jeffbebe

You're not wrong... I have a long list of 'when-my-memoirs-are-a-best-seller' things I'd like to do.

Saw a gorgeous E60 M5 wagon on Ponsonby Road today (so much better looking than the sedan). Made me think how much fun it would be to make an E39 M5 wagon... There was an M5 engine on TM for around $12K!!

Nope Ponsonby.

Sorry, yes, it is an xDrive but the BMW guy who talked us through it reckoned in Sport+ you can get pretty wild with it despite all-wheel drive. As mentioned, I'm way too average a driver to test it! Especially in an $80K+ car that doesn't belong to me!

How do I confirm? Is there an easy test? Definitely consistent with the sound on short, sharp bumps - will check it out. Wouldn't cause the squeak when I bounce front right though, eh? Should have added that suspension otherwise feels perfect.

Tax man has given me a break so don't have to sell my sedan... Relief.

There's a light metallic twang - like something's a bit loose - when I go over bumps. When I push down the front right there is an audible squeak/hiss (like air being forced out) but the metallic sound isn't there. Failing ball joint or is there something that can come loose that might cause it? Easiest way to work out what's causing it? Presumably if it's a ball joint or tie rod it would be best to replace on both sides at the same time. Car has been regularly serviced and no other suspension issues previously that I'm aware of.

Yep, will get the proper camera on to the job as soon as possible. We've got it for a month so have some time to take some decent pics. Yes! That is a cool feature. Pretty certain the interior door handles, arm rest, etc were vinyl/plastic in the 320d we had but most of that is leather in the touring. Or maybe, the car's just grown on me more since then! Not sure where 'there' is. This is my office car park - though no doubt it looks a lot like a few other car parks around the place. Can't see any M6s or old Ferraris in there

Make me an offer. Was thinking $75 or $150 if you want the CD changer (which is still in the car at the moment).

Did a fair bit of driving in the new 320i touring over the weekend and it was an absolute pleasure. Too many gadgets to talk about though! iDrive is excellent and much more intuitive then previous iterations (at least the ones that I've had a play on). The sat nav is a bit tiresome (you select letters with a dial on the center console) but considerably safer than touch screen versions as you don't need to take your eyes off the road thanks to the absolutely awesome HUD. Sorry about the pics - only had my phone handy and will take better ones soon - but you can just about make out that the speed limit here is 50, I'm at a standstill and selecting a radio station. Very cool. The car has four driving modes - Eco, comfort, sport and sport plus. Eco's dull, slow response, and not much get up and go but apparently minimises fuel use. Great for stop/start driving in traffic or for long journeys. Comfort's the standard mode and the car always starts in Comfort. It's a pretty good balance between slow, steady and cheap and enough get up and go to overtake when needed but Sport and Sport+ are where the fun begins. The only difference between Sport and Sport+ as far as I can tell is that the DSC is switched off in Sport+ so, if you know how, you can get the car sideways a bit. There's a noticeable difference. You get a lot more feeling in Sport+ and it feels pretty loose but I'm not a good enough driver to put it through the its paces. It's pretty amazing when we you re-engage the stability control; the car suddenly feels very tight and the grip is amazing - even on the wet and oily roads this weekend. The 4 cylinder, 2L turbocharged engine's pretty punchy, putting out 180 odd BHP (not far off what I get from my older 2.8L straight six and this car's quite a bit lighter). I reckon a lot of driver's would struggle, particularly in the wet, to keep it on the road without the DSC, so Sport mode's the way to go if you want a fun drive with virtually no chance of getting sideways. Sport mode lets you rev higher in each gear and the pick up is much quicker than Comfort or Eco making the car really fun to drive - I can imagine the 335i would be insanely fun but terrifying without the stability control on unless you're an extremely competent driver. We've got the M-sport version which looks very tidy. In general the styling's great both inside and out; the 19" (I think - will check) low profile wheels look excellent, if a touch large for the car and the interior is well designed and feels less 'plastic' than the 320i Sedan we borrowed last year. I guess this is a slightly more expensive model. The sport seats are good, though not as comfortable for an old bugger like me as the comfort seats in my E39 (which still looks pretty good next to the 320i IMO). It has all of the latest bits of kit - reverse cameras, PDC (with sound and visual components), iDrive, self-adjusting xenon headlights, leather interior, electric everything - even the boot! Plenty of space in it too, though not a patch on the five series. Will take some proper pics soon. Don't want to give it back and neither does my little lad who takes any opportunity to hop into a Bimmer...

