e28fixer’s 1987 BMW 5 Series

The audio system detailed below provides clean, tight bass and clear highs without the muddled thumping often resulting from cheap installs. BMW's stock head unit was swapped out for one of JVC's high end (hey, I got a deal) cassette head units. The clean and knob-less faceplate flips down to expose the cassette door behind it. A wireless remote control is included. The head unit controls a JVC 12-disc CD changer custom mounted in the rear seat bulkhead behind the driver's seat. Convenience is the name of that game. No more getting out of the car to swap discs in the trunk. Soundstream 6.5" mid-bass speakers are mounted in custom kickpanels beneath the front dash. They're a significant improvement over any 5x7" speaker that could have been bolted into the stock kickpanels. The new panels just need to be covered in pearl beige carpet available from a BMW salvage yard. Infinity Kappa Series EMIT tweeters are mounted in custom locations in the front door panels. An initial attempt was made to use BMW tweeter pods that mount behind the outside mirrors, but the Infinity tweeters were too large to fit in the pods. Infinity Kappa Series 5.25" speakers are mounted in the rear deck panel enclosures primarily for rear fill. They're the only speakers driven by the head unit directly. Though the sub is mounted in the trunk and fires to the rear, the resulting bass in the passenger cabin is tight and DOES NOT impose itself on nearby cars or pedestrians. The Kicker 12" sub and the rest of the speakers are driven by an MTX amp mounted to the rear of the sub enclosure. The picture shows how the amp is accessed through an opening behind the back seat armrest to make adjustments. Output to the sub is approximately 100W with the front component sets getting about 50W each. The head unit provides about 20W each to the rear fill speakers on the deck. The sound system was wired completely with new Monster cable at the time of install.

I believe my 535is is an excellent example of a well cared for and properly maintained E28. It's easily one of the nicest E28's I've personally seen, and I get compliments on it every week from enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts alike. But it's not without its faults. Like any 15 year old car there are a few problems. About 8 months ago I hit a curb with the lower right corner of the front spoiler. I was just sick over it. You can see the damage in these four pictures. From a distance of 10' or more the damage is pretty hard to see. Take a look at the pictures on Page 1 to get a feel for how the car looks from a little further away. I had considered temporarily painting over the exposed fiberglass until I could afford to fix the damage. I decided against doing that though and have thus far not addressed the damage. Like many E28's this one suffers from its share of cracks in the dash. A $90 Coverlay dash cover from Bavarian Autosport would fix that right up though. Also shown is a windshield "star" complements of an errant rock. I intend to have this repaired. I'm in the process of diagnosing an idle drop that occurs when pulling up to a light or other stop. It dips briefly and then stabilizes at normal idle speed. I believe this is air flow meter related, but I haven't determined that for sure. There's a small power steering fluid leak from the reservoir due to it's rather old o-ring. This is a common problem with mid-80's BMW's. I've already bought the new o-ring and a new liter or brake fluid (both in the trunk). This is a simple DIY job. Well, there you have it. I consider this car to be a superb example of the classic E28 chassis from BMW and one of the finest 535is versions I've ever seen. You can find a decent 535is for less money, but money spent to make it as mechanically sound (coupled with its purchase price) as this one will easily exceed the total cost of purchasing my car. You get the body kit, relatively new paint job, custom audio system, Momo items, and performance differential at no extra charge. Let me know if I can answer any questions or arrange a test drive. Contact Info: Scott Buchanan Charlotte, NC This car is now SOLD

Standard to all 535is cars are BMW's superb Recaro-style sport seats. The drivers seat is in superb condition. There are a couple of reasons for this. The first is that it and the other front seat were covered by sheepskins for the first 10 years of service. The second is that the two seats were swapped with one another about a year ago. The front seats are identical to each other except for the power thigh support trim piece on the outside edges. These pieces are easily transferred to the other seat facilitating the swap. Making the exchange is a simple job that greatly extends the life of the front seats. The front passenger seat, though it was the driver's seat for 150K miles, is also in excellent condition as seen in these shots. The back seat, just as the rest of the interior, is in very good condition. The factory pearl beige floormats were replaced with Bavarian Autosport black mats with "535is" embroidered on the front pair. Though originally covered in pearl beige carpet with pearl beige speaker enclosures, the rear deck carpet was changed to black as were the speaker enclosures. This gives a more European look to the rear of the car and provides more contrast against the rear seat, headliner and third brakelight enclosure. Shown here is the excellent MOMO Corse steering wheel. It's small overall diameter, thick rim, and anatomic shape all work together to make it a joy to use. It's a couple of years old but doesn't have a mark on it and is just like new. Shown here is the aluminum MOMO "Competition" shift knob. It's a little cold in January, but it looks cool and gets lots of comments. Also shown is the Bavarian Autosport black cupholder mounted to the side of the console. All the power seat functions work perfectly - including the power headrests. If you're having problems with your power headrests not working but you hear the motor running when you push the button, there's a fairly easy fix that doesn't involve a coat hanger. Shoot me an email and I'll explain how it's done. Not much to say here - 163,000 original miles.

