gjm

Imagine that at a Hampton Downs Playday...

Just been browsing brakeparts.co.uk. Full rebuild kits for both front calipers (including pistons) and kits for the rear calipers (don't include pistons): GBP 90 ex VAT. Or around NZ $180, plus shipping. Can't find stainless caliper pistons for the 'normal' E46. They're made for the M3, but not for the lower performance variants, and according to RealOEM the caliper repair kits (which would include a piston) are different. Anyone have a machine shop and stainless bar stock and fancy giving it a go?

Unfortunately investors expect a return. A return in excess of the investment. So person X from anywhere other than NZ who buys property worth $1m in NZ, will expect to sell for significantly more. Investor puts in $1m, takes out much more. Net loss to NZ. The same metric applies to shares, bought by overseas investors, in the utilities companies here. Electricity is generated in NZ, transferred through NZ, used and paid for by NZ, and the money goes overseas. Shurely shome mishtake? How does taking money away from NZ help NZ grow? I'm taking a very simplistic view. I know there is a lot more to this than is immediately obvious, or that I am discussing. I'm trying to keep[ things to their essence. And I'm all for older people selling their big family home, moving to something smaller, and seeing money go into their accounts. That's fine. They've earned it, probably by working here.

Passed the WoF with no advisories - the tyres were plenty good enough. I swapped them for a mint set of Michelin Pilot HXs that I'd planned to use on the Merc, but in fairness that was a bit ambitious. They're strictly too big for the Merc in it's current set-up so I'll sort 205-50/16s for that, instead. Besides, no harm whatsoever in putting the good tyres on the BMW. The alignment has been done so the four road wheels are all perfectly in the middle of the specified tolerances. They weren't far out anyway, but let's have things right. Chris at Tyre Tracks wanted to straighten the steering wheel too - it was about 1/16th of a turn out of line but he's a perfectionist - but the track rod ends were going to need heat to release them, an issue common to many cars. To be honest, when driving home I couldn't tell the steering wheel was off centre at all. Only one teensy issue with the WoF - a rear number plate bulb wasn't working. Actually, it wasn't there. And neither was the plastic cover that goes over it. Hmm. It's conceivable that shutting the tailgate has dislodged it at some stage, but that just seems unlikely. Odd. No worries - Greg Hantz replaced the bulb and cover for a very small amount. $5 for the whole job, or something like that. Other than that, no error codes, and the brakes were fine. Another 5.5 litres of Penrite Enviro+ 5W-40 in the engine. That's the last of my stock, so I'll either buy some more, or try something different... Nah. It's good oil. I'll stick with it. And now the search for caliper rebuild kits begins. Anyone know where I can get stainless pistons? I'll be looking in the UK in the first instance.

I apologise - I was stereotyping.

Cue manic laughter...

A remap on my 320d easily raises power from 150 to 190+ bhp, and torque by a similar percentage.

That doesn't sound an unreasonable increase for a forced-induction engine. Bear in mind that you will need to be absolutely on top of all servicing and maintenance, much more so than if your engine was left stock.

Stop teaching kids how to work in a call centre and give them some useful skills.

Internationally, yes, NZ looks like a bargain. Hence the foreign investors buying up property. To those people living here on median wage, property is rapidly becoming an unobtainable dream. I'll risk sounding like Winston Peters, but NZ should be about Kiwis first. Not foreign investment.

Lol Apparently E46s on standard suspension settings have a tendency to wear the insides of the rear tyres especially. Rotate the tyres, and you have four with camber wear.

Changed oil and filter. Passed WoF. Then fitted new tyres. And washed it.

Bought these for the E46 Touring, but have gone back to 16s. Just a case of practicality - the 17s need new tyres, and I had set of Michelins for the 16s. They obviously suit the E46. I think they'll also fit the E36, E34ix, Z4 (E85/E86) and possibly others, especially if you're happy to use a spacer to reduce the (numerical value of the) offset. 4 of them - one for each corner. With centres. Tyres are all Bridgestone Potenza RE050s. All four tyres have some, if not significant, camber wear. Size (not that it matters given the wear) is 215-50/16. Rims are not perfect, but don't have large chunks missing, any flat spots, or dents, and aren't cracked. I can take pics if anyone is interested. I can deliver locally(ish) or down to Hamilton, for a couple of weeks. After that I'll be working in Manukau so heading north, instead of south. No idea what the going rate is. Offers on $150 for the set? I also have a set of worn with camber wear, but WoF-able (didn't even raise a tester's eyebrow), 205-55/16s. 2x Champiro Bax2 (3-3.5mm), 2x FIrestone TZ700 (4-4.5mm). I'd like $100 for the 4 but make me an offer.

True. I retract my earlier statement. Whincup lost, it was his own fault, and his team should give him a good kicking for being an arrogant cock!

I'd not say Whincup lost - his team did. Running out of fuel is all-but inexcusable with all the technology the teams use. Component failure (like a starter motor) is much harder to account for. Mostert & Co did exactly the right thing. They knew Whincup was short on fuel, and pushed, and pushed until he ran out. One the the best aspects of the results (for me) was that the top 4 cars all came from different manufacturers. That shows there is competition in the championship, rather than having one manufacturer run away with it. Makes for a much more interesting, and exciting, series. Good weekend all round for Mercedes. (See F1 results.)

