e38king

Someone will correct me if I am wrong, but it was my understanding that the Motorsport versions do not have the rear airbag suspension. If I am right, surely that is a huge + when buying a Motorsport wagon?

Honda Integra Type R (late 90's). Cheap to build, easy to get spare parts, easy to get more horsepower, pretty reliable and cheap to buy. The Jap import type R comes with a factory LSD! 5 of my mates have them and they are doing 1.20's - 1.23's around HD with just intake and exhaust mods, coilovers, seats, belts and semi slicks! Most fun you can have for under 10K and faster than an E30

To be fair I don't think you can really compare the 2 vehicles. One is over 2 tonne and one is closer to one tonne. Also I am guessing that your X5 hasn't had the amount of suspension work that your E36 has? Considering that both tyres are essentially the same construction you would expect the X5 to wear faster. The Sportpac is also known to "like tyres" and I am guessing your driving style would also contribute to the wear on the X5 I have to agree that the Goodyear is essentially a lower quality tyre but reading between the lines are you saying that Michelin have a financial interest in Goodyear?

you also need to have the same speed rating on each tyre and the load rating must be within + or - 2 of each other.

chill out fella so was I

shadow chrome or hyper black is a generic name for the type of finish, it is not actually a specific paint code. If they are an aftermarket wheel (replica) it really depends on which factory they came from as the colours in the shadow chrome will be a slightly different blend from factory to factory. It is just about impossible to match unfortunately and you will struggle to buy a can of paint off the shelf. If they are genuine you may have more luck as BMW may have a paint code for them

What pressure ar eyou running in them? If the pressure is not high enough the sidewalls can be prone to failure.

^ you won't find a 225/40/17, there is no such size. 235 and 215 yes

Welcome to the forums As far as servicing goes you can't go past http://www.botanymotorworx.co.nz , Glenn is a sponsor of the forum as well

HB mate, hope you got lots of engine goodies as pressies

Haha when I saw your heading I thought that the car had rust issues and you were selling it cheap GLWS

I have a similar story as well. We just went down to Taupo and back in the family Airtrek. I thought I would alter my driving style slightly to see if I could get better fuel mileage. Instead of putting my foot down and the car changing down gears to get up a hills at a constant speed, I kept my foot steady on the accelerator and let the car naturally find its own speed. End Result - 70 more kms out of a 50l tank of gas! Slightly helpful but prob not: My tank (e38 735i) averages around 14L/100km around town and will easily average under 10 on long trips (9.9L/100km to Gisborne and back, and that was driving it pretty hard through the gorge between Opotiki and Matawhai both ways).

Yep... pretty simple and if you want to move across to the next lane... "give way to your right" applies. It is a bus lane, why are you driving in a bus lane? Unless of course you are driving a bus

exactly what he said

thanks for your post but it is pretty irrelevant. I was trying to get Ron to explain his post in less technical terms. I can understand the first two sentences but the 3rd and main one loses me. It wasn't a smart ass comment, I really do want to understand what he is saying

And in layman's terms..............

20" Work Wheels, I think the model may be Rezax? Josh ( Hybrid) use to have some in 19" and I am sure Ray (HellBM) has a set as well

smaller market - yes I agree with Higher buy price - yes I agree with Higher spec - absolutely not! The UK have a far bigger and better option range! The BMW experience being 2nd to none? Maybe at the moment, but this may well change given the attitude that seems to coming from some of the members on here that work for BMW. If they are displaying their disdain at UK imports, how many others at BMW will be doing the same thing? Our tiny population is probably at the base of the population. We just do not have the buying power needed to compete globally. Someone told me that most distributors buy through Australia. Obviously they have a luxury car tax. Could this have something to do with the higher pricing?

Somebody has to pay for their fancy showrooms

This is 100% true. There has already been a precedent set in NZ Law where the local Ferrari distributors tried to make life difficult for a privately imported Ferrari that had a warranty issue. It is an INTERNATIONAL WARRANTY, you can't contract out of a warranty simply because you didn't sell it. It doesn't matter if you don't want a bar of it, it has to be honoured. I highly doubt this, what about worldwide recalls? Especially on 2nd hand Jap imports. Are you suggesting that the owner should go back to Japan to claim the work? An International warranty means just that, it is international. As the official agent of a product, you cannot contract out of a warranty. If you do choose to make life difficult in terms of honouring any warranty claim, all you are doing is damaging the reputation of the brand. If it was me, I would be trying to do the servicing on these imports, at least that way you can make some money from it, and when they go to upgrade their vehicle, at least you have that relationship already with them and they may buy from you in the future.

The picture may be a 17" but OP has found a pair of 18's

Try these guys: http://nz.vicdir.com/sn138821-0-strip-magic-2000-ltd.htm Just did a set of 18" BMW wheels for a race car for us for $40 a wheel

Funnily enough the fuel usage generally becomes better. Talk to Hans about it. I had a chat to the guy who does superchips and his TD Peugeot is averaging less than the factory states after being chipped.

Google, yellow pages and a phone

awesome car and a chip would make a HUGE difference. A mate of mine has a chipped 525d touring and it goes bl*&dy well!