***** Motors chat - round 12 *****

MisterDrak

BMW 5 Series Question, for the experts out there.

Have a G30 5 Series M sport, and driving up from Cork on Sunday morning, I unfortunately hit a crow. The left side Kidney grill (looking head on) is broken.

To explain in more detail the grill as I see it is made of 2 parts, the front facing grill with 2 vertical "slats" is broken, but also one of the "slats" of the active grill that sits behind.

I see that amazon / ebay have several purchase options for the front facing grill (€100 odd), however there is nothing i can find for the active grill replacement...

Anyone had similar issues? Any advice ?

Do i have to just head up to Joe Duffy and take the pain ?

job seeker

The brother won a 87 twin cam on one of them raffle competitions on bookface..

CIP4

Anyone recommend a decent place to refurb diamond cut alloys ideally located in the midlands/south east as opposed to Dublin/Cork ?

wotzgoingon

job seeker wrote: »

The brother won a 87 twin cam on one of them reffel competitions.

Not bad. Is he keeping it or selling it? You would get between €15k and up for one of them depending on condition.

job seeker

wotzgoingon wrote: »

Not bad. Is he keeping it or selling it? You would get between €15k and up for one of them depending on condition.

I'm not too sure! He's in the hospital at the moment in Galway, he has to get a scan for his heart as he may need surgery in the coming days. So, he hasn't said much about the car yet! He's only 21 I don't think he'll get insured on it and he has bought an 02 felt spec golf recently. So he was intending in getting that on the road. I was thinking it would be about 15k alright.

Not sure where I was this morning, exactly, somewhere around the Ballycoolin area, but this morning at 5.20am, with the roads practically desserted and no one around for miles... I seen two Focus', going the same direction, manage to hit each other on a roundabout. :rolleyes:

Truckermal

Deleted User wrote: »

Not sure where I was this morning, exactly, somewhere around the Ballycoolin area, but this morning at 5.20am, with the roads practically desserted and no one around for miles... I seen two Focus', going the same direction, manage to hit each other on a roundabout. :rolleyes:

Did you also see a Lexus IS in front of them?

whippet

I started clearing out my late dads garage last weekend - he has an Aladdin'a cave of tool and stuff. and a couple of old cars (one vintage which we are looking at getting in to proper storage for restoration) but .. his last car - 1995 BMW 518i E34 - which was parked in there in 2004 and left. We stuck a battery in it and it turned first time and we were able to drive it around to the other side of the house.

The body work is almost immaculate - a couple of small spots on it .. and the interior looked perfect. I know its absolutly valueless but even the wheels on it are immaculate

https://www.alloywheelsdirect.net/bmw_alloy_wheels/5_series_e34_saloon_alloys/15_bmw_5_wheel_1552

only 60,000 miles on the clock

James Bond Junior

whippet wrote: »

I started clearing out my late dads garage last weekend - he has an Aladdin'a cave of tool and stuff. and a couple of old cars (one vintage which we are looking at getting in to proper storage for restoration) but .. his last car - 1994 BMW 518i E34 - which was parked in there in 2004 and left. We stuck a battery in it and it turned first time and we were able to drive it around to the other side of the house.

The body work is almost immaculate - a couple of small spots on it .. and the interior looked perfect. I know its absolutly valueless but even the wheels on it are immaculate

https://www.alloywheelsdirect.net/bmw_alloy_wheels/5_series_e34_saloon_alloys/15_bmw_5_wheel_1552

only 60,000 miles on the clock

Any pics? Would you sell it?

whippet

James Bond Junior wrote: »

Any pics? Would you sell it?

I’ll see if I can did out a pic .. as much as nostalgia would make me want to hold on to it I know I’d never do anything with it ... and there is a huge complication in that it as my dad died intestate and my mam has dementia with no enduring power of attorney over her we are really restricted in anything we can do with their assets .. regardless of how small.

** lesson there is get stuff like Wills / enduring POA sorted early in life !

whippet

Poor pics .. I’ll be out there again next week and I’ll dig a little deeper

punisher5112

Hits 30 very soon, be a great keeper.
Keep it garaged if possible.

whippet

punisher5112 wrote: »

Hits 30 very soon, be a great keeper.
Keep it garaged if possible.

I can keep it in the same garage it has been in for the last 16 years which has kept it dry so far !!

I also found a set of my old original Alpina Sofline 17" Alloys that were left in there. Need a total refurb and the centre caps are missing as they were the victim of a unsuccessful theft along time ago. If anyone was interested i can sell them as they are mine !!

ba_barabus

whippet wrote: »

Poor pics .. I’ll be out there again next week and I’ll dig a little deeper

I love those E34s. Sorry to hear about your mum and dad

James Bond Junior

Sorry to hear about the circumstances. Don't scrap it no matter what you do. E34 shells alone will be worth something to someone alone.

whippet

as legally I can't sell it - i might just keep it dry, secure and when 2025 rolls around it could be a quirky second car

punisher5112

whippet wrote: »

as legally I can't sell it - i might just keep it dry, secure and when 2025 rolls around it could be a quirky second car

Exactly what I'd do..... The dirt is most likely protecting the paint at this stage....