The engine is mostly stock but I'll do my best to remember any new or improved items. All new fuses and new main relay, new Diehard International battery, new negative battery cable, new positive cable included but not yet installed, new brake bomb, new heater valve, new power steering fluid filter, all new coolant hoses (including the little ones near the firewall that are hard to install), new belts, new auxiliary fan temp switches, new coolant temp sensor, new distributor cap and rotor, new ignition coil, new BMP ignition wires, new AC receiver/dryer (AC is cold), new oil pressure switch, new oil level sensor and oil pan gasket, new valve cover breather hose, new idle control valve, refurbished and reworked fuel injectors with all new o-rings, new intake manifold and exhaust manifold gaskets, polished valve cover, polished intake manifold, polished thermostat housing, new fuel pressure regulator, new catalytic convertor, new drive shaft, new guibo, new transmission mounts, new transmission output shaft seal, new shift selector shaft seal, all new shifter bushings (though the linkage is still inexplicably sloppy), all new exhaust hangers, 3.73 limited slip differential from an E30 3-series with new gaskets and seals installed, new M5 differential mount, fairly new Bilstein HD struts mated to the stock 535is springs, new rear subframe bushings, all new front and rear suspension components (control arms, thrust arms with urethane bushings, center and end links, pitman arm, sway bar links, etc, etc.), fairly new PBR Deluxe brake pads (front rotors feel a bit warped though - common E28 malady), ATE Blue brake fluid, Metric Mechanic short-shift kit, BMP polished aluminum strut bar, BMP mylar-faced hood pad (not shown), fairly new fuel filter, new hood release lever. Engine oil and filter are changed regularly at 5000 mile intervals. Castrol GTX 10w40 is run in the colder months with 20w50 run in the warmer months. Redline fluids reside in both transmission and differential. Mechanically speaking, this car is in excellent condition. The items described above, if performed on a car all at once, would cost (an arm) at least $3000 in parts alone. Labor costs would add significantly to that figure.

These shots do an excellent job of showing how the BMP body kit really enhances the E28 and cleans up the front and rear profiles. BMP offers a wing spoiler to go with their body kit, but I preferred the understated look of the factory 535is spoiler. The side skirts are mild but flow well with the front and rear spoilers. These shots also show how straight the sheetmetal is down the left and right sides. There are no more than two small door dings on the whole car. The sunroof works well in both sliding and popup operation and has new front and rear gaskets. The stop point when using the popup feature needs to be adjusted per Bentley instructions. All four of the TSW Hockenheim rims are as straight and nice as this one. All four tires are practically new - at least 25K miles of life left. The trunk is in excellent condition. The most obvious feature is the very cleanly installed Kicker 12" subwoofer. It's installed in a custom box that backs up to the rear seat, and a custom panel was fabricated as a faux back for the trunk. The panel was then covered by carpet that very closely resembles the stock trunk lining. You'll find a new trunk gasket, fairly new taillight gaskets, all original jacking tools, plastic wrench used to access the lug bolts on the TSW rims, key used to remove the locking lug bolts used on all four of the TSW's, and an original TRX rim and tire as the spare. All the original Heyco tools are included along with the original "little blue towel" (not shown).

