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Win!

Bimmersport is up again lol.

For Sale: 1995 E34 540i/6 six speed manual (1 of 16 imported) $12,000 ONO (Also listed elsewhere) Location: Wellington, NZ Note: This is being sold as a restoration project on an as-is-where-is basis and is priced accordingly. Will not be answering questions like 'what does it need'. Keen for the car to go to an enthusiast. Due to level of interest, there will be limited viewing dates: Wellington 3-4 August 9am-5pm by advance appointment only. by advance appointment only. Offers considered following this. The sale included numerous parts including a number of spare panels. If you are genuinely interested PM me for a list. No response will be made to requests for individual parts. Any parts not taken at sale will be sold separately. Will be sold with min. 6 Months reg & current WOF New Zealand New Vin number: BKxxxxx M60/2 engine Diamantschwartz Metallic (303) 1 of 2 540i/6 of this colour imported Black Bison Leather sports interior ASC+T Alarm Blackout trim Sunroof Dimming rear-view mirror Walnut trim Auto A/C M Sport suspension HiFi Loudspeaker system BMW Business head unit & CD changer Trip computer EXTRAS INSTALLED IN CAR: Genuine BMW EW34 rare electric rear blind, including original loom and switch in original seat centre console. Fine working condition. Genuine BMW E34 cruise control, including stalk, control unit, cable & actuator all in fine working condition. Genuine BMW boot floor lipped tray Genuine full original boot lid toolkit Genuine Engine bay lighting Genuine rechargeable glovebox torch Genuine original Business Sound System including head unit, CD changer with code (supplied separately- installed head unit NFS). Bilstein Sport suspension This is a very reluctant sale, I have owned the car for 18 years (130,000km~320,000km), and has had oil & filter changes every 10,000km with Fuchs oil. 95% of the mileage is open-road running 700km round trips and the engine is still as swift and powerful as the day I bought it. Anyone who knows or has driven this model knows these are not a standard E34. The combination of the quad cam V8, 6 speed manual transmission and sports suspension make it a go-cart in comparison. Selling as a project on an as-is basis. Needs a new owner with the energy and time to restore her. Unfortunately, I find myself 18 years on, no closer to having either. The car comes with heaps of new and used spare parts I have been collecting for 18 years with the intent or restoration. Not interested in selling individually, as parts have been collected specifically for this purpose with the car is really where they need to go. While the interior including the Recaros is in good condition with the original carpet unworn (matted all the time I’ve owned it), the exterior has needed work since I bought it. The driver’s door lower edge has some rust, and there are a few spots around the car that could be easily addressed during a full review. The spots on the roof and A-pillars are professionally neutralised stone chips in anticipation of future restoration. The clear coat has gone on the genuine BMW/BBS deep dish wheels. The A/C pump has failed and been disconnected. This is not guaranteed as a complete list of items that need attention. PM me for a parts list. Contact for viewing

Got back from a round trip down south and up the West Coast with the parents last week, clocking up around 2,400km across 6 days. Threw in the old stock rear springs beforehand. Whilst it didn't completely eliminate the rubbing, it isolated it to only the harshest dips in the road when catching them at high speeds, but overall much better and meant I could drive with way less stress and way more confidence. Considering this was the first road trip I've taken the car on with 4 adults and a bootful of luggage on board, I can't really complain about the little rubbing still remaining. This was an outlier of a situation and with 1-2 people on board, I don't think rubbing will be an issue on the stock springs. Some absolutely amazing roads out there and an absolute ideal place to put the car through a proper stress test after the big rebuild. Some small issues aside, the car performed perfectly and effortlessly ate up the km's. Queenstown - Glenorchy is still my favourite bit of road in the country but also enjoyed experiencing the Queenstown - Te Anau and Wanaka - Haast routes for the first time ever. The folks loved their first time in NZ as well, saying it felt like they've been to 5 different countries in the short time here, such was the variety of landscapes behind every new mountain ridge. Good good times.

