Shockingly only $2700, my non-matrix cars are the pricey ones at near $4k a side

 

No I was surprised it was that cheap!

 

You guys want to see unreliable? Right here. Manual M5 and M3, same owner has a B7 RS4 in manual as well but these two right here are the $$$$$$ makers!

I would NEVER get these over a same era Lexus. The RS4 is in amazing shape but it had a freak engine explosion at 62k on a road trip for no reason we could determine. Before and after that it is the reliable car in the fleet/really in general.

 

Oh man... that M5 looks sweet! I wanted an E36 M3 sedan in Estoril Blue in high school so bad.

I thought E36 cars were relatively reliable?

 

Absolutely not the case IRL, I love it since it has fed me endless money on a consistent basis lol! It's ALWAYS breaking in new major ways, just had a full dash out from a EVAP coil death and it's only 110k miles.

It and the E39 really don't measure up irl. The E39 doesn't drive nearly as well as it's hyped up to, interior is not well put together to top it off.....if you shift hard from 2-3 it pops the shifter bezel off the center console. Everything creaks and buzzes going down the road and the ride is that fake "sporty" that just feels harsh and can't corner as hard as the same owners RS4. We are talking like 10-15 mph lower speeds on my test loop and you can't get in the power early at all or it will walk out, fun but not as fast.

The E36 is all the same but worse, feels SO cheap overall. Same era IS is miles more soild of a car but the thing that Lexus gets killed in is they are much slower and handle worse than these.....but I would still always pick the Lexus and swap on stiffer sways, real shocks, two step firmer bushings, and figure out something for more power before subjecting myself to these. It's truely a matter of overhyped and REALLY needy

I am grateful I got to work on and drive/experience them but the owner will tell you if it wasn't for the fact he loves the pair past their face value it's not worth it.

 

very cool impression, you always have good input to share, i appreciate it! my dream garage has an E39 in it (now bc of you with dream funds to maintain it).

back to the topic, i just sold my 2007 IS250 and it was pushing almost 240k miles - EVERYTHING still worked perfectly. if it wasn't for the small back seat i would have kept it. it was by no means perfect but that car has kept me a believer in toyota/lexus. i've owned a 90s celica, LS400, IS300, tacoma, sequoia, and have serviced my parents' GS350, IS350, many gens of RAV4, camry, and rx350. i'm probably biased !

 

An unpopular opinion, but one I happen to agree with. I found my two E60s to be much better to drive than the E39. I had a 545i and then a 550i. With the active ride-stabiliization suspension and sport pack the ride and handling was on another level than the E39, and the E60s were a lot faster. Absolutely flat cornering due to ARS, which also delivered insane cornering speed. One of them had active steering too, which was also tremendous.

 

I feel compelled to say the E39 is still an amazing car but it's not like its reputation suggests it to be. That's all and if you want one it will cost you in $$$$ or time.....

For my personal tastes I would rather have a same era RS6 with a manual conversion

 

Careful, you say it too loudly and people will come with torches and pitchforks!

The E39 isn't in any way bad.....but if like me you read SO much online how god tier it is and then drive it for the first time expecting what you read online it is a major letdown.

In my case I already had a personal car that had a TVD, active steering, active AWD, skyhook air suspension, and a bunch of other tricks so I was REALLY underwhelmed when corner speeds and control was so much lower than the internet lead me to believe the car could do.

 

I think a lot of the hype back then was how it performed relative to its competition at the time, and I do think the E39 probably was about the best at the time. Like you, I think it had a lot of great qualities but just don't think it was ever quite as good as it was made out to be. I think a lot of the hype was down to it being more traditionally styled compared to the E65 and E60. They were designed and built very differently and I think that made some see the E39 through a more nostalgic lens.

 

Very good and true points, I (being younger) actually like the looks of the E65 and especially the E60 M5 a LOT. Like so much so that combined with the V10 I almost bought one but I chose to not financially kill myself and bought my 02 LS430 instead. The E65 V12 is also a constant temptation for me but I've worked on so many 7s I know it's a horrible idea, and that 12 has issues that are common and big money for parts.

That was also hard because literally right next to the LA430 in this guys collection was a 2005 S600 Renntech with AMG pack in great shape for only $11k. My dad who I brought with me to help pickup my new LS couldn't understand why I would spend near two hours adoring the S600 but buy the Lexus lol!

Nowadays I'm skilled to the point that if a nice E60 comes around I will break my rule and suffer BMW ownership just to have that noise in my life.