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King of False Promises posted:One of the best games ever! Slam it and get some rimzzzzzzzzzzz
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Jun 29, 2012 01:11
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Jealous Cow posted:Slam it and get some rimzzzzzzzzzzz Nice. Didn't realize that talking about modifying my rare BMW with 200k miles would bring out a reply like that. I'm not talking about making it hellaflush or anything like that. I don't think there's anything wrong with making changes to my weekend fun car.
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Jun 29, 2012 01:31
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King of False Promises posted:Nice. Didn't realize that talking about modifying my rare BMW with 200k miles would bring out a reply like that. I'm not talking about making it hellaflush or anything like that. I don't think there's anything wrong with making changes to my weekend fun car. There isnt. You could always just refresh all of the suspension components, especially after 200k.
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Jun 29, 2012 01:54
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Anybody can have a rare care. It takes someone special to have both speed and class.
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Jun 29, 2012 02:01
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revmoo posted:Anybody can have a rare care. It takes someone special to have both speed and class. 
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Jun 29, 2012 02:04
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King of False Promises posted:Nice. Didn't realize that talking about modifying my rare BMW with 200k miles would bring out a reply like that. I'm not talking about making it hellaflush or anything like that. I don't think there's anything wrong with making changes to my weekend fun car. Was just messing with you. Refresh suspension, brakes, and any worn hoses. Replace the coolant expansion tank. Enjoy the car. When you get bored start with the suspension and move up from there. When you replace suspension parts go for M3 versions. I'd suggest starting here for performance parts: http://www.iemotorsport.com/bmw/E36-parts.html
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Jun 29, 2012 02:06
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Jealous Cow posted:Was just messing with you. Sorry, just a little touchy! That's pretty much the idea. I'm off all next week, so I'm going to give it a really good once over and see what needs replacing, then replace it with quality parts. I'm just so happy to have a fun car again after spending three years driving a Isuzu Amigo (which is fun in its own way). Thanks for the link, though. That's exactly what I was looking for; I have no idea where to look for reputable BMW parts.
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Jun 29, 2012 02:16
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Stick posted:When was it creeping up? Any certain conditions that caused it? The needle should stay dead center and not move once the car is warmed up so something is not working correctly. If there is no air in the system, thermostat would be my best guess. Just got back from my bi-weekly 5 hour commute and discovered how to reproduce the fault. The temperature rise occurs under moderate engine load at low RPM, to be more specific, it starts to creep when I'm going up a long hill at highway cruising speed (110-130 km/hr) in 5th gear (It's an automatic, yes...I know, tragic). It never passes the first line if I continue on this path, but perhaps that is only because I run out of hill on that commute. I can immediately stop the rise and pin the needle back to centre within 5 seconds by downshifting to 4th or third -- presumably the higher engine speed squeezes considerably more CFM out of the mechanical fan. I'm 99% sure the electric fan in front of the rad doesn't work. And the PO was pretty certain of this himself - but the car did not experience a rise in temperature previously even with that thing dead (it doesn't look like it moves a hell of a lot of air anyway). My understanding is that the mechanical fan does all the real work. I'm going to fix whatever is wrong with the electric fan regardless, and I have a new thermostat going in tomorrow night, which will involve a rebleed of course. The waterpump is <6 months old, and hoses are fresh as well and I'm not losing any coolant. Expansion tank appears to be fine as well. No signs of a BHG are showing either. Does the failure method/condition ring any bells or point to any particular part's pre-failure or sub par performance?
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Jun 29, 2012 02:17
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It's your thermostat.
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Jun 29, 2012 02:26
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I'm in the middle of VANOS seals replacement on my 97 E36 S52 with the Beisan parts kit. Am at the point where you "Turn crankshaft pulley clockwise until cylinder 1 intake and exhaust cams point to each other at ~45 degree angle (22mm socket 1/2” / 1/2” long-arm ratchet)" Having never turned an engine with a wrench before, should I be encountering pretty serious resistance from the crank pulley bolt after only about 40 degrees rotation of the camshafts? I'm quite a ways away from the cyl. 1 intake/exhaust cams pointing to each other at 45 degrees. Is this all normal; should I put a longer handle on the 22mm socket and put more pressure on it? Making me nervous.
