I will be looking... :D

Just spent 2+ weeks in NZ could have hand delivered from the states had we know :)

BTW NZ is NOT Australia and right now the exchange rate is not good for the US its like 1USD is 1.5NZD that trip cost me a lot of $$$

but at least I found a lot of good micro beer

Glad you liked the beer - we have a TON of great beers down here! :D

I've just done a 2,000km lap of the South Island in the X5 - had a great trip - no issues (the tail lamp thing happened an another trip) and only paid NZ$120 for diesel. Loving that 3.0D! :thumbup:

Radiator, upper and lower radiator hoses, alternator bracket, and engine mount bracket which somehow managed to break in half.

Nice start to 2016

Perfect scent for cold and flu season. :D

So what was the damage?

In parts around $400 because I bought my own.

In Labor I have no clue yet because I haven't paid him. Its a good friend who does a lot of business with me as exchange work so we'll see. I'm sure I'm still in for an easy $500. His tech would of done it in 8 hours (he timed himself) had the bracket not been broken and tied up the job.

Yesterday, ATF gushed out of after parking the car (60miles from home).. initially thought was, transmission cooler since it was coming out of the front of the engine. Towed it to the closest bmw indy and after diagnosing the issue, turns out the power steering pump crapped out. I was somewhat relieved until he told me it'll be ~$900 to change it, $450 parts and the rest is labor... I usually budget about $1k per year for repair which barely use half, but this year i maxed it in one shot and it's still first week of January :-)... Talking to my parts guy locally, the power steering bumps on bmw's rarely go out but they are expensive to replace. If i wasn't too far from home, i would have towed it home and changed it myself but at this point, towing 60miles is going to cost $$ and my savings after doing it myself will be minimal.

almost time to rotate tires after 5K miles

hitting 115k soon :)

Might consider AAA road service for the future, small price to pay for getting it home or to someone you know and trust.