As you will see from the picture gallery, the upgrades have in no way reduced the value of the car, as there is nothing that cannot be reversed. More than that, the mods haven’t gone overboard, with the add-ons adding to the sporty side of the car. That the reliability of the car hasn’t been compromised is icing on the cake, and this makes this particular E39 M5 one of best daily drivers you could have.

See pics of the car here.

Visit the thread below and you’ll see that the kit is not just some Vortech unit with the necessary plumbing thrown in. The intake and exhaust tubes are carbon fiber pipes, there is a new 6-rib crank pulley and new higher-capacity Bosch injectors. The kit also includes a Tial bypass valve, an oil breather assembly for boosted applications and CNC-machined spacers and brackets. The picture of the install shows a very clean and OEM-looking layout. Aside from putting together the considerable sum that this kit surely costs, the other significant problem will be how to control that right foot once the owner gets into the car.

See E39 M5 supercharger installation here.

Single turbo setups are discussed too, including their benefits in terms of less complexity and easier tuning. Because of things like VANOS and the way the stock ECU calculates fuel mixture, fabricating a turbo setup is the least of one’s worries when turbocharging the S62. Supercharger setups as a proven solution are also discussed, in view of the fact that the intial twin turbo setup being discussed targetted “only” 600 horsepower. But even at those relatively mild levels, the increased stresses all the way to the rear wheels need to be considered too.

Find the thread here.

Now, they’ve started a thread on a popular M5 forum and if you’re an E39 M5 owner, our suggestion is for you to avoid the thread entirely. Which you now won’t do because you’re intrigued. In it, the company has started documenting some E39 M5 builds and upgrades, from relatively simple exhaust and ECU tunes to S62 rebuilds, to a project which looks to be a true supercharged beast of an M5 when it is finally revealed on that thread.

For non-E39 M5 owners, it’s a nice thread to visit to see how current these cars can still be in terms of performance, and it shows the range of possibilities that fit any would-be owner’s aspirations for enhancements to this classic sleeper. If you own an E39 M5 and insist on looking, don’t say we didn’t warn you.

Evolve E39 M5 builds thread here.

One company has successfully provided reliable and consistent performance with its supercharging kits and it seems a considerable number of customers can attest to that. A supercharger kit that can give you 540+ horses at the flywheel provides a significant gain from the base 400. And for street duty, a supercharger is arguably a better choice over a turbo because of its response. With this kind of power, even the latest M5 will be sweating buckets trying to run with a boosted E39 M5. Despite getting a bit long in the tooth, the E39 M5 is still a great choice for the enthusiast who wants to get into an M5 but doesn’t have enough to make it to the newer cars. And like some sentiments with hardcore M3 enthusiasts, the older M cars are actually preferable for track or highly spirited driving because of their lighter weight. Compared to the newer M5s, a boosted E39 M5 certainly fits that bill.

See the discussion here.

The Dinan kit also offers slightly shorter springs compared to the stockers, so it will lower the ride height. If you buy this set or one like it, remember to have an alignment done, and check if the camber is still within spec. Some owner have actually reduced the amount of negative camber on the E39 M5s to promote longer tire wear with no noticeable ill effect in handling during daily driving. We would have preferred a lower asking price for this used set, but it seems that there already are serious inquiries. If you’re interested, better shoot the owner an email fast.

See the set here.

The makeover treatment actually makes the interior more sporty in look and, because of the steering wheel treatment, in feel. Some people may cringe at having the wood trim refinished, but other owners have found the wood trim a noisy design element that could have been done better. This owner’s take on remodelling his E39 M5’s interior is successful, based on the positive comments he garnered in his post. Maybe the next interior project he should tackle are the seats, because with the freshening up that he did, the seats have begun to look dated.

See the made over interior here.

The link below is for a group order for another run of the hoods, since production is not a steady run. For this batch only 50 will be made, and a certificate of authenticity will be included with the order, as if it really matters. A link in the thread shows the quality of the fit and finish and if one were to have an E39 M5, this is an upgrade that should be under serious consideration. Replacing that huge expanse of sheet metal with a lightweight component can only improve the car’s balance and power-to-weight. The vent area comes with a rain cover so you can attach it under the hood and direct the water to the OEM drain channel on the side of the hood. And although carbon fiber is the buzzword of the moment, a body-colored lightweight hood would probably look better and complement the sleeper quality of the car.

See the order thread here and pictures of the product here.

Splitters definitely give a meaner look to the front end of an E39 M5 but that’s it. Unless you have full side skirts and an undertray at the minimum, there’s no aero benefit. Even some E39 M5 aficionados will say that putting splitters on the E39 M5 does not complement its more classically styled shape. On the Bangle-era designs, front splitters definitely look good on the M5 and M3. But for the E39 M5, it’s not as universally accepted.

But the whole point of customizing a car is to make it individual and beautiful for the owner. As they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and if a mod makes an owner smile everytime he steps out of his house, who’s to say it’s ugly?

See the splitter pics here.

The E39 M5 pictured in this thread illustrates this point. Except for the aftermarket wheels, this car looks like a factory-stock M5, unless you get to see as we do what’s under the skin of the car. For starters, the car has a supercharger setup, which reportedly gives it 480 whp. This should be enough power to run with an E60 M5. Brembo calipers peek out from behind the wheels, and given the performance potential of the car, seems like a necessary mod. The owner seems to also have fitted coilovers to the car, which would give him the adjustability needed to make the most of the available power and fine-tune the handling to suit his driving style.

While there is dissent on the choice of wheels, this car is a very nice example of what proper mods can do to maintain a level of performance that will help the E39 M5 keep up with more modern super sedans.

See the car here.