This deal took 3 months to hammer out.
So this story starts 5 years ago, a good friend from another forum purchased a 1991 4 door 318is with a 1999 M52B28 (~57K miles) and brand-new 2006 E46 M3 6-speed (~6K miles since install) in it.
When he told me about it I told him very clearly, when he was done with it, I will buy it, no questions asked just tell me how much.
So he emailed me back in November to let me know he was selling, I emailed back and said SOLD!! I overnighted him a 50% deposit and set out to sell the RX8 in earnest.
Then as events unfolded we decided on a January 3rd delivery, as the date was approaching I was realizing I had too much going on to get the car. As luck would have it his wife backed into a pole and her DD was in the shop so this worked out perfect, He DD'd the E30 and she drove his car. The E30 was a 3rd car for them.
So now came the fateful day of January 24th, we agreed this would be the day, Mrs5543 had no idea what was going on. She had no clue, having sold the RX8 she had lamented she would like a car again as her Great Aunt cannot climb into the FJ.
I smiled and said nothing.
So my son and I had to head to Wellington, Florida to drop the driveshaft off from his E30, this gave us the excuse to go on the road, we lied some and told her it was a long drive and we would not be back until 1-2 PM. We dropped the drive shaft off and raced to Miami (an hour from where we were) and Met up with the seller and did the deal.
I drove it home and as luck would have it Mrs5543 and our 11 y/o were out on a walk to town to get some stuff, so I tucked it into the garage and waited.
Here it is tucked away:
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/20150124_150703_zpsdv9t79yc.jpg)
So Mrs5543 gets home and I take her to the garage, she looks at the car, hesitates, then walked towards it and hugs the hood proclaiming this car is bad ass!!! on top of her lungs. I got a hug after that.
Then she took it in and really flipped out as I pointed out all the specialness about it.
Here she is pulling away on her first drive:
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/20150124_155240_zps2dp6s3r3.jpg)
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/20150124_155243_zpswbkwsaox.jpg)
This is Mrs5543 taking a pic after her test drive to post on Instagram.
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/20150124_155813_zps8hbqprrj.jpg)
The car? As mentioned a 1991 4 Door 318is with much much more... See below:
Quote
1999 M52B28 (2.8L 2793cc)
S52 Cams (E36 M3)
21.5 lb injectors
M50 computer (red-label 413 ECU) - used 318 harness box connected to 325 wires, with OEM BMW connectors. NO EWS.
OBD1 converted: M50 manifold, OBDI throttle body, OBD1 wiring harness/ecu/sensors
S52 valve cover
3.5" 540i AFM (1994-1996 540, 740, 840 - BMW part # 1362-1747156)
Conforti carbon fiber intake with ITG filter and Samco 3.5" to 3" intake elbow from Bimmerworld (yes, the expensive one!)
Chuck Stickley (CSS Motorsports) custom tune for M52 w/ S52 cams, 21.5 lb injectors, 3.5" HFM and stock E36 exhaust. Arguably better than Jim C chips for 24V applications and makes more power. Rev limit is 7200 RPM
New NGK plugs
7-Series brake reservoir - sits above intake instead of under like 320i – provides better maintenance access (and to fuel lines too)
Brake reservoir adapters from an E21
325ix brake booster
E28 M5 engine mounts
M5 master cylinder
All new gaskets where parts for the swap were changed (i.e. the oil pan gasket and oil sump gasket for the e34 oil pan and sump)
Fully converted R134a A/C (ice cold), using AC compressor from M50; stock lines with redone ends
Always frequent oil changes, and always with conventional 5W30 oil from BMW: the VANOS units on the M52 were designed to use the conventional oil slight pastiness/buildup as lubricant (thus a full synthetic is not advised for this application). Talk to Dr. Vanos about this!
New power steering lines, fresh power steering fluid and brake fluid
E30 M3 wiring loom cover
Old Pic of engine:
(http://www.plurkids.com/e30/Engine1.jpg)
The interior:
Quote
Full leather swap in Natur from a 325is (formerly had ratty gray cloth) in great shape with arm rest/ski pass-through rear.
