Drove My First 928 Today...Torn Due To M5 Also Driven..Pics

[slow&rusty]

Gang - I actually stopped to test drive this '93 M5 that was sitting at a dealer a few miles from my office...

The M5 (E34 model) - 286hp 3.5L 24V. The car is very nice white but you can tell several panels have been re-painted. The mileage is 166,000 which scares me as there are no service records. Electrically everything works. Clutch feels OK, seems to be a fair bit of valvetrain clatter (I do not know what is normal for a M5), but I would assume they should purrr being a silky 24V straight 6. Grey leather is pretty beat especially driver's side...no rips just alot of cracking. Power is very good and drives very well, excellent throttle response with those 6ITBs! and excellent handler too, the car has been lowered and felt pretty tight. Price is negotiable at $10K

As I was walking back to my car I noticed the same dealer has a 32V 1986 928 tucked in the corner!! I could not believe it! Trust me this is very rare for Diesel Pick-Up Truck Colorado Springs! The car is also nice only 66K! Auto. Car started Ok but was very rough, exhaust leak for sure but as I drove it more and more the roughness smoothed out - I figure it needs a good tune-up at minimum. Car banged pretty hard between shifts so I assume the linkage needs adjustment. Power was lazy-ish in first gear but VERY good in the other gears. VERY peppy and felt just as solid as the M5, very stable and nice driving...in fact I got hooked! I loved the way the car drove actually. Electrically evrything worked fine on this car as well. Carfax on it is clean and the car has not been messed with at all still has the factory Blaupunkt. If were a 5speed car I would have bought it right there...price is $9500 negotiable. The color is pretty neat.

So what do you guys think?

Here are the pics.

M5:





928:





Yasin

[cowtown]

Originally posted by slow&rusty
If were a 5speed car I would have bought it right there...price is $9500 negotiable. The color is pretty neat.

So what do you guys think?

I think unless you're doing all the work yourself, offer him $500. That way you'll have $9000 to set it all right. 928s are notorious for high maintenance (although I just know there will be a few 928 owners telling me it's not so ).

[Paul K]

I'd post this on the 928 forum- they'll help you out.

Good luck whatever you decide!

Paul.

[greglepore]

An M5 is one of the few cars that could give a shark a run for the maintainence dollar. At least its not a bonded chassis.

The valves on the M likely need an adjustment, which is a shim thing. I'd be worried about how long they've been noisy, they should be silent.

Actually, the M's are easy on the routine maint, its the broken stuff that will kill 'ya. Ie, trans is 6k, and there's only a few places in the US that want to do them. The joke when I had mine was that the M5 stood for "multiply the cost of the standard 5 series part by 5".

I really miss my M, nonetheless. Nothing else (well, except maybe a Hammer or the like) combines the sports car personality with the ability to be a luxury sedan. The E34 is a "heavy" vehicle, but it will still suprise with its agility and ability to go and stop. The 928 is an equally wonderful car to eat miles, but is still 2 up.

[Moneyguy1]

Ahh...the 928..Another ingenious design of an interference engine with a 7 foot long fiber timing belt.

Beautiful car. Would be even better with half the electronic gimmicks left out and a timing chain.

[jyl]

Just my personal take -

They are pretty different cars, one is a largish four-door sedan and the other is a two-door GT with children-only rear seats. Do you ever plan to take along more than one friend, or do a road trip w/ more than an overnight bag? That would decide it right there.

The manual vs auto also would decide it right there, for me. I wouldn't get either in an auto, personally, unless traffic was just hideous where I lived.

Both are complex cars that are expensive to repair and are not usually thought of as DIY. Yes, I know there is quite a lot of 928 technical help available on Rennist (not so much on PP) and some 928-focused online parts places but I still don't think its as easy to, say, drop the engine and replace the clutch - compared to a 911. So it is utterly critical to get the very best example you can find - well maintained, records, thorough PPI, lower miles. I'm thinking you're more likely to find that private party than on some used car dealer's lot . . .

So, again just personal taste, I'd take a 928S4 (w/ manual trans and any color except brown, in excellent condition of course) over any M5 ever made. Unless I needed the rear seat. In that case, I'd actually go looking for a mid-1980s M535 for the classic look, easier DIY, and lower price.

Maybe it's just from living in California, but I think of 5-series BMWs as boringly common cars, kind of like Honda Accords. 928s are a lot rarer and more interesting.

Plus, you can get bolt-on supercharger kits for 928s, 6-liter conversions, and (I imagine) combinations of both - which make them into absolute rocketships. You know, 6 lbs/HP stuff.

[HardDrive]

I would buy neither of those cars. Both sound like expensive nightmares.

[slow&rusty]

Thanks for all your replies guys - mucho appreciated.

I'm still pondering, so we'll see. The M5 has too many miles for my liking especially with zero records. I do not *need* a 4 door car, but the M5 is pretty sexxxy. I have seen well maintained M5 with 230K on the clock with 175psi on all cylinders, so high mileage cars with the proper care are still great machines (like the 928).

My bias is still a 5speed 928....so we'll see and yes I agree a PPI is essential for sure.

I'll let you guys know.

Thanks for the advice and the heads-up
Yasin

[techweenie]

Originally posted by slow&rusty
My bias is still a 5speed 928....so we'll see and yes I agree a PPI is essential for sure.

I'll let you guys know.

Thanks for the advice and the heads-up
Yasin

Some years, 85% of 928s sold were automatics, so you may have a wait to find a 5-speed.

Also: the 86-1/2 (32v) 928 was, in effect, a 928 S4 with the older sheetmetal.

Maintenance isn't huge on these cars, but the serpentine belt is such a big replacement task that you'll want to put in a water pump at the same time.

Many 928s fell into the wrong hands because of low resale values, and as a result, mainenance was not done; the correct antifreeze was not used, and mechanics who had never seen a "porch" before have worked on them. A one-owner or carefully cared-for multi owner 928 is worth any extra cost.

[deathpunk dan]

The E34 M5 is pretty rock solid. The engine ain't THAT much different than what showed up in the 78 M1, and the E34 platform itself is up there with the E30 for the best and most durable BMW cars of all time.


I would take that M5 over the 928 in question any day.

[epbrown]

My suggestion? Look for an early 90s Mercedes-Benz 500E - the performance of the M5 with the handling of a Porsche. The 500E was built by Porsche for MBZ using the MBZ parts bin, because they wanted a response to tuner cars like the "Hammer" from AMG and the E28 M5. They later simply bought out AMG and brought them in as their own version of BMW's ///M division.

[kaisen]

Originally posted by epbrown
My suggestion? Look for an early 90s Mercedes-Benz 500E - the performance of the M5 with the handling of a Porsche. The 500E was built by Porsche for MBZ using the MBZ parts bin, because they wanted a response to tuner cars like the "Hammer" from AMG and the E28 M5. They later simply bought out AMG and brought them in as their own version of BMW's ///M division.

The 500E was a nice car, but I wouldn't say they perform anywhere near the level of the e28 or e34 M5 in ANY category, including (especially?) handling. The M5 handily kicks its a$$.

If you need a fast, comfortable cruiser, and prefer to let the car shift for you, the E500 is a great choice. But it's no M5.

E

[charleskieffner]

hey picking up '86 928 today. 31k on it for 13K. couple of FOO FOO things wrong with it. boss didnt want '93 w 5-speed. this has auto/A/C. great interior, great paint. test drove last week. lite those tires up big time. brakes are awesome and handles very well. all in all it was/is a great deal for 13k. would give it a 98% overall condition. something to say for 1-owner cars from AZ. NO RUST!