[Mac VABCH]

John,

I don't use my car on the street any more, I have turned it into strickly a track days car. So I am going on memory for the things that bugged me while it was a street car.

1. I didn't like the stock shocks, they seemed to "soft". My car is #250 and I am not sure if they are still using the same shocks but there are two different firmness levels that you can go with. KYB then the next level up is Bilstien. In my opinion the Bilstiens are to hard for the street. This is what I run on the track.

2. Clutch slave set up. This is not just a BDR problem as most makes have the same issue. There are several "opinions" as to why the slave cylinders fail but different distributors have looked at this and have come up with what works for them.. Vintage has spent some time so I would look at what they have done. I use a hydraulic throw out bearing from Quarter Master but I did have to modify the input shaft bearing retainer to get it to fit. I have not had any failures with it.

3. Door latches rattle. Wrap the door pins with black tape and that "fixes" the rattle.

4. Under hood heat. Again this is not a problem that is specific to BDR but with the polished headers they put off a trremendous amout of heat. This is one of the "opinions " as to why the clutch fluid breaks down. I had mine powder coated and it made a huge difference in under hood temps, also I haven't had the clutch fluid problems either. I do use high temp fluid like ATE or Castrol SPF.

5. Parking brake assembly. BMW uses these brakes on all of there cars so I am confident that they can be adjusted properly or made to work. Mine works well enough for me, but again I don't use it. Again there are many different opinions as to what is the cause. I just didn't mess with it.

6. Steering wheel shake. This was an issue that I haven't been able to fix yet. I have tightened the slip ring and u bolt on the collume. I will attempt to tighten the rack to get rid of some of the "looseness". But if I where going to do it again I would get the power steering option and not ever have this issue. Just wasn't available when I bought the car.

7. Open differential. I does work and it can handle the power that these motor put down. I just like an LSD, its a very easy fix to put on in. I went with a junk yard LSD and swapped it in.

I am being very critical here. As I am trying to stay objective. All in all this is a great car. The car handles great, looks good and is great value. Are there more "correct" car? Sure, but they are much more expensive. For me the price was in my range and I wouldn't hesitate to buy from them again... Mike