Alpina D3 Bi-Turbo #435

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D3-No.435
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Alpina D3 Bi-Turbo #435

Post by D3-No.435 » Sun Oct 15, 2017 8:59 pm

Hi All

Been on here a while now and thought I'd start a thread for my E90 D3 Bi-Turbo.

I bought the car back in December 2014 as a secondary car for myself and for my father to use when needed. It was to replace my MK5 Golf GTi which had developed an electrical fault that no one, not even the VW could get to the bottom of.

Always had a soft-spot for Alpinas and as soon as I realised there was an opportunity to get one I went for it. Decided on an E90 D3 but I had my Audi S6 and a Vauxhall Vivaro van for work at the time, so the D3 wouldn't get used much but I just couldn't resist getting one.

At the time I struggled to find one with a decent spec. The minimum spec I wanted was sat-nav, DAB, front/rear park sensors and xenon lights. After months of searching and looking at many D3's across the country this one, Number 435 came up for sale with everything I wanted plus more so I snapped it up straight away (even got a good px value on the GTi).

Having searched the forum gallery, I came across the below photo of the car at the BMW Gaydon National Meet back in August 2011. Looks like a forum member was a previous owner so if anyone knows any history of the car prior to December 2014 please share.

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Without going into too much detail since owning it I've carried out a few upgrades such as replacing the original kidney grills with gloss black versions. Also changed the interior lights, DRLs and fog lights to white LEDs giving a much fresher look. Replaced all four tyres with Michelin Pilot Sports and added 10mm spacers to improve the look and handling.

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Unfortunately, earlier on this year my father suddenly passed away. He actually drove the car on the morning of a fatal heart-attack. He was 81, that most probably made him one of the oldest Alpina drivers around. At the time due to having a company car the original plan was to sell the D3 but after ditching the company car I've started using the D3 daily. Plus, my 10-year old son wants to keep it in memory of his grandad (think hes got his eyes on it in the future!

The car sat on the drive for 7 months so the brakes needed a good clean and the battery charging but other than that its been running perfectly. It needs tidying up a little and I have further changes in mind which I will update on here.

Overall loving the Alpina. Glad I got one and glad Im keeping it. Im sure we're going to have this one in the family for a very very very long time.
Last edited by D3-No.435 on Mon Jan 11, 2021 7:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Current Garage: 1992 964 C4 | 2001 Lupo GTi | 2002 Seicento Schumacher | 2005 Stilo Schumacher GP | 2009 Golf GTD | 2011 E90 Alpina D3 (No.435) https://thealpinaregister.com/forums/vi ... 75#p182275 | 2011 E92 M3 | 2014 F30 Alpina D3 (No.153) | 2015 A3 TFSI

Previous: 1987 Fiesta 1.4S | 1990 309 GTi | 2000 Audi S3 | 2000 Mini Cooper LE500 | 2001 Bora 130TDi | 2001 E39 M5 | 2007 Audi S6 V10

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Post by Burnham » Sun Oct 15, 2017 10:51 pm

Thats a lovely looking D3. Im sorry about your father...its a nice tough that your boy wants to keep the car in the family.
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Post by D3-No.435 » Sun Nov 05, 2017 2:41 pm

Thanks. Yeah it would be good to keep this one.

So one thing that has been annoying me is the armrest. The original owner did not spec a adjustable armrest. I beleive it was a £110 option when new.

Currently mine is as photo below, anyone have a adjustable armrest? I'm thinking it should be a stright swap so am going to try and source one.

Image
Current Garage: 1992 964 C4 | 2001 Lupo GTi | 2002 Seicento Schumacher | 2005 Stilo Schumacher GP | 2009 Golf GTD | 2011 E90 Alpina D3 (No.435) https://thealpinaregister.com/forums/vi ... 75#p182275 | 2011 E92 M3 | 2014 F30 Alpina D3 (No.153) | 2015 A3 TFSI

Previous: 1987 Fiesta 1.4S | 1990 309 GTi | 2000 Audi S3 | 2000 Mini Cooper LE500 | 2001 Bora 130TDi | 2001 E39 M5 | 2007 Audi S6 V10