SOLD -- 1987 BMW 535is 5-speed.. 163,000 miles now on this car that will easily go 250,000 without an engine rebuild. This very fast beauty has been my pride and joy for nearly 6 years as I have lovingly restored and improved her to her present state. Please take a look at the pictures I've posted and read the descriptions for a full appreciation of this fine German automobile. Contact Info: Scott Buchanan Charlotte, NC In these head-on and angled front shots of the car, you can begin to see the very clean lines of the BMP E28 M5 Styling Kit. This kit does away with the huge U.S. bumpers mandated by the D.O.T. back in the late 80's and really gives the car an updated and agressive profile. BMP sells the 4-piece kit (front bumper/spoiler, back bumper/spoiler, side skirts) for $1120 plus shipping, painting and installation. I had the kit installed and painted in 1997 at the same time the car was having a complete repaint done of its original Diamond Black Metallic color. There isn't an ounce of rust anywhere on this North Carolina car. Total cost for paint and installation came to over $3000. You can see the Hella headlights I added to replace the stock sealed beam units (low beams mounted, high beams not yet installed). Factory foglights are also included but not installed in the photos shown. Bilstein HD struts were installed at all 4 corners a few years ago to complement the factory tuned sport springs. I had the exterior door handles, exterior mirrors, B-pillar, vertical frame piece in rear doors on the front edge of the fixed glass portion, and the bottom of the rear trunk spoiler all painted body color to add to the updated look. All these items were originally flat black from the factory. This really ties all these components to the car. I chose not to re-apply the factory "535is" badge to the car once the paintjob was complete. I think it's more stealth that way. You may be able to see that I've painted the rear windshield locking strips black. The paint didn't adhere well to the chrome corner pieces like it did to the plastic locking strips. All the chrome is therefore unpainted. The front windshield locking strips need to be painted or replaced. The factory TRX metric wheels and tires were ditched long ago in favor of TSW Hockenheim R 16x7" rims and BFGoodrich CompTA VR4 215/50-16 tires. My first set of these tires lasted 30K miles. This set has approximately 5K miles on it. By the way, I initially tried 225/50-16 Dunlop D60's, but they rubbed in the left rear. Very mild fender lip rolling has allowed the 215's to fit with no rubbing even when fully loaded.

Standard to all 535is cars are BMW's superb Recaro-style sport seats. The drivers seat is in superb condition. There are a couple of reasons for this. The first is that it and the other front seat were covered by sheepskins for the first 10 years of service. The second is that the two seats were swapped with one another about a year ago. The front seats are identical to each other except for the power thigh support trim piece on the outside edges. These pieces are easily transferred to the other seat facilitating the swap. Making the exchange is a simple job that greatly extends the life of the front seats. The front passenger seat, though it was the driver's seat for 150K miles, is also in excellent condition as seen in these shots. The back seat, just as the rest of the interior, is in very good condition. The factory pearl beige floormats were replaced with Bavarian Autosport black mats with "535is" embroidered on the front pair. Though originally covered in pearl beige carpet with pearl beige speaker enclosures, the rear deck carpet was changed to black as were the speaker enclosures. This gives a more European look to the rear of the car and provides more contrast against the rear seat, headliner and third brakelight enclosure. Shown here is the excellent MOMO Corse steering wheel. It's small overall diameter, thick rim, and anatomic shape all work together to make it a joy to use. It's a couple of years old but doesn't have a mark on it and is just like new. Shown here is the aluminum MOMO "Competition" shift knob. It's a little cold in January, but it looks cool and gets lots of comments. Also shown is the Bavarian Autosport black cupholder mounted to the side of the console. All the power seat functions work perfectly - including the power headrests. If you're having problems with your power headrests not working but you hear the motor running when you push the button, there's a fairly easy fix that doesn't involve a coat hanger. Shoot me an email and I'll explain how it's done. Not much to say here - 163,000 original miles.

I believe my 535is is an excellent example of a well cared for and properly maintained E28. It's easily one of the nicest E28's I've personally seen, and I get compliments on it every week from enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts alike. But it's not without its faults. Like any 15 year old car there are a few problems. About 8 months ago I hit a curb with the lower right corner of the front spoiler. I was just sick over it. You can see the damage in these four pictures. From a distance of 10' or more the damage is pretty hard to see. Take a look at the pictures on Page 1 to get a feel for how the car looks from a little further away. I had considered temporarily painting over the exposed fiberglass until I could afford to fix the damage. I decided against doing that though and have thus far not addressed the damage. Like many E28's this one suffers from its share of cracks in the dash. A $90 Coverlay dash cover from Bavarian Autosport would fix that right up though. Also shown is a windshield "star" complements of an errant rock. I intend to have this repaired. I'm in the process of diagnosing an idle drop that occurs when pulling up to a light or other stop. It dips briefly and then stabilizes at normal idle speed. I believe this is air flow meter related, but I haven't determined that for sure. There's a small power steering fluid leak from the reservoir due to it's rather old o-ring. This is a common problem with mid-80's BMW's. I've already bought the new o-ring and a new liter or brake fluid (both in the trunk). This is a simple DIY job. Well, there you have it. I consider this car to be a superb example of the classic E28 chassis from BMW and one of the finest 535is versions I've ever seen. You can find a decent 535is for less money, but money spent to make it as mechanically sound (coupled with its purchase price) as this one will easily exceed the total cost of purchasing my car. You get the body kit, relatively new paint job, custom audio system, Momo items, and performance differential at no extra charge. Let me know if I can answer any questions or arrange a test drive. Contact Info: Scott Buchanan Charlotte, NC This car is now SOLD

