Help!! I dont know what to get next....

[Spice Boy]

Well after all the trouble Ive had with my E34 Ive decided to cut my losses and move on to better things...

Im looking at E39s but I have no idea what to look for...

I have a budget of £5k and would prefer something with alot of poke and lots of potential to upgrade (I do all my own work etc so facelifting the car or other changes are no problem to do after purchase)

Right, point me in the right direction guys!

[Spice Boy]

Sorry lol...

As a general guide im looking for a car thats:

Black, Manual, sunroof...

Aslong as it has those 3 then its a good contender!

[Ferret]

E39s tend to cause a lot of trouble, but you can pick them up now from about £1800 if you look hard enough - £5k will get you a good one.

a 535iV8 would be a laugh methinks... :P

Fairly common and low value cos of the fuel costs hard to find in manual though.

The 530i is supposed to be best of the bunch though - rack and pinion steering and smooth straight 6

EDIT: Watch out with E39s though - their rear suspension is as complicated as the front suspension on the E34 - meaning you've got twice as much to go wrong!

[e34.535i.sport]

You won't find anything as good looking as the e34 in my opinion... e39 styling went backwards I think but it's all about personal taste I suppose!

However I drove an e46 330i today and it was awesome (and still a good looking car) with good space and all the things you need... Well worth a test drive. I'm not sure on the pricing of them now but someone here will know i'm sure?!

[Nick.Hay]

How old was your E34??

Do you know its history??

I reckon you'd be better off to spend 5K on a later model E34 (95 530i sport??), instead of going to a lower end, early production E39.

You'd get a beautiful, one-owner, well kept, enthusiasts minter E34 for that sort of money... One with full books, and proper servicing with genuine parts.

Thats my .02p anyway!!

[Spice Boy]

My E34 was K/92 and had FULL service history.. runs like new and is as straight as they come... but after having 3 of the windows put through over the past few months Ive lost heart in her...

I still love the look and drive of the E34 but Id like something a lil newer...

Ive even started thinking along these lines...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1993-BMW-E34-M...QQcmdZViewItem

A bit above my budget but what a car!

Shame its the 3.8, Ive heard that the 3.6 is a much more reliable engine etc