gjm

How very dare they?! No worries. Thanks so much for offering to take a look.

Aww... There was a question on the listing offering $1750. It could be that the asker turned up with cash in his/her pocket.

The figures in the spreadsheet can be changed - both for economy and fuel cost. The biggest issue to consider or be aware of, without going into calculations, is that more km per litre is fine, but for a diesel there's also an increase in RUC cost per litre. An extra km per litre costs another $0.058. Nearly 6c. Modern petrol-engined cars can be significantly more economical than their predecessors, potentially making them competitive in terms of fuel economy. However, modern economical petrol-engined cars will cost significantly more to buy, and suffer far greater depreciation than an older at least as economical, diesel. They may also be more expensive in terms of maintenance and/or parts. Obviously an older high mileage car will have incurred more wear and hence a likelihood of running cost expense. Swings and roundabouts.

Ta.

In the interests of fair play - if Clinton is keen, he should have it. $1750 should cover the buy. He's on the scene, I'm not. However... And assuming you've spoken to the other two (or three!?) people involved, please take a good, long look. Regardless of what happens, I'll cover any expenses. Including a beer afterwards to discuss how that silly person from north of Hamilton could be interested in a car in Dunedin...

It's true, The P38 + M51 + uphill + full throttle = ... nothing. Or, at least, very little. I think Top Gear made a big deal of this. Fortunately I'll be happy if it holds 100km/h up Bombay hills with a several km run up. :-)

The engine in the 525tds, the M51D25 OL, makes a maximum of 141hp and 280Nm. The M47TUD20 makes 150hp and 330Nm. Both will easily tune, with provisos. The M51 cylinder head needs special attention to keep it cool or it cracks, but it's generally good for ~250hp before reliability and economy start to suffer too much. They'll go to 400hp (big turbo, injectors, huge intercooler), but the economy is then down to the same as a stock petrol 2.5 and the head may not be happy for long. Still, not too shabby. The M47 goes to 200hp with a pipe and remap. Add a hybrid turbo and you can have 250. Apparently 300hp (from a 2-litre diesel!) is possible with suitable hybrid turbo, intercooler, injectors, pump(s), pipe and custom remap. The problem (for me) is price. And availability. The 525td is comparatively common - later, 5-series Tourings with a decent diesel engine just don't come up for sale at a price I can consider at the moment. So the 525td is (relatively) a slug, but it'll run forever if looked after, and tow pretty well. It just takes a little longer to get up to the maximum NZ-usable speed of 100km/h.

I like that too, and often it's enough. This time, it's different and therefore cool, but also practical, economical, and has the opportunity to provide fun. What more could anyone ask for?

Ooh! <ahem> Pretty please... Does anyone feel inclined to take a look? From what I can see the paintwork has seen better days, but the seller has taken some time at least to see what what need doing. The question has to be whether or not he's seen or commented on everything... It has no WoF or rego so I'm either going to be indebted to someone down south for a long time, or I'll be into shipping to get it back this way.

Aye... Whether it is this one, or another, there is a diesel estate (wagon) in our future. The perfect car is a 530d M, but they are few and far between. And besides, I prefer the older cars. The advertiser of this one makes a good point (imho) on the benefits of simplicity. A Mercedes W124 300D would suit well too, but there seem even less of these around. Or at least, fewer for sale. Who do we know in Dunedin?

Yup. Over less than certainly 12000km, possibly more, I'd stick to petrol. But for now, it's 50km each way for work, and that could become 60km (each way) before long. Less than I was doing, but still definitely oil-burning economy territory.

A guy over on the KiwiBiker forums wrote this spreadsheet. (I hope the link works - you should be able to download it.) I did one too a while ago, but can't quickly find it now. I fudged some numbers in favour of a petrol engine, but retained the diesel's better fuel economy, and break-even came out around 12000km. After that, the diesel was more economical to run (even after factoring in more regular oil changes). New petrol cars are very much more economical, but carry a much, much higher price tag, freefall depreciation, and typically higher servicing costs. Comparing a couple of E34s, one with a M50B25 and one with the M51B25 (25mpg vs 37mpg) and the diesel is a clear (economy) winner. Unfortunately the BMW diesels aren't quite as strong as the Mercedes ones. 400bhp from a 5-cylinder Mercedes running stock internals, but a modified lift pump, big turbo and intercooler? The M51 is good for 250 or so, but 400 would see it going pop fairly quickly unless significant internal work is done..

It's that 30-60,000km a year I do. The 320d is lovely, but has on several occasions proven to be just a teensy bit small to carry some things. And while it is completely the wrong reason to buy a specific car, the 525 does have a towbar which our 320 doesn't. (I know - cheaper to buy a towbar!) For anyone who is wondering (not many, I realise) the 320d makes more power than a stock 525td.

The other thing with anodising is not to get too hung up on the thickness of the result. Up to 100 microns is possible, but this may not be the best solution - 50 or even 25 microns can sometimes be more effective. Standard 'soft' anodising is thinner, down as far as 5 microns. This doesn't make it bad, just not perhaps suitable for hard wearing conditions.

Info so far is very helpful - it's reminded me of the different types of anodising available. If you have a set of braided hoses in your engine bay, chances are you have either stainless or anodised fittings. Y'know, the red or blue ones (They seem to be the two most common colours.) I think these are (relatively speaking) 'soft' anodised. You can mark them. Hard anodising is another story. It really is HARD wearing. It's used on marine parts that live in salt water, for example. I've read that it can even be hard to mark by taking a metal file to it, but can't say how true that is. So, done right, it could be good. No idea of price, but I have a couple of places to ask. One regularly does work on motorcycle rims so may be able to suggest how suitable it might be for car rims. Being Friday, I'll probably have forgotten about this by Monday!

Me too! No WoF, or rego. In Otago. $2k... Hmm.

Wheel rims... Looking to get some refurbished. I'm not in the least interested in some bling chrome, and would much rather have something understated. I've read the powder coat vs paint thread.. Good start. But not quite the finish I'm after. Has anyone had alloy rims anodised? Pros, cons? I appreciate you can touch up a painted or coated rim, but an anodised one will be different. And anodising won't hide imperfections in the way that powder coating could.

My first car was very similar to this: I was 12.

And it's an E30! Apologies - it's not on TradeMe and is for sale in Germany, but this will stir something for some of us. Here I suspect the price is just a number - call if you're interested. That sort of thing. The seller also has a B10 bi-turbo, and a B10 4.6 Touring for sale.

Meanwhile and back on topic, what is the going rate for an E34 M5? (If you want to feel sick, an E28 M5 recently sold on US eBay for US$5000.)

Hmm. I wonder what this will eventually sell for?

Seconded. Nothing wrong with folk up this way either, of course, but Paul does deal with other European manufacturers too.

It's an extremely unpleasant thing to do. OK, circumstances change. But if that's the case, just offer them back on here at the price paid. Share the love. As it is, I have no idea who is involved. Not sure I want to know them, either.

The E34 is a Jap import, so quite possible.