BreakMyWindow

Thread cleaned up. Let's keep it on topic. GLWS ?

2001 BMW 530i touring in Titan Silver Metallic. 292,xxx kms. 1 year wof done in May. Rego expires October. This has been a restoration project for me and the time has come to let a new owner enjoy this modern classic. A pretty extensive maintenance regime has been undertaken... Suspension wise I have fitted new shocks, Front springs, ball joints and control arms. The rear subframe bushes (common issue on e39 touring) have also recently been replaced with more durable solid rubber. She now handles and rides superbly. New rear discs and pads along with hoses and fresh brake fluid. M54 Engine maintenance is all up to date. Vanos overhauled, complete cooling system overhaul including the 2 plastic pipes under the intake manifold. Valve cover gasket replaced and new plugs. Lots of time and money invested. Not your average e39 that’s well overdue for maintenance. I’m asking $7500. See my project thread for details.

Whoops, yeah they were 61usd ea

Local i was quoted between 150 and 190 + gst depending on if they needed to be ordered ex Germany. FCP euro were $40usd ea so went with that. No gst to pay either.

Sorting out the rear door vapour barriers (VB’s). They started leaking about 3 years ago, but not bad enough to soak the carpet thankfully. Back then i decided to use some butyl mastic in a caulking gun which turned out to be a temporary fix. This attempt I’ve decided to go with the official bmw procedure using new VB’s as the old ones I couldn’t bear cleaning off old butyl. Below is a description of the procedure. So starting with removing the old VB I then heated up and scraped off as much butyl as possible from the inner door panel. Using a rag and some prepsol I managed to fully clean off all the old butyl followed by a wipe down of the contact area with isopropyl. Then apply fresh butyl tape to the VB leaving the wax paper on. Offer it up to the door panel. Peel the wax paper off as you press down until the VB is fully attached to the inner door panel. Heat up the perimeter of the door panel and use a seam roller to press down on the butyl for good adhesion. Instructions say to let the butyl “set” for 5 hours before doing and load tests (i.e leak test, open/closing door). Fingers crossed this is a lasting repair.

aw11 appeal is strong

Yeah i think compliance as i found some markings in my jap import wagon when i pulled the carpet up.

This was owned by @M5V8

I have e39 adhd

For 6 cylinder or v8?

Good value, does look well worn though with seat bolster wear, scabby wheel bolts n centre covers etc. Probably some other stuff underneath which all reflects the low price. Still love it!

New windscreen cowl and replaced the windscreen seal with a new gen bmw one. Wipers got some paint too.

Front bumper painted and fitted. Have got new govt issue replacement number plates on order to complete the refresh.

That’ll be an extra $100 and I’ll happily oblige.

Ultra racing brand. In good nick. $130 Pick up in West Auckland.

The land yacht popped its cherry and got a proper old car water leak. Leaves and twigs mushed up blocking the e-box drains leads to water getting in through the firewall. The foam insulation underneath carpet was quite soggy in the footwell area. With a wet vac I extracted about 1l. This could have gone on for a while had the exact same symptoms from the last p-bus wire issue had not came back. I opened up the passenger door loom connection which had moisture, and the foam velcro insulator on the wires was wet which made me take a good look. This is under the e-box in the bulkhead under the cabin filters on passenger side. The visible hole is the ebox drain hole, there’s a rubber tube that locates the e-box to the drain. The bulkhead drains are under the leaves. Getting the e-box out is a shitter job and it won’t even fully come out without disconnecting buried in interior connections. Managed to slide it up on its side to be able to clean up. Hoping the dehumidifier will get some more moisture out and maybe a couple of good days outside with a fan to dry them up.

Primed and ready. I’ll be handing this off to a painter to spray the colour and clear. Have smoothed out the texture on the corner strips as i’ll be leaving all the side trims colour coded. Glad that’s done. Adhesion promoter coats. This bumper turns out to be a rep. Made of PP means paint doesn’t stick so well. Initial Priming Bog/sand Bog/sand Bog/sand... Touchups with primer and finished results

Lot’s of filling and sanding, nearly ready to prime.

Yeah imo lower kms just feels nicer in the sense that less people have had the opportunity to mistreat or fail to understand maintenance with the car. A properly repaired write off, that has good wheel alignment and good rust prevention, a hight standard of workmanship is also a bittersweet feeling. I could see though how you could flog out some suspension parts in 50k though, how bad was it @qube ? Enthusiastic driving with heavy braking will take their toll on bushes quickly on heavier cars. Every bmw I’ve owned has had highish kms. My 99’ 540i had 250k on in 2008 when i paid 11k for it. 8 years Owning and about 14k in it excl fuel and insurance I wonder how much back then a 20k purchase price lower kms example would have cost me in running it in 8 years. High kms doesn’t bother me too much if I have time to enjoy restoring/maintaining/upgrading it as the purchase price is usually half or less of what I’ll end up spending on it ?. But when i get less time i’ll definitely be getting something newish, low kms that I can just put petrol in and drive, maybe a clean now and then.

Yeah I think I’ll eventually go for an android unit but not really a high priority for me.

Slow progress on the bumper. First attempt at fibreglass repairing with lessons learned. All cracks are repaired though and not re appearing so far with alot of moving the bumper around. Filler next. Got a facelift M wheel in pretty good nick for it along with an updated airbag.

Yeah i used a 2 jaw on the M5’s one... easy as. On the wagon though, have tried 2 jaw pullers (now bent) wd40, heat, love taps, prying. No joy. Need the proper tool i think.

Anyone have a wiper arm puller i could borrow?

Something for half the price with half left to maintain/upgrade.

The front bumper has been annoying me. Needs crack repairs then a full prep n paint. The damage and cracks : Starting the repairs. I’ve drilled holes at the ends of the cracks to stop them growing. Added a bit of drift stitching to the separated area. Was an awkward position to drill, hence blood. The next stage will be prepping for some fibreglass resin.