Olaf

Hi Richard, and welcome. Recommended for all BMWs: a Pre-Purchase Inspection (PPI) from a BMW Specialist or BMW Dealer. The standard offerings from AA or VTNZ etc just don't cut it, they don't know what to look for with these vehicles. As to the changes, I think the biggest one was 6speed trans from 5 speed... and the 'n' series motors over the early M54-powered units. here's some links that should be fun, though you'll need to consider they're from differing markets. Hope that helps. https://www.carsales.com.au/editorial/details/bmw-x3-e83-update-2518/ https://xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/x3-e83-forum/27007-changes-face-lift-x3-pre-sep-2006-a.html

@eliongater Bronzit e28 525! for parts!

Busy few days. She's now in for the rear subframe bushings, trailing arm bushings, rear ARB install. Here's a rather unflattering image of her up on the rack at Auto38 with her arse-end out, @qube e30 on the rack. sounds positively medieval (above) ARB Prep My previous paintjob on the rear ARB hadn't held up so well. I guess lack of patience in the prep may have had something to do with it; the Rustoleum all-in-one wasn't sticking everywhere. Ahead of Monday's install work, I stripped it back yesterday afternoon with the flap disk on grinder, and sanded with random orbital (both 120 grit). I used a tack-rag (with turps), then gave it a coat of etch primer and waited an hour, before two coats of Rustoluem 50 mins apart (re-coat within 1 hour, or after 48hrs). I touched up the other end of the rear ARB this morning with Rustoleum (above) I also stripped back 20mm front ARB to bare metal with the flap disk, and gave it a coat of rust converter. There's a little minor pitting around the rubber bushing mounts, so I was being cautious. CRC aren't very clear on how long one should wait before painting; I found 'leave overnight' in one of their videos. So I did just that. This morning it's all about "waiting for paint to dry"; I've etch-primed the front bar, ahead of painting it with Rustoleum. an ARB, in etch, this morning (above) And here's the usual suspects... (below) This arvo I will be rebuilding the door lock (lock cylinder repair kit). Woohoo!

Over the past few days I've: charged the battery on my CTEK MXS5.0 charger with the 'recondition' cycle swept the leaves off it, moved it across the road, and washed it Charged the battery again Called the AA, full diagnosis (Alternator, Starter good, no drain issues), revealed battery borked. Had the battery replaced under warranty at 27 months old, thanks AA Battery Service! Replaced right front corner indicator - some a-hole had given the car a parking nudge and broken it, no note left, no apology. Put air in tyres, took it for an hour's drive to get the light dusting of surface rust off the rotors took it for a WoF - it flew through. 6mm of tread on the tyres all round - Directionals on the rear axle, Asymetrics on the front. Then I stopped off at Jon's workshop, and she didn't start when I went to leave! She's turning over super-fast with the new batty, too. Jon listened to the injectors, heard the pintle click once. I did a quick bit of research, found the FI relay and removed it. We inspected the internals, looks pristine. Then she started. I'm ordering a new FI relay to install before she goes for sale. I'd previously replaced crank sensor, cam position sensor, leads, plugs, coil, rotor, cap, IACV... all the things that can cause trouble with the Volvo 850. Watch this space, she'll be up for sale soon. Many thanks to @Jon for helping diagnose!

Got some details please, Andrew? Would this unit be suitable for my '04 545i? TIA.

indeed, very pleased to hear you're okay, Hans. Great to see your e38 project moving forward again.

Welcome, Mathew. Nice ride! Good idea re the rod bearings as preventative maintenance. Be worth your while subscribing to the Auckland room - there's plenty of events on, regular cars and coffee meets etc.

if that's the case, I wonder if there's an equivalent device - same package - with higher voltage rating to replace them with?

I've a Beisan M54B25 VANOS kit [Double Vanos Seals Repair Kit (6-cyl) Item# BS001], in my parts stash, Rob. If you can canibalise that to meet your needs, and replace parts later, happy to help.

Mick's Garage does flat-rate shipping via DHL. It's quick and efficient.

But are they as good as Supercats? 9000 Taxi & Uber Drivers can't be wrong? ? ?

I'm picking some traction issues! ?

@eliongater - ideal occasional parts hauler and necessary A-framer for Landy. You know it makes sense!

Fixed that for ya ???

