Twistee

Thanks @Kees and @Eagle , the red and gold 540 on trademe is interesting and with a rim change could be a tad more acceptable. I hear what you're saying about the cost of bringing an average one up to a good standard. And yes I'll keep looking for an E46. cheers

So which part silences the wife? I'll take a set when you crack the solution. 😁

What is the current reasonable sale price for an E34 540i , I know it's condition dependent. I was leading the auction on one a week ago that closed for just over $2k , in the final hour I had a work issue to deal with and completely forgot about it. So now I'm back browsing around and at present there doesn't seem to be anything under 8k available. Assume that I'm looking for something that is not a complete basket case but it certainly doesn't need to be a show car either. At present I'm torn between an E34 or an E46 as a run around, and until something turns up that ticks the boxes I may as well keep exploring options. Cheers.

If this is still around when Auckland gets out of lockdown, in 12 months or so then I'll be in touch. Best of luck with the sale, it looks very nice.

Thanks @CSET, there is some really useful advice here. I hadn't even thought of wearing a respirator when applying the coating. Having travelled a fair bit you get the idea that outside of nz and increasingly Aus the idea of UV damage is largely ignored and seen as a minor issue, here we get baked.

I bought a mobile table / bench to dump all my sanders and reno gear on so I could just move it from room to room. Always measure twice .....FFS!! it's 50mm wider than the doorways. So the shed gets another bench

Looks fantastic.

So I'm happy to nominate myself for stupid question of the day, but what is the recommended way to wash a car once it has had this type of ceramic (ish) coating applied? Am I now tied into the you can only use the Mother's car wash or I'll just remove the coating? Typically I use the Autoglym foam soap.

Yo dog, I hear you like spark plugs.... That is an amazing piece of engineering, I had to really look at the valves to work out what was going on.

Added another coat last night, finished it off with a wool pad. It's sooo clean, I just can't handle the thought of driving it in the rain - spring time in Auckland is just great. Mind you with level 3 point something lockdown I have got no where to go anyway. I also ignored the CMX polish instructions and tried to apply it with a wet applicator pad before completely writing it off, it worked significantly better. So anywhere that I had small blemishes I touched up with the polish before using the ceramic (ish) coating. Polishing aside, I thought I would include an image of the danger sticker on my (baby) drill press that always makes me smile - health and safety first Back to the coating - I think the additional application has made a difference to the depth of the gloss. I need to buy some touch up paint for the rear of the wheel arches that have a bit of road rash, if anyone has any suggestions other than the obvious go to BMW please let me know. Cheers.

From a local TM listing : I like the rims, quite a clean look for a 525i.

As a follow-up, I detailed the wife's SUV today and thought I would try the CMX ceramic trim restorer on the exterior black. Less than impressed, end result was a dull black finish and not at all what I expected. Save your coin and use the tried and tested back to black if you are using the Mother's range. So pretty hit and miss with the CMX line up, the polish is average at best, the ceramic spray so far seems pretty reasonable, and the CMX trim restorer is an expensive disappointment. On the plus side another car is clean, it kept my daughter and I occupied for most of the day - yay lock down school holidays😁 I am continuing to apply follow-up layers of the cmx ceramic to the wagon each night as recommended in the instructions, I'll report back occasionally in this thread on the results over the next month or two of wear.

Spent the evening avoiding the world and used the Mothers CMX on the wagon. No before shots - it was shiny but not as deep as the final result. I started with the CMX polish - useless. It went on like toothpaste and getting it off even on a small area took a stupid amount of time. I decided to go straight to the CMX ceramic coating as the current paintwork is in good condition. I put on a Collecting Cars podcast and spent about an hour applying and buffing off the coating with a microfibre cloth, probably the easiest coating I have ever used. So in my opinion it was money well spent.

I know this is a really old thread, but one of these is back up for sale : https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/cars/bmw/730ld/listing/3272908497?bof=4hmWlDP2

I use Classic cover, and have done for a number years. They are very helpful and the rates are very good.

I would, it ticks all the boxes of a drop kid at school, go to shop and it has enough room for a pallet of Monster energy drink - definitely must have better cup holders than the M5, seriously anyone that complains about SMG needs a reality check, the worlds greatest after thought drinks holders (ignoring the M6) top the list of dumb things in an E60/61interior :D Sadly though they are electric and hip so anything half good is creeping up in price and well beyond what I want to spend for a car that will do a max of 2km of a travel a day. I like that wagon, I totally need another wagon in my life. Jokes aside it looks very nice. Also agree, nice car. If I had to pick one for a daily shopping trolley dad mobile I'd probably pick the silver wagon. I'll see if it's still around post lockdown.

I'm not a huge fan of red paint at the best of times, and this wouldn't be garaged. Early days of looking, something else may popup, I won't be doing anything until lockdown is well and truly over anyway. Thanks for the input @zero

I'm looking for a run about, just to do trips to school , local shops etc. Basically the hard start stop, short distance stuff that an S85 engine does not care for. I was thinking something like this : https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/cars/bmw/320i/listing/3211440747?bof=xYyQq5jp Currently listed at $4,250 ONO - Thoughts or other options please. Thanks.

Cleaned up the side vents, replaced the M5 badges, replaced the very dull side indicators with led versions.

If I was going to be stuck with a bike (assuming that all my cars were broken) then I think I'd happily take one of these https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/126315857/bmw-and-bmw-motorrad-reveal-amby-concept-ebike

Keen to see which way you go on the Android integration with CCC as I'm also wanting to do this.

Welcome along, love the look of this car.

100% on board with this, I like the idea of the Meguiars and the ease of use of that sort of product. And right now I'm just looking to eat up some store credit, so anything outside Supercheap which I have no doubt is better will have to be for another day. I think I'll start with the easiest approach and if that doesn't give the results I'm after then I'll start heading into the more pro polish and sealants. Thanks to everyone for chiming in with some constructive advice here, I'm sure others will benefit as well. Unfortunately this is all just a hurry up and wait exercise and I can't buy anything, apparently car polish and cleaners are not essential items, although I could argue a good case against that.

Having just purchased PS4S I can support what @qube has said. They are wider due to the sidewall tech, according the manufacturer. Regardless of why, they are wider.

Thanks @m325i and @GorGasm. I use NXT for my wash and agree it is really good at keeping the finish, I 'll try out your suggestions.