Olaf

It's looking mighty fine, CJ! What should my budget be if I'm planning on tinting mine (+/- $50)? And how dark are yours? PS - wow, your ARB bushes datestamped 1989 - never changed previously!

not always. Sometimes one rocks in, asks for price on 20l: "$148, sir". OK, I'll take two.

Dave, I just buy in 20l lots when the sales are on, it should get you ~$8/l for Penrite HPR5.

Sorry, no pics... sweet e30 FL coupe Jville BP last night Gletscherblau Metallic, with plate 'ANALOG'. Turns out it's a sister vehicle to mine - 316i 1990. Anyone on here?

they all seem to have gone AWOL. mdecoder gave me the same issue. I suspect that's the API info from BMW being passed back through their web server.

thanks @turbolizard Mike! EDIT/UPDATE: Very kindly loaned a bellhousing bolt by Jon @ Auto38. For the princely sum of seven bucks, I've bought 4 M12x90 hex-head bolts, and a dozen M12x28x3.0 Flat Washers, to accommodate the 65mm engine stand bracket depth. Wish us luck!

Well, we bought an engine stand and assembled it... and with the help of the neighbours, we've manhandled the future heart of Grey Thunder down to floor. Now I need the right sized bolts to connect the engine stand to the bell-housing bolts. Anyone know what size and thread they are?

And then.... hmmmm.... I’d better buy an engine stand! A big shout to Josh & his brother, and Barry, thanks lads!

What about a dazzle ship camo scheme of stahlgrau and silbergrau? It'll be extra-stealthy! Seriously though, the stahlgrau does seem to have the edge. For the left side dent under the hofmeister kink, as you've still a ways to go - how about the old-school slide hammer? Drill hole(s), screw hammer tip in, gently pull out. It's coming along brilliantly, keep up the great work! Patience, time, and attention to detail. Nice one!

@tire thanks Max, very kind!

Date: 5 Aug 2020 Distance: 261313kms 1. WoF. Grey Thunder flew through the WoF check today. "drives really nicely eh!". Tyres wearing evenly - 6mm all around. No advisories, clean bill of health. Happy days! Missed my customary photograph. Next (immediate) steps: Cluster - tacho Centre console - clock Driver's window - fix in regulator to address wind whistle Rear brake refresh ... and keep collecting/cleaning M42 parts in preparation. Edit: oh hang on: 2. Interior changes (last week) From this to this in just five minutes. Well, ten if you count re-doing it the next day - my steering hadn't been spot-on straight in the garage.

you mean in NZ? e30 Coupes, Sedans, Tourings all go in the series. e46 is more stringent.

On Saturday, I washed our e46 Touring. Shiny Shiny. After Auto Glym suds, and a do-off with Rapid Dry Towel. I also replaced the washer pump. Only it wasn't the pump, it was the filter that was completely snotted-up. There's more snot in the tank to deal with; I didn't have the tools to clean it. I rinsed it out, put the old pump back in and got it all going. Note to self: Using BMW Screen Wash exclusively since the pump was changed about 4 years ago was not the path to happiness I was assured of. Old pump out - temporarily, as it turns out. Same VDO/Continental part replaced. Just a 10mm socket and a couple of electrical connectors and a hose, easy removal. De-snotted pump inlet filter/grommet detail shot e46's strike the pose Today the e46 received it's rear O2 sensors, at Auto38 in Wellington. The fronts had been replaced approx six weeks ago; the rears deferred until manifold to front pipe gaskets, bolts, and nuts were available. It was a shitty job, exhaust off, and Jon had the oxy-acetylene set on the bolts to remove them. End result, car runs even smoother, at almost 195k kms. Still loving this car after 8 years and 3 months.

DIN75 is generally longer and will have a greater capacity. Maybe some extra CCA. Did your mechanic code the new battery in, including type and capacity and date?

Outstanding! Looking forward to the next encounter. Good looking alignment sheet, too. Buying backdrops, eh? ?

Welcome! Nice looking wagon. That V8 is great on trips. Handles well, comfort, passing with ease.

