Chapter 50: What on Earth Were the E60 M5 Engineers Thinking?
A modern classic—and a BMW, at that. I never expected to work on one.
I sat in a camping chair and slowly studied the car now parked inside the shop.
BMW—Bayerische Motoren Werke.
A German automaker with the aggressively masculine name “Bavarian Motor Works.”
With its slogan, “The Ultimate Driving Machine,” the company was famous for building cars that were light, responsive, agile through corners, and, in a word, fun to drive.
Of course, BMW had not been a successful automaker from the beginning. It struggled through bankruptcy and the threat of acquisition and merger.
Surprisingly, the inspiration that helped the company find a way forward came from an Italian automaker.
Alfa Romeo.
(Translator’s Note:Alfa Romeo — An Italian automobile manufacturer founded in Milan in 1910 as A.L.F.A. It became influential for combining sporting performance with practical road cars.)
At the time, Alfa Romeo stood at the pinnacle of sports sedans. Its Giulia in particular had become enormously popular for its lively engine performance and sharp handling.
(Translator’s Note:Alfa Romeo Giulia — A line of Italian sports sedans introduced in 1962. The original Giulia became known for responsive handling, strong engines, and unusually aerodynamic styling for a four-door car.)
Inspired by it, BMW released small, energetic models such as the Neue Klasse and the 2002tii.
(Translator’s Note:BMW Neue Klasse — A family of sporty sedans introduced in 1961–1962. Its success helped restore BMW’s financial stability and established the company’s modern identity as a manufacturer of compact luxury sports sedans.)
(Translator’s Note:BMW 2002tii — A fuel-injected performance version of the BMW 2002 introduced in 1971. It became an important predecessor to BMW’s later 3 Series performance models.)
The combination of Italy’s passionate, fiery driving concept and Germany’s meticulous build quality became a major success.
Looking at this history alone, it was clear that BMW’s core identity and most popular model lay in the compact passenger-car segment represented by the 3 Series.
Yet the car in front of me belonged to the midsize 5 Series.
That made Hailey’s eye for choosing cars even more impressive.
Her title really is curator. She may not know the mechanical side, but she reads the market brilliantly.
The 5 Series before me was not an ordinary model.
It was an M5, with an “M” added to the name.
The letter came from Motorsport, the designation BMW used for its high-performance models.
For example, the performance version of the 3 Series was the M3, while the 5 Series equivalent was the M5.
The M3 had already been thoroughly validated by the market. It had countless fans and commanded high prices.
In comparison, the E60 M5—the E60 being the development code for the model produced from 2003 to 2010—was still considerably undervalued.
It’s a model whose price can only keep rising.
During the pandemic, an E60 M5 in perfect condition had been worth around forty thousand dollars.
Now, prices were approaching seventy thousand.
I opened the hood and looked down at the S85 engine hidden beneath its enormous engine cover, the corner of my mouth twisting upward.
I always thought I’d work on this engine someday. I just didn’t expect the opportunity to come this quickly…
This V10 engine was practically BMW’s declaration during the golden age of internal-combustion engines:
We’ll show you just how far we can go when we lose our minds.
At the time, BMW supplied engines to Williams, a team competing in Formula One, the highest level of motorsport in the world.
(Translator’s Note:Williams Formula One Team — A British racing team founded in 1977 by Frank Williams and Patrick Head. BMW supplied its Formula One engines from the 2000 through 2005 seasons.)
(Translator’s Note:Formula One — The highest international class of single-seat circuit racing, governed by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile. The modern Formula One World Championship began in 1950.)
The company took technology gained there and applied it without restraint to the road-going, mass-produced M5.
First, there were ten cylinders.
Considering that more than ninety percent of modern cars used four-cylinder engines, that was more than twice as many.
Those ten cylinders produced an astonishing 507 horsepower.
Even more remarkably, the engine spun to an incredible 8,250 rpm.
A glance at the tachometer in most modern cars would show the redline—the maximum safe engine speed—beginning at around 6,500 rpm.
That alone made it immediately clear how high-revving this engine was.
And BMW had achieved all of it without forced induction such as a turbocharger or supercharger, which pushed additional air into the engine.
It was entirely naturally aspirated.
Looking at something like this, automakers really were out of their minds back then.
Once again, the M5 was based on the 5 Series.
The 5 Series was a midsize car.
In other words, a family sedan.
Perhaps the engineers who developed it had imagined something like this.
A father driving home alone after work, returning to the house where his wife and children were waiting.
The urge to drive, which he had kept suppressed all day, began to stir.
There was a child seat in the back, and the trunk was full of groceries he had bought that day.
