TurboLlew
Honorary ///Member
AdiS's post on the E46 together with more and more people asking for advice on this car made me want to start this post. There are other long time owners that might want to chime in and I can edit the main post (or a mod can) with updated info. A lot of info is available for other markets as well but there are some quirks for the south african market/hot weather conditions and our fuel type that may might find useful. I am sure there is debate that will arise, but this is based on MY experience having daily driven the car (less so in the last 2 years). My car was under plan for 7 years and 135000km. I did approved mods (Schnitzer Suspension, Akrapovic exhaust) under plan. Downpipes as plan ended and have had BM3 shortly after this.
I hope someone will find this useful and better than reading my rambling thread on my M5 that isn't really focused on much of anything> This is also just a start and hopefully I can add more over time.
I have seen some absolute lemons come up in the market and I have a mate who unfortunately bought one expecting to emulate the experience of my ownership. As with any car, getting to high mileages is very dependent on the care, maintenance and treatment that the car gets over its life. Similarly, when modded and appropriately fuelled, these cars make extreme amounts of power VERY easily which has resulted in transmission and engine failures when not done with the required supporting mods (which can get expensive relative to the 'cheap' power available: the base components of these cars are quite beefy to start off with so any upgrades are not going to be cheap). There are guys like me that are well over 100000km and others like Richard that are way over 200000km on the platform already. There are others on their 3rd engine and 2nd clutch before 70000km.
The only major factory engine issues are leaky injectors and a year-1 oil pump issue (which was fixed at dealers for the most part). When you read US forums you will find that many guys had rod issues. It took a VERY long time for proper software to become available. JB4 cars with careful owners were fine, but there was a time where people were changing random hex values, seeing what the effect was and then selling it at a 'tune'...
The M5 is not really the sharpest drive, nor is it the most powerful or the most luxurious. What it is, though, is a family muscle car that can make you feel like God himself and then just as easily remind you that you are not. There are few cars that I can think of that would deliver close to 400kw in stock form (it dynoed between 388 and 418 when I got it depending on the happiness or stinginess of the dyno) all day every day without ANY of the drama you would find getting a hot hatch, AWD sedan or even other BMWs to that level. Being rear wheel drive, it doesn't put all that power down off the line very well (the new M5 shows this off well, in that it takes a full second (or more) off the F10 time just by being AWD. The F10 though shines from 100-200 (and beyond). A real autobahn missile which we don't really get to enjoy as intended in SA.
Buying Advice
LCI vs. Pre-LCI
Lights: The early cars (2012 and 2013) come with adaptive Xenon lights (really just high beam assist) and LED indicators. I have not needed a bulb change yet, nor have I had water ingress or any headlight related issues. They have round halos. LCI lights are adaptive LEDs and have squared off halos. These in theory last longer. In reality they both last a rather long time. Retrofitting these is an extensive exercise that will probably require a change of the FRM and ZGW modules in the car, rewiring of the harness and coding. There are different harnesses over the years so this is not really a DIY exercise, even if you get the lights for around 20-30K.
Rear lights are a very minor change that only owners will notice. The third bar is continuous and the bars themselves are thinner. This is a plug and play retrofit if you would like to do it (realistically only if you can find a set between R5000 and R7500 at a scrapyard.
Engine power remained unchanged for the base car with the LCI. At some point coil packs were changed from Bosch to Delphi units. The Delphi units from the F90 M5 are a direct replacement for the F10. There was an injector revision later on in the LCIs.
Transmission: The DCT box is a Getrag Powershift 7DCI700 unit and remained unchanged between years and trims. There is updated software available that improves the driveability in traffic (this should already be on any 2015+ cars). This is a very well built unit, has been very reliable but note if modded the question is not if, but when it will let go as the car WILL make well beyond the torque limits of the stock clutches. Serious power requires upgraded SSP or Dodson clutches and sintered baskets. This is an approximately R80 to R100K exercise (might be a little more now). together with fluids etc. This, together with modded sideshafts will be needed before you need rods/pistons.
Of course BMW says that the fluid doesn't need to be changed... and of course they are wrong. I had mine changed at 90000km. Others suggest sooner. I want to do a DCT oil and filter change again now at 145000. Dealers have horror stories to tell about owners who have changed fluid and then the gearbox becomes wonky. This can be down to many things but one of them IS that the change could have been done too late and clearances coupled to viscosity of the new oil result in issues. There are drive in adaptations that need to be done on a lift for the gearbox (again with ISTA+). These are not always done properly.
Competition package
The competition pack adds several hardware changes that are possible to retrofit:
Front and rear swaybars
Slightly quicker steering rack on centre (it is a variable rack on both comp and non-comp)
Revised e-Diff settings
Revised suspension (10mm lower)
Revised engine software
IMHO if you are buying a non competition pack car the best and most noticeable mod is the swaybars for day to day use. You will likely not notice the difference. I don't know of any owners on here who noticed a major difference between their cars and the comp pack at launch or with any of the special editions either in 421 or 441kw forms (eg Pure Metal Silver, 30 Jahre, Competition Edition). That said it is difficult to compare cars once you have started to add things and as it adapts to you over time.