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Jun 29, 2012 06:34
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Pulling the spark plugs will make it a lot easier to turn by hand, if you haven't done that already. Try not to turn it backwards and you'll be fine.
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Jun 29, 2012 07:01
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Lowclock posted:Pulling the spark plugs will make it a lot easier to turn by hand, if you haven't done that already. Try not to turn it backwards and you'll be fine. Thanks. I'm a moron, car was in gear/ebrake'd. 
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Jun 29, 2012 07:32
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It really is the thermostat. http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?noseen=0&threadid=2809820&perpage=40&pagenumber=325#post405029857 I've been going an hour a day in 100F heat and my poo poo is PARKED in the middle. I literally can't get it to creep above half now that I replaced the thermostat (note that I do have a fulltime 16" e-fan instead of a clutch fan). Also, I only drained down to the thermostat neck, not all the way. When I refilled, I stuck a foot of garden hose on the tip of a funnel, unclamped the top radiator hose at the radiator and stuck the garden hose in the radiator and filled it that way until it started coming out of the hose. Clamped it all back up and only took me one quick round of bleeding. A side benefit is that I was getting "Check Coolant Level" computer dings at shutdown every time (not while driving though) - those have now ceased after the thermostat replacement. Jonny 290 fucked around with this message at 15:15 on Jun 29, 2012 |
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Jun 29, 2012 15:10
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King of False Promises posted:Sorry, just a little touchy! That's pretty much the idea. I'm off all next week, so I'm going to give it a really good once over and see what needs replacing, then replace it with quality parts. I'm just so happy to have a fun car again after spending three years driving a Isuzu Amigo (which is fun in its own way). AFAIK there isn't really a lot you can do to the engine without going FI, they come from the factory pretty well tuned. There's stuff like swapping M50 heads/intake onto the M52 block which yields some more top end horsepower, or putting in M3 cams but even with all of that + exhaust I think you end up with around 200whp. You're better off spending money on refreshing the suspension/cooling system (you're really going to want to make sure the cooling system is up to snuff) before dumping money into the engine.
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Jun 29, 2012 15:30
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rscott posted:AFAIK there isn't really a lot you can do to the engine without going FI, they come from the factory pretty well tuned. There's stuff like swapping M50 heads/intake onto the M52 block which yields some more top end horsepower, or putting in M3 cams but even with all of that + exhaust I think you end up with around 200whp. You're better off spending money on refreshing the suspension/cooling system (you're really going to want to make sure the cooling system is up to snuff) before dumping money into the engine. There is also the limited-slip differential option, if he wants to go that route. And I understand that there are a handful of quality supercharger kits (which I think are actually pretty easy to install, too, but I have no personal experience on them) for those engines. Those are both pricey though and I agree that the cooling system and suspension should absolutely be done first.
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Jun 29, 2012 15:57
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CornHolio posted:There is also the limited-slip differential option, if he wants to go that route. And I understand that there are a handful of quality supercharger kits (which I think are actually pretty easy to install, too, but I have no personal experience on them) for those engines. Those are both pricey though and I agree that the cooling system and suspension should absolutely be done first. The well tested kits are in the $4k range I think, but they're complete, well documented, and proven. For that much I'd just try and find a '95 M3.
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Jun 29, 2012 16:00
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Any tricks besides "time" to get a M62 to cool down? Heading up to my friends workspace to put the new thermostat in but the trip is going to heat soak it. Seems to take many hours to cool down naturally. Crank heater with engine off on a trickle charger perhaps?
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Jun 29, 2012 17:28
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power posted:Any tricks besides "time" to get a M62 to cool down? Heading up to my friends workspace to put the new thermostat in but the trip is going to heat soak it. Seems to take many hours to cool down naturally. Crank heater with engine off on a trickle charger perhaps? A hose and some degreaser or all-purpose cleaner. Might as well work in a cool, clean engine bay. There's nothing in there that's going to be hurt by hose water.
