MCoupe434

Hey everybody, I currently own an E46 M3 and love it, but I am looking for a change. I test drove a 545i 6 spd. at my local dealership and I was very impressed with the fit and finish as well as the power, plus the clutch and shifter were a joy to drive. First off, my dream car is an E39 M5, but the maintenance on one of those would kill me, so I started looking at the 545i, does anyone have experience with both of these cars and if so what are your thoughts? Secondly, have there been any major problems with the 545i's; I'm looking at one in the low 30's with about 50k miles, any problems to expect? Also, what are some good mods that will deliver more power, without breaking the bank? Lastly, are you guys satisfied with your 545i's or would an E39 M5 be worth the extra maint. costs? Any help is appreciated, thanks for taking the time to read this.

Nick

info@trinityautosport

welcome. well i have a 530 so i cant really comment on the 545. as for mods, there are some companies out there offering certain things like exhaust, air filter, ecu remap, and what not. dinan offers a pretty nice list of what you could put on your 545, like exhaust, intake, throttle body, remap, etc. for most power, it has been said that the most noticeable mod you could do would be the gears/differential for torque. 2nd for power i would say would be an ecu remap. hope this opened up some options for you and helped. good luck and enjoy the forums.

kiwistu

Hi new member here from Auckland New Zealand.

My dream car was an E39 M5 (having owned a E34 M5 when I lived breifly in the UK) however here's the story...firstly the new E60 M5 came out automatically moving the goalposts...

Secondly, I am now in a position to upgrade the 328 I have been in to a real one - I could go for a high mile M5, the big issue is I am friends with a specialist BMW workshop owner and he (while loving the E39 M5) warned that I should only own a M5 while it's in the factory warranty (VANOS etc is a particularly big issue and a horror story to fix).

So in two weeks I pick my low mile 545! (So you can work out my opinion!)

Next thing is to find some slightly bigger factory alloys in the next 6 months no rush though....

Cheers
Stu

jet190rs

there really aren't many mods which will gain more power unless you go with a supercharger.
afaik, there's only 1 intake on the market (dinan), no afe, no gruppe m, no k&n, etc.
there's a handful of exhaust options, but they probably don't raise hp, just sound
there are a few ecu remap options, but their gains have not been dyno'ed.

honestly, there are 10x more performance mods out there for the the e39 m5 compared to the 545. and because the e39 m5 is older, most products have been proven whether they are worth it or not. just take a look on m5board.com. lots of companies just don't make mods for non-M cars, so if you want to mod it, get the e39 m5. a 545 probably only has 1 or 2 years of factory warranty left anyway, so if this is a long term car, maybe the e39 m5 + extended warranty might be worth it.

545 is almost just as fast as a e39 m5, but its more a comfortable cruiser. e39 m5 is a sharper responding car, and has lsd for the handling will be superior (or at least more fun). 545 has more gadgets, e39 m5 is more of a raw performance car. depends on what you're looking for...

kscarrol

My January 2004 build 545 has been nearly flawless, no real problems to speak of. Did have the in-dash CD player act up but that was replaced and it's been fine since. The early cars (all E60's, not just the 545) had bugs, particularly software related issues that have all essentially worked out. Mechanically they are well built. Cars that have navigation use a different computer system than non-Nav cars. My non-Nav car was trouble free while seemingly Nav equipped cars had some issue in integrating things like Bluetooth etc. By now, with the appropriate software updates, these issues have been resolved.

sirch

Not sure how big your bank is but I have been looking for some upgrades for the 545i and have had trouble finding them, so I'm going to have them made by a local welder who is going to make CAI, and header. Dinan does make a CAI but at $1k it's not in the budget. Any feedback on the Powerchip ecu over the Dinan?

juan2mini

MCoupe434
Welcome, I have a Sept. 2003 built 545i w/6 speed & 35,000 miles. Outside of some early software issues and replacing the runflats my car has been flawless. This weekend went on an 800 mile road trip - played cat and mouse with a brand new 335i for a couple hundred miles - we both enjoyed it. My only concern is with the expense after warranty expires. Could be big bucks to replace some of the gizmos and there are plenty of gizmos. It is a wonderful car in my opinion, good luck.

MCoupe434

And its those expensive gizmos out of warranty that worry me. First off, thanks to everyone on the board for being so helpful, thanks alot guys. Heres another question, if you guys couldn't have bought your 545i's what would you have bought instead?

Nick

jsal

I was in your same position when I purchased my 545i. I have a July 04 build I purchased new and have been very happy with it. I have Ipod capability and bluetooth.

I love the look, sound and power of the e39 M5, but for the same money I think you get a better car in the 545i. With the sport your handling will be superb and you will have a smoother ride. You have more interior room, trunk room and a lighter vehicle. A little less power, but with a few Dinan mods, you will not be far off. A 550i would get you a little closer, but either way the power is good.

So you decision comes down to overall power versus ride and luxury features.

GOLD PANDA

I echo your feelings and sentiments here on the E60 545i, particularly in the Dinan modded format. For me personally, it's more car than I can ever use or truly need. The combination of high performance, luxury and remarkable civility is definitely hard to beat and one-of-a-kind in this regard. I love the way my car handles, accelerates, turns and stops with 5 passengers in the cabin and the A/C turned on to boot. With my recent Dinan mods, I've taken the car to yet another level. Truly amazing, yet still very, very civil. ENJOY & BEST REGARDS!