Road trip story & Project thread: 2001 Titanium Silver e39 M5

[t.er]

Me too. Found the locally for my wagon

Daaaayum lucky!

[Sreten]

Thanks, fellas! Appreciate it!

I'm probably going to pick them up tomorrow. The thing is I do like the gray interior, it's brighter inside and has a certain welcoming feel to it, and both E38 and M5 are completely black so this is a nice change. Downside is that the leather needs to be cleaned often but that's not a big deal.

So I'm gonna put them in and see how I like it. I really hope I do like it as I don't want another car that has an entirely black interior.
Additionally, I can transfer the black carpet from the parts car that I got if the two-tone is not working.

These seats are also electric so I'll need to retrofit that as well but from what I read, it's relatively easy.

I also ordered Koni Special Active shocks for the Touring that are coming in November and I'm also shopping for a different exhaust.
I asked Koni if they would consider providing parts for the project and they said nope, we don't do that for anyone and can only sell them to me. So they gave me a small discount and I bought them, they are currently out of stock and the first batch lands in November.

Man, things got out of hand quickly here and cheap daily driver this no longer is, lol.

[Galapolis]

Have you considered signing up on the German E46 forums? I've tried to teach them about the benefits of the American ways (like Koni dampers) but everyone there is stubborn and set in their ways. Also, what exhausts are you looking at? I've been researching that too in preparation for when I return and the situation looks really bleak. The best I could find is the full Eisenmann catback (very expensive). Borla, aFe, Corsa, AA, Dinan etc. are all illegal.

[Sreten]

Nah, I don't speak German and I barely have time for it as it is. Germans be Germans, Koni FSD (Special Active) is simply the best thing you can get for E46. Ever since having them on my 330Ci, I've been dying to get them again.

Well, Eisenmann gave me a good deal on their Sport exhaust at 460€ ($535). But, I don't like their large flat tips on E46, I want rolled tips (like stock) but they can't do that.

Supersprint ignored my emails, despite trying few times.

I also reached out to Schmiedmann - https://www.schmiedmann.de/en/bmw-E4...ct=SCM5446R276

Their exhaust is made in Italy by the old Hartage and Racing Dynamics factory, has a nice deep sound and rolled tips so that's my favorite right now. They can't provide it for the video but gave me a 100 euro discount from 450 to 350€ ($407). I told them I would do a nice before/after video, installation process, Insta posts, etc... but a lot of commitment from my side and not a lot of savings. In the end, I'll like go with it cause I think it's a great value for the money.

Btw, Carly offered me $2676 to future them in my videos which is a nice chunk of money, especially considering that my last E46 video made a dismal $265 (yt revenue sucks!), but in the end I told them no. They sent me the adapter, I was playing with it and it works nice and easy but it's a gimmick, not a tool I'd use when working on these cars. Their aim is at people who just want to code simple stuff and read codes and that's fine.
But I can't get over the fact how freaking expensive it is - $80 plus shipping for the adapter and then $7 monthly subscription. That's just ridiculous and I don't see the value in it when you can buy INPA, ISTA or PA soft for a lot less, have it permanently, have BMW specific diagnostic and do stuff that their app can't. Not to mention complaints from some users that Carly bricked their modules.

Told them I won't advertise or recommended stuff I wouldn't buy myself and that was that. I just wish it was easier to work with companies I actually want to work with like Koni and Schmiedmann and some other parts suppliers but it's never that simple. I'm lucky to still work with Liqui Moly, Colourlock and Retrofitlab who have been of great help and sending me their stuff which helps with overall costs with these projects.

[johnrando]

Good stuff. Why noy maybe get the exhaust and replace the tips?

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[t.er]

Btw, Carly offered me $2676 to future them in my videos

Jesus H. Christ... no wonder I keep seeing all these youtubers featuring them, that's insane! Good on you to staying true to your values even though it's a good chunk of change. Given what we can do with a $20 K+DCAN cable and free BMW software readily available online, I always knew iCarly was up to something when everyone was promoting it

[Sreten]

Good stuff. Why noy maybe get the exhaust and replace the tips?

Sent from my SM-G988U using Tapatalk

I thought about that but something about chopping up a brand-new exhaust just doesn't sit right with me.

Jesus H. Christ... no wonder I keep seeing all these youtubers featuring them, that's insane! Good on you to staying true to your values even though it's a good chunk of change. Given what we can do with a $20 K+DCAN cable and free BMW software readily available online, I always knew iCarly was up to something when everyone was promoting it

Yup, they spend a ton of money on marketing which is why are you seeing them everywhere. Even though it would come a long way for buying parts for the E60 M5, I just can't push a product on people I don't believe in.
Most YouTubers don't give 2 shakes about it and just roll with it, but I can't blame them either, yt revenue is pathetic most of the time and when this is your main income, you have to survive.

[az3579]

I would definitely two-tone that interior the factory way. The grey can look great if done like that, the way the Natural Brown interior was done. For something cool and unique, I'd go all out, if it was a keeper:

Black headliner and pillars
Black dash
Black carpet
Door cards, black outside, grey centers, black armrests on door panels
Black armrest
Black center console
Grey seats with black button trim

I've never seen someone do 100% of it, only some mix & match. I think it would be sweet if you did. Just saying.

[Sreten]

I know exactly what you mean and that would look awesome, but I just can't find gray Sport seats here.

I picked up those black individual Nappa seats and they are awesome.













Did a test just to see how they'll look and I think black carpets will be a must. Otherwise it'll look unfinished.
The plan is to install black carpets, these seats, black armrest, two-tone the door panels and leave the center console and dash gray. In my head, that should look good, but we'll see. I have a whole parts car so I can mix and match as I desire.

I also picked up something that I didn't even know was an option on E46, leather door grab handles. The door panels will look so good.

[t.er]

What trim is that? Doesn't look like black cube