Motorplan History

July 21, 2014, 3:40 am

≫ Next: Warning light

≪ Previous: EJX Autos

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Hi All,

Looking for historical info on vehicle Im interested in purchasing.

Have called BMW SA and dealer, and the repair centre where a repair was carried out but they say they can't see any detail on it.

Can anyone assist me with this please?

Much Thanks,

Darren

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Warning light

July 21, 2014, 4:37 am

≫ Next: New BMW owner- M135

≪ Previous: Motorplan History

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Hi all

I got this warning light while on my eay home last week.


I do not have an obd tool to check the codes. Does anyone know what this sign could mean?

Sent from my GT-I9500 using Tapatalk

New BMW owner- M135

July 21, 2014, 5:56 am

≫ Next: Bluetooth & SAT/NAV for E70 needed

≪ Previous: Warning light

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Hi guys,

I have recently purchased a 2013 M135 manual 3 door in white.
Coming from owning 9 vag cars over the years, I must say this car is something special. Its a capable all rounder with a lot of grunt.

I have already installed jb4 and a downpipe. Still researching and looking at other mods.

Hope to meet some of the members and learn a little more about BMW.

Pics to follow soon.

Bluetooth & SAT/NAV for E70 needed

July 21, 2014, 7:49 am

≫ Next: Employment opportunity - AA - Business Analyst

≪ Previous: New BMW owner- M135

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Hi

I have a standard E70 X5 iDrive that only has PDC.

Are there bluetooth and SAT/NAV modules that I can purchase to get this functionality?

If so, where can I purchase these modules and who installs it?

Employment opportunity - AA - Business Analyst

July 21, 2014, 8:40 am

≫ Next: New(ish) Guy

≪ Previous: Bluetooth & SAT/NAV for E70 needed

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Hi guys,

I know of an opportunity for a Business Analyst with 5 or more years experience, position is in JHB and is affirmative action.

If you or anyone you know might be interested, please pm me your details and I will forward on.

D

New(ish) Guy

July 21, 2014, 11:16 am

≫ Next: E90 Rear Tail lights...

≪ Previous: Employment opportunity - AA - Business Analyst

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Hey guys, thought I'd introduce myself... Registered an account ages ago but have been a lurker of note. Been a BMW owner for the last year, and am a recovering Alfisti.

From the mother city, & currently own a 320i E90, and an Alfa GTV 2.0 (cira 1982) which I don't have the heart to part with.

I'm quite into detailing, and spend a couple of hours each week keeping my car clean...however it's black and stays that way for all of 5mins.

E90 Rear Tail lights...

July 21, 2014, 1:42 pm

≫ Next: E46 Suspension Refresh Kits

≪ Previous: New(ish) Guy

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Hi Guys
I have 5 sets of these lights arriving 27 August 2014
Pre-orders will be taken.
They have the error canceling unit and complete inner and outter

R4600.00

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E90

E46 Suspension Refresh Kits

July 21, 2014, 10:35 pm

≫ Next: Front Bumper Respray

≪ Previous: E90 Rear Tail lights...

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My car is reaching the 160 00km mark. I can heard all kinds of squeaks and rattles. I need to replace the tires soon and I need to replace the shocks as well(and hopefully I can do the springs as well). So I was thinking while everything is stripped I might as well replace all the old worn rubber bits and what not, so that the car can feel like new, and then I know that those parts are sorted for the next few years.

Does anyone in SA do kits like ECS Tuning where you are supplied with all the necessary bits to "refresh" the suspension. I know of Axis Engineering where I can get all the bushes, dampers and springs. But what I like about this kit is that you get everything you need to the job from one place.

And the price seems reasonable to me for this kit?

LINK

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Front Bumper Respray

July 22, 2014, 12:47 am

≫ Next: Design flaw with Apple

≪ Previous: E46 Suspension Refresh Kits

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Hi Guys,

I know this topic has been covered but I cannot seem to find any relevant answers....

Anybody know of a decent spray shop in Midrand or Kyalami. I need to respray the front bumpers on two of the cars so hoping for a good group discount

I have tried dent doctor in Randburg but it was almost 5 k for just a respray, with no physical damage to the bumper (Alpine White)...

So the 2 questions:

1. Going rate for a front bumper respray (Ibis White on Audi and Alpine White on a BMW)
2. Anyone highly recommended around Kyalami or Midrand?

Thanks.