The audio system detailed below provides clean, tight bass and clear highs without the muddled thumping often resulting from cheap installs. BMW's stock head unit was swapped out for one of JVC's high end (hey, I got a deal) cassette head units. The clean and knob-less faceplate flips down to expose the cassette door behind it. A wireless remote control is included. The head unit controls a JVC 12-disc CD changer custom mounted in the rear seat bulkhead behind the driver's seat. Convenience is the name of that game. No more getting out of the car to swap discs in the trunk. Soundstream 6.5" mid-bass speakers are mounted in custom kickpanels beneath the front dash. They're a significant improvement over any 5x7" speaker that could have been bolted into the stock kickpanels. The new panels just need to be covered in pearl beige carpet available from a BMW salvage yard. Infinity Kappa Series EMIT tweeters are mounted in custom locations in the front door panels. An initial attempt was made to use BMW tweeter pods that mount behind the outside mirrors, but the Infinity tweeters were too large to fit in the pods. Infinity Kappa Series 5.25" speakers are mounted in the rear deck panel enclosures primarily for rear fill. They're the only speakers driven by the head unit directly. Though the sub is mounted in the trunk and fires to the rear, the resulting bass in the passenger cabin is tight and DOES NOT impose itself on nearby cars or pedestrians. The Kicker 12" sub and the rest of the speakers are driven by an MTX amp mounted to the rear of the sub enclosure. The picture shows how the amp is accessed through an opening behind the back seat armrest to make adjustments. Output to the sub is approximately 100W with the front component sets getting about 50W each. The head unit provides about 20W each to the rear fill speakers on the deck. The sound system was wired completely with new Monster cable at the time of install.

The engine is mostly stock but I'll do my best to remember any new or improved items. All new fuses and new main relay, new Diehard International battery, new negative battery cable, new positive cable included but not yet installed, new brake bomb, new heater valve, new power steering fluid filter, all new coolant hoses (including the little ones near the firewall that are hard to install), new belts, new auxiliary fan temp switches, new coolant temp sensor, new distributor cap and rotor, new ignition coil, new BMP ignition wires, new AC receiver/dryer (AC is cold), new oil pressure switch, new oil level sensor and oil pan gasket, new valve cover breather hose, new idle control valve, refurbished and reworked fuel injectors with all new o-rings, new intake manifold and exhaust manifold gaskets, polished valve cover, polished intake manifold, polished thermostat housing, new fuel pressure regulator, new catalytic convertor, new drive shaft, new guibo, new transmission mounts, new transmission output shaft seal, new shift selector shaft seal, all new shifter bushings (though the linkage is still inexplicably sloppy), all new exhaust hangers, 3.73 limited slip differential from an E30 3-series with new gaskets and seals installed, new M5 differential mount, fairly new Bilstein HD struts mated to the stock 535is springs, new rear subframe bushings, all new front and rear suspension components (control arms, thrust arms with urethane bushings, center and end links, pitman arm, sway bar links, etc, etc.), fairly new PBR Deluxe brake pads (front rotors feel a bit warped though - common E28 malady), ATE Blue brake fluid, Metric Mechanic short-shift kit, BMP polished aluminum strut bar, BMP mylar-faced hood pad (not shown), fairly new fuel filter, new hood release lever. Engine oil and filter are changed regularly at 5000 mile intervals. Castrol GTX 10w40 is run in the colder months with 20w50 run in the warmer months. Redline fluids reside in both transmission and differential. Mechanically speaking, this car is in excellent condition. The items described above, if performed on a car all at once, would cost (an arm) at least $3000 in parts alone. Labor costs would add significantly to that figure.

