The E34 M5 was produced from 1989 to 1995 at BMW M GmbH in Garching, Germany and like the previous M5, was entirely hand-built.
It utilized the 535i chassis which was produced at BMW's Dingolfing plant. Assembly was done either by a single M employee or a team of M employees and generally took about two weeks. It is rumored that the test drivers of the E34 M5 could determine who or what team made each specific M5, due to characteristic quirks of the handbuilt nature of the E34 M5. The engines were also built by hand by BMW M technicians. All of the E34 M5 powerplants were built to a tolerance of within 5% of advertised output.
The early E34 M5 used an evolution of the 24-valve I6 found in the E28 M5 and E24 M635CSi/M6. Designated S38B36, the engine technically remains a 3.5 L, with a bore of 93.4 mm and stroke of 86 mm for a total capacity of 3535 cc. The added stroke is due to a new forged steel crankshaft, though the camshafts were also changed. Compression was up slightly (10:1 versus 9.8:1).
Other adjustments made included an electronically controlled butterfly valve in the intake plenum which provided better low rpm and mid-range power. The engine also featured an improved flywheel, Bosch Motronic fuel injection, equal length stainless steel headers and three way ceramic catalysts. Originally it had a displacement of 3.5 L and produced 315 hp (235 kW), and 266 lb·ft @ 4750 rpm. Cars sold in North America and Switzerland, due to a different catalytic converter, produced 310 hp (229 kW).
In second half of 1991, the engine displacement was increased to 3.8 L with the S38B38, except in North America and South Africa, which continued with the 3.5 L engine. Power was now increased to 340 hp (250 kW) SAE . Also in 1992, a Touring version was introduced in LHD.
In 1994 the M5 front end changed slightly in conjunction with the E34 range, the brakes were changed to a larger floating design and a 6spd gearbox was added for better fuel consumption. Another noticable change was the addition of 18" M parallel wheels.
Performance:
89-92 (Euro) I6-24v 3.6 L - 232 kW/315 hp 0-60 mph - 6.3 s. Top speed: 155 mph (electronic limited)
92-95 (Euro) I6-24v 3.8 L - 250 kW/340 hp 0-60 mph - 5.9. Top speed: 250 km/h (155 mph) (electronic limited) 273 km/h (170 mph) (without electronic limiter) gps verified in 2003 (3.8 6 speed) vw test track
91-93 (USA) I6-24v 3.6 L - 229 kW/311 hp 0-60 mph - 6.4 s. Top speed: 155 mph (electronic limited)
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