New near-mint tan coupe sports (perforated leatherette) with forward angle capability. All adjustments work. Comfort leather seats are stored indoors.
New full set of tan BMW floor mats with BMW logo, and (4) soft black rubber mats on top of those.
New power sunroof: completely new sunroof cartridge, installed and drain tubes cleaned.
M-Tech II steering wheel.
Airbag car - has the padded under dash panel.
New rear seatbelts/anchors, torqued to factory spec. I occasionally need to put my 2 1/2 year-old in her seat in the back, and was not going to take any chances with safety. She loves "daddy's fun car, the Bimmer."
UUC SSK, with all new bushings, plastic parts, etc. – and all OEM so in future can just use part numbers off the side of anything that wears out.
OEM BMW E46 ZHP/M 6-speed weighted short-shift knob with new boot
New (used) fully functional VDO "I" cluster with 7000RPM tach.
Maplight rearview mirror.
E36 window switch retrofit.
George Graves interior light delay with auto dimming.
Check panel and 13 button OBC (fully functional).
Sony CD head unit. MB-Quart separates front and back. Using OEM front door mirror corner tweeter enclosures.
Extra fog lamp switch wired to garage door opener (behind switchplate on top of head unit DIN chassis) in dash next to hazard switch. I'll leave the switch in place so you can do the same if desired.
Dynamat installed in front doors, backs didn't need it. OEM carpet. Trunk noise-reducing tar did not come on the 318, so the car is nice and light but could be a bit quieter.
Clean, complete toolkit, jack, full-size spare (on bottlecap), etc.
(http://www.plurkids.com/e30/Dash.jpg)
Marks Pic in Miami:
(http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa141/mark_julian_/20141129_154839.jpg)
So, this car puts 210 to the wheels, the reason for the 2.8 liter 1999 motor over say, a M3 3.0 liter motor? It was always planned to be supercharged, the 208 block is the same as the 3 and 3.2 blocks so the cylinder walls are thick and are perfect for forced induction.
The plan is to do some TLC (there is honestly not much) over the next 2 years then lay plans to toss a supercharger in for about 6 PSI which should make it a nice 300RWHP sled.
Man that thing is gorgeous!! 4.gif
Sweet ride dude
Thanks guys
I question my sanity sometimes as the old cars appeal to me more than anything new out there.
So now we have a 24 year old car and a 36 year old car in the garage.
I guess I like the adventure of an old car.
Registered and on the road, Mrs5543 drove it to the office this morning. She needs to work on her parking skills. I see door dings in our future.
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/Mobile%20Uploads/20150126_140212_zpsal8vpxeq.jpg)
WOW nice ride. E 30's getting harder to find.
Awesome awesome ride - E30's have class-! and this one looks built right from a true enthuist with the right parts all around - Complete package nearly all OEM.... 328iS = WHAAA!!!
Kinda Jelous!
Thanks guys, she is really sweet I am in love with this car. A perfect E30 in my honest opinion. When my buddy bought this car 5 years ago I was super impressed and he has only made it better.
I have some things that need to be done, the power steering is making a lot of noise, not sure what is up yet, the pump may be on the way out. A common upgrade is to go up to a E36 M3 steering rack (probably buy a new pump as well) so I feel like that may be my first real big project on her.
Then there is just lots of little TLC things, tail lights are old and tattered, hope to either find some brand new ones or something in better shape.
Black trim (rain gutter, around doors side trim etc) is all very worn out and beat up. So that will be addressed, not sure how yet still researching.
Picked up a cool little device to reset me oil change indicator for $15.
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/BMW/20150207_125155_zpslvi11mbj.jpg)
Also installed a subwoofer since we have an armrest (ski pass) in the rear seat.
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/BMW/20150207_174616_zpsmnwaesv6.jpg)
Started wiring in the V1, should have it wired in this week.
