Mad_Max

Ok so I haven't posted more pics just yet as I said I would, been busy with other stuff (work mostly ?). There are a couple of stickers that I'm a bit sceptical of in the engine bay they just look wrong (one says Alpina but has a barcode?), but also a couple of tags that "may" be authentic. One in the engine bay that says it's Alpina build number #15758. And another on the dashboard that says the same. These don't look like a Japanese badges special.... will upload pics when I can. Plus scans of the paperwork when it was imported. And I've also been in touch with Alpina, for the cost of $150 I'm gonna risk it, if it turns out genuine they will give me a certificate of authenticity, plus a build sheet. So either way, that will tell us all if it is a stickers, badges and pinstriping special, or the real deal ???? Will see if I can upload all the pics into a project log and copy the link here to make things easier Log has been started for those that want to ask/know more, will do my best to answer everything and keep it updated.

The original registration paperwork for it shows this was first registered as a BMW. The guy mentioned at the time that NZTA had no listing for Alpina and didn't recognise them. I'm positive the ID plate in the engine bay states it's an Alpina and gives the build number, will confirm when I'm home though.

Yeah fully understand your point, no arguments there. I'm 99.9% sure it is genuine. Will get more photos of the ID tag in the engine bay and other details when I get home. No idea what happened with the wheels, I will ask the guy I bought it off. Either way though, as you said, it'll still clean up to be a good car, genuine or not. And would still be a dirt cheap bargain either way ?

Brief history as I know it at the moment, there will be more info and pics when I get time. Guy I bought it off imported it from Japan himself. I've got the paperwork here from that, so I'll be the second NZ owner. K's are around 87k 88k. He bought it over when it had about 42k or 43k I think. Allegedly ex Japanese PMs car, and also allegedly armour plated. Matching numbers and nearly everything complete. Reg is on hold, been parked up for a year as he used this car to take his mother on long trips, she passed away about a year ago and it's been parked up since. Exterior needs a little work. Clear coat fade on the roof, and rear spoiler leaks a little water into the boot, no major damage there yet but want to get that sorted first. Interior is nearly immaculate, a couple of tiny little details to sort. However it has an issue at the moment where smoke comes from under the dash when the battery is connected, so have to pull the dash and sort that. Check engine light is also on, I'm guessing this is being caused by the dash problem, but that shouldn't be hard to sort out. As mentioned, yes one of only 332 made. So given the price I paid (which I won't say ???) it's a bargain alright. Aim is to have it back on the road before Christmas ?.

Just pick my new toy up, heading home with it. Needs a good clean up but should come up fine

Hi Mike, got a complete M10 motor in Invercargill, believe it's a 1.8l. Was told it was running well when parked up, removed from a manual E30 coupe a year or so ago if you're interested? I travel to Dunedin regularly as well if that helps for transport

That right there is the biggest and best reason to get it done. Yep the labour to service most Euro cars isn't much more than servicing say Japanese or Aussie cars. The cost of the parts can and does vary. Any mechanical warranty you get on a car, the insurer will try and screw you as hard as they can in every circumstance, I've been on the receiving end and seen worse with friends, even down to friends getting screwed over with a 4G63 Evo where the motor sh*t itself withing 500ks done on it within 6 months. As mentioned by others, get receipts as well as that stamp. However, neither will save you if you can't/won't fight the insurance company. Getting it serviced right, by people who know what they are doing, is the cheapest insurance you will ever get.

"The errant car somehow ended up in the upper canopy of the trees, but also seemed to be perched on steel beams." Me thinks someone upset the wife/partner and she's sought revenge ?????

No worries, I've got a few bits and pieces down here if you ever get stuck ?.

I've got one from a 2001 E39 528I sedan if that's any good? Different part numbers and HW/SW versions but may work fine. Let me know and I'll pull it out, can probably get it away to you tomorrow.

Good information to have. I've got an M20B25 complete so depending on which reg you need I may be able to help out.

Sadly, yes. She's a complete loss

From what I believe it's an LTW wing on high risers. https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?1593277-The-definitive-E36-LTW-Spoiler-Replica-Thread a little bit of info that may or may not be accurate. And FWIW there is one silver E36 sedan running around town with an LTW wing on it........