3 series compound. Not a single sun roof, as god intended

😆

I wanted to buy something more suitable, than a convertible E36, for our growing family. I started looking at E46, E90, E91, E39, E60, E61, E53, E83 but it became obvious I had an itch to scratch with the X5. After viewing potentially every E53 for sale in and around Auckland, I managed to pick this up for a sharp price. Thank you @Palazzo for the heads up. New Zealand New, Facelift X5 in Black Sapphire Metallic; even with 381,825KM on the clock, this was the most well presented and best driving example in my budget. M57D30TÜ (cast iron block, large-beam forged rods, forged crank, single Garrett turbo etc) with the 6-Speed ZF Transmission, Brucie Bonus of a factory Swirl Flap-less Intake Manifold. Well spec'd with: Sports Package, Black 'Dakota' Leather Upholstery, 19" Style 132 Wheels, Panoramic Glass Roof, Xenon Lights...), the works. Picked the car up on a Sunday and my wife went into labour on the Wednesday, so I dropped it off to the brother @BMTHUG at Apex Automotive on the way to the hospital for an inspection and a bit of a birthday: Serviced the Engine, Transmission, Differential, Transfer Case; everything flushed, new gaskets, fluids and filters. Fresh WoF to boot. Cleaned up quite nicely too once we got home from the hospital. I can live with the minor cosmetic things I'd usually fix, the reason for purchasing this in the first place was to have something the dog and two young kids can enjoy, there is literally no use crying over spilled milk at this stage! Provided they're not total dicks, I like to name a car after the previous owner. < Boris and Rüdi > sitting pretty.

Been a while since I had a proper fang in the E30 so great to get out today with a buddy and was great fun to switch cars for a while - with a polar opposite build - Supercharged M42 with 4.4 LSD / lightweight flywheel and Z3 rack - certainly made mine feel a bit lazy and luxury orientated haha. Must say mine looked pretty good in the rear view mirror 🤌🏽

New car day.

Mate walk, no run away as fast as possible. There will always be another one.

Had a little Easter meet on Sunday. What a nice turnout. Some beautiful e30s and some other beautiful cars too. Here are some pics

Here is my 2018 M3 Comp. It’s my daily driver and I’m impressed with it as an all rounder. Big boot, comfortable in soft modes, 9lt/100 on long trips, (gets very thirsty when boosting though) great seats, sounds. I’ve added CarPlay and the GTS/CS DCT, EDC, steering and diff software, which I would definitely recommend. A boot luggage hook and PSS* tyres…

Did some late night Italian tuning - quick run out to Arrowtown and back. Got absolutely DUSTED on the Dalefield back roads by an Alfa GTV. The 1.6 was well above 7K and spitting flames as it rocketed past me 😁 God they're an achingly gorgeous car. 1299691.jpg

Not mine. But the wife's. Just rebuilt the gearbox and got it up to scratch for her.

Hey they finally improved the front end

Took my better half to the airport yesterday in the vert. Also went to butterfly creek beforehand with the little one. We had a whole day of driving with the top down. Had my eldest daughter smiling with glee the whole time. It was absolutely priceless. Two more months and then I'm off to the UK to join the future wife for our wedding there in May.