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Jun 29, 2012 17:49
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No cold water on hot blocks. You can crack a block like a watermelon dropped on concrete doing that. When I did mine the other night I parked it red-hot at 5pm, popped the hood and laid a box fan on the engine bay on high, pointing up. By 8pm it was cool enough that I could drain coolant and not get burned.
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Jun 29, 2012 18:19
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The Third Man posted:Check your thermostat, too, it could be not opening correctly. I was having a similar problem and this did the trick for me.
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Jun 29, 2012 19:48
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E90 328 (6sp) here, essentially un-optioned. I love the car, wish it were about 700lbs lighter but c'est la vie. It is a bit too quiet for me. I would like to have some nice intake noise, but keep the exhaust stock. BMW makes a very pretty performance intake with carbon fibre that only costs $left_leg so I was thinking of going for it. Any goons running one? Do they sound nice? Please note that I am not "upgrading for powar", at some point I'll upgrade to an M3 or a 335 or something like that. I just want some intake snarl.  PS any stories about adding aftermarket iPod integration to a Canadian / US E90 would be just great too 
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Jun 29, 2012 23:55
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Get one of those things that you stick into the cigarette lighter and it makes HEMI/Lambo noises. The OEM ipod dealy is 65410427467 but I think it's dealer only and probably really expensive. There's a
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Jun 30, 2012 01:03
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So my new E39 has a xenon headlight working intermittently. (2000 540i) Does anybody have any experience with these guys? I see OEM xenon bulbs are stupid expensive and I don't even know if it's the bulb or ballast. These are much cheaper... are they crap? edit: the light doesn't work only when the engine is hot, so it's affected by heat. hmm. CornHolio fucked around with this message at 04:23 on Jun 30, 2012 |
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Jun 30, 2012 02:01
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So I made another SuperSmart purchase on Craigslist this week. I picked up a 10 year-old basically unused Yakima roof rack that came with a bunch of different bike mounts--for all of $20 and a little elbow grease to get the basement grime off of it. As anybody from the Northeast will tell you, the only thing more 'Southwestern CT' than a German sedan/coupe is a German sedan/coupe with a loving aftermarket roof rack on it. Bonus points if it's on all year, and extra double bonus points if the ski mounts are still on it in mid-July. Edit: I take that back, the 'most Southwestern CT thing ever,' as explained by my friend, is either a German or Volvo wagon (putting a roof rack on it takes you into stratospheric 'your kids are automatically enrolled at either Yale or Boston U, or Fairfield U if they're dumb' levels of Connecticutry and a Martha's Vineyard shirt instantly materializes itself on your body. Also, your car vanishes and reappears in the Stew Leonards parking lot every time you lock it)- but the sedan/roofrack combo is pretty close. I'll look so wicked sick as I pull into the Wild Oats parking lot. I mounted it to the E36 and then subsequently took it right off, since I don't need it at the moment. Once I cobble together enough disposable income to fix my road bike, I might give it some more regular use. The Craigslist rack will come in very useful once I move to Boston in a few months: I'll take my Craigslist car, with its Craigslist rack cradling my Craigslist bikes, to and from the city where I'll be living in (likely) a Craigslist apartment. Also, another Stupid Newbie question: Should my engine be really (REALLY) loving loud (it's a '94 325is, for those who don't remember)? It doesn't sound like there's anything wrong with it, per se (it had also seen a mechanic the day before I brought it home, and there aren't any aftermarket parts on it aside from the water pump and struts/shocks), but it's just substantially louder, growlier, and "throatier" than any car I'm used to. I feel sort of self-conscious at stoplights and when I'm driving around my quiet neighborhood at night, because it just seems so much louder than anything around me- especially for a car that isn't really all that quick off the line. Also, the motor sort of sounds a bit like a helicopter when I'm on the highway. As far as I know, all cylinders are fine (I imagine) and the fans are all symmetrical and balanced. Is any of this normal E36 business? trilobite terror fucked around with this message at 04:38 on Jun 30, 2012 |
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Jun 30, 2012 04:16
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Sounds like an exhaust leak. Open the hood and check around the exhaust manifold. These some times can crack or there could be hole in the exhaust. If its all good, welcome to the BMW crowd. It just seems like the strait sixes just have a growl to them. They are a performance engine and sound accordingly.
