Still on the fence about it

[Bojangles412]

Hi all,

I have been lurking this forum for almost 2 years in hope that I would some day own an ITS, but I have yet to pull the trigger.

The ITS would not be my primary car, but it would have to do dad duties, be entertaining to hustle on a back road 1-2 times per week, and survive a track day 1-2 times per year.

So far, these requirements have been met by a 2003 BMW M5. I've owned it for 9 years and it still puts a smile on my face every time I drive it and gets lots of positive attention from enthusiasts. I pretty much daily drive it 9 months of the year, but I am beginning to think that it is time to move on. Parts are becoming super expensive or NLA, and it's always asking for something. I've put in a CarPlay head unit and added a backup camera, so it's got most of the modern-day conveniences that I would want. I enjoy maintaining it, but I feel that it's becoming more suited as a weekend car than a daily driver now that it's over 20 years old. I would love to keep the M5 in addition to getting the ITS, but I don't have the space for an extra car.

What do you all think - would I be making a mistake to move on from the M5 into an ITS?

I test drove one recently, but I am still on the fence about it.

All comments are welcome. Thanks for hearing me out!

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[MNTeggy]

The 2003 M5 is a cool car and I don’t think I’ve seen any on the road. I could see how you’d want to keep it for a weekend car and not daily it at this point. The ITS is great and I very much enjoy driving it! But, it’s not a luxury car. I had a 2023 TLX Type S prior to the ITS and would say that was a luxury car. It had ventilated seats, memory seats w/bolster adjustments, homelink, ambient lighting color options, etc. The ITS is, however, an amazing driver’s car. Steering feedback, pedal response, shifter, and really the whole experience is engaging from a driver’s standpoint. You probably will want to modify it, though. The interior needs some sprucing up with carbon fiber and/or Alcantara, and after an intake, downpipe, frontpipe, rear motor mount, and sway bar it’s way better! It’s not a quiet luxury car, more like a buzzing bee! Hope that helps!

 

[Bojangles412]

The 2003 M5 is a cool car and I don’t think I’ve seen any on the road. I could see how you’d want to keep it for a weekend car and not daily it at this point. The ITS is great and I very much enjoy driving it! But, it’s not a luxury car. I had a 2023 TLX Type S prior to the ITS and would say that was a luxury car. It had ventilated seats, memory seats w/bolster adjustments, homelink, ambient lighting color options, etc. The ITS is, however, an amazing driver’s car. Steering feedback, pedal response, shifter, and really the whole experience is engaging from a driver’s standpoint. You probably will want to modify it, though. The interior needs some sprucing up with carbon fiber and/or Alcantara, and after an intake, downpipe, frontpipe, rear motor mount, and sway bar it’s way better! It’s not a quiet luxury car, more like a buzzing bee! Hope that helps!

Thanks for your comments. My M5 actually came from Minnesota!

I am not considering the Integra for its luxury features. Heated seats and Car Play is good enough for me. What attracts me to it is the quality of the manual transmission and the driving engagement. The manual in the M5 is garbage compared to the Integra, even after all of the updates that I've done. But the RWD and chassis composure definitely makes up for it.

 

[whtciv2k]

Thanks for your comments. My M5 actually came from Minnesota!

I am not considering the Integra for its luxury features. Heated seats and Car Play is good enough for me. What attracts me to it is the quality of the manual transmission and the driving engagement. The manual in the M5 is garbage compared to the Integra, even after all of the updates that I've done. But the RWD and chassis composure definitely makes up for it.

I have a hefty v8 coupe that’s fun to drive as well as the ITS. I end up driving the ITS a lot more because it’s easier to have fun in it without going crazy speeds.

 

[optronix]

I don't know man. That's tough. The E39 M5 is just a living legend. I don't know if this car will ever live up to that level of icon status...

But it is great to drive, can absolutely stand up to track use, and probably a better platform overall for that type of stuff.

The cool factor almost surely would go to the M5... but I'm sure at this point using it as a semi-daily isn't a very cost-effective plan. Eventually you're going to hit a repair bill that's going to bring tears to your eyes...

I can definitely vouch for the ownership experience of the ITS. I have similar use case to yours minus the kids (I have them but they're grown), but sub in a giant dog. It fits the bill in spades, and as much as I loved it when I bought it, I love it even more now for surviving my typical cycle of when I'd usually get bored with a car, regardless of prestige or price point. This one's a keeper.

But you're right- as an enthusiast, I'd definitely be excited to see your M5.

TOUGH CALL.

 

[Underdog]

Similar situation. My other car is a 2006 Subaru Legacy GT that I bought new and have modified/maintained over the years - 350whp, upgraded diffs, Bilstein coilovers, poly bushings/bracing, Brembos, etc. I’ve always had another car to do winter-beater/family duties, and most recently that was a 2019 Accord 2.0T Sport 10AT. After five years I got bored with the driving experience, even though it has the K20 engine and lots of aftermarket power mods available, it’s just big and (relatively) soft. Traded for the ITS a year ago and have absolutely loved it. Now it’s the fair-weather daily and weekend car, and I’m driving the Subaru when it’s nasty out, or I’m taking kids to soccer, going to grocery store/Home Depot, etc.