Got my ITB's for my stroker build. Pretty excited 😊

My e31 history - owned a 4.4l Steptronic and own 4l Manual 840ci's (and test driven 1 early 850i). Here's a green apple to red apple comparison: e31: 96 840ci - 4l, 6-spd, 'msport' suspension (think package is standard shocks and shorter springs) and wheels, and big bore exhaust (only known mod). Travelled 120kms. Monaro: '02 V2 - 5.7l, 6-spd, standard suspension and wheels, and big bore exhaust (only known mod). Traveled (when I had it) 175km. I found the e31 was/is a way better car all round. Power/torque: There wasn't that much difference, to me anyway (disclaimer: I ain't no racing driver lol). Both have 'more than enough for me' torque across the rev range. They can get up ad boogie, especially in the crucial 80-100 range. If you want a fun or performance then manual is a must. if you want to cruise then the auto is fine - but steptronic wins in that department (also have an auto HSV) as it is best suited to the GT nature of the e31 IMO. The old 4spd auto in the v12 did the job well but was nothing spectacular. Handling/suspension: This is where there is night and day between the two (both were more than likely on original suspension). The e31 is more refined, smooth and balanced. No issues around town, even better on the motorway and handles the twisties just fine (going at pace but not driving at the limit). Agree that this is where you notice the weight. But it doesn't detract from the experience. On the other hand, the Monaro felt the opposite as a package and had a more harsher ride/feel. Fine around town, motorway is fine - but you do start to feel the bumps and jarring. Through the twisties was the worst - it would often understeer when going at pace into a corner and other times it was like it wanted to fight against you. I found it a bit dangerous. I replaced some bushes (maybe shocks too but can't remember) which improved things but not by much. I've said that when a Commodore grows up it wants to be a BMW haha. And would I get another Monaro - Hell Yeah!! As a side note, I have full front suspension (real challenging to find rear suspension components) and shocks for all corners to go into the e31, so will be interesting if this changes things - but is fine enough for me at the mo. e31 driving summary: It is a GT car and it doesn't hide from that. But don't believe the original reviews or those that say it is slow - it never was a performance car although it looks like it. It does all duties, shopping, cruising and long distance. If you do want 'performance', then its the manual hands down - good luck finding one! - or a CSI - and good luck finding one of those cheap! But the auto is fine too - would recommend the steptronic. Then there's the feeling of driving a pretty special car, there's just something about this era of BMW, and the e31 takes it up a level. By todays standard, it has a 'small car' feel about it interior wise. but it is a friggen awesome place to be in! I also have an e60 M5. They don't compare drive and comfort wise... but when I drive them back to back, the smile is just that much bigger after the 840ci 😊 Oh, and lastly, I've taken both to the summer cars and coffee event hosted by the local car museum. No one looked twice (or once!) at the M5. Its the complete opposite with the 840ci - quite embarrassing waiting in line to park with people walking past or coming up saying - "what is that!, F#$%*&g awesome bro! Holy Sh!t I've only seen one on the internet" haha. Sorry for long post but hope this helps someone 😉

New power steering pump is in as of last night. Has made a massive difference, the perpetual groaning it was making has vanished and the whole thing feels a lot better. Makes the car far more civilised. I also replaced the ignition coils for some reason. No idea if it made a difference or not probably a waste of money but meh. PrEveNtaTivE mAiNteNanCe. Pretty obvious where the new door is. It honestly is a lot less noticeable in person than photos for some reason. Still, better than the creaky door with the dent. Can always get it repainted if I really wanted. Hopefully someone drives into this door at some point so I can get another respray lol. Still have those glossy window trim things to go on but I can finish that off later if need be. Not the most mint E46 wagon out there but still looking pretty good I reckon.

Bidding has certainly crept past the part car status , even at the time of your post at roughly 11k You'll be surprised what can be repaired , it's all about economical value,skill and parts availability Even as a disclosed write off repaired M325i I'd expect a book value of $35k - $40k It could potentially be a good entry level into M325i ownership, as the ships sailing with good examples fetching 50 to 60k I wouldn't rely too much on the ownership quantity of E30s or a wheel alignment as a skillful judgement , Chassis time, chassis measure and a repair certifier will be the new owners priority. Edit* If anyone would require parts, I've got plentiful available, and Or needing assistance in the lower to central north island with the actual repair . Let me know 😀

Thanks Graham, i am doing a return trip WLG/AKL/WLG next week. Will have car transporter trailer with me too, and could fit a car on both ways (just using it for a few engines and panels etc at this stage) I dont come on the forum much any more, but feel to message me on (oh too sevin, 3079322) Koha appreciated, especially if i'm heading all over the place to pick stuff up!

One of these is not like the other... 🎶

Hi everyone!! Have just bought my first BMW.. it's a 2009 M3 which I'm loving! I've come from owning a Audi A3 and a Golf over the last few years and definitely loving the M3 more! Hope to learn more about the car and the community!

Any use cases not covered here?

