This ’97 BMW 540i has served as my faithful daily driver since 2008. It is not only unique due to its 6-speed manual transmission, but also because it is one of the first ever produced – sequence number 126 of the tens of thousands produced for the North American market! The 1997-2003 BMW 5-series BMWs are known internally as the e39, and of the e39s, the 540i/6 reigned supreme until the release of the M5 for the 2000 model year. When my car was ordered from BMW in 1996, it was arguably the fastest BMW available in the United States (yes, faster than the neutered US spec e36 M3). It has covered in excess of 206k miles since delivery over 16 years ago and I hope it will continue to be pure driving bliss for years to come.
Fix your squeaking or rattling aftermarket stereo faceplate!
I installed an aftermarket (read: eBay) single DIN faceplate in my e39 BMW 540i many years ago. I greatly enjoy my Alpine headunit over the factory DSP sound, but the aesthetics leave a lot to be desired. EBay helped provide a partial solution with a cheap plastic faceplate to help...Read More »
BMW e39 LKM / LCM (Light Computer) Replacement
One night I was grabbing a drink from the kitchen when I noticed blinking amber lights from the driveway. I thought my alarm had gone off so I tried to unset it to no avail. I walk out to the car to find all the parking lights on, the taillights...Read More »
18x9 ASA AR1s on my 540 😀
Since it is now Spring, meaning the snow *should* be done for the year, I ordered new 235/40ZR-18 Continental ExtremeContact DW XL tires from the good guys at Tire Rack, intending to install them on my 18×8″ M-Parallel reps. Little did I know that my horrible history with...Read More »