E34 M5 3.8 questions

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Hi All, 
New poster on the forum but have been "lurking" for quite some time. After a fruitless search to replace my E30 M3 Evo2 (sold last year, fool that I am!!)with another excellent E30 M3, I've broadened my search to include E34 M5's as well, as a recent change in circumstances my make this a better option in the long run (and it'd be nice to try one too!!)
I'm sure these must have been covered a thousand times so I hope someone doesn't mind repeating a few of these answers for the benefit of a novice.
Car in question is a '94 E34 3.8 M5 (5 speeder). 80K miles, full BMW history (Coopers in Reading) No obvious faults, accident damage etc.
1) Simple one I hope - It's due an inspection II service. What sort of money am I looking at for a) BMW to do one or B) a reputable specialist - I can get to just about anyone on the M3 or M4 corridors or anyone in/around Greater London......
Heard mixed things about Munich Legends, good things about Bexleys and Birds.......or should I really keep it BMW Main dealer? (guy who did my E30 M3 only does them, so alas he's not an option) 
2) At �500 a corner, I'm paranoid about the EDC system (not Nurburgring setup - just normal EDC).....is there any sort of rule of thumb as to when these may go wrong and need replacing (e.g. is it like E30 M3's that need a timing chain at 100K miles?........... or does it entirely depend on how hard those 80K miles have been..........or is it bullet proof up until a certain age/mileage and then it all goes to pot?)
I know there's not an exact answer to this one so i would appreciate as many current/ex-owners views as possible.
3) If the EDC does go, can it be replaced with an aftermarket shocks/set-up that maintain's the car's general handling characteristics, but sacrifices the adjustibility? Or is it �500 a corner or nothing.
I'm reasonably competant at general inspections and I'm taking a local BMW specialist along with me later this week for a second opinion, but he isn't a specific M5 expert as such (doesn't have all the electronic gizmo's to plug in and test/fault-find etc, just a really good BMW all-rounder) so it's really this suspension thing that has got me hesitating at this point. 
Every bit of electric works nicely currently (including the EDC as far as the little lights indicate and the test drive seems to bear out) and the interior is mint. Few "honest" stone chips that need sorting, but otherwise all original panels (or bodywork of the highest calibre)
Seems like a good'un and the seller seems a genuine guy..........
Sorry about the war and peace effort, all advice or info (including any other good M5 web-sites like bmwm5.com) greatfully received, 
Many thanks and Best Regards, 
Dave Bates (JudgeBaxter) 

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JudgeBaxter Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member I Joined: 15-January-2003 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 100	Topic: E34 M5 3.8 questions Posted: 25-February-2003 at 20:39
	Hi All, New poster on the forum but have been "lurking" for quite some time. After a fruitless search to replace my E30 M3 Evo2 (sold last year, fool that I am!!)with another excellent E30 M3, I've broadened my search to include E34 M5's as well, as a recent change in circumstances my make this a better option in the long run (and it'd be nice to try one too!!) I'm sure these must have been covered a thousand times so I hope someone doesn't mind repeating a few of these answers for the benefit of a novice. Car in question is a '94 E34 3.8 M5 (5 speeder). 80K miles, full BMW history (Coopers in Reading) No obvious faults, accident damage etc. 1) Simple one I hope - It's due an inspection II service. What sort of money am I looking at for a) BMW to do one or B) a reputable specialist - I can get to just about anyone on the M3 or M4 corridors or anyone in/around Greater London...... Heard mixed things about Munich Legends, good things about Bexleys and Birds.......or should I really keep it BMW Main dealer? (guy who did my E30 M3 only does them, so alas he's not an option) 2) At �500 a corner, I'm paranoid about the EDC system (not Nurburgring setup - just normal EDC).....is there any sort of rule of thumb as to when these may go wrong and need replacing (e.g. is it like E30 M3's that need a timing chain at 100K miles?........... or does it entirely depend on how hard those 80K miles have been..........or is it bullet proof up until a certain age/mileage and then it all goes to pot?) I know there's not an exact answer to this one so i would appreciate as many current/ex-owners views as possible. 3) If the EDC does go, can it be replaced with an aftermarket shocks/set-up that maintain's the car's general handling characteristics, but sacrifices the adjustibility? Or is it �500 a corner or nothing. I'm reasonably competant at general inspections and I'm taking a local BMW specialist along with me later this week for a second opinion, but he isn't a specific M5 expert as such (doesn't have all the electronic gizmo's to plug in and test/fault-find etc, just a really good BMW all-rounder) so it's really this suspension thing that has got me hesitating at this point. Every bit of electric works nicely currently (including the EDC as far as the little lights indicate and the test drive seems to bear out) and the interior is mint. Few "honest" stone chips that need sorting, but otherwise all original panels (or bodywork of the highest calibre) Seems like a good'un and the seller seems a genuine guy.......... Sorry about the war and peace effort, all advice or info (including any other good M5 web-sites like bmwm5.com) greatfully received, Many thanks and Best Regards, Dave Bates (JudgeBaxter)

