
Title : Illustrated BMW Motorcycle Buyer's Guide
Author : Stefan Knittel
Rating : 3 Stars out of 5.
Summary : More of a history book than a buyers' guide.
This is a great book and well written. However, it is more of a history book on the BMW motorcycles than it is a buyer's guide. There is very little information on pricing and the author is very generous to the BMW legacy without being especially helpful to prospective buyers. I put it down having learned alot about the BMW line but probably more confused about which BMW to buy than when I picked it up. If you want to learn about the bikes it is great, if you are a newcomer and you want basic buying info, I am not sure that this is the best book.

Title : BMW 3-Series Workshop Manual 1999-2005 (E46)
Author : Bentley Publishers
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Great reference
Good detail and broad range of subjects if a little Americanised. However it doesn't cover the M42 engine and the 318is.

Title : End of the Road: BMW and Rover - A Brand Too Far
Author : Andrew Lorenz
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : A riveting summary of the Rover/BMW debacle
This is a highly readable tale of the purchase of Rover by BMW and the ensuing fiasco, climaxing in the sell out to Phoenix. There are some fascinating insights into the behind the scenes machinations of BMW, the unions, the government and Alchemy at the time of BMW's attempts to get rid of Rover. Funnily enough - Alchemy who were cast as the villains of the piece by the British press are practically the only players who come out the whole mess smelling of roses.
My only criticism is that this is quite a high level strategic view and there is not much detail on what went wrong at the operational level - I would have liked to have known more!

Title : BMW Illustrated Buyer's Guide
Author : Fred Larimer
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : BMW Buyer's guide
A very good book but be aware that it's American, i.e. virtually no mention of diesels!

Title : End of the Road: BMW and Rover - A Brand Too Far
Author : Andrew Lorenz
Rating : 1 Stars out of 5.
Summary : An Opportunity Missed
For starters this isn't good value for money. I think £ for such a thin book is a bit steep - I'd finished the book within 2 days and I'm not a fast reader!
Secondly it skims over the surface of the issues, it feels like an extended newspaper article rather than an in-depth study. The authors stick to the rather few (albeit very important) people that they spoke to, and treat one or two of them to (unjustified, in my view) hero-worship. They could have added far more interest, colour and drama, if they had perhaps talked to some more operational people to get a feel for what it was like 'on the ground'; (It would also have added a bit more material).
If you're looking for a far more interesting book on a car industry merger gone wrong then buy "Taken for a Ride" on the Daimler Chrysler merger. It's a far more interesting and entertaining read than this, rather unsatisfying book.
If you're looking for a better or comparible history of Rover and BMW then stick to reading the newspapers ...

Title : BMW 5 Series Service Manual 1989-95: 525i, 530i, 535i, 540i Including Touring
Author :
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : That you need!
In these days, buying a car is like buying a computer software. You pay for the right to use it. And if something goes wrong, you get a minimun off help. This book can help you and save a lot off money, not having to go to the shop for every little thing. But still it's not complett. But still very usefull. Why spend $50 on the shop just to CHECK tho oil level in the transmission then you can do it yourself, with some help from the book.