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Doctor Grape Ape posted:You're supposed to check the level with the engine hot, but after it's been off for 2 minutes. This gives time for all the oil being circulated to find its way back to the sump. Ideally, after waiting 2 minutes, you want the oil to be sitting bang on the top mark. I did experiments on my E30. The difference between a hot engine, a hot+rested engine, and a cold engine was about 5% on the dipstick. The experimental accuracy of how well I could eyeball the dipstick was also about 5%. The accuracy in judging how much to pour in was much lower, about 10%. Conclusion: check the oil whenever you want, hot or cold, rested or not: it makes no difference up to the limits of experimental accuracy. ljw1004 fucked around with this message at 06:41 on Jan 19, 2010 |
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Jan 19, 2010 00:59
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I usually only check it when it's been sitting overnight. As on all my other vehicles, I pull the stick, wipe it off and then re-insert it. Wait a few seconds and then pull it back out to check the level. Except with this car, how long I wait to pull the stick back out determines the amount shown. Either it shows exactly on the full line, or if I wait a little bit longer, check the other fluids etc and come back to it, the whole thing is soaked in oil, basically the entire plastic 'spear' section of the dipstick. I've done this 6-7 times now with the same results.
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Jan 19, 2010 05:28
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Or you could get an E9X and avoid the dipstick nonsense altogether. :v
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Jan 19, 2010 15:47
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Does anyone know if the front bumper from an E36 M3 coupe will bolt on to an E36 sedan? I've got the horrible first grey plastic bumper on my 325i and I'd love to go to the M3 style. I found a local deal and I'll install it myself if it can be done.
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Jan 19, 2010 20:57
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McMadCow posted:Does anyone know if the front bumper from an E36 M3 coupe will bolt on to an E36 sedan? I've got the horrible first grey plastic bumper on my 325i and I'd love to go to the M3 style. I found a local deal and I'll install it myself if it can be done. Better than: http://www.ddmtuning.com/index.php?p=product&id=73&parent=152 ? Oddly enough, local to you, and it has come down so much in price since I last looked (it was around $200 this time last year, plus another $75 shipping).
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Jan 19, 2010 21:23
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Doctor Grape Ape posted:Better than: http://www.ddmtuning.com/index.php?p=product&id=73&parent=152 ? Holy crap, that is a great deal! Not local to me though, I'm in San Fran. That's an 8 hour drive each way. The one I found was on a local CL listing for a used one that requires refinishing. I was just going to offer him $50.
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Jan 19, 2010 21:38
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Yes sedan and coupe front bumpers are interchangable.
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Jan 19, 2010 21:38
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McMadCow posted:Holy crap, that is a great deal! Not local to me though, I'm in San Fran. That's an 8 hour drive each way. The one I found was on a local CL listing for a used one that requires refinishing. I was just going to offer him $50. Oops, I forget how large California is sometimes. I got the San part right, at least... If you can pick it up for $50 bucks I'd say do it. Just make sure it comes with all the bits, like the mesh grill, splitters, and "porkchops"
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Jan 19, 2010 21:44
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BraveUlysses posted:Yes sedan and coupe front bumpers are interchangable. Awesome thanks! 
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Jan 19, 2010 21:50
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How stupid would it be to pickup a 89 325i with a manual swap? Especially as a first car to get semi-familiar with fixing things? I'm mostly concerned with repairing catastrophic transmission failure from poor work. I did a bit of research and it sounds like these types of swaps are fairly straightforward but time consuming. The current owner did the swap himself. Its got 162k miles, seems to be rust free from the pictures and has a LSD. Is there anything I should ask to see if he could have potentially hosed up or poorly picked parts? Hes only ask 1500 which is pretty good for a rust-free manual around here.
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Jan 20, 2010 08:48
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Raymn posted:How stupid would it be to pickup a 89 325i with a manual swap? Especially as a first car to get semi-familiar with fixing things? I'm mostly concerned with repairing catastrophic transmission failure from poor work. I did a bit of research and it sounds like these types of swaps are fairly straightforward but time consuming. The current owner did the swap himself. Its got 162k miles, seems to be rust free from the pictures and has a LSD. Is there anything I should ask to see if he could have potentially hosed up or poorly picked parts? Hes only ask 1500 which is pretty good for a rust-free manual around here. eh, do it. at least the clutch should be pretty fresh.
