TheXUDfiles

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

They take some beating. I can see why one would get under your skin and stay there, and who cares how much it's worth. Not everything has to be an investment.

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

I never got back to you - you expressed interested in this when I thought of selling it. I'm really sorry about that. I had a lot of Lifeshite kicking off in the days after putting the advert up, and forgot all about it and didn't log in again for ages. 
I changed my mind because it came out of a lot of trauma with me and I felt more attached to it after. 
Sorry  
Anyway, wheels. They're style 5s. You can still buy them brand new, actually. I always said when I finally got mine it would have these wheels. I drove to Hull to get them. It was a tight fit. 
 

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

I thought it would be useful to some to do a proper report on what these things I like to run long-ish term. Is it the Shangri-la  "CHAMPAGNE FOR LEMONADE MONEY MOTORING" Mike Brewer and Quentin Wilson once implored us to go and seek out?
I'm probably going to have to do this in two parts. 
 
This is what it looked like this time last year, as I froze to death, desperately getting the salt off.

And now:

I've done the wide-boy thing of buying it new alloys before sorting more pressing issues (like the dented door), but they had better tyres than the Gitis which were brilliant, right up until they SUDDENLY went to shit and made it hard to keep on my side of the road when cornering at anything more vigorous than 5/10s. 
And all old BMWs need lattice alloys in my view. 
So, what has it actually been like to live with? 
I tend to throw this at a garage, and the closest I get to getting my hands dirty on it is washing it. 
I've been using a local-isn BMW specialist (M-tek, in Wellingborough) and can recommend them to anyone running an older BM.
January: 
The first job was to fix the trademark BMW shimmy, which in this case was caused by worn bushes on the brake control arms. The bushes are pressed into the arms, and come as a complete unit - cost to repair - £400, inc parts and labor. They warned me that it "won't be cheap", and I paled expecting at least double that! Problem fixed, car was immediately less wolly to drive and the shimmy has been banished.
April:
Going to Sussex to visit a friend, baking hot day, as it always seems to be weirdly hot in April now. After smugly cruising down the M25, past broken down, much newer cars, the smile was wiped off my face on the A3. The engine cut out in much the same way my 800 did when the fuel pump died. 
I was able to coast down a slip road and crash land outside a farmer's gate. Quick roadside first aid with minimals tools produced no obvious improvement. Big yellow taxi time? 

No, I'm an idiot. When I checked the fuses, I only checked to see if they had blown. The fuel pump fuse is on the "secret" fuse panel behind the boot carpet, kept out of sight because German cars don't break. It was crusted up with verdigris like corrosion. A quick clean, back it went, and we're on the road again. Lesson learned. I still made it for lunch, we just had it at 7pm.

June: 
Service time. Don't ask me what was done, I just told them to do what needed doing. £250. 
July: 
Awful time as my Father in Law passed.  A week later, neckless, hairless, brainless Kia driver forced me off the road, snapping a spring which took a tyre out in the process. I hit some of the WW2 era concrete left over from the old airfields: the irony wasn't lost on me. It happened very close to home, so I limped it  to just outside home.
The car was so close to the ground I couldn't get a jack under it to move the broken bits of spring out and change the wheel. I really wasn't in the mood in the be sorting it out and didn't need the hassle, so booked it in with Redcorn for it to be carted away. 
In the end it was my other half who talked me out of it, because she likes the car as well and wanted a distraction. So who you gonna call? 
It took the poor patrolman over an hour just to jack it up: good thing I didn't attempt it myself, as it probably would have killed me. This was what the spring looked like:
Got it transported to the BMW place for new springs on both sides to be safe, £500. 
Part 2 on the way.

Talking of dumped cars on private land. At my old work back in the mid '90's, a Mitsubishi Lancer (the square one, like the one pictured below) was dumped in the directors car park, in front of the office block. The story goes like this...
MD to Police - 'Someone's dumped a car in our car park, can you come and collect it, it's getting in the way and makes the place look like Steptoe's yard.'
Police to MD - 'Sorry sir, private land innit? Carn't do nufink abart it. But if it was to find it's way on to the road...'
MD to Receptionist - 'Can you put a tannoy out for a forklift driver to give me a ring please?'
15 mins later
MD to Police - 'There's a dumped car on the road outside our office, it's causing an obstruction.'
Police to MD - 'Orl right guv'nor, leave it wiv me.'
later that day
A Scrap man calls into reception - 'The police have asked me to shift that Lancer. Can I leave my card with you in case the owner turns up and asks where it is?'
No one claimed it.

