Jazzbass

Speaking of alarms, mine (BMW std) was set off the other day when a friend took his portable phone outside to speak and wandered past my car. Is this normal?

As I understand it, an oversquare engine (bore>stroke) can rev higher, but exhibits less torque than an undersquare (bore<stroke) one of equivalent displacement. Thus oversquare motors are sometimes considered as sporty engines (and longer lasting) and undersquare as workhorses (and faster to wear out). My car has a square engine (bore=stroke=84mm) M52B28. Is this a sort of compromise solution between the two, or are there other advantages/reasons why BMW chose a square configuration? Are the S designated motors oversquare? Obviously, I am not a mechanic and my understanding is therefore suitably limited in such esoteric matters.

E30stz is correct - old cars and UK salted roads tend to produce serious $$$ problems.

Robert Harris Irish Creme beans always give me a decent brew...

Grandad! Why I oughta! I can remember when the 'baddest' cars around were Mk1 Zephyrs lowered with wide wheels (we had to get our wheels widened at engineering works back then). And don't forget racing stripes!! ... trying to tell me about bling mharrumph!! As I was driving home just now, I was thinking about Carl's post - actually he's reinforcing my statement - I mis-read what he was saying, sorry mate! By trying to be individual, we conform .... I can't afford to either conform by individuality or conform by following the leader, so I just leave my cars stock, which I guess is old fart's conformity? Bloody hells, can't win!!

There's an advert on TV for some place (forgotten who) that checks your shocks for free. Might be worth a visit? Anyone watch adverts? Where is it?

Please don't get me wrong - I do understand there are serious questions and those are the ones I get most from here, however, I am strongly in favour of a lighter side to any forum. Life being totally serious is not a good place for Kiwis to dwell. We enjoy life far too much for that.

Ah well, you see, I can only respond with an opinion gained by reading the threads, Obviously, it seems I have read insufficiently, because my statement was formed purely upon my readings here. Then again, when the threads wander off into some strange language, I must admit, I do stop reading them. So, if I understand you correctly - if you conform, you're damned, if you don't, you're damned?? Therefore we are ALL damned?

Is everyone scared to post after the mods thread? - try this - Since y'all seem bent on promoting tints, sacked, smoked and clear lights etc here, I've been noticing other cars on the road more. (this is NOT a scientific study, OK?) My observations: At least 90% of teens and young 20's have - tints and/or smoked lights. I haven't seen one teen's car which isn't lowered. There are a sh*t load of cars on the road with clears - more than ambers, it seems. So - y'all want to conform (be the same as everyone else) to your peers? What happened to individuality? Is standing out from the crowd a bad thing these days? Your thoughts...

Excellent. Homebuilts are cool. Last one I flew was a Bert Rutan Varieze - brilliant - impossible to stall with the front canard. Then, in 1970, I got married and that put an end to my flying as a hobby (My wife's grandfather was killed flying an Auster - he was CFO at Stratford). I always wanted to build a Jim Bede BD5.

I have a friend with his first BMW - E36 320. He was off the road for a month recently due to an ignition switch failure which wouldn't allow the car to be turned off. I'd never heard of it, but the locksmith apparently claimed it was common with BMWs. Anyone shed any light?

re 'stunna' - never mind - found out for myself: stunna

I still want to know WTF a 'stunna' is....

There's no choice up top for me to click on, either. However, my perspective is that this is primarily a younger person's forum and to be honest there's much you talk about which I find neither interesting nor relevant. There are also subects which I do enjoy, so I stick around. I learn things of personal value to me here. In my first month, I was offended by *sic's comments on a daily basis, but instead of getting my tits in a tangle, I waited until I felt I better understood his point of view. Then and now, I reply to his posts when I wish with a hefty dose of humour and try to treat him as he would me. In this way I have come to accept him as he is and no longer have any problem with his posts. Yes, its a BMW forum and yes, *sic seems to extract the urine from BMWs daily, but that doesn't worry me. What does worry me is that I was chastised when I tried to post about my perception of Hondas. It has to work both ways or not at all. As an old fart, my vote is meaningless to you anyway. FWIW, I'm an admin and a moderator at a few other boards and find there's bugger all need for intervention anyway.

I have no problem with you or anyone putting an M or an R or whatever badge on your car. If it tarts your car up and makes you feel better go for it. My experience has been that most of the general public wouldn't know a 316 from an M3 anyway. The only people who will laugh at you will be other BMW owners anyway.

Man, if you can't handle that other people may think differently to you, why ask for our thoughts?? :banghead: FWIW, there is no way in hell I'd want the CT, even if you did have one. Can you imagine an old fart like me in what looks like a kids radio-controlled car full-sized??? I'll leave it for the under 20yo brigade. You might well look/feel cool in it, but I'd look/feel plain wrong in one

Concept A - OK I guess, looks a bit like a Mini with a tareg grill. Concept T - you HAVE to be joking! Can you say Playstation? I knew you could. Concept R - YES! I buy that for a dollar.

Can you swap out the manual and put an auto in it?

I never read them....

Excellent.

Offer him $3.50 an hour compounded at 100% interest per hour for 14 hours and I guarantee he'll take it...

Young whippersnapper. My youngest child is 23...

LOL - too right - and I can keep the BMW encrusted metal case they came in for storing... well bugger all, really, but I'm a hoarder.

That's the thing - they're all great, but I love my E39. Mind you a Z4 for fair weather Sunday outings.....

German BMW encased, peppermints.....