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Jan 20, 2010 15:55
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e46 question. I just bought a zhp so it has a 6-speed transmission which I think has the same shift linkage as the regular 330i but with a shorter knob. The throw is pretty long and it's 7 years old now so the bushings create a little slop. All I want is an OEM lever that is a bit longer below the pivot but I can't find any info on what levers will fit. In my e36 325i I swapped the lever for one out of an M3 and put in new bushings and it is the best shifting car I've ever driven. It's not obnoxious like a short shifter but it is still super neat and tidy and 30% shorter than stock. Does anybody know what levers will fit? I know a z3m lever will kinda fit but since it was made for a low roadster the actual lever height is hilariously short and you have to dig around the boot for the knob.
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Jan 20, 2010 18:58
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ynotony posted:In my e36 325i I swapped the lever for one out of an M3 and put in new bushings and it is the best shifting car I've ever driven. It's not obnoxious like a short shifter but it is still super neat and tidy and 30% shorter than stock. Still the best mod I've done to my E36, for any price. But I don't think the ZHP has that luxury, you might have to go with UUC, etc.
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Jan 20, 2010 19:12
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ynotony posted:ZHP short shift understeer.com will sort you out, mate.
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Jan 20, 2010 19:18
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Sterndotstern posted:understeer.com will sort you out, mate. drat, all they have is a UUC short shift option. That's a little more intense than I was hoping for.
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Jan 20, 2010 22:13
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Soooo check out what just showed up in my driveway?   '84 733i w/ a 5-speed, runs like a top, awesome. Just threw vintage plates on it today.
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Jan 22, 2010 00:36
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ynotony posted:e46 question. I just bought a zhp so it has a 6-speed transmission which I think has the same shift linkage as the regular 330i but with a shorter knob. The throw is pretty long and it's 7 years old now so the bushings create a little slop. The throw on the stock ZHP is just about perfect for that car, but if you want to experiment with a different lever setup you can; the size of the bushing is almost universal on BMWs. Here's a pic comparing lengths for popular short-throw swaps.  Click here for the full 650x376 image.
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Jan 22, 2010 07:41
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Edit: ok fine then
Lowclock fucked around with this message at 02:04 on Jan 24, 2010 |
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Jan 24, 2010 01:11
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Lowclock posted:Want more pics? Absolutely. Did you follow a procedure?
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Jan 24, 2010 01:42
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Lowclock posted:Questions? Want more pics? Do you have to ask?!? When you last mentioned it (more than a month ago on page 108) the request was made for a thread, pics, and pain/tears/agony. You should write it up slowly and play out the drama -- everyone knows that automatics are powered by the dark arts, with the refined blood of slaughtered baby koala bears coursing through their veins.
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Jan 24, 2010 01:45
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Doctor Grape Ape posted:Did you follow a procedure? To be honest, no. I didn't feel like buying a service manual. I'll write some more stuff soon as everyone wanted. e: thread Lowclock fucked around with this message at 05:51 on Jan 24, 2010 |
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Jan 24, 2010 02:02
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Anyone have a water leak into the rear passenger side floor on an E30? edit: looks like most of the floor is wet, but it was the worst on the rear passenger floor. looks like i have some rust holes to patch up in the floor and i unclogged one drain. aksuur fucked around with this message at 01:50 on Jan 25, 2010 |
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Jan 24, 2010 05:30
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Let me get your guys opinion on this. I'm interested in buying this as my first BMW. What should I look out for? What should I budget for the front bumper repair? Is it worth the price? I'm thinking it's a bargain, but I might be wrong as I have eye balled BMW's for years, but never pulled the trigger. I've emailed the guy and he says it's a second car for him and he only drives it about 100 miles a week. He said he's had it for a year or two. Also, "The Boss" (my wife) thinks I'm nuts for wanting to buy an almost 20 year old car. How can I explain that e36's are awesome? "1992 BMW 325I 4DR 5 SPEED. PRICE FOR QUICK SELL. NEED FRONT BUMPER. LOST IT DURING ICY ROAD. LOW MILEAGE 120K. PRICE FOR QUICK SELL. $1750.00."    
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Jan 29, 2010 04:47
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BTW, I'm a handy guy and have no problem wrenching. I also have a guy I know who I could probably convince to paint a replacement bumper for me for not much over cost.
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Jan 29, 2010 04:50
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outkastist posted:Let me get your guys opinion on this. Not terrible, '92 is pre-VANOS so no seals to worry about -- get maint records if you can, cooling system is something to keep an eye out for. You can probably scrapyard up a new front bumper and throw it on yourself.
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Jan 29, 2010 04:52
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My key broke just off inside the ignition of my 1988 325i. I guess it hits all the right lock tumblers, so I (or a thief) can turn the ignition just with a coin or similar object. What's the procedure here for fixing it? I'm at a complete loss! Thanks in advance for any help.