These shots do an excellent job of showing how the BMP body kit really enhances the E28 and cleans up the front and rear profiles. BMP offers a wing spoiler to go with their body kit, but I preferred the understated look of the factory 535is spoiler. The side skirts are mild but flow well with the front and rear spoilers. These shots also show how straight the sheetmetal is down the left and right sides. There are no more than two small door dings on the whole car. The sunroof works well in both sliding and popup operation and has new front and rear gaskets. The stop point when using the popup feature needs to be adjusted per Bentley instructions. All four of the TSW Hockenheim rims are as straight and nice as this one. All four tires are practically new - at least 25K miles of life left. The trunk is in excellent condition. The most obvious feature is the very cleanly installed Kicker 12" subwoofer. It's installed in a custom box that backs up to the rear seat, and a custom panel was fabricated as a faux back for the trunk. The panel was then covered by carpet that very closely resembles the stock trunk lining. You'll find a new trunk gasket, fairly new taillight gaskets, all original jacking tools, plastic wrench used to access the lug bolts on the TSW rims, key used to remove the locking lug bolts used on all four of the TSW's, and an original TRX rim and tire as the spare. All the original Heyco tools are included along with the original "little blue towel" (not shown).

SOLD -- 1987 BMW 535is 5-speed.. 163,000 miles now on this car that will easily go 250,000 without an engine rebuild. This very fast beauty has been my pride and joy for nearly 6 years as I have lovingly restored and improved her to her present state. Please take a look at the pictures I've posted and read the descriptions for a full appreciation of this fine German automobile. Contact Info: Scott Buchanan Charlotte, NC In these head-on and angled front shots of the car, you can begin to see the very clean lines of the BMP E28 M5 Styling Kit. This kit does away with the huge U.S. bumpers mandated by the D.O.T. back in the late 80's and really gives the car an updated and agressive profile. BMP sells the 4-piece kit (front bumper/spoiler, back bumper/spoiler, side skirts) for $1120 plus shipping, painting and installation. I had the kit installed and painted in 1997 at the same time the car was having a complete repaint done of its original Diamond Black Metallic color. There isn't an ounce of rust anywhere on this North Carolina car. Total cost for paint and installation came to over $3000. You can see the Hella headlights I added to replace the stock sealed beam units (low beams mounted, high beams not yet installed). Factory foglights are also included but not installed in the photos shown. Bilstein HD struts were installed at all 4 corners a few years ago to complement the factory tuned sport springs. I had the exterior door handles, exterior mirrors, B-pillar, vertical frame piece in rear doors on the front edge of the fixed glass portion, and the bottom of the rear trunk spoiler all painted body color to add to the updated look. All these items were originally flat black from the factory. This really ties all these components to the car. I chose not to re-apply the factory "535is" badge to the car once the paintjob was complete. I think it's more stealth that way. You may be able to see that I've painted the rear windshield locking strips black. The paint didn't adhere well to the chrome corner pieces like it did to the plastic locking strips. All the chrome is therefore unpainted. The front windshield locking strips need to be painted or replaced. The factory TRX metric wheels and tires were ditched long ago in favor of TSW Hockenheim R 16x7" rims and BFGoodrich CompTA VR4 215/50-16 tires. My first set of these tires lasted 30K miles. This set has approximately 5K miles on it. By the way, I initially tried 225/50-16 Dunlop D60's, but they rubbed in the left rear. Very mild fender lip rolling has allowed the 215's to fit with no rubbing even when fully loaded.

These shots do an excellent job of showing how the BMP body kit really enhances the E28 and cleans up the front and rear profiles. BMP offers a wing spoiler to go with their body kit, but I preferred the understated look of the factory 535is spoiler. The side skirts are mild but flow well with the front and rear spoilers. These shots also show how straight the sheetmetal is down the left and right sides. There are no more than two small door dings on the whole car. The sunroof works well in both sliding and popup operation and has new front and rear gaskets. The stop point when using the popup feature needs to be adjusted per Bentley instructions. All four of the TSW Hockenheim rims are as straight and nice as this one. All four tires are practically new - at least 25K miles of life left. The trunk is in excellent condition. The most obvious feature is the very cleanly installed Kicker 12" subwoofer. It's installed in a custom box that backs up to the rear seat, and a custom panel was fabricated as a faux back for the trunk. The panel was then covered by carpet that very closely resembles the stock trunk lining. You'll find a new trunk gasket, fairly new taillight gaskets, all original jacking tools, plastic wrench used to access the lug bolts on the TSW rims, key used to remove the locking lug bolts used on all four of the TSW's, and an original TRX rim and tire as the spare. All the original Heyco tools are included along with the original "little blue towel" (not shown).

