The lineup of 90s-era BMW “M Cars” is one of the hottest in the European car segment at the moment. The BMW M3 of the E30 years and the E34-chassis M5 are equal parts hard to find and getting scarcer by the day. The M5 shown here is the generation that became an instant film star thanks to its role in one of the greatest car chase scenes ever filmed. This nicely preserved M5 here on eBay is currently bid to $20,100 with the reserve unmet.
One of the things I’ve always admired about BMW is their commitment to preserving the factory appearance of its performance models. Yes, there are some subtle aero enhancements on this M5, but speaking just visually, there’s not a lot separating this autobahn cruiser from its mundane 5-Series stablemate. While the M3 of the same era stood out for having box flares and a significant rear wing, the M5 was clearly the sleepier of the two M cars.
The seller of this M5 has not only refreshed it cosmetically with a fresh paint job and new BBS 3-piece wheels, but he’s also swapped in a European-market interior with gorgeous cloth bucket sport seats and matching door panels. The listing also mentions that a previous owner loaded up on Dinan performance parts, which is the official “tuner” company that has maintained a very close relationship with BMW over the years. We don’t get any official drill-down on what Dinan parts are included, but it’s a selling point regardless of how long the list is.
There’s an E34 M5 not far from me that has been languishing outside a repair shop for years. The owner claims that the transmission went out and will need rebuild/replacing, and that doesn’t even touch on what the engine likely needs after years’ of dormancy. The S38 powerplant is a wonderful engine when running correctly, but rebuilds are not uncommon and can easily reach $20,000 in costs. Is it worth it? That depends on how badly you want to re-create Ronin on your drive to work every day.
That’s nice.
5-series estates of that shape have quite a following these days; I saw a few of them on my summer jaunt around Europe.
We bought an E53 in late 1990 and a subsequent business trip to Germany provided the opportunity to visit a couple of BMW factories. As I finished the tour in Dingolfing I saw, sitting off to the side, an M5 Touring in Daytona Purple. The back window had a large sign that said USA.
40 years and I still can’t get over it.
I’ve owned 2 M5’s in my life, both E60’s with the 5.0 liter V10 and 7 speed SMG. They were incredible cars, fast, handled exceptionally well for how heavy they were and great brakes. But I’ve always wanted the E34 generation M5 because of how lightweight they with the high revving I6 and manual transmission. This one looks beautiful in black and I’d love to know what Dinan mods it has, because it may have significantly more horsepower than stock and the BBS wheels really set it off. One of the true OG supersedans along with the AMG Hammer, I’d love to have it and show it off.
“Back in the day”…after the E28 version,
the E34 M5 was laughed at as an ultimate driving machine
Here I thought the author was referencing the car chase in the Gone in 60 Seconds remake between a 5series BMW and Elenor the 67 Shelby Mustang..
Dinan did a stroker kit for this series M5 that was frightfully expensive, significantly increased torque and horsepower. They also did suspension pieces. It would be worth it for an interested buyer to learn more.