135i 7" VRSF FMIC install recommendations

[Remorse 14]

Hi all,

I'm wanting to get a VRSF 7" FMIC installed on my 135i, I was wondering whether anyone has any recommendations as to where I could get this done? 

Thanks in advance.

[Matth5 471]

BM Workshop or Bellars Motor Works, they're good but you'll have to see they're keen on installing aftermarket stuff for you. Some places don't like it at all, some will do if you're a regular customer. 

[*Glenn* 855]

It's the liability issue, exposure to risk & the SOGA along with margins, plus the quality of what is supplied. Some people also want to supply there own parts and also expect you to give them a discount on labour as well. We do not discount our labour.  It doesn't work for me, and I'm not interested in the crap when something might fail or go wrong

Edited July 27, 2017 by *Glenn*

[Stevie S 49]

Its a pretty easy job, I did my own.  You could probably take it to a non bmw specialist and just show the a youtube clip of the install

[Herbmiester 931]

Yeah, I second that take it to a shop that does Intercoolers turbos etc and show them the video. Its straightforward and they should just charge you the labour . Many shops dont like it because they miss out on margin on the parts. 

[*Glenn* 855]

If it's so straight forward and you have a video on how to do it. Why can't you then do it your self ?? I find your statement of a professional just charging labour to fit supplied parts at a labour cost only insulting to the professional repairers in our industry.

[Herbmiester 931]

1 hour ago, *Glenn* said:

If it's so straight forward and you have a video on how to do it. Why can't you then do it your self ?? I find your statement of a professional just charging labour to fit supplied parts at a labour cost only insulting to the professional repairers in our industry.

I was part of that industry for quite a while so I fail to see why you are taking offence.  As to just charging labour to fit supplied parts what else would you charge? A few ancillaries like some grease, zip ties etc might be appropriate but if there is no parts costs and its pure fitting then what else? As it stands you have made it quite clear you are not keen on fitting parts other people supply, So I have suggested the OP go somewhere where they dont have this policy. You dont want to do it so that's fine someone else will and as it's not really a BMW specialist job most performance shops will likely have no issues.

Oh and the reason I get other people to work on my car sometimes is simple, opportunity cost, what I pay them to do the job is a lot less than I get remunerated to do mine. 

[Stevie S 49]

On 7/28/2017 at 4:08 PM, *Glenn* said:

If it's so straight forward and you have a video on how to do it. Why can't you then do it your self ?? I find your statement of a professional just charging labour to fit supplied parts at a labour cost only insulting to the professional repairers in our industry.

Are you joking? If I pay someone to paint my house but supply the paint am I insulting the painter. I am paying him for his time and labour. Thats why I said take it to one of these non precious BMW Techs

[Stevie S 49]

I installed my own intercooler, charge pipe bov, plugs coils etc , but harder stuff I have payed workshops to install. Even the easy stuff I get them to do now as I just dont have the time. All the aftermarket stuff can't  be sourced here ( LSD , downpipes, upgraded LPFP) so I I pay them to install when I bring down and I have used places I know do great work. I am pretty sure I havent insulted any of them but I will double check

[NakiTouring 54]

On 7/28/2017 at 4:08 PM, *Glenn* said:

If it's so straight forward and you have a video on how to do it. Why can't you then do it your self ?? I find your statement of a professional just charging labour to fit supplied parts at a labour cost only insulting to the professional repairers in our industry.

You're doing a great job of selling your services there...

[*Glenn* 855]

2 hours ago, NakiTouring said:

You're doing a great job of selling your services there...

Thank you... and the clientele that I work for and enjoy working for is probably not the same as the people who are commenting here. My reasons are for the first thread I posted on this subject. I don't work for labour only and I don't discount my labour, I don't fit parts supplied unless by agreement with a client, I don't get told what or how much I will charge. I choose who I do work for and what I will work on. I don't need the stress or exposure to risk and I really enjoy doing what I do using quality parts that I have control over and being able to do my work to a high standard that has a quality back up of 1.5 million dollars of public liability which I have only had to use twice since 1986. I'm also supported by by network of suppliers who guarantee their products. If I offended anyone with my blunt statement... tuff. I can take it and get insulted at least once a week by 21 year olds that tell me how to repair there pieces of sh*t , what I will charge and how to do it, which I refuse to work on anyway. I will also add that I am not insinuating that any of the people commenting on here own pieces of sh*t, I just didn't put it across appropriately in a post up there ^^^^^ 

Using this scenario:

Go to your local special restaurant... take cheap cut of meat and an imported crayfish with you. Put it on the table and tell the chef how much you will pay him to cook it to the same standard you had there a month ago ? Do you think he might be slightly insulted ?

