Polemic

Thanks for digging that out and offering to help, @gjm - more than many people have done for me 👍

The guy who repaired the puncture also advised me to buy 17 inch rims, though he said it was about stability - anything else and the electronics would detect it and slow the car to 30kmh. He was just a general tyre retailer and fitter, not a BMW specialist, but I don't want to take any chances. Also, I'm not sure whether the mounting holes would be correct on anything other than a salvaged rim or a space saver made for the vehicle? I've now discovered I can get a space saver kit from offshoe, but the shipping is 5x the price of the part! @BM WORLD what price to get either a rim or entire wheel to Lower Hutt (5014 post code)? I'm guessing the rim alone is going to be way cheaper 😕

I have a 2009 525i E60. It came with run-flats but I found it very unresponsive with these on so, when the time came to renew two of them I chucked the lot and bought four normal tyres - 225/50/R17s. It drives better with the normal tyres (though not as good as the E46s I've owned in the past) so am loathe to go back to run-flats. However... I didn't realise it came with no spare (yes, I should have looked - doh!) until I found out the hard way 🙄. So am now in the market for a space saver or cheap wheel (with or without tyre) that will suit the car.

Thanks KwS, I cleared the codes on the 8th and have been driving it for three days (I work from home so generally don't go far, so wanted to get some kms on it). Most of the codes have remained clear. Two, however, have recurred late today (the 11th), relating to the VANOS system, so I'm assuming they're probably for real. I'm still not sure if the battery was correctly coded to the car, though. That doesn't seem to be something the OBD reader checks for? However the lack of undervoltage faults leave me optimistic that it's okay, one way or the other.

Yes, an E60. Well the AA guy said it was coded correctly, but then again, he didn't seem too sure. I will try that tomorrow, thank you 👍

So after totalling my beloved and reliable 2001 330Ci, I've bought a 2009 525i. The onboard computer shows nothing amiss beyond being overdue for a service (which has actually been done but my mechanic couldn't reset it). Today, the check engine light came on. I assumed it was complaining about what it saw as an overdue service. But out of curiosity I ran the OBDC I have over it, and got more codes than Alan Turing at Bletchley Park. These include (some codes may be wrong as my photos of the screen have reflections): 93FB - control-module fault 9408 - undervoltage during self test A3B1 - signal or value below threshold A559 - Supply was switched off (terminal 30G - f) A2CD - control unit undervoltage A46D MOST - ring reset fault 5B69 - wheel speed sensor rear axle: mixed up (!!) SF4B - Interface, instrument cluster 5DCF - Control module, under-voltage 5F45 - brake fluid level too low (this was topped up during the service just before Christmas) 6140 - redundancy comparison, driver's steering angle A830 - resetting system faulty A83B - Undervoltage 93D0 - Undervoltage A409 - Undervoltage 931D - System voltage When the car was trucked from Auckland to Wellington it took so long the battery went flat. I therefore invested in a new one from the AA at over $750 (on top of several thousand $ getting my dad's old car going as a back-up for the family and for sentimental reasons, plus of course the purchase price, all right before Christmas) 😬 So the multiple undervoltage faults can't be traced back to the battery. So my questions to the brains on this forum are: What's the possible cause(s) of the undervoltage reading? Could undervoltage be causing all, or at least some, of the other faults to show up? Why is the onboard computer showing everything okay other than oil and brake fluid? Obviously I'll double check the brake fluid visually, but aside from that is there anything here that's absolutely dire and could affect the safe operation of the vehicle or damage it if not addressed immediately?

Haven't figured out how to do that. Fiddled with every setting I can find. Hopefully Pramod can sort that. He reckons he can. 😬 I figured as much... though I'm idly turning over in my mind a set top box, stuck somewhere in the boot maybe, run off an inverter... but that's for when I've got everything else I want done (so probably never lol).

All the people with knowledge of converting Japanese radio / navigation to work in NZ seem to be based in the top of the North Island, so I'm putting the call out for someone in or around Wellington that's done this / can do this for me. I have just bought a 2009 525i. Carjam told me "manufactured in Germany" and bimmer.work says "Market: Europe (right Steering)" so I assumed it'd be compatible as my last, much loved 330Ci proved to be. So much for assumptions... So I'd like to get the radio, navigation and TV (though the latter isn't essential) working. I've tried the various advice threads on here; I've set the TV to "New Zealand" but nothing gets picked up; it's a CIC so there's no "mode" button for the radio, and the navigation actually displays, but shows me Japan 🤦‍♂️ Ironically I work in radio but I'd find it easier to tune our transmitter down to the 70MHz band than I've found getting the radio to go up above 90MHz. Is there anyone local who can actually point at things and talk me through what I need to do or, alternatively, is there an outfit in Wellington (other than the BMW dealer) who does this for a not outrageous price? TIA