03-10-2015, 02:30 PM
Alright, so I am late to this party, but what’s important is that I am here.
For those of you who don’t know me, which is everyone but Jake, I am the new owner of Jake’s old DD, the 128i.
A little bit about myself:
My name is Dhaval, I go to school at Montana State University and am graduating in a couple months! Yay! I have always considered myself to be a car guy, and surely in the midst of non-car people, I definitely hold that title.
As Jake mentioned previously, I owned a Civic before the 128i, and she was a faithful companion. However, after 2 years of owning it, and a season of Autocrossing it, I REALLY wanted to get into a RWD car. I had driven many, but never owned one. So, I started looking for cars last December. I was on the verge of buying a ZHP and the only thing left to do was to find one that wasn't beaten on. EAG was an option if I really wanted an amazing one but something about spending that much money on such an old car discouraged me. Then, a buddy of mine introduced me to the 128i w/ Sport Pack, and after a bit of research I realized that that was the car for me. Sure, I could have purchased a powerful RWD car and tried to imitate Chis Harris around every corner, but I learned from Autocross that balance is everything. Also, I like taking incremental steps with cars so I am not overwhelmed by the power, and most importantly, I don't kill myself. Anyways, long story short, I contacted Jake, and a couple weeks later the car was in Montana!
Now, the car:
I LOVE it! It might not be a performance car in any petrolhead's eyes, but that doesn't stop me from drooling over it. I have always wanted to own a BMW and my dream finally came true with this car. I was a little nervous because I had purchased it based on a single FaceTime call and trust, but it was everything that I had hoped it would be. Small, great steering, awesome seats, sufficient power, and decent handling (I have yet to confirm this on the Autocross track). In terms of issues, I have only had one so far, the OFH gasket and the water hose. After a few drives, the water hose mounting sheared off and it was leaking coolant profusely. Thankfully, it only took a 12-pack of beer, a new hose, and 3 guys to fix it within an hour. Since then, I have had no issues with the car (knock on wood).
I finally got my custom plate a week ago, and I am pleased to report that I kept Jake's registration plate, TURBN0. I had purchased the car for what it was in the BMW community, and I think Jake did an excellent job capturing that in the license plate so I had to carry that forward. Thanks Jake!
As far as future plans for the car, I ordered Turner Motorsports' Section 1 pipe that eliminates the secondary cats and (hopefully) makes a better sound. A couple weeks before looking for exhausts for my car, I found myself under the driver side rear of the car staring at a zip tie that looked like it was pinching a hose. My friends and I could not figure our what it was, but after looking for exhaust solutions on forums, I came across the infamous Golf-Tee Mod and instantly knew what that innocent little zip tie was doing.
Anyways, I should have mentioned it in the beginning that I am a noob when it comes to forums, so I apologize if I said anything that was uncouth. As far as future posts go, I realize that this is not a dedicated 1er forum but if any of you found this worthwhile, please leave a thumbs up and I promise to keep this thread alive for your entertainment.
Greetings from Montana,
Dhaval
For those of you who don’t know me, which is everyone but Jake, I am the new owner of Jake’s old DD, the 128i.
A little bit about myself:
My name is Dhaval, I go to school at Montana State University and am graduating in a couple months! Yay! I have always considered myself to be a car guy, and surely in the midst of non-car people, I definitely hold that title.
As Jake mentioned previously, I owned a Civic before the 128i, and she was a faithful companion. However, after 2 years of owning it, and a season of Autocrossing it, I REALLY wanted to get into a RWD car. I had driven many, but never owned one. So, I started looking for cars last December. I was on the verge of buying a ZHP and the only thing left to do was to find one that wasn't beaten on. EAG was an option if I really wanted an amazing one but something about spending that much money on such an old car discouraged me. Then, a buddy of mine introduced me to the 128i w/ Sport Pack, and after a bit of research I realized that that was the car for me. Sure, I could have purchased a powerful RWD car and tried to imitate Chis Harris around every corner, but I learned from Autocross that balance is everything. Also, I like taking incremental steps with cars so I am not overwhelmed by the power, and most importantly, I don't kill myself. Anyways, long story short, I contacted Jake, and a couple weeks later the car was in Montana!
Now, the car:
I LOVE it! It might not be a performance car in any petrolhead's eyes, but that doesn't stop me from drooling over it. I have always wanted to own a BMW and my dream finally came true with this car. I was a little nervous because I had purchased it based on a single FaceTime call and trust, but it was everything that I had hoped it would be. Small, great steering, awesome seats, sufficient power, and decent handling (I have yet to confirm this on the Autocross track). In terms of issues, I have only had one so far, the OFH gasket and the water hose. After a few drives, the water hose mounting sheared off and it was leaking coolant profusely. Thankfully, it only took a 12-pack of beer, a new hose, and 3 guys to fix it within an hour. Since then, I have had no issues with the car (knock on wood).
I finally got my custom plate a week ago, and I am pleased to report that I kept Jake's registration plate, TURBN0. I had purchased the car for what it was in the BMW community, and I think Jake did an excellent job capturing that in the license plate so I had to carry that forward. Thanks Jake!
As far as future plans for the car, I ordered Turner Motorsports' Section 1 pipe that eliminates the secondary cats and (hopefully) makes a better sound. A couple weeks before looking for exhausts for my car, I found myself under the driver side rear of the car staring at a zip tie that looked like it was pinching a hose. My friends and I could not figure our what it was, but after looking for exhaust solutions on forums, I came across the infamous Golf-Tee Mod and instantly knew what that innocent little zip tie was doing.
Anyways, I should have mentioned it in the beginning that I am a noob when it comes to forums, so I apologize if I said anything that was uncouth. As far as future posts go, I realize that this is not a dedicated 1er forum but if any of you found this worthwhile, please leave a thumbs up and I promise to keep this thread alive for your entertainment.
Greetings from Montana,
Dhaval