Thanks for all your replies!

Yes, I do most of the wrenching myself. The first purchase I would make after the car would be the Bentley manual. On my E39's, the only time one ended up in the shop was when the cooling system exploded on my 99 540. Everything else I diagnosed and fixed myself. Surprisingly, neither the 97 or the 99 needed the timing chain guides done. Perhaps I was lucky in that respect.

My thought is to take a proactive stance with the maintenance. I recently sold my MINI Cooper (reliability on one of those makes a BMW look like a Toyota!) and plan to take the leftover funds to buy this vehicle, so no bank note. Looking forward to not having a payment again! Without a car payment, I should have enough money left in my budget to tackle the known issues in a planned manner until most of them have been addressed.

I've recently been looking for an SUV, and when I can buy a vehicle like a 4.8iS with over 100k miles for the same price as I can buy a Tahoe of the same vintage with over 100k miles, it seems like a no brainer. The typical BMW high maintenance period shortly after 100k is what has me a bit on the fence, and this vehicle hasn't entered that period yet.

Another aspect is this: Even though my 99 gave me a great deal of grief over the years, I never really saw it as an issue. I enjoy troubleshooting and fixing a vehicle that's worth the effort. Had it regularly left me on the side of the road, I doubt I would have felt such a kinship, however.

Much appreciate the replies!