236,600km Gave the garage a good reshuffle and cleared out enough space to roll the car in for some wrenching. Was nearly due an oil change so used it as a chance to knock out a few bigger and smaller jobs. Last I changed oil was only in October but already managed to clock up 7k km's so figured it was time. Had tried doing some data logging a while ago and noticed the long term fuel trims sitting at 8.5%. Not enough to cause any noticeable rough running or trigger engine codes but did seem a tad high. Followed @Harper's lead and got myself a little smoke tester. Was tossing up getting one of the higher end models with pressure gauges and other bells and whistles but in the end figured it's a tool that would only ever get occasional use so went with the cheapest one. Also got the inflatable bladder adapter to go with the kit that plugs into the intake boot. Nifty little setup, the tin can solution felt almost humorous but works well enough. The device produces a decent amount of smoke but didn't reveal any vacuum leaks so the issue must lie elsewhere. Will clear adaptations and continue keeping an eye on data logs. At some point I was also getting codes claiming the ICV to be stuck open so tried switching that out as well. Picked up a spare one from Pick-A-Part, gave it a good clean with throttle body cleaner spray, compressed air and lubed up the internals with a bit of oil. The unit that came out still seemed to move freely enough but will see if the codes come back. Drained the oil which didn't look too bad but there was quite a bit of metallic sludge stuck to the magnetic drain plug. Still only 9k km since the engine rebuild but already the 4th oil change so not entirely sure at what point it becomes something to be seriously concerned about. Will do another oil change in 4-5k km's time and reassess. Video The biggest mission I decided to tackle this time around was replacing the oil non-return valve that sits in the oil filter housing. First saw it done in one of M539's videos and with the vendor seemingly not shipping to New Zealand, I took the chance to pick up a couple of those valves whilst over in Europe last year. Finally gathered enough motivation to install it after stumbling upon a thread on E46 Fanatics of it supposedly fixing the guy's startup engine tick and low oil pressure issue. Was mentally prepared for oil to start splashing out all over the place when removing the housing but the mess ended up being almost underwhelming. The valve is press fit into the housing and its extraction needed some tedious prying out with a screwdriver. I used an old plastic trim removal tool as a sacrificial layer to protect the surrounding edges. Worked pretty well and managed to get the old valve out with little to no damage. The old valve didn't look too bad, the groove was barely worn into the side but the plug did seem to move quite freely in there. Poured a bit of oil over top and it drained right through. Tested the new one with brake cleaner and none leaked past. One weird thing with the new valve was that it just dropped into the opening without the need to hammer it in. Still snug enough in there that it didn't move around but loose enough that you could lift back out with just your fingers. Measured the diameter of the two with a digital vernier - the old valve was 25.07mm whilst the new one 25.01mm. Not a huge difference but still. Not like it has any space to fall out and I guess it'll properly mate itself to the surrounding housing after a few heat cycles. Jumping forward a bit, unfortunately it wasn't the culprit of my niggling startup rattle and the issue still persists. I'm beginning to think it not to be engine-related entirely but something to do with the gearbox/flywheel. Very hard to tell by the sound alone, near on impossible to capture it on video/audio and the list of potential suspects is ever decreasing. Regardless, still glad I replaced the valve. To finish up under the hood, I did a compression test just to check the general health of the engine. First time doing it since the engine rebuild so was a bit nervous but the results were pretty satisfying with all cylinders sitting at 200-208 PSI. Couldn't be happier with that. Finally, after hitting my head a few too many times on the boot door that wouldn't raise itself all the way up anymore, I got around to replacing the crusty old boot struts that were starting to become audibly annoying as well. Otherwise, she's sitting fairly pretty. The next bigger undertaking will be to finally wire up the reversing camera (thanks to @adro for the motivation), along with the boot elephant trunk repair and fixing all the broken tabs on the boot trims.

Is there gonna be a 16-years-later photo-shoot 👀

Ponsonby Road, spiced up SC or 964? I wouldn’t say no!

TBH there was nearly a complaint every time he posted something. And he was doing it on purpose much of the time. The founders Ollie and Andrew drop by every now and then. Ollie has just listed his Bimmersport E30 Series car for sale on the forum. Even comes with keys to the forum. There are still many old members lurking around. But Facebook did harm the forum space. Only now are forums starting to make a come back as people are hunting for info on classic cars. Facebook is a black hole for anything older than about 12 hours. Searching is non existent and near on useless. The only thing it is good for is meet ups. Many of the younger kids (18-25) at work don't even have Facebook. As that is for their parents. Many of my friends and family are quitting it as current social media takes it's toll on their lives. There is so much info on this forum and others that are similar. I do still get angry at the great Photobucket purge. So many lost important images.

