I've been super busy with work but here are some updates from the past couple months -
Wheels for the unicorn
After a long debacle the black car is back on the Style 194s. I ordered a pair of silver Style 260s back in May or June from getbmwparts and they ultimately weren't able to get them from BMW Deutschland's parts stash. I also attempted to order them through Schmiedmann as they were being clearanced out but they weren't any left to fulfill my order either.
I'm trying to track down a used set and found two on eBay, one in Germany and one in Colorado. They're both $1000+ and of course the seller in Colorado doesn't want to ship and it's $750 to ship the set from Germany.
Tires for the automatic
Back to square one here. The rears were worn out on the Style 161s and I pulled the trigger on some Michelin Pilot Sport AS4 in stock sizing: 225/45/17 & 255/40/17. So far so good after ~500 miles on my first set of All-Season Pilots. I never really push this car but so far they're quiet, comfy, and predictable. They felt fine in slushy roads up to the mountains earlier this month as well.
Maintenance for the automatic
I took care of the annual oil service on the Sparkling Graphite car last weekend with some help, finally! 11 months with 7,500 miles and I added about 1/3 of a quart in October. Unfortunately I noticed a bit of a weep from the Eccentric Shaft Sensor Seal so I'll be replacing that shortly.
Coming soon...
I finally have some time off coming up (hopefully!) after working straight through the pandemic. Really happy to be continuously employed especially working for a major casino operator here in Las Vegas but I'm definitely ready for a bit of a break since I had to cancel my regularly scheduled vacations in March, July, and October. With that said, I'm a bit hesitant to spend significant money beyond the basics.
A few odds and ends are on order for the unicorn including 335is pedals and the OEM Performance Shift Rod. I also am putting together a list of longer term regular maintenance items that are due for both cars. Both are due for brake fluid and the automatic is due for a suspension overhaul. My plan is to continue using it as a daily driver. Not sure if that's even the right description since I'm working remotely and my wife runs the house so family hauler might be the better description. With that in mind I'm going to do an OE refresh of the original struts, shocks, and other worn bits.
I have the following on the road map for the unicorn in 2021:
- Wheels, hopefully Style 260s if they don't cost me $4k all in
- M3 mirrors
- Painting and fitting my euro front bumper
- Euro airbox
- 3.73 differential
- 335i brakes, I have the calipers but need to refinish and rebulid