I believe my 535is is an excellent example of a well cared for and properly maintained E28. It's easily one of the nicest E28's I've personally seen, and I get compliments on it every week from enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts alike. But it's not without its faults. Like any 15 year old car there are a few problems. About 8 months ago I hit a curb with the lower right corner of the front spoiler. I was just sick over it. You can see the damage in these four pictures. From a distance of 10' or more the damage is pretty hard to see. Take a look at the pictures on Page 1 to get a feel for how the car looks from a little further away. I had considered temporarily painting over the exposed fiberglass until I could afford to fix the damage. I decided against doing that though and have thus far not addressed the damage. Like many E28's this one suffers from its share of cracks in the dash. A $90 Coverlay dash cover from Bavarian Autosport would fix that right up though. Also shown is a windshield "star" complements of an errant rock. I intend to have this repaired. I'm in the process of diagnosing an idle drop that occurs when pulling up to a light or other stop. It dips briefly and then stabilizes at normal idle speed. I believe this is air flow meter related, but I haven't determined that for sure. There's a small power steering fluid leak from the reservoir due to it's rather old o-ring. This is a common problem with mid-80's BMW's. I've already bought the new o-ring and a new liter or brake fluid (both in the trunk). This is a simple DIY job. Well, there you have it. I consider this car to be a superb example of the classic E28 chassis from BMW and one of the finest 535is versions I've ever seen. You can find a decent 535is for less money, but money spent to make it as mechanically sound (coupled with its purchase price) as this one will easily exceed the total cost of purchasing my car. You get the body kit, relatively new paint job, custom audio system, Momo items, and performance differential at no extra charge. Let me know if I can answer any questions or arrange a test drive. Contact Info: Scott Buchanan Charlotte, NC This car is now SOLD

The engine is mostly stock but I'll do my best to remember any new or improved items. All new fuses and new main relay, new Diehard International battery, new negative battery cable, new positive cable included but not yet installed, new brake bomb, new heater valve, new power steering fluid filter, all new coolant hoses (including the little ones near the firewall that are hard to install), new belts, new auxiliary fan temp switches, new coolant temp sensor, new distributor cap and rotor, new ignition coil, new BMP ignition wires, new AC receiver/dryer (AC is cold), new oil pressure switch, new oil level sensor and oil pan gasket, new valve cover breather hose, new idle control valve, refurbished and reworked fuel injectors with all new o-rings, new intake manifold and exhaust manifold gaskets, polished valve cover, polished intake manifold, polished thermostat housing, new fuel pressure regulator, new catalytic convertor, new drive shaft, new guibo, new transmission mounts, new transmission output shaft seal, new shift selector shaft seal, all new shifter bushings (though the linkage is still inexplicably sloppy), all new exhaust hangers, 3.73 limited slip differential from an E30 3-series with new gaskets and seals installed, new M5 differential mount, fairly new Bilstein HD struts mated to the stock 535is springs, new rear subframe bushings, all new front and rear suspension components (control arms, thrust arms with urethane bushings, center and end links, pitman arm, sway bar links, etc, etc.), fairly new PBR Deluxe brake pads (front rotors feel a bit warped though - common E28 malady), ATE Blue brake fluid, Metric Mechanic short-shift kit, BMP polished aluminum strut bar, BMP mylar-faced hood pad (not shown), fairly new fuel filter, new hood release lever. Engine oil and filter are changed regularly at 5000 mile intervals. Castrol GTX 10w40 is run in the colder months with 20w50 run in the warmer months. Redline fluids reside in both transmission and differential. Mechanically speaking, this car is in excellent condition. The items described above, if performed on a car all at once, would cost (an arm) at least $3000 in parts alone. Labor costs would add significantly to that figure.

