M3AN

You wonder why he's even bothering to pay for insurance? File a claim with the Disputes Tribunal if you have his details - he'll soon work out that it's better just to pay the excess.

I can't tell you what's causing your problem but a professional will be able to. Having said that here's a little background on what you've read up so far. The passenger seat has an occupancy sensor under the cushion (well a series of pressure sensors so it can tell if somebody is in the seat). If there's nobody in the passenger seat the passenger airbag shouldn't deploy in a front-on (although they often do anyway). This saves on replacement costs. It's not optional. If the car's computer can't see or talk to that sensor it will a) turn the airbag on and b) turn the airbag light on. If that is your problem (again I don't know) then the car is perfectly safe to drive but you can't get a WoF. You can get a bypass on eBay for less than $20 that you plug into the wires coming out of the carpet and that tells the computer that a) the sensor is there and b) there's somebody in the seat. Using a bypass means the passenger airbag will always go off in a heave enough collision. If you install a bypass (for example if because your seat sensor is broken and it costs a fair bit to replace) after the airbag light is illuminated it will NOT turn the airbag light off and you'll still fail warrants. Whatever you do you'll need somebody with the correct equipment to turn the airbag light off.

That's friggin' awesome, I had to watch it like 20 times. Like a boss.

^ that's autumn prudy.

Second video worked for me. And yeah, don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting the car is a lemon or that the dealer is dishonest! It's perfectly reasonable to give the dealer an opportunity to fix it, especially if they're forthcoming with the offer. However don't assume they're intending to do it at no cost to you, you need that verified explicitly in writing. You should confirm that: They're making it their responsibility to fix it; and, They're not going to rely on your warranty to have it fixed; and, You're going to get another vehicle whilst it's being fixed (your trade-in might be a good option but dealer is responsible for insurance); and, If it takes longer than xxx to properly fix you have the right to walk away; and, At your expense you can get the fix verified by a BMW dealer/independent of your choice. If the original purchase is complex or costly (e.g. repaying a loan in full before the term was up) to unwind the courts/arbitrator is likely to apportion them between both parties and you'd end up paying 20% to 30% and the dealer the rest (they carry most of the burdon). It seems all parties are being reasonable but keep in the back of your mind point #4 above - you don't want this saga to go on for months or for the dealer to decide it's too costly to proceed (whilst you still own the car!). Reasonable people can become quite unreasonable in a short space of time if conditions are unfavorable. Hopefully it's a quick fix!

Holy crap, I just got an agreed value quote from Swann for my M3: State (current) - $52pm agreed at 15k (maximum they'll insure it for) Swann - $33pm agreed at 22k with way better options! I'm moving.

Yeah, I'm stunned they lumbered an M car with such a POS option. Just code launch control on, surely that can't live in harmony with stop/start?

Your video didn't load for me, or at least it didn't after 60 seconds. How much do you love this particular car? I personally wouldn't bother looking to get it fixed, assuming the dealer is licensed just take the car back, get your money back and find the next one. This is a legal entitlement, don't squander it by holding on to the car or accepting another course of action. Once you have your money back, if the dealer fixes it on their dime to your satisfaction and makes the car available for sale again then you can enter into a new purchase arrangement. The point being here that you need to take action to shift the risk (ownership) back to the dealer. It's better that the dealer has a broken car to worry about than you. If on the other hand you love this particular car or simply can't be without it then you'll need to find a compromise with the dealer but that should never involve your mechanical warranty. You're entitled to a full refund (including any financing establishment fees and on road costs, warranty etc) so you're doing the dealer a favour if you accept any other course of action, use that to your advantage (temporary use of another car etc, etc). Good luck, sucks when this type of thing happens.

Yep, you're entitled to take it back and ask them what's up. if you want to track it down yourself you can take off/loosen the belts (making a note of their path and direction of movement) and spin all the pulleys by hand until you find the cranky one.

What products did you use for this Bas?

Glenn's correct Andy, take it to BM Workshop,

So much this. Really, if you love the E39 then do as @BreakMyWindow suggests and take a serious look at the M5. A good friend of mine had a lovely 540 manual years ago and used to drive a fair bit, he tried an M5 and blew his load, it ruined his 540 for him. Many years on he now owns an E39 M5. Of course, with a cool 50 your options are endless. Buy Tom's E46 M3, save and invest 20k, drive it like you stole it and get something more responsible in a couple of years?

Yeah, put it back together, run and have fun and then you'll have a great project to look forward too off season with no time pressure.

Okay, well now that you've got it, strip it of anything valuable and get a quote from the likes of Brent or Ray to take it away - if they'll pay you more than $4k take their offer, if not then make a claim and get the $4k from AA. Not ideal but you now need to minimise your loss. Pursue the difference from the other driver through the courts if you can be bothered.

Won't be a problem with the harness, the belts can run up anyway but it might be an issue with helmet clearance if it's already tight. That may be mitigated by mounting the seat lower if there's space to do that.

YouShop did that too? Kiwishipping certainly did it and I got caught up in the middle. Thank God my purchase was from Amazon who have some of the world's best customer service. As a result of the monumental cock up I did get an Eibach Pro Plus kit of springs and bars air freighted to NZ and my total cost was GST on the cost of that Air Freight (~$40) and customs clearance (~$60). I didn't pay for the kit or the shipping and because the kit invoice now said US$0 there was no GST on that.

I think this is where 3rd party works in your favour. You still own the car, you can do with it what you want. AA are not a party to the car because they weren't insuring the car (comprehensive) they were insuring the driver (3rd party). Even if you have already made a claim, as long as the loss hasn't been assessed (AA's responsibility) then you can still get the wheels (and any anything else you've added). Their $4000 offer isn't "insurance" and it's not based on the value of your car. It could be a Ferrari on 19's or a Corolla with 15's and they'd still offer $4000. So by swapping anything out whilst ensuring it's still complete you're not ripping anyone off. Once an assessor has valued it you can't touch it so get in quick.

@qube - where is the car now? Unless you've specifically declared the wheels on your policy (no because it's only 3rd party) then go and get them and swap on any old rubbish. Same for any other valuable accessories. You want to get the value down as much as possible. And get a labour-only estimate for the repair and get a spare parts list from Brent or somebody and, unless it's chassis damaged, that might get the repair cost down enough? Or you might have to top it up but it's better than walking away with nothing. Sorry to see this mate, glad everybody is okay.

2003 I think: +LED tail lights +Different trunk lid handle And not much (anything?) else.

Dude, that rotor! I bet it gave you a hell of a fright! Did you have any duct tape with you or did you have to flatbed it home?

Where's this project page? I looked at the end of the thread, not the beginning.

As I said above "E46 M3". I'm not entirely sure why anyone would disagree.

I don't believe so. I think these days you need to be precise if you want to compete. Ignoring perhaps the most obvious search term is not smart by any measure. I'm glad to say I've never had an account.

^ also interested.

My point is that any seller should be optimising their chance of a sale. It's got nothing to do with whether I (or somebody else) can find it, it's how easy they can find it. Look up the research on how many people ever see more than the first page of results for any given Google search. I'm not sure I get the connection. The seller would (I say "should") a) know what they're selling and the target market, and b) put "E46" in the title themselves. e.g. "2003 BMW E46 M3 (Manual) (Topaz)" would get a hit for any relevant search. The problem there is that none of them come up with "E46 M3" so further filters don't help. I do realise you can find them, I did indeed find them, it's just that they not optimised for being found. My original point being that they should be at the top of the list for a search for "E46 M3", that they don't even show up on the list at all is a seller oversight.