Eagle

Wheels certainly make the difference. Id measure the front ride height and check it after a few days of driving, mine ended up settling some more making my first alignment at BMW a big money waster. No holders\surrounds are for weight reduction. Need some M-sport swaybars if anything.

Yeah ive bought some well priced stuff at the dealers lately but i dont know how far that extends or for how long. It maybe new old stock given the car. It wouldn't surprise me if the ones complaining buy other products from overseas for personal use to save money instead of buying the product locally, not many people would pay 2x or more for the same product given the choice. Saving money usually requires putting in some time\effort which is why more probably don't do it. For me the Govt\IRD is the only winner here, the local business point is a baseless empathic spin for those who are are lacking foresight.

What are the springs?

They can't even price it realistically so what would they know about covers

Yeah im well aware but sometimes its not worth using them it due to excessive shipping costs. USPS were the best in my experience but they all are expensive these days. Id hate to know the amount of $ ive spent on postage from overseas.

Just pick it up in 2 years for half the price, similar mileage and add it on

That's why i usually do multiple orders under $400, spaced apart. Im sure it ends up costing more long term in shipping costs but as soon as Customs (also NZ post these days) are involved the process slows to a crawl. It's a lot of work to make a simple GST payment at the moment.

What pads did you get out of interest?

I think its safe to assume 'yes'

Given that Mercedes demographic are the younger crowd these days, i guess they gotta do that type of thing.

After owning 3x 7 series V12's, i got to say most just aren't worth it over the V8 unless its an actual well kept example.

Amp should be plug and play provided its the correct type. Android units connect to the existing factory setup. If you got 'screen type radio' then you would need to buy the extended radio wiring harness, you would then have to run this from the new head unit to the boot to connect into the radio module (which controls the amp, speakers, radio)

It's all relative, an E60 M5 ain't that fast either if that helps.

Ive used Mintex ones in the past here and there without issue but ive never had a problem with any brand rotors tbh No idea about NZAD ones you'd have to ask them, they are likely made in China like the vast majority. If they can handle multiply track days they are good enough for me, i don't particularly care where things are made these days as long as the quality is up to standard. Given BMW rotors have basically no room to work and wear quick you are replacing them fairly often, so i don't see the point of expensive rotors on most cars. Pad choice is much more critical imo. If you can get ATE ones for a good price then go for it.

Not saying anything critically wrong with their rotors or pads but Techstop are a low end brand, ive fitted many set of their pads and rotors to cars but id never put them on my own car. Local generic option is NZAD @ $414 a pair. Yet to hear anything negative, i and others have used them on all sort of cars and driving over the years. Best International option is Micks Garage if you wanted a Mintex set @ $285 a pair shipped. They have always turned up in 10 days or less for me.

I can understand buying car to flick but justifying a 4k premium due to the 'extras added' is grasping

If it stays on it would have logged a fault code and you'd have to get it scanned to accurately pinpoint the problem. Kerry at Mosen Europarts will help you out in that regard.

No idea what 'new shape' is suppose to mean given its a pre-facelift and were are in 2019. +1 to what Dave says. They are cheap for valid reasons.

Assumed everyone who worked on their car would have a vice haha, my one come off really easy in a vice with a little heat applied. My bfg is reversed for angry management sessions particularly on asian cars.

From what you say it's most likely seated incorrectly due to inadequate lubrication of o-rings and\or the surface not being prepared properly (smooth to touch). I did my own car yesterday and used a small wire brush then green scotch bite to clean and a flush to finish. Used a coating of tap grease (in my case) on both o-rings and holes to prevent any damage upon install and make it easier to fit. I doubt Repco would have anything. I use seal innovations for most of my o-rings but you could try the dealer.

Thought i better attend to the last real pieces of preventative engine work. New coolant pipes under the manifold. They were the original ones which had done 290,000km, picture shows how they fail, they have 2 o-rings which helps and the rest of the pipe was fine. A chunk of plastic must of broke off one pipe, and when i flushed the system it made it's way into the heater valve which jammed one side open, unfortunately took a little nick out of the non replaceable housing seal but it still appears to work ok. BMW plastic truly is the a gift that keeps on giving. Re-did the vanos seals as it felt like they weren't performing like they used to and was getting low rpm surging in first gear. Along with an adaption reset and its much more responsive with extra torque, and easier to drive with less clutch required. Rebuilt the alternator with new bearings,slip ring and brushes for $50 in parts. The original brushes were on their on tip toes. A time consuming fiddly job but worth it compared to unknown 2nd hand one or worse, a dubious Chinese special that would cost hundreds.

I've never had any issues with their suspension quality or longevity , the price difference between say Lemforder isnt that big for a lot of it (says to me the quality is good), they are easier to source like you said. Im running their front HD upper arms, HD sway bar links, lower arms and a couple of control arms in the rear with the rest being Lemforder. All done nearly 70,000km so far with no hints of failure.

Looks out of place to me but maybe he just threw them to keep his old ones, some weaves would probably look better.

Probably gone awhile ago but you know one mans stuffed is another man drives well. n saying that it costs 1000's to properly overhaul the suspension and steering on these so can't really blame people. How the rear end? because in my experience its usually worse in regards to stuffed joints.

Fold down sedan seats are very useful in a E39 sedan, one of the reasons i kept mine. Fuel economy depends on your traffic situation, but my experience driving them around Waikato, the 540i's average 2-3L more than the 528i\530i per 100km. I agree the E34 535i has terrible economy but all the other advantages outweigh that for me. E34 is probably the way to go if you want to keep costs down with decent reliability. I like E39's but they far more expense to get back to good mechanical condition when worn.