rusteee

Yeah thats what i am afraid of, the japanese parts. What I'm mostly concerned about with japanese is the gearbox, if it is a japa gearbox I think I'm better off waiting for a NZ new one to come up, even though they are usually a little less specd.

Hmmm yeah its the only motorsport one i've seen listed without the steering wheel controls. Can they be converted? Also do you know what the mechanical differences are between the nz new vs jap/sing models?

No, the only question i asked was the one on the auction. I thought the cruise control was usually all setup on the steering wheel? maybe i should stop assuming lol. How do you set cruise control without the buttons on the wheel? Sorry for novice question

Does this car belong to anyone on here? http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=423496666 Really keen on it ay, although its strange it doesn't have the cruise control or anything.

Hi guys Sorry to bring up an old thread again. Still have not purchased an E39 'yet' Was wondering is there a mechanical difference between the jap import and the NZ new E39's? Such as gearbox, driveline etc. I'd hate to think of ending up with another JATCO box hahaha

Hi mate, any chance of those pics?

HAHA I agree, when you cant see thier headlights anymore, and they may aswell be jumping into your boot is the best, seeing the reaction when you slam the brakes on. Probably makes me just as bad as them, but it really does get frustrating!

Just listed my one on trademe, price is a little up there but expecting to be bargained down to about 6 ish hahaha, but 2K was just a joke. Will give it a good clean up and wax etc and put some more photos up later on.

I thought it was crazy given the very good condition and what not. Its a 1997 E36 320I auto, 140,000kms, Blue 4 door sedan, Immaculate 17"M3 mags, 18 button OBC, overall mint condition inside and out. I'm unable to attatch pics for some reason but can send some if wanted. Thanks for the offers of cars but my price range is about 15k, and I live down a gravel road so trying to get a colour of say blue or grey, although the black is nice its hard to maintain would still get one though. But yea thanks for all the help and advise, really good info.

Tried out a 2001 530I, 525I, 540I and 2003 325I for the hell of it. Wouldnt even consider getting a 325 or another 3 series after driving the E39's. Was extremely impressed with the 530I, fantastic response, handling superb and overall was a damn nice car. The 525 was pretty nice aswell but lacked a little power when it came to taking off up hill and from stand still. 540I was a bit much for what I want but none the less very nice! Car yard salesman reallllllly push to sell you the car then and there but I will try out a few more before deciding but im sold on a 530I. They offered me a trade in of 2000-2500 for my one, i just laughed, its a pretty tidy car and sure it would fetch a lot more then that looking at the market.

I would much prefer a manual, but the main problem with that is actually finding one lol, I havn't come across any manual E39's in my search over the last year, all been auto, tip tronic. I'm going to go have a look at that 530I today

Yeah I thought the consumption would be pretty dam good on highway, the 320 is worse then that hahaha. And yea too right about the oil ay, the old torana I have regardless of how many km's it always gets the oi ldone every 6 months, lucky to have done 1000kms in 6 months in it It's going to be hard to choose now between the 8 and the 6, I spose whatever I can find thats nice, with a good service history and checks out ok. If I do go with a 6 I think it'd have to be the 530I for sure. Might just go list my one on trademe, wouldn't have a clue what its worth.

Yea I did see that one on there, very nice!! what was your average consumption like in the 535? Yea i'm always looking out for NZ New, but then the price is usually ridiculously higher then the others. First thing I usually look at when I check an import one is whats under the oil cap, usually tells you a bit about the service history, the main problem I rekon is people think every 10,000kms, when really the cars does about 60,000kms worth of idle in round town driving before it reaches the 10,000kms mark and by then the oil is rooted. I tend look out for service records that are done every 6 months or 5,000k sort of thing. The 320 is a jap import, and I think might have suffered a bit of the "long service interval", but that being said it has been a brilliant almost hassle free 40,000kms travelled in it since ive had it.

Nice car!! bit of a work of art. Thanks for the write up on that, will keep it in mind ay. Bit of a fuel bill ay, get what you pay for I suppose =P, the 320i I have is pretty bad at 11.8-12l per 100km, have to have a heavy foot to get it to move anywhere. I havn't personally owned a lowered car, and probably wouldn't get it done, theres just a few nice ones out there that have been lowered. Might go have a look at some this weekend hopefully depending on work, always excited to try a new car x]

Legend!! Cheers guys I will have a good read over that, the more I look at the 5 series the more I want one But yea, I think I'll try go for a 6 like the one in the link I posted above, see if I can go have a look this weekend. Only reason I want to get one from a dealer is hopefully I can trade my one in to save the hassle of having to try sell it, but might look into a few private sales. Anybody know anything about this one? http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=386054401 Looks good, although it is an 8cyl would consider it. Does lowering have much affect on the' road noise' and what not of these models?