Design flaw with Apple

July 22, 2014, 1:05 am

≫ Next: New to BMWFanatics

≪ Previous: Front Bumper Respray

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Anyone experienced issues with their Macbook pro?

My 15 inch 3 y.o Mackbook pro decided to self destruct. This is actually the second macbook pro of mine in the space of 2 months that went this way... The first one had the trackpad pop up from expansion of the case and I thought it may have been abuse on my part so didnt bother... Only to find 2 months later it happens again to my other machine (pics below)...

So basically there is are design issues with these laptops, which seem to give them a 3 year lifespan before they go kaboom.... From very minimal browsing it seems that the batteries have an expansion issues and its up to the user to replace them after a stipulated number of charge cycles.... Just sounds like crap design to me...

Really disappointing considering I'm on my third macbook now... If only I had known earlier...

New to BMWFanatics

July 22, 2014, 1:29 am

≫ Next: I got some new shoes

≪ Previous: Design flaw with Apple

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Hi all

What a wonderful forum you have. Can't believe I only discovered it now.

Bought my 1996 E36 328i cabriolet in 2001. Have had it ever since. I don't drive her much, keep her in a garage and generally try look after her. She is my baby and has given me so many years of motoring pleasure, not to mention many stunning open top cruises... I really love my car.

She is long off motorplan ;-) and in the last year or two, some small niggles are starting to show, which I am hoping to find cost effective solutions for. Not sure where would be the appropriate spot to post that?

I am not a mechanical type but I do appreciate good engineering and quality products.

I am based in Johannesburg and am keen to share my experiences and learn from the forum members.

Here are two pictures. Hope they come out okay

I got some new shoes

July 22, 2014, 1:29 am

≫ Next: Scirocco GTS detailed by Etiennè

≪ Previous: New to BMWFanatics

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Let me know what you guys think !!!!!!

Scirocco GTS detailed by Etiennè

July 22, 2014, 2:28 am

≫ Next: Cape traffic cop dragged by dragster

≪ Previous: I got some new shoes

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I thought I would post Etienne's detail of the Scirocco that he detailed using Menzerna and finished off with Fusso Dark!

Deranged_9n3 Wrote:So with a detail coming up on Friday the 18th of July, I drove out to Crazy Detailer on the 17th to pickup my new goodies. As usual, amazing service from them. They did not have Menz fg400 at the shop, I explained to them that Thursday is the latest to get my products ..... About 50mins later and I got confirmation that my order is ready for pickup :troll:



My products. Including the all new Soft99 Dark Fusso :cool:

I actually bought the Fusso to test on my Polo, but with the upcoming detail surprising me a bit I decided to use it on this Scirocco GTS. For some reason I thought the car I was going to detail would be white :oops: The car is almost brand new with only 2xxx km's on the clock atm. Paintwork didn't look too bad, minor swirl marks here and there but nothing major. The GT stripe stickers was another story though :eek: See pics below

Upon Arrival
















I did a small test spot with Menz AIO Followed by the Soft99 and this was the result

Before


After


Menz AIO doesn't really cut all that much so don't expect to loose your swirl marks from the AIO polish, esp not on a VAG clearcoat. So you can clearly see that the Soft99 has decent filling ability :cool: let's get on with the detail.

Ps. Paint wasn't corrected with the AIO, I only did the small test spot with AIO

After Pics

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This was only an Exterior detail hence me not having interior or engine bay pics On Sunday Ruan popped in and I couldn't resist taking the Roc out and snapping up a pic :oops:



The Roc is still with me atm :mad: so yesterday I pulled it out of the garage, full of dust from the weekend and I took the compressor and literally blew all the dust off the car without touching the paint once :cool: Oh and a beading shot after pouring half a glass of water onto the paint



I have a video of the beading too, if someone would like to see it, I can't upload vids but I can upload onto dropbox......

^Love the beading shot in the last pic. Tight and upright ... the way it should be.

Cape traffic cop dragged by dragster

July 22, 2014, 4:30 am

≫ Next: Ownership experience: E90 M3

≪ Previous: Scirocco GTS detailed by Etiennè

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Cape Town - A city traffic officer was dragged behind a vehicle while trying to remove the car keys of a drag-racer he had chased down and stopped in Mitchells Plain. .........

http://www.iol.co.za/motoring/industry-n...85Kuk2KCUl

Ownership experience: E90 M3

July 22, 2014, 5:52 am

≫ Next: Drivers license renewal ~ Card type

≪ Previous: Cape traffic cop dragged by dragster

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So after having the pleasure of owning a 2011 E90 M3 for a few years, I thought I would share my ownership experience to possibly help those considering buying one into the future.

Interior
Interior is typical of BMW’s clinical approach to interior design. High quality of materials used, and felt well put together. Never experienced any rattles per se. Not many clues that you are in an M car until you catch sight of the tachometer and speedometer - if you prefer your cars being understated then this is a plus. Has a nice solidity to the doors when closing when compared to the newer F30 series where the weight savings are evident and the doors “feel” lighter. It was easy enough to find a comfortable driving position but I felt that the seats could be more supportive in certain areas. The Novillo leather used is “soft” and while the soft leather does enhance the feel of the interior, I had to take special care to ensure the leather remained blemish free. I have seen many with worn/scuffed leather on the seat bolsters due to daily wear and tear.
Mine had the Harmon Kardon sound option fitted which offered decent sound quality.

Exterior
I personally like my cars with a subdued look (wolf in sheep’s clothing type) so the exterior styling of the sedan suited my needs perfectly. Combined with the 19” competition wheels, lowered ride height, bonnet power bulge, and the flared/hunkered/squat (for the lack of better descriptors) look of the rear fenders made the car stand-out. I always approached the car with admiring glances and often noticed others as well…there was just “something” that the car had that made even non-petrol heads take notice.

Performance
Have to start off by saying that this is one sweet motor. Sure there are cars with motors that make more power and torque using more displacement but this S54 is something special. If you love high revving motors then you will definitely appreciate and enjoy this. If not don’t consider an M3. There is much to appreciate regarding the engineering effort that allows this engine to remain crisp and balanced right through to maximum revs. Induction and engine noise is intoxicating and I never felt the need to upgrade the exhaust since the sound from up front was more than enough for me. The way the S65 makes it power at the upper end of the rpm range is extraordinary….it just seems to love chasing the redline and on its way there lighting up the red shift lights with aplomb. One characteristic which made the M special was on cold start and drive, the car would feel lumpy and almost constrained (sort of like holding the leash tight on a savage dog)…in a way begging for the engine oil to get up to operating temperature quickly so that you could explore the full range of rpms on offer….
The DCT gearbox is great and works extremely well in all situations (have never driven a Porsche PDK which seems to be the bench mark so can’t compare). Found myself often just downshifting to a lower gear to listen to the engine acoustics combined with the speed of the gear shift. Manual mode gives you full control and with traction fully off one additional shift speed setting. Thinking about it, I drove on manual mode probably 80% of the time. Launch control mode can definitely be improved (not sure if BMW has changed this with the new M3/4) - I think it is complicated (vs DSG) and only activates on a level surface. Even though the launch rpm can be adjusted down to 4000rpm, unless you are on a road/track with good surface traction you end up just burning out the rear rubber.
As an indication of comparable performance in a straight line, at the coast my brother in his Lumina SSV (headers with exhaust + intake + software) runs neck and neck repetitively with the M from a rolling start all the way to <200km/h. From a dead start the M walks away due to the dct gearbox and gearing. Note to prospective buyers, don’t expect to blow away hot hatches up at the reef. You may be disappointed and I have to say this (having owned/own turbocharged hatchbacks) that the performance gap to a lightly modified (software + decat) turbo car up at the reef at lower speeds (<120 km/h) is small. However, at higher speeds the V8 really gets going with it still feeling rock solid and stable on the road at 260km/h.
Regarding the torque of the S65, not going to say much except that I never had a problem with a lack of torque. I suppose that for me this wasn’t an issue since I always drove the car in the correct gear when looking to extract maximum performance.
Fuel wise, as an indication on the open road: trips to Durban (570km, around 4h45min incl. a stop for fuel etc. to give an idea of speed) would yield 10.4 l/100km down and about 11 l/100km up.

Handling
This is where I had the most fun and enjoyment with my car. Mine didn’t have m-dynamic so no intermediate traction setting to assist with controlling over-steer. ESP was either on or off. Needless to say the first time I switched it off and was too aggressive with the throttle ended with me facing the opposite direction in the blink of an eye. It is extremely easy to get the back end to break traction due to the sensitivity and response of the throttle. With experience though it gave me the most thrills and adrenalin rush to switch off the traction and due to the overall balance of the car be able to hold a power slide. Make no mistake though, with traction fully off this car can be a handful for drivers less experienced with rear wheel drive. In power mode, steering feel is nice and “meaty” and steering response is quick with more than sufficient steering feedback.

