i say go for it. you will enjoy driving it!

 

I say go for it. The dealer will probably do an excellent job with the paint. They usually do.

BUt I am shocked to hear that RAIN destroyed a paint job to the point that they have to repaint the car. That's just nuts!

 

Don't let a minor dealer repaint deter you from getting this M5. Repaints are done all the time on the bumpers, hoods and other parts of the lease returns, demos, et. al to make them showroom perfect.. Get the M5 Doug!!

Nothing like owning an M car.. My next move in 2010... M3

 

Any doubt as to what everyone is recommeding? Of course how many of the "unbiased" opinions are from guys that want a crack at your 16,900 mile "used" 550 is up to you to determine.

 

Have them repaint it blue I would take it

 

You are soo right man. I learned that during the course of business here. I would get so many guys with brand new M5's or E55's, and other 80-100k cars that are looking to spend 2k on wheels and tires! Some even ask me for narrow knockoffs! lol

 

The fact that you can even get .9% on a M car is a great deal. Back when I got my 7series they had a 2.9%promo going and Mcars were NOT included.

If you can comfortably swing the payments I say go for it.

 

RON, when I give an opinion, review, or car-buying advice it is always an honest one. I don't have to give misleading statements to try and "get" something. If I want a certain vehicle, I will usually buy it new, not used.

And I can say the same for most of the regular posters in CAR CHAT.....1SICKGOAT, bitkahuna, doug999, flipside909, etc.... and, hopefully, yourself as well.

 

Put your indignation on hold as I know that you, 1SICKGOAT, bitkahuna, flipside, and quite a few others aren't interested in Doug's car. I don't doubt that everyone thoroughly reviews any opinion they post and that in their opinion their opinion is their honest opinion. And I am not in the market for a 550 either. But if I was, a couple of year old one with 16,900 miles on it doesn't come along very often.

I full well expect that no one on CL has the slightest interest in a 550 but on the used market, vehicles like that with that mileage don't come along very often. Let alone from someone who can vouch for every bit of service it has received. Doug isn't starting a BMW aftermarket shop or a BMW dealership or starting a BMW buying service web site or getting paid for BMW buying service referrals. At least I don't think so.

As for the purity of other posts that get made here, well, a lot of us other than you have been around this site for a while and the internet in general, I figure we are pretty netnanny aware. The post of my opinon on what Doug is going to be selling (assuming the M5 wins) was a bit more lighthearted than you decided to take which is the reason for inserting little things like . You may have noticed them before in other posts.

 

I'm always uncomfortable about repaints. See where it was done. Was it done by the Dealer or VDC?

Sounds like a great deal, see if you can get a similar deal in a car w/o a history. You're not in a rush so try not to make an emotional decision.

 

Ok, first off, remember this car is not local to me - it is about 5 hours away. So I have not seen it.

I did speak to the salesperson yesterday who put th kibosh on the repaint. It seems the dealer body shop is slow and they like painting sapphire black cars. There were spots - they are all gone - they buffed right out. What remains are what he describes as small imperfections in the clear coat. In his words, "Doug, on your drive back to Chicago you will have a lot more of those". So the typical stuff that happens to your hood - per him.

I've asked a client who is local to the area to go check out the car. The deal can be squashed if I (or the client) does not like the way the hood/roof looks.

I'm still struggling with this whole thing. It came about really quick. As I mentioned before, I love my 550 - it is perfect for my drive. However, the M5 is the M5 and it has some options (namely cooled seats and HD radio in addition to the aluminum trim) that I've always wanted - oh and it is a stick shift and I miss having a stick shift car. I'm just not sure I want to drive stick all the time .

So I'm torn here.

Oh yea, the dealer adjusted the deal (down to where I originally wanted to be) and it throwing in a phone adapter for me. Turns out the screaming deals are where BMW offered the dealers an extra M5 and allowed them to register it as a dealer demo, getting them $2,500 cash back on the car. This is not one of those cars.....

 

Ask for pictures, to see just how the paint really is

I thought I read that the M5 manual wasn't as good as the SMG, or was that not true?

 

Correct, M5s with the 6SPD have overheating problems compared to the SMG, and with the 6 speed you can't turn off traction control. I say go for it-whatever makes you happy is ultimately the car you want in the end.

 

BMW came out with a software update to correct the traction control on/off issue. However, I've read from a couple of people who have tried it and it scared the crap out of them.

The SMG is the trans of choice for the track. I'm pretty sure I won't be spending a ton of time there and if I do, I'm going to drive like a little old lady compared to the crazies out there

 

My mistake then.