Sooooooo.....what did I finally buy???
 

Tested both the 156 GTA and E39 M5 this weekend.

Can you guess what I bought? :norty:

Has to be the M5 surely?

The Skoda ...... :D

Dave

As its your own money it has to be M5.
ps. Vapid, you've moved. Is it still warm?

Obviously the M5!

A Scoob :)

Please tell us soon.

The anticipation is killing us ...............................not :D

the GTA :cool:

A course on how to remain modest ?

D

:confused:

I'd say the Alfa, as you were trying to save money.....

otherwise it's all gone VERY wrong!! :D

Either way, enjoy :)

Dan

Yeah it had to be the M5. :D

I tested the Alfa first on Friday.

http://www.amcalfaromeo.co.uk/more_info.asp?ID=2070

the colour is dramatically different in the flesh, very vivid blue, striking and individual and helped to highlight the car as being special versus a standard 156.

Beside the usual stonechips on the front bumper, the car is spotless and, and I was surprised at the level of build quality; doors close with a reassuring *thunk*, and all seems well screwed together.

The seats and interior initially look great, however once you have spent a little time behind the wheel the dashboard starts feeling like mutton dressed as lamb, and the one piece moulded seats, whilst securing you around the waist, are fairly hard and slope away at the top, leaving no upper back support or usable headrest.

Driving position was better than expected, given some reviews, but then I'm 5'9 and fairly slim.

On starting her up, the engine sounded 'tinny' at first, not dissimilar to a Honda VTEC. the clutch and gearbox were very positive, with a slightly higher bite point than I would typically like, and once we were on the move even at low revs and speeds, and once there was some warmth in the oil, that V6 started to make its presence felt. even with the windows fully up, and a standard exhaust, it really is a fantastic sounding engine, particularly at the very bottom and very top of the rev range.

I was surprised at how much torque the car has, and you rarely have to change lower than 4th in traffic, which makes for pleasant progress, also seems to be an almost vtec-like kick at about 5k rpm up to the red line.

steering feel is also great, however it is race car fast. whilst this makes for fantastic progress on b-roads and typical roundabout-strewn a-roads, it makes m-way cruising a little more exciting than I would like. Combine that with the seats and I certainly wouldn't look forward to the Alps trips like I do in the RS6.

Unfortunately I didn't get the chance to really push the car, however you could definitely feel the potential, and the way the front drive chassis coped with that much power is admirable, even from a standing start.

However, ultimately it wasn't the car for me. Coming from the RS, as you can imagine the performance drop is comical, and after a 40 minute drive it just didn't feel like I was sitting behind the wheel of something special. also despite being the estate version, the boot access, space and rear seat folding just wasn't practical enough for my needs.

So, the M5.

Its a 2000 plate with 90k, absolutely pristine service history even including the original bill of sale, 4 months of warranty (which can be extended in Jan) and the best interior colour and trim combo plus the sought-after comms pack.

Having recently driven the M3 as a hire car, I was very surprised at the low build quality levels, however the M5 is right up there with my RS6. aside from a couple of very easily rectified bodywork scratches, and some bubbling on the alloys, you could stand it alongside my 40k RS6 and both of them could get away with having a 2 as the first number on the odometer. It really is hard to believe that this car has covered that much mileage. The GTA looked worse off despite not having covered 30k yet.

The seats are on a par with the recaros in the RS, but with memory and even electric headrests. The overall driving position is peerless, certainly for my build.

The floor-hinged throttle feels strange initially, but you soon forget once you've mashed it into the bulkhead a few times. it certainly isn't slow :norty:

despite lacking the comical thrust from 2 turbos, acceleration is relentless. it is actually quicker to 100mph than the RS6 (just) but a whole 3 seconds quicker to 150mph, which is very impressive (and very hard to discern even when tried back to back...the Audi always feels faster due to those huge blowers!)

Steering is....odd. beautifully weighted once you apply lock, but the recirculating ball system does leave a strange dead spot in the middle, but this can be minimised by pressing the button marked 'sport'. This reduces the artificial assistance on the steering, and completely changes the throttle mapping, making it feel like you have suddenly just unleashed another 100bhp!

DSC is also very effective...too effective in fact. however as it was my first drive and despite the car giving you oodles of confidence, I left it engaged. Despite that, the car's handling defies belief, and humbles the RS6.

The problem with the RS6 is too much grip, too much weight, and too much front-loading of the weight. In the dry, you can push pretty hard and it will do things that defy its girth. In the wet, f it starts sliding, you are in big trouble. The M5, despite the terrible conditions yesterday, felt totally composed. It also rides so much better than the RS6, which can be 'crashy' due to the 35 profile tyres.

