gjm

To be fair, the offset is the thing I was holding out for.

Although if the arches on an E36 need to be rolled in order for them to fit, I doubt they'll fit on to an E46.

Just drove my car down the drive. For the first time, I notice it is whistling, too. Funny how that happens when you've been discussing a similar problem with someone else's car.

I'd best move the turbo check work up my list of priorities.

Noise from turbo = no good can come from this = $$$$$

I know.

Just drove my car down the drive. For the first time, I notice it is whistling, too. Funny how that happens when you've been discussing a similar problem with someone else's car.

I'd best move the turbo check work up my list of priorities.

It does say the visibility in the tunnel is only 200M - you MUST be able to stop within the distance you can see, on a road like that (half the distance on some other Roads).

It'd be pretty impressive to see it stop from nearly 200km/h in just 200M!

The stopping distance is not one easy to work out.

100-0 in a 740i is around 50m, as tested by magazines and depending on model year. (Don't know if this included driver reaction time.) 200-0 is not going to be twice as far; it'll be a lot further. How much further, I don't know and can't be bothered to calculate.

Stop within visible distance is a good rule, imo. However, the comments made by the Judge(s) regarding this, in this context, are likely arbitrary and unproven, given by someone probably unqualified to even estimate what is possible and what is not in those circumstances.

My comments aren't around whether or not the driver should have been punished, only that the reasons given are inappropriate. Simply saying "you were driving at nearly twice the posted legal limit" would have been sufficient; anything more sounds like moral indignation and self-justification.

Red E30 318iS with gold (BBS?) rims parked in Papakura. Looked sweet.

Yeah it does. Sounds like a leak right? Might have to start replacing hoses....

Yup. Sounds to me like you have a leak.

Cheers, yeah this is looking most likely... any chance we could have dammaged the turbo though? There was quite a bit of oil and crap that came loose and may have rushed though the pipes. Also when we first started it yesterday the engine was flooded so it didnt start smoothly. Hoping for his wallets sake we havent dammaged the turbo....

Sucking oil and detritus through the turbo won't do it any good, but unless that has caused turbo seals to fail, I don't think it would cause the whistling you are hearing.

Does the note or pitch of the whistling vary with engine speed and/or throttle position?

The presentation of speeds here still makes me smile. Several times I have seen the shock and outrage headlines citing speeds of "up to 130km/h". In the UK, on a clear dual carriageway, you'll probaby not even raise the eyelids of PC Traffic Cop at anything under 85mph, and on a clear motorway it would be entirely dependent on their mood as to whether they came looking for you at 90mph. (130km/h is around 80mph, a very normal cruising speed on UK motorways despite the limit being 70mph.) OK, so this event involves a higher speed (but doesn't mention how that speed was recorded).

Spped doesn't kill, provided it is safely and appropriately applied. Whether the 7-series driver in question was driving in a situation that meant he was being unsafe, I can't say - I don't know the road, or the area. He cites in defence that there was no other traffic around, yet the prosecution continues to say he was a danger to the public.

Judge Venning seems to contradict himself:

"According to the appeal decision released by Justice Geoffrey Venning, he accepted that while there was no other traffic near Fleming's car..."

Then:

"Justice Venning found that if Fleming had at any point lost control of his car, it would have been dangerous to the public."

OK. In the event of an accident, the damage caused and the eventual positioning of the vehicle may have presented a danger to other traffic coming along behind. But if I crash at 75km/h on SH1 around J427, it's more than likely to cause a similar problem.

Sure, the driver was breaking the law. But it seems rhetoric and drama have been used to justify the fine and licence suspension, rather than law.

Check the hoses. Unless they've been changed they are at best 7 years old , and do perish. Removing and refitting the i/c may have been enough to expose this.

Is retrofitting clear lenses, but with orange indicator bulbs also OK?

Personally, I don't like the full clear lens look at the back of a car, but keeping it to red and white can look tidy. I know some countries insist on amber lenses, but don't know the rules here.

To some extent, it depends on the alternator output. I ran 4x150W KC Daylighters on a Land Rover without problem, but that had a big alternator and significantly more (potential) output than standard. (The whole vehicle had been rewired, too.)

No clutch to worry about, of course, but my left leg is uncomfortably bent when the sole of my foot is on the foot rest.
I can almost get comfortable by messing with the seat height and rake, but maybe I just have long legs?

It was enough to turn my head at mention of a 530d Touring M-Sport...

