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Is it misfiring. When I first got my 528i it started getting similar symptoms. Turned out it was the ignition coils on the way out. It was intermittent as you describe, presumably because the coils weren't completely rooted but not far off. Only difference was it seemed to happen more often when cold. Was fine once the coils were replaced.

Took this pile of goodies to Ray at HellBM this morning for his team to begin open heart surgery on the 540i. Looking forward to the results!

Alright... So the real star of this show is not my 540i but Tom's E46 M3 CSL. Feast your eyes. [u

Does depend mightily on the router. The test I did this morning was wireless - wired it's usually only 1-2mb/s faster. With office internet (as in my own office) the wireless connections are usually massively impacted on by the number of devices connecting. In our office it starts to slow down considerably when there are 20+ devices on the wireless router. We're looking to upgrade to an Airport Extreme which can apparently handle 50 connections with little drop in speed.

We used to be lucky to get 10Mb/s down and 1Mb/s up - and that was one of the fastest ADSL2+ connections around. UFB is a MUST if you can get it... And I've seen it faster up and down (up to 100Mb/s down and 50 up!).

They have to run fibre from the box on the street to the house. Will be different engineers. We've had UFB for a while but were lucky because the box is right outside our house. Orcon installed for free and there was minimal digging/disruption required by Chorus engineers who did it. Orcon were the only telco offering immediate connection when we did it, had to register interest with Vodafone and Telecom and wait.

Usually around $450 might be more if you go for OE oil rather than a compatible substitute. I wondered that... As much as 5°?

Approx. NZ$300 inc shipping from Schiedmann but they're on holiday for 3-4 weeks so no good if you're in a rush. I agree with Allan though, look for a decent second before you shell out that kind of coin on something you'll only see when the car's on a hoist!

I did the same mod in my 528i that had mint walnut trim - it looked much better than stock IMO. Since the cluster rings are so easy to install you should just give it a whirl and, if you don't like it, take 'em out! But I do recommend the matte silver (Titanline) rings rather than chrome.

Looks good. TBH, having coloured my needles I'd recommend keeping them white - mainly because recolouring is pretty tricky to get even - and if you don't get it right it'll look terrible when backlit. I did a pretty good job but can still seem some unevenness when they're lit. Replacing the needles is expensive or very difficult to DIY

Had matte silver rings on the 528i which I preferred to these chrome ones but still looks better than stock I think. Unlit + lit. You've got to be pretty patient with the sharpie to get an even finish - basically you need to build up a lot of colour and then use the flat side like a brush. Otherwise it'll look pretty streaky (and worse when it's backlit). EDIT: Meant to add that changing the cluster rings is really easy. The cluster's easy to get out: Just pop out the two dash trim pieces either side of the steering wheel; remove the 3 phillips head screws underneath the trim; then unscrew the three screws under the 'hood' of the cluster with a T20 screwdriver and you should be able to pop the plastic surround out. You'll need to unplug the fog lights to get it right out of the way so you can pull the cluster out. I can send you some instructions for removing the back of the cluster then you just clip the cluster rings into the cover and reassemble.

Ouch... Anyone who tries to claim an M car is as cheap to maintain as a regular bimmer is dreaming!

Sorry, see what you mean. Couldn't tell you exactly but if anything today was warmer than it has been lately yet the core temp readings were definitely a few degrees cooler.

I've been monitoring core temp at peak operating temperature for a while because the cluster gauge regularly crept up over the median vertical position - which my 528i never did. It's core temperature would range from was usually around 108-111° when cruising but sometimes getting as high as 113-115° at idle (apparently it is normal for the M62tu to run this hot). Today it was running at 105-106° cruising and around 108° at idle and the needle was sitting slightly to the left of vertical with little or no movement.Fair point about fuel level but previous measures were at different fuel levels. Weight will have been relatively unchanged (apart from weight of fuel). Definitely same road. PS I am replacing my thermostat next week but these comparisons were directly before and after, similar conditions and with no other changes besides auto trans service.

So I've just stumped up some cash to service the 5hp24 transmission in my 540i. New filter, new gasket and fluid flush and replacement with fully synthetic Castrol Dexron VI transmission oil. I took the car for a proper spin at lunchtime up and over the Harbour Bridge and a 20kms or so up the motorway and back. I've noticed a few things that have noticeable improved: Smoother and quicker gear changes in Drive and Sport mode Better fuel consumption (not an actual measure - just going by the gauge on the instrument cluster) Lower engine core temperature (using on board diagnostic, not the gauge) by 3-5° I get why oil that will flow more freely when cooler (the old oil was disgusting) has improved the gear changes noticeably and I'm guessing that also impacts on the fuel consumption (i.e. the gears are changing as they should and not over-revving before changing) but I'd really like to know why/how it might affect the engine's core temp?Is it because the fresh fluid is not as viscous at lower temps so the engine is not having to work as hard to accelerate in each gear, etc? It would make more sense to me if it was the engine oil but I'm not totally sure of the physics with the trans. Presumably the lower core-temp of the engine is also helping improve fuel economy. Apologies in advance if this is a dumb question but I'd really like to know.

Stumped up for auto transmission service. Replaced filter, gasket and fluid. Used nearly 14L of Castrol Dexron VI to flush the old (and very dirty) fluid and refill. Confirmed it's a safe subsitute for the OE fluid and about half the price. Definitely feel the difference in the short drive I made yesterday. Will report more when I've had a chance to drive for a while.

Saw a new Space Grey Motorsport gran coupe with matte black wheels yesterday on Ponsonby Road. Seriously good looking car, I'm not usually a fan of black wheels. Drove one a while back and it was spectacular.

A lot of these plastic undercarriage trim parts will have begun to perish on a 10+ year old car so finding seconds might be tough (try forum sponsors HellBM, BMWorld, etc). If you want new, check the part numbers on realoem.com and try Gavin at Euro Italia (forum sponsor) locally or international vendors like Schmiedmann.

Could you fit it to a 540? That would be fun!

Hope it works out. Jealous!!

+1 ^

Haven't used rust converter but whatever you use make sure you get rid of the rust before painting.

Top news! You must be thrilled, relieved, etc.

I drew roughly from this book that my son has: But an easy way if you're freehand drawing skills aren't that flash is to print one of these plans (blow it up to the size you want) and stick it to the card, then cut round. Cut a few and stick them together for thickness then start using smaller pieces to make the detail. I used paper at the end to make it look like armour panels.

haha! Not much...About $10 for the glue (best with a caulk gun if you've got one) $5 for a silver Sharpie Recycled cardboard is free (you need some pretty big boxes for a double-ended light sabre though!) The instructions are simple: Draw and cut out your template. Then draw around that and cut a few more out, change the direction of the 'grain' for strength. Glue them all together and leave for half an hour with something weighty on top. Paint as required. Sharpie for detail. Kapow - Darth Maul's light sabre (cut in half for Luke vs Darth Vader light sabres). Go crazy! EDIT: Should have mentioned one cartridge of glue will be good for about 200 hundred light sabres and the pen'll do 50 easy. Amazing value!!