Advice please - ship BMW E34 Donor car to Oz or sell now?

[Sick Puppy 1]

Hi everyone, I have a deregistered 1990 E34 535. It is a HD12 and manual, with a LSD, leather sport seats, larger sway bars and a body kit.

What it also has however is rust; rust in the C-pillars and rear flanks as well as the doors. I don’t believe the body is economic to repair. It’s expensive enough repairing rust on structural parts you can see, let alone the stuff you can’t see and haven’t found yet.

I have no worries about the body being buggered though. My plan/project was to reshell the go-fast/look pretty bits onto a donor car: gearbox (possibly engine), plus the bits above, as well as the usual, headers, nice wheels, bushes, etc. Money aside, it was more to give me something to do, like a lego set, only bigger. I missed out on a perfect donor car a short while back, but money was tight at the time, so meh.

Problem is we’re going over to the UK for a few months, and the likelihood is that we will be going to Australia, probably to live. I can store it here if we're coming back, but if we're not...

So, my questions: Can anyone please tell me what the BMW market is like in Australia? Are these cars common over there, and what are parts availability/pricing like? My hoarding instincts and my wish to finish a project tell me I want to ship it over there and finish the job, but on the other hand, I can’t see the point if buying the parts and donor car are going to cost $$$.

I saw a similar condition and situation example go for about AUD$4k on Ebay Australia, and a friend over there has offered me what I paid for it (as well as shipping), so there are options I guess.

Also, I understand that in Oz due to emissions laws over there I cannot put an older model engine into a newer model car, even if it’s the same model of car, e.g. a 1990 535 engine into the body of a 1993 535, even though they are both E34’s. Is this correct?

My initial inclination is to not faff about, and stick it on Trademe. Of course, that’s without knowing anything whatsoever about the Aussie market, so any thoughts or advice on this would be much appreciated.

[kiwi535 538]

RUST in an e 34?Where did it come from?

[Michael. 2313]

Mmm yeah interesting to hear about the rust issue, must be quite substantial.

Any pictures to share?

[Sick Puppy 1]

I'll post some up tomorrow - it's substantial, and looks to have worsened from a bodged prior repair.

[westy 614]

Me thinks it's not worth the hassle. And the Aussies know all about hassles.

I'd be selling it.

[BM WORLD 1283]

if you are going to the trouble of taking a car back to OZ take a good one .

i wouldn't bother with that one , just sell here complete or in bits

[sp8s 1]

If going to live in Oz I would be stripping the car here and ship the goodies over. Why take the whole thing?

If coming back strip before going, save on storage space.

If staying in UK forget it there are better, rustier ones over there

[kiwi535 538]

If going to live in Oz I would be stripping the car here and ship the goodies over. Why take the whole thing?

If coming back strip before going, save on storage space.

If staying in UK forget it there are better, rustier ones over there

and cheaper prolly much less than 1000 pounds

[Mark 178]

Have sent you a PM Andrew.

[Sick Puppy 1]

Thanks guys, I thought as much. I hate failing in projects... I'm sure I'll get used to it though.

If I knew we were going to be staying in the UK, I'd have been getting rid of it no questions asked - plenty of them over there. Query was more about Oz and whether it is worth having non-Oz car projects over there, I don't think the availability or pricing is there, but thought I should ask around first.

I'll talk to mate in Oz to see if he wants it - since he's related and asked about it three years ago, I figure he should have first dibs! Mark, I'll get back to you ASAP too.

[kiwi535 538]

Thanks guys, I thought as much. I hate failing in projects... I'm sure I'll get used to it though.

If I knew we were going to be staying in the UK, I'd have been getting rid of it no questions asked - plenty of them over there. Query was more about Oz and whether it is worth having non-Oz car projects over there, I don't think the availability or pricing is there, but thought I should ask around first.

I'll talk to mate in Oz to see if he wants it - since he's related and asked about it three years ago, I figure he should have first dibs! Mark, I'll get back to you ASAP too.

my impression is the HD12 would be a rare car in aussie,i beleive they were specced by BMW NZ to be a M5 clone cos they knew they werent gonna sell many M5s,prolly not the same in Aussie

[BlowMyWhistle 0]

Depends whereabouts in OZ you are coming too, different states have different rules.

I hope you are coming to WA, along with the rest of NZ.

cars are a bit more expensive here cos we are so isolated, butchew can pick one up cheap on the eastern seaboard and drive it over. Look at ebay, or car sales.

I can hook you up with a body easily, I got a mate who is stripping a few.

He has wrecks all the time, Andy at Beemer Motor Works.

just bring the parts you want and ditch the rust. A car must be able to be roadworthy if you are gunner import it, and it'll cost $3k +, which is why i have an e28 still sitting in Invercargill.

Over here a car has to go 'over the pits'. then that's it, no WOF for life, I've seen sum rust buckets getting around, they get stickered of course, but apart from that, nothing.

Dunno what the rules are in other states, but dunno about later model engines, if they could tell.

WA is the only place to be, plenty of jobs here!

Hi everyone, I have a deregistered 1990 E34 535. It is a HD12 and manual, with a LSD, leather sport seats, larger sway bars and a body kit.

What it also has however is rust; rust in the C-pillars and rear flanks as well as the doors. I don’t believe the body is economic to repair. It’s expensive enough repairing rust on structural parts you can see, let alone the stuff you can’t see and haven’t found yet.

I have no worries about the body being buggered though. My plan/project was to reshell the go-fast/look pretty bits onto a donor car: gearbox (possibly engine), plus the bits above, as well as the usual, headers, nice wheels, bushes, etc. Money aside, it was more to give me something to do, like a lego set, only bigger. I missed out on a perfect donor car a short while back, but money was tight at the time, so meh.

Problem is we’re going over to the UK for a few months, and the likelihood is that we will be going to Australia, probably to live. I can store it here if we're coming back, but if we're not...

So, my questions: Can anyone please tell me what the BMW market is like in Australia? Are these cars common over there, and what are parts availability/pricing like? My hoarding instincts and my wish to finish a project tell me I want to ship it over there and finish the job, but on the other hand, I can’t see the point if buying the parts and donor car are going to cost $$$.

I saw a similar condition and situation example go for about AUD$4k on Ebay Australia, and a friend over there has offered me what I paid for it (as well as shipping), so there are options I guess.

Also, I understand that in Oz due to emissions laws over there I cannot put an older model engine into a newer model car, even if it’s the same model of car, e.g. a 1990 535 engine into the body of a 1993 535, even though they are both E34’s. Is this correct?

My initial inclination is to not faff about, and stick it on Trademe. Of course, that’s without knowing anything whatsoever about the Aussie market, so any thoughts or advice on this would be much appreciated.