KwS

its defs a jap import, i guess carjam cant tell the difference when it re-registered.

+1 on the price. i asked some further questions, and the seller just got back to me on it. The term "electrical niggles" might be an understatement for it. Its such a shame, perfect spec, low km and beautiful colour.

been there done that too many times now, and left disappoint more times than i like.

just wish they were in wellington not auckland. never have good cars here.

Wheels arent for me personally, but im a big fan of the 130i motorsport. Great choice.

Doesnt come up often, a genuine motorsport spec 740i. Needs some love and some money spent but looks like a good base. Id be all over it if it were local but too much of a risk for me to take. Love the half leather alcantara seats and dark wood. http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/bmw/auction-948631356.htm

looks like a demented storm trooper.

wait, what?! Oh so jealous Whats the plan, swap bits and make one car really good and sell the other?

Black E30 M3 in CBD today, fairly recent govt issue plate. So gorgeous, stunning to look at in person.

get the correct shift linkages for a 6cy, dont cut and weld them. had that done when i converted my 323i and the shifting was crap at best, replacing the linkages fixed everything.

As long as the OP is happy with his purchase, who cares?

i watched the listing for ages but just couldnt bring myself to take the risk. was bloody cheap as chips and in a great color too.

That steering wheel is pretty out of it, Martini Racing Momo.

i wonder how much work there is to remove all the disabled driving gear. Would love to own an 850i but yeah, much like above, i probably shouldnt.

too long ago to remember, but i had two 1qt bottles and i still have some left over. Have car level and fill until it starts to come out the fill hole.

i ran Redline ATF D4 in my M3 and it shifted like butter. Its good stuff.

its in better shape than half the junk on trademe. If it were local id be in for a look.

i actually thought it was pretty reasonably for a genuine "motorsport" part. so reasonable in fact i bought one for the M3 when i sold it.

unfortunately being in the trade we see a lot of this kind of work with various panel beaters. Its really hard to find people with good work ethic now. As said, the "good enough" attitude is rampant.

Sorry, are you talking about imports or NZ New?

I concur with most, and disagree with Ron (again, surprise surprise). Ive had a few Jap imports, and a couple NZ New. My M3 was NZ New, but because of the type of car it was it was well looked after but was really basic in terms of options. On the flip side my first E36, E46 and E39 were all Jap imports. The E36 was low km, but felt worn out and the jatco box shat its self. Otherwise it was spotless inside and out. The E46 was moderate km, felt tight, drove well and was also tidy inside and out. Only issues i had was a perished intake pipe which wouldve happen to any car. The E39 was high KM, felt and drove nice and tight, spotless inside and out. Nice strong engine and trans. Ive also owned heaps of "jappas" that were imports without any issue. NZ New ex fleet cars are probably the worst of the bunch, "full service history" means its had oil changes and nothing else because it costs money, bare basic options, and likely a hard life. Dont overlook a car because its an import, overlook it because its condition or history.

FYI,

drive-by paintball gunning in an unknown car, with balaclavas

Its mostly about contaminants (oil, grease, wax, detergent etc), not silt. I guess the council has never seen what washes off the road surface on the first rain after a dry period. http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/71540950/porirua-council-embraces-car-wash-ban-backlash-as-a-chance-to-educate

My biggest issue with the added GST isnt the cost (its a shitty situation but hey), its the time frame that it currently takes customs to get gst payments currently. Unless they completely overhaul the customs system and somehow contact buyers quicker its going add a lot of time and work onto every package you buy online. The hardest thing with a new system is that for the majority of packages that you buy online, a name and address is all thats on the pack from the seller, so thats all customs have to be able to contact you. snail mail is sh*t, and quickly working its way down to being unusably slow.