Fortunately I don’t have to make the choice between the two, but if I needed to make space for a vehicle that fills another use case (truck/suv, or any automatic so my wife would drive it) there is no question the Subaru is the one I’d let go. The ITS is a far superior drivers experience right out of the box, and has so much more headroom. I suspect you’d come to the same conclusion even if you were able to keep both cars.

 

[bisquick]

In all honesty, if you aren’t steadfast on the ITS because of its looks or “luxury”, I would highly recommend the FL5. It will serve you right for track days and still remains refined-enough to be street driven most of the year.

You’ll keep some extra money in your pocket for mods which will inevitably come with either platform.

 

[optronix]

In all honesty, if you aren’t steadfast on the ITS because of its looks or “luxury”, I would highly recommend the FL5. It will serve you right for track days and still remains refined-enough to be street driven most of the year.

You’ll keep some extra money in your pocket for mods which will inevitably come with either platform.

Apparently there's still dealer shenanigans involved. Sound advice if you can avoid those though.

 

[LikeANiceRide]

Tough choice. I got an ITS in July thinking time to finally let go of the E36 M3 I've owned 20 years, and maybe retire the track days. Long time track instructor friend convinced me the cost to keep the M3 was incremental and we did full course at VIR in it a few weeks back. Man that E36 is awesome on track and there are still lots of them running. Strip it of 300 lbs and it's crazy fast he says. He has lots of cars and experience and was convinced the M3 in its current well kept and reasonably modified state isn't all that much slower than the ITS. I'm not so sure. The seats in the ITS could be more comfortable and supportive, Corbeau's in the M3 are better. But I don't regret getting the ITS and expect that, stock, it too would be a blast on the track. The FL5 in my run group was going just fine.

 

[optronix]

Tough choice. I got an ITS in July thinking time to finally let go of the E36 M3 I've owned 20 years, and maybe retire the track days. Long time track instructor friend convinced me the cost to keep the M3 was incremental and we did full course at VIR in it a few weeks back. Man that E36 is awesome on track and there are still lots of them running. Strip it of 300 lbs and it's crazy fast he says. He has lots of cars and experience and was convinced the M3 in its current well kept and reasonably modified state isn't all that much slower than the ITS. I'm not so sure. The seats in the ITS could be more comfortable and supportive, Corbeau's in the M3 are better. But I don't regret getting the ITS and expect that, stock, it too would be a blast on the track. The FL5 in my run group was going just fine.

I've had two E36 M3s, and they have a tendency to basically start dissolving themselves around 100k miles...

I won't deny they weren't great to drive though. A little underpowered by modern standards but such a great platform.

 

[jedi03]

After driving an swapping through many cars over the last 20ish years the ITS is great...I thought my 2009 STI that I have had for the last about 8 years was great bit I needed to modify it to make it meet my needs...so far I haven't needed to do anything to the ITS but am getting some 18s for road noise an better all season tire options...I do have an hks intercooler, acuity shifter bushings an spring, and wunderladen coolant expansion tank and rear motor mount for when each of the stock versions fail, but the ITS is not lacking an is very enjoyable as the new daily for me!

 

[Bojangles412]

Thank you all for your comments! Very informative feedback.

The M5 has been my dream car ever since I drove it in the early 2000s while working at a BMW dealer in high school. I never thought that I would get to own one, and meeting this hero of mine certainly lived up to its expectations. Writing this out makes me realize how much I would miss selling that car.

In an ideal world, I'd keep the M5 as a weekend cruiser and have the Integra as the daily and an occasional track car. Maybe I'll get to that point soon when my wife agrees to sell her minivan for a large SUV. Honestly, that's probably the reason why I've been holding off on getting the Integra. Until then, I need to keep my SUV for all of the off-road stuff that we do.

I totally see myself owning an Integra someday. It checks so many boxes for me in terms of performance, convenience, and modern tech and safety.

 

[ashmostro]

I'm late to this thread...

Re: your M5's shifting experience not being where you want it despite work you've done to it - what work does that include? Have you done an Auto Solutions SSK? If you haven't, that could be your answer. Ronald's products are totally custom built to your application and goals, and they are transformational to the shifting experience on older BMWs (and newer ones too).

 

[LikeANiceRide]

I've had two E36 M3s, and they have a tendency to basically start dissolving themselves around 100k miles...

I won't deny they weren't great to drive though. A little underpowered by modern standards but such a great platform.

I have 212k miles so I hear you... a lot spent on the car in the past 20 years/150k miles, including a Ray Korman engine rebuild with about 25k miles on it. Haven't dynoed it, but intake/exhaust/ECU, overbore/head tweaks adds notable power/torque.

Weekend track insurance on a new ITS with $5k deductible is about $460- not too bad. At 30 years newer than an E36, and great in so many ways, you can't go wrong with the ITS IMO.

 

[Bojangles412]

I'm late to this thread...

Re: your M5's shifting experience not being where you want it despite work you've done to it - what work does that include? Have you done an Auto Solutions SSK? If you haven't, that could be your answer. Ronald's products are totally custom built to your application and goals, and they are transformational to the shifting experience on older BMWs (and newer ones too).

I have a Rogue shifter with dual shear selector rod, new OEM shifter bushings, and ultimate clutch pedal. Probably as good as it gets on an E39, but still not even close to what Honda makes OEM.

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