I quite liked these, but they all seemed to disappear in about one month sometime in the '90's.

I lost my password some months ago. While sorting out my old laptop, I found it, alone with some pictures of last year's moronic, ongoing  activities. Enjoy. 
I've not been posting about any of my cars anywhere for a long time - to be honest I've been quite happy just driving them, and haven't really done anything that interesting with them anyway.
14 months ago, a fairly disgusting 605 SRDT came up for grabs on Gumtree in the middle of a pandemic. There was no way to legally view it, so my partner and I bought it blind and had it Shipley'd over, communicating with the seller only via email. 
It was a leap of faith, but if you don't have faith in 90s diesel Peugeots, quite frankly you should give up on life. 
A week later, this was deposited on our driveway. 



It was owned by the same lady its whole life, as the blue V5 was testament too, but I don't think she washed it very often. Odd, as it's a well known fact that old ladies dig car detailing. 



 
 
But still, let us worship at the altar of originality, and praise the holy dealership sticker, clinging on for dear life in the back window. 


Lo,  thou interior may be tidy, if be brown where once was grey. 


First impressions were of a car which drove very well and had been well looked after, which happened to have not moved for quite a long time. A binding calliper at the back was the first sign of a long slumber. During covid I volunteered to do prescription runs for older people in our village, which gave me a chance to actually drive it. Oddly, the air con was still working. 
If it wasn't driven for a couple of days, the battery would go flat. 

Ever have those: "what am doing with my life?" moment?

Thankfully, the '90s battery charger was called upon to rescue the '90s car (and probably '90s battery).


A weeks later I decided it was time to address the binding calliper. It turned out the calliper had rusted onto the disc as one ancient rusty blob. Just as well I threw it the garage who were happy* to take on the challenge** of hellicoiling snapped bolts out and attacking it with a blow torch. Here's some pictures of when I came to bring it some grapes and a get well soon card. 

 
I attempted to MOT it, then both front coils snapped on the ramp. I don't have any pictures, but I counted four pieces on the floor. Had it fixed, after going to NCIS lengths to track down the right coils (it turns out 308 springs will fit) and we passed.
Deep cleaned it , and found it to be quite nice under the ming:



So, what is it? It's an SRDT, which means you get more wood trim, the posh radio and air-con. However, being shod on plastic covers and lined with cloth seats, you, and the outside world are reminded that you're not quite good enough. DT denotes that its a turbo diesel (living up to my user name).
This is the 3rd 605 I've owned, and probably the best. I can see this sticking around for a long time with us, and after a year of ownership its still my favourite in our little fleet.
But it's weird. I've always wanted a phase two, dark blue 605 with cloth seats and wheel trims (I'm aware that that sentence is a portal which allows you to look into my mind, and see just how perverse I really am). Don't ask me why, I just have. 
The amount of time I spend cleaning, polishing, and looking at this thing probably looks a lot like mental illness to the outside world and Asperger's Syndrome to my ever-tolerant partner, but there's nothing better than making a dream come true - even a dream as pedestrian as this one.
 
 
 
 

The very under rated Citroen Synergie wheel trim.

Always loved a 156 on trims

 
These are hot too (although the later curvy ones are pretty nasty)

I MIGHT be there with my 605. Club Peugeot UK have been offered a pitch.

Awww, you'll make me blush.

Same here, but by the same token I've not heard of one individual being compelled to purchase eight in order to get the one they wanted before. Conclusion : Vendor was an atavistic prick. 
 

@TheXUDfiles

I lost my password some months ago. While sorting out my old laptop, I found it, alone with some pictures of last year's moronic, ongoing  activities. Enjoy. 
I've not been posting about any of my cars anywhere for a long time - to be honest I've been quite happy just driving them, and haven't really done anything that interesting with them anyway.
14 months ago, a fairly disgusting 605 SRDT came up for grabs on Gumtree in the middle of a pandemic. There was no way to legally view it, so my partner and I bought it blind and had it Shipley'd over, communicating with the seller only via email. 
It was a leap of faith, but if you don't have faith in 90s diesel Peugeots, quite frankly you should give up on life. 
A week later, this was deposited on our driveway. 



