All things equal, except price, how does the e34 stack up against the e39 for long-term, real-world driving? At 1/2 to 2/3 of the cost of an e39, not to mention insurance and in my case, excise tax, you can have an equal condition e34. Now, I LOVE e34's so I'm biased and I haven't driven any e39's for long periods of time. Besides the Nik/Alu problems, aren't the e39's more problematic in comparison? Not that the e39's are problematic but it seems that they are more so than the e34's.

Here's the question-
'95 e34 540/6 - $8-12k normal/low mileage
'98 e39 540/6 - $12-18k normal/high mileage
(these prices are only representative of what I HAve seen over the last year, you may have paid less)
is it worth it?

I prefer the handling of my E34 M5 or 525iT over my E39 540. The E34 is just more tossable and much easier to drive.

I found that the E34 chassis rides much nicer than an E39. Just my opinion, but I think the E34 is a classic looking car, I just LOVE my car.

All things equal, except price, how does the e34 stack up against the e39 for long-term, real-world driving? At 1/2 to 2/3 of the cost of an e39, not to mention insurance and in my case, excise tax, you can have an equal condition e34. Now, I LOVE e34's so I'm biased and I haven't driven any e39's for long periods of time. Besides the Nik/Alu problems, aren't the e39's more problematic in comparison? Not that the e39's are problematic but it seems that they are more so than the e34's.

Here's the question-
'95 e34 540/6 - $8-12k normal/low mileage
'98 e39 540/6 - $12-18k normal/high mileage
(these prices are only representative of what I HAve seen over the last year, you may have paid less)
is it worth it?

There was a thread about this way back in July when I joined the site. It was a thorough explanation from both aspects of the e34 and e39.