chimera

PM'd - although yours is a coupe right, mines a 4 door, will this make a difference in the length of the exhaust?

I always thought extractors were individual pipes coming off each cylinder that ran back to a larger single or dual pipe and standard headers was one big manifold that was more restrictive. Perhaps I got my terminology wrong? No, not M sport although has an M sport front and alloys. The rear suspension is much lower than the front, seems to be like that on many BMW's. I have considered getting the front lowered to match the back, almost looks pumped up in the front. I got my springs heated and lowered in an old car that I used to have - made cornering 100 times better. Not sure if the same will apply for the bimmer. So yes, completely stock. I figure I will only do the intake if I also do the exhaust as they really go hand in hand.

key has 2 buttons on it, pressing either the red LED on the key flashes. looks like there is a light for it too, although hitting either button does not illuminate it - whether the bulb has gone i don't know? the fact that the red LED flashes indicates to me it should be keyless!

or if getting the k&n, can we get the 57i kits here?

hey, anyone got any info on how the keyless entry works - as in, i've put new batteries in the remote but it doesnt unlock the doors (i assume its supposed too!!!) i've tried both sets of keys. where is the sensor on the car located? anywhere i can check? anything obvious to look for? cheers

cheers yuen. does the 328 have extractors? if not would it be more beneficial getting extractors then a 328 exhaust from there? whats the difference in diameter of the 323 vs 328 exhaust? also, found this kit from CPA for $85. excludes pod filter and cold airbox but filters cheap enough.

cheers mate, have emailed autopassion for a price. what other mod's are out there? where do you guys get your ecu upgrades from? do these mod's void mechanical warranties or does it only void what you're replacing? (must go check the fine print!) cheers

hey, ok, so much for wanting to keep it stock i want to start doing a few minor mods. lets start with the pod filter. can i just put any pod filter on that fits? like a k&n or simota? or is it best to get a proper E36 kit for it? i wanna do something like this: REF: http://www.electrodyne.cc/search_engine_in..._52_36_100.html also, what other mods can I do to give best bang for buck? (without going overboard!) eg: ecu, extractors etc? cheers

hard to say exactly coz i negotiated down a little bit although also got a 3 year mechanical warranty thats worth about $1500 dollars. so i could look at it as either a good price on the warranty or a good price on the car lets just say in the $10k's. not too bad from a dealer and it really is in pristine condition. i know privately they are cheaper however most of them that i saw had done around the 150km's+ this has only done 69km's. there is another E36 '97 323i on the yard at the moment with bbs mags and they're wanting $12k for it - its only done 33kms. they sold 3 bmws over the weekend, i had to queue up to pay for it when i picked it up tonight

Introducing the United Future party leader, the honourable Peter... Done.

hey, well, i've finally got me a bimmer. just bought it on the weekend, settled on a '97 E36 323i. its a jap import but in mint condition, only a couple of small scratches on it, interiors immaculate and 69km's (odometer certified) on the clock. got the bmw 17" alloys and M3 (I think??) front on it. i also gotta 3 year mechanical warranty with it for peace of mind. unfortunately not the best pic, but heres one from the dealers site when it was sitting in japan... now since the 323 is basically a detuned M52 328 engine (plus a few other differences of course) and its 25HP less than my current vtec integra not to mention a heavier vehicle, can someone point me in the right position to get some gg's outta this beast only thing that i wanna replace (seems everyones in the same boat) are they psychidellic disco orange indicators. gah they are ugly. too damn expensive though, whats the average price that people are paying for clear ones? cher

interesting, cheers guys still reading, still looking oh yeah, and this ones pretty unique,... 10 speed manual hahahaaa! http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/C...629702.htm?p=25

yeah mate all good as much as manuals are fun my left thigh is twice as big as the right from sitting in auckland traffic over the years so im pretty much over manuals. i also get enough steak in my diet so arent too fussed with the leather either. been looking at go-fast bits at various sites around the world and the massive hoard of shiney chromey wanky bits on trademe was looking at two pics of silver 323's couldnt work out why one looked sharp the other looked like my nana should be driving it til (my wife ) noticed the clear indicators and side lights and the flash as front. big difference on the looks i guess im just hoping i dont get the bmw bug - although it looks like its too late for that. at the moment im googling things like "bmw 1 series v8 conversion", "series 1 genocide" and "shrimp my ride" oh that was low, not to diss any series 1 owners but,... dear god what were bmw thinking. i think the wife was wondering why i was browsing images of bmw's naked. the hard part will be letting her know im selling the house and moving her and the kids into a backpackers hostel just so i can buy a limited edition 2007 m6 convertible

