SSBaronM5

Drove both a 550i W/Sport package and an SMG M5 today. The M5 was awesome. It only had 75 miles on it and I drove in P400 mostly, P500 briefly. I noticed the subdued low end torque but the car was great at 5500 rpm, which is all I could real bring it to. Much rougher ride than a 550i obviously.

Living in Miami and commuting sometiimes 40 miles on the expressway 2-3 times per week, I know the M5 would be amazing BUT the 550i is a better fit for me. Just yesterday, I was all about the ///M5 but after driving both today, analyzing costs (Price, Gas, etc..)...I'm going with the 550i.

I have many questions and I hope the board can help.

1. Any must have options? I'm definatley getting the Multi seats and iPod/USB. The HUD seems nice, as well as comfort access.

2. Performance Aftermarket tuning. What can be done or will be able to be done on this car to increase performance? Ide like to get this car close to 400hp, which was what my E39 M5 was at. Dinan, Eisenmann, etc?

3. Cosmetic Aftermarket or Special ordering.

A) Can you get the M5 Side view mirrors, with thier awesome shape on the 550i?
Can you get the M5 Steering wheel for the 550i?

4. I definatley want the paddle shifters on my steering wheel. Is there a special package that brings this? I know they do have it.

5. Are there any new transmissions becoming available or just Steptronic with Paddleshift and 6 Speed Manual?

6. Anyone in Miami that knows where to get the best price on this car.

Thank you tremendously for any help.

Rudy

Good choice -- not that you'd have done badly with either choice...

To answer some of your questions:

1) I'm the kind of person who usually likes my cars loaded with options so you'll need to look at what other people say here as well but recently, a thread was started (along with many older ones) about the usefulness of the HUD. Most everyone who has the HUD says they can't live without it. Others who never had it don't understand why we like it so much. Click here for the HUD topic: http://forums.e60.net/index.php?showtopic=41997

2) The mod crazy people in the mods forum can help you here but aside from Dinan and others, there seems to be a new rumor that hints that BMW will be entering this market as well to compete (or possibly join) with Dinan. The good news is that we all win if we're looking to mod.

3) Not sure what you mean exactly. If you're talking about body mods, sure, there are plenty of aftermarket ones. Also, if you get a 550i sport package, you'll get the M-sport bumpers for free.

4) The M5 mirrors have been successfully retrofitted by members here -- you can't get it directly from the factory as far as I know. I think nicke60gre did the retrofit and documented it here. The same with the steering wheel -- people have retrofitted it but you may not need to after reading answer number 5.

5) It sounds like you should definitely order the "sport automatic" transmission option. It's brand new this year (only available since June production) and it not only adds paddles to the fast-shifting new automatic but also adds throttle blipping on downshifts, etc. It's likely the next best thing to SMG right now. (Stay tuned for my review later this week after I take delivery of mine...)

6) Can't help you with Miami pricing although I do know that Braman sells a ton of cars.

SSBaronM5

Rudy, Thanks so much for your insight.

If BMW came into the aftermarket mods area....wow would be awesome.

I dont hink Ill go with the HUD. I like looking at the Gauges. I was particularly wondering about the side mirrors and steering wheel but man I did a close up on your wheel and it looks fat. Not PHAt...I mean wide.

What about illuminated door sills and double dual exhaust? I saw a pic of that on this board.

So you have the Sport Auto tranny? It shifts differently then the Steptronic in manual mode?

Also, your paddles....are they thumb-push or finger pull?

Rudy

Yes, the steering wheel is quite large -- the sport auto does shift differently than a step in manual mode. The paddles are not like the M5 you drove -- instead, they are push-pull where a pull of either lever (with your fingers) will up-shift and a push of either lever (with your thumb) will down-shift. I've used that setup in my current E60 SMG and I find it great because you can up- or down-shift with one hand and you never have to guess at which paddle you're touching if the wheel is turned significantly and you need to shift...

tachyon

Interesting that after driving both you are opting for the 550i. You will love that machine.

Definitely wait to get the Sport Auto transmission with paddle shifters ... get HUD because the 550 is so smooth that you will find yourself quickly past the speed limit and you don't want to be looking down a the dials that often. In Miami you will need the ventilated seats ... and the rear shades. Logic 7 is a great stereo system. I did not get Comfort Access, but frankly the Start button is a pain unless you get CA.

Other than that, the 550i Sport comes with so many goodies already ... save the rest for mods!

Good luck and enjoy.

SSBaronM5

I'm offering the dealer this for the car.....


What do you guys think.. heh

Audi Defector

Sorry, I'm a noob here....I got 1.9% from BMW Financial for a CPO car.....damn 7% is high! Try Capital One or somethin.

SSBaronM5

That was just me highballing the interest rate. Remember, this is MY offer to them.

slickrick

hey SSBaronM5,

Where did you get the spec sheet. I'd like to check and see if I did good on my purchase.

Thanks Rick..

slickrick

You can't compare CPO to new. The dealership will give you a lower interest rate if the car is a 2004 or say 3 years old. This is what attracts customers and allows the dealership to move the CPO inventory. On a new car it's a whole different ball game. I don't think there is any member in this group that has bought a new car and financed for 5 or 6 years and received a rate lower than 5%. Even that is kind of low. Remember I'm only speaking about a new car. If I'm wrong about this I stand corrected.

Thanks Rick...