Accidentally I ran into a 1996 528i two weeks ago. And I quietly fell in love and took it as my personal project car. I push or restrain myself not spending. I am on a tight leash. This bimmer has a very nice all-alum suspension components, sub-frames front and rear, and inline-6 engine. It has just enough power and yet responsive and refined. Chassis and comfort are high, as stress level are low. What has bugging me is the smell of it and the muffled suspension noise. In fact I found it too refined after all the 4 engine mounts have been replaced.
It is a big step forward over the 523i.
It is a good thing to own a balanced car, with not too much emphasis on performance. 528i is such a tremendously well-engined 4-door sedan.
The project was placed on a halt after learning that I need a pair of new rear shocks and rear lower arm bushes which would set me back another $3-4K. I was happy to know that the clunking noise has gone at a cost of $3210, including the front muffled suspension noise. Kin Yip did a good clean job.
Unfortunately, based on the rationale that I'd rather lose $3K on the book than to forking out additional $3K to fix the rear suspension, I sold the car on September 3 to a dealer via Peter. I am happy to see it gone even if I love the car so much.
Here is a note. I like the 528i more before the problems were fixed. This is true especially the engine note and response after changing the engine mounts. The masculine response was gone and there was simply too much refinement and smoothness for a BMW E39.
Would I consider the E39 again? I definitely will as it is the best 4-door sedan. I will consider a 2002/3 525i or 530i, whichever comes first.