No worries.

There's what I would consider some 'funny money' being paid for properties... Still, the buyers obviously consider it worthwhile. I saw this - Investors move in as first-home buyers fold - and chuckled at the quote from the Property Investors organisation. If investors can make a big enough dent in the properties available at the lower end of the market, they will be able to make a quick killing when the deposit restrictions are lifted. Of course, that means first time buyers will have to borrow more than before, and so the cycle starts again.

That was my thinking. They look to be perhaps et20, and the E46 needs 40+, especially at that width.

I really like them. Don't think they'll fit an E46, though. :-(

So far out of my league / price range, but maybe someone here would like it? Apparently 1 of only 2 NZ new. http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/bmw/auction-784767094.htm So much car. So much (to me) money and yet, the advertiser still can't write a grammatically correct listing, or even check their spelling!

To recap - I've rebuilt the nearside front brake caliper. The piston has ssen much better days and there was rust above the seal land... I've treated this and polished it, but there is pitting so I'll be replacing it ASAP. To be fair, at the distance covered it's probably about time for some open brake surgery so I'm going to investigate what is available. If I can find stainless pistons I'll use them, but if not, there are kits available at reasonable prices. Even pattern calipers are available, but I trust ATE to do a good job so I'll look to rebuild rather than replace. Certainly the car seems to be running much more smoothly since the caliper rebuild. I'd not noticed, but I suspect a very slight vibration has been there for some time. Hopefully we'll find we regain some of the economy that has been missing for a month or so. I have a feeling - nothing more - that I may need to look at wheel bearings, too. It's just a feeling. I get them sometimes. There's no rumble or similar, but... So, to answer Jeevan's question (again ) costs so far have been very reasonable. I thought I was into LCA bushes but they seem fine. However, it looks as though it is time to do some preventative maintenance by way of brake overhauls and the like. I'll inspect the hoses and if any need replacing, will get a good braided steel set. It's not a case of upgrading components, but as they wear and need replacing, I'll use good stuff rather than the cheapest option. As detailed earlier the discs and pads were replaced not so long ago and while the ones fitted don't give the best 'feel', they definitely work well. Oh - WoF, today. I suspect at least two of the tyres will fail, in which case a set of Michelin Pilot HXs will be fitted. Standard rim size - 16x7, with 205/55-16s. I'll get an alignment done, too - Tyre Tracks in Kent street, Frankton, will take care of it. Chris is a good guy. (And I'll be looking for a set of 205-50/16s for the Merc - the 55 profile would probably be OK with rolled and flared arches but is a little ambitious for a standard fit, on ET37 rims, at least.) About to pass 257000 miles. 413,600km. Oil and filter again today, too.

Never did find the bleedin' bleed nipple. Right - it's all back together. Copious amounts of Mr Castrol's red rubber grease on seals and the slider pins, lots of molybdenum disulphide on the brake pad 'arms' and the caliper pad slides, sparing use of copper grease on any threads. I will be doing it again, as I want to replace the piston. The thread Jooles linked to at the top of the page includes a pic of two pistons - this one came somewhere between the two in the picture. I thoroughly cleaned it (180 grit wet'n'dry was needed, then steel wool, then polish) but there is pitting above the seal land, and that's not good. Looks like the pistons aren't stainless, but more likely a hard-chromed steel. Bleeding was easy. Some hunting in the garage for a piece of clear(ish) tube to use on the bleed nipple turned up the hose from a Camelbak. I've never had one, so thanks go to the previous occupants of the house. My daughter did the foot pedal honours. Test drive built up to some aggressive, just off lock-up braking. No sign of any issue. Fingers crossed. I'll be ordering a couple of full kits, including pistons, to do both sides. May even take a look at the rears - no point doing half a job.

Got it all back together again. Test drive - instantly noticed it felt better. Couldn't 'persuade' it to misbehave. It may be a little thing, but it does seem to have made a big difference.

Possibly one thing less to worry about. But where did I put the bleed nipple? Yup... I'd swear it was withe the wheel bolts and caliper bolts, brake pads and retainer. But, no. Nowhere to be seen. <sigh> I'll cannibalise one of the ATE calipers I have for the Merc.

OK - this is frustrating. Learn from my mistakes, folks. I bought seal kits for the two front calipers from BMW. These do not include a piston. They cost... A lot of money. You can buy this - http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/261453411443. Double the price for NZ$. Double again to cover both sides. Add $50 for shipping the two kits to NZ (this is a guesstimate) and it is not just cheaper than buying the BMW parts, but you also get the pistons, and the assembly greases required. Alternatively, just buy a couple of these: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231053828298. (Or similar.) NZ$120 (plus shipping) for a new caliper saves a huge amount of hassle. I've not been in touch with Paul at Milland or anyone else to ask for prices. They may well be able to offer something similar. I was in a hurry to try and get this sorted. Instead, it's taken a lot longer, cost more money, and will need doing again. Grrr.