It's impossible to find a 540 6 speed in silver. Every single 540 on eBay, minus like 3 out of the 250 listings is an automatic. So fucking gay.

be patient and keep looking for what you want to buy. then you'll want what you have later on. :)

go to autotrader.com and do an advanced search. under tranny type select manual, and it will help you find what you're looking for. I almost bought a 528 because I was having so much trouble finding a 540/6, so I know how you feel. Just be patient and you'll find your car.

There are plenty in BMWCCA's Rondell magazine.

I had the same problem finding a 528i with a sport package in a 5-speed. I wouldn't compromise on the tranny. I really wanted a White or Montreal Blue colored car but all I could find were silver and black cars with the sport package/5-speed. I didn't want 2 silver cars in the garage though...

So I settled on black, even though it is a high maintenance color. I would say approximately 9/10 cars I looked at were automatics. Very frustrating.

I spent over 20 hours already with a PC random orbital buffer eliminating the swirl marks and surface imperfections. Looks great now though, nothing IMHO looks better than a black car when clean.

Approximately 1 in every 10 540i cars is a stickshift & maybe 1 in every 4 or 5 of those is silver. This means about 1 in 40 540i cars is a silver stick. How long since you saw 40 540i cars on the road?? When I recently drove 1000 miles to the coast and back on vacation, I decided to note how many I saw...I spotted 2 friggin' 540i cars. What's the chance they were for sale & silver & stick? :lol:

The 540i is relatively uncommon in the USA because it's sticker price is so darn high. Most folks are trying to impress their neighbor for minimum funds, so they choose the cheaper 6cyl 5 series. I also think the average upscale "sporty sedan" buyer who wants a stickshift is single & economy-sensitive. These buyers migrate to a smaller car with a 6 cyl like the 330i or M3. The percentage of E36 M3's with 4 doors and a stick is better.

If you expect to find a nice silver 540i/6 with the right miles, right condition & right price, I think you are touching yourself. I can see throwing out one or two colors as "not acceptable", but to find one in one particular color, hey...you're doomed to fail. Searching for one of these cars ain't like looking for a Mustang or Cavalier where they're parked in every used car lot! You could be looking for 3 years and you'll be forced to make serious compromises on condition and price. I found a silver one...had a salvage title. Would you trade desired color for a bent frame & crappy resale? When I searched, I considered everything NICE that wasn't Avon Lady pink or Cosmic Purple & looking was still an SOB. Condition, mileage, transmission type and price were the primary criteria to me. Let me guess...you want heated seat, NAV, optional 9" rear wheels & DSC too? Don't narrow your search if you want to succeed. Most likely, a 6spd car will be black. That seemed to be the most common color I saw. I think silver may be more common in the auto cars.

Approximately 1 in every 10 540i cars is a stickshift. The 540i is relatively uncommon in the USA because it's sticker price is so high. For this reason, if you expect to find a nice silver 540i/6 with the right miles for the right price, you are nuts. I can see throwing out one or two colors as not acceptable, but to find one in one particular color...you're doomed to fail. You could be looking for 3 years and you'll be forced to compromise on condition and price. Wear color contacts.

I don't see how a 540i in silver 6 speed is so hard. Aslong as it's under 100k and in good condition it would be fine.

I don't see how a 540i in silver 6 speed is so hard. Aslong as it's under 100k and in good condition it would be fine.

Who was it that couldn't find one & was bitching? You!

You think most cars under 100K mi are in similar condition? Toyota, maybe....5 series, no. Unless it's a BMW dealer CPO car that's under 5 years old and selling for top dollar, most have either crappy repaint jobs, maintenance neglect, crash history or salvage or theft recovery title. Others may have been run low on coolant due to the "common issues" and they may, in fact, need a new $10K motor!! Maybe you'll get real lucky and only need a $2K clutch job & radiator at 60K miles? You sound very nieve...better know what you're looking at!! Color is least of your worries. I looked at 8 stickshift 540i cars in a 6 month timespan, after driving 300-600 miles to see half of them. For the record, all of them had one or more of these serious issues because they were all priced under $25K. Assuming one didn't have one or more serious problems, what's the chance it was silver? Almost none. Limiting your search based upon color is not wise unless you're buying a high production vehicle like a Chevy Pickup or Mustang.

Who was it that couldn't find one & was bitching? You!