Standard to all 535is cars are BMW's superb Recaro-style sport seats. The drivers seat is in superb condition. There are a couple of reasons for this. The first is that it and the other front seat were covered by sheepskins for the first 10 years of service. The second is that the two seats were swapped with one another about a year ago. The front seats are identical to each other except for the power thigh support trim piece on the outside edges. These pieces are easily transferred to the other seat facilitating the swap. Making the exchange is a simple job that greatly extends the life of the front seats. The front passenger seat, though it was the driver's seat for 150K miles, is also in excellent condition as seen in these shots. The back seat, just as the rest of the interior, is in very good condition. The factory pearl beige floormats were replaced with Bavarian Autosport black mats with "535is" embroidered on the front pair. Though originally covered in pearl beige carpet with pearl beige speaker enclosures, the rear deck carpet was changed to black as were the speaker enclosures. This gives a more European look to the rear of the car and provides more contrast against the rear seat, headliner and third brakelight enclosure. Shown here is the excellent MOMO Corse steering wheel. It's small overall diameter, thick rim, and anatomic shape all work together to make it a joy to use. It's a couple of years old but doesn't have a mark on it and is just like new. Shown here is the aluminum MOMO "Competition" shift knob. It's a little cold in January, but it looks cool and gets lots of comments. Also shown is the Bavarian Autosport black cupholder mounted to the side of the console. All the power seat functions work perfectly - including the power headrests. If you're having problems with your power headrests not working but you hear the motor running when you push the button, there's a fairly easy fix that doesn't involve a coat hanger. Shoot me an email and I'll explain how it's done. Not much to say here - 163,000 original miles.

The audio system detailed below provides clean, tight bass and clear highs without the muddled thumping often resulting from cheap installs. BMW's stock head unit was swapped out for one of JVC's high end (hey, I got a deal) cassette head units. The clean and knob-less faceplate flips down to expose the cassette door behind it. A wireless remote control is included. The head unit controls a JVC 12-disc CD changer custom mounted in the rear seat bulkhead behind the driver's seat. Convenience is the name of that game. No more getting out of the car to swap discs in the trunk. Soundstream 6.5" mid-bass speakers are mounted in custom kickpanels beneath the front dash. They're a significant improvement over any 5x7" speaker that could have been bolted into the stock kickpanels. The new panels just need to be covered in pearl beige carpet available from a BMW salvage yard. Infinity Kappa Series EMIT tweeters are mounted in custom locations in the front door panels. An initial attempt was made to use BMW tweeter pods that mount behind the outside mirrors, but the Infinity tweeters were too large to fit in the pods. Infinity Kappa Series 5.25" speakers are mounted in the rear deck panel enclosures primarily for rear fill. They're the only speakers driven by the head unit directly. Though the sub is mounted in the trunk and fires to the rear, the resulting bass in the passenger cabin is tight and DOES NOT impose itself on nearby cars or pedestrians. The Kicker 12" sub and the rest of the speakers are driven by an MTX amp mounted to the rear of the sub enclosure. The picture shows how the amp is accessed through an opening behind the back seat armrest to make adjustments. Output to the sub is approximately 100W with the front component sets getting about 50W each. The head unit provides about 20W each to the rear fill speakers on the deck. The sound system was wired completely with new Monster cable at the time of install.

SOLD -- 1987 BMW 535is 5-speed.. 163,000 miles now on this car that will easily go 250,000 without an engine rebuild. This very fast beauty has been my pride and joy for nearly 6 years as I have lovingly restored and improved her to her present state. Please take a look at the pictures I've posted and read the descriptions for a full appreciation of this fine German automobile. Contact Info: Scott Buchanan Charlotte, NC In these head-on and angled front shots of the car, you can begin to see the very clean lines of the BMP E28 M5 Styling Kit. This kit does away with the huge U.S. bumpers mandated by the D.O.T. back in the late 80's and really gives the car an updated and agressive profile. BMP sells the 4-piece kit (front bumper/spoiler, back bumper/spoiler, side skirts) for $1120 plus shipping, painting and installation. I had the kit installed and painted in 1997 at the same time the car was having a complete repaint done of its original Diamond Black Metallic color. There isn't an ounce of rust anywhere on this North Carolina car. Total cost for paint and installation came to over $3000. You can see the Hella headlights I added to replace the stock sealed beam units (low beams mounted, high beams not yet installed). Factory foglights are also included but not installed in the photos shown. Bilstein HD struts were installed at all 4 corners a few years ago to complement the factory tuned sport springs. I had the exterior door handles, exterior mirrors, B-pillar, vertical frame piece in rear doors on the front edge of the fixed glass portion, and the bottom of the rear trunk spoiler all painted body color to add to the updated look. All these items were originally flat black from the factory. This really ties all these components to the car. I chose not to re-apply the factory "535is" badge to the car once the paintjob was complete. I think it's more stealth that way. You may be able to see that I've painted the rear windshield locking strips black. The paint didn't adhere well to the chrome corner pieces like it did to the plastic locking strips. All the chrome is therefore unpainted. The front windshield locking strips need to be painted or replaced. The factory TRX metric wheels and tires were ditched long ago in favor of TSW Hockenheim R 16x7" rims and BFGoodrich CompTA VR4 215/50-16 tires. My first set of these tires lasted 30K miles. This set has approximately 5K miles on it. By the way, I initially tried 225/50-16 Dunlop D60's, but they rubbed in the left rear. Very mild fender lip rolling has allowed the 215's to fit with no rubbing even when fully loaded.

