By Nate Risch
12/15/2014
I have never gazed upon Santa’s sleigh, but I’ll bet that if I were given time to scrutinize its magical flanks, an M-badge would be proudly displayed somewhere on there. And I reckon that if Santa could bestow gifts upon himself, they would bear the letters B, M, and W. Surely Old Saint Nick could use something to make his sled more aerodynamic, maybe add an edge of aggression, or at least spruce up the interior. There might even be enough new gadgets, vehicles, and accessories for twelve days of gifts…
By Nate Risch
12/15/2014
Having replaced the broken rear springs and useless shocks in the 325XiT wagon, I could now dive into the Z3’s cooling system, replacing its sticky thermostat and seeing what else it needed to make it a reliable winter driver. Or, now that I’d brought the Shark (the ’79 Euro 635CSi) home and cleared out garage space for it—through a ridiculous number of machinations—I could begin sorting it out.
By Nate Risch
12/08/2014
The great geniuses at BMW must be Grateful Dead fans—and if they’re not, I’m going to continue to believe that they are. Recently my life turned upside down (my own fault), and I found myself with a commute twice as long, mileage-wise, as I’d been used to, but about the same length time-wise. How does this work out, you may ask? Simple: traffic lights, zillions of them, it seems, and they’re all there to slow you down.
By Nate Risch
12/08/2014
Last week I revealed that I, your intrepid Hack Mechanic, owner of nearly 60 BMWs since 1982, will start the first new job I’ve had in 30 years, and will begin commuting to Bentley Publishers in Cambridge. Driving, apparently, a beat-up 2000 Suburban.
By Nate Risch
12/01/2014
Back in early April, I wrote an article titled “I’ll Be There To Help Out, Because Others Helped Me,” in which I discussed how I am drawn to donate my time by volunteering at events. Turns out that over the last few years, I’ve done quite a bit more volunteering at events than just attending such events.

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