Would be amazing detailed.....

wotzgoingon

It has completely the wrong engine though so do not know what people think is so special about it. Thing about BMW's is you need at least a 2.5 at a minimum and even bigger is better again.

MetzgerMeister

wotzgoingon wrote: »

It has completely the wrong engine though so do not know what people think is so special about it. Thing about BMW's is you need at least a 2.5 at a minimum and even bigger is better again.

Nothing wrong with an E34 518i when it's in as good condition as that. Sure, a 525i would be more sought after but that doesn't take away from that 518i.

whippet

wotzgoingon wrote: »

It has completely the wrong engine though so do not know what people think is so special about it. Thing about BMW's is you need at least a 2.5 at a minimum and even bigger is better again.

It is what it is .. no leather, manual and not a great colour .. however I can see the appeal .. just because it’s original .. original toolkit, manuals, service history, first aid kit etc.

For the vast majority of people with 30 year old cars the engine isn’t the biggest draw unless it’s supposed to be a performance motor

James Bond Junior

whippet wrote: »

It is what it is .. no leather, manual and not a great colour .. however I can see the appeal .. just because it’s original .. original toolkit, manuals, service history, first aid kit etc.

For the vast majority of people with 30 year old cars the engine isn’t the biggest draw unless it’s supposed to be a performance motor

Exactly the reason I'd like it.

bazz26

That E34 is far from worthless. It might be a modest 518i but they are still sought after even as project cars. I don't think you would have any shortage of suitors if you decided to part with it.

Midnight_EG

E34 525i was my introduction to BMW ownership in 2015, and what a car it was. Late registered 96 M sport, with full blue leather interior, everything from the carpet to the dash to the doorcards were blue and it was lovely! Tinworm got her, so I absolutely wrecked it nightly instead

James Bond Junior

bazz26 wrote: »

That E34 is far from worthless. It might be a modest 518i but they are still sought after even as project cars. I don't think you would have any shortage of suitors if you decided to part with it.

I asked first!

Truckermal

Truckermal wrote: »

Did you also see a Lexus IS in front of them?

I'm not sure if that's a joke that went over my head or not, but I didn't notice a Lexus in front.

Also, has anyone managed to get in touch with the motor tax crowd? They won't answer phones (because of covid :rolleyes: ) and haven't replied to my email from a week ago at this stage.

wotzgoingon

Deleted User wrote: »

I'm not sure if that's a joke that went over my head or not, but I didn't notice a Lexus in front.

Some fella on here had a Lexus and posted how a focus was driving real close to him and according to him they were doing it to check out his car because it was a Lexus and he thinks they never seen one before.

User1998

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Also, has anyone managed to get in touch with the motor tax crowd? They won't answer phones (because of covid :rolleyes: ) and haven't replied to my email from a week ago at this stage.

They ignored my email too and its been about 3 weeks

Leonard Hofstadter

That E34 has the makings of a great car underneath. Very rare to see one as original as that. Sorry to hear about the circumstances.

You'll have no trouble shifting it if that is ultimately what you decide to do.

Truckermal

wotzgoingon wrote: »

Some fella on here had a Lexus and posted how a focus was driving real close to him and according to him they were doing it to check out his car because it was a Lexus and he thinks they never seen one before.

I thought they were trying to listen to his Mark Levinson???:pac:

Actually after having a ML system the Bose beats it hands down!

James Bond Junior

Truckermal wrote: »

I thought they were trying to listen to his Mark Levinson???:pac:

Actually after having a ML system the Bose beats it hands down!

Really? I had an 07 A3 with Bose years ago and herself had an 06 A3 with the standard system at the same time and there was shag all difference between them.

colm_mcm

Truckermal wrote: »

I thought they were trying to listen to his Mark Levinson???:pac:

Actually after having a ML system the Bose beats it hands down!

Fun fact. Mark Levinson was married to the actress that played Samantha in Sex and the City.

eljono

When I was buying my GTI I had a test-loan of one over a weekend that had the upgraded Dynaudio sound system. I was not impressed, don't know if there was something wrong with the loan car I had, but thought the sound quality was a bit rubbish if I'm being blunt.

I ended up buying a car with the standard sound system and it's perfect; decent sound quality and to my ears, actually better than the Dynaudio system in the loan car.

bazz26

The upgrade Harman Kardon loud speaker system in BMWs is fairly good when it works. My H K amp in the boot fried itself a few months back and I'm hopefully getting a second hand one fitted in the next month or two. BMW want €1500 + vat for a new one. Needs to be coded too.

Truckermal

James Bond Junior wrote: »

Really? I had an 07 A3 with Bose years ago and herself had an 06 A3 with the standard system at the same time and there was shag all difference between them.

Definitely have a A6 with Bose and it's fantastic, in saying that I had a GS 300 without the ML and that was brilliant too..

Tazzimus

Bose can be very hit and miss I find.
The Mazda has the Bose system in it and I've already had to replace the amp and two of the ****ty paper speakers.
I'm actually contemplating getting some decent 2 Ohm speakers to replace them. Sound is also very bass heavy most of the time.

vintagevrs

I'd say it's hit and miss what car the system is in and how poor the base system is to make the premium a bigger step in quality.