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stevie53 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Really Senior Member II Joined: 14-January-2003 Status: Offline Points: 2486	Posted: 25-February-2003 at 23:35
	Dave have you checked previous post started by mikeroo99 titled m5 servicing, there is some info on servicing costs there As for edc carefully check each one for leaks I think that's the most common cause of failure. As for replacements i believe you can replace them with aftermarkets but imho if you can keep it standard with the car having fbm history it may be wise to keep it that way as you know if you go to move it on it'll be easier to shift and the value will stick at least check out http://www.bmwe34m5.com it helped me a great deal when I bought mine Good luck stevie
	///2000 E39 M5 Imola Red/// NO MORE una volta lei ha avuto l'italiano lei non andr� mai tedesco di nuovo haha

SteveJ Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member I Joined: 13-December-2002 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 142	Posted: 26-February-2003 at 11:04
	Judgebaxter Heard mixed things about Munich Legends, good things about Bexleys and Birds.......or should I really keep it BMW Main dealer? (guy who did my E30 M3 only does them, so alas he's not an option) I am looking for a reliable guy to service my E30 M3, If you can recommend your guy can you give me his details please Steve

jaseb Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member II Joined: 11-November-2002 Status: Offline Points: 237	Posted: 26-February-2003 at 12:40
	I get my E30 M3 done by Nige at Moseley motors near Telford, it's a bit of drive for me but I find it worth the effort - a big thumbs up from me (having tried ML in the past and been left wanting so to speak)

JudgeBaxter Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member I Joined: 15-January-2003 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 100	Posted: 27-February-2003 at 23:47
	The guys name for E30 M3 work is Keith and he runs a place called Auto-Integrale on the A4 between Reading and Newbury (5 mins off of Jcnt. 12 of the M4) As you can probably guess, Italian Lancia's are his bread and butter, but he is about 5 mins away from Independant Motor Company who were/are pretty much the biggest importers of E30 M3's for the last few years. Keith did all the servicing and prep work on just about every car that Independant has brought in for the last 4 or 5 years. Not so much these days as the cars in Europe have simply dried up and Independant focus more on the E36 M3's now. Keith and the other guy Jim have done more timing chain jobs, gearbox re-builds and other major surgery than I can think of (literally hundreds) and I would highly recommend him even though he doesn't openly advertise his services on the BMW side of things. He still does the odd thing for Independant and the other day (I own an Integrale as well and was over there) he had a B10 Bi-turbo in for a head gasket and rebuild job. The man knows his stuff and at �35 an hour (one of Keiths hours is normally about three of anyone elses) he's worth considering seriously. A lot of Independant customers go there still and Independant themselves obviously rate him hugely. www.auto-integrale.co.uk to get some contact details. You won't go wrong with this guy. Hope this helps, Best Regards, Dave Bates