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Post by Hector's Dad » Sun Nov 05, 2017 4:24 pm

I had the same one as you in my old E92. I now have the adjustable one in my F32. Every time I lean on it the damned thing shoots forward! Come back non-adjustable. :wink:
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Post by D3-No.435 » Mon Nov 06, 2017 8:28 am

Oh! Do the adjustable armrests not lock into position whether extended or not?
Current Garage: 1992 964 C4 | 2001 Lupo GTi | 2002 Seicento Schumacher | 2005 Stilo Schumacher GP | 2009 Golf GTD | 2011 E90 Alpina D3 (No.435) https://thealpinaregister.com/forums/vi ... 75#p182275 | 2011 E92 M3 | 2014 F30 Alpina D3 (No.153) | 2015 A3 TFSI

Previous: 1987 Fiesta 1.4S | 1990 309 GTi | 2000 Audi S3 | 2000 Mini Cooper LE500 | 2001 Bora 130TDi | 2001 E39 M5 | 2007 Audi S6 V10

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Post by Metrics » Mon Nov 06, 2017 9:28 am

It's an easy swap over - you should be able to find one on eBay.
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Post by D3-No.435 » Thu Dec 21, 2017 8:22 pm

So finally got round to installing the adjustable armrest. Managed to source one from my local scrappy that matched the interior and only took 20mins swap over. The new armrest provides a more comfortable driving experience, overall well pleased :D

Image

Up next will be some new Alpina wheel badges from Pukar Designs.
Current Garage: 1992 964 C4 | 2001 Lupo GTi | 2002 Seicento Schumacher | 2005 Stilo Schumacher GP | 2009 Golf GTD | 2011 E90 Alpina D3 (No.435) https://thealpinaregister.com/forums/vi ... 75#p182275 | 2011 E92 M3 | 2014 F30 Alpina D3 (No.153) | 2015 A3 TFSI

Previous: 1987 Fiesta 1.4S | 1990 309 GTi | 2000 Audi S3 | 2000 Mini Cooper LE500 | 2001 Bora 130TDi | 2001 E39 M5 | 2007 Audi S6 V10

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Post by Paulb » Sun Dec 24, 2017 4:16 am

I didn't realism it was available as an option on Alpina E90's, must have been a late option, nice option change.
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Post by D3-No.435 » Sat Mar 03, 2018 3:24 pm

Ok so been a while since I updated this thread mainly due to the new arrival below :)

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Back to the D3 - Noticed one day just after xmas a kocking noise coming from the rear passenger side. Got BMW to look into it and discovered that the rear spring had snapped. Now I hadn't been happy with the ride-height of the D3 for a while and after being quoted over £800 by BMW to supply and fit two rear springs, carry out an 4-wheel allignment and balance the wheels I decided to go the coilover route. Opted for KW V2's which I can't fault. The ride quality is actually better than standard and with adjustable damping I have fine tuned the suspension exactly how I want it. Now I understand this is a bit of a purest forum and alot of you are probably shocked at reading this but this car is going to stay in the family for a very long time. I have kept the original suspension and will keep a lookout for anyone breaking a D3 Bi-Turbo so I can purchase rear springs and have the original suspension to hand if the car ever needs to go back to standard. Also anyone lucky enough to own a Alpina B3 GT3 will find that these come fitted standard with coilover suspension from the factory.

Ordered new wheel emblems from Pukar Design that arrived very quickly and the quality was faultless. Had been debating with the idea of refurbing the wheels and decided to go ahead with it.

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At the same time ordered a new set of tyres just to give that extra clearence between tyre and arch.

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Up next the front end was looking very battered so after talking to friend and legendary bodywork specialist Greg Howell the car was booked in for a freshen up. At the same time I contacted Simon for a set of decals. Simon was very helpful and sent me out a full decal kit in gold.

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Before and after pic's of the cars visit to Greg Howell below. Greg did a great job, sprayed the lower front spoiler and managed to get the decals spot on.

