6 M/T History Question

[Bayerische E53]

I'm not sure if anyone would know the answer to the following questions:

1) From what month/year until what month/year were the 6 M/T vehicles offered? I've heard that the 6 M/T was only offered on 2005 model year vehicles that were built in 2005 (i.e. not in 2004 build cars marked as 2005 model years). However, my car was built in November 2004 and it has the 6 M/T/ What gives?

2) Is there any way to find out how many 6 M/T vehicles were produced?

3) Does any one have any idea whether my car was built in Germany or here in the USA?

I keep getting conflicting information to all of these questions so if anyone knows, please share!

[dkl]

1. 6-speed manual was offered since the start of the facelift model (2004+)...but that doesn't mean anything was built or ordered when it was available back on roughly October 2003.
2. No idea.
3. All X5 are assembled in South Carolina.

[Ricky Bobby]

1) 10/2003 was the start of the build of the facelifts, 6 speed was available for 2004-2006, so 10/2003 was the start of the availability and I don't know the last month of E53 production but I would guess that would be the end. 2004 IS a 6 speed production year, as is 2005 and 2006.

Respectively, 2001, 2002, 2003 are 5 speed production years.

2) I emailed BMW once to see if I could get numbers for amount of E53 with 3 pedals produced, to use in our registry thread. No response, dead end so far.

3) Spartanburg, SC is where all our E53 in the USA are produced.

[Qsilver7]

Another way to tell where your BMW was built is to look at the VIN label on the driver's door/door jamb to see what the first THREE digits of its VIN are:

• 4US (& 5US recently) - BMW Manufacturer Corp, Spartanburg So Carolina
• WBS - (BMW Motorsport) GMBH Munich, Germany
• WBA - BMW AG, Munich, West Germany

[Bayerische E53]

Thanks for the info, guys.

The VINs on both of my cars begin with 5UX...not 5US. Regardless, I guess I've got yankee cars after all.

Would love to know the answers to the other two questions. Wish someone knew. Sucks BMW doesn't release that information.

[dkl]

Originally Posted by Qsilver7

Another way to tell where your BMW was built is to look at the VIN label on the driver's door/door jamb to see what the first THREE digits of its VIN are:

• 4US (& 5US recently) - BMW Manufacturer Corp, Spartanburg So Carolina
• WBS - (BMW Motorsport) GMBH Munich, Germany
• WBA - BMW AG, Munich, West Germany

Door jam label doesn't tell where the car was assembled. The "Made in ..." label only applies to where the majority of the parts were made. I know for a fact that my MCoupe was also assembled in SC as ALL X5 and Z4 are assembled here. However, it has a "Made in Germany" label on the door jam, which I know isn't true...at least for the car.

[Qsilver7]

Originally Posted by dkl

Door jam label doesn't tell where the car was assembled. The "Made in ..." label only applies to where the majority of the parts were made. I know for a fact that my MCoupe was also assembled in SC as ALL X5 and Z4 are assembled here. However, it has a "Made in Germany" label on the door jam, which I know isn't true...at least for the car.

I think you misunderstood what I wrote. Yes, if you know how to break-down the VIN...then it does reveal the city code and plant where the car was assembled. Although the VIN label on the door jamb says "Made in Germany"...I wrote that the OP should look at the first 3 digits of his VIN...which reveals the MFG's (city/code) location... where the vehicle rolled off the assembly line. See the image below which shows how the 17 digits in a VIN is broken down...and what info it reveals. I should have also wrote that the 10th digit of the VIN also reveals the specific plant where the vehicle was assembled:

The OP asked in question #3...where was his vehicle built, Germany or the USA. Well the first 3 digits of his VIN will reveal which BMW MFG code and the 10th digit reveals the exact assembly plant it rolled out of. If those first 3 digits say 4US & the 10th VIN digit says "L" then it rolled off the assembly line down in Greer (Spartanburg) So Carolina.

I was not referring to the part of the MFG label that says "Built in Germany"...I wrote that he should look at the first 3 digits of his VIN and that would answer the question that was asked...if the car was assembled here or Germany.

As you can see in the image below...this M5 rolled out of the GMBH Plant in Munich...thus the first 3 digits of the VIN start with WBS

Below is a VIN label from a 1999 e39 528i which would have come off the BMW AG assembly line in Munich, West Germany...thus the first 3 digits of the VIN is WBA: