Eagle

Yep the M43 would have to be one of most reliable motors BMW ever made, but its also one the slowest engines they ever made. Too bad the accountants forbad the use of the M44

+1 E34\E32 had a better system but given its a far higher quality car as far as electronics go it's not to surprising. My E38 740il had the full DSP audio package which is pretty unimpressive compared to the older premium hifi package.

Personally id goto the wreckers and get them. Maybe get new nuts if you are fussy.

Nothing at all worth saving. Far better off to buy a later model one with the B34 and covert to 5 speed manual if wanted.

Makes sense given that the production numbers are likely to be quite high, they are a cheap car and most don't have huge mileage on them yet. I would expect them to be on the road until they have a significant failure or the owners get tired of sinking money into them, then many will start to get sold\scrapped\parted out. I expect them to be a 2-3k car in a few years.

With plates like you never know if its trolling or serious unless you meet the owner. I drove guys XR6 turbo with the plate NOTJAP for a week and felt embarrassed every time i used it. He had nothing against Japanese cars though.

All good. Couldn't find any vac line but you will need approx ~100mm

+1 take it back. They may have moved the wheel positions on the axles ie putting back wheels on front etc. If one of the rear wheels ain't quite perfect could cause a vibration when moved to the front. Getting a wheel alignment is always a good idea also with new tyres if you havent had one for awhile.

As Glenn said you'd have to drill it and insert something. Id cut a slot all the way through then put piece of flat steel in the slot and turn it but much depends on what gear you have and how hard the cap was wound on

Used their eccentric ones on my old E30 without issue. No idea about posi's.

Every time i hear the word Valvetronic all i can think of is all the tribulations it brings. Surely you have a warranty though given modern BMW love to sh*t to bed?

Should of stated it has to be manual. If it is then send away.

Had my hopes up as been looking for a good E34 for awhile now. Appears to be classic example of purchase price + money in = current value

They were $240 odd in 235/45R17 when i bought them from Hyper. Seen them a little cheaper and seen them more expensive.

Ive got PS4's on my E39 beater. Spending a few hundred more to get superior rubber is never overkill given they aren't expensive to begin with.

Looks pretty typical but you picked a good time to do it anyway

Meaning like buying a good used updated one then tearing it to inspect it, replacing anything that's needed. Yeah its rolling the dice to an extent but would think it would be a better base to start from than an older one that had some significant wear already. Would think it would be the cheaper option also. I guess really it comes down to what extend its going to be rebuilt and your MBI policy as you mentioned.

Would of thought sourcing an good updated one then inspecting it would be the best bet, assuming you can find one.

Japanese imports always have the air injection systems fitted. For removal you will need a blanking plate for the exhaust manifold (either bought one or fabricated) and some vacuum line. I did have a spare plate one lying around and will have a quick look to see if i can find it.

Hyper are good when deals are on. Some brands and sizes are overpriced while some are under. Used to use Bridgestone quite a bit but you gotta find the right branch.

Yeah need serial port

I used to Carsoft 6.5 which could do it though its hidden away in a box somewhere i cant find. Surely someone on here in Auckland would have what you are looking for and may help you out.

Good examples are on the rise though ive only seen a couple of upper tier examples for sale in the last couple of years. I think people are holding on to good examples as they were the last of the classic era BMW's. Average lower spec\displacement autos are pretty much stayed the same (2-3k mark) Id say 4-5k if its tidy but hasn't had money thrown at it (ie full engine, suspension refresh etc etc)

M30B35 would be the way id go imo given you have all the engine and transmission parts, B35 is way more reliabile than M52\M54 and much easier to work. Put the savings towards fuel as that's main negative

Up to you really, im sure everyone has their own way they would tackle it. I guess many would prob live with the rear toed out esp if they already had the rear end off. When i did mine the 2nd time i got a new 2nd hand arm and did the adjustable kit at the same time. The subframe brackets where the arm mounts may of even been out a bit causing trailing arm angle changes, hard to eye ball things like these unless they are way out. I got to toe down to negative 0.5mm-1.00mm from -3-4mm and dailed back the camber a bit. This was with 40mm H&R's. You can remove the trailing arms without dropping the subframe if you have or can make slimmed head 18mm? spanner. As for the front so you are still bottoming out on l\h side? if the towers look and check out ok then id replace the whole strut with kingpin etc on that bad side with a new insert just to be sure. Given you were bottoming out to me its the easiest and not too expensive route that is likely to solve the problem first time. I believe camber plates technically require a cert and strut brace isn't going to help fix a camber problem like that.