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My e28 is soon to be getting a M30B35. As most of you will have seen, I got a donor e34 with a good M30 and manual gearbox that's done 170,000 kms which will be going in. Engine, gearbox etc came out of the e34 over the weekend. Have been collecting parts over the last couple of weeks including Mtech rear spoiler, arches, and parts to repair some damage on the front from getting hit (working with the guy's insurance to sort it). Also just installed AP springs about a week ago. The car as it is now: Some of the damage: I'm pretty rubbish at build threads but I'll do my best to update as I go for those interested. Hoping to have the swap done by the end of April.

They would have picked that car up for probably less than 5k in Japan. No one is going to pay over 10k, let alone 15 for a 22 year old Luxury barge in a relic status, especially when it has no x fact other than it's been sitting around all its life. Neglected cars don't make good cars!

Hi all, I bought this car as a daily driver a couple of months ago from Team Mac, and have been learning a bit about it and chipping away at a few things since. The plan is to go to BMW driver training and learn how to drive it properly, then attend some track days. I'm more than happy with the performance and have a bit of a 'wish list' for future parts. Having come from owning a variety of Hondas (and an Audi), it's nice to pick up a car that requires next to no modifications to perform...! The paint is in great condition, and overall the car has been well looked after for it's 77,000kms. The first things on the list to replace were the wheels & tyres. It came on a set of 20" rims, which gave the car a bit of a 'rollerskate' look that didn't really grow on me. Plus, the ride was quite firm for a daily on 25 profile tyres. The rears were 10.5in wide, and just fit inside the flared guards - although it looked great from behind, it simply wasn't practical. It also came on H&R springs, and AFAIK standard shocks - may look into replacing the rear shocks. I picked up a set of 19's in CSL-size staggered fitment (apparently the best standard fitment), and on they went. Comparison: The front kidney grill was already a black-paint item, so that saved me replacement parts. I inherited a fitting p-plate shortly afterwards, which used to reside on a family member's Z3M Coupe. The muffler is branded as 'Supersprint' - turns out to be a pretty good piece of kit. I was initially keen to change however have grown to like it. The only complaint is that it makes a bloody racket when it's cold, but that doesn't last too long I suppose. Excuse the residual crap on the tailpipes in the pic below I want to keep the car standard engine-wise, mainly due to the extended warranty I picked up (and the fact it can out-perform my ability currently). I have noticed there are some subtle nice aftermarket aesthetic parts that can be acquired from Oz, so keen to hear from anyone that imports bits and pieces. I want to stay away from the glaringly obvious carbon fibre bits like bonnet and boot (no offence intended to anyone that has these, it's just not the look I'm going for). Wish list (in no particular order): - Replace the standard clutch-stop with an adjustable item - Fit a bloody euro-sized plinth thing for the front number place - Bought, need to paint and mount when I get a sunny arvo. - Replace rear lip spoiler with carbon (style) lip - Not 100% sure whether I want to do this or not, it's lying in my garage at the mo'. - Carbon front lip (direct bolt-on/off) - Mainly to save the paint at the bottom of the front bumper... it'll probably cost almost as much to repaint the bumper cover as to purchase the aftermarket lip spoiler. - Replace fog lights with HID items. - Replace rear shocks (a top aftermarket brand is apparently the best option here) - Hard wire in a radar detector of some description - Carbon rear diffuser (replacement part) - Re-cover touch surfaces. There's a couple of little chips off the steering wheel, and I don't want the driver's armrest to wear. I'm pretty picky tho, so this is down the list. - CSL airbox (in the distant future, chances are I won't go this way however. They're freaken expensive) And that's about it. Not a 'build thread' as such, as there's no real building going on. I'll update as I install bits and pieces. Suggestions and comments are most welcome.

So I finally took the fiancee's daily driver into see Christian & team at OCD this week, given it's about to be used for a wedding car. I can't recommend them highly enough - top operators who know exactly what they're doing. If you're like me and have been thinking about using them for some time, see the images below to encourage you to book in! Christian (CSET) made it an incredibly easy task. Check them out at ocdetailing.co.nz Thanks guys.

G'day, Took the old girl today for a ride to the city and to watch the sunset. I have owned her for three months, and it's an absolute pleasure driving her. She does get a little extra attention, unfortunately.

No, that had my old suspension. It sits pretty much the same now, maybe marginally higher by a few millimeters. I'm going to make adapter plates and use E28 M30 brackets which I have. Proof that this is happening: Some other cool stuff that's going on:

Hello Bimmersporters, I have been looking through youtube at peoples 745i's with rear muffler deletes, What I can't tell from the videos is how loud this mod actually is, I am really tempted to go out now and grind off the rear mufflers to test it but want some more info first, I am not after a performance boost as this is just a luxury car - I am just after some decent V8 noise , Cheers for any feedback, Ben P.S. there wasn't an exhaust section so I am posting in performance.

e36 m3 are floating where as e46 330i are solid. There is a weight advantage with the e36 m3 discs which counts quite a bit on unsprung weight. while slightly larger the 330 ones have pretty much effect pad wear surface.

Pick a part Avondale, was there Saturday pulling apart the rear seatbelt mech to see how it works lol.

mate, that's superb. You'll be ready for a WoF in no time. And then tyres! Or have you sorted that already?

Wow, seems strange you cant get on my website, will get my Tech guy to have a look One of my lock ups is in Porirua, so if you want to have a look at some stage let me know I could be interested in a few bits as well Regards Barry

Odometer probably stopped working after 6 months lol

So today I tested the head bolts / block threads. I could only access 7 out of the 10 without removing the cams etc, but they all held torque fine. When the car was overheated it didn't go into the red so I'm hoping the threads and block is fine. I will find out on the long weekend when I attempt the head swap.

and bumpers aren't colour matched either

No they will not fit with out spacers. factory offset is 15ish. The e30 wheels will mostproberbly foul the outer tierod. don't quote me on this but they are not easy to get wheels for. Also if you are planning on upgrading the brakes in the future then the 14s will most likely be to small. If you use 323 on the front you will be ok but if you go Holden or Volvo calipers you will hit the .Aliper with the wheel. Best bet is to try them out and see.

looks like they're both 4x100 PCD, centre bore 57.1... 5.5 or 6J with ET35. take a look around at wheel-size.com could be a go. HTH

Acquired and fitted a genuine mtech 1 rear spoiler. Ahh Inlove all over again

Water tank is full and heavy rain forecast for later this week, so I washed it! Looks a little better, although no amount of wax is going to fix the clearcoat on the bonnet

Drove it

this applies to any auto carwash. back when I was in high school, my saturday job was at a Rub-a-Dub auto carwash. How clean came out was directly proprtional to how clean the car was going in. made em shiny though. #8 )

This guy...... HORDER!!

Someone posted this, makes the confiscation make more sense: http://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2002/0009/latest/DLM136853.html?search=ts_act%40bill%40regulation%40deemedreg_Sentencing+Act+2002_resel_25_a&p=1%2f It is because he did this within 4 years of a serious driving offense. Still think it's harsh. Man that Trademe forum is an embarrassment, some of the comments there are so stupid...

I order from China multiple times a week, for customers, either because buying parts locally would write the machine off or the parts are simply not available anywhere else. You're a fkn moron to assume there is NO risk. Parts turn up faulty - good luck getting a refund or returning them. Damaged by courier - good luck Turning up late - China post is horrendously slow. Parts that turn up are actually second hand (lol) Parts are fake and don't actually work. Don't bother ordering anything during one of their numerous holidays. That's just a few examples, don't get me wrong it's still worth us importing from China, but it can be a lot of hassle.

You are driving a cop car