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January '21 Having been a chuffed owner of a 325ci for about a year and a half, I found myself in a bit of despair. Whilst absolutely in love with the car, the engine, the chassis in general, I was coming to the realisation that a coupe wasn't an ideal choice for me moving forward. I had barely started keeping a keener eye on the market, on the lookout for a tidy wagon to switch into, when she popped up. A fellow Msport 325i, 2003 facelift Touring, looking stunning in black with those crisp xenon's and decent looking rims. The seller seemed as trustworthy as you can hope for, being a regular contributor and a reputable member of the bimmer fam. With the extensive service record and immaculate looking photos, the price came across as very reasonable and seemed too good to pass up. I quickly put down a deposit, shuffled around some finances and booked a flight to Auckland to pick her up in a month's time. In hindsight, patience would have been a virtue. A lot more questions that needed to be asked, a lot more photos/videos requested or at the very least, a price negotiation left for the time of pickup. But hey, to be young, naïve and impulsive... February '21 214,XXX km The seller was kind enough to pick me up from the airport. I'd also arranged to pick up a multifunction steering wheel from a guy parting out his car nearby, intending to wire in cruise control to make the long trip down to Christchurch that wee bit more comfortable. Straight away I started noticing that aesthetically, the car was well below the standard I had hoped for. Nearly every panel had some degree of dings and scratches, a whole bunch well beyond what a cut and polish would be able to tackle. The left rear wheel arch, quarter panel and left side of the bumper had clearly had a run-in with.. a wolverine or something. The front bumper was sagging and the rear bumper had a whole heap of deep scuffs below the rear hatch. Turned out the owner was a builder, so the car had often been used as a work van, which showed as everything from the backs of the front seats to the door panels and rear window tints had all sorts of scuffs and scratches from materials and tools being crammed into it, as well as every nook and cranny being blessed with a healthy dose of saw dust and shavings. The hood had a few indents and to top it off, right smack in the middle, a couple of dollar-coin-sized spots where bird sh*t had eaten away at the clear coat right through to the paint. In the front, the driver's seat had a patch stitched onto it, covering up a hole, the arm rest was broken off, the middle of the dash above the stereo had something resembling a shoe print etched into it and the air bag wasn't sitting properly inside the steering wheel, half popping out on one side. Oh, and the power mirrors didn't work, I was informed. I was getting a bit overwhelmed, had a long drive ahead of me and was keen to hit the road. I'd come all this way, too late to back out now. We sorted out the payment, ownership and insurance and off I went before I lost all enthusiasm. "At least she's solid mechanically," I murmured to myself. Out on the open road, the car was a joy. The engine felt preppy, the handling sharp and she ate up the miles effortlessly. I made a wee detour through New Plymouth on my way to crash the night at some friends' place in Whanganui and was treated to some lovely views of a hill or some sort. This was really the view I stopped to admire. The next morning, I partially dismantled the dash to retrofit the multi-function steering wheel I had picked up the day before. All in all, an easy enough mod to tackle, all of 3 wires to run and splice in and voila, she was now equipped with cruise control and media buttons. It was a 5am start the next day and a quick sprint down to Wellington to catch the 9am ferry. I made the que with time to spare and later turned out I had needlessly been in a hurry, getting caught by a speeding camera just a few hundred meters before the terminal. Had been a while since my last speeding ticket to be fair. Upon getting home after a close to 2,000km test drive, I embarked upon my traditional ritual after buying a new car - a seats-out deep clean. I may have gotten a bit carried away this time though as one thing led to another and, well, nek minit... Oops

Out trying to drive the teething child to sleep. Noticed an intermittent noisy belt/pulley that will need further inspection while jumping out to take photos. Can't hear it from in side the cabin.

