KwS

Its actually not badly equipped, Sport seats, suspension, steering wheel and final drive. Sucks they are advertising it with "nav" when itll be stuck in Japan.

There are options to convert to a standard strut but by all accounts it ruins the whole point in owning an E Class Merc; makes the ride harsher and bumpy. Might be OK on an AMG that you thrashed everywhere, but a Merc should glide over the road.

ah sorry, missed the USB-OTG bit. Android coding would be kind of cool, but its something that once you code it you dont tend to need to do it again, unless of course you are coding for others and then having a portable setup like that would be handy.

I use https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.prowl.torque&hl=en plus http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/car-parts-accessories/tools-repair-kits/meters-testers/auction-819970087.htm Cheap as chips. Will read codes too, but not sure about bmw specifics. I certainly wouldnt trust my critical coding functions to a wireless adapter. You should try and borrow someones torque pro and see how you like it.

most, if not all warranty companies will not cover suspension

My E36 isnt OBD2, but i use a cheap BT OBD2 adaptor and torquepro on my Honda and it works well. quick refresh time on the live data.

Parts are generally more expensive than the equivalent BMW. I looked seriously into buying a w211 E55, but with me even working for Mercedes it was stupid expensive to do things like brakes or the airmatic suspension. One of the biggest failure points with all the high spec 211s is the airmatic suspension, its almost always going to fail at some point and its stupid money to fix. Remember too that anything AMG is going to be like ///M Tax times about 2-3. Even general maintenance is expensive. I looked into the history of this car a while back, http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/mercedesbenz/auction-803094828.htm . Its NZ new, dealer serviced until a couple of years ago. On average it worked out to be costing about 3-4K a year just on keeping it going. We find at work that a lot of imported Mercs have issues that NZDM ones dont have. Lots of electrical issues and lack of servicing. The Command units are also all set for Japan, and band expanders are sh*t on them. Big money to swap them for a new zealand new one. If you do get one, i highly recommend NZ new with a full service history.

I can get out of the M3 if its locked. Because i dont have factory alarm it doesnt deadlock without using the key. Pulling the interior handle once will unlock it, and pulling again will open door. Either way, on a modern car, shouldnt there be an emergency boot release? If the seats fold down, climb in boot and use release.

I wouldnt use that as a reason to change my oil late.... theres a few reasons manufacturers are jumping on this stupid bandwagon, one is the beancounters, the other is trying to entice new customers to buy their cars because it will cost them less for servicing.

i will always stick to 10,000km on an NA car and 5000km on a turbo car. Engine oil these days is subjected to some intense conditions and breaks down over time, its cheap insurance and means the engine will be cleaner and operate better for longer. Would be interesting to compare two engines, in the same conditions, the same ages but one run with long life intervals and the other on shorter intervals. Run them for 10 years and see what the insides are like. Its like a manufacturer (Audi?) is now looking to start bringing out cars with lifetime service intervals.... where the oil in the engine lasts as long as the expected lifespan of the car (which has not been specified, but i bet its short). Much like lifetime trans fluid in BMWs, we know how that works out.

Personal preference. Do what you like, not what we like.

The answer is always debadge. Which reminds me i should do mine.

So it looks like ive upset Geoff and he never responded to my email. Still looking for a glovebox.

Its great fun, love me some vanos rebuilding.

thankfully not all of it is what ive spent... i didnt dare add that up separately!

personal preference mainly. i dont trust overseas service histories or odometers.

id take a higher km (210,000km in almost 20 years aint that high) nz new car with full NZ history over an import any day. Oh wait, i did. Each to their own, Techno > Estoril though.

This has been a long project but i finally finished converting all my receipts to a spreadsheet. There will be some variances, but its close enough. https://www.dropbox.com/s/b9dxqm0crzgqe30/M3%20Expendature.pdf?dl=0

Im from CHCH, close enough

Bet a certain BMW wrecker would be watching that closely. Can never have too many ///M engines in various chassis. Also, am i dumb, or does the description clearly stating it doesnt have a key, cannot start due to no key seem a bit odd.... isnt this the key?

pussy, get out there!

Actually, thats what i spotted when the blue one was listed originally. It has PFL sidemarkers, which means PFL guards yet FL nosecone and grills.

Id rather this TBH. High KM (210k i think) but NZ new, high spec, FSH and looks mint. Love techno violet. If i didnt have my one id be looking into this in a heartbeat. http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=818335175

Just found these. Tempted, but expensive. http://rallyroad.net/content/hand-brake-handle

haha, i still have the Alpine and its a great unit but very limited in its functionality. If i could add AUX to it without messing with random adaptors itd be ok. Id love a standard unit and add aux to that, but not high on priority list.