New to me BMW E65 730D - 2006 - Le Mans Blue 'individual'
Discussion
This weeks updates:
-Front bumper off
- New Osram 6k D1S bulbs fitted alongside 10W cree LED angel eye bulbs (faffing and checking these killed the battery, so breakdown called out as the booster pack I had was duff after not being used for so long
**Read below for more on this...
- New fog lights fitted with Osram Nightbreaker HB4 bulbs
- Tried to fix leaking washer bottle; found the issue though, so replacement pipe ordered etc and will sort it through the wheel arch liner next week

So today I've mostly been...
- Ordering winter tyres; gone for Yokohama Advan V905 Winter in 245/50/18 flavour
- Kerbing my NS rear alloy - f
kwit white van driver came at me from a blind bend, far too fast, as I was reversing off a car park at the local PO and had no choice to re-mount the kerb otherwise I'd have lost the front-end of the car... Ah well; it's only powdercoat Will take it to the folks that did my alloys when I fit the winters and they can refurb it for me...
- Took some pics of the angel eyes, now fitted, whilst sat outside Preston train station waiting for my folks to land from Glasgee... Much better than the dull orange glow of the OEM ones
-Front bumper off
- New Osram 6k D1S bulbs fitted alongside 10W cree LED angel eye bulbs (faffing and checking these killed the battery, so breakdown called out as the booster pack I had was duff after not being used for so long
**Read below for more on this...- New fog lights fitted with Osram Nightbreaker HB4 bulbs
- Tried to fix leaking washer bottle; found the issue though, so replacement pipe ordered etc and will sort it through the wheel arch liner next week
- Re battery: Turns out the battery that was fitted a few months before I bought the car wasn't coded in properly (wrong type and voltage/amp specs chosen apparently, this is via BMW Bowker in Preston... So new, genuine BMW AGM batter fitted & coded by Bowker, thankfully, but at the sweet smack of £320...
Ah well....
So today I've mostly been...
- Ordering winter tyres; gone for Yokohama Advan V905 Winter in 245/50/18 flavour
- Kerbing my NS rear alloy - f
kwit white van driver came at me from a blind bend, far too fast, as I was reversing off a car park at the local PO and had no choice to re-mount the kerb otherwise I'd have lost the front-end of the car... Ah well; it's only powdercoat Will take it to the folks that did my alloys when I fit the winters and they can refurb it for me...- Took some pics of the angel eyes, now fitted, whilst sat outside Preston train station waiting for my folks to land from Glasgee... Much better than the dull orange glow of the OEM ones
Fixed the non-working comfort access on my drivers door; turned out one of the plugs wasn't connected correctly and that's what stopped it. All other doors worked fine
Popped the handle out, fettled the plugs and then faffed trying to refit the handle
Bloody difficult on the E65s, but tied some 50lb shock leader to the catch that 'locks' the handle back in place, so if it needs to be messed with again, it'll be easier to re-lock when it's back together
It's the little things that make the car
Popped the handle out, fettled the plugs and then faffed trying to refit the handle
Bloody difficult on the E65s, but tied some 50lb shock leader to the catch that 'locks' the handle back in place, so if it needs to be messed with again, it'll be easier to re-lock when it's back togetherIt's the little things that make the car
david mcc said:
Do you have a link for where you bought the Angel eye bulbs? They look excellent.
They were off eBay; search for 10x CREE angel eye/halo bulbs and it should bring a few versions up 
Obviously make sure they're CANBUS error free; but go for the ones around £35 upwards; they're better made and don't flicker like a lot of the others
Winter tyres fitted (Yokohama Advan V905 ‘BlueEarth’ in 245/50/18 flavour) Prices of these have shot up on Camskill now; glad I bought them when I did!
Pics:
Nice meaty tread
Alloys look well too IMO; more so as they just got a good key and resprayed with Rover Metallic Silver and Halfrauds clear lacquer (x3 coats of each)
Been out scrubbing the tyres in today; the car rides amazingly well and so much smoother/comfier than the 20” Style 149s... Could seriously be tempted to stick with 18s come the warmer weather in Spring 2019, so will have a think about it over the winter months
Prices of these have shot up on Camskill now; glad I bought them when I did!Pics:
Nice meaty tread
Alloys look well too IMO; more so as they just got a good key and resprayed with Rover Metallic Silver and Halfrauds clear lacquer (x3 coats of each)
Been out scrubbing the tyres in today; the car rides amazingly well and so much smoother/comfier than the 20” Style 149s... Could seriously be tempted to stick with 18s come the warmer weather in Spring 2019, so will have a think about it over the winter months
Edited by d_a_n1979 on Friday 26th October 18:37
Told you the ride on 18’s was good!
The wheel thing on an e65 is interesting, the ride is sublime on 18”s, but then it looks under-wheeled, (especially if you’ve a lwb like mine). 20”s look great, but the ride is (understandably) less cosseting, if still good in the modern era (it’s no CX, even on 18’s).
I suspect 19’ is the best all-round compromise, but for me, the aesthetics of the 20’ win out for the majority of the year (that and a 760 is slightly under-tyred on 245’s, the torque works them hard, and it’s really not meant to be a tail-out hooligan’s car).
Car is looking good, you must be pretty happy with it now.
The wheel thing on an e65 is interesting, the ride is sublime on 18”s, but then it looks under-wheeled, (especially if you’ve a lwb like mine). 20”s look great, but the ride is (understandably) less cosseting, if still good in the modern era (it’s no CX, even on 18’s).