You think most cars under 100K mi are in similar condition? Unless it's a CPO car, most have crappy repaint jobs, maintenance neglect, crash history or salvage or theft recovery title. I looked at 8 stickshift 540i cars in a 6 month timespan, after driving 300-600 miles to see half of them. For the record, all of them had one or more of these serious issues because they were all priced under $25K. Assuming one didn't have one or more serious problems, what's the chance it was silver? Almost none. Limiting your search based upon color is not wise unless you're buying a high production vehicle like a Chevy Pickup or Mustang.

Wow, I in lieu of those facts I feel lucky to have found a clean E39, 5-sp, sport package...

You make some good points, if you narrow your criteria down too much the chances of finding that particular vehicle diminishes. But if this guy really wants a silver 6 sp, I believe one can be found if you search hard enough (roundel, cars.com, autotrader, ebay, local classifieds). But if your going to set your sights on a rare find, you should be prepared to pay a premium for that car, once located. I don't think it's that absurd to be limit your search to a particular color. He never did mention the timeframe he was working with in which to finalize a purchase.

I did a filtered search on cars.com and found 35 silver 540 manuals.

2000 to 2003 540 silver/manual (http://members.cox.net/mconley2/330%20BMW/540%20silver%20manual.htm)

Try some of these. The milage is based off a distance from zip code 92688.

Yup, I had never used cars.com and just looked at it before work, alot of cars there. I found on in Missouri that looks perfect. But it's only got one picture, so I need more info on it.

"If you expect to find a nice silver 540i/6 with the right miles, right condition & right price, I think you are touching yourself."

:lol: Yikes,not a pretty picture.

I was looking for a 540i6 sport for 3 months... wanted black .... ended up with tit silver coz' it was in perfect shape.
most of the cars on the market here are ran down. The only decent ones I found were CPO from dealers.

Silver, black, sterling grey ... all nice colors - all look good when clean.

I for one could not find a black 540i6 with a decent interior ... all of them were worn, torn and otherwise obused - interior is where I am 99% the time ... exterior color is secondary, though important.

I was looking for a 540i6 sport for 3 months... wanted black .... ended up with tit silver coz' it was in perfect shape.
most of the cars on the market here are ran down. The only decent ones I found were CPO from dealers.

Silver, black, sterling grey ... all nice colors - all look good when clean.

I for one could not find a black 540i6 with a decent interior ... all of them were worn, torn and otherwise obused - interior is where I am 99% the time ... exterior color is secondary, though important.

Well I spoke with the dealer about the Silver 540i 6-speed with black interior in Missouri, and he says the vehicle is in very good condition inside and out. He is selling for a friend of his and knows it was treated well. I of course take this with a grain of salt, but he's going to take a bunch of pictures for me. It's a 1998 with 75k miles and it's listed at $19,5xx. KBB for a private sale is $18,xxx but this is from a dealer so I expect some markup. Only problem is I have to fly out there to pick it up. Oh well, sometimes you gotta pay to play.

My wife and I were out car shopping one day. We already owned a 2000 323i (her car) and I've driven V8 Chevy Camaros all my life. I got sick of
GM (Generally Mediocre) quality and horrendous service or complete lack of
service I should say. I nearly bought a new G35 Coupe...still love them...but not really practical.

We were so happy with the experience with my wifes 323i that we decided
to go look at CPO cars here in San Diego. We came upon a 2002 540i
sport 6spd on the lot. Jet Black, Black Montana, NAV, DSP....fell in
love with it intantly when I drove it. We drove away with it 5 hours later
after negotiating the crap out of the dealer. It had 32k miles on the odo
and tight as a drum. Everybody at work and friends thought the car was
brand new...condition of the car was/is like new.

All I can say is...GM will never see me in their showrooms again.
I am (and have been) very happy with BMW and its service professionalism,
not to mention quality.



I guess I just got lucky since I really had to do ZERO searching. I didn't really
have the 540 in mind when we went to look...figured it was out of our
price range. yes, it was a little more than I had budgeted...but the wife
fell in love with it too. :redspot It got her big stamp of approval.

I look forward to driving it every day and laugh when people say "but...but
its a four door".....I say..."yeah...its a wolf in sheeps clothing". :buttrock

good luck with your search!

Nice story, congrats on the new ride. Car looks as clean as you describe it in the pic. Be sure to employ proper wash/dry/detailing techniques to keep it looking good (free from those ugly swirl marks and surface imperfections).

Check out the show and shine forum for some good advice and strategies.

I'm looking for a decent 98ish 540 six speed too ... I came across this one on autotrader a few days ago: link (http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.jsp?car_id=153318382&dealer_id=32858214&car_year=1998&search_type=used&make=BMW&model=540I&transmission=MAN&distance=200&address=06811&advanced=y&certified=n&max_mileage=&max_price=&min_price=&first_record=51&end_year=2005&start_year=1984&drive=&engine=&body_style=&advcd_on=y&doors=&=&fuel=&color=&cardist=119).

