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MKSD03ZHP
04-24-2013, 04:32 PM
Good Evening,

My name is Steve. I am located in south-central Pennsylvania. I just purchased a 2003 330i ZHP about 6 weeks ago.

A few specs about the car:
- 2003 6 speed manual
- 100% bone stock as of current
- black exterior with black leather interior and black cube trim
- harmon kardon sound, heated powered front seats
- has winter wheels/tires on it now (m68s) - the 135s are getting refinished as we speak - will be installed next weekend (hopefully)!

Purchased with 123K, however had over 100 pages of meticulous records
- all BMW recommended maintenance performed, and preventative maintenance as well (water pump, DISA valve, etc.), oil changes every 4,500-5,000 miles, etc.

A bit about me:
- I am in my mid-20s, married, and am passionate about rare vehicles (see below)

- I had a 1992 mitsubishi 3000gt vr-4 fully built to over 700 street-legal horsepower (sold due to change in priorities: reliability, longevity > pure horsepower/speed).
- prior to purchasing the ZHP I had a 2005 Volvo S60R. With the AWD, active chassis suspension and turbocharged 5-cylinder that made 300hp/290 lbs. ft. of torque it was fun to drive, yet I have always wanted a BMW, and decided to make the move and get the ZHP as my first owned BMW (and German car, for that matter).

I have been on Bimmerforums and E46fanatics for a while, however when I discovered ZHPMafia, I was immediately drawn to the caliber of individuals and content within this community, and wanted to become a part of it and add value and quality ideas/insight.

I will be unable to attend the May meet in VA this year unfortunately, but hopefully my wife and I will be able to attend the next one.

I have attached a few photos, hopefully you can all view them (still learning the methods of attaching, etc. on here)

Again, It is great to be a part of this community! I look forward to learning a lot about the ZHPs and BMWs as a whole in addition to enjoying discussions with all of you moving forward!

Thanks for the acceptance into the community!


- Steve

JupiterBMW
04-24-2013, 04:34 PM
Great intro Steve. Welcome to the forum! Enjoy your time here, like you said, a very high caliber of individuals... (I may lower the average, but they still let me hang around!!) :rofl

Mtnman
04-24-2013, 04:45 PM
Welcome Steve. Great intro. You will find that the family is a great bunch of individuals who keep to cars and away from the shenanigans of other sites. Glad to have you.

elric
04-24-2013, 04:52 PM
Welcome to the family, Steve.

johnrando
04-24-2013, 04:56 PM
Welcome Steve. Appreciate the deets in the intro.

Avetiso
04-24-2013, 05:03 PM
Welcome. M68's look kinda nice on a ZHP.

wsmeyer
04-24-2013, 05:03 PM
Welcome to the Mafia. When you say "bone stock as of current" makes me think you've already got a list started lol.

I'm sure the "flash back Thursday" thread will pop back up tomorrow. Maybe we can get some pics of a 700 hp mitsu?

danewilson77
04-24-2013, 05:08 PM
Welcome.

It's not 100% stock. :shifty

It looks great though.

:)

HTC DNA, Williamsburg, VA

Johnmadd
04-24-2013, 05:14 PM
Welcome.

illirep
04-24-2013, 05:45 PM
Welcome. Great to have you.

static667
04-24-2013, 05:56 PM
Welcome to the Mafia! What kind of plans do you have for your car? I'm assuming that you are going to modify it judging by your history with cars.

Oli77
04-24-2013, 06:10 PM
Welcome. This is the best forum, period. Your car, also is the best combination of beauty, comfort and power. Enjoy!

3ZHPGUY
04-24-2013, 06:18 PM
Welcome, nice intro and pictures.

Marcus-SanDiego
04-24-2013, 06:38 PM
Welcome, Steve.

kayger12
04-24-2013, 06:57 PM
Welcome to the family.

Sent from my kick-A Galaxy S3

midlandtech
04-24-2013, 07:50 PM
Welcome!

MKSD03ZHP
04-25-2013, 01:43 AM
Thank you all for the warm welcome!

