The SMG in the E60 M5 is probably the worst transmission of all time.

The BMW dealer WOULD NOT EVEN GIVE ME AN OFFER for my E60 M5 with 130,000 miles. Can you believe that? There was NOTHING wrong with the car at that time. It was because of the inevitable transmission replacement cost of over $40,000 (I'd already replaced the entire drivetrain under warranty).

 

Agreed.

I don't think that M is trying to be a Porsche. Maybe to do that, they just have to raise the price $50k.

I always find myself looking at the M5's, simply because it is the standard for me. I would not even consider the Panamera Turbo S, simply because it is not high enough on my priority list for that price.

I'd prefer an M5 and a Cayman. I realize this is just a preference. I guess I see nothing special about the heritage and prestige of a car that has only been around for 3 years, especially when it is used as a negative connotation when compared to the new 991.

My wife, however, is on the opposite side of the aisle. She thinks the Panamera is the nicest sedan on the road, and simply nothing else compares. She thinks the M5 is ugly (and has for many years). Now that I think about it, I don't think she's liked any BMW - ever.

 

Woooowwww!

 

Haha...when these things get out of hand I have one word:


Ferrari.


//thread.


I think as a car, a 5 series, S class or Panamera are great cruisers...if you're really looking for a dedicated weekend sports car with all that performance...the Ferrari 458 Italia seems nice - great engine, dynamics, ...its good looking, it sounds good.

Panamera is a nice jack of all trades though. Remember when you're splitting hairs talking as if its some high end track car, you're doing it over a family sedan. At some point you need to be reasonable...and that point is very personal. To each their own.

 

I didn't realize it until just now - I never compared the performance of these cars. I go off of looks and feel/luxury. I mean, it's nice to be able to merge whenever you want, or go around the idiot on his/her cell phone, but that's about the extent of measuring its performance for us here in America.

You're absolutely right, though. I don't know of a single person that buys these cars to track or race on a drag strip. Now keep in mind, I LOVE seeing cars like this perform above sports coupe numbers, because it is a reminder that you CAN have it both ways (flat out acceleration and cornering ability along with luxury and cruising ability). The car that sticks out for me (but in the wrong class) is the CTS-V (I realize this is more of a 3-series thing, just mentioning it for reference). Watching a luxury sedan cruiser outrun a Corvette C6 is just amusing.

 

Well said. None of these are sports cars and reviews like these along with the inevitable comparison data fall short of true measurement for what these cars are intended to provide. The CTS-V, GT-R and M5 can match or beat the straight out performance of some Panny models, but so what? Which would you rather sit in? Haul family in? Be stuck in traffic with? Cruise comfortably to work in? Pick up a client in? At the end of the day, the Panny is a performance SEDAN with generous accommodations for four passengers. The fact that it can also provide this kind of performance is simply staggering. IMHO, it's the accommodations that demand such a premium. Hell, I can tune a Civic to within an inch of it's life and lay down a better quarter mile for a fraction of the price, but that's not the point.

 

I'm still waiting (shakes head, rolls eyes)

 

Sorry Kip but I have to call you out on this one. I have and E60 with 88,000 miles, never had single gearbox issue. I have 4 buddies with E60's and none have had gear box issues. A couple have been tracked extensively as well.

I have been talking to the dealer since 60,000 being concerned with the clutch. They told me they have had very few issues with the gearbox and clutch's are typically lasting 70k-100k miles, unless abused of course. I can feel my clutch slipping slightly on engagement and take off, but it still shift flawlessly while underway.

My car is a January 2006 production. 2 of the others are 2005 production and 2 are 2008 cars. Not saying some have not had issues, I am sure they have been some. But I have not seen or heard of wide spread issues, just occasional failures mostly due to abuse.

 

I agree with you completely on this. The Panny offers the best sport sedan accomdation combination by far!

 

Look, to be honest, I really dont care about the gearbox in the E60 M5.

 

Not to hijack the thread to another topic, but the fact that you and some of the people you know haven't had any issues with the gearbox just means that some of the gearboxes haven't had any issues yet. I haven't had any gearbox issues for over 100,000 miles with my replacement. The problem is that it's a sealed unit and costs $40,000 to replace and the reliability has been terrible when you compare it to any average transmission. It is a ridiculous design. Your dealer may say nice things about the gearbox, but wait until they actually have to pay you for your car. You'll be shocked. The fact that two BMW dealers refused to buy my car should tell you something about the long-term reliability of the SMG. One dealer told me 'off the record' that the reason was the gearbox.

Check out the M5Board. One of the Moderators had to replace his entire gearbox twice, and there are quite a few threads on the SMG unreliability.

 

Point well taken - no question the M5 is a very expensive car to maintain at high miles. I am on the M5 Board as well and do not disagree that issues do exit, 90% might have been a bit of a stretch.

My P dealer does not want my car either when my PTT comes in. He obtained 3 bids for me for my car last week of $25k-$26k. I put it for sale private and if I don't get more I will take to Carmax locally and if they don't offer more I will take the highest bid my dealer can get, if $26k is what they can get, bummer, but I don't need the car, so I will take it and move on.

 

kip - a few pictures of E60's on beds don't tell a story... Could be getting delivered, shipped from dealer to dealer..., I got nothing on the last pic. Just sayin', more to the story than just a picture.

However, if the gearbox is not coming in the new model, this topic should never have been brought up.

 

ALL OF THOSE PICS ARE FROM CARS WITH A FAILED GEARBOX (look it up on google pics) !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!
So they are relevant!

This is really getting ridiculous. I know something about the E60 M5 SMG. I was about to pull the trigger on one, when the alarming red cogs of death started appearing. I bought an E55 AMG. If you do a google search you get literally pages and pages of topics on this.

I dont give a f&%4 about the E60 M5 BMW now and I merely answered comments saying that the E60 WAS reliable. I stated that it is not fair to say that the CTS-V has a poor reliability compared to BMW, when the E60 M5 had a notoriously crappy, unreliable gearbox.

Please people read all the posts before commenting about something they obviously know nothing about. If you would have done that, you would see that Wolverine has the same experiences. I am not commenting on the IMHO UNRELIABLE, BMW E60 M5 anymore. Please continue praising your BMW E60 M5 somewhere else or start a new thread with that topic and see if anyone cares.

 

The Only reason I miss my E60 is the SMG. To me this was the perfect and more enjoyable transmission of all the cars I've driven. It was quick, behaved very similar to a stick shift and it would roll back if at a stop like a stick car holding the clutch.

PDK, DCT, and all the others dual clutch trannies are mehhh for me. I had it for almost 5 years and never had a single problem, other than the AC would come on by itself 80% of the time I didn't need it.

Bring back the SMG with all the clunkiness and I'd still get it.