I was interested in it for a while until I finally managed to pay for a Carfax account and found out it was a salvage. If you don't mind the salvage title in California and a repair title in New York, (and the lack of a shift knob for some reason judging by the pictures). The mileage is extremely low though, and it's silver. It's located in Walnutport, PA, a little bit closer to you than Missouri. I don't know if this helps you or not, I just thought I'd throw it out there for you anyway :stickoutt

Good luck!

Well I found out the dealer incorrectly listed the interior color as black, it's tan inside. Sounds really picky but don't really want tan interior. And I don't want a salvage title. But thanks for the heads up anyways. Oh well, still looking.

If you expect to find a nice silver 540i/6 with the right miles, right condition & right price, I think you are touching yourself.

I don't think it's impossible.

I managed to find a silver/black '98 540i/6 with only 63k miles on it. Well cared for, just had the radiator and valve cover gaskets replaced in the last 4k miles and a new clutch/flywheel along with an Inspection II 2k miles ago. Clean inspection, clean carfax, good paint. Got it for a little over $20k and I'm happy.

I think infinityevo just needs to keep looking. A car will turn up sooner or later. I agree that exterior color shouldn't be a sticking point. I originally wanted a black car, but this arctic silver one was just too damn good to pass up.

Everybody at work and friends thought the car was
brand new...condition of the car was/is like new.
When I bought my 2001 540/6 all my friends thought it was brand new, too. It's a testament to the timeless design of the e39.

yes, it was a little more than I had budgeted...but the wife
fell in love with it too. :redspot It got her big stamp of approval.

Lucky bastard. I thought it was only us single guys that could get away with spending more money than we should on cars. So does she have a sister? :D

I'm budging a bit on the colors, I wouldn't mind black either. I love black, but I always get black cars. Black/black or silver/black with a 6 speed. Now that seems pretty reasonable.

Lucky bastard. I thought it was only us single guys that could get away with spending more money than we should on cars. So does she have a sister? :D

Sorry, shes one of a kind. :D Its worth mentioning that she loves
to watch football, knocks down a cold one from the bottle and
thinks "Monty Python" movies are a riot. Is that the perfect woman
or what? :buttrock I am a lucky bastard. :D

...and psychocandy...thanks for the lead on the show and shine...as
black is a never ending battle. :eek

Hey Infinity, I live in missouri I have the 540 silver auto with the 19s for sale. If you want I could run over and look at the 6spd for you im like 5 minutes from the dealer. of course id go silver auto with black interior before tan interior. I looked for a 6spd last year for about 3 months and ended up going about 900 miles from home in KC to Albuquerque to get a nice auto and have felt lucky to have it. Good luck let me know.

MMMMERT - our stories are sooooo similar :)...
everyone at work though I was BS'ingthem when I said the car was 2000 - they all thought it was brand new. My wife is in love with the car and wants an X5 for herself and .....we watch hockey with her and my daugter every time there is a game. :)
she rocks ... :D

infinityevo - watch out for the worn interior as I said before. have the dealer to make close up pics of the inside door handles and leather and plastic panels, Have hime make a pic of the driver's seat especialy the left side that can wear out and may not be pretty if not cared properly with leather products from when it was new. Sometimes there are belt marks on the seat(belt on the driver's pants that is). I have seen many of those. but sometimes if there are no tears you can have the dealer to re-dye the leather and it will look like new. it may cost between $100 and $200 per seat.
Have him make a close up pic of the front of the car - so you can see the stone chips and how bad they are.

http://www.outerspacer.com/bmw/side.jpg

finding a 540i/6 is a bit tricky but not hard if you know where to look. i actually found 2 540i/6. one was red and the other was blue. both of them are 98's but the blue has sun shades and was in better condition.

there's a place here in Northern Jersey (right next to Teterboro airport) where it's a no frills dealer place. it's a place where dealers go buy their cars if they don't feel like going to the auction or didn't get to go to the auction. they trade these cards like baseball cards. remember when the Viper first came out and there was a long waiting line? not here. there were 2 sitting on the lot just waiting to be picked up. when the GTS first came out, there were 2 sitting right there. the new lambo (went there a month ago) in black was just sitting there with a new ferrari sitting right behind it. yeah, they do a lot of high end cars but they also have some mid range stuff too.

how many 528 5spd's do you see out there? and how many of them are fully loaded that's black on black? NOW that's a rare car.

if you want to find one, PM me. i live 5-10 minutes from there and i always like walking around the lot. if you want one, i'll go ask around for one.

