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330i will live another day, thanks to agreed value insurance

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/BMW-E39-M5-SUPERCHARGED-ESS-SILVERSTONE-BLUE-ONE-OFF-50K-OF-MODS-/324389002524?_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49292 SWEET DREAMS ARE MADE OF THIS.

A couple more happy snaps from today ...

After being out of the car scene for some time, I've decided to throw my hat back in the ring and create something fun to build and ultimately fun to drive. A user friendly budget would be a bonus but we'll see how that one pans out !! This will just be a fun street car so the aim is to have a mix of comfort, performance and looks. The car: A NZ new 2000 BMW 318Ci with 4 speed auto. Quite tidy generally with only a handful of the expected BMW "things that don't work no more" to resolve at a later date. Being under powered will hopefully mean no cracking around the subframe and minimal hard driving time etc on the body. The engine: A Nissan VQ37VHR from a 2009 Skyline 370GT automatic. 125k on it give or take so hopefully plenty of life left in it. Factory spec at 243kW which should be a solid upgrade over the cars stock 77 !! No plans for anything engine wise at the moment, must get mobile and legal first. Progress so far: The car is sitting with front end off, engine and driveline are out, rear interior and fuel tank etc removed. Have cleaned the underside to a reasonable standard and have welded in the CMP RACP reinforcement kit. Have cleaned and painted the 330 rear end components ready for reinstallation along with installing Powerflex bushes in most locations. Have created a rig to fire up and run the VQ37 on the ground which was a success and a lot of fun ... had the Nissan anti-theft (NATS) removed via UpRev and an ARC license installed at the same time. This was to validate that I can run the motor prior to install and working out the wiring later on when its more difficult. You can check the video here: Next Steps: REALLY keen to get the rear end back together so something is finished !! Will need to complete the welding in of the RACP to frame rails in the boot before the LVV certifier comes to check out my work. Once that's done I can get ready to stitch weld some other trouble areas then underseal and paint it all real pretty before installing the backend. Once the back end is together and looking slick I can finally turn attention to the pointy end and see if the engine is going to play nice. There will be a lot of work involved and a few options to investigate ... current thinking is it will be a custom oil pan and cross member at least. Steering rack may also be an issue. Some Pics To This Point:

When we needed one two years ago for a customer, there was nothing available second had or new from BMW. The customer ended up cutting his loss and sold it to SD European and moved on. Hope you have better luck.

Sweet, probably lines up with my brake swap. Are you planning to come to the December meet?

And it's a NZ new SMG, not many of those around... pity SMG one, whilst technically delightful, was absolutely awful.

Tradies who charge both a mileage rate AND an hourly fee for the travel time. You can have one or the other, not both.

The topcoat I applied to the wheels had wrinkled up for some reason, so spent another day sanding and priming... Haven't tried again yet... I got stuck into oil and coolant leaks last Sunday and have completed the redundant trans oil cooler and associated coolant pipes removal, as well as plugged the back of the alternator to cure that coolant leak. Also put in a new radiator and replaced the vanos solenoid oil gaskets. I think these along with the rear main seal were the source of the oil leaks. Also changed a power steer hose from reservoir to cooler, the other reservoir pipe is on the way so will change that when it arrives. Needless to say a lot of cleaning along the way.... M5 mirrors have been painted (I broke the $$glass trying to incorrectly get it out, but insurance has saved the day...), but in meantime have painted the existing LH mirror cover. I haven't changed the coolant yet as I have yet to crack open the block drains, but will have another go when new plugs and crush washers arrive... But on a 30 minute drive, happy to report no leaks of any sort and cooling system up to pressure and all good. Next up the coolant, as well as oil, oil filter, air filter change.

Thats the bugger, just need the putting it back together things Swap ya for brake bleeder kit

I have a hub puller if that's what you need? @zero might have the bearing tools he lent me?

I actually saw this on the motorway this morning, it had one of those rubber EZ Lips on the spoiler.

No need to worry boys, the amount of quantitive easing going on recently, surely some of it will filter thru to roading. All the new expressways tunels etc from the last drop back in 2008 are nearly finished now.

Not a whole lot of progress to report, completed the welding in of the top side RACP to frame rail plates. Tricky welding the 3mm plate to ~1mm ... I'd describe it as 'functional' Next up I will remove the fuel and brake lines to clean the underbody ready for some fresh paint, in parallel I might drop the front subframe and test the engine / trans fit.

On mine, the factory wiring has a plug behind the passengers speaker in the the footwell. You'll need to then take this all the way up to the mirror.

9GAG still exists? Isn't it just Reddit posts with ads?

Damn looks rather familiar... Had a Rav4 reverse into me out of a parking lot while I was driving past. Apparently the rear quarter panel is going to be replaced completely. Won't happen till next year though.. ? And yet to be confirmed/approved by my insurance company. At least the car is driveable and the door opens/shuts ok. 2020...

Had to share?? Picasso aint got Jack homies🖼🎨😍😍

@sjbglobal Congrats, and definitely do a project thread. Swapping the interior wood trims out with a gloss black set will make a huge difference to the interior

@Karun you are in for a treat.

Hi All New to this site, just traded in the 2014 C63 for a 2015 M4.....night and day between them. Have only seen 1 other black M4 in Wellington, wonder how many others there are? I am keen on adding 12mm spacers to wheels and a lip, side skirts and diffuser at some stage. Any advice on where to get good quality non-OEM parts would be appreciated. Cheers

Hi All. Quick introduction and a pic or two of this amazing machine. Have had the car for nearly a month now and apart from a few minor issues is amazing! I hope to edit this post with more photos etc as I get around to it. I have all the factory documentation etc to go with the car and will share this as it becomes digitised. Cheers Options List 299 Technoviolet metallic 199 No catalyst 214 ASC + Traction 255 3 spoke sport steering wheel 274 wheels cast …. 302 alarm 339 Shadowline 401 Power sunroof 431 Auto anti-dazzle interior mirror 438 WOOD TRIM 459 Power seats with memory 481 sports seats 498 Head rests in rear 534 Automatic air con 548 Kilometer speedometer 676 Hi Fi loudspeaker 687 Radio/CD 704 M sport suspension 806 3rd brake light 818 Main battery switch(for transport) 850 Fuel for export 925 Shipping protect package

Just bought myself a e28 m20b27. Planning to change to 885 head, manual swap, change to b25 ecu and put xyz adjustables on it. Bit of a noob with mechanical side but am learning.

As the title states. I'm after either a e82 123d (hopeful), e90 320d,330d,335d or a e60 530d or 535d for sale. Not fussed on high kms if there's good service history. NZ new preferred. Ideally something that can do 900 plus ks on a tank of diesel. Let me know what's out there or what you have. My daily is potentially going to be written off. Can travel the North or south island for the right deal. Contact 02102916373 SJ

actually saw one of these on SH1 on the way to Manukau. looked so dang cool in the bronze. https://www.autoevolution.com/news/widebody-bmw-i3-evo-tuning-from-japan-looks-like-a-fish-135217.htm

Adjusted the door using a semi truck and trailer... BMW built em tough. Odds on write off? I'm at 50/50