James May ROASTS the DriveTribe V10 BMW M5 estate 

Check out James May's Gin: bit.ly/JamesGinDT-YT If you're in the USA head here: bit.ly/DTYTJamesGinUSA

James still remembers the rules of the Cool Wall, even though he never did Cool Wall pieces. Top bloke

James is so refreshing with his honesty here

They should make James may modify a car with every item he would hate and see what monster car he builds

This car literally roasted itself. James was just there to laugh at it.

"the engine, that's the bit that breaks" some might see this as a problem. Perhaps even a deal-breaker.

James May is morphing into Gandalf

“It’s had a small fire” 😂

Average M5 e60 fan vs average Dacia Sandero enjoyer

"I puked in my car, but it's okay because I filled it with dog poo" 🤣

I quite love getting to see James talking shop about cars and all the little specs he always loves to explain.

“You like our car?” James without hesitation: “no, thank you for watching.” 😂

I watched the whole thing with a huge smile on my face. This is quite adorable and lovely to see. Well played to both Mike and James!

E6x M5s are some of the coolest cars ever produced. James was pretty spot on with his early summary of it. 😂 I'd probably rather own an E39 M5, but these M5s were absolutely bonkers.

Always a treat to see James!

the way you "fix" the sloppy smg is by treating it like a manual. when you pull the paddle, let off the gas, then go again. this trick works with aventador gearboxes also..

James May just casually waving to somebody passing by like he's just some regular old bloke. Definitely the most down to earth of the three, he has nothing to prove, nothing much to complain about. He's quite complacent with how things worked out for him and hasn't let it get to his head like his baboon of a colleague.

“The roof lining _wrote off the car?_ That must tell you something.” 💀

Why not track down the actual 6 speed that BMW put in the M5 for the US market?

James may is the master of roasting

James remembering the rules of the golden days of Top Gear and the cool wall, oh! it just gave me flashbacks of 15 years ago! James is great to watch honestly!

everyone has to apprecaite the dynamic between james nd mike, they get on like a house on fire

Imagine just sitting down with James, having a few pint, listening to him telling stories.

This looks like a conversation I'd have with my dad as a kid, trying to convince him to call for a test drive haha.

I think you guys should look at the competition before you decide what car you go for next. The S600 has been done by numerous channels like Legit Streetcars and Hoovies garage. Same goes for Aston Martin. We have seen enough of those over and over. The Rover was such a great find. And the Mondeo as well. What about something really cool and not done before? Like a Mitsubishi Galant VR4 or a Honda Accord Type R or an even more ''forgotten'' super special. I bet you guys know more than me. There must be a whole lot of cool stuff to pick from instead of these absolute money pits we have seen on all the other channels so many times. Or maybe: Merc C36 AMG from the 90's, Alfa Romeo 164 Q4, Subaru 22B, Mitsubishi 3000GT VR4, Saab 9-3 Viggen, A really early Lancer Evo from before they got famous. Renault Clio Williams, Peugeot 306 Rallye and so on. Please not an S600 🤢

I love this video because of how casual it is. It was basically just two mates having a chat about a beautiful car and shamelessly plugging their own Gin what more could you want? (Definitely not that Austin Rover jacket that’s for sure…)

More of these please! We like the banter, the roasting and the jokes!

You should have let him give it a drive too. Also the s600 is the superior choice all day. It’s a brilliantly quick car with decent comfort

Love James. A quick hand shake and talk about not owning cars for hours. Gin and Tonic please.

I'm just impressed with how well the camera person managed to stay out of any of the reflections.

2:42 love the subtle, floating wheel caps!

After 12 years with an M5 E61 I'm sorry to say the transmission shifts smoothly... if the driver wants it, it's all up to the driver.

