1988 BMW M5 ONE ONWER 92K MILES

[Ljpviper]

I am going to put the car on BAT in the next few weeks. I bought the car from the original owner it was sitting in a garage for years. I have restored it to what I felt is a great cars and coffee semi show car. Dash has no cracks, seats redone in original natural leather, all the rest of the interior is about 7-8 scale. Fender and hood painted due to chips all VIN tags in place. Motor runs fine getting compression check done now. All sls work(new sls shocks)s new bilstein shocks front, all brake booster new, etc. 95 of mechanics done on the car.

AC and all power windows and sunroof works, also heater core replaced. I will post extensive pictures this week. Clean one owner car fax. I planned to keep it but don't have the space from my other cars.

Thanks,

Larry

[SeattleGuy]

Wow if that's the one you're letting go I shudder to wonder what else ya got in the warehouse

[Ljpviper]

Yeah stinks a 355 and and mcoupe. Lol all are great cars!!!!!

[wkohler]

Sounds like it's a two-owner car.

[Ljpviper]

It was never titled to my name. Thanks

[wkohler]

Wow. You’re one of those people. :/

[code]

I planned to keep it but don't have the space from my other cars.

It was never titled to my name.

Hmmmmm

[Ljpviper]

Simple, I bought the car from the origami owner and never transferred it to my name. I have been restoring it since I bought it, thus never needed a tag. I was planning on selling my mcoupe and keeping the m5.

I would be happy to go to dmv and get it titled to me. I figure it would be more attractive to a buyer to be the true second owner.

Thanks,

Larry

[daves30csi]

There goes the peanut gallery again. Omg, it was never titled in your name, one of those people! Wtf. Who cares if it’s titled as long as you have the title. Sounds like a nice car, I would have put it on Bat without telling people here so you can avoid the “WOW” people.

[wkohler]

Once the first owner sells a car, it’s not a one-owner car anymore. Buyer also has zero recourse in the event that there’s a lien on the title or there is some other reason it might not be clear. I was looking at a car locally and it was one of these deals where the guy had it advertised as a single-owner car but he had just gotten it and didn’t put it in his name. I told him to put the title in his name and we’ll talk. Child-support lien attached to the title by the state.

You might not care but it’s a dishonest way to advertise a car and a sketchy deal. At least Bring-A-Trailer won’t use that terminology. What I don’t get is why “one-owner” is so important to people. I ran a Carfax on a 2015 for someone once and it came up as a certified one-owner car. The single owner was a rental company. A rental car. But the dealer gets to put “one-owner” on it.

A car could have 20 owners. Doesn’t matter. All that matters is the condition of the car and how it was cared for. I wouldn’t put a single dollar in a car unless I had a clean and clear title in my name. Super risky to put all that effort into improving a car without that.

So yeah, it’s simple. Seller bought the car from the first owner and he is the second owner of this two-owner car.

[code]

Exactly ... it speaks to the overall straightforwardness of the seller, especially when a restoration is involved.

[daves30csi]

I totally disagree, if a seller is shady and has a hidden lien/agenda that’s one thing. I have a 911 and a 928s4 I bought 4 years ago from the same seller, he bought both cars brand new, I bought from the original owner, never titled them as they are part of my collection, if and when they are sold they will be advertised as one owner cars and explained that the next owner will be the second one “ on the title”. Obviously I was an Owner but some people care about being the second “titled Owner”. 1 Owner does make a big difference, my 360 was a 5 Owner, but that’s a Ferrari, many are like that as people buy them and either upgrade or realize they can’t afford them. What’s worth more, a 1 Owner M5 or a 6 Owner M5? Obviously it’s in the car but equal appearance and mechanicals, the 1 Owner car is worth more all the time.

[pldlnr]

You owned it. You count as an owner. Not really much to debate.

[Kenny Blankenship]

That "5 of mechanics" (sic) that has not been done can be very, very expensive...

[BDKawey]

isnt title skipping a crime because the government never got to reach their hand in your pockets over it?

better decriminalize yourself before the IRS starts poking around mye28

[henryr]

i believe per reading the SCM legal files the title is really just a secured lien - per john draneus (sp?)

that said just because you have an open title from the first owner doesnt mean it is a 1 owner car. you got a bill of sale when you bought it ?

[tig]

I totally disagree, if a seller is shady and has a hidden lien/agenda that’s one thing. I have a 911 and a 928s4 I bought 4 years ago from the same seller, he bought both cars brand new, I bought from the original owner, never titled them as they are part of my collection, if and when they are sold they will be advertised as one owner cars and explained that the next owner will be the second one “ on the title”. Obviously I was an Owner but some people care about being the second “titled Owner”. 1 Owner does make a big difference, my 360 was a 5 Owner, but that’s a Ferrari, many are like that as people buy them and either upgrade or realize they can’t afford them. What’s worth more, a 1 Owner M5 or a 6 Owner M5? Obviously it’s in the car but equal appearance and mechanicals, the 1 Owner car is worth more all the time.

