Mateo8 intro

[Mateo8]

Hi everyone, my name is Matt, I'm a Computer Science major and I own a 2000 BMW 540it, it is the perfect size and comfortable enough to be a daily driver and has plenty of power from the 4.4l v8 to still have fun.  I saw this forum in a DakarYellow M3 on BringATrialer and decided to join seeing as my BMW will be on campus as soon (complete new top end.  Still doing research on production numbers and rarity but you will never see another one like this in the USA.  Sorry for the lack of good pictures of the car, I need to change that this summer


Maintenance in the past year:
- new LED strip in gauge cluster (common pixel repair)
- remanufactured heads (5 year warranty) 
- new VANOS
- authentic 2003 M-Parallel staggered wheels with Hankook ventus v12 evo2 OEM specs
- replaced broken interior trim (cupholders, center console "garage door")
- timing chain guides (main and individual cam guides)
- timing chains (main and individual cam chains)
- timing chain tensioner (main and individual cam tensioners
- water pump
- intake manifold gaskets
- PCV
- CCV
- valve gaskets
- rear air bags (both)
- cooling system revamp


Upcoming upgrades:
- repair small rip on drivers seat
- replace cloth gray interior headliner and A/B/C column covers to black Alcantara/seude
- upgrade the muffler to make it a little louder
- rear hatch struts (they don't need to be replaced but I'll so it to make sure it won't be a future repair)
- replace chrome line trim with shadow line trim
- repaint black door frames gloss black 
- style 62 winter set
- style 49 summer set 
- m5 parts car for m5 touring conversion (hopefully coming in August of this year)


           

[JPolen01]

Welcome! Love a good wagon.

[Senor_Taylor]

Dude! Sick! That was Joey's car. Did you reach out to the club through Facebook or email to see about coming to any meetings?

[KettleKooked]

Dude awesome. I love the custom plate too. Would love to see it in person. M5 touring would be sweet. Definitely come out to the spring car show with or without it though.

[davej]

Welcome Matt! Good to know there will be another full sized, v8 wagon on campus! I'll keep an eye out for you.

Your car looks super familiar, was it for sale in Bridgewater a couple years ago?

Whenever you need a study break, just head over to http://forum.mmsports.org/showthread.php?tid=10888

[Beej]

Sweet car and ambitious plans! Glad to see another e39 in the club.

[ScottyB]

that's a pretty sweet wagon! never seen one LHD.

[Mateo8]

Thanks for all the warm welcomes, I can't wait to come out to some events and meet some of you in person.  The BMW is a really interesting car, or from what I have dug up on the car (if anyone knows the previous owner I would love to get in touch with them), I'll go ahead and make a post on the car in the members projects sub.

Sorry I don't know how to multi-quote on here yet so here are responses to your questions:

@senor_Taylor : I have not reached out on Facebook yet, I will do that later today

@davej: I did buy it in January last year from the Bridgewater area, but I don't know how many times he listed it.
Loved the wagon gallery, when I was 14 I was helping some family friends in rural Georgia once I thought we had finished I was told there was one more project that day and it was in the garage (they were paying me so I didn't mind).  Well it turned out that "project" was helping him bleed the brakes on a Nagaro Blue RS2 (he was a big time VW/Audi importer in Atlanta and had bought it in the UK and brought it in the country part by part, I think I have some old photos of it I'll try and find).  But looking at the "porsche" written on the side of the calipers made me fall in love with wagons and porsches that day

@Beej: It is an ambitious plan, fortunately I will not be taking it on alone and it is a very well documented swap on other forums, I will source a complete parts car just to avoid getting hung up on not having the proper retainer clip for that day's job.  E39s I believe will become favored like the '55 Chevy's did because they are good looking and driving car, along with an engine bay that can swallow nearly anything ever produced and with all the aluminum in them they will stand up to rust a little better and they are relatively very light cars, but they're built like a bank vault


@ScottyB: they are relatively rare cars.  They made less than 3000 e39 540i (v8) wagons worldwide, there were a lot more 528/525i (inline 6) wagons produced, but it is on the rarer side of things when it comes to production numbers on these cars.  The apparent reason for the lack of v8 wagon sales was the fact that for only a couple of grand more you could get the m5 which blows the 540i out of the water performance wise

[Jake]

Hey Matt, welcome! Love the wagon and I'm always excited to see another BMW nerd join the club. Looking forward to meeting you at some events this year!

[Senor_Taylor]

Is this the same wagon I've seen at the Verona AutoX or are there two RHD Wagons in the area?

[Mateo8]

Is this the same wagon I've seen at the Verona AutoX or are there two RHD Wagons in the area?

It should be the same wagon as importing one is incredibly hard for a normal US citizen, this wagon was brought into the country as a government vehicle from the UK

[KettleKooked]

Do you have plans for body modification or keep 540i rear fenders when you do the swap? Also stock S62 or modifications? Might as well get headers while its out am I right.

[Mateo8]

Do you have plans for body modification or keep 540i rear fenders when you do the swap? Also stock S62 or modifications? Might as well get headers while its out am I right.

Stock s62, but will be taken all the way down and anything that shows any wear will be replaced, same with the transmission.  The car apparently has m5 brakes on it (according to forum post from 2009) I want to build it to a spec that it could've left the factory if they ever built an e39 m5 touring, so it would be full on suspension conversion etc.. I am sure it is super expensive to do, but this is a long term project, and I have a 4Runner as a daily so I am not worried about how long/expensive the project becomes.  I do have my eye out constantly for an 528/525it (inline 6 engines) so I can copy the LSX e39, but I think I can do twin low pressure rear mount turbos for some fun stick v8 turbo wagon sounds, but that is a project way off into the future