Does anybody know here about Mercs W123 estates?

I'd be looking for something along the lines of the Civic Type R engine, or the 1.8 190bhp VVC Toyota lump.

Yeah, but IIRC, the rover v8 is a pretty lightweight thing, on account of it being compact and all-alloy, so it's probably no that bad, and it is 3.5 or more litres of lovely woofly grunt... :-)

I think dervman is wrong - diesels are great in big hefty cars, but if you can hear it, it really should be something which makes you grin when you rev it..

Would you believe somebody in my local Freecycle recently gave away a T&T'ed 1989 535i? Said they'd rather give it to somebody who 'couldn't afford a car'.

Presumably they won't be able to afford fuel or insurance for that thing, either!

They're actually not that bad on petrol. Well, mine wasn't once I sorted out the air leak in the induction.

What about an LPG iX?

JB

I do like the idea of that (and I've got an LPG station not too far from here) but that price looks very much in piss-taking territory to me.

For the amount of work involved why not go the whole hog and build a se7en ?

Some people are fantastically naive - they're not giving away the opportunity of a car to someone, they're giving away the cash value of the car. My local freecycle seems to be populated by folks on the dole who snaffle anything worthwhile, whether they actually want it or not. I bet within a week the car was in the ad mag.

3 reasons off the top of my head: Roof Heater Boot Oh, and realistically being able to get in and out. (c:

Yes, that's 4 reasons.

I don't know, I don't wanna do any of those things - I'd rather just have my Vee :-) The thread was about MX5s though. And also, I only have space for one car, and that can't be a Seven really heh.

They have roofs, just a PITA to fit.

Mini heater, tho a flying jacket would be more effective.

Wicker basket ratcheted to the spare.

Maths not your stong point :-)

That's about £1750-2ks worth of LPG system there though. Expect to pay about £1800-2400 for a standard 525/528iX in good nick too. They still have a loyal following.

JB

Blimey, I didn't realise they were that expensive (the car, not the LPG system). That said, even the prices for regular E34 tourings seem to be increasing or at least holding steady on ebay. Oh well, as the immediate car need has been resolved, I now have the time to search out a really good one with the spec I like (which BTW would probably include the one you mentioned, so I'd appreciate if you keep on it).

Twin turbo 13b rotary and keep it in the family.

Fraser

There's at least one in the US with a single turbo 13B. Not sure if you can fit the twin turbo as it is comparatively wide with all the bits bolted on.

OTOH if you don't mind a bit of revs, a ported N/A 13B is still going to be 60-70bhp more than the standard engine, but with completely different torque characteristics.

There was one here with a 13B turbo in it. Took a lot of mods to the firewall to get it in but was an awesome car. Something like 350hp at the flywheel in a car that weighed nothing.

Fraser

Will do. His wife told me today he's away on business until the end of next week. She also said the E34 is still in the garage (a good sign).

JB