Olaf

woah! nice work Graham. warp speed causing camera shake #8 )

^^ irony detector failure. See BMW dealer for re-programming.

Francois is giving away a couple - they come with entire doors! See the for sale column.

when people ask me this (never for parking across two parks), I look them dead in the eyes and calmly reply "yes", with deadpan expression. Stops that line of questioning dead in its tracks.

yes indeedy, welcome to Bimmersport! You should find a fair ammount of info here on the N42 power plant. Although it was launched to much fanfare and was a bit of a techernogical masterpiece, it has turned out to be a bit of a reliability liability, for oil leaks, valve stem seals, timing chain & guides, thermostat (overheating)... so tread carefully. The e46 itself is a great platform (I'm biased), and if your N42 turns out to be a lemon (here's hoping not!), you can get your lemonade by employing "BMW Lego", and substituting 325i or 330i running gear (There are threads here too)... to make a seriously grin-inducing hot-hatch sleeper 325Ti or 330Ti. Don't be alarmed at the somewhat savage welcome, folks here are very helpful though do exhibit strongly held beliefs and do call it straight. cheers!

hello and welcome! yeah those wheels total score - don't tell Kyu! (tee tee) Looking forward to your restoration thread.

gotta be happy with that!

yep, sadly if one is in this position, one loses all control. like setting sell prices, marketing strategy etc...

hang on mate, they weren't for sale in the first place! As to keeping them: you've decided to make hose reels for your Dad out of them?

Perhaps putting the absolute 100% committment and attention to detail on this vehicle aside for a while, allows you to keep and enjoy it - and avoiding justification to sell it. When you have time or funds in future, you can get back to it.

Go on Dave, you know you need an 'iL' to add to your e38 collection. This one needs a little attention in a few spots, seems clean and honest overall? 1996 750iL a mere 170k kms asking $5000 1996 750il fully loaded cd player and mini screen not working Pretty sure all the other fruit works. Has had new rear rotors, brake lines all round, front and rear suspension components, starter, battery, radiator plus others. Body and Interior tidy, photo's indicate major faults. Excellent engine, and I have just had the trans serviced and checked out by Kaspa Auto's. The technician said the trans drove beautifully. Awesome car on a trip, quiet, smooth and effortless, and excellent fuel economy for a v12 pulling 2.3 ton. A lot of car for the money, no offers pls.. ... one assumes the black cat is not included.

errrr, *a camel's ass in a sandstorm*?

that'd be awesome, only they won't fit on my standard e46 4-spoke wheel, eh?

you're welcome, John! Perhaps you can make it along to one of the future wellymeets! I'm enjoying watching the progress on your e36 project. cheers

ok, thanks for that.

one would hope there'll be some runout pricing on R888's soon, as the R888 Asymetric has been introduced elsewhere. RE55 runouts - wow. If only I could justify buying some, at that price!

Uber is pretty simple really; if an individual driver provides poor service or is dodgy, he/she will generate poor ratings. Enough poor ratings and if you get assigned that driver you'll decline in the app, and get another based on poor rating. Business fizzles out. Simple, really. The contrast between Uber drivers (generally) and your average Cabbie is significant. And as the Uber driver notes, I only pay when I'm earning. With a Taxi, he's paying the company whether he's working or not.

... or customs looks at the declaration, finds your invoice in the box, and says "hmmm, dodgy, we'll have that thanks very much". regardless, good luck with your shipment.

what's the Lux Flakes refurb method for steering wheels?

^^ Bummer. Looks like it'll have to be a non-Msport for me, then. that uber-black effect makes the windscreen seem like a pillar box, from the inside.

today I drove my e46 to a BMW dealer and a car sales yard. I drove an e90 320d (NZ new, FSH), and an e90 323i Motorsport (fresh Japanese import). the 320d was capable, confortable, if a little soft. I did not fall in love with the 4cyl turbodiesel. I liked the iDrive, I guess when one becomes familiar with the menu layout, it becomes quite useful. It was nice to get back into my 6cyl 2.5 litre after the tractor. Perhaps the 3 litre is better! the 323i (2.5l) was nice, much stiffer, much better seats, but totally blaaaaaaaaaaack inside. needed a brake service, possibly transmission service, and a good alignment. So much blaaaaaaaack it was a little claustrophobic for Mrs Olaf. Conclusion: think a touring is on the cards, more research to do. I'm a little scared about the servicing costs/complexity of the 335i, so 325i may have to do. The LCI has 3.0l power plant, but costs an extra $10k or so. Hmmm. And will I find a Motorsport without the black hoodlining/A pillars, yet has a moonroof?

yes I agree with that sentiment, Paul. "Stealership" is an often used/abused term, and is not fair. Where I take exception is to the high margin charged on indent parts orders. On those occasions, I choose to source from abroad myself. I acknowledge I'm fortunate to have the choice of dealer or independent for my servicing.

this may be the radiator supplier you are looking for... I've no experience with them. If you use the search bicycle you may find threads indicating Bimmersporters outcomes with Fenix radiators. HTH

your car is looking sh*t-hot, man. looking forward to reading your reports of on-roaded-ness.

dude, you're going to be seriously indebted to your parents. they look good on the driveway together. the cars, not your parents.