Olaf

@adro is there anything left for you to do to that lovely e30 of yours? John may have those finishing touch parts...

/serious filter=OFF. Hi Joel, is it possible you've unwittingly fallen into the plot of Goodfellas and are in fact being followed by Police Helicopters? serious filter=ON Sorry mate, that's not one I've encountered before. The video's really helpful!

congrats, Terry, it must be some spaceship! The cosmos had other plans for me, look forward to hearing of your experiences with it. Welcome aboard, and hope to see you at any of the meetups that take your fancy.

don't be sorry mate, life comes first! Anyway, suggest you find a moment to call Brent and see it's it's still available. This could make your life much easier. 021433600 [email protected]

I managed to get away with 4 tokens - $8.00. 1:30 per token is a bit of a sh*t. 1:45 would be fairer, without being over-generous. I sprayed my wheels first while I waited - before driving in - and scrubbed them with my Auto Glym Wheel Brush, then did pre-soak, high pressure soap, foaming brush, then high pressure wash. Take your own towel or chamois (I forgot). My wheels aren't looking flash; usually rinsing plenty with clear water before the cleaner dries gives me a good result. Given it's a site that's bashed by the predominant northerly, some days of the week it'll be a real sh*t in there! EDIT: overall I get a much better result at home, but it takes four-five times longer.

Chris, you might want to IM @speedyg as a quick visit to his profile reveals he's not been on the forum since last year...

today was BMW action day for me. e46: was in at Page European to resolve an odd rattle at around 3000rpm. Turns out it was the bushes where the airbox mounts to the inner guard. handbrake adjusted. And it's going back in next week for the diff mounts. e60: washed it. used that new SmartWash in Newtown. Seemed okay for a quick wash when you're in a hurry, probably a little better than my other fallback, the touchless carwashes they run at Caltex stations. other than that, waiting on suspension (OEM) parts...

Pete, I know Page European are a Vero Autosure agent and recommend Vero as the best MBI around, so you should have no issues there. They do I wide variety of Euros these days, BMW, Mercedes, VW, Audi. Hell, there was an Alfa on the rack yesterday. They certainly have the modules in their scanner. You'd want to go in and have a chat with your M5 glowering in the background, see what they say. Others to consider in Wellington - unsure of their Vero Autosure status: You might want to talk with Jon at Auto38 about your M5 as well, he's up in Newtown. I've used Jon before and would use him in future. Another other option is Powerhaus (I think they do a lot of Porsche, as well as BMW, Mercedes, Audi) - I've only purchased parts there. Friends with Porsche, BMW, Audi use them and rate them. Of course there's Winger BMW. Mine's not an exhaustive list. There are a couple of workshops in the Hutt Valley recommended by other members here. What would you gain? Often carrying the parts you need in stock. Specific knowledge & experience on BMW. Genuine BMW coolant! HTH

Hi Conrad, interesting project! are you looking for an e46 or e90 330i?

+1 looks like tidy buying. GLWS, Chris!

it's okay Pete, he was carrying a donor card. Brent'll make sure his organs go on to save/enhance many others!

Hi Mods, feel free to wipe this one if anappropriate for the TradeMe room. I found a really clean e90 323i 2.5L Motorsport at a dealership in Napier. Ex-Japan, grade 4.5, it's so complete it even has the Japanese First Aid Guide! Silver, all the standard e90 MSport fruit. And style 194s FTW! http://www.evolutionmotors.co.nz/vehicle/2008-BMW-323i/2623?s=1 I think it's been there a while. I've no association with the dealer other than having viewed the yard/stock on occasion.

the main point is, if you had to flip heads/tails... and one of you got to drive the '04 545i from Wellington to Auckland, and the other drove the '04 SS Commode, you'd both arrive at pretty much the same time, and feeling about as relaxed as each other. The SS is still a great trip car.

yes the commode is surprisingly good, I rode in one recently. Less efficient, certainly. The data bears out that the '04 SS Commode and the '04 545i are fairly close together through acceleration. Dynamically the 545 is superior, as you'd expect. And I agree, that six-speed trans certainly helps. Still - curves aside, it's a *close second*.

one would expect the factory-spec'd bilsteins and springs were perfectly matched. Can you still get the factory part for the e28 535?

Sachs 310-273, 310-274, and 2x 310-275 ordered.

yes I've arrived at the same conclusion Paul. (I set Bio-Hadoop processing to run in the background while I slept). Getting it sorted now with Sachs OEM. (Though I did figure Koni+Eibach ProKit would be very close to Sport or MSport suspension settings).

Looks absolutely smashing. Will the new owner please step forward! is it coming to Welly?

An M54B30 or N52B30 would offer certain advantages... but it wouldn't sound like an M535. There's something special - basso - about the M30. it's an M54B30 - 228hp. 130kg. 221lb/ft peak @3500RPM. it's an M62B44 - varies depending on application - 261hp. 130kg (I'd have expected this to be lighter given 10KG saving with Mg quoted, and the (dreaded) electric fuel pump). 232lb/ft peak @2750RPM. ** EDIT: I have of course omitted radical and very pricey options such as S50B32 or S54B32.

and on the filler cap tether, I can't find the part number in Real OEM. The tether's still intact on my e46 after 15 years and 177,000kms

Interesting you should say that, I was talking with a mate today who'd put Bilstein yellows (B8's I think) in his V8 Mercedes and mentioned they overheat and get sticky after prolonged caning. The GTBs use Bilstein yellows. Oh dear. It's beginning to sound as though I do need to do Koni Yellow with Eibach Pro Kit springs. The good news is that a set of four Koni Yellows are running about USD640 at the moment. My only concern is going LOW on my daily cruiser and family trip car. Maybe stick with Sachs OEM, at least they'll be matched to the factory springs.?

thanks William, that's really useful. perhaps B4s then, as they're supposed to be closer to stock?

it just needs some TLC with the cleaning and conditioning products from European Leather Care. The dirt and denim dye will be gone, and the colour will be back.

VIN is WBADE62040BW73376 it's an M62B44 - non-VANOS. 286hp. 219kg. 310lb/ft peak @3900RPM. Useful link here. it's only a little heavier than your M30B35... You're right, it'll be easier with the M30B35. 208hp 145kg 225lb/ft @4000ROM. It's only 78hp down on the V8, which you'll make up in the corners, particularly with a 74kg advantage. And it'll be easier to reunite the car with an M30 than re-engineer and cert for a V8.