BMW base systems I always found pretty poor.

I found the Mk7 Golf base system was grand, but never heard the Dyna audio or whatever it's called. Typically with this sort of stuff too people that spec it will swear by it, maybe because it's good or because they don't want to tell themselves they spent 2k on fancy speakers for their car that didn't make much difference.

vintagevrs

Yeah, I don't drive the Alhambra too much but lately was thinking the sound was really really poor in it. Me thinking it was because I'm used to my own one. Turned out the fader and balance were set to just the driver speaker....

Considering I didn't cop only one speaker was only working for so long says alot.

Was grand then

PsychoPete

Truckermal wrote: »

Definitely have a A6 with Bose and it's fantastic, in saying that I had a GS 300 without the ML and that was brilliant too..

I've an Audi with Bang & Olfusen, I don't know if I'm just used to it but it doesn't sound like anything special to me

I've been in a load of different cars, and I find that citroen/peugeot seem to have much superior sound systems to other brands, from the factory by default (ie; not upgraded sound system or anything).

Moving from a Citroen to a Ford, in terms of audio quality, was a wake up call as to just how good the citroen was. Have always found peugeot/citroen to be fairly good in the audio department, for no obvious reason. And never really hear anyone mention it either.

CIP4

My parents bought a B9 A4 2.0TDI 150 S-Tronic. I drove it during the week. I am not a fan of Automatics but the gearbox works well with that engine and makes it very quiet for a diesel as it is constantly at such low revs. Seems plenty quick enough for the type of car it is as the B9 is a lot lighter than the B8.

User1998

User1998 wrote: »

They ignored my email too and its been about 3 weeks

Any word yet? It's fcuking ridiculus that they have just closed their customer service. Any out of the ordinary issue, and you can't get it dealt with :mad:


Not answering the phones due to covid. :rolleyes: Such a bunch of lazy bastards.

CIP4

Deleted User wrote: »

Any word yet? It's fcuking ridiculus that they have just closed their customer service. Any out of the ordinary issue, and you can't get it dealt with :mad:


Not answering the phones due to covid. :rolleyes: Such a bunch of lazy bastards.

Are the tax offices not back open can you not go there in person ?

wotzgoingon

Deleted User wrote: »

Any word yet? It's fcuking ridiculus that they have just closed their customer service. Any out of the ordinary issue, and you can't get it dealt with :mad:


Not answering the phones due to covid. :rolleyes: Such a bunch of lazy bastards.

Did you get back to the guy who sold you the car and ask did he send it off yet?

Check on motortax website if there was any change in ownership.

MetzgerMeister

I had the Bose system in my RX8 and 6 MPS. Both sounded great. Same goes for the Harmon Kardon in my 330d.

I always use Prodigy's Breathe and Rammstein's Rein Raus to set up equalizers

wotzgoingon

wotzgoingon wrote: »

Did you get back to the guy who sold you the car and ask did he send it off yet?

Check on motortax website if there was any change in ownership.

Said he sent it off, but presumably went missing and has been sketchy about it since. I rang the Gardai to ask is it stolen, they said no, it's grand. I asked yer man to apply for a replacement and he said no bother, but nothing since.


According to this (link and quote below) there's a form you can get that allows you to do the whole process yourself, and i can just skip over yer man and cut him out altogether, but the morons that work in the tax office decided to close up shop, and never thought to make such forms available to download :rolleyes:


I just want to get it over and done. I've been working so can't get to my local motor tax office, but i rang them a load of times and no one answers there, either. The seller clearly has no interest in pursuing it and it seems difficult to force him to. All I can think of is, as mentioned before here, take the car off my eflow account and take a trip across the m50. But surely he could just nominate me as the driver of the car for the journey, so im back to square one.

https://smartcpr.ie/replacement-log-book/ wrote:

Firstly, you will not find the form you need on the internet nor on the motor tax or revenue site... So I ended up phoning the Department of Transport in Shannon... She told me that the form I needed to fill in was a “Declaration By Person Acquiring Motor Vehicle” and she would post it to me immediately.

colm_mcm

Isn’t it this form?

https://www.dublincity.ie/sites/default/files/content/RoadsandTraffic/MotorTax/Documents/STATUTORY%20DECLARATION.pdf

James Bond Junior

Best sound system I had in a car was the 10 speaker Dolby Pro Logic Surround sound in my old Volvo. I reckon it was a press car or something as it literally had every option ticked including a built in phone in the centre console, pop up nav etc.

ba_barabus

colm_mcm wrote: »

Isn’t it this form?

https://www.dublincity.ie/sites/default/files/content/RoadsandTraffic/MotorTax/Documents/STATUTORY%20DECLARATION.pdf

No. It's very similar but they won't accept that one.

In my case I was able to contact them by phone and speak to them but right now I'd imagine it's a case of send them an email with the relevant details, car reg, make model, date of purchase and ask for them to return the Statutory Declaration form.

I had meant to scan it and post it here when I had it but I forgot

Hal1