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Welp, was driving my 1997 E39 523i today, and the engine overheated (the red light came on), I drove for like 2 miles after I've noticed it. Is my engine hosed? What could cause it to overheat? Water pump/thermostat failure? Gonna tow it to a shop tomorrow, just wondering what could be the cause. No coolant leakage, antifreeze is at normal levels, hot air blows out of the vents as needed. Recently had an oil change and replaced my brake pads. Woohoo more money spendin'
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Dec 7, 2010 22:10
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Pilsner posted:He didn't stay anything about the car keeping traction though, just having fun. There's no combination of passenger car and normal winter tires that allows you to just go full throttle through snow. The iX begs to differ. Floor it, let the differentials sort it out.
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Dec 7, 2010 23:12
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Until you come to a turn or stop.
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Dec 8, 2010 00:34
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awesome-express posted:Welp, was driving my 1997 E39 523i today, and the engine overheated (the red light came on), I drove for like 2 miles after I've noticed it. Is my engine hosed? What could cause it to overheat? Water pump/thermostat failure? That's probably not good. Everything I've heard about overheating BMWs is that by the time the light comes on you're probably already doing damage, so it needs to be turned off immediately. My guesses on the cause would be failed pump or thermostat stuck closed. I'm not sure if this is possible, but there's also a chance you got extremely lucky and it's just a failed sensor returning a bad reading.
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Dec 8, 2010 05:49
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stump posted:To be honest I've rarely activated DSC outside first gear in other than in the snow. The limits of the car are above how fast I feel comfortable going on public roads, I guess the downside of having a car the handles well is that you have less chance to explore it's limits Maybe they turned down DSC on facelift cars? IIRC the later cars had the dual-mode DSC, mine was a 2001 which just had on or off. But basically on mine, if you threw it into a corner aiming for the apex, it would try to tuck the car in further on a trailing throttle, even if you weren't carrying any brake. You didn't have to be pushing the chassis in the slightest. You basically couldn't hit an apex accurately unless you turned DSC off, unless I guess you deliberately aimed a meter to the outside. I did get my E46 after a few years in a very nose heavy FWD V6, so maybe I just wasn't using enough throttle on turn-in. I got used to unweighting the tail and flicking a car into corners to get it turned, before dumping the throttle to pull the nose to the outside of the corner, so maybe I was just always late on the throttle with the BMW. I have to say, I find the E30 much more simple and intuitive to drive. Point the nose through the corner, get on the gas and let the back push until it tells you it's ready to let go. With less mechanical grip and more roll, it's much less white-knuckle attacking a twisty road than in the E46. By the time the E46 started to run out of grip at both ends, you had some colossal amount of lateral G built up and it was obvious things could go seriously wrong very quickly.
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Dec 8, 2010 10:59
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I need to get my rear end to a trackday.
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Saga posted:I have to say, I find the E30 much more simple and intuitive to drive. Point the nose through the corner, get on the gas and let the back push until it tells you it's ready to let go. With less mechanical grip and more roll, it's much less white-knuckle attacking a twisty road than in the E46. By the time the E46 started to run out of grip at both ends, you had some colossal amount of lateral G built up and it was obvious things could go seriously wrong very quickly. Yeah my E34 is the same way. Pretty fun. I also like the LSD a lot. It can make things a bit more hairy in the snow if I mash the gas but its just wonderful for climbing snowy hills and attacking corners in the dry.
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Dec 8, 2010 16:26
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8ender posted:Yeah my E34 is the same way. Pretty fun. I also like the LSD a lot. It can make things a bit more hairy in the snow if I mash the gas but its just wonderful for climbing snowy hills and attacking corners in the dry. I'd love an LSD. Unfortunately, mine is a small-case car. Finding a suitable small-case LSD in a 4+ ratio is an unholy PITA here, plus they cost a bomb. The problem with open diffs is they're all-or-nothing. They "just" spin up the inside, until traction drops suddenly at the outside wheel, at which point they can rotate really loving quickly because the inside is already spinning at a million miles an hour. At least that's how it feels to me, it might well just be my crap driving. My car has the OEM four-turn rack on it (couldn't face the work required for the Z3 rack), so when it really goes, it's tough to catch. As long as you're not winding on too much lock of course, you can pretty much use all the power and just wait for the back end to start squiggling. If you have a lot of lock, however, it can let go really quickly. Saying that, once you know this you can drive around it. There's a second-gear 90o left on my commute where you can actually get the rear left in the air on entry, FWD hatch style, with an extra tap of the brakes, and then convert that directly into a bit of slithery oversteer through the exit if you get on the power at the right moment. Jump back on the throttle before the apex though and I'd be sitting backwards in a bush. Oh, and admittedly I am still running my cheap-rear end Kumho KU31s (KU? KH?), but it doesn't get any traction in snow. I'm waiting for some 14" Snowproxes to arrive in the mail, so I can actually get to work the next time it snows. That should be fun.
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Dec 8, 2010 16:53
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Saga posted:The problem with open diffs is they're all-or-nothing. They "just" spin up the inside, until traction drops suddenly at the outside wheel, at which point they can rotate really loving quickly because the inside is already spinning at a million miles an hour. At least that's how it feels to me, it might well just be my crap driving. My car has the OEM four-turn rack on it (couldn't face the work required for the Z3 rack), so when it really goes, it's tough to catch. