Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

Why no 2 spoke for rally car?

Yeah I wondered about getting a 2 spoke but got this one half price and it’s 40% lighter

Ordered the Cup wheel.

If anyone spots Hefty torching my car please try to talk him out of it

No, because you’ll soon remove it once you realise it spoils the steering.

They’re fine / necessary for being a thug round a circuit, but too small to give the nice fingertippy feel that makes Porsches so lovely to steer on the road.

Every Porsche ever made has the best wheel size straight from the factory. They have never got it wrong.

I approve of bringing it closer though.

£300 cheaper to buy the Cup wheel than the extender.

Just couldn't get past it

Yes, it's an extender!

Different suede kinds of suede, have you ever looked at chrome suede and how that ages?

Would a shoe waterproofer or anti stain mean that they would be an issue?

Also should you be holding the steering lightly, not gripping on for dear life?

Ignore, its sold now anyway and its prob the fuel warning. As already mentioned it was the same on my E61 as well

But you've already spent ££££££££

What's £300 more?

I have plenty of time to repent.

Now, that M5

Why don't you buy an actual suede Nardi, OMP, Sparco, Personal, Momo etc and report back on how it feels and looks after 6 months.

Chap coming down from Liverpool to view the 850 on Saturday, viewing this M5 Touring on Sunday: https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201710160324924?radius=1501&advertising-location=at_cars&onesearchad=Used&onesearchad=Nearly%20New&onesearchad=New&make=BMW&body-type=Estate&model=M5&postcode=se233un&sort=sponsored&page=1

The seller sounds a plank.

New budget means VED on the E39 diesel is almost doubling from band K to band L in April 2018. FFS

I only use it these days to carry a windsurfing board to my regattas

He bought the car on 4,000 miles, is the second owner, most of those miles done driving around Europe.

New ECU within the last two years, still on the original clutch.

All this talk of suede and driving gloves...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvyvkIlV_Ec

How much to have one made?

I thought it was only for new cars (cars sold April 2018 onwards).

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-42079297

Yeah my daily looks like it will stay the same (£20)

I have now told Volvo to get fucked. The nice indy local guys are picking the car up tomorrow and say they'll have a new clutch in before the weekend. They've also been very polite and professional about things so far. C'mon Volvo, it's one of your largest single facilities anywhere and you build the fucking cars right here in this city. Could have made the tiniest of efforts to not make me hate you forever but apparently not.

If you met him at a party I'm sure you'd known about the car and the windsurfing in the first 3 mins

I have to say that my car choice was between three cars, ultimately:
E63 Estate (used)
M5 Touring (used)
V90 T8 (new)

I’ve detailed some of my issues with Volvo recently- one thing as didn’t mention was my (continuing) attempt to buy a V90 T8.

I spoke to their sales dept, explained that I’d want an extended test drive as a plug in hybrid would be new to me. Given that I’d just spent a couple of grand with them the sales person said he could arrange that.

Then he came back to me to say “we have to prioritise test drives and that means you could only have the test drive discussed during the week”.

We’d discussed that I wanted to drive down to my parents, check the practicalities of travelling with a plug-in hybrid etc. This doesn’t fit with mid-week.

So, I finally gave up- if Volvo treated me even slightly better I (a current Volvo owner of 10 years) would buy a new, range topping car.

But they won’t so I won’t- honestly, fuck them.

BMW or Mercedes next.

When I worked at a Skoda main dealer as a yoof there was a firm that had all the cars in the world and dealers could rent them for extended test drives when annoying people like you requested it. That was in 1999, but I’d be surprised if it doesn’t still exist.

Buggered if I can remember what they were called though. Kettles or Kerridges it something.

Try ringing a different main dealer, maybe one outside Ldn so they’re a bit nicer, IME some people in London can be cunty.