Ken635

Hi Folks, Had my E24 a while now and working on some slight convenience improvements whilst not changing anything permanently. I've got a magsafe phone holder/charger where the ashtray used to be. To do this I bought the outrageously expensive official BMW ash tray replacement storage box (just a small black plastic box that slides in to replace the ash tray £50!) I then bought this item which is a 3d printed magsafe phone holder designed for the BMW iX https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/336310951793 Then bought a standard sized magsafe charging puck. Insert puck into holder Double sided gorilla tape the phone holder to the front inside edge of storage compartment Plug into cig lighter and slide into place (later I will work out how to wire a permanent 12V to a USB C connector and plug the magsafe puck into that so I can loose the ugly cig lighter charger. Works great and can be undone just by pulling out and replacing original ashtray. I believe the E30 shares same ash tray as E24 so should work on old 3 series too! I am in touch with the ebay seller who made the magsafe holder and he's even looking at making a single unit which would be the ashtray replacement storage compartment and the magsafe holder which would be great and safe a lot of cash.

I was wary about taking it to someone without knowledge of how these older R12 based systems work and how to work out the correct R134 oil and gas levels. Found a great guy Paul https://pwautoelectrical.co.uk/ He worked on 80's BMWs when new - doing the aircon installs for dealers as in those days you could either order the car with aircon or get it done at the dealer once delivered. Definitely recommend him for anyone wanting similar. He tested it, found a leak, had to replace a couple of seals and rethread a connector, All good now just need the warm weather :)

HI Folks, After an 8 month search finally found a cracking M365csi with no real rust! Only issue apart from the terrible headlights that make night driving a bit scary is that the aircon doesn't work. Lots of glass which is great for visibility but does get hot in there! Seller assured me it used to work but it's been stored unused for a while so maybe leaking? Anyone recommend a really good auto aircon specialist that they would trust with a 39 year old car - somewhere near High Wycombe preferably. thanks Ken

Hi Dan - already did and looking pretty good actually 🙂

thanks Greydog - yeah that's my worry and I guess you never find out what Admiral would pay out till you make a claim. Maybe after arguing and proving you can't source a similar car with similar condition they would pay up but I suppose 'similar condition' is a very vague thing. Thinking I'll pay the extra for agreed value policy. I'm just amazed Admiral can include 90 days free European breakdown cover for a 39 year old car - maybe they just have one guy in France with a 2CV and a tow rope Ken

Hi Folks, Am in the UK and about to buy a 40 year old M635csi. I got a quote from Hagarty for classic car limited mileage insurance at around £600 a year. This is based on it having a set agreed value so if it's a total write off or unrecovered that's what they pay you. I was surprised to find that Admiral say they can add it to my other 2 cars, with social and commuting use for me and wife, with European breakdown cover for £260! But that's not on an agreed value basis - but surely they would still have to pay out a fair amount if totalled? Any thoughts on classic Vs regular car insurance here? I kind of assumed Admiral would just not cover it as such an old car - or would be really expensive. thanks Ken

Thanks Greydog - top tip 🙂

Thanks Dave - I'll get under and have a look if going for this one - just seems like an odd thing to not have right on a car that has had a full respray and looks immaculate. Appreciate the help 🙂

Hi Folks, Just signed up as I am looking to buy a 635csi and found one for sale that looks like what I want. But the pics of the car from the side make it look like the exhaust is hanging down lower than usual. I know the back box is always very visible compared to modern cars but can someone have a peek at this pic and tell me if you reckon it looks off? Especially in front of the rear wheel where you can see daylight gap. Is it just the low camera angle? The car is a couple of hours away from me so want to get my list of things to check before going there! Thanks All