£182 plus shipping
Bought an old BMW M3, filled with regret...
- Thread starter mrk
- Start date
There is some dust here and there 
The opposite for me, whilst the interior remains clean, the exterior is what just gathers crap in the recent weathering!
Such is the way with regular use, or even not so regular use as I find with the car on the driveway on weekdays as I WFH 
Lovett on M3 Cutters will sort you out nicely
A slight tweak, added some rubber pads to stop the frame of the phone rubbing against the trim potentially causing scuffs , also adds some cushion. I think it is a perfect solution, look at that fit
Fine tuning not yet completed
You may find that there are third party brands for your model that do an OEM style unit that you simply buy direct off them like this Induktiv one for the E46. they do ones for F/G models too so I would bet there are options for other cars out there 
It might cost a bit, but such is the way for something very specific I guess.
It might cost a bit, but such is the way for something very specific I guess.
Installed teh Avin Avant 4 PX6 today. I opted for the DSP upgrade and I-BUS module which seems to have more features and customisations than I have time to actually explore and set up so that will likely be something I tweak over several weeks lol. It extends the already available codings in apps like INPA/Carly. Like the exterior lights coming on/off when you lock/unlock the car at ceratin times etc, you have onscreen buttons to dip the mirrors either side when in reverse so you can see the kerb, you get a visual indicator of the windows/lights/doors in the i-bus app too and realtime OBC data.
Above all else though the sound quality out of the box is very good, just needed some tweaks in the Amplifier settings to release the bass and clarity. On the old unit I had to use Viper4AndroidFX to unlock this sound quality but now have it out of the box without having to root. The performance is like a modern smartphone too and Google Maps with satellite maps layer with realtime traffic is fast and smooth as well. No complaints so far.
One thing I like with Avin is that the button dials are rubbery just like OEM nav, and the SD card slot is hidden behind a cover that looks like a button. Also on the side of the unit are two metal spring tabs that hold the units lower section on the inside against the centre console. this is brilliant as it keeps it all locked in place whereas none of the others have this and you have to push it all in and align it to be perfect.
Still need to set up Netflix, Prime Video, Nova Launcher home screen shortcuts and other customisations but so far everything is great on first run.
i.imgur.com
Also managed to sell the old one for £100+ postage earlier too which is a bonus.
Above all else though the sound quality out of the box is very good, just needed some tweaks in the Amplifier settings to release the bass and clarity. On the old unit I had to use Viper4AndroidFX to unlock this sound quality but now have it out of the box without having to root. The performance is like a modern smartphone too and Google Maps with satellite maps layer with realtime traffic is fast and smooth as well. No complaints so far.
One thing I like with Avin is that the button dials are rubbery just like OEM nav, and the SD card slot is hidden behind a cover that looks like a button. Also on the side of the unit are two metal spring tabs that hold the units lower section on the inside against the centre console. this is brilliant as it keeps it all locked in place whereas none of the others have this and you have to push it all in and align it to be perfect.
Still need to set up Netflix, Prime Video, Nova Launcher home screen shortcuts and other customisations but so far everything is great on first run.
imgur.com
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Also managed to sell the old one for £100+ postage earlier too which is a bonus.
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beautiful day today, my niece who lost her father several year ago to cancer is at an age to enjoy and remember things properly. Anyway myself and another bro in law were about to go for a bit of a hoon and she pipes up asking to join us. Sat at the back the whole time grinning and smiling.
Stuff like that is what this is all about. Said she had loads of fun today.
Stuff like that is what this is all about. Said she had loads of fun today.
Strange one I think as have never experienced this before, but went out for a drive today as haven't driven it properly for a few weeks and noticed that in 2nd gear when pulling away under hard acceleration that there is a vibration coming from the transmission (rear half of the car).
This is only noticed in 2nd gear, pulling away normally as if town driving etc there is no problem at all. The engine still revs perfectly normally it's just feeling like as if the gear teeth are slipping or something in 2nd gear under harder acceleration if that makes sense? I can feel the gear lever slightly vibration too when this happens which led me to suspect the cogs in gear 2 being the issue potentially?
I did wonder if it was the diff but if it was that, then the vibration would have been observed in all gears, or at least gears 1 through 3 anyway but this is only in 2nd gear and only during hard acceleration.
Anyone experienced similar?
