zoona

Another vote for a bm320d tourer

 

ditto. just buy an estate. MPV/4x4 stupid tall (mostly ugly) pieces of crap that often (i am sure there are some that do...) don't handle are a waste of space.

TomD - off topic, but your avatar pic reminds me of this:
 

I thought exactly the same when I saw it took...

no stereo... don't need music. Just the little engine pottering along.

Just wanted to share somethign that I have been working on.

 

The purpose was to:

• Move buttons and window switches to tombstone panel
• Delete centre console
• Repaint to make it look as original as possible - OEM+ as others have called it

So, plan was to ditch centre console, modify tombstone to go straight to tunnel - importantly, without the curve or some other blanking plate that looks just like a blanking plate.

Then I thought I would add a little something to the top as it looked a bit plain. I don't know why... probably a bit marmite. I think I have seen one somewhere before, and it was credited to one of the M2 models, but I can't find a pic now.

I also made a panel to put the switches in.

 

I have made up a board to replace the centre console. My plan is to cover in carpet, or diamond stitched vinyl or something  Not decided yet. I also wanted to leave the rubber gator exposed. Not quite the Ferrari slotted gate... but the Mazda version of it... This bit is a long way from finished.

 

I was really stuck for the finish. I like the crinkle paint you can get, and it looks nice and retro, but you need  heat to set it properly - and plastic and heat don't play nicely. I did even try it on the offcut of tombstone, but it looked shite.

 

I came up with the plan of using a plastikote stone finish, and then spraying black over the top. It worked, but looked better with a rub down before final black coat to smooth it out a bit.

 

Would like to know what people think, or any ideas for changes - be nice though.

 

Anyway, enough words... Some pictures:

 

First bash at filling, blanking and my little spoiler thing on top:

 

Building up a few more layers:

 

Getting there:

 

Base coat of black:

 

And then the stone paint on top:

 

Then after rubbing down a bit and then a final coat of black (I did the dial cover and steering column cover as well)

 

Centre console plank:

 

 

And the (not quite) finished product:

 

 

Close up of the final paint finish:

 

 

 

 

 

So, just to re-cap :-

you're 24 years old
you already have an MX5
you're not married with kids
you're about to start your first proper 'graduate' job
your commute is 19,000 miles per year
this car will be used 90% of the time for the daily motorway commute
you plan to spunk £10,000 on a large prestige car which will do in excess of 60,000 miles in 3 years, mostly driving to and from work

Do you seriously need an A6 or 530?  Really?  If I was young free and single again I would not be spending £10k on a prestige commuter car - I'd be looking for a cheap VAG to put the miles on and something exciting for the weekend - Porsche, M3, etc.

Don't forget the majority of people on here and Pistonheads talking about these cars are middle aged with families.  If I could spend my money on something fast and exciting, I'd rather do that than buy a sensible family wagon, but I'm middle aged with a family.  I've had my fair share of Audi and BMW company cars and whilst they serve their purpose, they still remain a compromise.  Then there's the cost - 19,000 miles a year just on driving to work will cost a fair bit in one of these machines, even assuming nothing goes wrong.  My last BMW would cost £1,000 for a new set of tyres.  

If I was in your position, I'd buy a Passat 1.9TDi for driving to work and get bbr to supercharge a 2.0 Mk3 for the weekends. There's plenty of time for big family cars when you're older, because by the time you reach that age it becomes a necessity not a choice.

That is a fucking good point...

For anybody interested in car design, and specifically early prototypes, read this. Fascinating stuff...


http://www.petrolici...nce-only-dreams

I had a split in my cross over pipe. symptom was very hesitant pulling away from stop.

http://jalopnik.com/...uture-472799089

two pop-ups going head to head. Did we have the XT in the thread above?

I had completely forgotten about this one... in fact I think this is the first time I have ever seen the lights up.

I... I ag... iagreewiththeinsurancecompany.

That hurt.

http://jalopnik.com/...goose-471178911

Hmm... I have been looking forward to this, but that trailer was a bit disappointing... the racing scenes didn't look that good...

What do you think?

Always hated the look of these, they're like the Marvin the Paranoid Android of the car world...

All new generation bmws have had a thorough going over with the ugly stick. 1 series and X1 in particular.

Never heard of this before. Could have been interesting.

Http://jalopnik.com/meet-the-mazda-rx-7-replacement-that-never-happened-471081341

Yanks also had a pop up thing going on.  

1966 Oldsmobile Tornado

I once bought a car off a man who owned one of these in gold and black. He also had a FIAT 500 in matching colours.



1962 Ford Mustang showcar



1968 Plymouth Road Runner



1992 Chrysler Le Baron



1993 Pontiac Firebird

Every one of those makes me feel a little bit sick...

Dailymail-tastic.

Bigotry and xenophobia are staples of the British.