It was owned by the same lady its whole life, as the blue V5 was testament too, but I don't think she washed it very often. Odd, as it's a well known fact that old ladies dig car detailing. 



 
 
But still, let us worship at the altar of originality, and praise the holy dealership sticker, clinging on for dear life in the back window. 


Lo,  thou interior may be tidy, if be brown where once was grey. 


First impressions were of a car which drove very well and had been well looked after, which happened to have not moved for quite a long time. A binding calliper at the back was the first sign of a long slumber. During covid I volunteered to do prescription runs for older people in our village, which gave me a chance to actually drive it. Oddly, the air con was still working. 
If it wasn't driven for a couple of days, the battery would go flat. 

Ever have those: "what am doing with my life?" moment?

Thankfully, the '90s battery charger was called upon to rescue the '90s car (and probably '90s battery).


A weeks later I decided it was time to address the binding calliper. It turned out the calliper had rusted onto the disc as one ancient rusty blob. Just as well I threw it the garage who were happy* to take on the challenge** of hellicoiling snapped bolts out and attacking it with a blow torch. Here's some pictures of when I came to bring it some grapes and a get well soon card. 

 
I attempted to MOT it, then both front coils snapped on the ramp. I don't have any pictures, but I counted four pieces on the floor. Had it fixed, after going to NCIS lengths to track down the right coils (it turns out 308 springs will fit) and we passed.
Deep cleaned it , and found it to be quite nice under the ming:



So, what is it? It's an SRDT, which means you get more wood trim, the posh radio and air-con. However, being shod on plastic covers and lined with cloth seats, you, and the outside world are reminded that you're not quite good enough. DT denotes that its a turbo diesel (living up to my user name).
This is the 3rd 605 I've owned, and probably the best. I can see this sticking around for a long time with us, and after a year of ownership its still my favourite in our little fleet.
But it's weird. I've always wanted a phase two, dark blue 605 with cloth seats and wheel trims (I'm aware that that sentence is a portal which allows you to look into my mind, and see just how perverse I really am). Don't ask me why, I just have. 
The amount of time I spend cleaning, polishing, and looking at this thing probably looks a lot like mental illness to the outside world and Asperger's Syndrome to my ever-tolerant partner, but there's nothing better than making a dream come true - even a dream as pedestrian as this one.
 
 
 
 

I lost my password some months ago. While sorting out my old laptop, I found it, alone with some pictures of last year's moronic, ongoing  activities. Enjoy. 
I've not been posting about any of my cars anywhere for a long time - to be honest I've been quite happy just driving them, and haven't really done anything that interesting with them anyway.
14 months ago, a fairly disgusting 605 SRDT came up for grabs on Gumtree in the middle of a pandemic. There was no way to legally view it, so my partner and I bought it blind and had it Shipley'd over, communicating with the seller only via email. 
It was a leap of faith, but if you don't have faith in 90s diesel Peugeots, quite frankly you should give up on life. 
A week later, this was deposited on our driveway. 



It was owned by the same lady its whole life, as the blue V5 was testament too, but I don't think she washed it very often. Odd, as it's a well known fact that old ladies dig car detailing. 



 
 
But still, let us worship at the altar of originality, and praise the holy dealership sticker, clinging on for dear life in the back window. 


Lo,  thou interior may be tidy, if be brown where once was grey. 


First impressions were of a car which drove very well and had been well looked after, which happened to have not moved for quite a long time. A binding calliper at the back was the first sign of a long slumber. During covid I volunteered to do prescription runs for older people in our village, which gave me a chance to actually drive it. Oddly, the air con was still working. 
If it wasn't driven for a couple of days, the battery would go flat. 

Ever have those: "what am doing with my life?" moment?

Thankfully, the '90s battery charger was called upon to rescue the '90s car (and probably '90s battery).


A weeks later I decided it was time to address the binding calliper. It turned out the calliper had rusted onto the disc as one ancient rusty blob. Just as well I threw it the garage who were happy* to take on the challenge** of hellicoiling snapped bolts out and attacking it with a blow torch. Here's some pictures of when I came to bring it some grapes and a get well soon card. 