Wouldn’t it be easier to get all of the parts from a genuine manual M5 from overseas and swap it all in? They did make these in manual form

James’s accent and the way he delivers humour is outstanding. Such a great guy from old Top Gear ❤️

Your supposed to put the manual box from a 550i. They go straight in. Alternatively remove the robertised parts and you've already got a manual box. I think he's on about a db7 not a db9

It's like buying your first poo box car when you have just passed your test and showing your grandad what you have purchased 😂

Looking forward to this getting a proper manual gearbox it's going to be the perfect m5 estate

2:43 why is the BMW centre cap wobbling like that? Honestly, I’d prefer a 535d.

My mate Andy had the saloon. It had an injector failure and the engine was fully rebuilt by BMW under warranty at vast expense. A month later another injector failed and the exhaust became a flamethrower, they then had to replace the entire car. Sounded glorious, but...

Soooooo happy to hear you’re manual swapping it.

Can't believe you're actually confirming the manual swap this is amazing 🤩

Have so many great memories of owning one of these, ran one as a daily for 8 years. I had my fair share of issues (3 throttle actuators, various sensors, a DSC unit but never any gearbox issues) but disagree with all the hate for the gearbox, work out how it likes to be operated and its absolutely fine around town and this may be heresy but I also owned a manual e46 M3 and the gearbox in that was an absolute swine around town, I couldn't think of anything worse to swap the SMG out for. M5 was/is a far more involving drive than the RS6 I currently own, and of course the noise is without comparison.

6:20 I love how they're meeting at the Fire Assembly Point while talking about fires.

i absolutely love watching James May. No matter how good the other two presenters are James will always be a mood and the most interesting and funny and cool. Also that gin scene was so needed. Also a car like this you would think they would have a good gearbox for both around town and track since its family estate wagon/sports car. Basically that Gearbox is a live hand grenade when going slow. so you like our car James: No 🤣🤣🤣🤣

The difference between Jeremy and James roasting a car, is that James will be a gentleman about it. Jeremy on the other hand, will tell you exactly what he thinks about it 🤣

James May is an absolute treasure. Love him!

Around town put the gear box in full manual and shift listening to the revs like a manual . It is great even then

I drove a 2008 6mt e60 for the last few years from 58k miles until 115k miles. Honestly the reliability was fine if you don't cheap out on maintenance. Great fun with the 6mt. Sound is amazing. For the drivetribe car, can you not just swap in a 6mt from NA?

Mike looks awkward around James. That’s what happens when you are surrounded by such quick wit.

I love seeing James on the drive tribe...

Mike, if im correct the saloon was fitted with the manual gearbox form a 550i in some markets, the only delivered around a 1000 from them in total but it is an oem option

The car being parked right next to the fire escape sign was quite ironic haha...

“Do you like our car then?” “No! Thanks for watching”

5:28 May‘s opinion about Mike‘s project in a nutshell:

My 2006 E60, 128k miles with original engine, replacement clutch at 50k after rivet head broke on plate. Yes great on highway, baulky around town. MPG 15. Still love it.

As someone that bought a freelander 2000 after being almost burned to the ground, i can tell that being full restored after; i did still run it every day till now,. 22 years ago:)

chemistry between Mike & Hammond/May makes you hope there will always be another Top Gear. Dude just gets it.

Only James May can roast a car without driving it and we'll happily watch that

If memory serves this is actually a manual box. Just take out the "clever" bits. There is a kit available in the US where the computer controlled bits are taken out, a reverse gear locking assembly is installed and the housing gets drilled and machined. The pooters will need to be remapped. No need to put a 3series box in

I find myself watching less videos on this channel, but I will watch anything with May

These guys are so amazing and irreplaceable. I consider myself lucky, watching them since the beginning. The car is an F'ing black hole for money tho

I'm seeing a lot of negative comments here and on a couple of other recent videos. I just want to say... Keep doing what you do Drivetribe!

If you ever do install that carbon fiber intake plenum, I do hope there will be more for sale. I’d love to have one to go with the Eventuri intake I’ve got!

For the interior bits you should be able to use NA spec M5 parts since we got the e60 M5 with a manual

this could get interesting! 👀🚘

The legend that is James May.

Just bought a V12 S600. Only 8/9 registered in the UK and none available for sale anymore.