The tail lights were really bothering me. They are probably every minute of the 24 years old the car is and just done.
Before:
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/BMW/20150207_115411_zps88fgkrpi.jpg)
After:
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/BMW/20150207_121316_zpsxsfrp4fi.jpg)
Much better:
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/BMW/20150207_121325_zpsovhwj2ws.jpg)
The car is debadged, it should have a 318is badge on the back, I toyed with putting a 328is one on instead. I will most likely leave it clean back there, I like the look.
Nice improvement. First thing I did to the rx7 was put on efini badges. Badges is where it's at.
New taillights or did you refinish them somehow?
Brand new OEM lights, there was no saving the old ones they had millions of little cracks all over them, I was amazed they were still in one piece.
I did some shopping around and found them for about $50 less than the big BMW supply companies wanted for them.
Now I am trying to figure out what to door about the window weather stripping and other exterior trim pieces. They are all pretty shot.
On the other end of the of the car, opposite the taillights, the headlights have been giving us problems since the day I purchased it. The seller told me that the one headlight was finicky. Every time I had to drive this car at night that one low beam would never come on. I had to pop the hood and fiddle with the wires.
We were in West Palm Beach about 2 weeks ago for dinner and a movie in City Place, when we left I had to fiddle with the headlight, it would not work, then the other low beam decided to stop working too. So now, at 10 at night I have no headlights 50 miles from home. I throw on the fog lights and only one comes on (a future project as well) so I drive home with 1 fog light and do not get pulled over.
I ordered a set of H4 lights and intended to swap them in, I went into the garage and realized they would never work, so I went online and ordered a $250 headlight assembly for both sides, all brand new bulbs, wiring brackets, etc... complete swap out.
We are leaving in the morning for Orlando, I had a day from hell at work today, the AC on my work truck started blowing warm, tons of stuff due, needy clients with requests, etc.. I did not get home until after 7 pm. I went out and charged up the AC on the work truck hoping that is the problem, maybe a slow leak??
Then dived into the garage to replace the headlights on the E30 I really wanted to keep the Euro Smiley lights so I decided to go with non-DOT approved Euros.
Ripping everything out, the new lights come with some nice connectors on them, except they are no stock so I have no idea what brand connector to get to attach to them. Fuck it, I cut them off, I am hard wiring this bitch.
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/20160616_215627_zpsljdfi9vr.jpg)
After some test fires, I finally installed using marine butt connectors that you crimp then heat to seal. They are amazing. I finally have Euro City lights that function in my headlights, just like my Mini has.
In the dark:
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/20160616_232609_zpstkdk8g3q.jpg)
With my 15K LED shop lights on:
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/20160616_232620_zps9yytgusc.jpg)
Holy crap!! I have headlights that work when I flip the switch!!
Next 2 pics in the dark:
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/20160616_232652_zpslyzjvutq.jpg)
High beams!!
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/20160616_232714_zpsqtq1adc6.jpg)
And with the shop lights on:
(http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y219/Jims5543/20160616_232719_zpsn9ofl4ju.jpg)
I adjusted best I could for now, may have to do some more. It is just nice to know they will come on when I need them.
I wanted to do this when I take it off the road in the fall for paint and lots of TLC but sometimes you need to do things sooner.
Glad you got that sorted.
Yeah, it sucked stressing because you never knew what the headlights were in the mood for.
I finally drove it in the dark last night, lots of adjusting to do, what looked good in the garage was not so good on the street. Gonna go to a parking lot one night and adjust them how I want them.
Back to the Mini now.
I need to wrap up the Mini by the end of July so I can move on to the E30, it has a long list of TLC items I need to do. I am also hoping to put a new clutch and lightened flywheel in it
Yeah get cracking on the mini!
YOU should talk!!!!! ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Hey, Dan does get cracking on "the Mini" - everyone else's Mini, not his own!
:D
Lol hence my problem.