I own a 540i with a stick.

E34 style, hos.

:)

how many 528 5spd's do you see out there? and how many of them are fully loaded that's black on black? NOW that's a rare car.Mine's not black on black, but it's fully loaded :D

It's impossible to find a 540 6 speed in silver. Every single 540 on eBay, minus like 3 out of the 250 listings is an automatic. So fucking gay.


Okay, it could involve some paper work....BUT, the CDN$ is cheap, the Ontario market is flush with BMW540's coming off lease...soooo

Check www.autotrader.ca go into CARS, then Search and check the Toronto area....select BMW 540i as the model and you should find about 85 used 540's for sale....you can even search for the exact year or price range you want.


My guess is that if the car is 4 years old (at least) the border issues will be minimal. If the car is 6 years old (like my mint 1998 540 6sp) then all the warrenty stuff is over, and you'll get a BARGAIN!!!!

Good luck..................

Just be happy that bmw even had an option for manual in these cars.

I got an auto and honestly now, i dont miss stick in normal everyday driving. I will miss it when it comes time to go to the track, but then i'll just take the motorcycle.

Mine's not black on black, but it's fully loaded :D

i've got nipples, can you milk me? :D

Hey InfinityEvo - I know what you're going through. I spent at least a year looking for a silver/black 6spd 540. The few I did find were high miles and semi beat-up.
I just kept looking and found one locally(a 2001 with 25k miles) that had been put on autotrader 2 hrs earlier (and I'd been looking nationwide...) Bought the car by 5 that day. Be patient and be ready to through down the dough when it happens.

Good luck

Derek

Who was it that couldn't find one & was bitching? You!

You think most cars under 100K mi are in similar condition? Toyota, maybe....5 series, no. Unless it's a BMW dealer CPO car that's under 5 years old and selling for top dollar, most have either crappy repaint jobs, maintenance neglect, crash history or salvage or theft recovery title. Others may have been run low on coolant due to the "common issues" and they may, in fact, need a new $10K motor!! Maybe you'll get real lucky and only need a $2K clutch job & radiator at 60K miles? You sound very nieve...better know what you're looking at!! Color is least of your worries. I looked at 8 stickshift 540i cars in a 6 month timespan, after driving 300-600 miles to see half of them. For the record, all of them had one or more of these serious issues because they were all priced under $25K. Assuming one didn't have one or more serious problems, what's the chance it was silver? Almost none. Limiting your search based upon color is not wise unless you're buying a high production vehicle like a Chevy Pickup or Mustang.

You're dead on. You can get into some serious $$$ problems if you don't know what you're looking at especially looking at a high mileage car. You'd be surprised how many owners neglect their cars. I flew all the way out to Dallas from Phoenix just to find out the car had been beat to hell. Pictures looked fine, but no thanks... I would have liked NAV, but that was way down the list. I just wanted the SPORT Package and lucked out finding that exact car in Silver/Black, but it took mme a little over a year (searching every day)

Good luck

Well I spoke with the dealer about the Silver 540i 6-speed with black interior in Missouri, and he says the vehicle is in very good condition inside and out. He is selling for a friend of his and knows it was treated well. I of course take this with a grain of salt, but he's going to take a bunch of pictures for me. It's a 1998 with 75k miles and it's listed at $19,5xx. KBB for a private sale is $18,xxx but this is from a dealer so I expect some markup. Only problem is I have to fly out there to pick it up. Oh well, sometimes you gotta pay to play.

Hey Just take Southwest Airlines to St Louis. They're cheep.
Have the dealer fax or e-mail you all the paperwork (vehicle histroy/maintenance/ car fax etc). Tell them to put it up on the hoist and take pix of the bottom (drivetrain, engine, etc)

i've got nipples, can you milk me? :DI have no idea if I should :rofl or :confused

There are plenty in the SF Bay area. When I was looking a year and a half ago I wanted a relatively low mileage silver 540/6 with black interior (harder to find as most have the beige or gray interior) and fold down rear seats. I found 2 at the time I was looking in the mid 30's. I bought an immaculate, one owner, Napa area (no snow or salt air) CPO with 37k miles at that price. (It didn't have the front or rear spoilers or the clear corners at the time). I found all of them on AutoTrader.com. Good luck.

I have no idea if I should :rofl or :confused

:rofl

your comment just reminded me of that scene.

