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yea i quite like the smg now have always owned and driven manuls converted many cars to manual driven a few dct's etc but i favorite one now is my m3 smg with the csl flash , have both m3 models at the moment manual and smg and the smg is my pick to drive , you just need to learn it a bit etc

DCT is far more 'auto' than SMG. A 'CSL' tuned SMG is way more visceral than DCT. There is a reason Lambo kept the E-gear around for so long. I was once like you 'manual or die' - don't fall for the forum hype. (As mentioned, Hell built it as manual and converted at customer request).

After weeks of successfully ignoring the classified, I finally cracked and messaged @qube about the car. He was extremely patient with my questions, at first general, then specific, and finally random as it became increasingly clear that I was very keen on the car. I had a yarn on the phone with @EUROHO, whose enthusiasm for the car tipped me right over the edge. My father-in-law and I flew up from Vellington last weekend, and Kyu picked us up from the airport. We chatted with him and his dad in a supermarket carpark before shaking hands and promising to treat it right. They were both gentlemen, and it was a pleasure to meet them. We filled up at a motorway services on the southern motorway. I was impressed that when we got home the obc still promised 150km of good times in the tank. We stopped at Good Union in Cambridge on the way - a lovely church that has been converted into a great pub/restaurant. Apart from a leg stretch in Bulls, we knocked the drive out in one from there, and had a great drive, SH32 from Cambridge down to Turangi was a lot of fun.

agreed I've found the wifes one works better for some reason

E39 Cons low beam headlights A/c ancillary fan Final stage unit heater Cooling system Belt pulleys /tensioners Oil leaks Crank case vent system Seat upholstery bolsters etc Pixels in cluster and other instruments Thrust arms control arms Rotas and pads Rear boot wiring loom Tail light /body configuration leading to water leaks Poor rear visibilty reliant on to many electronic gadgets Pros Nice to sit in great driving highway cruising E46 Compact Cons The history of the ones with the N42,N46 engines is well documented so many faults As mine has the M54 series motor the faults mentioned in the e39 also apply lower suspension arms and bush's Rear axle/hub bearings rear window wiper motor rubber seals around rear screen reliant on to many electronic items to make it appear up market Pros Handles well very nibble can be economical on a trip and even in town if sensible

E46 318i (my first car) Pros Economical. Great handling. Cons 0 - 100: yes. Sadly not worth spending money on to maintain. E46 M3 Pros Everything the 318i is and everything the 318i is lacking. Many fast. Much performance. Best car ever. Cons Subframe needs much love. Vanos needs much love. Rod bearings need much love. It would be more economical to buy petrol and set fire to it in a pit. Much performance = much maintenance costs. Will suck all of your money because you love it so much. (this is also a "pro"). Basically the E46 on the face of it has a whole bunch of cons, but that's what makes you love it so much. It's the most E46 an E46 can be. Handling is amazing. Driving experience is amazing. If it was just a standard performance car it would be boring. It's right on the edge of engineering and design and that's what makes it fun.

From my own experiences I was thinking about what pros and cons BMW models have. Sometimes these are things you can only pick up on after owning them. Without getting super wordy, make a list of the pros and cons you've personally with your BMW experience! E36 Coupe, Pros Body shape, longer hood etc Weight, not too heavy Fun to drive from factory, more so with M3 suspension parts Easy to work on E36 Coupe, Cons Water getting under the carpets Rear subframe cracks Interior door panels failed Roof lining needs fixing Your turn!

Hey just signed up ive owned 7 bmws in the past but have only just found this site, heres my e34 525i cheers

E39 HALOGEN low beams are complete crap! My '72 Beetle is better - the Xenons are OK: I have had both brand new in the same car. I replaced the original water pump preventively at about 130K... and the replacement only lasted about 40K... then the GMB I got from REPCO in an emergency only last about 3 weeks and is noisy now! It's had a suspension rebuild at about 120K, new ABS(DSC) module, all brakes at 165K, clutch very nearly due at 175K, pixels all done at 120K, rocker cover has a small crack now too. And I had to replace the 13+ year old battery, too! Shocking!

Z3 - E36/7 Pro's - Tops off driving - Lovely curved lines - Suspension can be made very nimble cheaply - Quickest steering rack ratio in any BMW - No room for the kids when out for a cruise - Easy to work on - Parts are easy to get new or used off E30 and E36 - Plug and play cruise control retrofit for M52TU and M54 models Con's - The plastic cooling Y connector at the back of the M44 block (1.9L models only) - All the M54 issues for the 6 cylinder models - Scuttle shake if you push it really really hard in the corners - Boot floor cross member/diff mount failure in high powered hard driven models (2.8L, 3.0L and M's) - Peeling leather on the dash if its an extended leather model.

Just cover the intake ports with duct tape/100mph tape. If you want to.get real fanatic about it make up some blanking.plated out of perspex and use intake mounting points to bolt down.

