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I picked one of these up the other day and can confirm it's legit. CTEK MSX5.0 (5A) normally $190-$250 (Repco Link) Currently available for $139 including accessories (Repco Link) I don't think you'll get a better bargain than that for a CTEK, my M3 loves me for it because of the really low amperage maintenance mode. For those wondering, 5A is fine for even a quite large vehicle battery.

Hey folks! Finally pulled the trigger and got two of these units from AliExpress for the X5 and 650i. Both cars are equipped with iDrive NBT. Installation was simple enough. Cable management was tricky due to the way the MOST cable has no play. Simply removing the MOST cable from the cable sleeve solved this. Once It had more play everything fir neatly behind the head unit. I routed the WiFi cable up along the LVDS cable and stuck the antenna to the back of the display. Package Content Installed and working The unit started right up after everything was connected. I was worried when I saw the mic and AUX connectors in the included harness, but neither of those are required since the audio is routed directly to head unit (albeit still through the aux channel) and uses the car's built-in mic. I figured that the harness is made to fit pretty much any car's hardware configuration, which is a nice touch. As with most of these units, Android Auto out of the box does not utilise the new widescreen layout. This is easily fixed with a custom firmware (Courtesy of Firefly1337 on the F30 forum). Flashing it takes a minute and comes with several tweaks, most notable of which is the widescreen Android Auto implementation. Since it uses the AUX channel the track info etc does not display on the cluster or HUD, nor do the track up/down show but you can set the unit to allow the audio wheel to navigate the display which is the next best thing. After the initial setup, the Android Auto starts up in under a minute after getting into the car. No need to connect the phone with USB.

Removed gross AC rear roof spoiler

That offset 8.5" on the rears soooo much nicer than the BBS square 8j all round. Like a glove No regrets with that color, no idea how to get the painter to replicate it for the future tho ? Took the Potenza 245/40/18 run flats for a drive, and I don't know about other brands but I was struggling to hear the difference between non RFT road noise and run flats. To be honest it might even be quieter, so there's a plus one vote for Bridgestone Potenzas

+1 on the CTEK units, I believe BMW's battery charger accessory is also just a BMW-branded CTEK.

Back up for sale (decided to keep it a little longer last time) One of the tidiest in the country. Runs perfectly, enquire with confidence it’s been a dream. Specs: 2002 UK Import (no rust etc) Full service history since brand new with all manuals, two keys 160,000km Factory 6 Speed Manual (Not SMG, not a manual conversion) Reinforced Subframe Recently replaced clutch Recently replaced brakes and rotors LED Headlights / Taillights Extras: 18x9.5" Sportline Wheels BC Gold Coilovers ($1,600) Recaro SR7 Alcantara Seats ($4500 NZD landed for the pair) Alcantara wrapped steering wheel Alcantara handbrake and shifter boot Samsona heavy duty short shifter with reverse lockout (over $1000 worth) Agency Power Exhaust Setup ex USA ($2,500) Carbon Fibre CSL Style Boot ex USA ($3,000, colour matched) Carbon Fibre Rear Splitter ex USA ($600 colour matched) Stage 2 AFe Air Intake Kit ex USA ($600) Tinted Headlight / Side Indicators Blackened Side and Front Grill Gloss Black Mirror Casings 20% Rear Tints, 35% Front Duraseal Paint Protection Approximately $18,000+ in extras Vehicle is certified Recently updated WOF and rego. Recent service. Showroom condition. Comes with original seats and a bunch of spare parts. $40k ONO

So was driving on the motorway heading to an important client meeting when suddenly I got the old limp mode engine malfunction. Managed to get off the motorway luckily. As I applied the brakes at the intersection, the DSC error also came up on the dash. Staggered up the hill of the road and pulled off to a side road. Got on the phone to Autosure who arranged to have it towed to the closest authorized euro mechanic - although I opted to pay the extra $2/km to have it towed to my current mechs (Continental Wairau). Will post back here once we know whats wrong with it.

Vogtland kits are pretty cost effective. German company. Shocks are made by Bilstein or Alko.

The manufacturers are chasing every bit of economy and emissions reduction they can get and as a result the onboard charging systems are now much more sophisticated and less wasteful of energy. The car is trying to optimise the charging regime, which changes as the battery ages or if a bigger or smaller battery is used, which is why it needs to be coded when a new battery is installed. Charging via the connections under the bonnet allows the electronics to keep track of the extra charge going into the battery, whereas connecting direct to the battery does not.

Video doesn't really do it justice on the level of smoke piling out. Was one hell of a laugh, trucky was trying to wave the guy down haha. Those rings are poked!! Hope it ain't a members BMW

Also lockdown driving patterns are quite battery intensive too..lots of starts and short journeys, not much distance driving. It's tough on batteries and if the alternator is past it's best/failing it could all add up. My alternator didn't just die suddenly one day either...it gradually got worse over a few months (presumably as the brushes finally wore out)...I just didn't see the signs looking back as all of these 'random' module failures came up as I was driving.

