aja540i

pulled the roof lining out of the M5, removed the corroded roof rail and installed good 2nd hand replacement, wasn't as much of a pain as i thought it might be, now i just have to track down and fix the leak/s and sort the tailgate wiring, then put it all back together!!

Awesome car, and i would sell a kidney for it, but not sure if it's a good investment at $72k ?

Pop round and pick it up, tell the guy that whoever was driving it is liable for the extra costs and they can get his info from the Police..... Then set fire to it?

https://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/bmw/auction-1763424409.htm?rsqid=ef6384ded1bf47599a5e9e4c600dc347

https://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/bmw/auction-1765591549.htm?rsqid=6b319a1c561f415b8a53047a59642d5a

Have just organised for Continental Cars BMW (Takapuna) to put a new windscreen in the M5 thanks to AMI insurance and a 400mm long crack across the bottom of the screen!! I will pay for new rubber , trim , and wiper blades to be fitted at the same time.

I assume he filled the lpg tank with a mixture of oxy / acetylene from a gas welding / cutting torch, not sure how but he seems to have been that perfect blend of inventive and ignorant.

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12119555

ADL should be able to sort out the driveshaft for you, including balancing it and the paperwork it will require for certing.

Possibly mine before i got it, its Interlagos blue but my wife swears its purple and i have to concede it looks purpleish in the right light. I got it from a dealer in Mt Eden where it had been traded on a Landcruiser, which is much more sensible for school runs in Mt Eden!!

I thought i had a NZ autocar somewhere that said there were 4 sold new in NZ, not that it matters, still a great car and i hope it sells for the asking price, but he might be a bit optimistic. There was one on a yard in Hamilton a while ago for similar money, was on trade me for over a year. That grey is the only other colour i would own one in, i still prefer mine though!

It's about protecting an investment, the less you invest in a car, the less you spend protecting it. There is also no point spending a heap of money putting good oil / coolant / etc in a car with 100,000 + Km s on it and an unknown service history, good oil won't fix a worn out motor, good coolant won't repair damage to the engine cooling system. If the car has a good continuous service history keep it up, if the engine or cooling system has been overhauled and is as new then protect that investment, otherwise use whatever fits your budget. (but don't put 91 in the gas tank, that stuff is just nasty!)

https://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/specialist-cars/competition-cars/auction-1738327757.htm?rsqid=e48f44905bdd4ce9aea8f53fac661e4e

The engine and suspension are in sport plus mode, the steering is in comfort mode. Does your M3 not have that??

If they are really cloudy it will take some pretty serious work to get them back, but not impossible, i did my e39 ones and they took about an hour each with a sanding / polishing disc in a power drill. The most important thing is to seal them against UV damage once they are polished, otherwise they will start to deteriorate again as soon as they are exposed to sunlight. Replacing the covers can be a real pain, plenty of opportunity to do more damage than good with old brittle plastics.

I should know better by now! the nut on the second balljoint decided to strip, so it was a PITA to get off and now i have to get a new locknut. ?

You can have the old ones for your collection...:)

fitted a Powerflex suspension arm bush in the front of the M5, will do the other one tomorrow night which should go a lot quicker than the first! The rubber bushes were totally flogged and the ball joints are getting a bit loose so i will have to put a pair of new arms on my list for Santa.

this one seems cheap by comparison!! https://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/bmw/auction-1734679642.htm?rsqid=32ea5f1fdf0b42e280668bb66f9c2a74

Pretty keen to find out how it did 56000 km while garaged !

used about a quarter of a tank of BPs finest blowing cobwebs out of the M5, good to remind myself why i put up with its drama sometimes!!