billybunters - from a bmw z4 to a mx5 se

bootz · Postby **bootz** » Mon Apr 04, 2011 1:33 am

Looking very pretty!

billybunter · Postby **billybunter** » Tue Apr 26, 2011 11:22 am

just bought this front splitter from the usa for $99 plus postage - all up about $145. haven't been out on a run yet but i fitted a similar unit to my daugters mgf about 18 months ago and the downforce it created improved the overall handling by 100%

billybunter · Postby **billybunter** » Tue Apr 26, 2011 11:32 am

i already had the front bumper off so i fitted a new billet grille today. pretty easy fit

remove both tow hooks

remove the screw near the baby tooth

new grille

on the car

billybunter · Postby **billybunter** » Tue Apr 26, 2011 11:34 am

next on the list - blue slim line number plates and clear side repeaters and reflectors

billybunter · Postby **billybunter** » Tue Apr 26, 2011 11:37 am

better look at the splitter info

billybunter · Postby **billybunter** » Tue Apr 26, 2011 3:17 pm

clear side reflectors right/left and front

Black_Penguin · Postby **Black_Penguin** » Wed Apr 27, 2011 8:01 pm

Now you need clear side repeaters to complete the look.

Lokiel · Postby **Lokiel** » Wed Apr 27, 2011 10:52 pm

Have you hooked the side reflectors up to your indicators? It looks quite impressive at night since the whole side of the car lights up and is worth doing.

The clear side indicators and reflectors do look much better on a Silver/Titanium cars than orange.

Your car's coming along nicely - modz are addictive!

Crapweasel · Postby **Crapweasel** » Sat May 07, 2011 8:24 pm

+1 on the clear reflectors. They make for a very clean look.

Good choice in grilles - I have one the same, makes a hell of a difference!

Now you need to get yourself a pair of side skirts :mrgreen:

snshami · Postby **snshami** » Sun May 08, 2011 7:54 pm

billybunter wrote:Hi all
I had a little help from lokiel with this so i thought i'd have a go and create my own garage site. As the header shows about 4 months ago i came from a 2006 Z4 to the Mazda mx5 se and prior to the Z4 there was a Porsche Boxster.
Both the european machines although low klm cars were plagued with mechanical issues. The Beemer had only 26,000klm and the Boxster 68,000klm. Both were one owners cars.
The BMW was a pita. It was shod with the 18" alloys on run flats and handled like shite. It just wouldn't track through the corners and had a bit of bump steer, very similar to early RHD Mustangs. Although i paid 56k for it i felt sorry for the original owner who shelled out 103k.
On the other hand the Boxster was a very good car with great handling. All was well untill one morning i noticed a large patch of oil on the garage floor. So off i went and rang up the porshe dealership. Got onto the service centre and was told a common problem. All it required was a new oil seal but was a 6 to 8 hour job so while there good idea to replace the clutch and pressure plate. Total price of the quote was 4 to 5k.
Its a porsche i thought so that's fair -nothing for nothing.
While on the phone i was referred to the head mechanic who pointed out with oil leak in that particular location comes more problems. If the camshaft area etc is out of alignment unfortunately the seal won't bed in and the problem will get worse and you could have an engine failure. Should that occur then its a second hand replacement motor for 20k or 35k for a new one. A few days later the Boxster was gone.
Now the Beemer was not much better and only 26,000klm on the clock. One morning I kicked it over and there was a rattling noise coming from the top half of the motor. It appeared BMW new alloy N52 motor suffered from oil failure to the top end. Unfortunatel the roadster was out of warranty. My only option for the fix (which sounded like a diesel) was a totally new head/camshaft. The price quoted was 11k plus 1.5k to fit - So out the door it went.
Now it was back on carsales looking for the next chariot. I had heard/read about the Mazda mx5 SP but none unfortunately there were non available. I did site a handful of Se's though so to cut a long story short i lined up this 2004 example in Sunlight silver with 49,000klm in Qld (sight unseen) and had it transported down to NSW.
It was a one owner, elderly guy pushing 60 like me. Best of all totally stock standard and once sited i would say not very well looked after. It had a quite a few dents on the rear quarters which i had paintless dent removals take care of with excellent results. All the wheels were scuffed and on checking the service history found out that he was pretty miserable specimen and was running it on straight unleaded.
So you quessed it i never got back and thanked him for the purchase price of 20k.
So again the motto of this story is don't be fooled by the sales pitch "elderly one owner car" as these types are as bad or worse than the young guns.
To the gas station where i filled it up with 98 premium petrol then took it on a good hard 150klm run. My first impressions were - no rattles - good handling - rough ride and gutless.
Over the next few weeks i took it out frequently to decide if it was a keeper and my opinion changed on the Se for the better. why?
I joined Mazdaspeed.com and in a period of a couple of weeks read through 150 pages of threads on the Mazdaspeed miata/se. It was here that's how i bumped into lokiel.
Over the next month i put on about 1,000 trouble free klm. My passion is cars and over the years i have wasted stacks of cash on them. The only thing I was missing was the power of the europeans jobs so it was time to start some modifications.
Stay tuned and I hope you enjoyed the read.

I'll never lust after a Porsche again after reading this. So much for their reputation for good engineering.

Before I had bought my NA8 LE the Boxter was always a car I had aspired to. Now I feel that the NA8 is it and at the most I'd go for a bright red NB SP or SE.

Anyway welcome and good luck with the SE. I am sure you will not need it