To anyone looking at it, it was an ordinary family car.
Then he pressed the [M] button on the steering wheel.
Growl—
His restrained masculinity awakened, and the insane five-liter V10 loosened its tie.
Waaaaaah! Waaaaaah! Waaaah!
The engine screamed toward 8,250 rpm.
Before long, the speedometer had passed two hundred kilometers per hour.
Adrenaline surged through his body as wildly as the rising needle, while the stress of the entire day evaporated into the air with the thrilling exhaust note.
After finishing that storm-like drive, he covered a one-hour journey in only twenty-five minutes and opened the front door.
Honey? You’re home early today.
Yeah. For once, there wasn’t any traffic.
Then he returned to ordinary family life as though nothing had happened.
It was an unrealistic scene straight from a television commercial.
Yet if I thought about it carefully, there was also a strange sense that someone, somewhere, might genuinely be living like that.
While I was lost in those brief thoughts—
“Jason, I’m here! Huh? Wow! A BMW? Don’t tell me this is what we’re working on this time.”
Noah arrived for work.
“Hey, Noah. Yeah, that’s right. Do you like BMWs too?”
“Uh, I don’t know much about them, but my friends really like them.”
Since BMW emphasized driving performance, it was popular among younger people.
A considerable number of American teenagers and people in their twenties even named one as their dream car.
“But what’s wrong with it? It looks practically brand-new…”
After working beside me and seeing so many extremely old vehicles, Noah’s standards had apparently become different from those of an ordinary person.
He was calling a car more than fifteen years old “brand-new.”
“Right? The body panels are in excellent condition from what I can see. But… we’re going to have to pull the engine.”
“Whoa…”
“Don’t be so surprised. There are plenty of smaller jobs to do too, so go get ready.”
“Yes! I’ve rested for several days, so it’s time to work hard again!”
Noah dropped his backpack and hurried into the bathroom to change into his work clothes.
Why did he need to run just to change clothes?
I had never considered myself lacking in stamina, but the energy of a teenager was astonishing no matter how many times I saw it.
“So what should I do?”
Noah returned after changing in an instant and looked around the car with curious eyes.
“The interior. Look here. The dashboard and handles have melted and become sticky, right? That’s the urethane coating deteriorating with age. You could wipe all of it off with alcohol, but since this car will be sold at auction, I’m going to replace the parts entirely.”
“Oh? An auction?”
“Yeah. That’s how things ended up. So you can replace all these pieces. The interior trim is held in place by clips. Insert a trim tool into the gap and pull firmly…”
Crack—
“It comes off like this. Ask me if you don’t understand something or if a piece won’t come out.”
Almost every vehicle interior made since the 1990s was secured with plastic clips like these.
You inserted a trim tool into the gap, widened it, and pulled firmly to remove the panel.
“Yes, sir! This looks fun!”
Every time I taught Noah something new, his eyes sparkled, and he absorbed the knowledge as quickly as a sponge soaking up water.
He must have inherited his natural dexterity from his father.
Just as I had repaired a Mustang with my father as a child, Noah had worked on an old Camaro with Daniel before he died.
Is this the power of early education?
While Noah worked on the interior, I disconnected the various electrical connectors and hoses attached to the engine and removed most of the front-end components in preparation for extracting it.
Because of the V10’s size, those preliminary steps made removing the engine far easier.
At last, it was time to pull out the M5’s legendary engine.
“Ooh…! I’ve never seen an engine being removed before.”
Noah had already finished the interior work and stood a short distance away, watching with eyes full of curiosity.
“You can come closer. There’s nothing particularly dangerous about this part.”
Clatter—
I attached chains to the lifting points on the engine, then connected them to the engine hoist.
“I’m going to steady the engine. Do you want to operate this lever? Press it down slowly, like you’re pumping it. The engine will rise little by little.”
“I can do it? Yes!”
When I thought about it, I was assigning him work, yet Noah rushed over with the excitement of a child receiving a prize.
Creak, creak, creak—
“Okay. Stop.”
The rear of the engine had caught slightly on the body, so I turned the handle on the leveler and adjusted the angle until the front of the engine tilted upward.
“Good. Again.”
Creak, creak, creak—
A short while later, the enormous V10 engine, weighing 240 kilograms, finally hung suspended in the air.
Working with two people made removing the engine much easier.
When we carefully lowered it onto the engine stand, its sheer presence seemed even more impressive.
“It looks like a heart made of steel.”
“It does. Seeing it sitting here makes it look enormous.”
Noah and I stood side by side for a moment, admiring the engine.
Beep, beep, beep—
Just then, the alarm on my phone rang.