I've been comparing performance before and after pad change with no other changes. Didn't change the brake fluid but it was done 12 months ago. The slight drop in response from the new pads is not entirely unexpected from what I've heard/read - it seems that low dust pads tend to come with slightly poorer performance. That said, these Posi Quiets seem an excellent balance between performance and low noise/dust.

This looks good buying (if you replaced/repainted the wheels). http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/...n-568614568.htm Decent engine, low kms and pretty tidy. Love the colour too. If I had some spare coin I'd definitely consider for a weekender.

Just been out to BMW HQ to pick up the tourer - an M-sport 320i - can't complain the turbo'd engine has a fair bit of poke and first impressions of the car are excellent. Will be interesting to see how it stacks up to the 320d sedan we had last year.Full write up to follow. Must be company policy to park tail in at BMW HQ - bet that rule was introduced when the E60 hit the showroom!

Off to pick this little devil up...

CLICK ME PS Have removed offending pics for Chrome users.

Is it the same seller? Perhaps this car is a lemon that changes hands so quickly each new seller uses the same TM pics and description.

Weird... They automatically resize on my screen. Can't argue with the CLS. Not a good looking piece of machinery.

Have to disagree with you about the new Mazda 6. It's very tidy but the front definitely owes a lot to the F10 and rear to the Jag XF... Sorry to hijack! http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MQgpvkM4kGs/UNhw...20Sedan%203.jpg http://oi54.tinypic.com/fjqgbs.jpg http://www.caradvice.com.au/wp-content/upl...c-dark-rear.jpg http://www.syiir.com/wp-content/uploads/Ja...-Rear-Angle.jpg

These are pretty fugly as well IMO... Not really sure who they're for.

I'm with you! Basically any SUV/sporty combo. Naff.

Good on you... BTW, at your age girlfriends come and go... Mint M3s don't

... Not sure what your point is? Are we debating whether the market is at a low point for E34 sedans, that people don't like the colour red (which I happen to think looks fantastic on these cars) or that you think there must be something sh*t about this one that the seller isn't telling us (though for $4K for a car that was once reserved for the rich and famous when new isn't bad, even with a few niggles)?

Mine were the same... These are a revelation in terms of brake dust and whatever drop in performance there is it's barely noticeable if you drive like an old nana like me!!

So my new Posi Quiet pads have had a month or so on the car and plenty of time for me to reflect on their performance. Pros: Zero dust - I mean zero: I was cleaning the wheels on a weekly basis with the OE pads and have not needed to clean my wheels since I installed the new pads. That is a huge plus! Low noise - definitely quieter than the OE pads I had, thought it's not a fair comparison as the rotors have been skimmed and the OE pads were pretty old, That said, these are very quiet indeed. Smooth braking - braking is really smooth, no vibration, etc, perhaps response time is a fraction slower before they bite. Value: These cost NZ$180 (incl. international shipping) for front and rear - less than half the cost of the cheapest OE pads I could find in NZ. Cons: Performance - definitely not as tight as the OE pads but they do brake more smoothly. For an emergency stop you have to be a bit more aggressive on the brake pedal but seriously, they're more than good enough! Unknowns: Wet - it hasn't rained for so long that I've not had a chance to test in the wet so the jury's still out on that. Overview: All in all, these pads are everything I wanted - cost-effective, clean (low dust), quiet and the performance is more than adequate for my driving style. If you're a boy racer or tracking your car, they're probably not the pads you need but for general use, I can't fault them.

I'm pushing 40 but don't think I could handle one... DSC is designed to keep average drivers like me on the road in insanely performanced cars, right?! Agree totally with getting advanced driving lessons for a car like this, regardless of age (but especially for the younger ones - personal risk assessment ain't fully developed when you're under 25 that's for sure!!). I'd really love to own a weekend M5 but not until I can afford to a) keep it in mint condition and learn to drive it properly (on a track!)