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Jun 30, 2012 04:41
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BrokenKnucklez posted:They are a performance engine and sound accordingly. Uhh what? They aren't a particularly high performance engine and should definitely not sound 'loud' but rather have fairly good NVH.
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Jun 30, 2012 04:47
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On occasion I will drive my dads 07 Lexus IS250 and its shockingly quiet (sounds like a sewing machine when pushing it) when compared to my 05 330ci. I just think that BMW really makes a point to make the engine noise fairly prominent.
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Jun 30, 2012 04:51
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Be that as it may 'embarrassingly loud' means there is an problem with the car. Unless you're extremely easily embarrassed I guess.
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Jun 30, 2012 04:55
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Jonny 290 posted:No cold water on hot blocks. You can crack a block like a watermelon dropped on concrete doing that. Haha yeah, I asked a friend at the Rad shop the same question a few hrs after posting and he gave me the same warning. I let it cool and just really took my time doing the brakes. I'd say it cooled for about 2 hrs. Temp gauge was still fairly close to the middle when my buddy slowly released the expansion tank cap and it hissed a little but no overflow or burning occurred. After taking off the intake plumbing the thermostat was overall not too bad to swap out, that back bolt underneath was a bit of a bitch but nothing like the waterpump was last year. Topped off / bled the system and it doesn't creep anymore, fantastic. The Akebono euro pads/brembo rotor combo feels goddamn amazing too, if any of you are doing brakes soon I'd highly recommend them.
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Jun 30, 2012 05:23
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dissss posted:Unless you're extremely easily embarrassed I guess. That sounds like a possibility. I checked for cracks in the exhaust manifold and holes around the exhaust and didn't find any. Upon taking the car out, I made a point to pay extra attention to the noise- and felt a tad stupid about it. Sure, it grunts a bit more loudly than every 4-cylinder car I've driven, but that's to be expected, and it isn't that much louder. I'll keep an ear out and maybe mention my concerns to my mechanic the next time I visit.
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Jun 30, 2012 06:26
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So, serves me right. My '01 e46 is at around 68000 miles, and I've been putting off the cooling refresh. Was on my way home this afternoon when my hood started venting steam, and the temp gauge hit red not long after. Luckily, I was able to pull over within a minute or so - hope no permanent damage was done to the engine. I had the car towed to an independent mechanic just in case, but it's the long weekend and I won't hear back until Tuesday. They quoted $860 parts and labor to do the cooling refresh, but I might have them replace just enough for the car to be drivable, then tackle the stuff myself. Might have some other work done on the car while it's there though. All the steam seemed to be coming out of the bleed valve next to the expansion tank - seems like the bleed screw has broken off. There wasn't a leak or anything. Now, is this simply a case of buying a new bleeder screw for the time being, and topping up the coolant, or is it a symptom of bigger problems?
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Jun 30, 2012 09:41
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rawrr posted:So, serves me right. My '01 e46 is at around 68000 miles, and I've been putting off the cooling refresh. Was on my way home this afternoon when my hood started venting steam, and the temp gauge hit red not long after. Luckily, I was able to pull over within a minute or so - hope no permanent damage was done to the engine. I'm no cooling system expert (if you read the last two pages at all you'll know I'm learning as I go), but I certainly wouldn't trust that it was just the bleed screw that failed. Something caused it to overheat create the pressure that popped that screw. I'd start testing the likely culprits: Water pump, thermostat, fan clutch (if e46 even uses one), expansion tank, upper and lower rad hose.
