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Gidday, Sitting on the sidelines on this thread. Some interesting comments. I believe though that the E31's get's a rough rap because it is a mis-understood vehicle -sort of like the Porsche 928. I drove 4 examples of 850i's, and 3 840's before I bought my car. They were all automatic, and to be honest lacked the sporty nature that I had got accustomed to, driving a M635csi. However, my car is a M-spec, 4.4 6 speed manual - and despite it not being a 850csi (and at the time my budget could not stretch to that), it is still a fun car to drive. BMW obviously thought manuals in the 4.4 wouldn't sell well (as they made only 3 manuals in RHD -versus 1,470 automatic)- however, I don't get it - it has reasonable torque, handles reasonably well and is a very smooth drive. I think they got it wrong - I think they could have sold more if people had actually driven a M-spec 6 speed manual. Saying that however, their market research probably concluded that their target market was an older, wealthy individual who wanted a nice relaxing automatic -perfect for trans-continental jaunts. A close friend of mine currently owns a E39 M5, a E34 M5, 2 E34 6-speed 540is's, a E24 M635csi, a E24 635csi, amongst numerous other lovely cars. He has driven my car many times and claims that it is faster, yet handles as well as his 540is's and is in reality very close to his E34 M5's performance. I was kind of surprised by what he had to say, but it backs up what I think too - it is actually a much nicer drive than the generic automatic 840's I had driven in the past. From what I can gather, the 840i's are perceived to be cheaper to run - as a consequence they don't come up for sale as much in NZ- people hold onto them. There were 6 NZ examples of the 4.0 6-speeds - 2 have to gone to Australia and the other 4 examples, nor the automatic versions come up for sale very much. Where as there are alot more 850i's in NZ, and I believe tender to linger on trademe because of the perceived costs to run one. However, as Jooles has mentioned - you either spend a little more and source an example that has been maintained well throughout its entire life, or you buy a cheap one and budget $10-$15k to get it right. What you get in return is a very unique design which is arguably one of BMW's prettiest creations with tons of road presence. With a nice hue and a set of decent wheels (think M parallels or Alpina's or Style 5's) you get a stylish car which apart from it's pop-up lights, belie its age. Another thing too - how often do you actually see one on the road -- let alone a nice one??? They are not that common. Not sure if I would have ever bought an automatic example, because I like 3 pedals. Saying that, I just want to say that I have truly enjoyed owning my 8 - they are (in my opinion) a totally under-rated vehicle.

I think the extra track width helps the front end a lot. It's always had a really sharp front on it, even with the six it was more an oversteerer than a sledger. Plenty of power down oversteer in third now ha. Only sticking point with the V8 conversion is getting a box for it. Otherwise it's a bargain really.

The 8 series is definitely misunderstood... Usually by people who haven't driven one or have only driven an old one with 100K+ kms on it. It's a fantastic car in both V8 and V12 form. The M73 with 5 speed tiptronic I think would be the perfect balance but sadly they only built around 1500 units all in LHD. Mine doesn't handle as well as my previous E39 but it's a work in progress - with a fair bit of work yet to do! - but I've been lucky enough to drive an absolute minter and it was amazing. A lot of people think the 8er wasn't a big success because of the power train but actually it was the price that was the problem. Priced around the quarter of mill mark in 1990 meant that they were right up there with exotics like Lambos and Ferraris but did not have the same high revving wow factor - although the I think the styling was right up there. It's not a slow car by any stretch of the imagination, however, especially with a tune and a shorter final drive ratio but nor is it an excitement machine. It was built, as Martin said, for mile-munching cross continents, not for short bursts of quick acceleration. That said, a standard 850i will push close to 300kph with the limiter removed. I've fitted a 3.64 LSD compared to the standard 3.15 open diff in euro spec 850s (or a dull 2.83 in US 4 speeds, I believe) which has made a big difference along with improved throttle response from an EML chip and around 30-35 extra horses from a couple of DME chips. It's definitely the fastest 4 speed auto I've ever driven. Yes, they would have benefitted from their own power train - the S70 (from the csi version) as standard would have been a good start and the ITB S70/1 version in the M8 prototype (pumping out 550 naturally aspirated bhp) would have been the perfect M car - only the latest M5 and M6 have achieved that kind of power with a couple of turbos! The S70/2 and /3 are the engine used in the McLaren F1, I believe). BMW spent so much on R&D on the 8er - it launched a host of new electronic wizardry - that the on road costs in the early 90s, just as the stock exchange crashed, were astronomical. The V8 versions were an attempt to mitigate the running costs for potential owners but in reality they're not much cheaper to run. I think the 8er marque stands for BMW's exploration into new tech. The 8er was packed full of it and the i8 is the next big tech leap for them. If you're wanting a track hack or to race WRXs at the lights it's not the car for you but if you want a very comfortable (as long as your sub 6'2" and your children have no legs), classic GT car that oozes style - and will get a lot of second looks! - then you can't go wrong with an 8!

