Hello all, some of you might know me from my BMW site
www.unixnerd.co.uk. This car used be B10RED and I owned her from roughly 2000 to 11/2006. I found the advert I wrote when I sold her on ebay, might help any potential buyers. She had 157k when I sold her so not done much since.
I think she had a normal exhaust manifold, not tubular. Brakes were normal 535i. She drove very well indeed but the steering had a bit of play compared to 50k mile 535i Sport I had. If anyone wants them I have some old pics of the car. My concern would be to check for rust in the normal places and to work out why the rear bumper is sitting so oddly. I hope she goes to a good home, she was a beast of a car and has lots of life left. I thought about buying her myself but already have four cars and only two undercover spots.
Anyway, a few relevant bit pasted from my 2006 original advert:
I've just replaced three of the //M-Tech door bottoms as they were hanging off, they don't last forever. I also removed the side skirts to check for rust. I found two very shallow patches less than an inch in size and treated them.
She benefits from a very rare traction control option (ASC+T). This gave a fly by wire throttle (EML) and in doing so the idle control valve is eliminated. I stripped it down and cleaned it all two years ago. She idles 200 rpm higher than a normal 535i, this is because she has such a "hot" camshaft which is optimised for high end power. The only way to get a stable idle is to program the computer to make her idle faster! It's also proof of her revised engine. She makes about 265bhp (vs 218 for a standard car) and has about 20lb/ft more torque.
The car was garaged for most of it's life and for about three out of five I've had her. I know the mechanic who serviced her for most of her life (Kevin Arthur in Aberdeen). When I bought the car I had three of the 17" Alpina alloys blasted and re-powder coated. The fourth was fairly new as a previous owner had replaced it.
I've also replaced the passenger side headlamp washer unit as one of the nozzles had come off (common fault). The fuel pump is fairly recent and all the maintenance is up to date. She has an A4 binder full of history and receipts. New Alpina / Bilstein shocks were fitted all round this year at a cost of 800 for the parts alone! She handles superbly. I replaced a broken spring on her last week with the correct Alpina part.
She has about four small rust spots on the doors, the largest is about 15x15mm on the driver's side passenger door. The rest are smaller. She's had new front wings fitted.
The rear valance is a bit out of shape next to the exhaust pipe. I suspect it just needs to be popped back into place. It's sitting about 1" too low right at the base, I'm probably the only one who'd ever notice!