Went over to Vancouver WA. today with a friend to pick up this for his son who is getting ready to drive has a permit knew what he wanted and saved his money. He's gonna change the rims first then fix a few things over the next few months. until he gets his license. I Pulled over when we got out of the WA and Portland OR. Traffic ( took 2/3 of the way back to get out of it) and his son Jack drove it the rest of the way he's good for just learning and not driving a stick much.
I did the I-5 commute into Seattle from Olympia for a bit....out here in Kansas, a 60 mile commute takes 45 to an hour and you can drive 75 many places....Not up there...too busy. I spent a lot of time on I-5 doing 15 mph.
yea, sometimes when I think the traffic here in central or. sucks I remind myself of what its like over in portland or seattle.
Yep, here in KC we don't have rush hour, we have rush minutes..... ;D
Quote from: jeff10049 on July 24, 2016, 09:00:42 PM
Went over to Vancouver WA. today with a friend to pick up this for his son who is getting ready to drive has a permit knew what he wanted and saved his money. He's gonna change the rims first then fix a few things over the next few months. until he gets his license. I Pulled over when we got out of the WA and Portland OR. Traffic ( took 2/3 of the way back to get out of it) and his son Jack drove it the rest of the way he's good for just learning and not driving a stick much.
Nice clean car, I like this kid and I never met him. My son was the same, he is on his 3rd E30 he has only owned E30's since he got his license.
Timing belt!! Do it, no matter what the seller tells you, do it.
Looks like a really nice, car. Best of luck to the lad.
Yes it's a clean car 4 cyl I think it has a chain not belt could that be? but I'll check for him next time I see the car.
Jeff
Quote from: jeff10049 on July 26, 2016, 11:17:28 PM
Yes it's a clean car 4 cyl I think it has a chain not belt could that be? but I'll check for him next time I see the car.
Jeff
OH, it is a 318i (is maybe) if it is a 318is that is called the poor mans M3. Very lightweight great handling well balanced car just down on power about 110hp when new.
Those E30's make great first cars, tell your friend to look up the Tire Rack Street Survival Teen driving school best $75 I ever spent.
318i
Quote from: jeff10049 on July 30, 2016, 12:41:38 PM
318i
Still a great fun well balanced car. Yes, is has a timing chain so win win there as well.
Great first car!! As I said my son had one as his first, then second and now third car and he has no interest in ever getting rid of it.
Just gonna bump this.
This 318is caught my eye, as it did my buddy Kevin, who has a 1991 BMW M3 in his garage that is pristine.
He decided he wanted it, I decided I did not want to deal with valve adjustments, I backed away. Kevin bid and it stuck, we were both in shock no one challenged his bid.
So Kevin now owns a 1991 318is with a S14 swapped in. I should have mine back on the road in the fall, many road trips are planned. ;D
http://bringatrailer.com/listing/1991-bmw-318is-16/
(http://13252-presscdn-0-94.pagely.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/whitebmw04-940x624.jpg)
(http://13252-presscdn-0-94.pagely.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/whitebmw33.jpg)
Took a heck of a bump from $8K to $16K in one jump......I'm surprised, I didn't know these brought this kind of money even with the engine swap. Most of the posters thought it went cheap, looks like a really nice car.....was it a no reserve auction?
To buy a S14 engine and transmission alone will cost you 15K these days. Paying 17K for that car was an amazing deal.
I purchased mine for 12K, the seller paid 14K 5 years earlier and the paint started to peel, hence the price drop. Mine is about to get a new paint job done right and if I were to sell it, I would not take a penny less than 20K for it. Outside the paint, it is pristine. Pretty sure the last paint job was a Maco job.
This bone stock 318is went for 25K which is more than what it sold for new in 1991.
http://bringatrailer.com/listing/1991-bmw-318is-17/
Well, like our Minis, I'm often surprised at the prices some of these old cars are bringing now.
why I love my wife. She has a 2005 Mini Cooper S JCW to daily drive, so as to keep the miles off the E30. She says to me over the weekend, Can you pull the E30 out of storage I miss it.
