Ekona

Ah, are they not the same car? I thought the E90 was the coupe and the E92 the saloon? BMW and their silly numbers always have confused me!

I've had a couple of people PM me now with regards to what I'm getting after the Zed, and so I thought it was time to put up a proper post on it. I love my 350Z (or Slagathor as I have so eloquently named her) and she has been very good to me over the last two-and-a-half years, and part of the reason I connected with her so very well was finding a club like this one as it's rare to find such a friendly place that has quality technical knowledge as well as being run by people with common sense, although clearly I knocked the collective IQ down a few points when I became a Mod! Truth is there was nothing that I'd grown to hate about the car at all, it was simply that I had an itch for a new car and I started looking around. There were a good few cars on my hitlist, including a GT-R and a 370Z, but also an E90 M3, a current gen Impreza and even a Clio 182: As you can see, my choice was quite varied! I just wanted something different, something fun, and something quality. A couple of test drives later and I put down a deposit on a 2008 M3 with DCT 'box. A brilliant car by any measurement. And yet it didn't feel right. I came home and wasn't excited like I should've been. Jo came with me the next day to see the car and she absolutely hated it, and so I got my money back on the deposit (full credit to Cooper BMW in Colchester for being so understanding, would definitely deal with them again). A bit depressed at this point (after all, if a 400bhp V8 car loaded with toys doesn't do it for me, what does?!) we wandered across the road to look at the Porsche garage and see what they had in there with a view to probably testing a Cayman S, and there it was. Right in front of me as I walked into the forecourt. Black. Mean. Almost perfect spec. And far more money than I actually wanted to spend. And yet... How could I resist? It's a 997.2 Carrera S with PDK 'box and a good few toys, and ever since I drove one last summer it has been a dream of mine to own a 911. I didn't think it would ever be possible until a good few years yet, but by careful juggling of finances and the all-important seal of approval from the missus it was on. Collection should hopefully be this weekend (and now you can see why I needed to sell bits of my Zed so quickly), am just waiting for them to fit the flappy paddle steering wheel instead of the horrible button one it's got on there at the moment. I'll be sure to get some proper pics up when I get a chance. I still can't believe that I'm going to own what is pretty much my realistic dream car at such a relative young age, and I'm still pinching myself to see if I wake up. Knowing that I'm moving forward with a proper classic sports coupe is making the pain of letting Slagathor go a little easier, and yet I know I'll desperately miss that charismatic lump of Datsun when it's gone. I won't be going anywhere though as I love this place and the people here, so I do apologise for that.

What were the three points for? And have you bothered to ring them up and ask them to reduce the cost yet?

Yup, they made the two ends of the car more controllable at the limit although they haven't really been on long enough for me to give them a proper review. They were the final part in my suspension changes trying to make the car handle better but sticking with stock suspension, and for that they worked wonders. Sorry, you were just beaten to it.

Sorry, completely forgot in the flurry of PMs! Unfortunately you've been beaten on the slam panel though. The Eibach ARBs will definitely fit the HR car, not sure about the strut brace though: It should do, but probably wants a couple of washers underneath at least. Anyone else have any idea on that?

And the side step covers added, forgot about those too!

Whoops, I knew I forgot something! Post updated, £85.

They're medium compound (GG) which is the best balance between grip and wear I found on previous cars. Soft would give you a fraction more but you'd ruin them so quickly.

Updated with photos and new items

Sadly it is time for me to move on, and as such everything on the car must go. Due to time restraints (i.e. the car is going by the end of the week!) I've had to ask the team for permission to put these items up for sale without photos for now, and they've very kindly allowed me to do so on the proviso I get pics up ASAP. All prices are minus shipping, but if you want to collect from Essex then that's fine too. If you wanted to meet half way if you're a bit further afield then I'm happy to travel, just ask! ***EDIT*** All now sold, thank you all!

Pick a number, divide by 24, add your age and then put your phone number on the end. That's as close as you'll get to working out the customs charges. You will be liable, and it'll be roughly +10% of the value of the goods (including postage) and then 17.5% VAT on top of that, and then £20 handling fee max as well. That's only a guide, but it's not going to be far off that. Don't try and get around it by asking the sender to mark down the value of the package as then that's all you'll be insured for if it turns up damaged.

Not in the slightest. Best mod you can do to the car is to sort the brakes, and the extra feel and stopping power a quality setup will give you is worth doing no matter where you're driving. 8-pot fronts would be a bit overkill for just the road, but a decent disc change to the best certainly isn't. All IMHO of course.

Never ever going to fit anywhere near the cubby in a million years. Good luck picking that gauntlet back up!

Insurance, insurance, insurance. That's what it's there for.

Swap the car. Far easier and cheaper.

Just what I was thinking! Really can't see the appeal of any flavour of grey or silver in a fun car, it's like watching TV on a 7" black and white set: Technically the same experience, but your eyes deserve so much more.

If you can wait a week or two, I'll have my mint condition gloss black Rays with almost new R888s on them for sale.

what is a head bonk??? something the RCPCA should know about You don't know what a head bonk is??!! You know when cats show affection by rubbing their head against you? That's called a head bonk!

My two do, usually when giving me head bonks and it goes right down my collar

I read Car and Evo, but Car is by far and away the best motoring magazine out they a country mile right now. The quality of both the writing and the photography is on another level to the others, and they get noticeably more exclusives recently. Evo is a shadow of what it used to be, however it has improved from the shambles it was 6 months ago.

Sounds like vapourware to me.

Nope, and thank God. It's ugly enough with the soft roof, let alone a big ol' bubble on there!

I believe the magic speed is 40mph

In that case, can you please tell them from me that next time they're going to make an F1 game can they drop the cheating AI please? I know they addressed a lot of the issues on their forum this week (which in fairness was pretty decent of them) and clarified the decision to use pre-determined times for P&Q, but IMHO it was a very poor choice to make and there's still too many issues that still screams of a game that was rushed to release instead of being given some more time and a definitive version released in time for the start of next season. Again, probably a management issue more than a coding one but it reflects very badly on Codies as a whole. /off_soapbox

HBTY HBTY HBDDACAO HBTY