New member, learning the ropes

[starorstone]

Hi, new member here. I finally made it thru the captcha gauntlet and got my account. I picked up a 2009 128i Sport (100k miles) with the auto transmission. I know, but I have plenty of manuals but wanted something to make the commute a bit easier. When not terrorizing teslas driving slowly in the fast lane on Highway 17 to Santa Cruz, I like to tinker with my Vanagon (with 1.8T conversion), and my mostly stock E39 M5 (Dinan exhuast, brembos, and carplay stereo head unit). The wife also has a 2006 G500 that i've put a few mods in as well. I kind of wanted to keep the M5 stock and have fun with this one, so have a long laundry list of items I will be bugging people about when that times comes.

I've done a lot of reading here, and learned a lot, and I'm sure I'll keep doing that. My main project is to update this tired suspension and upgrade where necessary to improve the handling. I'll start a new post for that one of these days. In the meantime I dropped it at a local shop to get a look-over and create a list of things that need replacing ASAP.

Initial impressions other than a tired suspension, is that the brakes are not too bad, even on this 128i. When I got the M5, I knew it needed better brakes pretty quickly, maybe i can get by with just some upgraded pads and stainless steel lines? (i'm just street driving this). Same with the sport seats, I thought I would need something firmer, but these feel pretty good. I also feel the engine power is fine, I don't anticipate doing anything to add more power, maybe improve the sound if possible with an intake or something, but suspension is #1 for me. Other things are maybe going Euro headlights and a better steering wheel - this one doesn't even have the grippy bumps on it.

Anyway, I'm an old guy (51) and don't need anything too crazy just something to enjoy the curves. So far I'm liking the 128 a lot and looking forward to many years behind the wheel.

-terry

[Dirty1thirty5]

Enjoy the car. This forum is borderline dead. I’ve migrated to the Facebook groups. You can get answers fast and people actually reply to your posts there

[RFChas]

I just picked up a little 128i too and also with sport package. I do not have interest in setting it up for track. I just really dig driving it. And will do that for a while before any mods or such. No hurries. Have the six speed auto as well. And I like it. I'll be curious what you decide to do with suspension and too, the wheels if anything. Cheers

[GoRomeo]

Welcome 🤗

[MGalo]

Welcome to the forum...not a great social/party spot, but there is a lot of very good info sharing and nice people here.

BUT, 51 years old isn't...old. I remember 51 in 2001, and very glad I've tacked on 22 more, LOL
Enjoy!

[starorstone]

Thanks for the welcome, folks. Yeah not seeing much activity on the forum, but i'm spending a lot of time searching here- its a huge resource for me.

As far as wheels go, I want to do suspension first - but eyeing the Apex ARC-8s, got some of those for my M5 as well - would be nice to match and can't beat the weight

I hope to tack on another 22+ myself, congrats I guess I meant old as more of not-a-kid-buying-their-first-car. i would like to build it up right for the long haul... "the last car i'll ever buy" - how many times have i said that....

[K9Leader]

Originally Posted by starorstone

Thanks for the welcome, folks. Yeah not seeing much activity on the forum, but i'm spending a lot of time searching here- its a huge resource for me.

As far as wheels go, I want to do suspension first - but eyeing the Apex ARC-8s, got some of those for my M5 as well - would be nice to match and can't beat the weight

I hope to tack on another 22+ myself, congrats I guess I meant old as more of not-a-kid-buying-their-first-car. i would like to build it up right for the long haul... "the last car i'll ever buy" - how many times have i said that....

Welcome to the club! I love the Apex wheels for our little pocket rocket.

I have ARC-8s (17x8.5, Hyper Black) on my 128, Little Red. I had been using the beat up original stock wheels with all-seasons for my winter set but I upgraded to 335 calipers and the stocks no longer fit. The ARC-8s fit fine, so I just ordered another set of ARC-8s (17x8.5, Hyper Silver) to use as the winter set.

I'm another "not-a-kid" at 62 - but enjoying my cars - 2011 E82 128i, 2010 E91 328i, 1999 C5 Corvette convertible (plus the 20-year-old beater Subaru Baja and the wife's Toyota Venza, the sensible family car).

[starorstone]

Those wheels look awesome K9… def gotta get those

[demas]

That is a nice 1 - especially in Alpinweiss 300. But love your M5.

Are you on Bimmerfest? They have/had one of the greatest active E39 forums with a wealth of knowledge and energy. I was on there daily for over 10 years with the three E39's I owned.


Last one was an '02 540 M-Sport. I upgraded to the M5 steering gear box, Bilsteins, DME tuned, etc. But man, always wanted the M5. Hope you keep it, the stars were aligned when they built the E39 and it's not an easy car to replace.

[WeryPert1]

Welcome! That M5 is glorious. I admit my mind is having a hard time reconciling the fact that someone who enjoys an M5 could also enjoy that Vanagon - seems like opposite ends of the automotive spectrum there. But probably that's the point!

[Finneganistan]

Greetings fellow new person!

[starorstone]

Thanks. I try to stay off the forums to be honest. I spend too much money on upgrades that way lol. Vanagon had a 1.8T swap and with the rear engine weight distribution it does a nice job of terrorizing the slow teslas on the mountain highways lol. Jk (kinda)

[starorstone]

Had it a couple months now. I have (had) done Oil Filter Housing Gasket (with mickey mouse upgrade), Spark Plugs, Water Pump, Thermostat. Needed some belly pans too. After all that, it still managed to strand me once lol - busted expansion tank hose started spewing like crazy so did the prudent thing and had it towed. Rest of hoses were inspected/replaced while there. Now we are back on the road.

I noticed oil was a little low so topped it off. My E39 M5 usually requires a quart between changes, wondering if this one will be similar- or maybe just residual lowness from OFHG.

I also installed Satellite radio, and had it detailed & ceramic coated (pic is from that shop, not my garage lol).

It clunks a bit going over speed bumps, so I'm thinking next year I'll do a suspension refresh, and still not 100% happy with the braking performance. Having a lot of fun with it now. Its a nice balance between practical and fun.