This will serve as a diary of my love-hate relationship with this wonderful menace of a machine. HISTORY - Imported from Japan in 2010. - Came into my ownership in February 2021 at 214,XXXkm. ENGINE - M54B30 (161,XXXkm) full rebuild & conversion (January 2023 - 227,488km) - M52-style piston rings - New main & rod bearings - Drilled and safety wired oil pump nut - New timing chains & guides - Oil pump resealed - New crank sprocket - Brand new genuine & OE sensors throughout - New ignition coils & spark plugs - Brand new belts & tensioners - Aluminium water pump & power steering pulleys - New engine mounts - New radiator & associated hoses (May 2021 - 216,6XXkm) - New water pump & thermostat (January 2023 - 227,5XXkm) - New lifters (April 2023 - 228,XXXkm) - New PCV & associated hoses, intake boots (September 2023) - M3 chain tensioner (October 2023) - VANOS rebuild (November 2023) - OFH metal oil non-return valve (March 2024) - Compression tested, 200PSI on all cylinders (March 2024) - New starter (June 2024) TRANSMISSION - 5-speed manual ZF S5D 320Z swap - Brand new detents, shifter pins, reverse sensor - Replaced input shaft seal, selector rod seal, throwout bearing guide tube, brass clutch fork pivot pin - Brand new LUK dual mass flywheel & clutch, new throwout bearing & clutch fork - New clutch master & slave cylinders - New transmission mounts - E60 shift lever & ZHP shift knob - New shifter linkage bushes throughout - BM Speedshop DSSR - Clutch switch, reverse switch wired in and EGS coded out - Removed gas pedal kick-down clicker DRIVETRAIN - New guibo, CSB (January 2023) - Fitted manual 2.93 differential with brand new input & output seals, rust treated & repainted - 330i manual driveshaft given a fresh coat of paint BRAKES - 330i brake retrofit - calipers & carrier brackets vapour blasted, painted & resealed (October 2023) - New OE rubber brake hoses, Akebono ceramic pads, new park brake shoes - New brake booster & master cylinder (May 2024) - Brake fluid flush (May 2024) FRONT AXLE - OE sway bar end links (November 2021 - 221,XXXkm) - 25mm Z4 sway bar - Whiteline strut brace - Bilstein B4 shocks - Eibach springs - E90xi strut mounts - E36 M3 bump stops - OE wheel bearings (October 2023) REAR AXLE - CMP Auto Engineering bottom side reinforcement plates & topside brace bar welded in - Stitch welded trailing arm pockets and wheel arch panels - CMP Auto Engineering solid subframe bushes & monoball trailing arm bushes - OE rubber diff bushes - 330i axles - 19mm Msport sway bar - Eibach adjustable rear camber arms - Bilstein B4 shocks - Stock Msport springs - E36 M3 bump stops - OE wheel bearings (October 2023) STEERING - LF-30 reseal & retrofit - New power steering reservoir and lines - High pressure line rebuilt by Enzed - New Lemforder inner & outer tie rods - CMP Auto Engineering solid steering coupler INTERIOR - Full interior-out deep clean, shampooed carpets, most interior plastic trims replaced with good condition ones, worn soft touch rubberized coatings peeled back to bare plastic & treated - Headliner & pilar trims professionally reupholstered (April 2021 - 216,XXXkm) - Steering wheel wrap and multifunction button retrofit - Android headunit - Leather door cards fitted - Cluster backing plate switched out and recoded from km/L to L/100km - Temperature buffer mod - Replaced dash with a tidy example - Armrest delete, because manual EXTERIOR - Roof rail delete - Shadowline trim professionally repainted (June 2024) OTHER - Rolled rear fenders - Installed towbar - Reverse camera - New fuel pump, seals & lock rings (October 2023) - New AC compressor, condenser, drier, expansion valve (October 2023) - BMW Style 193 rims with Dunlop SP Sport Maxx 050+ (225/40R18 front, 255/35R18 rear) fitted (October 2023) - Fully certified for engine swap, transmission swap and others (January 2024) IN PROGRESS - Full paint correction (cut & polish, paint touchup, protective coating) throughout - Installing door sound deadening, resealing vapour barriers FUTURE PLANS - Towing module retrofit - Heated seat retrofit - Auto lights & wipers / rain-light sensor retrofit - Redo window tints - Refurbish and install X5 leather front seats, E46 leather rear seats