Seats & Interior
Seats were available in two styles: The base seat which is clad in smooth nappa leather, heated by default and the option seat which is heated and cooled with perforated nappa leather and additional 'ribs' stitched into it. Both are fully electric but neither are active despite what you might read (bolster moves with cornering as with E60 option seats).
Interior trim in SA seems to have been carbon, Piano black (individual) or aluminium (Trace). I have yet to see a car with wood other than Piano Black. These are different to what you would find on the base F10. The centre console is a different design and layout. Either way, note the centre console is also wrapped in nappa leather in stock form. The carbon fibre and Piano Black options replace this. It is no longer possible to order factory carbon so if you are buying one and want the carbon, you need to wait for eBay (and be prepared to pay up to 40K for a set before shipping).
It is worth looking for a car that has the alcantara head liner and nappa leather dashboard/door cards. Extra points for red interior... These make the car feel alot more premium and are things you will 'see, touch and feel' most regularly which are always most important IMHO.
The steering wheel is the one big change between LCI and Pre-LCI. This is an EASY change but NOT A CHEAP change as it is an M5/6 specific item (you can't use parts other than the airbag from other F series models with a similar M sport or even identical M wheel of an F80 or F82). You could get lucky and find a crashed car but these don't stick around for long.
... Navigation/NBT is the other big change on the interior. This comes with a connected drive system that still works (the Pre-LCI is not connected any longer and can't work with phone data any longer). It also has iDrive Touch which you can retrofit but is just a party trick... I retrofitted the touch module. The chunkier wheel is better to use... but don't bother with the rest of the setup.
All of them have bluetooth streaming which is all I really care about. Bang and Olufsen sound system has a fancy and very expensive centre tweeter that can fail as it is motorised. these are replaced under WARRANTY but NOT MOTORPLAN. The speakers themselves are better than the base system (base in our M5s was the HK in the regular F10). You should not pay too much of a premium for this.
At current pricing, it is worth paying the premium for LCI to get the expensive steering wheel upgrade as well as the 'connected' connected drive system and newer software even though bought could be retrofitted.
Driver aids are a matter of preference. In this generation they are really party tricks that you don't make much use of (I didn't anyway and I went to the trouble of retrofitting some).
Limited Editions
Pure Metal Silver (10 in SA TBC) - Competition pack, CCBs and a 100K paint job. Numbered plaque (1 of - not individually numbered).
30 Jahre (2 in SA TBC) (Individually numbered plaque, embroidered and contrast-stitched interior, sills, competition pack, CCB)
Competition Edition (30 in SA TBC) - Left-over M Performance Parts added to a Competition pack car. Has 601M wheels and a specific alcantara and leather interior with white stitching.
I hope someone will find this useful and better than reading my rambling thread on my M5 that isn't really focused on much of anything> This is also just a start and hopefully I can add more over time.
I have seen some absolute lemons come up in the market and I have a mate who unfortunately bought one expecting to emulate the experience of my ownership. As with any car, getting to high mileages is very dependent on the care, maintenance and treatment that the car gets over its life. Similarly, when modded and appropriately fuelled, these cars make extreme amounts of power VERY easily which has resulted in transmission and engine failures when not done with the required supporting mods (which can get expensive relative to the 'cheap' power available: the base components of these cars are quite beefy to start off with so any upgrades are not going to be cheap). There are guys like me that are well over 100000km and others like Richard that are way over 200000km on the platform already. There are others on their 3rd engine and 2nd clutch before 70000km.
The only major factory engine issues are leaky injectors and a year-1 oil pump issue (which was fixed at dealers for the most part). When you read US forums you will find that many guys had rod issues. It took a VERY long time for proper software to become available. JB4 cars with careful owners were fine, but there was a time where people were changing random hex values, seeing what the effect was and then selling it at a 'tune'...
The M5 is not really the sharpest drive, nor is it the most powerful or the most luxurious. What it is, though, is a family muscle car that can make you feel like God himself and then just as easily remind you that you are not. There are few cars that I can think of that would deliver close to 400kw in stock form (it dynoed between 388 and 418 when I got it depending on the happiness or stinginess of the dyno) all day every day without ANY of the drama you would find getting a hot hatch, AWD sedan or even other BMWs to that level. Being rear wheel drive, it doesn't put all that power down off the line very well (the new M5 shows this off well, in that it takes a full second (or more) off the F10 time just by being AWD. The F10 though shines from 100-200 (and beyond). A real autobahn missile which we don't really get to enjoy as intended in SA.
Buying Advice
LCI vs. Pre-LCI
Lights: The early cars (2012 and 2013) come with adaptive Xenon lights (really just high beam assist) and LED indicators. I have not needed a bulb change yet, nor have I had water ingress or any headlight related issues. They have round halos. LCI lights are adaptive LEDs and have squared off halos. These in theory last longer. In reality they both last a rather long time. Retrofitting these is an extensive exercise that will probably require a change of the FRM and ZGW modules in the car, rewiring of the harness and coding. There are different harnesses over the years so this is not really a DIY exercise, even if you get the lights for around 20-30K.