This is only noticed in 2nd gear, pulling away normally as if town driving etc there is no problem at all. The engine still revs perfectly normally it's just feeling like as if the gear teeth are slipping or something in 2nd gear under harder acceleration if that makes sense? I can feel the gear lever slightly vibration too when this happens which led me to suspect the cogs in gear 2 being the issue potentially?
I did wonder if it was the diff but if it was that, then the vibration would have been observed in all gears, or at least gears 1 through 3 anyway but this is only in 2nd gear and only during hard acceleration.
Anyone experienced similar?
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Hmm would that affect just 2nd gear though? Would have thought if it was one or both rear cv joints then the judder would be experienced in all the lower gears at least too?
Edit*
I guess it could be, the most aggressive torque/power is in 2nd gear, so this could well be it. The other gears are still strong but they are more linear/continual.
Edit2*
CV joint and bearing for the propshaft, this looks to be the common thing to fail causing symptoms like this, not the inner cv joints on the drive shaft. Will investigate and contact my garage accordingly. * A guy on the M3 group had the same issues and replaced both of these along with the doughnut. My doughnut was changed around 2017 so don't think it will be the cause. Booked into garage now next week so will see what it is lol.
Edit*
I guess it could be, the most aggressive torque/power is in 2nd gear, so this could well be it. The other gears are still strong but they are more linear/continual.
Edit2*
CV joint and bearing for the propshaft, this looks to be the common thing to fail causing symptoms like this, not the inner cv joints on the drive shaft. Will investigate and contact my garage accordingly. * A guy on the M3 group had the same issues and replaced both of these along with the doughnut. My doughnut was changed around 2017 so don't think it will be the cause. Booked into garage now next week so will see what it is lol.
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The day I've been waiting for
You wish
Update since installing the AVIN, wireless Android Auto fully integrated now and works great. Takes about 15 seconds from cold boot to connect to the phone and be ready to use, or just a few seconds from a stand-by boot.
Update since installing the AVIN, wireless Android Auto fully integrated now and works great. Takes about 15 seconds from cold boot to connect to the phone and be ready to use, or just a few seconds from a stand-by boot.
*Mistress Tea Lady, to you 
Noticed that the car Doug is showing above btw has a lot of refreshes done to it, but the leather retrim on the front seats is not the same quality as nappa OEM leather, it looks too artificial/soft if that makes sense. Also noticed the upper headlining at the back is peeling which is a very common issue on coupes
If I ever get round to a leather retrim then I'll be using LG Trimming as they have super quality leather and would get some extended leather done on the centre console too like how you could get on some models of this era as an option.
Surprised that Doug is still confused about the climate vent dial in the centre though, says he's driven 8-9 E46s yet still doesn't understand what the use of the dial is?!?!
Noticed that the car Doug is showing above btw has a lot of refreshes done to it, but the leather retrim on the front seats is not the same quality as nappa OEM leather, it looks too artificial/soft if that makes sense. Also noticed the upper headlining at the back is peeling which is a very common issue on coupes
If I ever get round to a leather retrim then I'll be using LG Trimming as they have super quality leather and would get some extended leather done on the centre console too like how you could get on some models of this era as an option.
Surprised that Doug is still confused about the climate vent dial in the centre though, says he's driven 8-9 E46s yet still doesn't understand what the use of the dial is?!?!
At 139k miles it was finally time to get sorted one little annoyance which is the driver's seat base where a pair of jeans had worn out and marked the leather which resuted in further wear over time. not major but enough to annoy me. Called up a local mobile leather specialist who did it in a couple of hours. I forgot to take a before pic sadly but you can see the result is like new leather. The other seats are all in superb condition so no need to touch them
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I forgot to take a before pic 
Although TBF it probably would have been hard to tell the extent of wear in the pic anyway
Although TBF it probably would have been hard to tell the extent of wear in the pic anyway
Pretty much 99% of people who sold one has said they regret selling it it seems
I remember the iPod unit, mine came with one and you plugged the ipod into the glovebox into a device called the Dension iPod Gateway and then cycle the songs from the stock Business CD head unit in that rickety old school way.
Aftermarket head units did exist back in the late 2000s but they were running Windows Mobile/CE and were unbelievably slow and buggy so probably best avoided
intravee, that rings a bell. That enabled some additional coding options too if you had the OEM nav screen like customising the lights coming on when you unlock the car at night etc. Have those functions now via the IBUS app though but still have yet to explore the full set of features.
I always found it strange that the coupe seats had more padding than the convertible on the side bolsters and seat base sides, but the headrest itself was thinner than the convertible^