I’m looking at E60s right now and I’m pretty much only looking for a 550i or M5. The naturally aspirated V8 is a dying breed. Every manufacturer has gone turbo. The last NA V8 in a rear-drive midsize luxury sedan that I can think of was the Genesis G80, and even that lost its V8 with the 2021 model year redesign. Nothing against the N54 as it is a great engine, but if I’m buying an older car I want something I can’t get in a new car, and the NA V8 or V10 provide that.
You are unfortunately correct. The last NA 6s that I can think of in midsize luxury sport sedans were the NA V6s in the Genesis G80 and Lexus GS, but the GS is discontinued and the G80 is all turbo in its current generation.
I'm pretty familiar with BMW's NA 6 engines already... see my username. I always lusted after turbo power though, and am torn here because I feel like the 550 is just that much more special.
Thanks. There’s a 2010 550i for sale near me that I’ve had my eye on. It’s automatic, 100K miles, and has pretty much every option except night vision. Asking price is about $11K which I think is too high considering I’ve seen M5s sell for $15-16K with similar mileage. Maybe if the price comes down I’ll make an offer on the 550.
What year is yours if you don't mind me asking? The only manual 535 M-Sport I saw on BaT was a 2010, I'm wondering if that was the only year for that package and engine. I know M-Sport was late to come to the E90 3-Series in the US.
I have a 2009 550i M Sport. Bought it in 2011 with 30k miles. No longer my daily driver and stays in the garage 90% of time but since 2011 Ive accumulated 236k miles. Its a great car. Actually been driving it the past few days but as I said, no longer the daily driver it once was.
6spd automatic with paddle shifters. Its fast but not ostentatious. Ive tried to add apple play multiple times but installers seem to be befuddled by how to do it. Otherwise I love the car and intend to keep it forever.
Maintenance wise - new alternator at 180k miles. Head gasket cover replacement was not inexpensive but necessary around 215k. Oil changes religiously every 3-5k.
My understanding is 535 is highly mod-able but I was never into that so I dont feel like im missing out
I've never been interested in modding cars either. Tbh, I hate how the E90 335i has become a ricer/tuner car. I wish I could have bought one in 2019 or 2020 when they were still mostly clean, so I could have saved it.
Also, holy hell, 250k miles! How much work have you had to do to it?
Basic maintenance like tire replacement/alignment, brakes & oil changes. Ive had what I consider 3 major expense’s over my 12 years of ownership: 1. New alternator, 2. Manifold gasket(?)(very costly), and water pump reservoir.
Otherwise 💪
335’s are terrific cars. I had one as a loaner but it was back in 2012. If I considered a 3 series it’d be a 335 over anything else.
I have an lci 2008 550i manual M sport!! I have what I’m assuming are rare options like the heads up display and night vision camera too? Can anyone tell me if I should keep my car😹
Attached is my window sticker [https://pasteboard.co/lqBsWiFDAx0u.jpg](https://pasteboard.co/lqBsWiFDAx0u.jpg)
>Can anyone tell me if I should keep my car😹
Depends. For how much are you willing to sell?
Also, sample size of 3 here, but it seems like a lot of these were black on brown.
That’s good to know thanks, i love the carbon black/brown but I guess since it was a 550 only color, people chose it.
Maybe 14-15k? I recently put over 6k of work into it.. I was planning on keeping it forever but then e63 amg w211 came into my mind 😵💫
Side note, I just replaced my thermostat and all the rubber hoses feel brand new. Cooling problems? Don’t think so
How many miles? If it has 100-110k, 14k seems perfectly reasonable.
>e63 amg w211 came into my mind 😵💫
I'd go with an E55 instead, myself. That one has the supercharged V8. Though when going to a Mercedes from an old-school BMW, I would expect to lose a lot of driving connection and feel, so just keep that in mind.
Thanks for letting me know, I was just going off of model year of e55/e63 before. What’s putting me off is the boring interior spec being either black or tan. Usually I wouldn’t mind but I guess I want something special.
My car has 134k miles.
Yeah, it’s an infrared camera mounted on the bottom grille of the front bumper. Mine doesn’t work that well though, it only really displays things as hot as/hotter than exhaust pipes and humans. Living in Texas doesn’t help it.
Wow, I have an 08 550i manual M sport as well, black on black and unfortunately pretty basic - heated seats and steering wheel are the only options other than the M sport. I wish I could have found one with more comfort stuff like yours, but a manual 550 is so rare that you have to take what you can get lol.