Ride comfort
My car had the competition package fitted as standard (yes, you do get sedans with the competition pack). With the adjustable dampers in comfort and with the 10mm lower ride height, ride comfort was acceptable and comparable stiffness wise to a Gti but would good bump absorption and compliance. Hardly ever used the sport setting on the EDC due to the condition of our roads but one could easily feel the difference switching between the modes. To my surprise, it also had sufficient ground clearance and I never had any issues with touching over speed humps or scraping on driveway entrances.

Reliability
Sold the car at a tick over 30000km. During this period I had no reliability concerns or issues with the car. It went in for its obligatory oil services, brake fluid change and a battery change since it wasn’t being used on a daily basis for a period. During my ownership, I did one oil top-up just to maintain full oil level. Car felt rock solid at all times and never once skipped a beat.

So that’s my story….have to say I was extremely sad to see it go but hopefully it will continue to provide enough thrills and an engaging drive for a long time into the future…

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Drivers license renewal ~ Card type

July 22, 2014, 5:54 am

≫ Next: F30 Handbrake

≪ Previous: Ownership experience: E90 M3

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Hey there guys,
Anyone know what the driver's license renewal cost these day.
Found out mine was expired for about 6 months after Metro pulled me over.

Also what do I need to renew this
Gonna swing by them in the morning would like a heads up on what to expect

Thanks guys

F30 Handbrake

July 22, 2014, 7:04 am

≫ Next: PC Upgrade

≪ Previous: Drivers license renewal ~ Card type

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Please tell me if this is normal on my car when I put it in park and apply the hand brake the car moves a bit which is worrying if there is a wall ahead of me. I am not sure if this is normal or the hand brake needs to be adjusted its an automatic transmission.

PC Upgrade

July 22, 2014, 7:36 am

≫ Next: Warm up procedure E36 M3

≪ Previous: F30 Handbrake

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Howsit guys. So I think it's that time again where I think my Desktop PC could do with an upgrade. I'm finding Photoshop CS6 can't handle a lot of the large RAW files that I work with from my D7100. I can maybe batch process around 10-15 files at a time until it crashes. My desktop is primarily used for photo storage and editing as well as media streaming and browsing. I'm not that into gaming. I'm thinking of maybe building it up bit by bit. I've lost track with what's what in terms of new tech.

That said, what are your thoughts on these components to get me started? Please do recommend alternative components. One thing that is a must though, is PCI slots for my sound card. Will definitely add an SSD and bigger HDD for storage.

http://www.wootware.co.za/asus-z97-a-int...board.html

http://www.wootware.co.za/intel-i5-4690k...p-cpu.html

http://www.wootware.co.za/kingston-hx318...emory.html

Or would a bundled kit like this be better?

http://www.evetech.co.za/PC-Hardware/int...t-107.aspx

http://www.evetech.co.za/PC-Hardware/cor...t-435.aspx

And this case for a fresher look.

http://www.evetech.co.za/PC-Hardware/cor...e-193.aspx

Would these setups be overkill for my needs? I figure that if the setup can handle gaming then it should be more than capable for my needs and also future proofing.

Warm up procedure E36 M3

July 23, 2014, 12:17 am

≫ Next: Hit and run

≪ Previous: PC Upgrade

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I'm from the old school and was taught to let a car idle in order to get the oil warm and well dispersed before driving. Since I hardly drive my E36 M3 I start the car everyday and let it idle for about ten minutes or so.

My cousin has since told me that this is actually bad for a M engine and that I should start and drive the car warm.

Would this not increase the risk of spinning a shell or am I being paranoid? How do you guys warm up your E36 M?

Hit and run

July 23, 2014, 1:44 am

≫ Next: DVD while driving

≪ Previous: Warm up procedure E36 M3

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So I was a victim of a hit and run this morning. Sitting in traffic. The doos in front of me decides to make a U-turn. Reverses, full speed, Into me. I get out to assess the damage. Bumper, bonnet buggered. I tune the oke, lets move out of the way as we are on a busy road, on an incline. We can take each other's details down on the side road. Jump into the car, turn into side road and the asswipe makes a getaway. Didn't get his details or even take a pic of his car. I tried to give chase but I was held up by traffic.

Honestly can't believe there are people out there like this I guess I am feeling more of an idiot for letting him get away.

Ah well, what goes around comes around.