Standard to all 535is cars are BMW's superb Recaro-style sport seats. The drivers seat is in superb condition. There are a couple of reasons for this. The first is that it and the other front seat were covered by sheepskins for the first 10 years of service. The second is that the two seats were swapped with one another about a year ago. The front seats are identical to each other except for the power thigh support trim piece on the outside edges. These pieces are easily transferred to the other seat facilitating the swap. Making the exchange is a simple job that greatly extends the life of the front seats. The front passenger seat, though it was the driver's seat for 150K miles, is also in excellent condition as seen in these shots. The back seat, just as the rest of the interior, is in very good condition. The factory pearl beige floormats were replaced with Bavarian Autosport black mats with "535is" embroidered on the front pair. Though originally covered in pearl beige carpet with pearl beige speaker enclosures, the rear deck carpet was changed to black as were the speaker enclosures. This gives a more European look to the rear of the car and provides more contrast against the rear seat, headliner and third brakelight enclosure. Shown here is the excellent MOMO Corse steering wheel. It's small overall diameter, thick rim, and anatomic shape all work together to make it a joy to use. It's a couple of years old but doesn't have a mark on it and is just like new. Shown here is the aluminum MOMO "Competition" shift knob. It's a little cold in January, but it looks cool and gets lots of comments. Also shown is the Bavarian Autosport black cupholder mounted to the side of the console. All the power seat functions work perfectly - including the power headrests. If you're having problems with your power headrests not working but you hear the motor running when you push the button, there's a fairly easy fix that doesn't involve a coat hanger. Shoot me an email and I'll explain how it's done. Not much to say here - 163,000 original miles.

I believe my 535is is an excellent example of a well cared for and properly maintained E28. It's easily one of the nicest E28's I've personally seen, and I get compliments on it every week from enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts alike. But it's not without its faults. Like any 15 year old car there are a few problems. About 8 months ago I hit a curb with the lower right corner of the front spoiler. I was just sick over it. You can see the damage in these four pictures. From a distance of 10' or more the damage is pretty hard to see. Take a look at the pictures on Page 1 to get a feel for how the car looks from a little further away. I had considered temporarily painting over the exposed fiberglass until I could afford to fix the damage. I decided against doing that though and have thus far not addressed the damage. Like many E28's this one suffers from its share of cracks in the dash. A $90 Coverlay dash cover from Bavarian Autosport would fix that right up though. Also shown is a windshield "star" complements of an errant rock. I intend to have this repaired. I'm in the process of diagnosing an idle drop that occurs when pulling up to a light or other stop. It dips briefly and then stabilizes at normal idle speed. I believe this is air flow meter related, but I haven't determined that for sure. There's a small power steering fluid leak from the reservoir due to it's rather old o-ring. This is a common problem with mid-80's BMW's. I've already bought the new o-ring and a new liter or brake fluid (both in the trunk). This is a simple DIY job. Well, there you have it. I consider this car to be a superb example of the classic E28 chassis from BMW and one of the finest 535is versions I've ever seen. You can find a decent 535is for less money, but money spent to make it as mechanically sound (coupled with its purchase price) as this one will easily exceed the total cost of purchasing my car. You get the body kit, relatively new paint job, custom audio system, Momo items, and performance differential at no extra charge. Let me know if I can answer any questions or arrange a test drive. Contact Info: Scott Buchanan Charlotte, NC This car is now SOLD