As for modifications - nothing major planned. I have looked into BMW Performance Strut bars, sways and BMW performance (and other) intake options. No forced induction plans for her - enjoying the NA bmw performance without the hassles that can come along when forced induction is introduced.

I have it lined up for tint soon and have piano black kidney grills for the front (may put them on this weekend).

I've had both twin turbo (vr-4) and single turbo (s60r). This is (besides my wife's Jeep Commander) my first NA vehicle, and so far I am enjoying it!

Looking forward to the future here in the community!

(also - I'll see if I can find any pics of the vr-4 as requested - I sold it 3-4 years ago, but will look tonight. I'll throw one of the s60r in there tonight too).

- Steve

Ryans323i
04-25-2013, 04:20 AM
Welcome aboard!

fredo
04-25-2013, 06:52 AM
Welcome, Steve. Let us know if you need some help to set the clock on your radio ... J/K, man !

MKSD03ZHP
04-25-2013, 07:05 AM
haha I figured it out. Thanks, Fredo!

Don Adolfo
04-25-2013, 02:47 PM
Benvenuto a la famiglia Steve.

MKSD03ZHP
04-25-2013, 04:53 PM
Vr-4 engine bay and one S60R photo.

dont have many good ones of VR-4.


-Steve

alexandre
04-25-2013, 05:23 PM
Noice. Always liked the Volvo R's, especially the wagon version. How fun are they to drive ?

MKSD03ZHP
04-26-2013, 12:59 AM
Yeah the v70rs are nice. The R is a rare car- drivability was nice; fast spool time, great braking (factory brembos) and good handling however the turning radius was horrible.

The one area that was annoying was suspension repair: due to active chassis suspension (oem), strut assemblies were $500+ each, etc.

Also- not one of the more simpler vehicles to mod- some mod support in the market but nothing like the vr-4 mod market. Most likely a brand/culture thing: Volvo was never known for strict performance, but for safety. The R was the attempt at breaking through into a different market segment. To a degree, they succeeded, however in 07 the R went away and it was a few years before the "R-design" came out.


Steve

echo46
04-26-2013, 01:06 AM
Even though no 135s, those 68s look pretty cool. Welcome.

MKSD03ZHP
04-26-2013, 06:32 AM
135s should be on by next weekend. refinishing as we speak. I don't mind the look, although am definitely excited for the 135s to be on!

Steve

RITmusic2k
04-26-2013, 09:23 AM
Greetings, Steve! Glad to see a ZHP come into the hands of a proper enthusiast! I actually looked briefly at an S60R before I ended up getting my ZHP!

WOLFN8TR
04-26-2013, 09:56 AM
Welcome Steve...

Lost_One
04-26-2013, 05:52 PM
Great looking car. I really like 60R's as well and had considered a few before getting my ZHP. Welcome aboard :)

MKSD03ZHP
05-30-2013, 09:48 AM
thanks for the welcome, all.

finally 135m wheels on the zhp! will upload a pic or 2 tonight. looks as it should now. although I didn't significantly dislike the m68s, the zhp wheels are where it's at.

trancenation
05-30-2013, 12:44 PM
Welcome to the forums Steve! Great to have some folks around my age around as well! Good luck to your endeavors and modifications!

MKSD03ZHP
05-30-2013, 02:32 PM
here it is

danewilson77
05-30-2013, 02:59 PM
Looks great!

Imola.ZHP
05-31-2013, 12:59 PM
Welcome!

You might consider searching for the magic eraser thread to help bring that steering wheel back to life, it really helped mine!

MKSD03ZHP
06-02-2013, 07:14 AM
was planning on doing the COBY tri-stitch wheel in the fall. will look into the magic eraser thread though - thanks for the heads up!

ELCID86
06-02-2013, 08:14 AM
was planning on doing the COBY tri-stitch wheel in the fall. will look into the magic eraser thread though - thanks for the heads up!

Worked well for me.


Shawn in VA.
Via thumbs and Tapatalk.

M3TA5IN
06-11-2013, 02:40 PM
Welcome Steve! Guess I missed this. I am right down the road from you in Loganville right off exit 10.

You going to come to the Bimmerfest Meet and Greet coming up? Its at my place then we are going to Bimmerfest on Saturday.