I wouldn't put my life on an E39 taking a beating, id consider it with an E28 or E34. Some of the maybe lesser known things for the E34 Pro's Cheap, durable and easy to fix in nearly all areas Plug and play retrofits eg cruise control, obc etc Good performance - complexity ratio iS models weren't common as muck and you actually got you an LSD diff Con's M30 in the E34 would probably be in the top 3 worst BMW engines for mpg Every M30 ive owned has blown a head gasket but they are so cheap as easy to do (all 300,000-500-000km cars that still ran strong) Dead on center steering feel from new but awesome feel when not in middle Wiper arms have always seem to have rubbed on the hood at some point

Welcome and howdy from Wellington! Love the E34 in white. Note that NP is in the 'catchment' for the Lower North Island branch of the BMW Car Club and there's a number of people like @Breaker who join our events - we do some good runs up your way!

Hi everyone, a short introduction: - I'm a happy long-time E46 (2001) 325i owner. Car has been great, a joy to drive and damn reliable (regularly servicing has no doubt helped). - I'm based in Auckland. - I haven't modified my car in any way so its stock at the moment. My wife recently got a new car and it seems to have all the bells and whistles so I'm now looking at things I may be able to update a little! - I'm embarrassed to say that I don't have a single pic of my car and as its dark outside I'll have to wait to tomorrow to take a couple to post here. Cheers, Aaron.

Well I bit the bullet and purchased an RHD flywheel. Arrived on my doorstep in 3 days, machine work looks excellent and was well packaged. I bought the heavy duty version that bolts up to m54 directly, using an m30 based clutch. Sterling auto& clutch will have my clutch ready for pickup tomorrow. Aiming to install in Jan once all the other parts arrive. Will update further then Thanks to all who offered advise

E36 coupe pros: Look nice Drive nice Can make them handle unbelievably well for little money Manual goodness Cons: Plastic cooling system Window regulators and motors The whole interior will destroy itself in front of your eyes window regulators and motors Wheel bearings window regulators and motors E36 316 sedan: (my favorite) Pros: Manual. Economical Reliable Hilariously floppy and slow Manual windows don't break Cons Hilariously floppy and slow Drum brakes No rear anti roll bar Interior has exploded E53 X5 pros: Manual. Diesel Everything is awesome Sportpac Cons: None.

And fitted, thanks Tom.

Urgh

will not recommend re003's for stretching 225 onto a 9inch rim. probably something like falken fk452/453 will do the trick

Bridgestone RE003's are very popular around here.

I'm not an SMG fan but I think it's the right choice for this car. Let's be honest, you're not buying this as a track-rat but rather something that has amazing utility and a scary bite. I think SMG with the right tune will give you the best of all worlds in this, you can load it up, it'll scare most other cars yet anyone can jump in and drive it. That's pretty ace. Pity I'm not wealthy enough.

Pah that’s nothing you should see @mellowpuf s old 325tds which now lives at my house has toadstools growing out of the back seat

Happy to help, was pretty feral oil! Could have got it off with enough persuasion but hot exhaust and splashing oil would have been enevitable, and not enough time either! M20 are pretty lethargic, they were. 20 years old before they made it into the E30, and that’s 30 years ago now! is it just me or does it have prefaceloft rear guards, just looks it in that pic, maybe it’s just because it’s one the last E30s on monster truck suspension

Welcome!! Love the E34 - looks great in white. What other BMW’s have you owned?

dream on pal...id keep my sedan over a convertible especially any day....coming from a toyota is a cheap shot.

Only good E36 is the Coupe or Vert in M3 or M sport spec. 4 doors and wagons are pretty iffy.

Nah e36 tourings are ugly :-) Ray's monster is awesome!

The joys of passing on a car to a fellow member!

The car has definitely sung for its supper over the years, and has a rich tapestry of stone chips on the bonnet and windscreen (which were significantly added to by some prizewinner hammering through roadworks on SH32 last weekend). The paint has some water spot staining, which I'm not experienced/brave enough to tackle, but I had a go at the spotting on the windows today. Not sure how well the photo will show the difference, but the return is pleasing for the right combination of product and elbow grease (which I'm now all out of).

Hi Guys, I'm the lucky owner - my gut said this was a unique opportunity to pick up an unmolested E30 Touring. The seller picked it up for ~9.5k around 12 months ago and has probably spent ~2k on it tidying it up, so thought the price was fair. Keen to bring it along to a meet soon! Should arrive in Auckland next week.

The Hilman Avenger has a special place in my heart. Bought a pretty tidy one for $350 back in 2006 with some mates and spent a few weekends trying to kill it on a paddock. It had a fresh 1600 in it and was a 4-speed manual, good for donuts in top gear on the grass, probably all day. The only issues we really had were the engine mounts breaking. We fixed that by stropping the engine in place. In hindsight I would have loved to have restored it, but being a young early 20 something idiot back then, it was decided that paddock bashing was a better idea.

Or keep your old plates and get the number plate surrounds that fit the standard plate but are Euro style in size etc about $20.