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Car Forum / BMW Cars / March 2005

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Which one to buy

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Richard Tomkins - 25 Mar 2005 04:00 GMT
If you had a choice between an older 850 or an older M5, which one would you
buy?
rtt
JimV - 25 Mar 2005 04:16 GMT
> If you had a choice between an older 850 or an older M5, which one would you
> buy?
> rtt
No question, the M5. Lighter, more nimble, and easier to keep running.
pltrgyst - 25 Mar 2005 04:40 GMT
>If you had a choice between an older 850 or an older M5, which one would you
>buy?

I'd buy the M5; my mother would buy the 850.

-- Larry
John Burns - 25 Mar 2005 11:46 GMT
> If you had a choice between an older 850 or an older M5, which one would you
> buy?

M5. Much lighter and will handle better. More reliable and easier to
work on.

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Corey Shuman - 25 Mar 2005 16:17 GMT
850, definatley. This is a classic, think of the M1. Plus you get a fat
v12 that you can tune far more than the M5. Interiors on the 8s are
sweet too. They are just as reliable as any bimmer as long as you do
the maintaince... but the M5 will cost you more in "special parts" when
you do that same maintainance...
Sound like a tough decision, wish I had to make that choice.. :)
Somebody - 25 Mar 2005 16:52 GMT
> If you had a choice between an older 850 or an older M5, which one would you
> buy?
> rtt

For daily transportation the M5 is way more practical.  The two really
aren't in the same category.  The 850 is a superb machine in it's own right,
and has a loyal fan base.  It has a presence that is almost unmatchable
among BMWs.  If it were a weekend car I might just do an 850 because I've
always admired them... but in truth, were I going that route, I would search
out a mint E24 M6 instead.  The 850 isn't really as of a sports car as you
might expect from a bimmer coupe -- it really depends what your priorities
are.

For a daily driver though, an E34 M5 or an E39 M5 are both superb cars that
you will love to drive every day.

-Russ.
Ian D - 25 Mar 2005 22:41 GMT
Get the M5 - tons of fun all the time, but requires effort - manual shift
too.  850 - v12 okay, classic car, not for me.

> If you had a choice between an older 850 or an older M5, which one would you
> buy?
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Jeff Mayner - 26 Mar 2005 04:18 GMT
> If you had a choice between an older 850 or an older M5, which one
> would you
> buy?
> rtt

The M5, no question. Well, maybe one question.  ;-)

How old is the M5?

Jeff

Jeff

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Richard Tomkins - 26 Mar 2005 19:16 GMT
Both cars are 1991 vintage.
The M5 has 152,000 km and the 850 186,000 km.
The 850 is $18k and the M5 is  $19k.

rtt

> > If you had a choice between an older 850 or an older M5, which one
> > would you
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> > Total Privacy via Encryption =----
Jeff Mayner - 27 Mar 2005 21:14 GMT
> Both cars are 1991 vintage.
> The M5 has 152,000 km and the 850 186,000 km.
> The 850 is $18k and the M5 is  $19k.

Because of reliability issues, I'd still take the M5. Did you say whether or
not the 850 was the 12? If the 8 then I'd have to think about it a little
more. If the 12, I'd most definatley take the M5.

Jeff

> rtt
>
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> World! 120,000+ Newsgroups ----= East and West-Coast Server Farms -
> Total Privacy via Encryption =----  
Tom Korth - 27 Mar 2005 22:16 GMT
>> Both cars are 1991 vintage.
>> The M5 has 152,000 km and the 850 186,000 km.
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> or not the 850 was the 12? If the 8 then I'd have to think about it a
> little more. If the 12, I'd most definatley take the M5.

The 850 was a V-12; the V-8 was the 840.

Tom
Rocketman - 29 Mar 2005 06:18 GMT
> Both cars are 1991 vintage.
> The M5 has 152,000 km and the 850 186,000 km.
> The 850 is $18k and the M5 is  $19k.

Richard, I think these prices sounds pretty high.  Where are the located?

$18k for a 1991 high-mileage BMW coupe?  That's about twice what it should
sell for.  I just saw a listing on CarsDirect.com for a 1992 BMW 850 with
118k for $10,885.  That's more like it.