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Last edited by D3-No.435 on Sat Mar 03, 2018 6:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Current Garage: 1992 964 C4 | 2001 Lupo GTi | 2002 Seicento Schumacher | 2005 Stilo Schumacher GP | 2009 Golf GTD | 2011 E90 Alpina D3 (No.435) https://thealpinaregister.com/forums/vi ... 75#p182275 | 2011 E92 M3 | 2014 F30 Alpina D3 (No.153) | 2015 A3 TFSI

Previous: 1987 Fiesta 1.4S | 1990 309 GTi | 2000 Audi S3 | 2000 Mini Cooper LE500 | 2001 Bora 130TDi | 2001 E39 M5 | 2007 Audi S6 V10

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Post by Jay964rs » Sat Mar 03, 2018 4:44 pm

I like the look on your D3 (and the 964).
Fair play for trying something different.
Get yourself some ppf on the front now it’s very tidy.

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Post by Metrics » Sun Mar 04, 2018 9:38 am

Lovely 964 - congrats 8)

D3 is look mighty fine too. I know Greg from the VW scene, top chap. His 964 is rather tidy too!
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Post by D3-No.435 » Wed Mar 07, 2018 2:48 pm

Thanks for the comments guys.

Can PPF be installed over the decals?
Current Garage: 1992 964 C4 | 2001 Lupo GTi | 2002 Seicento Schumacher | 2005 Stilo Schumacher GP | 2009 Golf GTD | 2011 E90 Alpina D3 (No.435) https://thealpinaregister.com/forums/vi ... 75#p182275 | 2011 E92 M3 | 2014 F30 Alpina D3 (No.153) | 2015 A3 TFSI

Previous: 1987 Fiesta 1.4S | 1990 309 GTi | 2000 Audi S3 | 2000 Mini Cooper LE500 | 2001 Bora 130TDi | 2001 E39 M5 | 2007 Audi S6 V10

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Post by D3-No.435 » Tue Aug 14, 2018 7:54 pm

A few photos from Gaydon on Sunday.

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As i started the car up for the journey to Gaydon on sunday the service indicator flashed up on the dash so first thing Monday morning i called Sytners BMW in Coventry to book the car in. I was suprised when they said they can book it in for the following day if i didn't need a courtesy car, otherwise it would be a 4 week wait. Luckily i have other cars available so agreed to drop it off this morning rather than waiting till mid september.

So this morning whilst dropping off the D3 they did a quick key-read and told me there are two recalls on the car:
1. Battery connector recall
2. Blower regulator connector recall

They said i should have received notification on the recalls but that wasn't the case. I agreed for the work to be carried out whilst its in for a service but in the afternoon i had a call saying they haven't got the correct parts available and that it could take upto 2 weeks. Apparently BMW nationwide are working through a back-log on the cars that are affected.

The guy on the phone advised the car not to be driven and that they can keep it in storage untill the parts arrive and BMW say its safe to use again. Again luckily i can get by without the Alpina but my advice to anyone taking their car in for a recall, make sure the dealers have the parts to carry out the work and your gauranteed your car back at the end of the day.
Current Garage: 1992 964 C4 | 2001 Lupo GTi | 2002 Seicento Schumacher | 2005 Stilo Schumacher GP | 2009 Golf GTD | 2011 E90 Alpina D3 (No.435) https://thealpinaregister.com/forums/vi ... 75#p182275 | 2011 E92 M3 | 2014 F30 Alpina D3 (No.153) | 2015 A3 TFSI

Previous: 1987 Fiesta 1.4S | 1990 309 GTi | 2000 Audi S3 | 2000 Mini Cooper LE500 | 2001 Bora 130TDi | 2001 E39 M5 | 2007 Audi S6 V10

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Post by Philrose » Wed Aug 15, 2018 10:27 am

We've had both our cars rectified but no letter from BMW. However when we booked the second car in there was never a mention of it being unsafe to drive. There are thousands of cars out there waiting for the modification to be done and no mention of them being not fit to drive.
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Post by AidanB10 » Sun Aug 19, 2018 8:22 pm

The only way its "unsafe to drive" is if the wiring to the blower motor wiring has melted

Parts are slowly becoming available, but its still a bit of a lead time

If its not been done already, book it in for September-ish time
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