I commute 400k's a week, so thought that I'd stop using the E39 for this, as its chewing up around 12L/100k due to heavy traffic etc and has some issues (such as oil leaks, running rough when cold etc to fix). I purchased This old Golf GTi from turners. Its a 1998 Mk4 Golf Gti with manual transmission, 196,000k on the clock. I got it for $2700, its had 1 NZ owner and seems to be fairly well looked after, as far as an old cheap car like this goes at least. One of the reasons the price was cheap , no WOF, but a carjam checked showed that it hadn't been taken through for a WOF and failed. I picked up the car up and dropped it at the local garage by work for a WOF check, it failed, but only on Strut mounts and 2 bulbs, later that day it had a new WOF and I drove it home. One issue I did notice, was a fluctuating idle, (rpm needle would bounce after slowing down and stopping at an intersection). A quick google and I discovered this was most likely a dirty throttle body. Sure enough.. Before: After: I took it for a good drive, idle issue resolved. Now to use it for work and see how much fuel I use etc. (will report back later). I will be doing a stage 1 remap on it soon (buying a remapped ecu from the UK) as its only $300 incl the ECU with the immo removed. Not a bad car to drive really, I like having a manual gearbox again. The recaro seats are decent too.

I wonder what that product placement cost Am i the only one who finds the MI series insufferable... because Tom Cruise

White e30 (bm 325) And dad found this hiding away

No.... I never said that... there were four scenarios I mentioned... access, body mass, experience and the right tools

actually 95 onwards and there was crossover so you have to check, especially as many weren't registered until 96. The V8s grew from 4 to 4.4L and the V12s got the 5.4L M73... But ONLY left hand drive versions. Otherwise no other differences. The UK market got lots if individual spec 840 sports which had the csi body kit. Not a face lift in sight just two body kit types - standard and sport. You won't find an M73 850ci for love nor money in NZ as only around 1500 LHD cars were built. A bad csi will cost you $40-50k and a good one $75k+. Best option is to get is buy a cheap 850i, get a csi kit (it's still available from BMW for around $3k shipped) and prepare to spend up on suspension, etc. oh wait... I'm doing it!!!

Just purchased a Jap import 2005 E61 530i and am very happy with it. Previous cars, Mercedes E350 wagon Sports Edition (basically a silver hearse) and prior to that a very satisfying period with a Mercedes C32 AMG. While in theory the E350 and the 530i are direct competitors, to my mind there's no comparison. The 530i as a total driving experience is just vastly superior. I'll probably look to do the Nav/Bluetooth conversion soon and perhaps an exhaust mod to extract more of that beautiful exhaust note at some point in the future.

The Devil is in the detail. The pre FL headlamp brackets only allow 3 of the 4 bolts to secure the headlamps, only 2 were holding in one headlamp so I went and got some proper FL headlamp brackets with all new fasteners. The rear license plate LED's were just a tad bright so I bought brand-new incandescent items, along with a FL windscreen washer fluid filler neck.

Will try and scan it, so people can read about the "powerful" BMW 1500

Yeah, it didn't sell at that price though and I saw it drop to around the $20K mark. Not sure if it sold at $20K either. I think a low kms 4.4L manual would be worth a bit here but no idea how much, certainly not as much as a csi - a good one of those will be $75K+ now. I got offered a manual 4L 840i with 120K miles ex-UK for $3K - they're cheap as chips there now but likely to be impossible to comply without major work (just ask Brad who brought in the technoviolet csi).