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Jun 30, 2012 15:48
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rawrr posted:All the steam seemed to be coming out of the bleed valve next to the expansion tank - seems like the bleed screw has broken off. There wasn't a leak or anything. Now, is this simply a case of buying a new bleeder screw for the time being, and topping up the coolant, or is it a symptom of bigger problems? If that's all it was, then that's all it was. But it should be a really big hint that it's time to shotgun the cooling system as you already know needs to be done. Jam a bolt in it, fill it with coolant, and test it. Then drive it home carefully. Then park it until your parts arrive. My guess is your water pump isn't working anymore and that was the path of least resistance.
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Jun 30, 2012 16:00
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CornHolio posted:So my new E39 has a xenon headlight working intermittently. (2000 540i) Just gonna bump this because it's the only driveability problem I'm having. My driver's side xenon works unless the engine has gotten hot, then it doesn't. I don't know a lot about xenons but I think that points to a ballast failure. Bavarian Auto has OEM ballasts for $150 apiece. The DDM tuning link has an entire HID kit for like $40 and it looks like I can get a similar 35W setup with the same brightness bulbs so it wouldn't be krauty or anything. Thoughts? That kit is so cheap it's almost scary, but if the OEM design is failure-prone, and expensively so, perhaps modern technology has just found a better answer?
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Jun 30, 2012 17:42
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Bad ballast is a reasonable guess, but you should confirm that's the problem by swapping the left and right ballasts and confirming that the problem moves to the other side. I would also clean all electrical connections with WD-40 to ensure that's not the problem. Once you confirm the problem you can choose between the OE or aftermarket part. I don't blame you for trying the junk HID kit to save $110, but don't be surprised if it's a cheap piece of poo poo and you need to replace it later.
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Jun 30, 2012 18:21
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King of False Promises posted:One of my coworkers is moving out of the country, and she knew I loved her car. She offered it to me first, and I couldn't resist. It's been a few years since my 88 Scirocco 16v died, and I've been yearning for a German coupe for a while now. It's not perfect--some outside trim is missing, there's a dent in the driver rear quarter that shouldn't be too hard to pop out, the headliner is gone--but the seats and dash are nearly perfect. I'm really excited to have a fun car again. Congrats, that is a nice looking coupe. My addiction started in 13 years ago with a '91 318is and I still miss that car.
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Jul 1, 2012 13:19
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I made a good 540i related joke on Friday when we fixed the thermostat and did the front brakes. "Car's all good now dude, that means something is due to break in a matter of days." And of course, today the rear left ABS sensor gave up, and worse the 13 year old lovely cheap aluminium bolt that holds it in snapped off. Didn't have the tools on hand to deal with it, who needs a speedometer anyway. Interesting that the car does not accumulate any mileage under this fault condition.
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Jul 1, 2012 20:54
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Welp, I didn't succeed in getting under my car this weekend. I did manage to accomplish a trivial task, replacing the air filter. The local parts store charged me just over $40 for that folded piece of paper. I just checked Rockauto, they sell the same one for less than $5.  No joy on a 32mm wrench to get my fan off so I can get to the serpentine belt. And buying the oil and filter locally would have run to about the same price as having my mechanic do it.  Question: synthetic or dino oil? The difference in price is about 1/2, or $70 vs. $35, plus the cost of the filter (which I'll get from Rockauto for $5 instead of locally for $20).
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Jul 2, 2012 00:42
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Was out getting the E30 ready to go to the body shop to check the frame. Was very interesting driving the 1 back to back with the E30. It actually made the E30 feel really large.
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Jul 2, 2012 00:49
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So after separating a tire on my normal wheels - 18x8.5f w/ 245/40/18's and 18x9.5r w/ 245/40/18's - I went back to stock wheels and tires on my E46. Holy poo poo, like driving a different car... plus what seems like a 15% increase in gas mileage. The car has no corner grip in comparison anymore and the back end wags around cornering hard but it's more fun to drive.
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Jul 2, 2012 01:54
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