 
I attempted to MOT it, then both front coils snapped on the ramp. I don't have any pictures, but I counted four pieces on the floor. Had it fixed, after going to NCIS lengths to track down the right coils (it turns out 308 springs will fit) and we passed.
Deep cleaned it , and found it to be quite nice under the ming:



So, what is it? It's an SRDT, which means you get more wood trim, the posh radio and air-con. However, being shod on plastic covers and lined with cloth seats, you, and the outside world are reminded that you're not quite good enough. DT denotes that its a turbo diesel (living up to my user name).
This is the 3rd 605 I've owned, and probably the best. I can see this sticking around for a long time with us, and after a year of ownership its still my favourite in our little fleet.
But it's weird. I've always wanted a phase two, dark blue 605 with cloth seats and wheel trims (I'm aware that that sentence is a portal which allows you to look into my mind, and see just how perverse I really am). Don't ask me why, I just have. 
The amount of time I spend cleaning, polishing, and looking at this thing probably looks a lot like mental illness to the outside world and Asperger's Syndrome to my ever-tolerant partner, but there's nothing better than making a dream come true - even a dream as pedestrian as this one.
 
 
 
 

I lost my password some months ago. While sorting out my old laptop, I found it, alone with some pictures of last year's moronic, ongoing  activities. Enjoy. 
I've not been posting about any of my cars anywhere for a long time - to be honest I've been quite happy just driving them, and haven't really done anything that interesting with them anyway.
14 months ago, a fairly disgusting 605 SRDT came up for grabs on Gumtree in the middle of a pandemic. There was no way to legally view it, so my partner and I bought it blind and had it Shipley'd over, communicating with the seller only via email. 
It was a leap of faith, but if you don't have faith in 90s diesel Peugeots, quite frankly you should give up on life. 
A week later, this was deposited on our driveway. 



It was owned by the same lady its whole life, as the blue V5 was testament too, but I don't think she washed it very often. Odd, as it's a well known fact that old ladies dig car detailing. 



 
 
But still, let us worship at the altar of originality, and praise the holy dealership sticker, clinging on for dear life in the back window. 


Lo,  thou interior may be tidy, if be brown where once was grey. 


First impressions were of a car which drove very well and had been well looked after, which happened to have not moved for quite a long time. A binding calliper at the back was the first sign of a long slumber. During covid I volunteered to do prescription runs for older people in our village, which gave me a chance to actually drive it. Oddly, the air con was still working. 
If it wasn't driven for a couple of days, the battery would go flat. 

Ever have those: "what am doing with my life?" moment?

Thankfully, the '90s battery charger was called upon to rescue the '90s car (and probably '90s battery).


A weeks later I decided it was time to address the binding calliper. It turned out the calliper had rusted onto the disc as one ancient rusty blob. Just as well I threw it the garage who were happy* to take on the challenge** of hellicoiling snapped bolts out and attacking it with a blow torch. Here's some pictures of when I came to bring it some grapes and a get well soon card. 

 
I attempted to MOT it, then both front coils snapped on the ramp. I don't have any pictures, but I counted four pieces on the floor. Had it fixed, after going to NCIS lengths to track down the right coils (it turns out 308 springs will fit) and we passed.
Deep cleaned it , and found it to be quite nice under the ming:



So, what is it? It's an SRDT, which means you get more wood trim, the posh radio and air-con. However, being shod on plastic covers and lined with cloth seats, you, and the outside world are reminded that you're not quite good enough. DT denotes that its a turbo diesel (living up to my user name).
This is the 3rd 605 I've owned, and probably the best. I can see this sticking around for a long time with us, and after a year of ownership its still my favourite in our little fleet.
But it's weird. I've always wanted a phase two, dark blue 605 with cloth seats and wheel trims (I'm aware that that sentence is a portal which allows you to look into my mind, and see just how perverse I really am). Don't ask me why, I just have. 
The amount of time I spend cleaning, polishing, and looking at this thing probably looks a lot like mental illness to the outside world and Asperger's Syndrome to my ever-tolerant partner, but there's nothing better than making a dream come true - even a dream as pedestrian as this one.