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The BMW E34 M5 is a perfect follow on to the Opel Lotus Omega we featured yesterday. These two cars were contemporaries, fulfilling the need for speed in the executive sedan segment in a seemingly similar way on the surface, but, with key differences. While both of these cars have twin cam, 24 valve inline-six engines under the bonnet, the M5 makes due without the turbochargers strapped to the Lotus Omega but still produces a respectable 307 horsepower by way of some clever tuning, most notably the individual throttle bodies. In addition, the M5 is lacking the 6th gear of the Lotus Omega but makes up for it with a more linear power delivery and the free-revving spirit we’ve come to known from the engines of the house of Motorsport. This 1991 M5 for sale in California has made it well past 200,000 miles, with a few battle scars to tell its tale.
As Santa streaked across the sky last night, so too this 535i sailed from Germany to America, ready to bestow a lovely present upon some good boy or girl. It’s a nice early example of the E34 with the 3.4 liter M30B35, updated from the E28 generation with newer fuel injection an a higher compression ratio to yield 208hp, a 26hp improvement over the B34. This example appears to have been a continuing project for its owners and now sports additions on the exterior, interior, and engine bay to make it more than your average E34. An M5’s steering wheel and leather seats look great and are complimented by Schmidmann bit and short shifter, while the same company provided a subtly aggressive bodykit and racing headers. Classic 3-piece, 17″ BBS Style 5s bring the Motorsports feel as well. It’s no M5 or M540i, but it is a nicely-styled and unique European E34.
After the Japanese started an onslaught on the mid-sized luxury sedan sector in the 1990s, the Germans were caught a bit off guard. Sure, Audi had already introduced the V8, but it was aimed slightly higher up in the market than the BMW 5 series and the Mercedes-Benz E-class. Nevertheless, both BMW and Mercedes-Benz decided it was high time to jam an eight cylinder powerplant under the hood of their venerable mid-sized offerings. This E34 5 series would receive two V8s, a 3.0 liter and 4.0 liter. This 1995 540i M Sport represents the last year for the E34 but has been likened as an “M5 lite” by enthusiasts. Given that E34 M5 sales ended in 1993, it gave those speed freaks out there one last chance to get a fast five before the E39 would come along in 1996.
Throughout the years, BMW has only officially produced two generations of the BMW M5 Touring. The brawny E39 M5 was not one of them. However, BMW did create a one-off example as a study, but decided it wasn’t financially prudent to go ahead with production. This hasn’t stopped enthusiasts from trying to recreate what might have been. This 2001 540i Touring for sale in New York has been given the full M5 treatment, right down to the M5 Sport button which is functional. Looking to give the odd AMG Estate out there a run for its money? You’ll want to look this fast Five over a little bit further.
You might think that a car that has a simple button to raise its power by 100 horses might have enough, but today we have two E60 M5s that will explain to you why that kind of thinking makes you a peacenik ninny. I mean, if you can get a V10 in used Audis, then you have to do something to make your M5 stick out, right? These two E60s take pretty different approaches to power and style – supercharger vs. stroker, manual vs. SMG, Eurotuner vs. Roundel – but both represent about as insane of Autobahn stormers as you can find.