I'm only interested in dealing with people who want a quality repair done to a high standard at a reasonable price with guarantees, and my costs are always able to be negotiated... I have a phone number

 

[NZ BMW 368]

4 hours ago, *Glenn* said:

Thank you... and the clientele that I work for and enjoy working for is probably not the same as the people who are commenting here. My reasons are for the first thread I posted on this subject. I don't work for labour only and I don't discount my labour, I don't fit parts supplied unless by agreement with a client, I don't get told what or how much I will charge. I choose who I do work for and what I will work on. I don't need the stress or exposure to risk and I really enjoy doing what I do using quality parts that I have control over and being able to do my work to a high standard that has a quality back up of 1.5 million dollars of public liability which I have only had to use twice since 1986. I'm also supported by by network of suppliers who guarantee their products. If I offended anyone with my blunt statement... tuff. I can take it and get insulted at least once a week by 21 year olds that tell me how to repair there pieces of sh*t , what I will charge and how to do it, which I refuse to work on anyway. I will also add that I am not insinuating that any of the people commenting on here own pieces of sh*t, I just didn't put it across appropriately in a post up there ^^^^^ 

Using this scenario:

Go to your local special restaurant... take cheap cut of meat and an imported crayfish with you. Put it on the table and tell the chef how much you will pay him to cook it to the same standard you had there a month ago ? Do you think he might be slightly insulted ?

I'm only interested in dealing with people who want a quality repair done to a high standard at a reasonable price with guarantees, and my costs are always able to be negotiated... I have a phone number

 

I do agree with this. I bring my own parts to my mechanic on occasion. As I travel for work I stock up on filters via US suppliers when I'm there. One time I bought a Continental belt for a car of mine and they installed it for me. The bloody thing seems to have been defective from the factory and noisy. So I had to go back, pay again for labour and a new belt. They're good sports and I've been going there for a while so they cut me a break on some of the labour. 

Imagine if the belt had snapped or something? I assume that would be on me. But that's because I'm a reasonable person. 

Likewise, some people complain about shops adding margin to parts. If the guy has to spend time ringing around and ordering stuff rather than me then he should be able to cover that with some margin. 

[NakiTouring 54]

4 hours ago, *Glenn* said:

Thank you... and the clientele that I work for and enjoy working for is probably not the same as the people who are commenting here. My reasons are for the first thread I posted on this subject. I don't work for labour only and I don't discount my labour, I don't fit parts supplied unless by agreement with a client, I don't get told what or how much I will charge. I choose who I do work for and what I will work on. I don't need the stress or exposure to risk and I really enjoy doing what I do using quality parts that I have control over and being able to do my work to a high standard that has a quality back up of 1.5 million dollars of public liability which I have only had to use twice since 1986. I'm also supported by by network of suppliers who guarantee their products. If I offended anyone with my blunt statement... tuff. I can take it and get insulted at least once a week by 21 year olds that tell me how to repair there pieces of sh*t , what I will charge and how to do it, which I refuse to work on anyway. I will also add that I am not insinuating that any of the people commenting on here own pieces of sh*t, I just didn't put it across appropriately in a post up there ^^^^^ 

Using this scenario:

Go to your local special restaurant... take cheap cut of meat and an imported crayfish with you. Put it on the table and tell the chef how much you will pay him to cook it to the same standard you had there a month ago ? Do you think he might be slightly insulted ?

I'm only interested in dealing with people who want a quality repair done to a high standard at a reasonable price with guarantees, and my costs are always able to be negotiated... I have a phone number

 

Yep, fair enough, valid points. I'd probably be the same in your shoes...but different.