Eh, only 330km/hr? looked like a nifty fifty racing beside him the hayabusa would have got to 390km/hr turned around and got back before the guy got his car outta park cheers. yeah looking around still. some real dick@#$ car dealers around. sure i've made a few lowish offers but if they counter offered rather than got arrogant about it i would have moved up and they would have got themselves a deal ah well there loss, its certainly a buyers market

so whats up with the gearboxes i see mentioned all the time? i'd definately buy with a 3 year mechanical warranty (for peace of mind) although that'll add at least another $1k to the price. also servicing costs - I believe its not far off the normal japper you get these days?

cheers - thats the most sense anyones made all day i go check out the 323 again and offer some silly dollars

so the USA models are different or are they just full of sh!t?! ahhh so many differing opinions

thanks guys i go test drive the 323 again. re: the exhaust, thats what i heard for the 323 too. its a different engine but yeah still 2.5L. according to the USA forum, the 323 exhaust from cat-back is a single pipe and dual for 328. looks like a good improvement for some relatively minor mods. heres the post which also shows dyno readings... http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=312434

haha, funny thread. very amusing everyones stereotypical outlook on various drivers. plenty of half truths. its usually the young drivers that are attracted to the vtec coz turbo's are too expensive to insure so they get the next best thing. not to mention they're cheap as chips to buy now too. i drive an integra at the moment, 1.8 vtec manual, stock standard (apart from pod filter) im married with kids so aint about to put chromes on it (actually i think they look better factory standard) still, i drive it like I stole it. I dont think i've ever driven without red-lining it - only because I can they are insanely quick for what they are and handle exceptionally well. on the other hand its getting old and has done high km's, I've treated it pretty rough and would be lucky to get $1500 for it anyways i think i get to have my say here moreso because im now looking at a bmw so why the change? well quite simply i've always wanted a bmw. they're alot more sophisticated than your regular rice rocket, bang for buck not as good IMO but then its outweighed by quality german engineering, a strong, solid vehicle with doors that thud when you close them rather than twang much smoother driving and they (thankfully) no longer have the wanker image that was associated with them 5-10 years ago. just my 10 cents worth oh, and if you wanna see fast, then check out the speedo on the Suzuki Hayabusa motorbike... Insane!

hahaa, i figured that might open up a can of worms asking! i did do some searching on the site but most of the results were on peoples mod'd rides rather than what you get factory standard so i'm picking the 325/328 are quite comparable, there's only 1HP difference in engine output but more torque in the 328. so other question then is how does the 323 (2.5l) compare to these models? anything wrong with them? i seen a mint 323i i'm considering but dont want to spend the dosh on a ride when i can get more gogo outta a donkey on viagra. so wiki says the bimmers come with VANOS from 1993 onwards - seems a little generic? does this mean all of them from '93 onwards have VANOS? i'm looking at a '97 323.

hey all, first post, be nice im in the market for an E36 bimmer, am looking at E36 3 series - either 323i, 325i and 328i. i gotta manual honda 1.8 v-tec at the moment (pretty quick for what it is but its had its days, worn and looks like a piece of s#$@) always wanted a beamer (prefer an auto because of crap auckland traffic ) although want something that will compare performance wise to the vtec. i test drove a 323i the other day, went ok but nothing over rated. read the US bimmer forums and they reckon you can get 200 horsey's outta a 323 with some mod's however im not partiularly wanting to spend money on a 323 when i can get a 325 or 328 with another factory 22/23HP respectively or moreso the 328 with more torque so, i wanna know anyones general opinions on these 3 models. also are there any gotcha's on these models? looking to spend around the $10-$12k mark and from what i've seen should be able to get a pretty nice model for that price (well, at least with the 323i) it seems to me the 325's and 328's are alot more rare than the 323 though. i found the bmw section in the wikipedia pretty informative but its of course factual based and doesnt take into account peoples experiences of these 3 models!!! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMW_3_Series (also, are the wiki facts correct or is that specific to the USA market? any differences in performance than whats stated? i've heard the 323 is actually quicker in 0-100 time than the 325 and 328? is this true?) anways, sorry for the long post but any feedback on this would be appreciated. cher