If you're stuck and want to keep it drums, I can get the rear drums off my Compact for you. They were working perfectly when the car "fell" off the road, so it's gonna get scrapped for parts anyway.

Yes, suspected as much - thanks for confirming for me ? Yes, definitely worth checking everything is working right, and the system has the right inputs. Yeah sucks when that happens, he may have never resolved it. Even worse when they come back and tell you it's fixed but not how it was fixed ? Ok cool, thanks for the heads up on that, will look into Rheingold - had heard the name thrown around but never checked it out.

Did have INPA and EDIABAS running on this computer, really should get them back up and running and scan the car - they should show any faults, shouldn't they? Yes good idea, I didn't think of that. Clear them and all previous fault codes, then see what new faults pop up - might shed some more light on the problem.

I'm sure there'll be an easy way to do it Adam, got a few different parts here if you wanna come measure and see what they'll do, see if something's near enough to a bolt on that'll work for you.

Yeah, was no problems with any of the fittings, everything lined up perfectly. Are you thinking about fluid flowing through the whole system as it should? It is possible a line may be kinked or pinched somewhere, as installation was finished off in a hurry. Would be worth checking the lines and cooler to see if I can see anything obvious. Battery was out of the car for a few days charging before everything was hooked up, as far as I know though these systems remember all the settings and fault codes etc even when the battery is disconnected.

I picked up an E39 535i reasonably cheaply knowing it needed a new auto. Tracked down and replaced the auto with the same 5HP-24 box, except the replacement one came from a 540i. Got the box in, everything back together. Car starts and goes into gear, however it isn't locking into gear, seems like it's slipping everywhere, and goes into failsafe mode pretty quickly - so it hasn't "solved" the issue. Not knowing a lot about auto's (and especially these ones), my first thought was low on fluid. Have been in contact with the guy I bought the box off, and he's mentioned he previously had the same issue with a 5HP-30 box he swapped, car ended up having to go to a dealer to get the box recoded to match the car - does anyone know if this is necessary? I did have a look at the ETK and (obviously) there's some electronics inside the box - would it be easier to swap the electronics over instead of recoding? Or any other potential things to check first? Given I'm in Invercargill and the nearest actual dealership would be Dunedin (who may not actually be able to do it anyway and may say Christchurch would be the nearest option), I'd rather not have to ship the car up and pay for a stealership if there may be other ways to sort this out. Any ideas/suggestions are most welcome at this stage - after wiping my other car out (and still getting messed around by the insurance company) I need to get this one sorted as soon as possible to get mobile again.

Good to hear it's all checked out for you, and given your comments it sounds like it is all as advertised, which is cool. And it sounds like you know what you're looking at as well. Hope to see future updates of this as you go along, and welcome to the forums - glad no one here has roasted you on your first post ???

Wasn't today, early Saturday evening I unwillingly took mine on a short offroad expedition...... Think it needs a bit of a wash and a polish to clean it back up ???

Just had a quick look at the ETK, it's listing the same part for E30 325I, all E36 models and E31's. So if an E36 one will work I'll have one sitting around somewhere. Easy enough to grab it and try it if you want, just have to get to storage.

Yep just done the same, something about this one doesn't add up. No close up of the speedo. Vin decoder lists a few things that the car doesn't have any more (but could've been changed at any time). Just have to watch out, especially down here. So many fakes trying to pass the fakes off as the real thing, you just have to know what to look for.

Does it matter what E36 it comes out of? As I'll have a few I can get, just have to get to storage ?

Go watch the episode. They will prove your theory completely wrong, as all the dents they put in the system were maybe 200mm from the heads. And like said previously, even they ruled out a lot of the changes due to time of day, oil and water temp in the motor etc. etc. Think you need to go do some more research before you keep trolling. Watch that episode then tell everyone here (especially the ones that know that sh*t) that they're wrong. Then give me all the all the calculations to explain how the cross sectional area of the pipe has been reduced. Plus all the gas flow cals that say it is going to be severely restricted.