The Darkness// AutoX/Track/Weekend Canyon Slayer, The Chronicles

[ZHP Dave]

Uhh I have two of those in the garage as well...

I should sell some shit

Yep. I have one sitting in the garage I haven't used in a few years. Maybe I should dust it off and list it for sale.

[Whammy]

https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink?url...2&share_type=t

There is one in the classifieds

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

Yep. I have one sitting in the garage I haven't used in a few years. Maybe I should dust it off and list it for sale.

Uhh I have two of those in the garage as well...

I should sell some shit

I am starting to wonder if he meant both base rack and bike rack components (eg. Thule, Yakima, etc). I was only selling the base rack, not the thule bike racks I have.

[AWhiteZHP]

Whammy, the tires weren't actually rubbing on the fenders but rather the stud that mounts the bumper to the inner fender (the one with the clip that breaks/rusts on every E46. When the rear bumper cover was replaced, it seems like they probably snapped the original stud like I have multiple times, but didn't trim the stud to the proper length when the welded on the new one. So I took an oscillating tool w/ a carbide blade and removed the bad juju.

I've decided to switch to Rotella for a couple reasons; one, Mobil is a good oil for light duty only. It doesn't stand up AS WELL to extreme temperature cycling, whereas Rotella T6 does. Rotella is engineered specifically for extreme conditions. Two, Mobil use to be BMW approved, which is where it got it's reputation on the internet. It was a cheap option that you could pick up a Walmart with BMW's stamp of approval. BMW LL-X certification *mainly* revolves around the detergents/additives that prevent rings from sticking. In my experience, I've only found seen this issue in engines that see extended drain intervals, typically 10K> miles. Amsoil is actually the only oil I've personally seen (not saying only, just my experience) that had a high enough additive content to actually make a difference. More additives aren't always better, and Amsoil uses about 2.5x the norm which helps in some functions but not in others.

And dude, the act of shifting this car is great. The combination of the SS clutch line and CDV delete is magic! And the shifts are so buttery smooth, I always hated how notchy the M3's transmission was when it was at anything less than operating temperature. If I could just perfect the throw...

If you're not eating a double-double animal style, are you even at InNOut?!

[AWhiteZHP]

And yes, I'm referring to the bar AND rack setup when I mention $500+. I understand how much they cost, but I'm cheap and like deals. I've also gotten burned on a few forum purchases so I've come to like touching things before I buy them. True story, for the past 4 months I've been trying to sort the steering box in my Benz. I paid an unnamed douche bag on PeachParts a total of ~$600 for a "rebuilt box". He first sends me a box that was fifty shades of f*cked, not rebuilt but rather spray painted. The box leaked like a stuck pig when I installed it. So I tell him, he assures me that this never happens and promises to properly rebuild my original box if I send it to him. I FOOLISHLY send him my box, wait a month and get it back. Install the "rebuilt box" and I shit you not, the dude replaced a seal or two, painted the box and shamelessly sent it back. Sorry for the novel, needed to get that off my chest.

But this morning I realized that I do not want to drive my minty E46 down the roads that lead to good singletrack. So in about an hour, I'm going to go to Walmart, buy the cheapest trunk rack I can, and mount it to the Corolla. Sweet Rolla pics to follow, buckle up!

[Whammy]

Whammy, the tires weren't actually rubbing on the fenders but rather the stud that mounts the bumper to the inner fender (the one with the clip that breaks/rusts on every E46. When the rear bumper cover was replaced, it seems like they probably snapped the original stud like I have multiple times, but didn't trim the stud to the proper length when the welded on the new one. So I took an oscillating tool w/ a carbide blade and removed the bad juju.

Motherf#@23$@$!!!! My wife gave me soo much grief over that noise. The shop I normally took the car to didn't find that. They thought it was the tires even though it was stock size. Grrrrrrrr......................................... ....

I've decided to switch to Rotella for a couple reasons; one, Mobil is a good oil for light duty only. It doesn't stand up AS WELL to extreme temperature cycling, whereas Rotella T6 does. Rotella is engineered specifically for extreme conditions. Two, Mobil use to be BMW approved, which is where it got it's reputation on the internet. It was a cheap option that you could pick up a Walmart with BMW's stamp of approval. BMW LL-X certification *mainly* revolves around the detergents/additives that prevent rings from sticking. In my experience, I've only found seen this issue in engines that see extended drain intervals, typically 10K> miles. Amsoil is actually the only oil I've personally seen (not saying only, just my experience) that had a high enough additive content to actually make a difference. More additives aren't always better, and Amsoil uses about 2.5x the norm which helps in some functions but not in others.

Ok.

And dude, the act of shifting this car is great. The combination of the SS clutch line and CDV delete is magic! And the shifts are so buttery smooth, I always hated how notchy the M3's transmission was when it was at anything less than operating temperature. If I could just perfect the throw...

