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Hi, we previously have had three one series Bimmers but currently have three E46's. 325ti, 325ci, and a 316ti. All are NZ new with either one or two previous owners. In another life we had a succession of Jap performance cars, WRX's, 300zx's and R32 GTR's which I enjoyed working on and doing the odd track day but current pricing of these is crazy so won't be getting anymore! I think BMW's of the era we have are absolute bargains given build quality and safety.

Must be one expensive jetski he is buying

Something happened when I started with the front shocks..... a toothbrush came out to clean them, then came the realisation I need to clean everything with a tooth brush and replace just about everything of a perishable nature. I'm probably going overboard, but I think it's a nice change to do a really fastidious project. The only BMW I wanted was an E34 540i so it all makes sense to go for it and do it to the best I can.

“Coooomming up.”

Plot twist, "Michael" is in fact Sreten and he lives in Germany.

"if it doesn't sell ill keep it". Classic line for when trying to sell an overpriced vehicle. Needs stupid offers for stupid description.

Just my purchase… and I blame some of it on 🍷

I love just how detailed and fastidious you are with this project

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I am new to this forum as I normally haunt the US BMW forums. By way of background I own a 1994 E34 BMW 540i with about 78K genuine k's. It's pretty well spec'ed with leather upholstery, electric seats, sun roof, wooden dash, 17" BBS mags and an aftermarket pop up DVD player with integrated reversing camera. I am the second owner, the first owner being in HK where I bought it and shipped it back to NZ. Low k's because when I shipped it back I got stuck with non- compliance with front-impact collision requirements so the car could not be registered for a few years until it became a classic 🙂 It's serviced regularly and has never had any major mechanical issues, most of the repairs really being related just to the age of the parts that need replacing. It has served me well but it's now time to move on. I have no idea how much it's worth and if it's even better to just sell it for parts since the demand for this age of car is probably not high. Just wondering if people on this forum can provide some advice as to how much such a car is worth given its age and low k's. Some pictures for reference. Note the car needed a wash when that photo was taken but the paintwork is immaculate.

I’m still working through my 1987 635 CSi sorting out a few issues it came with! I would like a get a workshop manual for it so if you have one for sale please contact me. Cheers Gavin

Very nice, looks like a car with great potential. Have you got more pictures? I just bought a 1994 540i with 86,000km, NZ new Went via auction, hard to say exact market value but it was exactly what I was after so ended up paying 7k for it. It's a niche market for sure. I'm spending that same amount again on restoring all the mechanical aspects, just about doing everything, down to cleaning individual nuts and bolts with a tooth brush Auto value 540i models are less than manual ones, so that is something to consider too.

But on the positive side, they're sports seats and don't have rips in the middle of them.

New windscreen New (painted) steering wheel cowl Eibach / Koni is the combo for sure. Should have done it years ago. Rides better than ever, perfect height IMO.

Any colour will do, Xenons and HK audio would be nice but I'm not fussy. Alcantara interior would be cool but I believe all the NZ cars were leather.

HI Crew! My 540i touring is in need of a big birthday! I have sold a few cars and a dirt bike! $$ Now I need to start sorting a manual swap before all the conversions are all gone! My auto trans has had a rough life before I got it! I payed for a trans service and its still not running 100%! I am in need for a good condition gear box and e34 manual bits! hopefully I won't need to order from America/canada as I would have no idea on condition! If anyone knows of a gearbox Getrag 420g available or sitting in someones shed please get in touch! Thanks for reading 540i wagon.HEIC

Yes it is quite lively and it is our favorite one to drive. We downloaded it's specs through bimmercode and it came with motorsport option suspension and seats. It was a Wellington car and the last owner had it for 15 years with full service history from BMW dealers.

Easy peazy via Leon, 14k is reasonable. Insurance sorted.

On the hunt for one of these bad boys, if you have one or know where to look please get in touch!

They're not even the correct convertible pattern, and they're missing the piping that that style of sport seat should have. Don't get me started on the lazy stitching down the middle of the rear upper. If you're going to spout on about a "factory new refurb" and ask moonbeams you best get the details right imho.

Interior colour isn't the most popular. K's dont mean too much at this age, service history\condition is more important. 5k-7k depending on what's been done and what need to be done (always is)

Hehe you’re kind. It is a good tidy honest car, “patina” and all. I have asked it nicely to convert into a manual coupe but so far it is not having a bar of it, so am likely to be a repeat “drink and buy” offender in the future and liberate RedSE to the market or do some kind of deal

@E28E30 Had forgot about that one - to be fair though, that is leagues ahead of most of the stuff that's hit the market 👌

@Michael.

Nice idea in principle but far to much like hard work. Perhaps, but turbos in light cars are even more fun. A 300HP NA car vs a 300HP turbo car in the same chassis would likely be pretty close on a track but the turbo could have a nice torque advantage, always handy out of corners.

I quite like the colour of the paint and the interior. Definitely has that classic look. I feel like a Nardi wood grain steering wheel would pair nicely with this setup.

He has the basket weaves with it for the new owner. The spoiler is ugly, but an easy fix (I have an mtech 1 spare in the garage). When people are asking silly money for 316/318 sedans or coupes, I don’t think his starting price is far off. That’s still a biiiggg gap to the last Mtech2 coupe (genuine not a hashed together copy).

I think you and I know another mad hatter Harm… I have stopped drinking wine close to auction closing times 🤣

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/cars/bmw/325i/listing/3233471285?bof=JhGHQ5d5 This seems insanely overpriced. I would personally be surprised if it was sold for 25k.

Hey All So managed to crack into the 4.6 motor in the last 2 days, mainly to check the timing chain guides and lucky me they are pretty much brand new. No scoring on the plastic pieces, even the smaller chain tensioners both look new. You can see in the last photot where the have welded the piece back together, this must have been when the old timing guide broke. I also test fitted a m62 non vanos timing cover as i want to covert it to a non water cooler alternator which it fits a treat. So tomorrow will be just cleaning surfaces and putting it all back together with new gaskets.

I've been using mdecoder daily over the last couple of weeks while I look for a new car. Works well.

@displayname Definitely looking forward to the seats going in. Unfortunately the breykrause brackets are delayed until about mid september, so waiting on those. Once they're in Ill get some glamour shots of the interior almost looking put together. Purple tag rack is a lower ratio and a higher rack rate than the stock rack. 3 turns lock to lock compared to 3.2 IIRC on the stock rack. Actual driving difference is negligible imo, but I was able to get the rack for about $200 so thought I would give it a shot.

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Turbo definitely makes sense for heavier / lazier cars and autos. Less of an issue with manuals I believe as you tend to hold the gears longer.

Hey everyone! Been lurking in the shadows looking at the wealth of information here! Only now deciding to actually make an account. Got a 318i vert factory manual about a year ago and looking to give it a good refresh and pretty soon swap in a m54b25 out of a donor car (lapsed rego 2002 325i) into it! Just done a front bushing refresh (tie rods, controll arms, swaybar end links), cooling system replacement and also just finished off an airbag light diagnosis, a deep dive that was. Stoked to be a part of the community, and starting to really love these cars. Would also love an E39 540 wagon, my absolute dream. Photos of my very and the donor car. P.s.any guidance for the engine swap would be welcomed