seanl82

So what evidence do you need to provide for the business/sole trader deal?

Congrats Daren, looks a very good car. As mentioned, a worthy replacement indeed!

Bonnet is coming off so the underside can be done, but doors and tailgate will be staying on I think Matt. I would have liked all shuts doing but it would bump the price up beyond my budget. The base of the door shut where the kick plates are being done though.

Now out of my hands....................... :eek:

Carpro Dlux, or Gtechniq C4. Both pricey but will last approximately 2 years depending on condition. Will absolutely knock 90% of off the shelf trim restorer products out the park. There are others, but these two are probably the best on the market by far. The best detailers in the world use these products and charge for it too!

Balls. Old ones it is then, but probably not good enough quality to make it this year. Oh well, always next year!

Seeing the work they've done on the cars in their shop, I don't anticipate too much detailing required James! At worst, a single stage mop with a finishing polish and pad, then protection with the Cquartz which is egging me on to get started! . I know for a fact I'll be faffing about with trim and things for a while yet though, and I've also got loads of jobs I wanted to do over the last few weeks that I haven't had time for. I should be able to put a couple of solid weeks of work in mid October though, so I'm contemplating keeping it tucked up for winter, but it depends which ship I join early next year and what it's doing. Should find out next month though where I'm off and when though.

Well tomorrow is the big day! Not received my number plate tub from P3rks yet which was apparently posted two weeks ago, and no reply from Pm. :scratch: If anyone knows him personally and has his number, could you pass it to me or give him a nudge please. I'm on holiday from Sunday for 10 days so won't have chance til after that if I don't find out now. Anyway, it's being picked up around 10am tomorrow, and I'll be following it down to finalise work I want done. Heres how she stands........... Excited but nervous at the same time! I'll ask them to email me some photos to document along the way too. :bounce2:

When will the cut-off date be Ron? I was going to wait until my car comes back from paint and is back together before going out with the sole intention of getting some good photos!

It's ok Matt, apparently Orlando Bloom banged him out in Ibiza last night! :lol:

It's too pliable to paint really. As soon as it was knocked the paint would crack. It'll probably do it with temperature changes too.

Go for the jeweled ones. They look relatively stock and won't discolour as quickly as the clear ones. Also won't show the amber bulbs as clearly if you use them. I got my set on ebay a while back which came with the silver bulbs. About £14 iirc.

Why is it no one's asked yet, WTF are you doing watching Dinner Date Chris! :lol:

Yes thats it mate. I just pulled that pic from google, but thats where its mounted from the factory.

It just slides over the part of the support that is raised.

I got one from ebay for about £25. There was a red one at the same time that went for £26, then a week later another went for about £80. Wish I'd have bought the first now and sold it on! I doubt trimsport would be interested, they're very reluctant to make the rear Corrado script badge despite a huge amount of people asking for them. I think I also remember them mentioning that the clips pose a problem, which is why they only do the flat type stick on badges.

It the factory spark plug tool Tomi. Thats where its supposed to live.

Thank Rog, Rob. Graham, do you have a gallery of your car? Mine was in a pretty poor state tbh, and in hindsight, I'd never go through this again! That said, it brings great pride knowing I've not had an endless supply of money so most things have been done on a budget, but I've tried to do them as well as possible. Don't get me wrong, there are days when I think all the little bits that need doing are driving me mad and the car is just a money pit bleeding me dry, but if I had a perfect car, I'd probably get bored!

Thanks Jim. :thumbleft:

Did that with the Saab though Kev, it barely lasted a year and I spent almost the cost of the car in upkeep. I agree it's a lot of money, but the missus needs it for work so reliability is a must. I'm not saying something cheaper would have been less reliable, and tbf it's the most expensive car we've ever bought, but it's time we owned a nice car that is cheap to run.

Well we bought a 118d M sport after all. 2011 plate with 62k. We got a 2 year warranty with a 12k parts and labour limit, so that should just about cover BMW costs should the chains snap! :lol:

Thanks Daren. It actually says Diesel on the filler cap, so fingers crossed! :lol: I've had a quick look on babybimmer, but do you know a reputable bmw tuning specialist in Hampshire or surrounding areas? Definitely something I want to consider, although being post 2008 (I think was the cross over year) it's the 143 bhp version so it's not too sluggish tbh. Always nice to have a bit more for not a lot though! :Norty:

Now have a new daily. After plumes of black smoke on over run, serious difficulty starting when cold, and now both keys self destructing, the trusty swede had to go. The wife had decided, so we drove home today in this. 118d M Sport. Nice tidy car, a little lacking in options I think personally, but I got told off for trying to burst her bubble. It's not a bad car I suppose, I'd just have preferred a 3 Series..........

The multi pin plug in the bay I'm assuming? They can be a pig to undo, and sometimes brute force is the only way. It will eventually come off, and as Rob has said, electrical contact cleaner should clear up any issues provided it isn't too corroded inside. A bit of silicon grease around the locking part will aid future removal too.

Glad it didn't escalate into something more serious and both you and the car are relatively unscathed. I'll certainly be carrying one in the boot when mines back together.