Oh is there? I'll have another look i've tried a few searches, thanks for that. Yes, Very nice car, was just worried about the 3 litre 6cyl power to weight, compared to the 540 4.4 8cyl. The price aint too bed i suppose, as long as its actually had an oil change in its life hahaha bloody imports. Definetly will be getting a pre purchase inpection, worth the distance travelling to Glenn to get it checked, when I do decide on one. Is there any down side on owning the V8 over the 6 besides gas consumption? Im just over the 320i chewing the gas trying to get it moving hahaha

Hi guys Just looking at finally upgrading from theE36 320 series to a 5 series, and am after a bit of advise, as I'm not too sure what to look out for in the 5's. Is there any known reliability issues with the 8 cylinders compared with the 6 (based on service history I suppose)? What sort of things (areas) would you look out for, like rust etc? Any certain years to avoid? Was looking at this one just as somewhere to start, looks nice but it is a Jap import. http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=384800720 Thanks in advance

Hi guys, I have a 97 320i E36 Jap import Sorry about vague despcription in title. At an intersection the other day sitting in idle, all of a sudden there was a knock/banging sort of noise as if something just flew apart underneath, which at first sounded sort of in the driveline, then the check engine light came on. Went to take off and it was if it was stuck in snow mode, no power at all, and only 1 gear. Pulled over and turned it off, left it for a while then took it for a spin and same thing, so I sat idle for a bit and coming from the engine bay was a worn bearing sort of whirring noise, so I took it to the auto sparky. He got the fault code, well 3 fault codes saying the VANOS was jammed and something about the gearbox, he didn't give me the details Hen then said he cleared the faults and didnt do bugger all else still cost heaps hahaha. She then ran perfect for a while, but driving home it seemed to be a tad gutless in the low revs (even more so then the fact its a 320i), and the gearbox would change down a cog for no reason and stay like that for a good 10 mins or so, chewing the gas lol. Im not to sure how else to describe it, but was hoping someone may have a clue as to what it may be? I live in the middle of no where so taking the car to a bm workshop is a last resort and a day off work lol otherwise I'd be whipping it straight to Glenn. Cheers guys

Yea I'm hoping its just condensation or something. I just had my doubts about that because I never take the car on a short trip, if I'm going anywhere in it its at least 100km distance and 110ish kms/h, highway all the way so the car has plenty of time to warm up etc etc as well as me leaving it sit idle for 5 or 10 minutes before i take off. It never sees town driving except straight after a long trip, as I have a work vehicle during the week.

Just checked the coolant, and from what I can see theres no apparent sign of oil in there. The oil cap seems to be all good, and have never hosed the engine bay. Do you think it could just be moisture getting in around the cap seal? Although it does seem to seal pretty tight.

Hi guys I've tried searching a few threads and most of them suggest head or head gasket, which was my first thought. I'm not convinced it is yet, but hoping someone on here can suggest. It is a 97 E36 320I Auto sedan. I've had the car about a year and a half now, and this morning when I pulled the oil cap off, it had a very milky greeny oil all over, aswell as inside just around the oil filler. I pulled the dipstick out and oil is good, no milky residue or anything (just waiting for her to cool down before I check the coolant for oil). I've taken the cap off a few times since I've had the car and its never had this before. I've topped up the coolant maybe a max of 1 litre over the last year and half. The thermostat is stuck open, and has been since I've had it, but I always warm up before using and 99% of the time she gets a minimum run of atleast 100km distance (highway) when taken out, not too sure whether that makes any difference. I have had no issues with overheating (just never reaches full temp when on highway), nor have I noticed any missing or anything in the enigne. Is a little bit sluggish under 3000RPM but I assume because its a 320i Has anyone got any suggestions (if not head gasket) what may cause this? Cheers guys Russ

Hi mate Don't know if this is the same sort of thing. But my E36 had this same problem, got worse and worse until the doors just wouldn't open anymore lol. In a desperate attempt before replacing the door handles, I sprayed some CRC (using the nozzle) into the actual door catch/hook on the side of the door, and up inside the door handle, then open and closed it a few times to make sure the CRC got right in the moving parts. Worked magic, all doors now open as they should

Hi there I have a 97 320i E36 auto, was giving it a good clean up today as havn't done it in months lol. Just for the hell of it I pulled the top cover off the fuse box and noticed fuse 41 was pretty badly blown (30 amp for auxillary fan), so I tested the fan and wiring etc, found nothing wrong. Replaced fuse and all was ok. Next went to put the windows up, and no go, check the fuse box to find another 30 amp (cant remember what number) blown. Tested all the regs etc which were all good. replace the fuse, and all worked mint. Few moments later without using anything, fuses blow again?? Instead of pulling my hair out lol, I'm wondering if anyone has come across this problem, or any ideas what to test for or replace to fix. As I say, the car was off when the fuses blow, and I wouldnt have a clue how long the 41 fuse had been blown as I hadn't noticed any changes to the cars driving etc. Cheers

Maybe I should try these rings to. My car has had this same sort of issue ever since day 1. I had all tyres done, balanced and wheel alignment, driveshaft and bearings etc replaced, and various suspension parts done. All of which made no difference. Sorry for my ignorance, but is there anyway to tell wether my wheels need them or not? Its an E36 320 with 17" M3 replica rims on it. The problem sounds exactly like this one stated in the thread.

Yeah that is a nice 328 especially being manual, any more details on it?