My new SS Commodore... in a sharp german suit

[TermiPeteNZ 1319]

13 minutes ago, Olaf said:

no time for pics today, will get some on the Welly Bimmersport Roadie on Sunday #8 )

If you've never clay-barred a car, you're in for a treat.  Makes waxing so much easier, too!

Sounds like a long weekend job I'm expecting it to be *much* shinier than ever when I see it!!!

[Olaf 3339]

12 minutes ago, TermiPeteNZ said:

Sounds like a long weekend job I'm expecting it to be *much* shinier than ever when I see it!!!

It took me 2.5 hours start to finish.  Honestly, the clay-barring - although being another step - saves time and effort in the waxing.  The brown stuff that comes off the paint and onto the clay, is surprising.  #8 )

Edit:  I clay bar about every 3rd or 4th wax.

Edited March 24, 2017 by Olaf
how many times?

[My545 25]

1 hour ago, Olaf said:

no time for pics today, will get some on the Welly Bimmersport Roadie on Sunday #8 )

If you've never clay-barred a car, you're in for a treat.  Makes waxing so much easier, too!

Yea looking forward to trying that one day, although not sure it needs it yet from what I've read about when to do, still cleans up nice and water beading well. Have thought about giving it a proper polish and wax once the wash and wax product I have has run out. Bought one of those foaming spray guns from Repco this week, $30 down from $75, see how that goes. Have also bought some touch up paint to have a go at the few stone chips on the front bumper and maybe hood if it goes ok.

Should've taken your advice and done all eight coils, running rough again!! 8 plugs and coil on cyl 8 last time.

When's ya roadie, sounds like a good bunch up there, few things happening.

Any chance you could send me a link for the new shocks you've ordered please?

Cheers

[Olaf 3339]

here's the link to a very useful compendium of e60 info for considerations of maintenance or purchase, from Bimmerfest.  So you just bought an e60

[Olaf 3339]

I didn't get that many pics of my e60 specifically; here it is with @skidz 530i

hosted on flickr.  all rights reserved.

Assimilated.

 

whaddya think - should I go for the blacked-out grille, with chrome surround?

[qube 3570]

13 minutes ago, Olaf said:

blacked-out grille, with chrome surround

this is the way to go on a silver car

[My545 25]

46 minutes ago, Olaf said:

I didn't get that many pics of my e60 specifically; here it is with @skidz 530i

hosted on flickr.  all rights reserved.

Assimilated.

 

whaddya think - should I go for the blacked-out grille, with chrome surround?

Has the centre of the 530i grills been blacked out, looks like it in the photo anyway, looks good. I have bought full black grills for mine and the all black roundels, unsure whether to use yet.

Edited March 27, 2017 by My545

[TermiPeteNZ 1319]

Not sure. I like it on the black E60 - unsure on silver. Hmmm...prob good. 

Edited March 27, 2017 by TermiPeteNZ

[Olaf 3339]

What'd I do to my e60 recently?  I washed it - quickly - on Sunday morning.  Now that we've got Auckland weather (raining-all-the-time), it's beading nicely.

And I've been persevering in my attempt to have an inept courier company deliver, so that I can proceed with suspension replacement.  UPS have changed (at least in Wellington) from Fliway, to Post Haste/Castle Parcels.  Just when you thought it couldn't get worse.  With Fliway, all it took was a call to find out where it was (they didn't appear to have any tracking systems connected to update your tracker), and all was good.  They were very obliging.  The new crowd are a shambles, like the sort of thing you'd see in a 1990's Customer Service video on *how not to do it*.  I keep expecting to hear John Cleese on the line saying "now then, would you have approached this situation differently?  Let's pause while we review how to make a satisfied customer". 

Hopefully it'll arrive today, install tomorrow.  For a change, I'm not doing it myself on my mate's driveway.

[Olaf 3339]

I now have a couple of aluminum suspension struts, spring seats, and shock bolts in my hot mitts.  Photos later.  It feels like Xmas.

now, if only I could convince the beast to pass a fuel station without visiting.  May have to recalibrate the loud pedal. #; )

[Young Thrash Driver 1020]

See the recent thread on the "Bridge Racing Master" re: throttle recalibration

[Olaf 3339]

Suspension parts haul, at the workshop.

struts, strut mounts, bump stops, dust boots, spring perches, spring seats, pinch bolts and a bunch of other fasteners.  Only thing re-used are the springs.