Update. I've washed and waxed her, and been driving her. Whipped this photo out at sunset a few days back. I still haven't done my lock-barrel replacement; xmas family committments and grass in my backyard approaching 'elephant' status, have taken my focus, along with recommissioning my BBQ. Black Circles and Rear End The tyres are coming right, mould-release agents wearing away with some use in the wet; loads more grip than the previous 8-10 year old tyres. No surprises there. The disturbing things are: little 195s being a little bulgy on 5J5 steelies, natural lateral movement of car on rim with sidewall movement. the whole rear end being a bit squirrely with knackered diff bush, and old crusty rear subframe mounts, trailing arm bushes, and no ARB! the extra grip from fresh, modern rubber, fully reveals how 'off' the rear end currently is. ...though as you'd expect, "I have a plan" for the rear. Rear ARB (13.5mm) with new ARB bushes (BMW), rear subframe mounts (Meyle HD), trailing arm bushes (Lemforder) will go in this week. 14.5mm ARB is preferred (iS spec), but I just don't have the spare bread. My Koni Yellows (40k kms old) have arrived, so I need to do a little cosmetic remediation on those. I have Meyle HD rear shock mounts (3003359102/HD) to match them. They can go in soon with the existing springs, until I make the springing decision. This should tighten things up. Wheels Then there's wheels. I need to get the 14" basket weave/cross spoke/style 5 wheels from Napier, so I can give them a cosmetic refresh, and get them onto the car with the new tyres. 6J5 rims should hold those sidewalls more firmly! I've ordered a BBS spanner for the centre caps, and picked up some NOS puzzle nuts to help keep them secured to the car. Now I need to think about how far I go with wheel refinishing. The cursory "plastidip'; the home refinish with JB Weld and Aerosol; or the Wheel Magician or Wheel Specialist full refinish? And then there's colour. I fancy bubblegum (like you see in the carwash)... satin black or granitsilber is more likely. I like nogarosilber though I fear not contrasty enough with lachsilber. What are your thoughts? Sie sind verrückt nusse! Or at least bolts. Shifter Yes, there's a silent 'f' in there! I'd not bought enough of the parts to properly sort the shifter. My scottish heritage came to the fore; I bought a shifter bearing (Rein), though missed out other parts... then picked up Garagistic Delrin bushes for the front of the shift rod, and a Poly bush for the rear. Then I read more about the job on e30-zone, and talked to a mate about the short-shifter options. I pondered, puzzled, and prevaricated. Yesterday evening I sat down old-school style with printed material, pens and a couple of highlighters, and figured out what I was doing. In short, a new Z3 1.9 shift lever, and some more of the wear items sorted. (yellow-green = already have, pink = ordered, red=not bothering). Olaf's shifter parts diagram, yesterday. Front End Nothing like sorting out your rear end, to reveal shortcomings of the front end! I've sourced a 20mm front ARB, to go with the new bushes (Rein) and mounting hardware (BMW), and endlinks (Meyle HD). My Koni Yellows (8641-1210 Sport) - 318iS spec - arrived recently (used). I've ordered a bunch of parts to facilitate a build of new struts... bump stops (Rein), Strut bearings (Sachs), nuts, dust washers, coil spring shims... I already had one new SKF wheel bearing and a pair of nuts, dust shields and caps, and have ordered another SKF bearing. Shortly, I'll have everything I need to build the new front struts, except for: Springs (I need to decide on springs). H&R Sport Springs looking likely. A little lower, a little stiffer. 51mm Strut Housings. Yes, I need a pair of 51mm housings. Help! I'm basically going to strip and repaint whatever I get, don't care about the strut inserts themselves, bearings, or brake rotors. As long as the housings are sound. So having done a bunch of shopping, I need to paint that newly acquired front ARB, with my favoured flap-disk, rust kill, etch prime, and gloss black Rustoleum paint; do the door lock barrel repair, and get the rear end sorted. More updates as they come to hand. Thanks for reading. And: please, point me in the direction of 51mm front strut housings! Olaf

OMG! "1986 Rocket Bunny". In my very humble opinion this is sex on wheels. Courtesy of e30-zone.net interview with Sandra Step

Hi Jon, sorry I didn't get back to you. I figured my scottish roots would be unlikely to make it worth your while removing a bar from your car! About the time I was puzzling through that, I found myself unexpectedly in hospital (Nov) and recovery (most of Dec), during which time a 20mm bar came together. I apologise for not working it through with you!

FCP Euro have recently reintroduced FedEx to Niu Zild, so not only do we get reliable, fast, excellent freight, but it's also significantly cheaper than UPS to boot. Bonus!

you need to know where Nick comes from. Dig back and find his videos about his Porsche 911 purchase where it all went wrong. He stuck to his guns and eventually got Porsche NA to buy it back, after much pain, suffering, and some outrageously frank bad publicity for Porsche NA.

Alpina B6 2.8 courtesy of Ultimate Garage.com

Kyu, I'm sure your 8k oil change remains well less than the recommendation under condition-based servicing, and approximates a 5000mi change. You're well ahead of the pack. If it's black, it's suspending the sh*t, better than leaving it in the engine! ? Yes I'm sure others will question this 'logic'. ? I still believe that 5-6k km oil & filter is "cheap" insurance (radical Sxx motor oil requirements aside), if you're weilding the spanners yourself. OEM filters* & quality synthetic oil** purchased in 20 litre quantities sees me change oil/oil filter/air filter for well under $100 (8 litres for e60). * Hengst or Mann ** Penrite HPR5 (5W40) full synthetic BMW LL01

In addition to AA, or BMW Warranty coverage, those of us with MBI may be surprised to find there's also roadside assistance frequently included. From my Autosure GOLD policy: AA Roadservice 24 hours full roadservice by New Zealand Automobile Association Inc. Cover includes: breakdown assistance, towing, flat battery, lost keys and lockout service, flat tyre change and out of fuel service. Full details in policy booklet.

It is worth noting, that MBI's are underwritten by Insurance Companies. For example, Autosure MBI used to be underwritten by VERO, though is now underwritten by DPL Insurance. Essentially, it's all one big melting pot of insurance, from Motor Vehicle cover, to MBI, to Home & Contents, to Public Liability etc etc. View them as departments covering different things within a given company, if you like. Insurers all, and before they go on a date with you, they want to know that you've been good to your previous suitor. and the one before. and the one before... ?

nothing like playing insurance roulette eh? From having your claim denied, insurance cancelled, and even a permanent record with the insurers, due to undisclosed modifications? No thanks. You might enjoy that game; I could not recommend it. "have you ever had insurance cancelled or refused?" An insurance record lasts forever. YMMV.

Only if you choose to operate 10+ year old e9x without preventative maintenance. Cooling system refresh before it's needed, anyone?