Not sure what flavour green this is but just spotted at BMW North Shore.

Who else clicked on this thinking @Kees had done something stupid again 😂 I got peddled around Brands Hatch in a Radical R400 - nothing else since has come close to being as visceral. I can see why this type of car gets people more hooked than heroin.

Spareto.com have been getting parts to me in just over a week. From Estonia! My recent order from chemist warehouse took 10 days from Auckland. Spareto.com does have various spring and shock options.

After a 2 year hiatus due to family things it was a mad 3 month scramble to get the drift e36 back together with the new gen4 6.0, ecu, wiring, gbox, clutch, exhaust etc etc. Had a few teething issues with the new cam/valve springs and cooling system but managed to get it up and running the day we need to head off for two days of drifting 😰 so loaded up and hoped for the best... and we got it, two days full noise and not a single issue, couldn't believe it lol. Now its time to dial in more rear grip (running a 265/35/18) and find a good solution to upgrade the rearend - diff/axles

Yeah man. It sounds amazing. The only things in the exhaust that aren't stainless are the colby hotdog resonators. My old mans stroker is ready to go. 1.5 mm oversized valves, shrick 284 cam. Heavy duty rockers, titanium valve springs, new rocker arms the works. Oh and the ITBs haha. I am itching to finish mine

these two tell you everything you need to know about the PO.

Drove the compact, shredded the drive belt. Luckily not far from home, so let it sit for 10-15mins to cool down, drove it 2 mins up the last part of three mile hill, then coasted it pretty much all the way home with only needing two quick bursts of power then shut it off again. didnt have a spare belt, so fitted the rear strut brace instead.

Would like to buy Michelins. But the Merc eats them way too quick when towing. So I just run Hankook's. I like Hyper as I didn't have to deal with a human trying to convince me into buying Farroads for my E55 at the local tyre shop for a good price of $350 per tyre...

I still hold onto the only reason E30's, S13's, R32's etc were good was because they were cheap. Sorry to those that missed those 20 odd years.

Money pit is a pretty subjective term. All old cars are money pits if you start to change old parts to refresh\restore them to a near new driving experience and condition. Doing the bare minimum for servicing and WOF requirements may or may not be depending on the condition of car, how its been used, service history and luck. No real information or photos so hard to say much. Japanese imports of this era arent as good as NZ new equivalent (possibly Jatco transmission(jerky gear change issues), IR remote instead of RF, maybe extra emissions gear, no euro trims, little to no service history etc M52 engines are fairly solid and cheapish to repair but usually lots of aged plastics and rubber that can fail. ZF's transmissions last if they have been serviced at some point. Tired suspension is big cost on these but you can things like random electrical failures like ABS modules which can get expensive to fix. Interiors are usually failing to varying degrees, A\C buttons, dash pixels, headlining, rubber seals, wear of seats etc. For a daily driver i dont see the point unless you want to carry passengers in comfort. Be better off with E46 6 cylinder, much cheaper to run\fix and generally less to go wrong. Even a E39 5 series which still has decent space but lighter and more examples to choose from. If you do end up locking something in then get a pre-purchase check by someone who is familiar with the model before you hand over money.

Always looking tidy @Sammo

A couple of months ago I jumped at a chance opportunity to catch up with Nathan from “Those Car Dudes” on YouTube. It was a perfect summers evening in New Plymouth for a spontaneous photoshoot, the results were unreal!

@KwS ironically when they're going to spend several tens of millions to remove one set of traffic lights further down SH2 (Melling) - which I am in favour of. JFC NZTA are terrible. The public service cull should've started with them So much this.

Got the cooked box out and replacement in in about 4 hours today. Not bhed for an amateur lying on the floor. Off for a wof next week then do some cruising!

