barnabyfettle

How much should I expect to pay for mini Cooper brake replacement in Dubai?

I'm trying to budget for some maintenance on my 2015 Mini Cooper S and I'm getting wildly different quotes for front and rear brake replacement. One shop quoted me 1,200 dirhams for pads and rotors all around using aftermarket parts. Another shop quoted 2,500 for OEM parts. A third shop quoted 1,800 for "premium" aftermarket. I know Mini parts are more expensive than Japanese cars, but I don't know what a fair price is. I don't want to overpay but I also don't want to use dangerously cheap parts. A friend told me that mini Cooper brake replacement should always include new wear sensors and caliper bolts, otherwise you'll get warning lights. Has anyone here recently done brakes on their Cooper or Countryman in Dubai and can tell me what they paid and whether they were happy with the parts quality? I'm trying to find the sweet spot between cheap and overpriced. Any advice would be really helpful. Thanks.

Is a 300 dirham polish worth it or should I just do it myself?

I know this might seem cheap, but I'm on a tight budget and my silver 2015 Hyundai Elantra hasn't been polished in maybe two years. The paint feels rough to the touch and looks dull, but there's no clear coat failure or anything dramatic. I got a quote from a mobile detailing guy for 300 dirhams for a wash, clay bar, and single stage machine polish. Another place quoted 800 for a two stage polish with paint correction. I honestly can't afford 800 right now. A coworker said that a basic polish is a waste of money because it just fills in swirls temporarily without actually fixing them. I found a place that offers comprehensive car polish from 800Sayara Sharjah for 350 dirhams and they claim to use a DA polisher with quality compounds, not just a rotary buffer that burns paint. Has anyone here gotten a budget polish and been happy with the results on a daily driver? I'm not looking for show car shine, just want my car to look decent again without spending a fortune. Is 300-350 dirhams reasonable for a basic polish or am I better off buying a cheap polisher and doing it myself in the parking lot? Any advice would be great. Thanks.

I'm genuinely starting to hate driving my 2016 BMW 520i around town, which is sad because I used to love this car. Every time I go over a speed bump, even slowly, the front suspension compresses way too much and I hear this awful thud like something is hitting the bump stops. The car also dives pretty hard when I brake at traffic lights. I took it to a local garage and they said the shocks look fine because they're not leaking, but I'm pretty sure they've just lost their internal gas pressure over time. I've been doing some research and found that BMWs are known for shocks that go soft without any external signs. I found a place advertising state-of-the-art BMW shock absorber replacement for Suspension Repair Dubai that uses the original ZF Sachs components and a shock dyno to test the old ones. Has anyone replaced here their F10 or G30 shocks and noticed a massive improvement in ride quality? I'm trying to decide if I should do all four at once or just the fronts that seem worse. Also curious if the electronic damping connectors need any special recalibration afterwards. Really don't want to spend money on something that won't solve the problem. Any real world experience would be amazing. Thanks.