I may not have mentioned, I had the hood repainted and the bumpers as well, then had the shop do a paint correction on the rest of the car, the results were, well staggering.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-LWzL9NZ/0/bebd423d/O/i-LWzL9NZ.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-VnstDrC/0/9c965132/1887x1061/i-VnstDrC-1887x1061.jpg)
I asked Mrs5543 this evening, does she want me to put it back and get to the Mini, "nope, I want to drive it a few more days" She then tells me she is getting lots of thumbs up from people at red lights and in traffic on the road. You really do not see an E30 on the road often anymore.
So she gets to drive it another day, Hurricane Maria is pulling all the moisture away from here so we are not getting rain for the last couple of days or tomorrow.
Then it gets tucked away and the Mini gets back to work. ;D
It's looking really clean 77.gi
Beautiful!
4.gif
I guess I will put this here.
10 months ago my son was driving to work and had an accident, all of his own doing. Best I can tell after the fact is his drivers side rear tire was flat. He did not notice.
He beat cheeks to make a yellow left turn signal, upon tossing the car to the left, he realized he was in trouble. The car oversteered so much it was hopeless. He had plenty of room (in hindsight) to just lock up the brakes and let it slide. The autocrosser (and kart racer) in him instinctively tried to save it. He countered, then hit a bump in the road with made the situation hopeless.
He countered into a inside curb. There is more to this story, I will eventually tell it. The story right now is about the car.
So he ran up a curb, no big deal in most modern cars, this is a lowered E30 with a S50 (E36 M3) engine swap. The oil pan in about 4" off the ground. Curbs are 6" tall..... you see where this is going.
He smashed the car up bad. I may have alluded to this in another thread. Since he was a young lad starting out in life, I had made a pact with him. I told him in in April of the that year if he saved 6K by April the next year I would match it and open an 401K for him.
It was December when this happened 5 months prior to his goal of having 6K. He already had it saved in 8 months. I told him to keep his 6K in the bank and I would buy him a more modern car to DD and we would eventually work on the E30 and get it fixed. Deep down I feared it was totaled. I tossed him the 6K that was supposed to start the 401K (that is coming next year instead)
He bought a 2006 Mini Cooper S which I am sure I shared here. It has been a fantastic DD for him and has served him well for the last 10 months.
There is a small indy body shop in my storage space, the owner is a semi-retired heavy collision guy who just does this for something to do. Since Irma they have been slow so he asked if we were interested in fixing the E30 outside my space. Yes! was the answer he put it on a lift and good news!! the damage is not as bad as we thought!
The lower control arm took the brunt of the hit. The rest looks OK, we are on a parts buying spree right now to get the car 100% in 2 weeks.
The car on the lift:
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-pH5h8MG/0/94149121/X4/i-pH5h8MG-X4.jpg)
Lower control arm is supposed to be straight. Not anymore.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-pb9PsM8/0/7850b869/X4/i-pb9PsM8-X4.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-ncSs8BD/0/496bde81/X4/i-ncSs8BD-X4.jpg)
The oil pan took a hard hit along with the oil pickup and the engine mounts and the power steering rack. All parts are on the way.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-V2hJRC3/0/ea8027a0/X4/i-V2hJRC3-X4.jpg)
We are both pretty excited to see this car back on the road soon. Hoping to negotiate an affordable paint job on her too.
I remember you posting about that incident. Glad the damage was minimal!
Gotta go pick up an engine support bar from HF tomorrow parts started arriving the shop is being super cool and letting us wrench as much as possible on the car ourselves to save money. Then they will do their magic.
If the remainder of the parts arrive, we hope to see it getting paint in 2 weeks.