Never good! Did the limp mode clear when you turned it off and on? Typically a wheel speed sensor failure will cause a DSC code....but I'm not aware of it putting a vehicle into limp mode. This kind of reminds me of when I had an alternator failure while driving. In a 'basic vehicle' you'd get a battery light and it's fairly obvious. In my E46 modules started to throw error codes one after another and exactly like you, when I pressed the breaks the DSC fault came up. Do let us know how you get on!

Yeah no dispute from me there, but works well enough for me to top up batteries every now and then on the car(s) don't drive for 3 weeks or so. Speed is not a huge concern for me there You've linked to a great charger for a really good price for a CTEK at that ampage for sure. I'm merely sharing my experience with a cheap charger that hasn't blown anything up as a bottom dollar alternative.

seeing as they are made specifically for the E9x, its not surprise they fit well haha

To me it looks like they are are chrome plated and the finish is wearing off

Hope it gets sorted easily. Glad u managed to get it off the highway safely. Its always a bit of a scare when car suddenly dies on the road.

Yeah perhaps! I got the confirmation from Continental that my car got there and they'll check it out in the morning. Another friend of mine mentioned it could possibly be a wheel speed sensor. Im intrigued to find out - literally drove perfectly on the way to my office - 20km from home. Eitherway, hopefully its covered under Autosure (fingers crossed).

Throttle actuator? The M5 did something similar when one of its died, not sure if the V8 ones are a common fault or not but the V10 ones definitely are.

Batteries on new cars need to be registered if they're replacing the same capacity battery, there's additional coding required if the replacement battery has different specs. Both of these only apply if you're changing the battery though, not just charging it. @m325i - you'll probably need a charger with a restoration mode, like the CTEK (which are the favoured chargers on the market).

Solved:

Assuming current shocks/springs need replacing - Koni sports / H&R springs. Check bushes. See how it handles and review swaybars and drop links accordingly.

Thanks for the input all. I'm told you can fit three in one container which reduces shipping costs by quite a bit. That's made the decision easy and all three will be on their way shortly. Hope to meet some more BMW owners in summer ?

Made it up the mountain today such a fun road up to Turoa

Not sure if E30 interior or poorly laid out S&M dungeon.

Google Maps with nav is the biz on these screens, just make sure you download your offline maps areas first. And it looks like your vents are gross like mine were because BMW used an entirely unsuitable material. I used some back-to-black trim restorer and cotton buds to do mine, others remove them and paint them.

Got rid of the kurbage and Painted the style 193. Gunmetal / metallic asked the paint mixer to surprise me with adding some black in it.

Always worth spending time tracking these sources yourself as sometimes you can be looking at a $12 gasket and a 15 minute job to fix... At this age and KMs, it's time for valve cover gaskets will likely be leaking, this is just par for the course with BMW. Also the N62 has a that silly vac pump design with the big rubber seal that starts to leak. It's a cheap job fortunately. Leaks from the bottom of the engine can be from the oil sender gasket or the sump pan gasket. Also I've seen the main seals leak from the front and rear and look like it's the pan gasket. I don't know how the VANOS seals are on these engines...but again, it's another typical source of leakage. The other culprit can be the oil housing gasket (not the round one on the filter cap but where the metal housing attaches to the block). On many engines this is above the powersteering/oil cooler hoses and such and is often mistaken for power steering fluid. TBH...I never understand how mechs confuse oil and power steering fluid leaks as its horrible stuff.

My AA Insurance didn't come with AA... So I said I was going to someone else and they gave it to me for free for both roadworthy cars.

Not sure if "just done 91k" was said in a way to suggest "only" 91ks.. Cuz thats more than enough for a 4.8L V8 engine in a 12 year old BMW to develop some issues. I had a quick look on google for common leak issues and plenty came up. It could be anything. Best thing to do if the leak is not bad is get it booked at a BMW mechanic to properly diagnose where your issue is coming from and get that sorted. They should also be able to advise you what else needs or will need attention.

Mine doesn't *for now*. Does drink it though ?

I wouldnt count on the car warning you for waterpump failure. Better to do it and forget for a while. If you order from fcp you get free lifetime replacement if you keep the car long enough for the new part to fail

Waterpumps will start throwing codes when they are on their way out so not usually a surprise moment. Lifters just need 3 mins at 3000rpm to bleed. Valvetronic motors and the seal need doing at some stage (cheap and easy) Rocket cover gaskets weep Coil packs will die (cheap and easy) But yeah get the 3ltr if you have the option. Purely because the 2.5 saves you nothing bar maybe some cash up front. I also feel you need to be pedantic with servicing. But that should be a BMW ownership thing anway.