American spec E60 M5 came with a manual gearbox from the E39 M5 I believe, so it would fit quite nicely and with OEM standards.

I've waited so long for this moment...

James absolutely destroyed it 😂

The DCT from the E92 M3 fits the E60 M5 if you want smoother shifts. Or the ZF 8HP but I don't think anyone did that swap

Might be cause it's 2 o'clock in the morning and I'm on my way home from the pub, but this is one of the best RU-vid videos I've ever seen. Love you James! Keep it up!

James is like a fine wine. He just keeps getting better with age.

When Mike says the manual swap will “cost them nothing because they’re in the world of RU-vid” does that mean they’re getting the work for free or DriveTribe will pay for it? I can’t imagine “M3 Everything” will really make their money back by doing their manual swap for free. It bothers me a bit the RU-vidr getting free work from these small companies, unless I’m missing something about the relationship.

You just do rod bearings every 60k and your fine with engine reliability, small price to pay. I got a buddy who made one of these basically but a 6spd manual.

I like James May a lot. This was a cool vid. I'd really like to see how it turns out after the manual transmission swap. Thanks.

You will utterly ruin the car with the 6 speed manual. Leave this masterpiece alone please.

The e60 M5 came with a manual Gearbox in the US, so pretty easy to buy the bits for the conversion

brutal honesty I love it lolol. I loved these when they came out in the US I was 21 at the time. now at 39 and working on cars for 22 years I wouldn't want one at all. engine sounds great that's all I like about those E60 M5

Also love they are standing at the "Fire assembly point".

An s600 would be a super cool project. If you get the twin turbo one you can tune it to smoke just about anything on the road

Convert the gearbox it has init to the manual it is, like they did on wheeler dealer

You could get this manual as standard in the states. Check out that route if you are swapping

Okay, 8:19 - now You got me giving a statement: Im sometimes a bit jealous to Germans, Americans and especially Britains because in these Countries legendary cars have been made. Here in Seitzerland? Okay, we had Monteverdi, we have Rinspeed and Sbarro, but they make automotive collectibles, not "cars". BUT: 8:19 THAT hat world famous and (mostly hated) thing called "Wunder Baum" is made in the small Swiss city where I live.

The E60 M5 was available with a manual in the US only. Therefore, it's probably not as complicated as using a E46 gearbox.

always love seeing may on. and enjoyed the episode. But when is that V10 mazda gonna be done!!!

Wouldn’t it be simpler to source many of the manual transmission parts and interior trim pieces from the US spec E60 M5 V10 saloon that had the manual as a factory installed option?

Where do you get the semi-static roundel center caps?

Interesting, the battery sits inside and close enough to metal to arc and its on the same side as the gas fill site?

We could get these in a 6spd manual overhere, but we also only got the sedan only, no Touring. Still threw rod bearings tho.

its funny because after seeing so many videos of this car restored and they try to explain to someone, why it's cheap what they fixed, the other person would just say its an old car that breaks down too easily with a racing gearbox and weird clutch

It's always a treat to see Dr. james may

They sold the V10 M5 with a manual in the states, there were’nt many but you may be able to get a hold of one.

M5's were available as manuals in US - both, E60's and F10's - low production runs, but they existed. E60 uses the same M3 gearbox, GS6-53BZ, so it is not a "custom job," BMW has done it. OEM interior panels can be sourced.

"Don't drink and drive". I agree, it's inconvenient. Drink first, and then drive.

Great to see James back

James is spot on. Mind you the v12 merc isn’t exactly known for economy nor reliability either🤣🤣🤣. There’s a reason these cars are cheap now. Now picking up a similar aged t5r estate and souping that up would be fun, or something like a big old v8 lexus? Not cool but great cars. In beemer land I’d have an E39 or E46 csl 330 coupe. Reliable, cool and quick.

Always a pleasure to watch James May talk about anything

You have to love James May and his Dry Humour . Does it so well .

You do know they sold those (and the following gen M5) with a 6-speed and three pedals in the States, right? You should be able to source one of those gearboxes and the accompanying interior bits to make it an OEM affair.