Olaf

great work, Dave. someone told me the other day that a packet of smokes now costs over $25. unbeleivable - makes fueling a V8 seem cheap! keep up the good work!

www.flickr.com I've been using flickr as a paid service for more than ten years. now it's free. you have unlimited capacity. it works well and has decent user interface.I have about 2200 images on there. here's one I hosted earlier... hosted on www.flickr.com all rights reserved.

@adrowhat's a C191 plug?

most likely interpreting intolerance for his dribble as agesim agenda and blame Gen-X. Purely coincidental that he was from a generation later than X... rather than face the fact that he's talking rubbish!

selective understanding and personal bias shining through there, Kyu. the key word was "if"; there was no need to preface this with "if you've already done...". NOBODY suggested retrofitting MSport suspension at the expense of, or in preference to, essential maintenance. nobody.

very cool project.

when I was 28 I was living abroad, had a modem and internet access, email, and people used to call me up international to get my email address so they could message me from their flash new account at work that had an email gateway! "wow, man, have you got an email address? I just got email at work, that'd be a cool way to be in touch". those were the days.

IMHO those are the best flights into Wellington!

your seats are certainly looking awesome, mate.

on weds just passed my e46 325i touring received it's new rear tyres RE003 245/40R17, and it's WoF re-check. job done. still need to clean the belts.

it's nice. Not so keen on the wheels. I've always liked white cars; my first car was moonstone white, and my e30 was alpinweiss.

Thanks Kevin. I'm not missing the point. And, he was in fact mentioning TXT - and then followed on to advance his argument to encompass social media including Facebook. He did not specify that dopamine hits were the preserve of a young generation only; he used 'we'. I took this to include 'us'; human beings. I'm having a little trouble with your grammar; in your third para I'm unsure if you're suggesting that what you observe is sad, or that my aparrent inability to observe this social phenomena is sad. You could clarify if you felt like it; though I can't promise you likes or even a text.

Just watched the video. Yep, he's on-message with a view that has been circulating for years. What? I get a dopamine hit when you get a text? Oh f%#k off. I'm a gen-X er, I'm happy having the technology marvel that is SMS (which I started using in '98) and these days my smart phone... but the notion of needing txt hits? Pah.

Looks superb. And hey, the most important part of ///M sport can be retrofitted; the suspension. So if you are servicing the suspension at 160k, you get your springs and ARBs from Brent or Ray, buy your new bushes and, ///M sport shocks to suit, bingo. Happy wafting! Im on "my first V8" and loving it, despite (around town) it's like going out with that girlfriend you used to have that can't pass a bar without going in.

I think you chaps will find both have aluminium suspension and steering components. The 540 shares many with the M5. A quick check of FCP parts pages for 530i and 540i confirms this.

you can also talk to European leather care in Petone. They'll sell you Colorlock and Elephant Leather Preserver to recolour yourself using pigments and toners rather than paint; they'll do it for you if you prefer, and they'll do repairs as well. I've not used them for repairs, though have used Colorlock and Elephant Leather Preserver to great effect in my Volvo, and will give the e60 a spruce-up soon. EDIT: Come to think of it, Greg's repairer may have sent those seats to European Leather Care for the re-colour. They certainly look good.

I know I really should be buying one now...

interesting! I'm largely un-moved by iDrive, and find it a bit of a faff in use. On the move, iDrive is a bit sh*t really. Even changing sources on the stereo is four to five presses compared with on the e46. Still, it does (or rather, can) convey a great deal of info. Thankfully main A/C/ventillation controls are separate and analogue! In fact, these are more successful in the e60 than the e46/e39. Additionally, the custom assignment of buttons on the steering wheel via iDrive in the e60 is a genuine useabiity step forward. For example my diamond button is set to 'recirc' - as I approach a tunnel of follow a diesel truck I now keep my hands on the wheel to close off fresh air. The same is true for restoring fresh air. In terms of safety, the e60 features the same forward steps from e46/e39 as the e90, e87 etc... meeting 5 stars and significantly surpassing e46/e39 in terms of front seat leg/knee intrusion in frontal impact. The structure is designed to stay away from your knees and legs, and they've used the elevated and strong visual horizontal bar design cues to give you something to focus on, whilst cunningly returning away from the front seat passengers above the central horizontal plane. I used to prefer the e39/e46 also. This more contemporary design language makes the older models look far more dated. I do agree about the e60 centre console and the new way of 'not particularly integrating with the dashboard'. Defying convention, really. And good on them for being bold. What annoys me is the vast area of useless space. And the centre console door is bloody annoying to use on the move. Lighting controls are improved on the e60, as are wiper controls. Having cruise control on its own stalk, and in a consistent location on the e60 is a big step forward for the e60, de-cluttering the steering wheel controls simplifying the interface. Relocating the central locking and hazard controls to the top-centre of the dashboard is genius; on the e46 they were an afterthought thrown somewhere in the centre console, lost, and unintuitive to find. And although the indicator stalk and it's funtion is initially confusing in the e60 (as per the e87 and I think the e90), it's excellent in use once you know it. I'm sure it took engineering students years starting with a blank sheet with the brief to "build a better indicator stalk function". I'd love to see the other prototypes. There ya go, one man's meat is another man's poison.

I got to 2:59 and couldn't listen to any more of this guy. I'm sure he has an opinion and a conclusion; if you can endure 15 mins of that presentation you're probably on some kind of medication, or quite possibly should check and confirm you still have a pulse.

please explain! lets them down how? Aesthetics? Function? Durability?

you're a wise man!

you're lucky. at the time, my wife said "those e39's are ugly. buy something else." and the e46 was later acquired. Toledo Blue is different. Not so keen on that leather interior, but its a *leather interior!*. Which for child-ferrying duties, is the bomb. It's so, soooooo much easier to clean vomit out of a leather interior than a cloth interior. Ask me how I know!! I reckon allowing for the usual M54 neglect, some brakes and shock work, it's pretty good buying at a shade under $3k, if you're looking for a wagon for family or utility duties.

you walk around with that hanging out your back pocket it the supermarket and I'm sure you'd get some intersting looks. I must grab a snap on my phone, it's in my plumbing box in the basement. I'll post it here for sh!ts & giggles.

Wouldn't Vaseline result in premature deterioration due to the foam reacting with the petroleum? Plumbing supply stores sell large tubes of water-based "medical lubricant" that's used for lubricating waste seals for toilets etc, it's inexpensive and ideal for that sort of job. Hmmm FCP T-shirt liked some of the designs, not so keen on the polyester mix.

my 545i has a rack. "nice rack!"