I looked for a year before I found mine in Chicago. I saw quite a few 540's, fewer 6 speeds and most of those had at least 80K miles (half of them had over 100K) when normal mileage would have been around 50 - 60K. I finally got a call from a dealer who was taking one in on trade. I suggest getting to know a lot lizard at one of the larger BMW dealers in your area and having him find what you want. Let him waste his time and earn the commission.

I must of gotten really lucky with mine then...

1999 540i Six-speed, Black on Black, 52k miles, CPO, 22k.

:redspot

Do we need to rub out someone to open up a purchase? :)

Just kidding of course. Persistence will pay off, bro. Hang in there with your search. It will be well worth it although you may want to consider some travel plans.

You're dead on. You can get into some serious $$$ problems if you don't know what you're looking at especially looking at a high mileage car. You'd be surprised how many owners neglect their cars. I flew all the way out to Dallas from Phoenix just to find out the car had been beat to hell. Pictures looked fine, but no thanks... I would have liked NAV, but that was way down the list. I just wanted the SPORT Package and lucked out finding that exact car in Silver/Black, but it took mme a little over a year (searching every day)

Good luck


Hearing your stories about finding the right car...I figure I lucked-out big time! Here in Toronto nearly everyone drives there BMW's year round and its mostly city driving(not good).....so after 2-3 month's of searching and only one other test drive, I found this 98 540i 6sp (memory seats, zenon, phone, dsp) with only 30K miles and NEVER WINTER DRIVEN....I must admit the original owner made me pay top dollar (about 20K usd - 25K CDN$) ... but I figure the low milage and no salt is worth the premium.

Now the search is on for a similar Touring 3 series....perhaps with the "X" option....HAAA....like trying to find a needle in a hey stack....oooorrrrr what about the new 3 series!!! HAAA wait a year, and get the new model...wow now we're talkin crazy big bucks....
cheers all........

I must of gotten really lucky with mine then...

1999 540i Six-speed, Black on Black, 52k miles, CPO, 22k.

:redspot


When did you buy it?

I think I got a great deal also. Two years ago, I bought my 2000 540/6 Black with grey leather. DSP, Heated Seats, Rear sunshades. 65,000 miles for $23k. I wanted the black on black but I settled for the grey leather when I saw the options and the deal I was getting. No major problems just the regular stuff, expansion tank, water pump, brakes, etc. :alright

When did you buy it?

I think I got a great deal also. Two years ago, I bought my 2000 540/6 Black with grey leather. DSP, Heated Seats, Rear sunshades. 65,000 miles for $23k. I wanted the black on black but I settled for the grey leather when I saw the options and the deal I was getting. No major problems just the regular stuff, expansion tank, water pump, brakes, etc. :alright

That's a *fantasic* deal if you got it two years ago!

Man I feel lucky reading these posts.


When i started shopping for the e39 I was just in market for a e39 w/sport pkg, color and tranny were open. I stumbled into my 528 by accident. So far its been alot of fun driving it. I knew it would require more Main $ than my lexus, but def worth it.

98 528 5m w/sport private owner
silver/black montana int
w/ 42k miles and complete history and extra snow tires.

I paid $14,700. I think i got pretty decent deal.

That's a *fantasic* deal if you got it two years ago!


Yeah I like to think I got a really good deal.

I got mine with 12500 miles Silver 6spd sport package. no nav but its all good.

Here's a 98 540i with Nav that's a 6spd (http://newyork.craigslist.org/jsy/car/54526795.html)

then you'll love the fact I'm picking up an automatic 545i tomorrow.

Nick

I looked for an E39 6 speed for months. I only found 1 car that was in really nice shape. It was sold when I called back later that day. I finally got a deal on an E34 540i 6 speed. Its a very nice one owner.
The parts that could worn out like the clutch and brakes, can be upgraded to better components anyway. The electrical problem potential scares me, as well as OBDII tuning costs.

I agree it's very hard finding a 540 6speed e39, even here in Europe with all my wishes, good mileage, price, nice interior and exterior...

So I finally hooked up with a black/black 528i -98 instead with all my wishes :)

12,000 km engine in european.. heh

around 16.000 USD, and thats really the cheapest I've ever found in Europe for a e39 in shape like mine, lol..

It seem like the bmw's are cheaper in America huh? :P f0kk

I looked for an E39 6 speed for months. I only found 1 car that was in really nice shape. It was sold when I called back later that day. I finally got a deal on an E34 540i 6 speed. Its a very nice one owner.
The parts that could worn out like the clutch and brakes, can be upgraded to better components anyway. The electrical problem potential scares me, as well as OBDII tuning costs.
OBD1 cars are easier on the pocket book for sure.