To be honest, I was thinking of between 5 and 6000km between engine oil changes. Mahle, or Mann-Hummel oil filter?

Diesels can run for a long, long time. The swirl flaps on the engine in my car was an Achilles heel, but I don't think mine has them (any more). I also suspect that the flaps were removed but the tracts not blocked... We'll get to that eventually.

Maintenance stuff, like the lower rear bushes on the front wishbones, will be done with a view to longevity, so I'll use polybushes or similar. Stuff like this really is made so much easier by having people like Brent around - I can pick up 'old' arms from him, replace the bushes, and swap the arms on to my car. The rear diff bush is starting to crack, so I'l look at that in due course. Also need to consider the diff itself - it's had a hard life and is making some smooth noise.

There will be changes and updates done as time goes by. The suspension sits a little lower on the drivers side - perhaps as a result of a heavier driver having done a lot of the miles. I've long had a 'thing' for Konis and Eibach springs but as this isn't a serious issue, I'll just keep my eyes and ears open for something suitable.

Wheels are the same. I've sorted a temporary solution in the form of a second set of Style 45s but with much better tyres. They'll do for now. You'll have gathered that maintaining comfort is a key consideration, but handling can be improved by uprating the sway bars. Brent and I talked briefly about this today.

Basically though, just a rolling program of keeping things 'good'. If nothing too serious has happened under the 'standard' maintenance regime, this one could run and run. The accumulation of mileage will drop off sometime next year as we plan to move a bit further south. Find a nice piece of land, a nice house, and a big garage barn.

The only real problem at the moment is legroom. For me, in the front. I'm not especially tall at 6'1", but I cannot get the seat back far enough to be properly comfortable. Anyone else found this?

Incidentally, Mrs M took rather a shine to a white E24 down at Brent's today. I used to have a gumetal M635CSi highline - cracking car. I now know a bit more about looking after them than I did then, so maybe...

wow... sounds like you have spent more than a couple of bob already! haha! smashing!

It would have been an expensive car when new... The running costs don't change so much. I'd anticipated there'd be a lot of things to sort, possibly more than I have needed to do, but I didn't pay much for it and so long as it keeps running, I'm happy that all-in it is a very good deal.

The money has been spent on servicing stuff, as while the original BMW ethos has been followed, I don't agree with it. Servicing a diesel needs to be done more often than every 13000 miles, and diffs and gearboxes aren't sealed for life!

I'll add up the costs in due course. Just spent some more, today, with a very nice man in Papakura - I have some better discs and pads for the back of the car now. I think Brent was a little surprised at just how low the pads were!

Kiwi blokes south of Hamilton tend to have 'Action Man' rather than 'barbie' - Action Man tends to be fairly dirty from fixing stuff all the time, so he tends to run through a shower rather than use the kitchen sink.........

And if he had a bbq - on the odd occasions that it might genuinely maybe need a clean (usually after some-one with funny bumps on her chest has maybe suggested it'd be a good idea........), he'd probably use the water-blaster to clean it. Please note - water-blaster must be petrol powered, as those silly little 240V things don't count......

Welcome to NZ........... Southern land style...........

LOL.

I have been looking into these guys for a while now and cant find anything bad about them on the web so far, but they are german so could be really good or really bad..

http://www.titanium-touch.de/shop/index.php?language=en&XTCsid=625e127c6f1ed4dbc7b5afea525ff1e3

I used BBS rims on my Porsche 928S2. 8" front, 9.5" rear... RS016s, if memory serves correctly. I'm not sure i it was this company or another that I used for a spare lip (kerbed, split and so on) and gaskets but I also bought a set titanium bolts when I split the rims for refurbishing. No more rusting or corrosion problems.

Sweet.

Mrs M's VW Polo 1.6 wasn't a whole lot less than that.

They were $1500. I keep thinking about them, but do I really want 18s for a commute? Probably not.

I know where there are some 17" Alpinas, but they need some tidying. Those 18s look pretty good.

Saw a white 7-series (I think - it was just a glance) being driven in a <ahem> 'spirited' fashion from Walters Road along Tironui Road at around 7,20ish this evening...

Looks as though the powers that be have the kms/miles thing covered now. I did breathe a sigh of relief.

Car is back from Marshalls. Pre fluid change it drove OK, with just a little occasional rev flaring - sometimes when accelerating the revs would rise, and then the car would 'catch up' - not significant, and not particularly bad, but something that suggested the fluid needed changing. (Really? After 360000km who woulda thunk it?) There was no noticeable notchiness in changes up or down... Generally pretty good.

