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

Get from a reputable source. There are cheap chinese/indian copies available.

Will try to, and give a call to the link you posted above.

Look at the prices of the GKN stuff as they give formula student people free driveshafts and have been really helpful making one off shafts.

£12,000 80,000 mile E61 M Sport Touring vs £22,000 80,000 mile E61 M5 Touring.

Which one, why?

What is the M Sport one?

535i?

Ah, missed the vital bit- 535d

You know M-sport is basically a body kit and even-harder-than-sport suspension? That seems overpriced...

Edit: and the paddle shift if auto

Used genuine would be my choice. Somewhere there will be a marquee specific breaker with a whole shed full of avensis bits, might be more than a local scrappy, but you don't have to get your hands dirty and can post direct to the workshop you choose to use.

I've seen "new" cheap wheel bearings and shafts (£50 eBay jobs) last 3 months before.

Labour won't be a lot. Maybe 1.5-2 hours and it'll need a tracking

I was trying to get the cars as similar as possible. The 535d has the paddles, which means the sport-auto gearbox.

Fair enough, I don’t know if the sport-auto box could be spec’d on non-M-sport e61s.
I have sport susp. and shitty uk roads don’t suit it. Looks better than standard setup though, even just a couple of CM lower.

Both M5's I've driven have been significantly more comfortable than my Volvo!

Hah! In fairness it smooths out at speed and is never uncomfortable, just a bit un-floaty around town.

M5 because M5
Not 535d because filthy diesel.

You make a compelling argument.

**Buys Jensen Interceptor II**

If available I'll consider this.
Ultimately I'll ask mechanic how he prefers to approach this.

Since the problem was rust related (I've been told; there's a rubber sleeve around the driveshaft that may have trapped water and promoted the weakening process) and that I can see now that the underbody needs rust removal and treating, anybody knows of a self service garage in South East London? Google only seems to find Pit Start...

Speaking as someone who has put a stupid amount of maintenance funding into an old car my advice would be to take stock- what’s it likely to cost to fix, what outlay would get something reliable, and what’s the time that you get back from not having to DIY the rust removal worth?

In n out will spray the underside for £35 but whether it actually does anything is for someone else to say

Is it the cv joint part of the drive shaft?

With what?

I'm guessing yes, here's the picture for the part I need on Euro Car Parts

1 Attachment

If it is a boot, it will be either end. When was the car MOT'd? Just wondering as torn boots are a fail.

Where are you in SE london anywhere near sidcup? Sc motor factors are on the roxley industrial estate opposite sidcup tesco. Think they supply blueprint parts(bilstien group) never had a problem with that manufacturer.

Would you like me to pop down and identify if you need the whole shaft or just a joint.

Well, having contemplated the amount of rust to remove, my concern is, would a garage / "in n out" type of place bother doing a thorough preparation work prior to spray a thick coat of whatever they use to cover the crap...
It needs further inspection but my guess is that the rusting isn't yet too critical, the original paint is flaking so it looks bad / "crusty" but when you scrape it away and get to the steel, the damage doesn't seem deep. I could be wrong, but if I'm correct it means that it's not too late to kill the rusting process. If I can be recommended somewhere trustworthy, I'm happy to consider it. I don't have much free time generally so I do value it...

Thanks for the offer.
Unlike the rust thing that I'm vaguely considering dealing with myself if I can, I'm happy to rely on whatever garage I'll choose to decide what needs replacing and not interfere too much with their recommendations.
My earlier questions about aftermarket parts and whether they are good is that I'm keen to avoid being told that it has to be the Toyota original (over £500!)

The only way to treat rust is cut it out and weld in new. if it is surface rust you can grind it back to good metal and treat with something like Jenolite and spray then treat with a good underseal any shortcuts are just buying time before the inevitable.

SC Motor Factors in Ruxley/Sidcup actually sell squares of steel for fabrication and welding, that's where I got mine from for my E30.

The only way to treat rust is cut it out and weld in new

Well, I hope it's not as bad as that; no holes thru, and when scraping old flaky paint and rusty dust nothing seems too deep. The actual chassis is still quite clean, no rust there, it's mostly stuff made with thicker sheets of metal, probably factory treated differently, like the control arms, etc that seem to have suffer.
If it reveals to be at a stage where welding panels was necessary, being an old cheap family car, I don't think I would do anything and would look for a new car!