Disagree all you want. Totally, if you wish.

My reaction is you are only doing so because you are engaging in the same shady behavior as the OP.

You are the 2nd owner. What the title says is irrelevant.

If you are so above board, I challenge you to be completely transparent and post your VINs here (same challenge to the OP).

If you are not willing to do this, you are hiding something from prospective buyers.

[maybeillbuyit]

I figure it would be more attractive to a buyer to be the true second owner.

Thanks,

Larry

This "sounds" like a dishonest way to make a buyer think hes getting something hes not.

[henryr]

Wow. You’re one of those people. :/

but you got a bill of sale and gave him money.....

i bought a car on BaT.....

sellers signed and sent a bill of sale to me. i signed him and wired him the money. he fedexed me the title.

when did i become the owner of the car ?

[freedspeak]

The (theory behind) enhanced value for one owner cars is that the owner paid full price for the car and therefore is generally more likely to take care of it than the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc...owners. AMG Mercedes are a perfect example of this. The guy/gal who paid $100k+ for the car will likely take good care of it, even after the warranty is up. Once the price drops by 3.5 quarters over the next 5-7 years, landing in a price range that allows less mature or financially capable owners to abuse the living shit out of it, all bets are off and skepticism grows exponentially. Obviously this is a risk with any car and never the only factor to consider, but the more owners the more likely someone had it given to them by a parent or just paid so (comparably) little that they don't respect it as the 1st owner would. That's the theory.

As for you folks cheating the system, it's bullshit. If you "LEGALLY" gain possession of the car, you are the owner. How is that not a simple enough concept for you to understand.

I feel you on the Mcoupe... #neversell #coupecartel ...but this M5 is a 2 owner car "."

[ahab]

If you don't "onw" (sic) this car, who does? You can say it's only been titled once and that you purchased it from the original owner and never drove it, as the mileage on the paperwork should support, but to claim the car has had only one owner is false. A matching bill of sale will also prove that it hasn't changed hands multiple times after it left the owner's hands and while your motives may not be deceitful with the intent to obscure anything about the car, whoever buys this car is not buying it from the original owner and therefore they are not the second owner. To my point, I don't understand needing to replace seat leather on a well cared for original owner car. I would have much preferred it the way the actual original owner sold it rather than to buy a car that was tarted up and flipped. This opens the door to whatever else needed to be done on the "one-owner" car that is obscured from the purchaser and therefore puts them at a disadvantage from that perspective. In my opinion, the car's history is smudged in light of a second owner who's not willing to claim himself as such. You've pointed out in your post with the list of items that YOU as an owner chose to do and that proves that this car was molested by the second owner who modified it in ways they deemed fit. If that's not an owner, what is?

What does stand true is that with that kind of mileage you can likely prove that it hasn't been a "two-driver" car, which is important to me when looking at a used car with respect to wear and tear, also for the reasons pointed out in the previous post. Ignoring semantics, at the end of the day it's going on to the third owner when/if it sells and you cannot claim a "one owner" car with any sense of legitimacy.

[LeiseyJr]

Good job guy, you listed as 1 owner lied and now lost one of your best audiences to sell to. Nice shortcut.

[OcCoupe]

This is soooo much fun!!! I think its had 8 owners! Fuck the law! Fuck you! Wash my feet!

[86GT635]

I once bought a car that the previous owner bought from the original owner... 7 or 8 years prior. He never did the paperwork. I did. I am technically the second owner. I still own the car. Second owner of a sub 100k mile 30 year old car. Feels good man.


Would it bother me if I was the umpteenth owner of the same car? Not one bit. I've seen a hell of a lot worse with cars that had owners taking their cars to shops with the lowest estimate for the price of work, and that's the problem. Condition is everything.

[ahab]

I once bought a car that the previous owner bought from the original owner... 7 or 8 years prior. He never did the paperwork. I did. I am technically the second owner. I still own the car. Second owner of a sub 100k mile 30 year old car. Feels good man.


Would it bother me if I was the umpteenth owner of the same car? Not one bit. I've seen a hell of a lot worse with cars that had owners taking their cars to shops with the lowest estimate for the price of work, and that's the problem. Condition is everything.

Incorrect. You are "technically" the third owner. Why is that so hard to wrap your head around? As far as the paper trail goes, only 2 people have legally possessed the car in the eyes of the government (as if that matters), but when it comes to owning a car with respect to its stewardship you are the third person in line. As far as you know...