FWIW: I bought my 2000 Z3 with 77k miles on Ebay for $13,600 last summer.
It's not the big coupe/sedan experience, of course; but the ladies go crazy
for it.

Chronological age is what really hurts a car's reliability. The rubber seals
start to let go, electric parts start failing, suspension, hydraulic struts,
etc.  I've owned a 14 year old BMW coupe, and I won't repeat that mistake.

Hope you end up with the one that makes you happy.

R
Richard Tomkins - 29 Mar 2005 16:57 GMT
These are in Canada, both at different aftermarket dealers, being offered
with 2 year warranty coverage.

> > Both cars are 1991 vintage.
> > The M5 has 152,000 km and the 850 186,000 km.
[quoted text clipped - 17 lines]
>
> R
Rocketman - 30 Mar 2005 01:38 GMT
> These are in Canada, both at different aftermarket dealers, being offered
> with 2 year warranty coverage.

Ok, that explains it.  Whew.  Maybe they're pretty good prices after all.
I went on Ebay after I replied to you and found several decent 850 coupes
for under $9000 USD.  So, what is that, about $10,700 CAD?

The deep red color seems to be very popular, and looks great, IMO. You can
tell which car I'd buy, can't you? ;-)

Good luck and happy BMW shopping.

R

>> > Both cars are 1991 vintage.
>> > The M5 has 152,000 km and the 850 186,000 km.
[quoted text clipped - 29 lines]
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> =----
Somebody - 30 Mar 2005 15:22 GMT
> > These are in Canada, both at different aftermarket dealers, being offered
> > with 2 year warranty coverage.
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
>
> Good luck and happy BMW shopping.

Our dollar is at near record highs -- historically it was about 33% extra,
now it's closer to 20%.  So, US cars begin to look attractive.

Quick survey of E31's for sale in Ontario, Canada:

1991 BMW 850I  N/A $ 17,995.00
1991 BMW 850I  186,000 km $ 24,995.00
1991 BMW 850I COUPE 187,000 km $ 24,995.00
1991 BMW 850CI A 68,000 km $ 34,800.00
1991 BMW 850CI  171,678 km $ 22,900.00

That's it, per the defacto standard used car publication.

-Russ.
+ Rob + - 27 Mar 2005 10:42 GMT
> If you had a choice between an older 850 or an older M5, which one would you
> buy?
> rtt

   I don't mean this in an obnoxious way.......but I wouldn't care what
other people think and would simply buy the car that I like most.

Rob
Richard Tomkins - 27 Mar 2005 19:08 GMT
Actually I am seriously interested in what people have to say about either
of these machines.
So far nobody has said that there is a litany of problems with either unit.
I guess most people like either one.
I myself currently drive a 95 Maxima, so I have no real appreciation for
what the differences could be between the two BMW's. They both look good,
they both drive well, the 850 seems to have more oomph, possibly the M5 has
been driven hard and is tired, whereas the former owner of the 850 was a
more sedate driver. I think I sense that the M5 has a tighter suspension and
possibly handles better.
No one has yet commented on maintenance costs for BMW's of this age. Do you
need to have $500 a dollar a month set aside for regular visits to a dealer
or other European mechanic type person.
I am not a self maintenance type person so how easy it for a non-BMW
mechanic to work on these types of cars and be successful, or is there too
much high-tech type stuff that you need to see a dealer for the specialized
tools they maintain for service?

rtt

If someone else with a strong or interesting opinion were to be confronted
with a similar choice, what would cause them to go either way? I figured
that I'd probably see some more opinions on the matter, especially from the
BMW crowd.

> > If you had a choice between an older 850 or an older M5, which one would
> you
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
>
> Rob
Somebody - 27 Mar 2005 20:47 GMT
> Actually I am seriously interested in what people have to say about either
> of these machines.
[quoted text clipped - 13 lines]
> much high-tech type stuff that you need to see a dealer for the specialized
> tools they maintain for service?

I think $500 would do for the M5 but more like $750 for the 850.  You
wouldn't pay it out regularly, just every once in a while in really large
chunks.

That's mostly extrapolated from what I've seen on 750's and other E32's
though, then compared to E34's, not firsthand on the E31.

-Russ.

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