Engine supported:
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-gz75Rhr/0/07dfa462/1903x1070/i-gz75Rhr-1903x1070.jpg)
Got the power steering rack out and a plan made to have the rest out on Wed. evening.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-z4txLsN/0/0ffce124/1903x1070/i-z4txLsN-1903x1070.jpg)
We need to still drop the oil pan, then the passenger lower control arm then the sway will come right out. I have a used spindle and we still need to replace all the rims.
I hope to have it ready for paint by early next week.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-pjH6PPG/0/a1fb03cd/1903x1070/i-pjH6PPG-1903x1070.jpg)
Been considering a new set of rims for the E30. I would love a set of Ronal Turbo rims except they come in 15" diameter so they will not fit over the UUC Big brake kit.
I found these similar style rims and they are pretty affordable like $1190 shipped from UK to my door. They are 17x8 which fits my car perfectly.
I was thinking of going gunmetal or silver. I kind of like the dark rims.
Thoughts?
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-Ls3R6Nx/0/da5ae8bf/XL/i-Ls3R6Nx-XL.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-5wRW5Hd/0/302365c3/O/i-5wRW5Hd.jpg)
I guess I'm too old school. bit I think dark rims just look like they haven't been cleaned forever, and black rims look like you can't afford alloy wheels and you took your hubcaps off. I don't mind a black center with a polished rim, those can look pretty good....
Whoa...time wharp. I believe an update is needed on this car. What's it's current status?
I like dark rims. That car in the pic has a wicked stance to it...
Not my car, sample pics from rim company salesman.
There was an 318is on BAT yesterday with these rims on it. I like them they remind me of the turbo Ronal's that will not fit my car.
I am on the fence about the dark color, think I want to stick with silver. Will mill this over, it is not happening until next year. Maybe Brexit will drop the exchange in my favor. ;D
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-Nzr5hcp/0/9499e560/X4/i-Nzr5hcp-X4.jpg)
This BAT Auction is what lead me to the rims.
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1991-bmw-318is-44/
(https://cdn.bringatrailer.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/1991_bmw_318is_1544044059b7bdf0d6c519f6b3-940x716.jpg)
I like those Ronal wheels, I'd either leave them silver or maybe paint them white to match the car - like Audi did with their IMSA racecars.
Quote from: Mudhen on December 14, 2018, 09:27:58 AM
Whoa...time wharp. I believe an update is needed on this car. What's it's current status?
I like dark rims. That car in the pic has a wicked stance to it...
This was the old girl 3 weeks ago or so.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-QctkBTq/0/64bc1d61/XL/i-QctkBTq-XL.jpg)
She made a mess....
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cars/n-jSbL3k/i-MJTt8zQ/0/7ce3acf2/XL/i-MJTt8zQ-XL.jpg)
I took it out of storage to drive 15 miles to a job site to meet a Super. I left it running with the AC on because I thought I was only going to be talking 2-3 minutes, ended up shooting the shut for 20 minutes, mostly about local Breweries and beer. LMAO.
I was walking back to the car and got about 5 feet from it when it made a loud popping sound and anti-freeze blasted out from under it. I ran and opened the door, looked at the temp gauge and it read normal, I shit it down.
I could not see what the problem was, it was obviously a hose, just could not see what hose.
I called AAA, and then had to wait almost 2 hours, we had dinner guests coming to our house that evening so I was cutting it close.
AA tow truck comes I told him to take me to a Euro Indy shop near my storage unit. They had to order 3 different hoses before the right one worked. Franken cars are fun!!
$200 later all was good.
I made it home in time to shower change and enjoy dinner guests.
Outside that mishap not much is going on with it. I chased down some electrical problems, the window switches were being difficult, I swapped them out with new switches and good as new.
The directional's were being wonky, I changed the relay with a $20 amazon knockoff, no dice. I went to BMW and ordered a $80 OEM, no dice.
I checked all the bulbs, all fine, I changed them all anyway, no dice.
I ordered a new directional stalk.... success!! Who would have thunk it?
The only issue now is the AC being weak, I am working on that. I may convert to HC-12a and ditch the R-134 that is in there.
