New Member to the Family

After Mrs. Zero passed on the E39 Irish44j posted, we picked up our new family member today . . .

What do ya think?

still got the secret diplomat (spy) hideaways?

looks like something the blond chick from south africa would drive in one of the beverly hills cop movies. if your wife is blond, have some fun with that.

Nice .

Gotta love high-end luxury car depreciation.

Do those in-car cell phones even work any more?

I like those! NIce Car.

ooh, a SWB. nice ride!

I always liked the shorty version, or should I say the proper length, not the elongated version. I just think the dimentions look much better.

Are those the factory headlamps? The turn signal part looks different.
What year?

Still one of the more badass looking cars on the road. The non-iL ones are fantastic.

I dunno if I could resist a 6 speed MT swap out of a 540/6, though. And a diff more conducive to comically inappropriate tire roasting.

change the headlights back, please!

besides that, a fantastic car.

The headlamps are aftermarket. I don't like them, but Mrs Zero does. They are the all in one jobbies from eGay. They light up the road pretty well, so no complaints from me.

The phone is analog . . . so that's a no go on it working. Even though . . .

As for a manual swap . . . "ya damn right!!" AND it is Mrs. Zero approved

For that subtle "Frank Martin Signature Edition" look, see if your local DMV would give you one of his licence plate sequences. (There are, um, several to choose from – I think it was three on the car, and a dozen more at home on the wall.)

In reply to peter:

You can make them work IIRC. My uncle had one into the early 2000s before it died an he was forced into a modern cell phone. They get way better reception than the handhelds.

I think the analog cell frequencies were shut down for good after 2008. The requirement that the cell operators offer it expired and since there was little to no demand and the costs were high they pretty much all dropped it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Mobile_Phone_System

year? how much? miles?

The changing of the headlights leads me to wonder if there was ever some front end damage that was repaired with less expensive parts?

1997, 162K and $3K

In reply to jrw1621:

That's what I thought as well once when I saw it. The front bumper is cracked in the middle as well + the black out kidneys don't fit quite as nice. But no DOT-R stickers to be found on the car and no signs of structural damage.

But I do agree some less expensive parts were used on the front end.

Why not a 540i if you want a manual?

lizard wrote:

Strike_Zero wrote: After Mrs. Zero passed on the E39 Irish44j posted, we picked up our new family member today . . . What do ya think?

Is that at Hampton on Fernandina? Block wall looks familiar. Looks pretty good PJ.

Thanks Steve!!

That's actually at Century BMW in Greenville, SC.

And no . . . I haven't even touched that phone in there . . . lol!!

HiTempguy wrote: Why not a 540i if you want a manual?

I already have a 318is/5, a 350is/5, and 530i/5. Why not a 740i/6? I could do a 740i/5 as well if I wish.

Besides, there aren't many manual 7 series in the US.

Strike_Zero wrote: I already have a 318is/5, a 350is/5, and 530i/5. Why not a 740i/6? I could do a 740i/5 as well if I wish.

You sir, have a problem... at least you came to the right place!

Beautiful car! It's not unusual for someone to replace pitted/fogged stock lights with the ebay lights, fwiw. I'm curious to hear how the trans swap goes...I've always loved these cars: maybe it's time to find one with a knackered auto trans.

In reply to HiTempguy:

What can I say . . . lol

In reply to njansenv:

Since there were 730i/5 and 740i/6 available across the pond, the swap can be done using all factory parts.

The E39 540i can be used for majority of the hard parts needed. The driveshaft (5spd or 6spd version) is a dealer item or a custom job from http://www.driveshafts.com/.

You can wire it for park or neutral, but it will throw a CEL and the show N on the dash, but that can be coded out at the dealer or with readily available software.

Here's a good link - Converting to a 6spd - Factoids/FAQ