traction Control.

mad_machine wrote: One of the good things about the M5 in snow.. Limited Slip Differential. After 1996 1/2 only the M Cars got them.. the rest got Traction Control.

And I'll tell you from several years of NY winters with my 525i that the DSC is far from ideal in the snow, and that's with four dedicated snow tires mounted. The system just wants to cut power at the slightest slip or slide, which makes driving with it on a very slow process when you live in an area with lots of hills and twisty roads. Thankfully, relief is only a button-press away. With the system off (and the aforementioned snows) the car is great in the snow as long as you're not bothered by a little lateral movement. M5 is going to have orders of magnitude greater power, obviously, but the chassis is the same, and the LSD will help even further.

Keith wrote: Not a lot of snow here, but I did take the beast to the ice climbing festival in Ouray a couple of years back and got a bit of white stuff under the high-performance all-seasons that are on the car. I'd want a set of winter tires for it if I were to do that on a regular basis, but then I wouldn't be too concerned. No worse than my old Golf was, really.

Yeah, snow tires are pretty much a requirement out here for any car that's being used all year round. The 2k M5 actually does come with a second set of wheels with Blizzaks on them...

02Pilot wrote:

mad_machine wrote: One of the good things about the M5 in snow.. Limited Slip Differential. After 1996 1/2 only the M Cars got them.. the rest got Traction Control.

And I'll tell you from several years of NY winters with my 525i that the DSC is far from ideal in the snow, and that's with four dedicated snow tires mounted. The system just wants to cut power at the slightest slip or slide, which makes driving with it on a very slow process when you live in an area with lots of hills and twisty roads. Thankfully, relief is only a button-press away. With the system off (and the aforementioned snows) the car is great in the snow as long as you're not bothered by a little lateral movement. M5 is going to have orders of magnitude greater power, obviously, but the chassis is the same, and the LSD will help even further.

indeed.. DSC is a half assed system at best. All it is a secondary throttle body that cuts power when you slip.

The last time I drove my Ti in the snow, I was on summer tyres.. but the LSD (winter package) kept me out of trouble for the most part. It was fun to watch other drivers backoff though, when accelerating my car would take a decidedly sideways course depending on the crown of the road

02Pilot wrote: M5 is going to have orders of magnitude greater power, obviously, but the chassis is the same, and the LSD will help even further.

And of course, that extra power only comes in to play if you actually ask for it. A part of driving high-power cars in the snow that many people forget...

Isn't that engine kinda high strung.. as in all the power is up high in the RPM band?

mad_machine wrote: Isn't that engine kinda high strung.. as in all the power is up high in the RPM band?

I don't think so. It pulls pretty damn hard from down low.