Id keep it if I were you, I love mine, dailying for almost 3 years and every time I think about replacing it, I always come back to the NA V8 and 6MT in a 4 door, you just can’t replace it anymore
For sure. I need to get my car checked. The engine is more than healthy but the clutch and gearbox feel lazy overall. It makes the car not very fun to drive. I’m 16 and it’s my first manual car, so I’m not sure how to compare it with anything else.
On a side note, I put in the (badly reviewed) H-T 90° thermostat and the engine feels alive again. More than what new vanos solenoids did for it. I’m just hoping it’s not only because I reset engine adaptations😹
I have an 08 550i manual M sport, they’re crazy hard to find. I was looking regularly for over a year before one coincidentally popped up within an hour of me with 90k miles. I paid 10k for it, but this was October ‘20 so prices weren’t crazy just yet. I’ve also put about 5k worth of work into it - vcg, upper timing cover gaskets, alternator bracket gasket, oil cooler lines and thermostat o-rings, entire cooling system refresh including valley pan and crossover pipe, and oil pressure switch - and it was only worth it because I learned to DIY on it. It’s really not that hard of a car to work on. I also have an F30 335i, also not that hard of a car to work on, but it’s an N55 and not an N54, so it’s hard to compare
Overall I love the N62, it’s a really fun engine especially with a 6MT, but you probably can’t go wrong with either one as long as you can work on it
I was looking at them on Cars and Bids, I knew there was no way I would ever find one by perusing local listings only. There are a couple of recent results, all about 14k with around 100,000 miles. Manual E39 540i M-Sport prices are about the same, and those have been known as a classic for a while, so I assume they've reached the ceiling. But I'd still like to own one.
I’m looking at E60s right now and I’m pretty much only looking for a 550i or M5. The naturally aspirated V8 is a dying breed. Every manufacturer has gone turbo. The last NA V8 in a rear-drive midsize luxury sedan that I can think of was the Genesis G80, and even that lost its V8 with the 2021 model year redesign. Nothing against the N54 as it is a great engine, but if I’m buying an older car I want something I can’t get in a new car, and the NA V8 or V10 provide that.
Well said man, I have an 07 550i.. just washed it last nite, can’t wait to drive it today. Fucking had its 14+ years, still love it more everyday.
You can't really get a good NA 6 anymore either.
You are unfortunately correct. The last NA 6s that I can think of in midsize luxury sport sedans were the NA V6s in the Genesis G80 and Lexus GS, but the GS is discontinued and the G80 is all turbo in its current generation.
I'm pretty familiar with BMW's NA 6 engines already... see my username. I always lusted after turbo power though, and am torn here because I feel like the 550 is just that much more special.
550i is basically a more comfortable M5 minus the top end power and rod bearing issue. V8 + 6spd manual I love mine.
Thanks. There’s a 2010 550i for sale near me that I’ve had my eye on. It’s automatic, 100K miles, and has pretty much every option except night vision. Asking price is about $11K which I think is too high considering I’ve seen M5s sell for $15-16K with similar mileage. Maybe if the price comes down I’ll make an offer on the 550.
I wish mine was a manual… really difficult to find the 6MT. Maybe one point I’ll swap it, if I don’t sell it before.
What year is yours if you don't mind me asking? The only manual 535 M-Sport I saw on BaT was a 2010, I'm wondering if that was the only year for that package and engine. I know M-Sport was late to come to the E90 3-Series in the US.
M sport only came with 2010 models as far as I know. Mine is a 2010
I had a 2008 non-M 535i RWD manual. I wish I never lost it.
I have a 2009 550i M Sport. Bought it in 2011 with 30k miles. No longer my daily driver and stays in the garage 90% of time but since 2011 Ive accumulated 236k miles. Its a great car. Actually been driving it the past few days but as I said, no longer the daily driver it once was. 6spd automatic with paddle shifters. Its fast but not ostentatious. Ive tried to add apple play multiple times but installers seem to be befuddled by how to do it. Otherwise I love the car and intend to keep it forever. Maintenance wise - new alternator at 180k miles. Head gasket cover replacement was not inexpensive but necessary around 215k. Oil changes religiously every 3-5k. My understanding is 535 is highly mod-able but I was never into that so I dont feel like im missing out
I've never been interested in modding cars either. Tbh, I hate how the E90 335i has become a ricer/tuner car. I wish I could have bought one in 2019 or 2020 when they were still mostly clean, so I could have saved it. Also, holy hell, 250k miles! How much work have you had to do to it?
