deedub

Just got off the phone with Greg from Greg Hantz Autos in Hamilton. Booked in with them. Was happy for me to supply parts. Super friendly. Thanks @gjm for the recommendation. Tracked down an old post last year where I was asking for recommendations for local BMW specialists around my way. You recommended Greg.

Good point re specialist. Makes sense that a relationship would need to be built up first. Which could make it tricky for me to get someone to do it without that. Going to call another indy that was recommended to me by a bimmersport member. If they turn me away as well then I'll just settle for doing it myself. There is a "generalist" shop around here that has a good rep. Could consider them.

That makes sense. Lines up with what I'm thinking. Upside is I'm able to do the work myself. But would be nice to have a backup option. At least I'll be able to buy some more parts with the money I save 😁

I fix and install most parts on my BMW's myself. But as a parent my time is limited and sometimes it is easier to pay someone to do a job rather than put in the time myself. Recently I purchased a few parts off FCP to refresh my E36. All genuine or OE. I looked around for some indys nearby who could do the work (searched around BOP). Found one and listed the parts I ordered off FCP and asked if they could install them. Got a response saying they don't install customer supplied parts. I'll probably just find the time to install myself. Not a big deal. But it did make me wonder why. Has anyone else come across this? Why would it matter if I supply the parts? Can't be a quality assurance thing as I provided links to the items and they are all geunine BMW or OE. Is this something to do with the suply chain? Is there some kind of arrangement going on with parts suppliers at these workshops? Like I mentioned already. It's not a big deal. Just curious about why a workshop would turn down a days work just because a customer wants to supply parts.

Came across this in the past on FCP euro. Considered getting one for my E30 until I could get OEM for it. https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw-radio-frame-64111368515 Expensive for what it is though. Must be some cheaper after market ones out there.

Kinda funny it's being sold by Affordable Autos

This is the left corner light on my E36. Any tips for resealing it? Or is it toast and I should get a new one? Seems hard to track down genuine clear corner lights. But I guess I can just look at aftermarket options.

Looks like it got pulled by TM admins. Fair enough. Bit cheeky listing it under car parts.

Yea he's definitely dreaming.

The only others I've seen recently were low Ks (around 50-60k mark I think) on the clock and asking between $80k-$100k.

The most random mesage I've seen so far on this forum...

I like Wisemove. You can check ratings and pick best price from the quotes that come through.

I see on your profile you're from Rotorua. Look forward to seeing this around once it is on the road.

Some context around this after changing the cap and monitoring coolant level over the last few days. Before posting I noticed the coolant level in the expansion tank was dropping while monitoring it over a week. 1.4 bar cap looked in bad shape and one of the O rings looked to have shifted. After posting this I was able to get my hands on a new Meyle 2.0 bar cap locally. After swapping to the new cap there was an initial drop after the first drive. But coolant has remained at that level and has stabilised since. Did all the usual coolant leak checks with the old 1.4 cap. Nothing. Only thing that stood out was the condition of the cap. I'll keep monitoring but was wondering if it was an internal leak for a a bit.

Least desirable E30 to me. I guess there are some fans out there though. Way more cabs produced than baur convertibles. So they have the rarity thing going for them.

This is interesting. Thanks for the explanation. Yea I'm probably going to do some preventative maintenance on the cooling system while giving it a flush. I'll be ordering the OE cap.

Just noticed that my coolant reservoir cap on my 98 E36 318is has a 1.4 bar cap. Checked real oem and it should be 2.0 bar. Trying to understand if there's a reason PO would intentionally replace with lower pressure cap. May have just been the best option available. Does anyone know if there are benefits to 1.4 over 2.0? Or if it even matters much?

Think this is the one: https://nzperformancecar.co.nz/2017-10-19-deflated-refinement-bagged-1uz-powered-e30-cruiser/

Pretty sure that was a feature car in NZ performance car mag. Last year I think. Would go M3 as well. Love those fish net recaros and the paint job is nice.

Lots of black grill hate around here. Im definitely not in that club. I like them.

I don't think you can get that much for originals now either. That bubble popped a while ago.

Converted 318i to 325i (48k) https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/cars/bmw/325i/listing/5301567770 I don't think these can fetch that sorta price now. Plus its a conversion. IMO part of the appeal of mtech E30s is the history behind them. Nice car though.

Good shout. I'll look at some other options.

I've been considering getting a coolant vacuum fill tool like this. Wondering if anyone here uses one of these refillers and opinion on them. I have an E30 and E36. Looking to flush and refresh coolant in E36 soon.

This silver one went for more last year: https://collectingcars.com/for-sale/2003-bmw-e46-m3-csl-18