2019
E39Source is now an LLC, with a brick and mortar location. We rented a 3,500 square foot shop up in Escondido, 30 miles north of San Diego. We had two lifts installed, and got a badass set of tools. You can read more about what E39Source is doing now here.
New-style BMW battery (black)
February, 2019
This first winter in California was ‘rainy’ by California standards. That meant that my dad’s 1998 Ferrari 355 wasn’t driven as much over the winter as it usually does. When we attempted to start it to attend a Ferrari Owner’s Club drive to the wine country in Temecula, we got nothing but a series of clicks. The battery was dead- which meant my M5 had to run with Ferraris with that. And it kept up beautifully! Here are some shots from the gathering.
I parked outside the group a little bit, since my M5 is not Imola red.
A customer of mine spotted my dad and I on the way back from Temecula!
The early days at E39Source, LLC, with four M5s!
On rare occasions, my M5 is used a shop truck. This time, it was responsible for transporting an S62 engine block.
Bimmerfest, 2019
I had been getting asked if I would be at Bimmerfest for years before I was finally able to attend. 2019 was my first visit, and it was a blast! I managed to find and park next to an E39 M5 in Bluewater metallic, the color that replaced my Silverstone for the 2002 model year. Here are those pictures.
Bluewater is more silver than Silverstone. Go figure!
A few months later, it turned out that the owner of this Bluewater M5 is an E39Source viewer and future customer from Los Angeles!
Summer, 2019
In June, I attended a BMW CCA San Diego chapter event at Spanish Landing here in San Diego. It is their annual clean car show. This event was a lot more stringent than I thought! I entered my car, and you can see how it scored below.
I did not place in the top 3 finalists.
The following photos are some shots taken in and around San Diego throughout the summer and fall of 2019.
Point Loma.
Point Loma.
Point Loma.
Gas Lamp District, downtown San Diego. Ghirardelli.
Crossing the San Diego – Coronado Bay Bridge.
The M5 trunk floor mat.
Fall, 2019
Parked in the best spot in the lot for dinner at Casa Guadalajara in Old Town, San Diego
At the view point along the Palms to Pines Highway heading into Palm Springs, California.
The switch-backs ahead, highway 74
There was a down side to taking my M5 on the 220 mile round trip to Palm Springs. I trust the car very much, so I was disappointed to see a failure on a relatively short trip. Thankfully, the car got me home safely before the radiator started leaking. The radiator was installed in 2011 and I got 8 years out of it- not terrible I suppose. But the hard drive back over the mountain home from Palm Springs caused a hairline fracture to open up in the plastic side tank of the radiator.
Old radiator and shroud.
Engine bay torn down to replace radiator.
Parting a few cars has its perks, I get dibs on parts! I was able to obtain a minty 16:9 display, and then a face-lift (Mac AC button) HVAC panel. My full facelift retrofit is getting to be very thorough.
After parting out a few cars, I had more literature and decided to fill out my owner’s manual with all the goodies!
Look at this! An E39 with it’s cupholders in use!
In November, San Diego got a few days of rain, and I worked rom home. I decided to completely re-organize all of the paper services records and documentation for my car. I took the old over-flowing 4″ binder and broke it down into a three volumes, now with each sheet in an acid-free page protector. Records are all organized chronologically.
2019 Summary
Battery
Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires (all)
M5 trunk mat
Facelift HVAC panel
Radiator
Fresh master, valet, and wallet keys
Headlight bracket
Rear wheel speed sensor brackets