Rear lights are a very minor change that only owners will notice. The third bar is continuous and the bars themselves are thinner. This is a plug and play retrofit if you would like to do it (realistically only if you can find a set between R5000 and R7500 at a scrapyard.
Engine power remained unchanged for the base car with the LCI. At some point coil packs were changed from Bosch to Delphi units. The Delphi units from the F90 M5 are a direct replacement for the F10. There was an injector revision later on in the LCIs.
Transmission: The DCT box is a Getrag Powershift 7DCI700 unit and remained unchanged between years and trims. There is updated software available that improves the driveability in traffic (this should already be on any 2015+ cars). This is a very well built unit, has been very reliable but note if modded the question is not if, but when it will let go as the car WILL make well beyond the torque limits of the stock clutches. Serious power requires upgraded SSP or Dodson clutches and sintered baskets. This is an approximately R80 to R100K exercise (might be a little more now). together with fluids etc. This, together with modded sideshafts will be needed before you need rods/pistons.
Of course BMW says that the fluid doesn't need to be changed... and of course they are wrong. I had mine changed at 90000km. Others suggest sooner. I want to do a DCT oil and filter change again now at 145000. Dealers have horror stories to tell about owners who have changed fluid and then the gearbox becomes wonky. This can be down to many things but one of them IS that the change could have been done too late and clearances coupled to viscosity of the new oil result in issues. There are drive in adaptations that need to be done on a lift for the gearbox (again with ISTA+). These are not always done properly.
Competition package
The competition pack adds several hardware changes that are possible to retrofit:
Front and rear swaybars
Slightly quicker steering rack on centre (it is a variable rack on both comp and non-comp)
Revised e-Diff settings
Revised suspension (10mm lower)
Revised engine software
IMHO if you are buying a non competition pack car the best and most noticeable mod is the swaybars for day to day use. You will likely not notice the difference. I don't know of any owners on here who noticed a major difference between their cars and the comp pack at launch or with any of the special editions either in 421 or 441kw forms (eg Pure Metal Silver, 30 Jahre, Competition Edition). That said it is difficult to compare cars once you have started to add things and as it adapts to you over time.
Seats & Interior
Seats were available in two styles: The base seat which is clad in smooth nappa leather, heated by default and the option seat which is heated and cooled with perforated nappa leather and additional 'ribs' stitched into it. Both are fully electric but neither are active despite what you might read (bolster moves with cornering as with E60 option seats).
Interior trim in SA seems to have been carbon, Piano black (individual) or aluminium (Trace). I have yet to see a car with wood other than Piano Black. These are different to what you would find on the base F10. The centre console is a different design and layout. Either way, note the centre console is also wrapped in nappa leather in stock form. The carbon fibre and Piano Black options replace this. It is no longer possible to order factory carbon so if you are buying one and want the carbon, you need to wait for eBay (and be prepared to pay up to 40K for a set before shipping).
It is worth looking for a car that has the alcantara head liner and nappa leather dashboard/door cards. Extra points for red interior... These make the car feel alot more premium and are things you will 'see, touch and feel' most regularly which are always most important IMHO.
The steering wheel is the one big change between LCI and Pre-LCI. This is an EASY change but NOT A CHEAP change as it is an M5/6 specific item (you can't use parts other than the airbag from other F series models with a similar M sport or even identical M wheel of an F80 or F82). You could get lucky and find a crashed car but these don't stick around for long.
... Navigation/NBT is the other big change on the interior. This comes with a connected drive system that still works (the Pre-LCI is not connected any longer and can't work with phone data any longer). It also has iDrive Touch which you can retrofit but is just a party trick... I retrofitted the touch module. The chunkier wheel is better to use... but don't bother with the rest of the setup.
All of them have bluetooth streaming which is all I really care about. Bang and Olufsen sound system has a fancy and very expensive centre tweeter that can fail as it is motorised. these are replaced under WARRANTY but NOT MOTORPLAN. The speakers themselves are better than the base system (base in our M5s was the HK in the regular F10). You should not pay too much of a premium for this.
At current pricing, it is worth paying the premium for LCI to get the expensive steering wheel upgrade as well as the 'connected' connected drive system and newer software even though bought could be retrofitted.
Driver aids are a matter of preference. In this generation they are really party tricks that you don't make much use of (I didn't anyway and I went to the trouble of retrofitting some).
Limited Editions
Pure Metal Silver (10 in SA TBC) - Competition pack, CCBs and a 100K paint job. Numbered plaque (1 of - not individually numbered).
30 Jahre (2 in SA TBC) (Individually numbered plaque, embroidered and contrast-stitched interior, sills, competition pack, CCB)
Competition Edition (30 in SA TBC) - Left-over M Performance Parts added to a Competition pack car. Has 601M wheels and a specific alcantara and leather interior with white stitching.
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