Back to basics
Daisy is being prepped for a long drive. We are heading north, we are going home to Hua Hin. Total distance expected to be covered is 1,600 km. We start off from Singapore and head straight for Krabi, a distance of about 1200 km. We will then spend the night in Krabi and the following morning, we head for Hua Hin. It is going to be an exciting trip and nothing should go wrong. That's why I am reverting back to basics. Tecnomagnesio must be praised for their foresight. Not only is the rim light and strong, you can also fit it into the spare tyre well of the E39 with tyres on. And since it is so light, there is no real weight penalty since the original design actually had a heavier spare tyre and that was a 16". I have been thinking whether it was foolish of me to have removed the spare tyre in the first place. I am sure BMW engineers (back then) took that into consideration to ensure good balance, front and rear. Removing it would have compromised 50-50 balance. Putting it back on was probably a good idea. Besides, the thought of having a full-size spare wheel on a long trip is much more re-assuring. And it's not some crappy spare wheel....it's a Tecnomagnesio! The next step back to basic is replacing the cone air filter with the stock air box or intake muffler (that's what BMW calls it.) Finally, we are going home...
Beauty that never dies...
What is the one thing that most people are afraid of? Growing old is probably the first thing that comes to mind. For me, growing old does not bother me. What bothers me is that I am afraid of growing weird. I am scared that I may do things so out of the ordinary that it becomes ridiculous. It's okay to be different but to be different to the extent of being weird is not the same. Strangely enough, I apply this philosophy on Daisy. Look at her. 7 years on and she has aged beautifully. I probably love her more today than I did yesterday. Take another look. Gone are the 19" original BMW wheels and back in place are the Tecnomagnesio wheels. I've been trying to sell these rims off for the longest time but there seems to be no takers. Boy, am I glad nobody bought them because I would have shot myself if I really sold them off. These rims are fantastic. Fuel consumption on the previous BMW rims were 7.5km per liter but with these rims, I achieve 10.5km per liter. I was skeptical that light rims would help save fuel but now I am convinced. Take-off is so much better. Best of all, I could rotate my tires and that's going to save me a big sum of money. Since I had the rear fenders rolled out to accommodate the 275 tires, I went back to the shop and told the guy to un-roll the fender. You should have seen the look on his face. This is the first time that someone has actually un-roll the fenders. Sufficed to mentioned that after the un-rolling, the car looks so much better. No more wide wheels. And did you notice the new rotors? Those things are from I-Rotors, M5 size/specs. Daisy may be growing old but she will never grow weird.
