|
In Reply to: Re: One of the last E28 M5s. posted by rcbmw on July 13, 2001 at 18:43:02:
I have just re-read the letter I received from BMW GB last year in connection with my own car - it was ordered on 27 November '86 (there's a typo in the letter, which shows '96!) with production week being 2 January '87, fitting nicely with the PDI on 28 January.
A few notes now on UK build specs, to contrast with the US and Canadian cars. Most of the UK cars I have seen (I guess I have by now had a fairly close look at about 30 or so) have quite varied options. I guess that's not too surprising for such an expensive car. It's amazing how different the various combinations can look. In theory in the UK at least I believe it may have been possible to order any current BMW colour, but most cars I have seen (including my own) have carried standard 5-series shades.
In the UK the M535i-style "M-Technic" bodykit (front/rear one-piece bumper mouldings, sill extensions) was an option (expensive at £968 in November '86), as was dechroming (£276). I'm not sure if the bodykit price included dechroming - it may well have done.
Dechroming was restricted to certain colours - e.g. cars finished in Alpine white, Zinnober red, Dolphin grey, Diamond black and Lachs silver, although there is at least one dechromed UK car finished in blue/black metallic (similar to Macau blue)- and very nice it looks too! I suspect dechroming was mandatory where the body kit was also specified.
My own car is Cirrus (light metallic) blue, without the bodykit, so it retains the essential "Q-car" factor!
Sports seats were of course the norm but my car's the only one I have ever seen with "standard" seats. These were specified because the first owner chose front seat heating and centre arm rests, which weren't available with the sports seats. The trim is Pacific blue cloth trim in the "Highland" check pattern, which I think was unique to the M5 - there are therefore no "M" 3-colour logos on the seats, either.
I would have preferred the sports seats (especially as my car is now able to stay permanently in the garage during the winter!) but one has to buy a used car on condition, not specification!
The electric seat adjustment was standard in the UK - I presume this was also the case in the US. Some UK cars were fitted with position memory for the drivers' seat - mine is not. I feel sure the components will be the same as the 7-series - does anyone out there have experience of adding the memory feature to existing electric seats? Normally I prefer to keep my car absolutely stock but this seems like a useful addition.
Of perhaps academic interest, the first UK Press car was left-hand-drive and carried the GB registration mark C407 PMO. When tested by "Autocar" (16 April 1986) it had the metric TRX-type wheels with 19 vanes/spokes (as on the original German Press car) and appears to have been Diamond black metallic. The original (?)German Press/photographic car (M-HM 5537) was also black - solid colour, as far as I can tell, without a boot spoiler. A couple of points - does anyone know if C407 PMO stayed in the UK, and were there any other M5's that came to the UK with metric wheels and Michelin TRX tyres? As this car was left-hand drive it would presumably have been within the German (?) VIN series - and therefore not counted as one of the 177 (?) UK cars. Or was it?! It certainly had manual rear windows and not the electric ones standard for RHD cars.
Keep the information coming...
Regards to all
Steve
© 1997 -
2008
Jump Internet Inc. All rights reserved.
