So what can £100 get you? Contains DEAD BMW

[Lord Sterling]

I live in Gurnard and work in Freshwater.

 

It is nice over here. A very relaxed place to live i find.

 

How comes ma_sterling left?

Ma has a house in Birmingham that she has been renting. She has been offered the chance to buy it out right for a nice knockdown price, plus the work she was in had a very bad, uncaring management team (she lived and worked at St Mary 's hospital) and she wasn't really getting on but began to put up with it. She was offered a position in Birmingham around the corner from her house so she can get on with house buying etc... I think she is beggining to question her decision as she loved the IoW (and so did I, I almost blubbed as we left on the ferry )

 

She said she will return to the IoW to live one day. I hope she does as I might join her myself.

 

Did your BMW come from Snows BMW IoW?

[cort16]

It's discs all round on these as a far as I know. there's a common issue with the rear back plates rotting out, which means the shoes uses for the handbrake are insecure and the hand brake stops working.

It's not that expensive to fix but it's a bit of a faff.

[Ben_O]

Ma has a house in Birmingham that she has been renting. She has been offered the chance to buy it out right for a nice knockdown price, plus the work she was in had a very bad, uncaring management team (she lived and worked at St Mary 's hospital) and she wasn't really getting on but began to put up with it. She was offered a position in Birmingham around the corner from her house so she can get on with house buying etc... I think she is beggining to question her decision as she loved the IoW (and so did I, I almost blubbed as we left on the ferry )

 

She said she will return to the IoW to live one day. I hope she does as I might join her myself.

 

Did your BMW come from Snows BMW IoW?

It's a shame about st mary's but it is not a great hospital. I have heard quite a few stories about bad things there. My other half received some quite poor and very undignified treatment there years ago which resulted in complaints being made.

These days, me and mine go to Southampton general if we need any medical treatment which is a pain and takes planning but very much worth it.

 

The BMW is from Southampton although I believe it was originally registered in Birmingham. It's been a company car so there are stacks of service history right up to about 3 years ago.

[Ben_O]

It's discs all round on these as a far as I know. there's a common issue with the rear back plates rotting out, which means the shoes uses for the handbrake are insecure and the hand brake stops working.

It's not that expensive to fix but it's a bit of a faff.

It is discs all round and the rears have a handbrake drum within the disc.

 

Ill bare that in mind though but from what I have seen fitting the ABS sensor, it all looks very good with no visible rust anywhere.

 

Fingers crossed!

Cheers

 

Ben

[Ben_O]

 

 

The BMW is from Southampton although I believe it was originally registered in Birmingham. It's been a company car so there are stacks of service history right up to about 3 years ago.

Edit to this, Just looked it up and the car was first registered in Portsmouth so it's stayed quite local

[Split_Pin]

I do like an early e46, thats very tidy indeed and has no rot in the front wings.

[Ben_O]

I do like an early e46, thats very tidy indeed and has no rot in the front wings.

Cheers. I quite like it with the gingercators too. You don't see many of these with them.

 

There are some paint issues on it but I might tend to those.

Thing is, I don't want to get carried away with it and to make it nice, It will need the roof painting, both rear quarter panels and if I want to go all out, the doors too as there are a few marks.

 

Thing is, It will cost me nothing but my time but i'm not sure i can be bothered with it.

[Vince70]

That’s a real nice motor and with an M43 lump is a real added bonus.

[Split_Pin]

I was going to mention I like the early ones with the Orange indicators.

[Sir Snipes]

When those bushes go they really go so it’ll be terrible to steer until they’re replaced.

 

I though net wishdom didn’t like the 1.9? Or is that just in the “sporty” z3?

[Ben_O]

Thanks chaps.

 

r.e the bush, it doesn't drive too badly at the moment, It just feels a bit twitchy at speed round the twisties so I've just been going easy until I get it fitted.

It also 'thumps' when you go over bumps.

There is a slight shake through the steering wheel over 40mph but I think that might be wheel balancing.

 

I have been told the bush is only a 15 minute job to change so that will be done Monday along with the tyres in my lunch break.

 

It does surge at idle too when in gear and stationary but only for the first 15-20 seconds then it smooths out. I need to look into that

[Vince70]

That’s the idle control valve and 5 minutes to fix with a can of Poundland carb cleaner

[Ben_O]

I couldn't resist having a go at the interior since I have very little to do this afternoon.

 

The weather is too shit to do anything outiside so I went at the overmats with a stiff brush and some carpet cleaner.

 

I didn't expect them to come up so well considering.

 

[Supernaut]

£100.

 

I'm simply astonished you can still get a working car with just minor faults for that much these days.

Especially considering how good it looks, bodywork wise. It's far better than the one my brother bought back in 2014 for considerably more!

[sierraman]

I agree, a few weekends worth of work and away you go.

[Lord Sterling]

Loving your work on the mats. I got some Grey over mats like yours with all the locking screws for my e46 318i SE as it only came with some horrible aftermarket fitted jobbies which weren't nice. I've also got some fitted rubber mats over the original carpets overmats because I'm sad like that.

 

I've got some spare Black mat screws if you are missing any.

[Ben_O]

 

I've got some spare Black mat screws if you are missing any.

Oh thanks for that. That would be much appreciated

I'm missing most of them. Ill have a count up later.

 

Cheers

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

Tailgate hinges love to snap on these, normally the small ones for the glass hatch as they seize. WD40 and 10 mins of exercise is important.

 

I don't like E46's at all. I sold StephenS a steel blue one (2001Y) 318i Auto Touring for 300 quid odd with a nearly new MOT. I just find that the various problems with them are to do with the daft way they were engineered. A classic:

 

E36 electric fan: One sensor on the side of the rad, three wires (earth, speed 1 and speed 2). When it gets hot, it turns the fan on at whichever of the two speeds is req'd. Problems: the switch can fail, and the fan motor can get noisy.