Sit back, grab a beer and enjoy...
I was at the Hard Rock Hotel last month in Orlando, I treated my wife and kid and my son and his GF to a weekend at the parks with rooms in the hotel, rooms keys are speed passes. Win Win!!
I valet parked the car, I had to run to it the next day and get something out of it, the valet walked me over to it, I was surprised to see it parked up front, he told me they all thought it was the coolest car there and kept it up front to admire. 2 spaces away was a 130K G-Wagon.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-TN3HSvj/0/593ebe67/XL/i-TN3HSvj-XL.jpg)
This past weekend we took the old girl up to Dans hometown of Wilmington NC. We decided about 2-3 weeks ago to go.. wait.. My wife and son decided, they had me at road trip.. Who passes on a 1500+ mile road trip in a 28 year old car... no one, that is who!!
They saw an episode of DDD (Diner Drive-ins and Dives) where he went to a place in Wilmington. They decided we needed to go try the place and see the town.
https://www.foodnetwork.com/restaurants/nc/restaurants-in-wilmington/copper-penny-restaurant
We have seen this before, there was a cool brewery in Tampa that was our little secret, the food was awesome and the place was quiet. Until Guy showed up, then 1 hour waits were the norm.
No different here, we arrived around 5:45 thinking we were beating the rush. Nope!! 1 hour wait. Was it worth it? Not really, it was good but not 1 hour wait good. No regrets, it was a fun experience.
This is the alley next to the Cooper Penny, I was board and snapped a pic.
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Backing up a little, we strategically left Jensen Beach around 4PM so we would miss the Jacksonville Rush hour. We stopped at a brewery around 6:30 for dinner and gas. I left with 1/2 a tank.
We were debating Chick-fil-a or a sit down, the Brewery had good reviews on Yelp so we went there. It was a mistake. We sat and waited over 1 hour for food to come out and when it arrived, it was horrid. Their in house beer was great, their pretzel was fantastic, their food, sucked.
After spending 1.5 hours here we were now way behind schedule, we were shooting for Savannah Ga. for the night. While waiting over an hour for food, we got on my phone and and booked a room in Savannah on Hotels dot com.
We drove straight to Savannah without stopping arriving at 11:30.. We prepaid for the room so we could check in faster, I had work to check that was being sent to me while I was driving.
Here I learned my app decided to not use the current date (I assumed again) it booked a room for April 4th, very random... so there was difficulties checking in, 30 minutes later I am on the phone with a cat from India (judging from the accent which was similar to my friend Ashok) he puts me on hold and calls the girl at the front desk in front of me. She tells him to just slide the reservation over to this evening and we are good.
He gets back on the line with me and tells me there is a $8 charge due to the price being more for Friday night, I say whatever, he asks for a CC number, I give it to him, he cannot get it to reun, it keeps declining. I lose my shit on him, tell him I have been awake for 18 hours and have easily 2 hours of work to do once I get in the room, I tell him to forget it, I am going to book a room with the hotel directly and hang up on him.
I book the room directly, while I am doing this he calls the hotel and cancels my April 4th reservation. FU Hotels.com I am never using you again. Why would you default a random date?
Driving in Jacksonville, yes the roads are empty, hence my strategic launch time:
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I did not get to bed until 2 am waking again (naturally) at 6 am then getting up at 7 am. So we can hit the road.
The plan was to drive Coastal Route 17 all the way from Savannah to Wilmington, Google maps said it would take 5 hours, that was at 11 at night when I was checking, the daytime it was more like a 7 hour drive. Oops!!
We made the best of the slow progress, we found a cool little town called Georgetown, SC, an industrial town turned tourist / biker destination.
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Wilmington was really cool, lots of cool restaurants, lots of cool bars, lots of neat shops. We really enjoyed the vibe of this town.
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We visited the Battleship North Carolina, I could have spent much longer than the 2.5 hours we were there, Mrs5543 and the spawn got bored.