So the end result of this is that the car now has a new correctly installed OE Pilkington screen courtesy of CCBMW after S+S had put 2 new aftermarket screens in, awful whistling above 50kph with both. I swear the inside vehicle SPL is about 10dB less with the OE screen. Very happy

One of the things that's been on my list for quite some time now is sorting out the topside reinforcement of the RACP. My car had the rear mounts reinforced with the BMW epoxy foam process in 2011 before I owned it, and the underside reinforced with epoxied plates in 2017. Since then I've put very few km on the car but deciding on the right approach for topside reinforcement has been on my mind since then. Part of the reason it's taken me so long to sort is because of all my family/kids dramas, but the other reason is that I've really been struggling to decide on the best solution in my circumstances. I'll probably get some flak for this but I'm not really keen on weld-in solutions in general. In most welding situations I don't see how it's possible to control corrosion prevention well enough given the application, and then add in welding to thin sheet metal that has been through 20 years of stress cycles and it just doesn't appeal to me. Another reason is that welding around the rear mounts, in my case, is complicated by the presence of the foam epoxy reinforcement. Lastly is the permanence of the change - I've seen several comments from people who bought the early version of the CMP bar, etc. who say they wished that they could use the newer, less visible, option. Likewise there's no certainty there won't be better options available in another 5 years. In the work that I do on the car I want to keep it as close as possible to original, so that if I realise at some point in the future that I have bad taste in modifications I can restore to stock. That goes, as far as possible, for things like RACP reinforcement as well. To this end I've ordered a variant version of the Yurkan Cages YC46W6. This is a welded single piece brace that ties both the front and rear RACP mounts to the rear shock mounts. This design allows for the rear seats and fold-down functionality to be maintained without interference. I don't need the fold-down feature anyway, but I certainly want to keep the rear seat unaffected (although again it's only to look nice, I only ever have a single passenger in the car, so I essentially use it as a two seater anyway. The variant I've ordered includes an additional bar directly between the two rear shock mounts. Probably overkill, but for the small amount of extra weight I'd prefer to have a direct link between the two to help stiffen things up as much as possible. With this solution all I need to do is cut the top cosmetic layer of sheet metal above each of the 4 RACP mounts and bolt all the way through from the subframe to the brace. While this does require some cutting of the body, it is about as minimal as I'm going to be able to achieve while still providing for topside reinforcement. Yurkan do make a version of this brace with separate brackets for the rear shock mounts that the brace then bolts to, but given I need to cut the interior carpet, etc. either way, I decided to opt for the welded one piece option for additional stiffness. My plan with the carpets, etc. is to pick up a spare set from a wrecker to cut up and I'll put my current set unmolested on the shelf. Once this is installed I'll be able to finally stop thinking about the RACP, and should also have the added bonus of a bit of extra stiffness in the rear. I placed the order today and expected manufacturing time is about 20 days, so with shipping, getting lost at the East Tamaki depot, etc. I expect I'll receive this around the middle of the year. I also ordered a replacement steering giubo recently - looking forward to getting that installed and hopefully getting rid of the slight play in the steering.

Been a minute... very busy time. Engine is back in the car, everything is connected back up. Cut and welded the chargepipe and throttle body for a wiggins style clamp, bonnet latch got zinc coated and a few other bits and pieces tidied up. Downpipes are back in also, very painful job, o2 sensors back in and new exhaust is almost finished. Full stainless 3inch exhaust from the downpipes back, with a single adrenalin r louvre baffle resonator. All thats left now is the oil cooler setup, parts are on the way, fresh aeroflow oil coolers and all teflon line and fittings. Also will be putting in a check valve and a tee to allow for an accusump to be fitted at a later stage. Parts should arrive soon and then it will be ready to be fired up and dyno tuned. Will try and keep this updated more often.

E30 M325i Coupe Mtech 1 NZ New. 2 owners Selling on behalf ,Cousins Car who has moved to Australia. Price 25k Car has been in auckland majority of its life and serviced with parnell motors. 220km near new Leather interior Mtech 2 front and rear bumpers. Fresh wof, rego and service before sale. car was posted up here last year I've had it in storage and tiding up bits and pieces for wof which it now has. Drives great, sounds great, priced according to condition and kms. would love to own this myself but am moving to a place with less storage. so she's got to go. Car in Tauranga contact Tim 0223509077 for more information. up for a week before Trademe.

I remember the listing vividly, it was the same as my house deposit for my first home, and i thought long and hard. dont regret for a second my choice these days tho!

If it ain't broke...

Very cool milestone !! Looking forward to the next updates 👍

I agree, the Cybertruck looks like it was drawn by 7 year olds and by all accounts, built by 10 year olds.