Eagle

+1 loosen it a bit with rattle gun and spring still fully compressed if you arent.

If you borrow my Eibach hubcentric ones for finalization if you like.

Yeah i was tempted to get some FL-5's in 18x8.5 ET35 but hard to justify the cost vs benefit. I think the main issue with fitment is the many different factors between everyone setup and driving. Get lots of contradictory info. I drove with the stock rear alloys on the front for a test (18x8.5 ET51 255\35R18 tyre ) and had no issues with stock msport setup I used 15mm spacers on the stock front alloys(225\40 18x8 ET47) and bought them down to ET32. I didnt drive with them because appeared like they would rub slightly on the inner guards at full lock\suspension movement.

Be interesting to see how much better you think the audio will be over the stock setup (given OE mounting\locations seem to be a big weakness).

Anything euro is marked up a fair bit for retail customers compared to Japanese etc. People buying parts at Repco arent typically the shop around type so they take advantage for that. 5 years ago a Gates idler pulley for an M54 was $180 retail and $90 trade.

Yeah i think trade in would of been around 5k give or take. I wonder what the market thinks its actually worth if you $1 reserved it, 10k max id guess. You are paying a premium 'bought it off the dealer in 2001 type experience'. As you say its really for a fan with yolo money to spend.

I dont see the point of keeping it a garage queen myself, its never going to appreciate much in value and its nothing special to drive in that spec. Id just use the car as intended without caring about the mileage while keeping it garaged and maintained.

'01 325i auto sedan. Wonder if they have ever changed things like fluids or tires during all those years.

Probably needs a small amount of money spent on it im sure but very tidy indeed. 10k seems reasonable.

Basically on the opposite side of the caliper. You have to remove the wheel.

Yeah Renault era Nissans are bad for it, eg timing chain covers which isnt a cheap repair labor wise. I prefer the older style gaskets they used on the 80's BMW's etc. They may not seal for as long as rubber type ones but they tend to seep rather than go brittle and leak badly.

Yeah i dont put much of a premium on k's for a vehicle this old. 5-6k max.

Yeah spline count is really what matters. Im running Luk E36 M3 flywheel and Sachs 3.2L clutch on my E46. Got both from Spareto.com for $1200-1300 shipped in 2 orders.

Factory head units and amps are basically unwanted parts here that can be had for no or very little cost, its easy to swap them out one at a time and re-test. If that doesn't help you probably want to test the speakers.

Id go for Michellin PS5's, they say they last quite a bit longer than PS4's. PS4's easily beat RE003 in all areas expect steering response. RE003's are a entry level performance tyre and very old tech.

+1 depends on the part but anything electrical related i always go OE\genuine unless its NLA.

Do the hidden OBC unlock and bring up the coolant temp so you can see what its actually reading under different conditions. The gauge being buffered means if it goes even a few degrees out of its normal middle range then its going straight to the red zone. Cooling system refresh is always a good idea as you probably given its probably on old\unknown parts. Never really heard of sensor failing but you can almost guarantee the thermostat and fan clutch are original. When i buy a car i usually remove the radiator at the same time and clean out all usual debris on the front of the fins and the AC condenser area.

Yeah i bet it feels like a different car going from a worn stock setup. No doubt the solid subframe bushings and M3 arms to a lesser extent are contributing too.

Some people have better mannerisms suited to presenting this sort of stuff. I noticed but given the length of the video it didn't really bother me, plus id rather have some be themselves rather than put on a fake persona.

Cant say ive heard of that one. Im running them in my Ti which has the same front end steering parts as all E36's. Works fine with the E46 purple tag rack and E36 outer ends.

Why not use E46 inner rods?

Height is perfect amount for me.

Have you checked the live data in INPA?

Yeah would great to see what the spring\strut combo drives like on a E39. Too bad you arent close.

Yeah i dont bother with them anymore, the tolerances are small that its too much much guess work to me to get the correct spec without the right tools. Even with wear the vanos rattle is rarely heard most of the time in my experience. Did you try running it up on stands to see if you could locate the source?