petone

Sounds a bit like my seats. I you find a decent dye or paint let me know. I had a quote from a leather restorer and they wanted $150 to do each front seat, and that would bring them back good as new. I did use some meguiars leather wipes which softened the leather up but the the colour is still cracked.

There are certain advantages to black plates, a little dirt or grease on them and the number would be very hard to identify if a picture was taken.

Would the M10 cause any firment problems? I'm keen for a sparco one if they the write price. Or we could try and organise a shop to make up 10 or so? Is there anything special about a piece of pipe with some brackets on the end?

you can also tell by the number plates, although its possible a NZ new car has had personalised plates or something. But for example mine is an 87 and the plate starts with NK.... so its a NZ new. Off topic but... if ya got those crappy black plates go and change them for the white plates. I think its only around 30 bucks and you get a new rego with the modern white plates.

I agree with carl about JC being the reason many people watch TG. 5th Gear is no where near as popular or as funny and JC is the main reason for that. It would be nice if they had Tiff back on TG so there was someone who could do proper sideways. Take his article on the E46 M3 when he was on top gear, mad drifting while calming talking to the camera while doing it. As far is entertainment goes TG is a far better package than 5thG and it appeals to much more people becuase it has a mix of everything.

I reckon the front would make a difference but the back seems like a waste of time and money to me.

I'd just stick the wheels from the blue onto the white one.

Can't help ya about E34 info but this link might be useful Singapore Imports

The brake shudder may be caused by worn control arm bushings? My car does it as well, and thats with reasonably new brembo rotors, so it shouldn't be warped rotors. If it is i'll be pretty pissed of.

As far is I'm aware all modern bmw are 5 x 120, the exception being e30, e21 etc. But as we all know E30 m3 are the same as E36. Are the offsets the same between E36, E46, E34 etc, so are all the wheels interchangable? Random thought, what pattern is the X5... Hmmm, 20inch mags :mosh:

but someone might have stolen it for her...

Standard E30 is either 195/60 or 195/65. So 205/60 is right in the middle. Don't go bigger than 205 on the steelies though, i think they are only 5 1/2" so 205 is probably a little too big even. As for the overall diameter, similar effect to changing diff ratio, although the effect is nowhere near as big. Bigger OD - slower accel, better milage, higher top speed. Smaller is opposite

What, rebranded insulation tape?

Theres a few E30 utes around, i like the E32 one better though.

more details would help people, eg year, model, number of doors, auto/manual, any options?

you right there, especially with as much negative camber as me.Seriously though, E30's can be quite nasty, especially in the wet. Lots of people have been caught out, myself included.

205/50 R15 is a perfect size for E30, if the offset is good you shouldn't have any rubing issues. Glenn is running 225 on the front and 245 on the back, on 17 x 8 rims. Thats with E36 suspension and i'm not sure if he has had to roll his guards. You could probably go 225/45 R16 if you wanted, but again it comes down to the offset and rim width. Edit- dam, gus didn't see your post

Yeah made a nice difference, even though its pretty small anything is better than nothing. Easy enough to fit as well, all the mounts were in the right place as well. After fitting I noticed the car was a lot more stable, espicially at higher speeds. Turn-in also much better with less understeer. Overall the car just seemed much happier in the corners with no noticeable effects on ride quality. Good upgrade for anyone who doesn't have one.

IMO E46 was the last of the good looking bimmers. I also think that car design on the whole has gone down hill. Its been getting worse ever since 2000. I can only think of a few modern cars that I like the look of. Ford GT is one example and even thats a design from the 60's. The ferrari 612 is poo but i do like the styling on the new 430. Still not as good as 355 though.

As i said before, your car will have an M40. It came in standard E30 318i from 1988 onwards. I think it has around 85 kW at the crank.

Your car will probably have an M40 engine, which may look similar to the M42. (not sure on how similar they look) The engine you posted is an M10 and cam in standard 318i until 1988.

I know what you mean about insurance. You'll find it bad enough that its a BMW. Then wait till you start modifying, finding (cheap) insurance becomes a real mission then. Use the same insurance company as your parents.

Dogleg box would be cool but did you see the reserve he had on his old auction? $950! M20B25 and box is cheaper than that.

I agree with ya, don't pass on the tidy car only becuase its an auto. What size engine is it BTW?

Definatly a steal. Looking good. Did it need any little problems fixed?