I had no choice...you held a gun to my head 🤣! Was good to see you again yesterday Boston, and happy to be of some help (and paying it forward ☺️). Cheers, Charl

It should be do-able, we have an e46 on full coils, but on an authority card. There is nothing specifically excluding a full coil swap. But, I imagine appropriate tower and strut mount reinforcement will be necessary due to significant more loading of those areas Ring the LVVTA technical team, and then if they say yes, ring another certifier for second opinion. I would recommend Danny McKenna 0272401291 he is a good bloke with a firm grasp on reality 👍

Oh haha, it’s a great looking car. So great you found each other 😎

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219,000km Much needed wheel alignment. Didn't get the sheet but he said it was very 'out' . Tyres pumped up to 40psi up front and 36 in the rear, cars feeling great. Here's my photo assistant taking a smoko break.

Hi all, It's been a while since I posted anything on Bimmersport, only because I unfortunately/fortunately (pick one that works for you 😆) don't own, and have not owned a BMW for nearly 2 years (I just LOVE my 2011 Golf MK6 GTi every single time I drive it 🥰). And as we're moving soon, I (or rather the wife!! hehehe) started packing and stumbled onto this 1982 - 2001 BMW Inspection Oil Service reset tool that was stored away. I only used it twice, so as new. Googled for what they go for now, and it is all over the place. www.fruugo.co.nz has the same tool for $99-00 and $42-95...LOL. But the cheapest is $21-93 on Aliexpress (they no longer sell these), but overall the majority of local sites have it over $40-00. I also cannot recall how much I paid for it when I purchased it, so I'll say... $30-00 Please note, prefer pick-up in Grenada Village (Wellington), but can meet in Johnsonville/Churton Park/Porirua/Petone. Cannot courier as we're moving this coming Saturday 29 Jan 2022, so must be collected before then. If it does not sell, I'll keep it (for maybe one day, should I decide to buy a BMW again). And more important: prefer unvaccinated person to pick-up, but vaccinated also welcome. 😊

Does anyone know if all e36 ABS pumps are the same or do I need to get one off a 325i to match

Hi All, Just wondering if anyone has had any luck with registering a battery with an K+DCAN cable? Or any of those OBD scanners? I bought a while ago off TradeMe one of those cables and it worked with ISTA/INPA on my mates ‘06 E90 but not on my ‘09 E61. I did see Bimmergeeks selling those cables and considered buying one but shipping is probably gonna take a while. Or, if anyone has one they would like to part with? Happy holidays!

Aye, 'fun' is one way of putting it The car came with the name. I did think about alternatives but somehow it just stuck. Seems apt.

Got an oil reset tool off @viskop tonight. Super nice guy and great to deal with (even if he does drive a Golf 😉)

Can't be much different to my 535i with the ZF 8 speed. It's a pretty boring drive train, smooth quiet and relatively efficient, but boring. The GS450h is also e-CVT with a planetary gear setup rather than your normal CVT.

Having lived with a CVT for many years as a daily, its perfect for many things. No gear changes, always in the powerband, effortless acceleration, its never in the wrong gear. The CVTs that drive like an auto with "steps" are a waste of a good transmission just for the sake of pandering to idiots, basically having the worst of all worlds. As with most things in life, the majority of the CVT naysayers havent lived with one and are just regurgitating what they have read/heard.

Looks pretty good overall? Battery box seems intact? Original exhaust looking like it has been doing a great job on all of those kms @Sammo

Definitely looking closer to her age underneath. @BMTHUG giving her the once over so I can see how much of a financial mistake I’ve made 🤣

Most $$$ = strip it and sell parts yourself = most effort / hassle Middle $$$ = sell complete on BMW groups = some hassle Lowest $$$ = sell to wrecker, they want to make a buck and are taking a risk = least effort for you. No idea what it’s worth sorry, either as a whole or in bits, I’m not across 528i market.

