gjm

For anyone who is interested, here's the 'official' LVVTA tyre size guide document. LVVTA_Info_01-2009_V2_Tyre_Size_to_Wheel_Size_Compatibility_Guide.pdf

It's fun for a while... Good luck!

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It was perfect timing. Well, sort of... The whole point of selling the 318Ti (and others) was to reduce the number of cars we have, not get some money together to buy another one! I do like the E46 Ci. Great shape, nice car. And this one is pretty close to what I was looking for - a very late M43-engine production (this one is within the last 2 months of production), in an unusual colour and with good spec. I'd have been happy without the bodykit, the 18" rims and the sunroof, but I am looking for something of a unicorn!

Could be very keen - just need to check the rears will fit on the rims on our E46. Happy to collect!

The Z4 is a great car, almost regardless of the engine up front. I say almost: if buying one with the 2.0 N46 engine (in particular), ensure it has been meticulously maintained.

That actually sounds quite tempting at the moment...

It'd be less than I worked in the UK...

I was talking yesterday with someone and got to thinking how good a M43 would be in front of an autobox in an E30... I do have some odd ideas, sometimes.

I had this when I first arrived in NZ. 'Experience in NZ' killed jobs for me, especially given Telecom (now Spark) had just released so many people into the jobsearch market. The functions are the same... There may be some cultural differences, especially around Maaori culture, but it's no a complete change. I'm not culturally profiling, but I have found a lot of Asians do change their names, sometimes fundamentally, when moving to an English-speaking country. It's not a new thing - so many are known as Paul Kwong, for instance. We had a homestay student whose name was 'Samantha'... Except it wasn't - that was her Western given name. At home with her family she was still Wing. I suspect it is for same the reasons 'Frank' did the same. It meant he appeared more familiar to those he approached , in his case,for work. But yeah... that surname. Wow.

Just saw a job advertised in Hawkes Bay. Not for me, but one of the requirements had me scratching my head... "At least two years New Zealand experience of working with Photoshop, 3D Studio Max and Archicad." Presumably NZ has it's own versions of Photoshop and so on...? This is exactly the issue I faced after landing in NZ - everyone wanted NZ-based experience. Nowhere else came close.

I would have liked to see more of the Zakspeed Capri, but some nice footage of many cars. Including, of course, the BMW... Gruppe_5_at_Goodwood.mp4

? Here's home to two of them:

A quick (it's cold!) and not-very-good pic to show what I'm working with. The driver side wiper arm is bent - looks like someone had the bonnet up, pulled the arm back from the windscreen (perhaps to change the blade) and the bonnet closed on it.

E46 318i. I'll check all the bulbs abd holders for corrosion, and values/types. Update: following a visit to Kyu's for coffee and chat on Sunday morning, the consensus seems to be a wiring issue with the supply or earth to the rear offside indicator bulb. We swapped the bulbs - same problem - but using the hazard lights shows no issue, other than the rear offside being not as bright (regardless of bulb) as the nearside.

An indicator flashing at double speed normally indicates (Lol) a bulb out. But what if the indicator is flashing at double speed, but all bulbs are lighting? What could cause that? It's only happening on the right turn - left is fine following a bulb replacement - and it sometimes returns to normal flash speed. ?

Complete fluke. When I was working in Manukau/Papatoetoe, one of the car firms opened a yard opposite our office. I'd been over and spoken to Mike, the manager - just kicking tyres, talking about BMWs and Mercedes. No interest in buying. That was months ago. The quite literally the afternoon we sold the 318ti, he called asking if I knew anyone who would be interested in a 2-door BMW he had in his garage. It had been his daughter's car, but she'd been on OE (5 times, from what I gather!) and having come back to NZ, got a job with a company car. He wanted the space in the garage for a kitchen refurb, somewhere to put stuff. So we pottered up to have a look, liked it enough to make an offer, and came away with it. He said he'd posted it on Facebook but just got a lot of random mess-around people calling and PM'ing, so he gave up on that.

Coolant flush completed. Engine hot, heater controls on hot, pop the expansion tank cap, release the bleed screw (next to the expansion tank cap. Now, where's the rad drain plug...? Actually - that's a great question. Where is it??? I know where it should be but there's nothing there. (Not easy to find any =way because of the position of the oil cooler, but all the same.) OK - pop the hoses off the engine, stick a hose pipe (gently) into the expansion tank, and wait until water coming out of the engine runs clear. Of course, this means the engine is now full of water, so reconnect the bottom hose, and slowly pour coolant into the expansion tank. Once it runs green from the engine, replace last hose and check everything over. Start car, wait, and... Heater blows hot air. Seems unlikely to be an airlock. ? Result. Unfortunately, the previous owner had a boyfriend who was a 'mechanic'. He's removed the cabin filter housing (and the rubbers, the plastic engine trim, and carefully put it all in a box in the boot. Such a shame he didn't think to include the special torx-head screws that are used when fitting... ? Plan for tomorrow is to pull the wheels, see what they actually are, check the suspension... Oh - paint is Graugruen metallic. Some small dents, some scratches (especially on the boot where something has been slid across it). Nice colour.

Quick update having done some research... The car is a Singapore import. Not sure if it was originally sold through Opera Autotechnik, but they fitted a rebranded Kerscher exhaust, lowered the suspension, fitted a decent quality bodykit (although the sills require some attention), and 18" rims - 225/40-18 on the front, 235-40/18 at the rear. Only fault showing was 115, the coolant temperature sensor. This has been replaced. It has a BMS46 Hybrid ECU, from a BMW / Siemens joint development.

A previous owner would like you to believe it's an S3 which used an engine based on the M52TUB28 and produced 265bhp. 20" rims are far too big on an E46. And, of course, this one is missing the chin spoiler, the mirrors are wrong...

Most kit regardless of price could be fitted, but cheap suspension is a waste of time. Height adjustable suspension will require certification regardless of source or price, but cheap parts will wear fast, ride badly, and probably not give any sort of long term solution. Cheap adjustable suspension is useful for one thing - lowering (and looks). And there are certification rules around how low is legal. The certification you get will detail this, and the police will check to ensure you are using the car within those limits. IMO, more trouble than it can possibly be worth.

You're not helping... ?

ISTA... Rheingold? What size is the application you're using? I've got the files, but struggle with them being over 200GB compressed!

Sorry - no pics at present. The drive and aim recently has been to prepare and sell some cars - we have too many. Even I have to admit that, especially given our circumstances. And so, I was overjoyed when the 318ti sold very recently. One down... Hopefully I can build some momentum and sell another car. Or two. Or... Well, I was asked if I would be interested in a 318Ci. Hmm... N42 engine woes. But the offer was there, not voiced in a "how much can I get for this' kind of way, but as a 'I need to get this out of the garage because we're refurbishing the house and need somewhere to put kitchen units and appliances while the builders work' way. So I ran some details and found that this car has a M43TU engine. It has been messed with, it does need work. It has been standing for a while, the tyres were soft (but not flat) and I don't much like the wheels. The exhaust isn't stock, and part of it has fallen off. It has a bodykit which hasn't been fitted particularly well, or perhaps it's coming adrift. We'll see. Glass sunroof, leather interior (with some mildew), electric seats, multifunction steering wheel. Stuff and things. I'm really not sure this was a good idea.

Bought a May 2001 318Ci...