Unfortunately being the year 2000 model, the card does not have the halo 'angel eyes' upgrade, which costs the best part of a grand for the OE Hella units, but it is definitely something I will doat some point as it looks much better IMHO.

Otherwise, I plan to leave it totally standard, renew the warranty in Jan, then probably flog it in about a year when it still has at least 4-6 months warranty and about 100k on the clock.

Hopefully picking her up tonight and so will post some pictures tomorrow. Thanks again for everybody's advice and opinions :thumb:

Oh please :yawn:

This is a bloody car forum / community. If you don't want to read, don't.

I paid less for this than I paid for a brand new bugeye WRX 3 years ago, and considerably less than any Sti owners on here would have paid, so I don't quite follow your logic. People come here to talk about their cars, get advice and have some fun. Why do you come here??? :rolleyes:

I'm the first one to put the boot in on people I think need bringing down a peg or two but I'm hard pushed to see why Edcase needs to be more humble.

He's posted a thread about cutting his motoring costs and IMO has bought a car that's probably within the reach of many car buyers. The difference as I see is that instead of buying a Mondeo or piece of jap crap at a year or so old he decided to buy something more interesting instead.

No boasting, no bleating and definitely no one upmanship. Can't wait to see the pictures. Be interested to see what you think the best colour combo is. Black, black leather and silver trim is the ultimate.

Good desicion :thumb:

Sounds great, waiting for pics and I agree with your choice:thumb:
ps not bored.

oooo i love M5s... nice one mate cant wait to see the pics

Great choice :)

Avus blue, silverstone leather and silver trim :thumb:

Can't knock that colour combo either. I'm sure you know already but make sure you check the oil regularly, these cars drink plenty.
Looked at one of these before I chose the S8 but went for 4 wheel drive as the M5 would have been useless in the snow we sometimes get here.

up to 1l per 1k miles I heard :eek::eek:

Nice one fella, hope your well.

Did see it advertised and thought a tad expensive, been looking for a while as my Uncle is in the market for one. Hope you did a deal !!

Few years back I drove Harjs M5 from the Ring to Amsterdam, had Kellerman pipes on it which made a fantastic sound. By far it was the best sounding car in the car park, we even got Sabine to take it for a spin, however a broken anti roll bar screwed up decent progress. Remember her turning to me saying 'it does not feel right' !!!! Didnt stop me maxing it out on the Autobahn when Harj was asleep, he woke up and asked what speed I got up to.......Top fella.

It never felt proper quick though until you looked at the speedo, 24mpg as well on a run.

You still in the city? We should meet for a beer!

Yes I did a deal ;)

Definitely tempted by a nice shiny system, but that would be all ;)

Rear end bushes are a known thing, these were just done recently :thumb:

Pick it up tonight, VERY excited :D

And I just managed to get it insured for £250 less than the RS aswell! :thumb:

Happy driving Ed. I've got a big a big gap on my drive and at least a few days
running around in a smelly citroen now :(
p.s. looked ace as you drove away
(silversealed and zymol graphite waxed for your reference:))

I like the M5's too. What price did you pay ? Im surprised to hear that the M5 was as quick, if not quicker than your RS6 ? Also, do the older models have a sports button that releases another 100bhp ? I thought that was just the new E90 ?? M5 ??

I would love a facelift, estril blue E39 M5 ! A tremendous car, only spoiled by the dealers, well my local one anyhow ( chandlers worthing ).

But, I would also love an RS6 ! A friend has one and told me about his problems with his rear suspension ? Lots of times back to the dealer ??

What ever the case, I enjoyed your write up. Cant wait to see the pics.

SBK

James - I'm a sad bugger with a full Swissol kit (although I think you may have guessed that :)) although I'll be spending saturday on the RS ready for selling! I had a fun drive home ;)

SBK, the RS certainly feels faster because of the initial lag when you floor it, while it takes a big gulp of air and kicks down, and then it punches you hard in the back, whereas the M5 just has a linear pull the second you touch the throttle, so it doesn't feel as dramatic. They are basically almost identical to 100mph but then the M5 pulls ahead by 2.5 seconds to 150mph.

I've ordered my facelift lights this morning :) Makes a big difference IMHO.

I've taken a load of pics of both cars today too, will upload later.

The RS6 has the DRC self-levelling suspension, which is known to leak. Mine has just been done under warranty.

Edited to say the sports button just affects the throttle mapping to make it more immediate, and reduces the power assistance on the steering, although it makes it *feel* like it has another 100bhp!!!