Hello all!!
You may have seen me trolling the for sale forum for the last few weeks.
My previous BMWs include an Estoril on Dove E36M (no pics)
an Arctic on Black E36M:
And a Lachsilber on Black E30 325is:
After a LONG hunt, I've finally made it to ranks of ZHP ownership. Check out the created date on my AutoTrader saved search:
I was pretty set on a SilverGray, but Jason posted his Titanium Silver 04 for sale here on ZHP Mafia on June 26th. The car had an immaculately maintained history with full records, was a one owner, and looked to be in phenomenal shape. These pros were enough to sway me to a TiAg and I went for it.
Basics on the car:
2004 ZHP
Titanium Silver
Alcanatara, Black Cube, Sunroof, Cold Wx, Sirius, Bi-Xenons, HomeLink, HK
110,000 miles, Maintained with Old-School MX
Bone stock
Full records for all MX, window sticker too
Jason’s FS pics:
Flew up last Thursday night and met Jason Friday morning. We exchanged funds for title and went to the DMV. Jason was a good enough guy to stick around with me at the DMV for 2 hours to get the whole transaction completed. A set of temp tags and $20 to uncle Connecticut, I was on my way back to Atlanta.
I overnighted in Waynesboro, VA. Some of you may know; this is the city just to the west of the start of the Blue Ridge Parkway. I got up at 5:45 Saturday morning, ate my "buffet" breakfast and was on the Parkway by 6:30AM. What did this mean? Ghost town. Oh, and fog. A lot. Of. Fog.
Mile Marker 60 (I got on at MM0):
Cruised the Parkway for 60 miles. Saw 4 other cars (all going the other direction), 5 deer, a turkey, and 8 cyclists….and that’s literally it. Perhaps not as much a “Driver’s” road as I expected, but simply stunning nevertheless. Glad I added it to the trip. Got back on 81 on the other side of Glasgow VA and made my way to Atlanta…with a quick stop at the Zentrum.:
All in all, put exactly 1,000 miles on the car. Clicked over 1,000 literally as I pulled into my subdivision. The car was a blast. So smooth, quiet, strong, nimble; basically a fantastic cocktail of sport blended with lux. This is what I read about the ZHP, what made me dead set on owning one, and I’m glad it has turned out to be true.
I’d like this thread to serve as a logbook for my work on the car, including maintenance, mild mods, and hopefully give some experience back to the ZHP Mafia community. I’m a pretty handy DIYer and hopefully I can document my work well enough to give some knowledge back this forum that has already helped me a great deal.
To start off the repairs and mods (a very quick and dirty bit on each):
Idle Stumble: The car developed a slight stumble when revving off of idle in the last 20 or 30 miles of the trip. Ambient temps were in the high 90s with humidity in the 80s and the car had been heat soaked for hours – not that this should ever matter. I replaced the very dirty and grimy K&N filter with a paper Purolator (for now) and used MAF cleaner on the MAF. So far so good. Will likely stick with paper but move to a Mahle when I get a chance to place my first big Pelican Parts order.
Aux Input: Bought BMW’s aux input. Took me maybe 15 minutes to install. Pop the glovebox trim off (with plastic trim tool to avoid marring), then the radio trim. 2 Phillip’s screws, pop the radio out. Remove the connector at the rear, slide out the blue retaining clip, and add the aux input connector. Route the cable to the spot of your choice; I went with the upper right corner of the middle console bin. Still need to pick up a 3.5mm M/M cord. Once connected, the radio automatically adds the source to your “Mode” list; I now have AM/FM, Disc, Disc Changer, Sirius, AUX.
Shift Knob: Replaced the worn original knob with another OEM ZHP knob. What else? This is the best knob on the market, bar none. Am considering a rebuild of the linkage; it’s a bit sloppy.
Posts/work to come soon:
Lighting: Original ZKW 2003 build year driver’s Xenon has zero light output. It turns on, but looks like a cataract. Replacement OEM ZKW 2005 build year Pax light has orange glow at periphery of output pattern. Suspected & confirmed severely burned bowls on both. Hopefully this is the extent of the problem. Solution has shipped, I will document all my work and post it up here.
Exterior Trim: Ordered replacement front bumper center moulding. GA requires no front plate; I ordered a plain and also a Euro plate strip. I was born in Germany and spent several years of my life living there, so I might rock a German plate as a bit of a throwback. Can’t decide if I want a Munich plate as homage to BMW, or perhaps my family’s hometown as something more personal. I’m going to go with the plain center moulding until I make up my mind.
Exterior Trim: Ordered Khoalty black kidneys. The original chrome kidneys are cracked and barely hanging on. Going to try the flat black look.
MX: Expansion tank, belts, idlers ASAP. Rest as per OSM.
Also got a new BMWCCA membership and joined the ZHPMafia SIG too.
Anyway, sorry for the marathon! Hope yall enjoy - I’m looking forward to getting to know everyone around here better.
-Paul
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