Car wouldn't be a problem. Those God awful family stickers on the back would be a deal breaker though.

I use a g220 in the race car, never let me down and is light as all hell

Nope... To quote Cecil Rhodes... "Remember that you are an Englishman, and have consequently won first prize in the lottery of life" (which is slightly ironic from a man who spent so much of his time in Africa!) I'm off to India to watch the test series next year!

dont beleive everything you read in dog and lemon or on the internet. Here is a heads up.There is a risk with owning ANY car.If you get a BMW with a good service history and keep on top of its maintenance i suggest it wont be any more expensive to own than any other car that you maintain to the same standard.BMWs are fine cars and have a deserved reputation for being a fabulous drive.They are not without fault .But neither are MOST other cars. If you want a cheap reliable car with minimal risk stick to Toyotas and NIssans but they wont reward you with anything more than cheap day to day transport.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hDQtXIKy_w&feature=youtu.be enjoy

that's right because they all blow up after 100k's

started my v8 e30 back in sept 2009, still beavering away at it... time flies when you are having fun.. must do skids with you sometime

Really? Have never known a car to pull a women, there is always more to the story. Ie, women see the driver of a flash car as someone who is financially secure and can potentially provide for them... this is what pulls certain types. Women won't sleep with you based on what you drive. Key word women. Girls might. In terms of answering the OP. I would say no. I would not date a women based on what she drove, it may get my attention, I would ask her about the car, but would not date a boring women or princess based on her flash car.. Perhaps even avoid a car chick, well a chick that drives a car to look cool... They are normally Tom boys or just as insecure as the type of guys who drive flashy cars. I have dated women who co-drive rally cars though, they are normally cool, but that's more about the sport and the thrill of speed than the car itself. Interesting topic. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

hmm i must say i have to agree with you for the most part. handling is a bit 'loose' indeed. especially coming from plenty of bmw's in my past, most of which were msport. but i think it also makes the car a bit easier to drive. the steering is lighter (a bit more japanesey) than your average bmw and i can easily turn using one hand whereas with a bmw for example i would be more inclined to drive with both hands on the steering wheel. My biggest gripe with the w211 is the boaty suspension (which im assuming is what you meant when you said 'wallowy') I think some adjustable suspension would solve that problem but its certainly going to be expensive. I think its mainly because the e350 is a family sedan with more focus on comfort rather than handling. its certainly not a sports car. Also the 530i comes in both standard and msport and im pretty certain a non msport e60/61 would be quite similar to the benz. i do love the straight six sound of the bmw. (man i really do miss my old e46 330i msport) the mercedes v6 however is still a lovely engine and it goes bloody quick! The last point i wana make is that the w211 wagon looks quite dated whereas the e61 wagon still (to me anyway) looks quite newish. Lovely car btw! come say hi at the next coffee and cars meet http://bimmersport.co.nz/topic/49568-auckland-monthly-coffee-and-cars-meet/

Kurt Cobain died.

What happened in 1994?

Spent all of Saturday doing the ignition switches and push start button, which btw adds 15kw at the wheels which worked quite well actually with 2 On/Off switches, 5pin relay and the engine push start. Took some figuring out, but started up fine..... ...until I went to move the car and then nudda. The gauge lights lit up as though in Acc or Ign1 position, but wouldn't turn over as it did before. So spent a few minutes triple checking connections and still the same problem. Then it hit me, EWS!!! and that bastard chip in the key. So what I landed up doing is building a diode looking thingy using the spare keys chip. Had to melt a fuse holder a little to get it to hold the chip nice and tight, then connected it to the Acc On/Off switch using the existing two wires from the key reader and BOOM, started up again. Seems to have done the trick. Tested about 10 times. Will get some pics up of that wiring when I put the dash back together after roll cage.

Bloody BMW drivers! Get a dashcam

Now that we have taken the decision to go sequential in the E21 Group 5, we have available a Getrag 420 6 speed from an E36 M3, Gearbox has just been apart and checked over by Kayne Barrie Motorsport and pronounced sound. New seals fitted whist it was apart. Will also throw in some new rear mount bobbins sourced from Kayne. $2200 Pickup Manukau area, will ship at buyers expense if needed. Richard