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Amusing "breakdown" this morning
NS Dev - 20/9/07 at 05:44 PM

Getting to quite like my "new" E32 7 series beemer, for a 4 litre v8 with near on 300hp it sips surprisingly lightly, averaging 24mpg even with my lead foot.

Unfortunately pulling up my road this morning I flicked the wipers on and after 3 wipes the passenger side wiper decided it would rather do a spot of gardening, and catapulted off into a garden!!!

Rescued it but it has fatigue failed near the nut so just been trying to order a pair off a breaker on ebay!!!

Amused me, just lucky it was the nearside one as it was peeing it down!!!

snapper - 20/9/07 at 05:48 PM

300bhp through the wipers
There just mad properly

blakep82 - 20/9/07 at 06:06 PM

try www.partsgateway.co.uk or .com

jambojeef - 20/9/07 at 06:22 PM

Quarry Motors.

For BMW parts they are the guys - got all my e34 and now e39 bits through them.

Not that expensive given that they are so efficient at communicating and getting the part out to you.

TGR-ECOSSE - 20/9/07 at 06:26 PM

You were lucky,when i bought my e32 7 series i had it 6 days when the *@$&%*% gearbox packed in. A total pain in the &$%£ to change. That car was lovely apart from the $£%&*@* gearbox. Oh no ive started on about that £$*&%*£ gearbox again. that £$*&%*£ gearbox ,that £$*&%*£ gearbox ,that £$*&%*£ gearbox ,that £$*&%*£ gearbox

NS Dev - 20/9/07 at 07:12 PM

Aha, mine's already had a gearbox, and engine change (engine on the usual BMW recall, box at 150,000 miles, now showing 187,000 on the clock)

James - 21/9/07 at 01:43 AM

Remember that scene in Withnail and I when he's trying to change the still moving wiper in a rain storm and read the map in the headlight!

David Jenkins - 21/9/07 at 07:23 AM

quote:
Originally posted by NS Dev
Aha, mine's already had a gearbox, and engine change (engine on the usual BMW recall, box at 150,000 miles, now showing 187,000 on the clock)


There is a bloke in my local pub who travels seriously huge mileages every year as part of his business. Because of this he usually has either a medium-large Mercedes or BMW on the basis that they'll cope well with all that travelling. You wouldn't believe how often these cars go into the garage for major repairs.

I keep suggesting that he might be better off with one of the larger Lexus...

nick205 - 21/9/07 at 07:56 AM

Nat - do you look like/feel a pimp when tooling about in the 7 series Beemer?

A mate of mine had one for a short time and although it was the fastest car he's owned he reckoned it's the slowest he ever drove. No need to hoon about, just sit back and enjoy the comfort

mcerd1 - 21/9/07 at 10:50 AM

quote:
Originally posted by David Jenkins
quote:
Originally posted by NS Dev
Aha, mine's already had a gearbox, and engine change (engine on the usual BMW recall, box at 150,000 miles, now showing 187,000 on the clock)


There is a bloke in my local pub who travels seriously huge mileages every year as part of his business. Because of this he usually has either a medium-large Mercedes or BMW on the basis that they'll cope well with all that travelling. You wouldn't believe how often these cars go into the garage for major repairs.

I keep suggesting that he might be better off with one of the larger Lexus...


My boss's last car was a E class merc - his first ever merc
he got it because it was a merc and therefore it had to be good to dive and last for ever - in reality by the time it was 3 years old (120k on the clock) it was spending more time in the garage than on the road

so he sold it and went back to audi's (RS4 this time)

NS Dev - 21/9/07 at 02:12 PM

quote:
Originally posted by David Jenkins
quote:
Originally posted by NS Dev
Aha, mine's already had a gearbox, and engine change (engine on the usual BMW recall, box at 150,000 miles, now showing 187,000 on the clock)


There is a bloke in my local pub who travels seriously huge mileages every year as part of his business. Because of this he usually has either a medium-large Mercedes or BMW on the basis that they'll cope well with all that travelling. You wouldn't believe how often these cars go into the garage for major repairs.

I keep suggesting that he might be better off with one of the larger Lexus...


To be honest I think the mercs are worse than the bm's.

Certainly I know of 2 300,000 mile bm 740's near to me here that have had no major work done.