 

E46 electric fan: The above was too simple. No, now we need two sensors as well as a speed control unit in the fan motor as well as a pulsed feed from the engine ECU. Problems: the switches can fail, so can the speed control unit and the wire from the ECU can break internally anywhere. Fucks sake.    

 

I do have a decent amount of bits as I broke up 3-4 last year including a 325Ti.

 

 

 

 

 

 

£100 though.   Top bombing. Cut the cat off, weigh it in and you've got your hundred back. Can't lose! 

[Ben_O]

I'm going to clean it up, MOT it and run it for a little while.

 

I have never owner a BMW before, I always had and preferred Merc's. Infact, I always said I had no desire to own a BMW.

 

See how I go, If I don't like it, ill flog it and move on. If I do like it can stay until something goes bang and costs too much to fix much like my current car.

 

I still can't do anything to it today due to the weather so I decided to go out armed with a cloth and some yellow stuff to see what I could do about the sticky grime

 

 

 

 

 

I gave it a quick wipe over but there were crumbs and stuff stuck in gaps so i pried out the gear lever trim to get in there properly

 

 

So after a VERY quick wipe down, it's at least not horrible

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It still needs a very good scrub but it's a bit nicer for now.

 

I'm not a huge fan of the peeling rubber look however..

 

 

 

Reminds me of old Lenovo laptops

[RoadworkUK]

Just in case nobody has picked up on this:

 

£100!

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

The spray on soft touch rubber was bloody awful. At least you've got wood though (ooooer). 

 

These things eat window regulators so a shot of spray grease down the felt channels makes their life easier.

 

S'funny - 3 years ago I ran a 2003 C200 Kompressor with the 6 speed manual, and found it an excellent car. It had the M271 engine of death though and even after I'd replaced the timing chain it was a cow to get rid of the EML.

[Ben_O]

Funny about the window regulators, I have several receipts for new ones fitted over the years among the history.

 

The current ones seem stiff so lubrication will take place. 

 

I also discovered it has total enclosure which I never saw the point in...

[Ben_O]

Yay, it's starting to break already..

 

It now only unlocks when it pleases and when it decides it doesn't, the only way in the car is through the silly glass hatch on the back and once inside, the only way out is the way you came in as the doors are deadlocked and won't open.

 

It started out as the windows going down everytime you unlock the doors and whilst trying to stop it doing that, it progressed into locking fine but not unlocking. The alarm light under the rear view mirror is no longer flashing to suggest the alarm is armed so for now, I have had to just leave it unlocked.

 

The fault seems to be some wanky GM5 module which apparently always breaks on these but I can't believe it would suddenly just go days after me buying the sodding thing.

 

Of course it could be the wet weather, the fact I may have liberally sprayed interior cleaner all over buttons inside yesterday including the button on the centre console that locks and unlocks the doors.

 

I recon just leave it tonight and see tomorrow.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

"Hans, let's replace ze old E36 viper module und body control module zat almost never goes wrong mit ein really shit all in one module zat does! Und to make zis even mehr rubbish, ve'll haf about 7 different versions und 10-15 part number supersessions on each. Zen, to make zis superschiesse ve'll design it so it muss be coded in mit diagnostics!".

 

"Wunderbar!"

[puntopaul]

It is quite surprising what you can get for £100, I bought a 2003 Fiat Seicento Sporting a month ago, And sold it yesterday for small profit!! did a few odds and ends.
 
Replaced the rear wiper motor, fixed the non working rear washer jet. And some bits of broken trim, that I got from a scrappy to tidy things up. A hover and and a decent wash an polish, light bulbs etc.. New radiator & some side indicators, as they were broken. Plus a mini service, that with a new MOT and two small brake pipes that it needed cost about £250 give or take a few pennies. Sold for £460, total profit of about £100.
 
 
Not massive coinage, but profit is a profit!! I like how the Punto turned out, wouldn't of minded that one myself.
 
With your Focus I might be interested in some bits if it's going in the bin?
 
As I've just bought a 02 Focus off a colleague for £100. a 1.6 Automatic with an MOT until February. My colleague was going to just frag it, so as I just sold my Laguna this seemed ideal. Got the typical bit of rust on the back end of the passenger side sill, but other than looks pretty tidy!!
 
Got an issue with the radio not working, and the intermittent wiper setting not working. Maybe the radio and the stalks itself need replacing, so if your scrapping yours might be interested in those myself and maybe some other bits an bobs!
 

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

 but I can't believe it would suddenly just go days after me buying the sodding thing.

 

 

 

 

Oh but it can. One two of mine it did - the 320d Estate lost its wipers (flat out speed only) and the 323i suddenly one morning decided it didn't want to open. Took 20 mins of manually lock/unlock before the cunt finally unlocked. That was the day my utter hatred of E46's finally blossomed.

 

Fucking things.

[Ben_O]

I just can't understand how that box controls all of those things but they all still work even when the doors won't unlock.

 

It's such a stupid idea

[omegod]

Rubber sticky shite will come off with nail varnish remover, same as Omegas and looks much better with it taken off 

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

Soft feel quality innit

[New POD]

Ma has a house in Birmingham that she has been renting. She has been offered the chance to buy it out right for a nice knockdown price,

 

My wife trained as a Nurse at the QE in Brum, whilst I was a student at Coventry (The Lanch..) Polytechnic. When we both graduated we got married and lived in Brum for another 5 years. Both of us regret moving, and vow to return one day.