I keep in mind a specific night greater than 20 years in the past once I was nonetheless a child in highschool. The solar was about to set, and there it was, a maroon-colored E39 BMW 5 Collection facelift, with its 4 angel eyes lit up, fascinating my consideration as if holding my gaze whereas it drove previous. Since then, I’ve all the time admired the E39 5 Collection for its timeless design. However I solely admired it from afar for a very long time, as my fascination with the automobile was additionally dampened by horror tales of many house owners coping with never-ending issues and excessive upkeep payments. I beloved the automobile, however by no means fairly dared to significantly take into account proudly owning it.

Love At First Sight

My first time behind the wheel of an E39 M5 was, fairly apparently, throughout the Worldwide Media Launch of the G30 BMW 5 Collection held in Lisbon, Portugal, in 2016, the place additionally they lined up the traditional fleet for us to expertise. That E39 528i with the plate “MAK 601” was the very first E39 I ever drove.

My First E39 Was A 520i

I finally purchased my very own E39 in 2018. It was a 2003 520i with the two.2-liter M54 engine. The automobile was regionally assembled in Malaysia, and since it was a final-run manufacturing automobile earlier than they launched the E60, the automobile got here fairly well-loaded with excessive OBC, rear shades, and electrical seat adjustment.

Mechanically, this automobile has been largely inventory. I’ve swapped out the usual 16-inch wheels for 17-inch Type 66 and finally RS740. The one mechanical modification has been to improve the entrance brakes to 530i dimension and a full conversion to M Sport suspension. In my 5 years of proudly owning the automobile, these upgrades have enhanced its driving dynamics with out compromising the unique character that I fell in love with.

A Automobile That Feels Proper

After 5 years of proudly owning the automobile and having the privilege of experiencing the newest and quickest vehicles by way of my work, the E39 remains to be the automobile that feels proper each time I get behind the wheel. I do sometimes yearn for the added muscle of a 530i, however the E39 5 Collection, for me, is my soulmate automobile. There’s one thing about the way in which the automobile strikes, the way in which it reacts to our inputs, that I really feel a way of connection to the automobile each time I drive it.

Greater than the automobile itself, my journey proudly owning the E39 would by no means be full with out the sturdy fellowship that I’ve been part of, whether or not it’s the close-knit fellow E39 house owners in Malaysia or the worldwide E39 group at massive. It by no means ceases to amaze me how virtually each challenge I’ve confronted with this automobile has been confronted by somebody in some a part of the world with the required options documented and out there for simple entry.

I’ve made it my mission to doc the journey of E39 5 Collection possession with the intention of inspiring fellow fans to pursue the vehicles of their desires. It’s a testomony to the enduring enchantment of the E39 and the shared ardour that unites us all. I’ll positively transfer on to expertise and experiment with having newer and quicker vehicles, however no matter I purchase or lease sooner or later, there’ll all the time be a BMW E39 on my automobile porch.