But the fluid looked like dishwater after you've cleaned your barbie in the sink. (You do clean your barbie, don't you?) OK... That's a slight exaggeration, as while it had the consistency of water and was black, there were no particles or foreign matter in it. At all.

Post-change and perhaps changes are that little bit slicker than they were. Accelerating from standstill is a little quicker. But that's about the limit of the difference. Of course it was worth doing, and an excellent idea... Good for another 10 years!

(OK, maybe not 10 years, but y'know what I mean. )

So, next... Rear brakes discs and pads. The discs are well-worn, and I'm pretty sure the pads are the same. I'll give Brent a call.

lol, what the f**k is that thing?

That thing is wicked.

http://cars.mclaren.com/m6gt.html

Saw this on Marine Parade, Paraparaumu Beach on Saturday late afternoon. I realise that it's only a replica, but still pretty cool.

That's definitely cool.

That time we shared a urinal?

The fact it was able to be shared, and you didn't need it all to yourself?

Selling cars. I'm terrible at it. I don't think I have ever bought a car simply because I needed transport - pretty much every purchase has been a long-winded and considered one. This means I develop an attachment for my cars, and when I have no space left, tend to find somewhere else to keep them rather than sell.

And when I do finally get a grip on reality, I tend to be brutally honest about what I'm selling. None of this 'excellent [or perfect] for year' rubbish; excellent and perfect are (in my opinion) absolutes. It either is, or it isn't. Age has nothing to do with it.

And then I detail what I have done, which sometimes raises questions. Why did you have to do so much to it? If you've done all this, why are you selling?

And I detail all the little things that are wrong, too.

It's probably a subconscious effort to make sure no-one buys it!

Paid some RUC today. Hmm. Intriguing...

No mention anywhere of miles or kilometres, other than to say that '1 unit' is 1000km, or 621 miles. There's no mention on the card that goes in the screen, either.

So I bought 6 units, and the numbers all match - I didn't get 6000 of anything, 'only' 3726. Which by my calculations means I'm out of pocket by the equivalent of nearly 3.6km! (Cue: Shock, horror, government makes money from innocent tax-paying resident! )

I suspect that somewhere in the registration process there is a section for indicating if the odometer is in miles or kms, and that the RUC are calculated accordingly.

No it doesn't on a E46... Orange oil can is oil level.... Red oil can is no oil pressure

Thanks - learnt something new today. Stuck in the 80's.

Yup - the 15 seconds of orange oil light after starting the engine refers specifically to the sensor failing, or having failed.

At other times, an orange oil light indicates low oil.

A red oil light, at any time, indicates low or no oil pressure. This is measured by a completely different sensor system.

Think of the in-sump sensor as an inverted dipstick. All it does is check there is oil present. Yes - it is a good idea to get it sorted, but provided you check your oil level regularly in the traditional way (just like you would on any car) then you're unlikely to have a problem.

Booked into Marshalls in Hamilton on Wednesday morning for a trans drain (not flush) and refresh. There is a bit of 'club' in Hamilton - Coombes Johnston (BMW main dealer) will recommend Greg Hantz for work on older cars; Greg recommends speaking to Fabian in the parts department at CJ. Both Greg and Fabian recommend Marshalls (Fabian whispers it, as you'd expect a main dealer to do), but I'm told that Marshalls do a lot of trans work for CJ anyway.

Apparently Marshalls don't flush transmissions as it can cause more trouble than it cures, and with the Hydramatic 5L40E and similar belt-less disc-based transmission designs, especially those with some life behind them, I can see how that could be true. Some tiny little particles may be providing frictional 'help' while embedded in the plates, and cleaning them out while filling with lovely new, slippery fluid may cause problems.

They drain the trans from the sump, remove and clean the sump, will fit the new filter (I'm supplying) and replace the drain and fill plugs. They also pull the hoses from the cooler and drain as much fluid from there as possible, too. Definitely a job that's easier on a ramp than in a driveway. They'll drop me a t work and pick me up once they are finished.

Whatever, it'll be good to get it done. The diff oil was, frankly, astonishingly bad. Still with 360000km behind it, I guess it's allowed to look past its prime.

Exchanged messages with Brent re sway bars (I keep calling them anti-roll bars) and will see him as and when the time is right.