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Jan 29, 2010 06:22
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I just had a birthday, so I decided to buy this for myself: 1995 BMW 323i, 100k miles, single owner and full BMW service history. One of the very very few unmolested E36s in existence. 2,5 liter torquey straight-six with 170 horsepower and manual transmission.  Price? 59800 NOK. £6000. $10,000. Grey cloth, manual windows, no AC. I think the only luxury on it might be central locking, which of course is not remote-controlled. We Norwegians get raped on car taxes, hence the high price. Also, everyone in this country thinks that their BMWs are made of gold, so the same amount of money usually gets you a riced-out 91-92 318 or 320i with 150 000 miles on it. Plans are to keep it stock, since original E36s are rare, and it will help resale value. I haven't even driven it, just called the dealer and said I'll take it. Papers are signed, and delivery is sometime around the middle of next week. Reading through this thread has given me tons of nerves about stuff that could be or go wrong with it, but it was sold new and always serviced at the BMW dealer here, and hopefully being a later E36 will help too. Right? Right? 
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Jan 29, 2010 19:54
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outkastist posted:Let me get your guys opinion on this. Step away from the car. If you're getting a BMW, get one that was maintained _religiously_, especially if you don't already know 'em. Keeping a BMW in good shape is cheap. Getting a basket case back into good shape is insanely expensive. The first year with my E34 535i I spent $3K on parts. Parts I bought and installed myself, often from junkyard. It was in good shape, just with a few little issues here and there, but getting it up to snuff was a PITA. Compared to an E36, E34s are better made and live pampered lives, so don't expect the smaller car to be cheaper to make right. Do not buy one without getting a mechanic to check it out COMPLETELY. There are pre-purchase inspection (PPI) checklists on bimmerforums.com. I would really look to spend more like $3K, minimum. More if you can. Try to find one that's had the whole front end rebuilt recently, or plan on doing it yourself. The front end bushings are what make it drive like a BMW and if they're shot (they are) it'll drive like a dog. Any extra you invest into the purchase price will get back in reduced maintenance x2. FWIW, if it's your first bimmer and you're not going to be racing/autocrossing it, seriously look into E34s. Like I said, they tend to live easier lives with more dealer service and fewer young owners beating on them. They also tend to be much cheaper for the same condition car. They're MUCH more wife-friendly, more comfortable, handle great once you swap in better springs and shocks and come with tasty engines in the 535 or 540. I spent a long time looking for the right 3-series, drove a bunch of dogs, and eventually settled on an awesome E28 535is for $2500 with a LSD, Eibach/bilsteins, lightened flywheel, M5 brakes, etc. I liked it enough that I got an E34 to replace it, rather than an E36. ppdd fucked around with this message at 21:16 on Jan 29, 2010 |
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Jan 29, 2010 20:13
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outkastist posted:Also, "The Boss" (my wife) thinks I'm nuts for wanting to buy an almost 20 year old car. How can I explain that e36's are awesome? First of all, grow some balls and buy the car you want. Second, ppdd gives some good tips (I'm an E34 driver myself), but I don't know about waiting around for one that's been maintained "religiously", you might be waiting for a long time and potentially wasting your money. I personally think it's to be expected that any older, used car requires repairs over time. It's just how it goes, parts get worn and even of the best quality, nothing lasts forever. Maintenance can be good, but it can also be wasted, and I've personally learned that maintenance schedules are typically way overblown. I poured tons of cash fruitlessly into my previous E34 530 (M30 engine) on maintenance and replacement of semi-worn / "due for replacement" parts, but with my new E34 540, I'm taking more of a reactive repair stance, fixing only stuff that breaks and being very careful not to buy parts that are unnecessary. For example, I felt very dumb after pouring almost $1000 into fuel injection repair parts and not getting a SLIVER of increase in fuel economy in the 530. Those fuel injectors, O2 sensor and fuel pressure valve were as good as brand new even after 120k miles, apparently. I even had to take my loving cylinder head off (costing me a new headgasket + parts) because I broke the heads off some exhaust manifold nuts in the cylinder head as I swapped the O2 sensor. I curse rusty, old exhausts to hell  Of course, some stuff has to be done before it breaks, like oil changes. But other things - if you aren't lazy, and repair stuff immediately as it breaks or gets noticably worn (suspension noises, brakes squealing, starting problems, etc.) you should have a good run. Just don't let the problems pile up, like some people do. They pay for it by ending up just scrapping the car because they can't get themselves together to fixing it all. I'd just rather buy at a medium price (but definitely not a basket case) and have a budget for repairs, than risk getting ripped off, paying an overprice that might not be worth it. You never know what's right around the corner, stuff can break suddenly. I can't really judge that E36, if the bumper is all that's missing, it might just be fine. You gotta go look at it first and see, though. evobatman posted:I just had a birthday, so I decided to buy this for myself: Congrats, fellow Scandinavian living in car hell (except those drat lucky Swedes). That sounds crazy though, I paid 44500 DKK for my E34 540 with lots of equipment, although 160k miles), I guess BMWs command a relatively higher price up there. Pilsner fucked around with this message at 01:45 on Jan 30, 2010 |
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Jan 30, 2010 01:42
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outkastist posted:Let me get your guys opinion on this. That really is a hell of a deal. I got my '92 325i with 146K for $2000 and I was jumping for joy at the price I paid. A replacement bumper for it should run you less than $100, and they were the bare grey color that year so no worrying about painting it.