Yeah but they will pay with cash

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Not sure which ones but alot of 328s have the top set up, mine does. I think it's a nz new vs Japan but not sure

Both have their positives and negatives but prefer the older style myself purely from ease of working on\access point of view. I wouldn't think you could use the newer setup without fiddling around with the wiring\plugs and coolant lines given the M52TU\M54 is different from your M52

Happy New Years to you all. I dedicated myself the 4 stat days to crack on to the headers and man it took alot longer than i expected. 3 solid days and ive almost got the drivers side done. There were a few hiccups and requirements that i wanted. Nuts to be accessable by a socket which 7/8 of the nuts are and that all 4 pipes would go on the underside of the steering shaft. which meant it was going to be tight. Busted out the new band saw and what a life saver it was with straight cutting and the amount of pie cuts i needed to do. Also installed the slimmer steering shaft from a f series car, works a treat. this was the first attempt to the 3rd and 4th pipes. i redid them as i wasn't happy with the design. Thanks Team

Hey Team happy news years to you all. So managed to redo the exhaust to hang up abit higher under the body. Swapped the rear bumper to a m tech one, will do the front just need to get it repaired. Also scored some recaro SR7 seats currently need to sort the height on the base before i bolt them in and a sound clip of the car Thanks Team

Swapped over the complete toolkit from pick a part, resisted the urge to include the spark plug tool to make it totally complete!!

My centres didn't rust but as Matt says the black coating wears off. Performance wise the setup I used was very good, hard driving over the Rimutakas saw no fade whatsoever and a customer used the same setup on his track day 335i. Said it took a lot of laps to get the pedal to go soft. That said as an everyday setup It worked great.

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Replaced water pump, thermostat, fan belt, coolant, vacuum pump O ring, bottom rad hose showing signs of age so will order a new one, also couldn't get correct O ring for vacuum pump, made do with an undersized one and some sealant, will order correct one . Car actually gets up to normal temperature now! Still had original water pump with plastic impeller, 320,000 km and no signs of failing, but better safe than sorry.... Front brake pads still bedding in but no signs of squealing so far!!

First update after a week or so of ownership and a few 100kms... First few goodies arrived - A Condor 'Shorty' Shift knob and my new Euro Plates - went with silver 'wings' and really happy with the look at the front, although against the black rear plate frame the lack of contrast on certain angles just looks a bit white - we will see - looks better IRL than in the pictures - its just a lighter silver than I had hoped. Took her out this morning for a proper country drive out Helensville / Makarau way - it was drizzling and the suspension is tired and tires old so I didn't go nuts but had loads of fun. Observations: LOVE this exhaust / engine note - Loud raspy wail above 4K / great undulating burble at idle, blipping downshifts sounds fantastic and pops on upshifts and deceleration if you provoke it - so good. Unknown short shifter is nice, got a new shifter cup on way but no need to fiddle here Love the feedback through the wheel and happy with the slower rack (for now at least?) coming from a purple tag E46 100% need to do a suspension refresh - ride is quite hard and bouncy - happy with how flat it is through bends however, so will keep the sways and just change the bushes, maybe add a strut brace given the age More civilised than I expected on the motorway, aside from aforementioned bouncy ride - presumably due to dampers being past it Fixed a bad rattle in drivers door (was worn door hinge pads - a bit of electrical tape and it feels like a bank vault now) - flappy glove box is only other rattle of note now - not bad for such high kms Will also get drivers seat re-foamed when I get it the interior reupholstered and change the seat shocks - too much movement. Stupid easy to get the rear to step out on greasy roads - need a driver upgrade now - almost made a fool of myself in an intersection giving a touch of throttle mid corner - need to learn how an LSD feels? Will leave the old Potenza's on through summer and take it easy in wet - they don't seem bad otherwise, but will leave them for now as need to decide if I'm going to go to 16" or not after I do the suspension. Stoked with my decision even though the car needs plenty of improvement - feels somewhere between an NA MX5 and the E46 which is exactly what I had hoped.

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