# Is 550 confirmed for March production?



## Ranger (Oct 13, 2003)

If they do offer the 550 in a manual transmission, I wonder how many M5 buyers will forgo the M5 to be able to shift their own gears?


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## Patrick (Dec 23, 2001)

Rumor has it that there may be a manual E60 M5 coming.


.


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## Centurion (Jan 16, 2005)

Patrick 520iAT said:


> Rumor has it that there may be a manual E60 M5 coming.
> 
> .


This is an excellent marketing move.
I'm all for the SMG but don't force it on anyone if they don't want it.

This is the very reason I don't drive Mercedes or BMW's very own 7er.
I despise automatic transmission.


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## Moderato (Nov 24, 2003)

550i ? Already? :yikes: Glad I didn't get a 545i a year ago!


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## qamaro (Nov 20, 2004)

*Timeframe info on 550 ED....*

I thought I'd share this small update on the 550 discussion floating around. I checked with some of the ED resources in Southern Cali and received a nice voice mail yesterday afternoon. It stated that the 550 is the replacement for the 545 and that it would be produced in Oct and available for ED in Dec. I didn't get a chance to call them back to see if I could get some spec verification. I anticipate it will fall in line with the expectations on the board that it will have the same engine as the 750 (thus an HP increase). To bad I need to complete my new purchase by June (plus I want to head to Europe in May), so a 545 is going to have to work for me.


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## Centurion (Jan 16, 2005)

qamaro said:


> To bad I need to complete my new purchase by June (plus I want to head to Europe in May), so a 545 is going to have to work for me.


You poor thing.


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## andy_thomas (Oct 7, 2002)

Alex Baumann said:


> It takes a little time to learn to interprete Andy's smileys, at least it was the case with me, since english is not my native language.
> 
> Sorry, yes I meant 650.


I missed this one, Alex. Your interpretation of my English language-related smileys will, I suspect, forever be superior to my interpretation of any smiley buried within a piece of German prose.


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## uter (Jan 6, 2002)

550 touring?

Oh, sweet Mary, let it be so.


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## RobertV (Feb 13, 2003)

*IIRC, US will only see six cylinder sport wagons.....*

It is a shame, I would love a 550Xi Touring (not that they would ever make one, it would sure cut the X5 sales.)


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## dagoo98 (Apr 23, 2004)

Alex Baumann said:


> No, not 'that' 5.0 Liter. Along with the E65 facelift, which is coming this spring, BMW is upgrading the engines. The 4.5 Liter V8 (which came in the 545i, 645i and 745i) is getting a 0.5 Liter increase and becoming a 5.0 Liter (and bearing the designation 750i).
> 
> The pre-eliminary ordering guide info is here
> click
> ...


Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the 645 chassis code is E64 not E63?


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## beewang (Dec 18, 2001)

dagoo98 said:


> Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the 645 chassis code is E64 not E63?


E63 is for the Cabrio so techincally it is correct


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## okiemark (Jan 27, 2005)

*No Fair!*

Just after I order my 545i for ED in June, they confirm rumors of the 550i for October! Is there any reason to think they have fixed some of the 545i software issues on the upcoming 550i? Supposedly there are changes to 545i's produced after March 9...somebody please tell me that the 550i will be just a tad quicker than my 545i and that's all!!


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## philippek (Jul 31, 2003)

okiemark said:


> Just after I order my 545i for ED in June, they confirm rumors of the 550i for October! Is there any reason to think they have fixed some of the 545i software issues on the upcoming 550i? Supposedly there are changes to 545i's produced after March 9...somebody please tell me that the 550i will be just a tad quicker than my 545i and that's all!!


If it's a software issue, then by definition it can fixed by reprogramming. I don't think you have anything to worry about.


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## fishskis (Dec 18, 2004)

okiemark said:


> Just after I order my 545i for ED in June, they confirm rumors of the 550i for October! Is there any reason to think they have fixed some of the 545i software issues on the upcoming 550i? Supposedly there are changes to 545i's produced after March 9...somebody please tell me that the 550i will be just a tad quicker than my 545i and that's all!!


I'm in the same boat. Picking up ED 545 first week in May. My initial reaction was, "should I wait a few months?", but then I thought about it, did a little research and some thinking, and here's where I end up:

- In the 7 series, the 0-60 time difference between the 745 and the 750 is one tenth of a second. So, the power difference is virtually meaningless (to me at least).
- There is only a small window in which I find ED desirable due to weather, as well as avoiding peak tourist season; so April, May, June are ideal, and September and early October are secondary choices. Supposedly they will begin production for the 550 in September, but who really knows? Highly unlikely I would be able to schedule a trip for September with any degree of certainty about the car; so that would mean a one year wait for me, pushing until April of '06.
- How will the order process be? Will they hold back 550's from ED when they first introduce it. What will the pricing be? 
- I am leasing; the lease rates are very attractive right now....will they be higher with the introduction of the 550? Probably, but who really knows.
- As someone wrote in another thread (on another board?), there will always be something bigger, better, faster, etc.
- It does seem like they have had a few bugs to work out, so I am hopeful my post-week 9 production car will be a bit improved. Even though they are just changing the engine, who knows if the initial production run will have some problems. I am not an expert on this stuff at all; but it is certainly a legitimate question.
- I have a great trip planned, and everything is set. I can't wait!

So for me, it is an easy decision.

Good luck.


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## stream (Jan 24, 2005)

There will always be something better, faster (and more expensive!) down the line. I didn't want to wait--picked up my '05 545i a few weeks ago and love it.


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## neurom (Jan 16, 2005)

fishskis said:


> I'm in the same boat. Picking up ED 545 first week in May. My initial reaction was, "should I wait a few months?", but then I thought about it, did a little research and some thinking, and here's where I end up:
> 
> - In the 7 series, the 0-60 time difference between the 745 and the 750 is one tenth of a second. So, the power difference is virtually meaningless (to me at least).
> - There is only a small window in which I find ED desirable due to weather, as well as avoiding peak tourist season; so April, May, June are ideal, and September and early October are secondary choices. Supposedly they will begin production for the 550 in September, but who really knows? Highly unlikely I would be able to schedule a trip for September with any degree of certainty about the car; so that would mean a one year wait for me, pushing until April of '06.
> ...


You bring up a good point about the engine. First, there is only speculation of when (and if) the 4.8 engine will make it to the 545. I would be worried about bugs too. The 7 series 0-60 did not change much because the engine is heavier, which will be the case in the 5. We won't know how much faster it is going to be, but for those of you who want to wait, pay more, be subject to possible new bugs, and be able to have a gain of .1 to .2 seconds on a 0-60 drag race, then good luck. I wouldn't change my plans of getting a 5 series now for a lot of "what ifs". Just my 2 cents...


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