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Jan 30, 2010 03:26
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Pilsner posted:Congrats, fellow Scandinavian living in car hell (except those drat lucky Swedes). That sounds crazy though, I paid 44500 DKK for my E34 540 with lots of equipment, although 160k miles), I guess BMWs command a relatively higher price up there. Thanks man! I used to live in Sweden, and had a 33000 SEK 1993 530i manual Touring. Shadowline with black sports leather, cruise control, 10-speaker stereo and biggest computer. Best E34 I ever drove, didn't have the slack in the steering that they usually develop, even at 200k miles. We can show off here, can't we?      
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Jan 30, 2010 10:01
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evobatman posted:Thanks man! I used to live in Sweden, and had a 33000 SEK 1993 530i manual Touring. Shadowline with black sports leather, cruise control, 10-speaker stereo and biggest computer. Best E34 I ever drove, didn't have the slack in the steering that they usually develop, even at 200k miles. The only way this could be better is if it had a set of BBS basketweaves. Then it would be the 5series of my dreams.
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Jan 30, 2010 13:48
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Doctor Grape Ape posted:The only way this could be better is if it had a set of BBS basketweaves. Then it would be the 5series of my dreams. mine too. I don't think you could find one like that in the states. At least not without every other BMW enthusiast charging at it too and starting bidding at 20k or something. gawd, V8, wagon, 5-speed 
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Jan 30, 2010 18:13
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Well, you can't have her, and neither can anyone else!
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Jan 30, 2010 18:27
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evobatman posted:Well, you can't have her, and neither can anyone else! Holy poo poo. What happened!?
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Jan 30, 2010 18:43
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That picture is disturbing, there's been at least 2 E34s that burned down within the last week on bimmerforums
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Jan 30, 2010 19:11
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Sterndotstern posted:Holy poo poo. What happened!? It did develop a ton of problems that weren't worth fixing and every single panel had rust, so I sold it to a guy who parted it out and used parts from it to convert a 540 from automatic to manual transmission. His father had a bonfire going nearby the shell, and an aerosol can blew up and flew into it. All parts had been removed, so the only casualties were the almost new tires and the engine that was still in good shape. At least bits of it live on in other E34s around the country.
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Jan 30, 2010 19:13
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evobatman posted:It did develop a ton of problems that weren't worth fixing and every single panel had rust, so I sold it to a guy who parted it out and used parts from it to convert a 540 from automatic to manual transmission. His father had a bonfire going nearby the shell, and an aerosol can blew up and flew into it. All parts had been removed, so the only casualties were the almost new tires and the engine that was still in good shape. At least bits of it live on in other E34s around the country. That is probably the most insane way for a car to completely burn down ever. That's some Final Destination stuff right there for sure. I think they'll make part 4 and use this in the film just to say "these events based off of real life occurrences."  I wonder if the insurance company even believes it.
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Jan 30, 2010 20:37
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So my new to me 69k mi 2003 330i is having a weird cooling system issue. I drove it on the highway for the first time last night and I noticed my temp gauge started to go DOWN to the 1/4 mark. A few minutes of idling warms the engine back up and city driving keeps it warm. So it sounds pretty obviously a problem with the feedback loop. Some googling resulted in a thermostat stuck open scenario, but that is supposed to throw a check engine light. My dashboard is clear. Should I just get in there and replace the thermostat? I'll probably take the opportunity to swap out the water pump and the reservoir too. I have to say this is a much more relaxing problem than the overheating issues I experienced with my e36 at around 110k.
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Jan 30, 2010 20:46
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It doesn't really sound like a thermostat problem: that would cause excessively long warm-up times. Also, it would run cooler at idle than under load, not the other way around. And as you said, a jammed open thermostat would likely trip the CEL on your car, due to increased emissions during warm-up (a jammed-closed fault doesn't throw a light). My first guess would be that your aux fan is running all the time. Or possibly there are after market parts installed in your car (radiator, water pump) that may be causing an overcooling situation.
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Jan 30, 2010 21:25
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