I had set it for the end of Noah’s shift.
“It’s already this late. All right, Noah. You worked hard today. Drive carefully on your way home.”
“Yeah…? Hmm…”
I gave him my usual farewell, but his reaction seemed suspicious.
“Um… Jason. Could I stay and watch you work? Tomorrow is Saturday, so I don’t have school anyway… Of course, only if Mom gives me permission.”
“Really? But you’re not allowed to drive at night.”
Noah still had an intermediate license, so he could not legally drive after ten at night.
“Then I can sleep here!”
“Noah… You were planning this from the beginning, weren’t you?”
“Ahem. Would that… not be okay?”
He pulled his eyebrows downward and openly made a pitiful face.
“Ha… What are you waiting for? Rachel should be leaving for her night shift soon, so call her.”
I had no idea why I was so weak against Noah.
I had even been known for being strict in the SEALs.
“Mom said it’s okay! Oh, and she told me to say hello to you.”
After a short call, Noah reported back with a broad smile.
“What’s next? Are we going to open the whole engine?”
“Yeah, that’s right. First, we’ll remove the valve covers…”
Grrrrr!
Just as we were about to resume working, another alarm sounded from Noah’s stomach.
“…We’ll do the rest after dinner.”
“Hehe. Yes, sir!”
Standing in front of the food shelf, I briefly wondered what I should cook.
He’ll probably eat anything.
After some thought, I made sausage stew by simmering sausages, potatoes, onions, and canned tomatoes in a cooker.
There was no bread to serve with it, so I substituted instant rice, but as expected, Noah ate without a single complaint and clearly enjoyed it.
After dinner, we sat side by side in folding camping chairs with Dusty between us, taking a short break beneath the dark night sky.
“Noah, why did you suddenly become interested in auto repair?”
After taking a sip of the soda he had brought instead of beer, I casually asked something I had long wondered about.
“Hmm… I was always interested in cars. When I was little, I used to help Dad work on his car in the garage.”
“Yeah, I remember. A white 1992 third-generation Camaro. Daniel treasured it. He bragged about it all the time.”
“That’s right. The truth is, that’s almost my only memory of Dad. When I was younger, he was always busy. And after that… we couldn’t spend time together anymore.”
Noah raised his drink and took a sip as he spoke.
“…Is that why you wanted to try this kind of work?”
“That was probably what started it. But the reason I truly made up my mind was actually you, Jason.”
“Me?”
“Yes. Do you remember repairing Mom’s Civic? The truth is, I was always really worried that her car might break down at any moment. When I saw you fix it immediately as though it were nothing, I thought you looked really cool.”
That had been near the beginning of summer.
Now autumn was already well underway.
It had only been a few months ago, yet it felt like a story from the distant past.
“Then the car broke down again when we went to see the Grand Canyon, remember? I was honestly really anxious then too, but you looked so calm that it shocked me all over again.”
That was a misunderstanding.
In truth, I had been too overwhelmed by the situation to even have enough presence of mind to feel anxious.
Later, when we returned to the warehouse, I had been deeply embarrassed.
Even now, thinking about it made my face burn.
“Ahem. I may not be the best person to say this, but make sure you maintain that Ford truck properly. A mechanic’s own car always gets pushed to the back of the line.”
I passed on the advice Donnelly had once given me.
“Yes. But Mr. Donnelly already told me that last time.”
Ah.
As expected, my master was always one step ahead of me.
“What about you, Jason?”
“Me? What about me?”
“How did you end up restoring cars?”
“Ah… that.”
After thinking for a moment, I selected as much of the truth as possible.
“It’s actually very similar to your story. I had a car left behind by my father too. Come to think of it, it was a Mustang, the Camaro’s rival. Anyway, I started by repairing it, and that eventually brought me here.”
“Hmm…”
Noah remained silent for a long time after hearing that.
Then he gave a faint laugh and replied.
“Then your father leaving you that car was really lucky for me, wasn’t it? Thanks to that, I’m able to learn mechanical work like this.”
“…Does it work that way?”
At first, it sounded absurd, but after thinking about it, he was not entirely wrong.
And looking at it that way somehow made my own heart feel lighter.
I rose from my chair and brushed myself off.
“Right. Then let’s get back to work. You stayed because you wanted to watch the engine work, didn’t you? Oh, and you know you’ll be sleeping in a sleeping bag tonight, right?”
“…I already prepared myself for that.”
Noah glanced at my cot, then lowered his head.
[BMW E60 M5 Interior]
CC BY 2.0, photograph by The Car Spy
[BMW E60 M5 Engine]
CC BY 2.0, photograph by The Car Spy