If you're not eating a double-double animal style, are you even at InNOut?!

We should find a cars and coffee and meet up. I can't make the next Lafayette event as I'll be out of town.

And yes, I'm referring to the bar AND rack setup when I mention $500+. I understand how much they cost, but I'm cheap and like deals. I've also gotten burned on a few forum purchases so I've come to like touching things before I buy them. True story, for the past 4 months I've been trying to sort the steering box in my Benz. I paid an unnamed douche bag on PeachParts a total of ~$600 for a "rebuilt box". He first sends me a box that was fifty shades of f*cked, not rebuilt but rather spray painted. The box leaked like a stuck pig when I installed it. So I tell him, he assures me that this never happens and promises to properly rebuild my original box if I send it to him. I FOOLISHLY send him my box, wait a month and get it back. Install the "rebuilt box" and I shit you not, the dude replaced a seal or two, painted the box and shamelessly sent it back. Sorry for the novel, needed to get that off my chest.

But this morning I realized that I do not want to drive my minty E46 down the roads that lead to good singletrack. So in about an hour, I'm going to go to Walmart, buy the cheapest trunk rack I can, and mount it to the Corolla. Sweet Rolla pics to follow, buckle up!

Tsk! Get a base rack, buy Thule bike racks, and rock it.

[BMWCurves]

I don't have experience with the Rogue unit, but I quite like my UUC SSK. I'll be up front, it is more expensive now than when I purchased it, and I did not have a great experience with UUC's customer service. However, I love it in my car and between the shifter, the steering wheel, and the pedals, it's one of the most used items when driving, so I can justify the expense.

I should say, I had the shifter come apart on me after a long trip - a circlip failed and the retaining bolt slipped off. No actual damage or issue with the unit, just the circlip holding it in place broke. Easy enough repair, just a pain in the butt to get the car to where I needed to be. I have not heard anyone else on the internet having this issue so I wouldn't write it up as a common flaw to the UUC shifter

[AWhiteZHP]

Glad to hear that you like the feel. Mind me asking what customer service problems you've had? Any idea what actually caused the circlip to break?

[AWhiteZHP]

As promised, I bought a $40 rack and threw it on the back of the Rolla. Great success. Would've loved to mount bikes on the Bimmer, but I'm half convinced that my bike is cursed and I don't need to contaminate the darkness with that bad Juju.


I replaced engine mounts, intake boots and switched over to Rotella yesterday. Surprisingly, I think the boots would've lasted another couple years. The engine mounts on the other hand, came out in pieces and puking oil. The engine does seem to run better with Rotella in it's veins and it's apparent in most conditions. I'll send a sample into blackstone when I drain it. I'm planning on 2 lapping days in the next month, but I'm not going to drain before 5,000 miles because I also want to see how it's performed in the cold/every day conditions.

On a not-so-good note, I think I'll be replacing the VMR's before I hit the 200K mark. I'm thinking about dropping down to a 17" wheel so I can have some more sidewall. Tires are also wayyyyy cheaper when wrapping a 17" wheel. I've always been an Apex fan but everybody has them. I've always been a Volk fan and SSR Type C's are neat, but I don't think they'll look great in 17" form. So I'm still open to just about anything, if anybody has any wheel ideas for a black sedan, post them! I just want them to be strong enough to stand up to daily driving on these jagged roads.

Whammy, I'm down for a C&C. I was born and raised here and have never been to a Colorado Cars and Coffee. I've always been scared to roll up on a posse of bugeye WRX's on XXR's and Racelands LOL. Ten years ago, the local PD would've put a quick stop to any group of modified cars hanging out in a parking lot at 7am!

[fredo]

OEM style 68 are always a good choice, IMHO. They are 17".

[BMWCurves]

Glad to hear that you like the feel. Mind me asking what customer service problems you've had? Any idea what actually caused the circlip to break?

When I received the unit I had my mechanic install it and he had issues getting it to fit correctly. Turns out that UUC shipped the unit assembled backwards. Had a lot of back and forth and UUC took a lot of prodding to get them to admit they were wrong. They sent me another unit that was correct, but it felt like pulling teeth.

On a not-so-good note, I think I'll be replacing the VMR's before I hit the 200K mark. I'm thinking about dropping down to a 17" wheel so I can have some more sidewall. Tires are also wayyyyy cheaper when wrapping a 17" wheel. I've always been an Apex fan but everybody has them. I've always been a Volk fan and SSR Type C's are neat, but I don't think they'll look great in 17" form. So I'm still open to just about anything, if anybody has any wheel ideas for a black sedan, post them! I just want them to be strong enough to stand up to daily driving on these jagged roads.

Despite their online popularity, I haven't seen a single other BMW in my area with APEXes. I love mine. Waaaaay lighter than the factory Style 135 wheels and still lighter than the Style 68s.