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After we got home I gave her a much needed bath.
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Man, jealous of the adventure...thanks for taking the time to post it. 4.gif
I've also been porked by hotels.com a couple times...now I just use them for the list of hotels in the area and then I book direct. Never again!
I've usually done better booking direct than using a "service"
Quote from: Mudhen on March 27, 2019, 07:26:28 AM
Man, jealous of the adventure...thanks for taking the time to post it. 4.gif
I've also been porked by hotels.com a couple times...now I just use them for the list of hotels in the area and then I book direct. Never again!
Yeah my last time using them.
I have some other trips coming up, sick of working all the time. We are going to do a "Sunrise - Sunset" trip soon. We will go to the beach here in Jensen Beach (Atlantic Coast) catch a sunrise, then drive over to St. Petersburg beach and catch the Sunset on the same day on the Gulf of Mexico, then spend the evening in St. Pete and drive home the next day. Not too many places you can do that.
We have a Keys trip in the works and we are also toying with a quick weekend trip somewhere in Florida, it is going to be an include the dog trip. Gonna try traveling with the pup for 1 night somewhere. She may even go on the Sunrise Sunset trip.
We do the sunrise/sunset thing here...catch the sunrise on the eastern border of NH in Rochester, opioid capital of the northeast...and then drive to the western side of VT for the sunset. Someplace like Rupert where the average yearly household income is $37.50. Very scenic. ;D
Quote from: Mudhen on March 28, 2019, 05:20:49 AM
We do the sunrise/sunset thing here...catch the sunrise on the eastern border of NH in Rochester, opioid capital of the northeast...and then drive to the western side of VT for the sunset. Someplace like Rupert where the average yearly household income is $37.50. Very scenic. ;D
Sounds like a hoot! ;D
Quote from: Mudhen on March 28, 2019, 05:20:49 AM
We do the sunrise/sunset thing here...catch the sunrise on the eastern border of NH in Rochester, opioid capital of the northeast...and then drive to the western side of VT for the sunset. Someplace like Rupert where the average yearly household income is $37.50. Very scenic. ;D
St. Pete has like 6 Breweries all within walking distance from one another, additionally you can park as a hotel or Air B&B and walk all over St. Pete, which is what we plan.
I am about to go look for a house to rent. Just got back online to check some drafting then I am off to plan this Sunrise Sunset trip.
Coco Mats came in over the weekend.
Out with the poorly chosen tan mats..
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In the the Calico Cocomats.
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Wow, I didn't even know they still sold cocomats!
Kept seeing them in cars for sale on BAT, so I looked them up and bookmarked them. Finally got around to ordering a pair.
They look sweet!
Thanks!! We love them!! Mrs5543 commented on a BAT auction car (IIRC a 2002) that had them and said she loved them. I purchased them for the E30 as a surprise since technically it is her car.
Once the 15 y/o is out of HS we will get rid of or relegate the i3 for work duties and the E30 will be a DD with the FJ as a backup like the old days.
We are embarking on our Sunrise / Sunset tour Saturday, 200 miles each way, so a 400+ Mile road trip. Except this time with the dog in tow, we read St. Petersburg is a very dog friendly city, the Hotel is we checked.
So this will be an interesting weekend.
We have to be back in town at 2PM Sunday for a family gathering ay my BIL's house, the one that does drafting for me.
Quote from: Jims5543 on April 17, 2019, 04:56:10 PM
Kept seeing them in cars for sale on BAT, so I looked them up and bookmarked them. Finally got around to ordering a pair.
COCO mats are Made in Fort Mill, South Carolina...
Local Mini owner visited and they mapped a custom set for his Cooper S... They have even invited our mini club for a visit.
Great MADE in USA Company.
Nice! 77.gif
coco mats are great I have them in the mini.
I had no idea they offered mats for Minis, very cool!!
Thinking of getting another set for the E21 to dress it up.
Yes, they even had the pattern for the floor starter button.