I suspect 19’ is the best all-round compromise, but for me, the aesthetics of the 20’ win out for the majority of the year (that and a 760 is slightly under-tyred on 245’s, the torque works them hard, and it’s really not meant to be a tail-out hooligan’s car).
Car is looking good, you must be pretty happy with it now.
AB57 said:
I just logged in to say how damn comfy that looks with the new wheels/tyres.
Can you find some better looking, sporty, 18's and stick with them? I think that would be a winning combo of style/meaty sidewall.
It might be an idea for the New Year, but may look at 19s too. Wondering if they’ll be a good middle ground?!Can you find some better looking, sporty, 18's and stick with them? I think that would be a winning combo of style/meaty sidewall.
It’s a very comfy ride on the 18s though and I’ve only done around 10 miles on the so far!
Prinny said:
Told you the ride on 18’s was good!
The wheel thing on an e65 is interesting, the ride is sublime on 18”s, but then it looks under-wheeled, (especially if you’ve a lwb like mine). 20”s look great, but the ride is (understandably) less cosseting, if still good in the modern era (it’s no CX, even on 18’s).
I suspect 19’ is the best all-round compromise, but for me, the aesthetics of the 20’ win out for the majority of the year (that and a 760 is slightly under-tyred on 245’s, the torque works them hard, and it’s really not meant to be a tail-out hooligan’s car).
Car is looking good, you must be pretty happy with it now.
Yup haha The wheel thing on an e65 is interesting, the ride is sublime on 18”s, but then it looks under-wheeled, (especially if you’ve a lwb like mine). 20”s look great, but the ride is (understandably) less cosseting, if still good in the modern era (it’s no CX, even on 18’s).
I suspect 19’ is the best all-round compromise, but for me, the aesthetics of the 20’ win out for the majority of the year (that and a 760 is slightly under-tyred on 245’s, the torque works them hard, and it’s really not meant to be a tail-out hooligan’s car).
Car is looking good, you must be pretty happy with it now.
Agree, 19s might be the happy middle ground, but with the right 18” alloys I could be tempted, will have a look into other alloys come the New Year... More money haha
JamesRR said:
Would these look good on the spiders that E60s are often seen sporting? They’re 19s, and might be a decent looking compromise if they suited it.
Jesus... No thanks. Probably the worst alloys BMW have ever put on their cars; everyone I know that's had them they've had to get them repaired numerous times for cracks etcIf I'm going to go for an OEM 19" alloy, it'd probably be the Style 126; not keen on the Style 95s
If not OEM; then I'll see what BMAutosport have in come the New Year etc
Fixed a wheel wobble today; not the wheels that needed balancing again as they're spot on
It was the OF lower thrust arm, ball joint had failed after 3months of being fitted
It looks like it's not been machined properly and didn't sit right at all. It was a TRW one, so that's been replaced with a Moog arm with 5 years warranty and a refund requested for the failed TRW arm!
Ordered replacement washer bottle pumps and grommets too in an aid to fix the slow leak it has, think it's the main windscreen washer pump that's failed, that and/or the grommet. The bottle doesn't leak anywhere else
Hopefully the pumps and grommets will arrive in the next few days
It was the OF lower thrust arm, ball joint had failed after 3months of being fitted
It looks like it's not been machined properly and didn't sit right at all. It was a TRW one, so that's been replaced with a Moog arm with 5 years warranty and a refund requested for the failed TRW arm!
Ordered replacement washer bottle pumps and grommets too in an aid to fix the slow leak it has, think it's the main windscreen washer pump that's failed, that and/or the grommet. The bottle doesn't leak anywhere else
Hopefully the pumps and grommets will arrive in the next few days
Barchettaman said:
If the 18" wheel/tyre combination is an appreciable improvement I can't think of a strong argument to change it.
It's not as if it matters if it looks 'underwheeled' when you're behind the wheel.
Anyway, lovely car, hope you continue to enjoy it.
It’s a serious consideration. Already been looking at other alloys It's not as if it matters if it looks 'underwheeled' when you're behind the wheel.
Anyway, lovely car, hope you continue to enjoy it.
Just to update this re wheels & tyre combo
I think I'm going to go for 19s come the New Year, when the winters need to come off etc
Quite like the Style 126s that are off the E65 anyways, they're 19" - 9" upfront, 10" on the rears, so keep in line with the 20" Style 149s I've got currently
But the tyres are 40/45 rear and front, not 35/40 like they are on the 20s; so that should make a marked difference to the drive/handling from the off
Unless I can find some other 19s I like; I'll probably go for them
BMW Style 126: http://www.bmwstylewheels.com/bmw/126
However; I do like these via BMAutosport: http://www.bmautosport.co.uk/showroom/product_info...
I think I'm going to go for 19s come the New Year, when the winters need to come off etc
Quite like the Style 126s that are off the E65 anyways, they're 19" - 9" upfront, 10" on the rears, so keep in line with the 20" Style 149s I've got currently
But the tyres are 40/45 rear and front, not 35/40 like they are on the 20s; so that should make a marked difference to the drive/handling from the off
Unless I can find some other 19s I like; I'll probably go for them
BMW Style 126: http://www.bmwstylewheels.com/bmw/126
However; I do like these via BMAutosport: http://www.bmautosport.co.uk/showroom/product_info...
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