jeffbebe

Sounds like a steal then!

At that price you might have made up for that other sh*tter you bought!

Had a quick look at this one with Martin... Exterior okay but engine sounds problematic.

Hey Hugh. Presumably you know of some roads that aren't like any of the ones I've driven on in NZ that mean driving a sacked E39 won't be a royal PITA (not to mention expensive every time your rip off your muffler, split your sump, crack the front lip and destroy the front wheel splash guards). Tell us where those roads are!

Me either... But then all those bumps and scrapes would be a great excuse to paint it.

Seriously considering it if it checks out. I'm sure I won't be alone though...

Strikes me that, if it checks out, you'd be unlikely to find one with lower kms. If the engine is good and low kms it's worth spending a bit on the outside. Dave got close to $30K for his with 25K kms more on the clock but in better condition. Don't reckon it would cost $8K to get the exterior ship shape if the rest is good.

Even better for an E31....

http://www.trademe.co.nz/726199733

Don't budge. The price is right for your car. It will sell to someone who knows what they're looking at. Someone who just wants to buy a cheap M3 can buy one for $25K and then watch it cost them twice yours in 5 years on maintenance.

F*ck that! You can buy a heavy duty (600hp) tc for around $750 brand new. Someone like Ray will be able to put it all back together with fresh fluid for a lot less than $4K. That said, if you've got $4-6K sitting around, a manual conversion would be well worth it.

I have also decatted an M54B28 with straight pipes and removed the Y resonator... Loud, droney and generally horrible. The cats do help with excessive noise, especially in the cabin so whatever you I agree that straight piping isn't the best option.

Thanks Brent, much appreciated. No SIV permits left this year anyway, so I've missed the boat. Fortunately I have family in the UK who can check the car rigorously and I wouldn't purchase a car in the UK without a really thorough inspection. Also worth getting the seller to take undercarriage pics and shots of any areas susceptible to rust.

Ha! Wouldn't want to get a blue light on it!

The cats will be munted anyway in a 10+ year old car. Remove them and you'll have no issues as you have no post cat sensors but definitely replace with something. I used a couple of small resonators and the sound is fine but a little bit droney at low rpms (but sounds great at high RPMs). I'd recommend replacing with some high flow cats so - as Mike says - you still get some of the benefit of cats in terms of emissions. If it's still too loud fit another resonator in the single pipe to the supersprint (or two small ones if it's a dual in exhaust).

Thanks for all the info, mate. Very jealous of your manual M62! Was yours the one that was up for sale last year for around $50K?? My mechanic knows a guy with a 4L and 4.4L 840ci (both non-motorsport). He's willing to sell the 4.4 - an auto Orient Blue UK import with black leather interior - but I don't know how much he wants for it yet. There were only 57 RHD 840s ever made, I believe, so the manuals are certainly rare. There's a cheap manual 4L for sale in the UK at the moment and I was considering just buying it, shipping it and then seeing if I can get an SIV permit next year (they've already run out this year) or stripping the good stuff and dumping into one of the cheap 850 shells that are floating about, if it can't be complied. I did like the Tobago blue one but can't contact the seller as the listing's not there - if you know him I'm interested but $20K+ is right at the limit of what I could afford and it would mean selling the sc kit which would be disappointing (and expensive to replace) as it fits both M60 and M62. Have costed up importing one and it's not too bad if I can find a straight example - certainly makes paying $25-30K here seem a bit steep. Anyway, I'm in no massive rush so hopefully the right car will pop up sooner or later.

It's an iL because the badge is to iLong for the back of the car.

The reason I love bimmers right there ^^^ Who wants to help me rob a couple of banks?

Josh keeps telling me I should buy an E30... Have you got pics?

Hmmmnnn... I was about to buy this http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/ferrari/auction-584762680.htm but now that I've seen that Lancer I just can't decide!

I got mine media blasted and powdercoated. Cost $200 all up. Results were excellent despite serious pitting in the surface of the covers (if you're really fussy/wealthy get the pitting alloy-welded prior to sandblasting). http://project540.tumblr.com/post/75432221219/valve-cover-recondition

Yep, I have one. VF supercharger kit. Only 20K miles on it. Was going to fit to my E39 540 but have since decided to get an E31 840 instead. Hoping to keep the kit for the 840i but might sell for the right offer. EDIT: Looks like this...

Thanks all... Has been an excellent day so far, including a voucher from my bro in the UK to take a spin in a Lambo Gallardo around Hampton. Fun!! Am hunting that perfect 8er to have a proper midlife crisis in.

Thanks, never thought I'd sell it... But I really want one of these! Yep, someone who knows what they're doing (such as Ray or Glenn) could diagnose it by driving. You may be lucky if it's disappearing when warm as this suggests it's thick, old trans fluid that's the problem so a trans flush and refill + new filters might do the trick. Problem is, if it doesn't work, that's $450 down the gurgler as you'll have to pull it apart and lose that fresh oil to get to the tc... Hence why a call to Ray or Glenn is worthwhile to be certain.

Just make sure you give it a good clean should you buy it.