Greetings to all

[Kiwiland]

Hi there,
Just joined and they tell me this is the place to start. I am 72 years old and recently retired after 35 years in Process Engineering in New Zealand (Engineering Milk plants, Breweries and Juice plants etc) For 40 plus years I drove Japanese or General Motors cars never a European. As a retirement present to myself I have bought a 2001 E39 530 Hiline through a Japanese auction house and had it shipped to NZ. Its a typical Jap spec being complete with Tv, 6 stack CD, electric seats, sunroof, GPS etc etc. The GPS is a bit of a joke as being a Jap BMW spec the unit still thinks its in Osaka, and I am told that it will not work in any country other than Japan.
First impressions are the BMW is "built like a brick toilet" - a typical NZ expression.
Looking forward to useful discussions in the Forums. One to start off is the comment I hear a lot in NZ that you should not import a used BMW or other make from Singapore because the high humidity rots them out. Seems strange to me, the few times I have been there its been hot but not that bad. Any comments

 

[phil]

Re: Greetings to all

oh no a Kiwi!! haha. It's ok mate, i'm an aussie.
The GPS in my car is quite odd too, it is a common thing known globally that BMW GPS's arent that good, i often get mine confused. Anyway, you should be able to simply get a replacement CD from your BMW dealer with the NZ map on it. The disc is in the boot of your car, should be under the CD stacker. Also i agree, since when does humidity cause rust? I have yet to see any car with rust at all here. The only thing would be the constant use of the air con will of course kill the compressor over time, not to mention the extra strain on the engine. I reckon any car from Singapore would be a good import due to the unusal Singapore trait of rigurous servicing on the cars, which to me, is a good thing.
Yep BMW's are known for their reliability, surely are built like a brick dunny
cheers

 

[///M3]

Re: Greetings to all

welcome in and enjoy ur stay!