[NakiTouring 54]

43 minutes ago, NZ BMW said:

I do agree with this. I bring my own parts to my mechanic on occasion. As I travel for work I stock up on filters via US suppliers when I'm there. One time I bought a Continental belt for a car of mine and they installed it for me. The bloody thing seems to have been defective from the factory and noisy. So I had to go back, pay again for labour and a new belt.

Yeah and it's becoming more and more pertinent with all the counterfeit shite out there.

[*Glenn* 855]

Let's get this thread back on topic and help Nathan (remorse) with his questions. If I offended anyone, it wasn't intentional just my opinion and how I see it. I'll keep further comments and opinions to myself. Go and talk with Ross at BM Workshop Botany, Guido at BM Workshop Grey Lynn or Ken at Bellars on the Shore. Don't ring, go and talk to them about your intentions of what you want to do and what you would like to achieve.

Edited August 2, 2017 by *Glenn*

[Herbmiester 931]

I wanted to let this one go and I nearly did but....... 

In my experience it boils down to maintenance/repairs vs performance. For maintenance/repairs I am happy to let the shop do what they have to do, and there are a number of shops who do this and do it well and to be fair dont need to look at performance work because they are very busy fixing Euro cars that have proven to be somewhat less reliable than their Japanese counterparts. A great business model really.

For performance, parts are often the hurdle; they are just not available here and workshops as noted above are focussed on repairs maintenance. Workshops often default to parts available in NZ which may or may not be the best solution for a performance upgrade and with DIY tuning options like COBB, MHD etc it is fitting and final troubleshooting/tuning that is wanted. (This of course may lead to maintenance/repair work as components fail when under stress)

The problem with performance upgrades is that it is often the domain of the Flat Peak crowd with a clapped out Japanese sh*t box, no money and big dreams. But in the HSV FPV world a lot of tuners emerged who could meet the demand of the cashed up bogans and that segment were quite willing to pay, as a result that segment went upmarket and got away from its bogan/hoon roots and became professional. 

What we have in NZ is a lack of Euro tuning shops. Audi, VW, BMW and to a lesser extent MB now all have forced induction engines and chassis that respond well to basic upgrades. Forced induction is the cornerstone of the tuning world. We need a few shops who understand that mindset and can provide solutions. Fair to say we dont have that at the moment.

 

[Benji335i 21]

Bm workshop grey Lynn have done all my work they are friendly and do a good job too!! 

Interested where you got the intercooler from due to Im wanting the same one for my 335i

[Mr Hyde 44]

45 minutes ago, Benji335i said:

Bm workshop grey Lynn have done all my work they are friendly and do a good job too!! 

Interested where you got the intercooler from due to Im wanting the same one for my 335i

Yeap same here. And is it laggy? some say bigger intercoolers produce more lag others say it's hardly noticeable 

[Remorse 14]

On 9/9/2017 at 2:18 PM, Benji335i said:

Bm workshop grey Lynn have done all my work they are friendly and do a good job too!! 

Interested where you got the intercooler from due to Im wanting the same one for my 335i

I got JTUNE to install mine, since they've done a few 7" VRSF for E9x and E8x platforms. Wanted to service the car with MOTUL X-cess as well, so it was convenient for me.

I got mine off @gaijin since he went big tom FMIC for his single turbo conversion. 

On 9/9/2017 at 3:09 PM, Mr Hyde said:

Yeap same here. And is it laggy? some say bigger intercoolers produce more lag others say it's hardly noticeable 

My car is AT and it feels slightly different to stock FMIC, a little lag yes. But very minimal. Not to the point where you notice it. However, with that being said. The car pulls alot more consistently now. Im also running MHD Stage1+ so I had to get a FMIC before Summer came around regardless. Hope that helps!

[gaijin 174]

Yeah I installed my own I/C's, on five of my current cars, Vag/Vag/BMW/Toyota/Nissan. If you have the skills money and time, sure do it. If you want to supply OEM parts to a mechanic who says no, then walk away. They are effectively doing the same thing. Bring them poor quality non OEM 'performance parts' then they have very much full right to say go away. I've tried to install poor quality junk, I tell you, what a waste of my time! Would hate to think that Id charge customers to install junk that doesn't work or is a butcher job. I see both sides here. Now truly getting back on thread, good to hear Nathans VRSF 7" is installed! Probably need that stage 2 in tank pump soon right.....likewise the meth spray....