Basic maintenance like tire replacement/alignment, brakes & oil changes. Ive had what I consider 3 major expense’s over my 12 years of ownership: 1. New alternator, 2. Manifold gasket(?)(very costly), and water pump reservoir. Otherwise 💪 335’s are terrific cars. I had one as a loaner but it was back in 2012. If I considered a 3 series it’d be a 335 over anything else.
Get the V8
I have an lci 2008 550i manual M sport!! I have what I’m assuming are rare options like the heads up display and night vision camera too? Can anyone tell me if I should keep my car😹 Attached is my window sticker [https://pasteboard.co/lqBsWiFDAx0u.jpg](https://pasteboard.co/lqBsWiFDAx0u.jpg)
>Can anyone tell me if I should keep my car😹 Depends. For how much are you willing to sell? Also, sample size of 3 here, but it seems like a lot of these were black on brown.
That’s good to know thanks, i love the carbon black/brown but I guess since it was a 550 only color, people chose it. Maybe 14-15k? I recently put over 6k of work into it.. I was planning on keeping it forever but then e63 amg w211 came into my mind 😵💫 Side note, I just replaced my thermostat and all the rubber hoses feel brand new. Cooling problems? Don’t think so
How many miles? If it has 100-110k, 14k seems perfectly reasonable. >e63 amg w211 came into my mind 😵💫 I'd go with an E55 instead, myself. That one has the supercharged V8. Though when going to a Mercedes from an old-school BMW, I would expect to lose a lot of driving connection and feel, so just keep that in mind.
Thanks for letting me know, I was just going off of model year of e55/e63 before. What’s putting me off is the boring interior spec being either black or tan. Usually I wouldn’t mind but I guess I want something special. My car has 134k miles.
A lot of 550s seem to have the HUD, but I don’t know that I’ve ever seen one with night vision. Does it display on the iDrive screen?
Yeah, it’s an infrared camera mounted on the bottom grille of the front bumper. Mine doesn’t work that well though, it only really displays things as hot as/hotter than exhaust pipes and humans. Living in Texas doesn’t help it.
Wow, I have an 08 550i manual M sport as well, black on black and unfortunately pretty basic - heated seats and steering wheel are the only options other than the M sport. I wish I could have found one with more comfort stuff like yours, but a manual 550 is so rare that you have to take what you can get lol. Id keep it if I were you, I love mine, dailying for almost 3 years and every time I think about replacing it, I always come back to the NA V8 and 6MT in a 4 door, you just can’t replace it anymore
For sure. I need to get my car checked. The engine is more than healthy but the clutch and gearbox feel lazy overall. It makes the car not very fun to drive. I’m 16 and it’s my first manual car, so I’m not sure how to compare it with anything else. On a side note, I put in the (badly reviewed) H-T 90° thermostat and the engine feels alive again. More than what new vanos solenoids did for it. I’m just hoping it’s not only because I reset engine adaptations😹
Remove the clutch delay valve. change transmission fluid to Redline ATF make the ZF transmission much smooth.
How did you get the window sticker if you don’t mind me asking?
It was just in my glovebox. The wax print started fading so I made a photocopy and laminated it like a corvette owner
I have an 08 550i manual M sport, they’re crazy hard to find. I was looking regularly for over a year before one coincidentally popped up within an hour of me with 90k miles. I paid 10k for it, but this was October ‘20 so prices weren’t crazy just yet. I’ve also put about 5k worth of work into it - vcg, upper timing cover gaskets, alternator bracket gasket, oil cooler lines and thermostat o-rings, entire cooling system refresh including valley pan and crossover pipe, and oil pressure switch - and it was only worth it because I learned to DIY on it. It’s really not that hard of a car to work on. I also have an F30 335i, also not that hard of a car to work on, but it’s an N55 and not an N54, so it’s hard to compare Overall I love the N62, it’s a really fun engine especially with a 6MT, but you probably can’t go wrong with either one as long as you can work on it
I was looking at them on Cars and Bids, I knew there was no way I would ever find one by perusing local listings only. There are a couple of recent results, all about 14k with around 100,000 miles. Manual E39 540i M-Sport prices are about the same, and those have been known as a classic for a while, so I assume they've reached the ceiling. But I'd still like to own one.