I was interested to note the Sachs OEM strut housings are aluminum.

An e60 trunk, this morning.

with luck, it'll be ready today.

[Gabe79 410]

33 minutes ago, Olaf said:

Suspension parts haul, at the workshop.

struts, strut mounts, bump stops, dust boots, spring perches, spring seats, pinch bolts and a bunch of other fasteners.  Only thing re-used are the springs.

I was interested to note the Sachs OEM strut housings are aluminum.

An e60 trunk, this morning.

with luck, it'll be ready today.

How much did the lot run you? Where did you get parts from?

[Olaf 3339]

Shocks themselves were pretty reasonable - USD480.  The rest of the hardware, and freight, runs higher.  I end up paying the GST - if it's missed at the border - through adjustments on my GST return.  About NZD 1350-ish all up.  Sourced from FCP.

I err on the side of caution, having had shock replacements done where dust boots or spring seats weren't replaced, and the creaking really pissed me off.  With BMW recommendations for new fasteners (no re-use/mandatory replacement), and my caution - what's the point of that tear-down if you need $50 extra in parts - I order a lot of hardware.   My e46 rides like a new one, hopefully this will too!

tyres this weekend.

@TermiPeteNZ you can expect a drive next catch-up ?

[Gabe79 410]

38 minutes ago, Olaf said:

Shocks themselves were pretty reasonable - USD480.  The rest of the hardware, and freight, runs higher.  I end up paying the GST - if it's missed at the border - through adjustments on my GST return.  About NZD 1350-ish all up.  Sourced from FCP.

I err on the side of caution, having had shock replacements done where dust boots or spring seats weren't replaced, and the creaking really pissed me off.  With BMW recommendations for new fasteners (no re-use/mandatory replacement), and my caution - what's the point of that tear-down if you need $50 extra in parts - I order a lot of hardware.   My e46 rides like a new one, hopefully this will too!

tyres this weekend.

@TermiPeteNZ you can expect a drive next catch-up ?

I <3 FCP.

 

That's quite reasonable too all around. I find them even more reasonable if I combine the order with a US trip.

[Olaf 3339]

I've not been to the US since the early 00's.  Getting busy with a family after returning to NZ, my goldmember status on the airlines has lapsed.  

[TermiPeteNZ 1319]

4 hours ago, Olaf said:

 

@TermiPeteNZ you can expect a drive next catch-up ?

Look forward to it

[Olaf 3339]

First impressions:  ohhhhhhhh, it's good.  Rear's up higher (it looked saggy/arse-down last weekend with our two kids in the back, and groceries in the boot); its adopted the 'sit-up-and-beg' attitude of new shocks at the front. 4x4. But I don't care.  Seems very composed.

[Olaf 3339]

I found this very interesting document on Dynamic Drive via google from M5 Boards.  Looks like it's from BMW Training?  Explains how the system works, in detail.  System pressures of 170-180 Bar.  Wow!

 

[GorGasm 563]

This thread makes me want to buy another E60 daily driver

550i touring please!

[Olaf 3339]

20 hours ago, GorGasm said:

This thread makes me want to buy another E60 daily driver

and so you should!

[Olaf 3339]

[kiwi535 538]

On 4/4/2017 at 0:04 PM, Olaf said:

I now have a couple of aluminum suspension struts, spring seats, and shock bolts in my hot mitts.  Photos later.  It feels like Xmas.

now, if only I could convince the beast to pass a fuel station without visiting.  May have to recalibrate the loud pedal. #; )

atr you putting the tyres on now or at some time in the future.You wont know yourself,new suspension and new tyres!

[Olaf 3339]

they're on now, Paul.  

It was on the rack and aligned straight afterwards.    The new suspension will need a few thousand kms to settle in, then I'll have it re-checked.  I'll just scrub in those new boots carefully over the next week.

The old rears were cracking badly on the inner sidewalls.  The fronts will be going onto a drift pig, apparently.  No sales work for me, life is easy.

Edited April 8, 2017 by Olaf

[kiwi535 538]

if you dont mind me asking what do 4 18 in potenza set you back.Research you understand?