N62 valve stem seals I think it's around a $2k5-3k job, with the heads remaining in place. The auxiliiary electric coolant pump plastics disintegrated when the hose was removed, so that's another cost in that job. The seals themselves cost little. It's a labour-intensive job, there's other gaskets and seals, Valvetronic Timing tools to rent etc, Coolant, Oil, Oil Filter.

laughing with you, not at you, CJ! ?

Graham! You're like a Scotsman without his sporran! What are you commuting in, now?

I went for Hankook K415's (196/65R14) over the Kumhos, based on price and reading endless reviews on-line. They're better than I expected. Not a sport-performance tyre, but a reasonable touring tyre. The only time I've come anywhere near aquaplaning was on a thoroughly flooded road in torrential rain - RE003 would cut through - I should have been going 10kph slower. They've reasonable feedback, aren't too mushy in the sidewalls yet are comfortable, and grip enough. Looks like the Kumho KH27 has been superseded by the ES31 - you'd hope to get a great quit-stock deal in normal circumstances, though in our covid-world, there may be slow replenishment stocks with the global freight slowdown. Beyond the Hankooks, in this size, I'd be looking to Michelin or Continental - probably the only reasonable premium options in this size, from memory? Hope that helps, mate.

e60 V8 is a nice not-boring family car.

Bienvenidos @Anunzis81! Esta es un azul muy bonita.

I can assure you it won't be the placebo effect. nice work!

@skidz Hi Steve, I'm also keen on inspecting your instrument clusters for 'the right one', and the rear battery kit, please. I'll give you a shout in the morning.

Date: 10 Jul 2020 Distance: 261xxxkms 1. Cluster Service. It's fun removing the cluster from the car; even more fun stripping it down. Remember which screw goes where. Brake Pad Warning Lamp Re-flow soldered the contacts on the cluster circuit board that causes the Brake Pad Warning Lamp to go on intermittently, or stay 'hi'. Barry had kindly hidden this with some black tape as a temporary blind; it was time to fix it. If you want more details, a handy guide is here on e30 Zone. Odometer Gears. Barry had done this before, so I held the tools and assisted where I could. We replaced the gears just in time, they crumbled as we disassembled it, and installed a new set of Garagistic metric odo gears for the VDO cluster. Naked cluster, packet of Garagistic VDO km gears awaiting install. Old gears crumbled in our hands. Tacho retro-fit I attempted to fit a tacho in place of the clock, but found my povo-spec cluster lacked the right contacts. I also tried putting my speedo into the spare (earlier) cluster board, and then putting that into my own casing - but they were incompatible. The spare cluster had been damaged in transit (note to self: always inspect freight when it arrives!)... so I ended up re-fitting No tacho contacts there, then! I had to run to REPCO for some 5-minute Araldite to repair my lower dash panel above the pedals - I'd missed the 'middle' snap screw. Reinforced it with araldite, just like a bought one. Big shout out to @Autoglym, we had fun applying these fixes. 2. M42 Prep. I picked up a big box yesterday, M40 upper and lower oil pan and pickup, engine supports, dipstick and tube. Today I unpacked them, sprayed on a s#!t ton of citrus degreaser, and then steam-cleaned them. Flash eh? M40 parts after a scrub and steam clean. Lower Oil Pan (left), Upper Oil Pan (right), M40 engine support arms, and (Enis) the dipstick. After steam cleaning, 3. M40B16 experiment Prep. Most will file under 'why would you bother', though Jon and I have wondered aloud a few times if running the M40B18 intake manifold, throttle body, (and boot), might elicit just a little more 'go' from the 1600cc M40B16. The larger-bore throttle body might help with HP, and the longer runners might help with the torque. It's worth a crack, anyway. These parts were included in the big box of M40 parts. Should I do it? Well, when you've only got 102hp (assuming none have escaped over the years), a few more would be most welcome! I'll have a try soon. Big shout out to Cam @Southerner, legendary Bimmersporter if you're trading, and he packages very well - thanks mate!