This book is written by Alan Henry as he tries to examine the M cars from the M1 series to the M5. Readers can take a look at the company’s history and racing pedigree. He also writes about the details of design, development and technological innovations, full specification tables and analyses and interesting details of BMW’s racing history.

Explore this product at Amazon.com. With this book, reading an E39 M5 review will be more fun.

Read on at the following site: http://www.amazon.co.uk/BMW-M-Complete-Crowood-AutoClassic/dp/1861261462/ref=pd_sim_b_1

The question resulted from a post regarding the 320i that sparked a discussion on the different merits of the engine and why Vanos and Valvetronic were or were not present in some BMW models. It got the writer into thinking what really is the favored BMW among car enthusiasts.

He goes on and compared the different engine that were introduced by BMW starting from the E46 series, S54, E46 M3, the S62 V8 of the E39 M5 to the BMW S14 engine and of course the s85 engine in the world-beater e60 m5 .

The comments are varied and the E39 M5 also scored some points.

Read on at the following site:  http://www.bmwblog.com/2009/11/02/whats-your-favorite-bmw-engine-of-all-time/

Back in the day they cited the minor disadvantages include the steep price tag, small gauges and its understated appearance that might not be flashy enough for some car owners.

Whatever…

However, this E39 M5 review states that the car’s excellent performance and its luxurious and awesome interior is absolutely a thumbs up. And on the other hand, some car owners might also prefer its understated look – I know that I sure do!

The 2001 model got  subtle exterior mods and a head-protection airbag system for passengers in the rear seat to name a few.  In the M5 Video Guide I talk about the other changes that happened in 2001 and what they looked like on the actual car.

The site lists a detailed car rating and gave it an overall grade of an almost perfect 10. You can also read  reviews from other owners of the E39 M5.

Read on at the following site: http://www.edmunds.com/bmw/m5/2001/review.html

Breaking away from tradition, BMW introduced the E39 M5 in the 1998 Geneva Motor motor show. Touted as the first V8 powered M5, its engine is derived from the 540i’s B62 with more than 4900cc. It produces 394hp to 400hp.

However, the true racing engine, with its understated look and brutal power traditions were continued in the E39 M5. The feel is that of an American muscle car with monster torque in my opinion. It has eight individual throttle bodies, double vanos that ensures variable valve timing, drive by wire and a g sensitive semi dry sump oil system. These features make sure that even at high lateral acceleration, the engine still gets enough oil for each of its 8 cylinders. In addition, M Driving Dynamics control and a sport mode button was introduced, which allows the car to change its throttle and steering response in an instant.

Luxury features were also added to the E39 M5 such as the alcantara headliner (which I LOVE! ), full stitched leather interior, optional brushed chrome /aluminum trim (not as durable as the e60 m5 interior’s brushed aluminum mind you), heated power seats, PDC parking distance control and many more options.

Buyer’s Guide went on to enumerate the reasons why they think the E39 M5 is the best power sedan of its time. And if you want to buy a used car, it is recommended here to have the vehicle checked by a BMW technician. Sometimes we hear about a failing vanos system in the car but personally though, this writer never ran into serious issues with the E39 M5 – something I discuss in details inside the M5 Video Guide, which is a video based E39 M5 Buyers Guide.

Read on at the following site: http://www.reveuro.com/buyers_guide/bmw/mcars/m5.html

Favorite features are acceleration, handling, response, braking, transmission, color, rims and luxury features. In short, everything. JD wrote this review entitled ” One of the Best Cars Ever Made”.

Detailed rating is as follows: Performance: 10, Comfort: 10, Fuel Economy: 6, Fun to Drive: 10, Interior Design: 10, Exterior Design: 10, Build Quality: 10 and Reliability: 10.

This is a very helpful review and the only suggested improvement in it is that the environmentally-friendly paint chips easily.

Read on at this site: http://www.edmunds.com/bmw/m5/2003/consumerreview.html

The modified version increased the torque from 394 to 470 without doing a turbo or a supercharger. Dinan pproached the task in a unique way. First he increased the engine’s breathing by ditching the stock air boxes and airflow meters. This was replaced by better flowing units and shorter but larger-diameter velocity stacks. He then bored out each of the throttle bodies.

Then the exhaust was modified by installing a set of headers that Dinan made himself. This results in a smooth air flow to produce an extra 28 horsepower. A new exhaust system was also installed that produces a hoarse sound and weighs less than 29 pounds compared to the stock system. He also decreased the flywheel’s weight by seven pounds.

And finally, the hardest modification of all. Reprogramming the engine’s computer to make good use of the new engine’s breathing. Should you have the S2-M5 system installed in your E39 M5 by Dinan, you will get a four year or a 50,000 mile warranty too.

Read on at the following site: http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/car/02q4/dinan_s2-m5-specialty_file

To start with, the E39 M5’s aluminum cylinder block is like the M62’s basic design including the long-lasting and weight saving silicon walls that are impregnated with silicon. BMW Engineer Wolfgang Kreinhsfner modestly explained that they wanted to create lots of torque curve. The result is a specific casting with 94.0 mm cylinder with a stroke of 89mm. This displaces approximately 5 liters and like what the hot-rodders used to say, “there is no substitute for liters”.

Breathing is of course a top priority and BMW M spared no expense in developing the S62′s induction system. This is why they designed eight individual throttles, one for each cylinder.
These throttles eliminate a “lag time” inherent in airflow and allow the engine to react much more quickly to throttle movements. The throttles of cylinders 4 and 8 also have their own feedback potentiometers to monitor the throttles’ operation. If a fault is recognized, the system switches to one of four “limp-home” modes that can allow operation at up to 62 mph.

Also, the S62 is BMW’s first V-8 engine equipped with Double VANOS, a system that varies the timing of both intake and exhaust valves on both cylinder banks.

For optimum power output, the BMW engineers designed specifically shaped cutouts in the piston crowns for the intake and exhaust valves. This requires a different piston design for each cylinder bank. Through two separate oil passages in the crankcase, the pistons are oil-cooled. The compression ratio is 11.0:1, a full point higher than for the 4.4-liter V-8; this too contributes to the engine’s high power and torque output.

Special designs for this engine include oil-cooled pistons that are made for two cylinder banks. a G-sensitive lubrication system, modified cylinder head, specific cooling system, special camshaft drive, low-back-pressure exhaust system, and a variable tachometer warning zone.

All these are explained in great details in this very informative article.

Read on at the following site: http://www.usautoparts.net/bmw/engines/s62.php

A balance of “design beauty and masculine prominence”. 

The car is still aimed at the sport market ownership in my opinion and I suspect that there will be more to say about this design.  In addition, I look forward to learning about the design considerations for the M5.  You can already see the exhaust lower rocker panel that will be changed out to fit the four exhaust pipes as was done from the basic e39  body for the e39 m5.

Here’s the video:

BMW’s YouTube Channel is here: http://www.youtube.com/user/BMW