gjm

Would you consider something that needs spacers?

'as it 'appens, yer not wrong. I was very tired. That's my excuse. And having spoken to someone on the phone who called it Kat-eye-ar, I managed to ignore the second vowel.

Anyone on here from way up north? There's a car in Kaitaia I'm really quite keen on, but a 10 hour round trip to view is reducing my enthusiasm. Visiting Kaitaia from here with a trailer would be necessary anyway, but I'd prefer to have a little more confidence in what I'd be seeing before I set out. As is always the way, I know someone who has recently returned from a trip to KariKari. Fabulous beaches, apparently. Please drop me a PM if you, or someone you know, might be able to help. Ta.

New car prices. I've never bought a new car and probably won't be about to start now. Mrs M is experiencing some difficulties getting in and out of a 'normal' car, so a small SUV or similar might be in order. Details of the "new" Jeep Renegade popped up and while it wasn't the first thing that sprang to mind, it looked interesting enough (Fiat platform and all) to warrant a quick look. They are new to NZ, but were released in the US in a number of guises, last year. Price: in the US, "from" $18000 (US). In NZ, the only model anyone will talk about is the Trailhawk (the most expensive model in the range), "from" $50000 (NZ). Well, US$18k is about NZ$26k. And you can't even speak to someone who might be able to arrange a test drive. (Prices are MSRP, and don't include ORC.) Oh well. It was just an idea. I'm not sure I can be bothered to be upset about this. The flip side is, of course, that I could well have been wasting someone's time had the model we might have been interested in been available!

It'll be interesting to see how things pan out in the Auckland market. Recently, the rate of price rise outstripped the rest of the country but even that has slowed. Regardless, a very ordinary house in the Auckland area now costs $800000. That's 3 beds, 1 bath, a garage if you're lucky, and maybe 600sqm of land. Never mind 1st time buyers... How many people can raise $200k equity from the sale of their house in order to find the deposit? I earn reasonable money but have no chance of buying here. We'll move, but not (as I've said) until Miss M has completed school - I suppose we could move, but it could be so devastatingly detrimental to her and her education that we'll not do it. Unfortunately by then I'll be lucky if I have enough working life left to pay a mortgage off! On the upside, she's keen on Waikato Uni and wants to stay there during the week. I can look for work almost anywhere.

Lots of M3s here including one listed at USD200k (NZD290k) which has sold. Obviously, no idea what price it actually sold for, but it is another example of a great drivers car that has never been driven, and at that price, is unlikely to get driven much further.

Not a rant, just puzzled/confused/discombobulated... I've just seen a used E30 Mtech kit - just the kit, no car - being offered on TM for $3k. E30 prices have gone a bit silly lately, but this seems a step too far. To me.

I really don't like it. Maybe it's the colour?

A policy that involved looking at mistakes made around the world, and not copying them, would be useful too.

Silver M4 on SH1 northbound between Takanini and Alfriston.

We like Wanganui... At the moment a teenage daughter in the last couple of years of high school mean we're staying put so as not to disrupt her education. What we'll do after that remains to be seen!

That's pretty much the problem. NZ has become centralised causing a disparity in work availability with a knock-on issue with housing and local resource. I wonder what would happen if the banks and a couple of other major players suddenly said they were closing up in Auckland and moving NZ operations to Hamilton, or Palmy?

Some of the aesthetic problem comes from the design of many European cars. The rear wheel appears to sit higher in the wheelarch at the rear than at the front, potentially leading to thoughts that the rear needs to be raised (or the front lowered). A better guide as to what is actually going on is to view the sideskirt, and how it sits in relation to the ground. Given John's pic at the top, I'd like to see the rear wheel sit in the arch in the same way the front currently does, but I don't know enough to comment on the effect raising the rear to achieve this might have on handling.

I'd have to go with this. It's much more a real-world estimation. Base spec, 4 doors, automatic... None of these things are wrong, and personally I prefer a lower spec car as there is less to go wrong! They are just, at the moment, less desirable than a well-appointed manual coupe which could fetch $6-7k if in very good condition.

I wondered if that might be the case. Thanks.

I was thinking about the metal frame that the top plastic parts fit into - the part that sits between the headlights? On M10-powered cars this is spot welded into place but I recall something about there were some models that had this bolted in.

E30s. The M10 cars had a single piece welded at the front to support the radiator. Did other cars, perhaps specifically the 6-pot ones, have a bolt-in (and therefore detachable) radiator mounting bracket? I vaguely recall someone saying they did.

Replaced the hedgehog resistor again. That'll teach me for thinking a cheap one from eBay might 'do'. Dunno how Glenn does it. I find this job a monumental PITA! And... I'll have to get in there again. The tiny white plastic clip on the end of the rod that controls the air vent position (screen, cabin, footwell) decided yesterday was a good day to break. I'm not even thinking how much fun that is going to be to replace. Still, at least we have air blowing on the screen again.

If they are that tight, it's worth complaining. That much torque can damage a bolt, thread, or even your wheel.

P/n 31226757024. OK... Today is Easter Sunday so unless someone has one in the garage (that'd be nice!) I'm likely to have to wait 'til Tuesday. Any suggestions for somewhere to buy one from a reasonable manufacturer? BNT, perhaps? I can get one shipped from MillAnd, but given the car is effectively OTR 'til I get this sorted I'd prefer not to wait any longer than absolutely necessary.

IMCDB makes interesting reading in it's own right. If you like that sort of thing! ;-)

Here's a few to be going on with. ;-)

It'll need a lot more use. We've got 120,000 miles on him!

I could make a long list of different ways it could have been used, but I'm told this was money the government puts aside for political activities. (Left and Right...?) I would have spent about $1.5m reopening the passenger line between Auckland and Hamilton, and $1.1m a year for the next 5 years running that line. That would have made a lot of difference to a lot of people, and leaves $19m for similar activities elsewhere in the country.

We move in different circles. All I have seen is celebrations at the old flag being retained!