The big hoo-ha with the BMW M60 v8 was the nikasil bore coating failing, and they were all recalled for new engines eventually.

We'll see what happens to mine.

The main issue as far as I can see is that they are complex cars, so there is more to fail. Also if something on your average Peugeot crapmobile fails, its function will probably not be missed, whereas when you are being transported in silence and with perfect ride, any small failings become evident very quickly.

I have certainly not been in any 180,000+ miler that feels as "unworn" as this 740.

Seriously, I recently went out in a 40,000 mile pug 306, where the drivers seat had disintegrated. The bmw's drivers seat is in need of a leather feed but thats it, otherwise perfect!

I put a new rad in it as the end tank was cracked on the old one, and assumed it would be mega money, but at 95 quid it was the same as a pug 205 td rad!!

I do remember a chap at my old work getting a new merc though, and on his first holiday in it he hit a pothole, not big enough to move the tracking or damage a tyre, but apparently big enough to cause the ECU to fail, and not be covered on warranty after he mentioned the pothole!!!

NS Dev - 21/9/07 at 02:15 PM

quote:
Originally posted by nick205
Nat - do you look like/feel a pimp when tooling about in the 7 series Beemer?

A mate of mine had one for a short time and although it was the fastest car he's owned he reckoned it's the slowest he ever drove. No need to hoon about, just sit back and enjoy the comfort


LOL you summed it up!!!

It will show a clean pair of heels to most things short of 7's, locosts and bikes, but any speed between 30 and 100 feels much the same, several times I found myself pondering what the holdup ahead on some country lane was all about, only to glance at the speedo and see it reading 80+ mph!!

Its great when you are tired after work, the journey home is no longer an issue, and the contrast between tow car (the bm 740) and the XE locost is great

PS its also averaging 23 mpg over the 500 miles since I bought it (longest run 14 miles) which is actually almost exactly the same as my sierra xr4x4 used to do!!

[Edited on 21/9/07 by NS Dev]

[Edited on 21/9/07 by NS Dev]

mcerd1 - 21/9/07 at 03:38 PM

quote:
Originally posted by NS Dev
Also if something on your average Peugeot crapmobile fails, its function will probably not be missed, whereas when you are being transported in silence and with perfect ride, any small failings become evident very quickly


I have a Peugeot 106 crapmobile (K reg, 99750 miles so far, 954cc with carb & 4 gears)

I know what you mean, but I tend to notice every little problem
but then my car is so basic that there is very little between you and the oily bits, its made of very thin tin and has next to no trim - you notice every bump, knock and rattle


on the plus side - its light (only 760kg, not bad for a tin top - almost makes up for only having 45bhp) and on long trips it can manage 50mpg (despite the lack of 5th gear)
and there is very little to go wrong, but things like bushes, dampers.... are easy to diagnose when they do go

I bought it 4 years ago with 60k on the clock for £450 as an MOT failure - petrol leak and cracked number plate - fixed it for £100 (new fuel sender)

since then I've spent about £300 a year, repairing and replacing bits (only about 1/4 of that was strictly nessisary)
and now (apart from a tiny bit of rust) its in better condition than when I bought it

it might be one of the cheapest Peugeot crapmobiles you can get - but I still wouldn't swap you for a BMW or Merc

[Edited on 21/9/07 by mcerd1]

NS Dev - 21/9/07 at 06:43 PM

sorry, was a bit blunt there, I have owned a "Pug crapmobile" as well in the past, a 205 gti, which I accept did do certain things very well.

It was entertaining fun to drive, and very economical considering its reasonable performance. It was also cheap to fix with easily available parts, and rust was never a worry.

The downsides were that it was fortunate that it was cheap to fix as it needed to be! It also felt like a tin can, my head hit the roof and it made me vow NEVER to buy another front wheel drive car!!

I also had another 205, but I converted that one to rwd and put a vauxhall 16v engine in it!!

PS my BM was only 750 quid, and the sierra XR4x4 it is replacing was 600 quid 5 years ago and has had about the same spent on it in those 5 years.

The only reason that these are all big cars is that I need to be able to legally tow 1.6 tonnes, and that needs something fairly large (the xr4x4 was a bit dodgy at that weight!! )

[Edited on 21/9/07 by NS Dev]