gjm

With the planned sale of the Baur, Mrs M was in need of a new set of wheels. Sh'ed kind-of enjoyed having a Mazda Tribute 10 or so years ago; I was less enthusiastic. Doing some hunting we did decide that a medium/large SUV might be the answer. One of the issues we've been having is that on those rare occasions we want to tow something, we encounter a problem. Borrowing a ute isn't an issue but I don't like asking for the same thing over and over again. So, the hunt begins. X5? Too big. (Or so I'm told.) The 3.0 diesels have held their value well and until recently, were more than we planned to spend. (Been offered a couple at under $3.5k in the last week!) Explored numerous Mercedes MLs. Older W163 270CDi is solid-as, reliable, economical, and easy to work on. The W164 320CDi is another good'un, very economical and huge scope for tuning (although that was a very minor consideration). Doing the sums though, a W164 ML500 (lovely car) works out very little more expensive to run over 12 months than a diesel... Regardless, prices for all of the above have gone up considerably in the last 12 months. Land Rover Discovery? Range Rover? Too expensive (for what they are) and while easy enough to fix, do seem to turn up a large number of issues. They also tend to be treated like sh!t. Land Rover Freelander? Maybe... But insufficient towing capacity. (Not a bad vehicle though, despite online reports.) Big Nissans and Toyotas are just silly money. Smaller Toyotas and Nissans lack the towing capacity, or just don't seem available (for sale) in a spec to suit us. (Did seriously consider an XTrail diesel.) So... We bought a Lexus RX350. NZ new, 2 owners, full service history, 12 months WoF, 6 months rego, 3 months unconditional warranty. Cheaper than an older LR Disco TDi or TD5, or (at the time) any similar spec BMW X5, and barely more in price than a 5-year-older and much higher mileage Merc ML. It's really quite nice. Takes some getting used to but that's to be expected. Rides well, handles well, very comfortable. I suggested to a fellow forum member (who knows about these things) that if we look after it, it should be good for at least 400000km. I was advised that if we only wanted 400000km from it, we needn't bother looking after it.

Saw a 2021 420i coupe this morning. I'll not pretend to be a fan of the front end treatment to begin with, but plonking a rego plate across the middle of the grille just finishes it off completely. 🤮 Not so much a concern for those inside. I'm sure it's a lovely thing to drive.

Very good condition, well-optioned, E30 coupe 325 automatic with extensive (and in parts, expensive) history offered at $15k no reserve. Well presented, detailed listing. Received no bids and no questions. I suspect this is more indicative of the true E30 market at present than the four cylinder cars, and 320i 4-doors being offered at $20k+.

She'll be smoke-stopped, cleaned up, and advertised at a 'bargain $10k'.

A nice-looking 1987 318i manual coupe with cloth seats - $27500 A1986 de-reg (details in the system) rolling shell - $5k (was $7k - seller has reduced price). I've relisted our Baur at $15k, no reserve.

Same.

BMW has begun production of hydrogen fuel cell systems for the hydrogen-powered iX5, moving them ahead in a strategy many rivals have ignored in favor of battery electrics. Hydrogen fuel cell systems are becoming increasingly popular among large vehicle (truck) makers, particularly for heavy-duty and long-haul vehicles. Hydrogen cars have not been as popular among car manufacturers, most of which – aside from Toyota and Hyundai – have chosen to focus on rechargeable battery electric vehicles instead. “Hydrogen will become more relevant in individual mobility due to its advantages,” said Oliver Zipse, CEO at BMW when speaking at the Munich production site’s opening event. “Hydrogen-powered cars are the ideal technology for us to complement pure battery-electric vehicles.” BMW is the last mass-producer of luxury cars in Germany to pursue hydrogen fuel cell systems. Mercedes investigated hydrogen for the GLC SUV, but chose to focus on battery electric cars instead. Audi did the same. Zipse said hydrogen cars offer a climate-friendly option. He estimated that between 20 and 30 percent of buyers won’t be adequately served by the electric recharging infrastructure for a fully battery electric vehicle. He pointed specifically to drivers that are required to travel on longer trips and traverse rural regions. Zipse said that hydrogen fuel cell systems would help to reduce the overall dependency on certain raw materials such as cobalt and lithium. Components for hydrogen solutions are based mainly on aluminum, steel and platinum, which are all materials that area notably easier to recycle. Hydrogen solutions typically still use a backup battery but it is only about one tenth the size of the units used in battery electric vehicles with comparable range.

Coupe, 320i automatic, imported, WoF & rego, has some minor issues. $21k. https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/cars/bmw/listing/3760668136

Grey M140i. Ok, so less exciting than some cars out there but I felt it looked really neat.

BMW Group has announced commencement of an in-house, small-scale production of fuel cells for its iX5 in Munich, Germany. The hydrogen cars will enter service in the next four months for test and demonstration purposes, targeting the premium segment. The fuel cells generate a continuous output of 125 kW/170 hp, paired with an electric motor featuring fifth-generation BMW eDrive technology, and a battery that enables the powertrain to deliver 275 kW/374 hp. BMW has collaborated with Toyota Motor on fuel cells since 2013.

Houses listed for sale. Call agent, be told it is under contract but they'll call if it fals through. 6 weeks later, house still listed for sale. Call agent, be told a contract extension was granted for the purchaser to sort some stuff out. Agent will call if it falls through. Weeks later, still listed for sale. Call agent... Contract fell through, just gone under contract to new buyer. "What happened to you calling if the contract fell through?" "Oh. Does say that we would... Sorry."

Big rims don't need to be a problem provided they have suitable offsets and are fitted with appropriate-sized tyres. I reiterate the suggestion to have a chat with Greg. (Our daughter is taking her 116i in for a WoF tomorrow.) He'll have seen similar issues before and may have a little more flexibility than CJ with regard to suggestions. Nothing at all wrong with CJ but they may have more difficulty looking at non-original-BMW solutions. (Jon @E30 325i Rag-Top may be able to comment on that).

As with cars, there's often a case for changing the exhaust. But (stereotypically) late-model Harleys with open pipes being ridden by look-at-me-I'm-having-a-crisis types are unnecessary and annoying.

Bear in mind it's a 'club deal'. Not an issue - joining is easy and can (I think) be done at the checkout.

With an older BMW gave a chat with Greg Hantz. Cheaper than CJ, and highly regarded by them. Exhaust mods - talk to Sinco.

Apple. 🤢🤮 I know the adage about not judging a book by it's cover and not letting first impressions affect future decisions, but having had to integrate Apple with Unix, Linux and several version of MS Windows, it was only the Apple that really caused continued, repeated issues. For weeks, and weeks, and weeks... Didn't touch the poxy P.O.S. for years until I thought "must be better now" but no... Still an almighty PITA to sort any issues, always requires a bespoke something or other, additional and different (more expensive) licensing to everything else, and has quirks and 'features' that no-one uses but get in the way of administration. And then you meet a rabidly fanatical Apple zealot who insists it's all good, that I can't possibly be having so many issues, that I just don't understand and who, after 2 hours, still cannot sort whatever the issue is so just walks off muttering about how crap Android is.

Edge 5W30 is 35% off, too. And good ol' Magnatec 10W40 is half price.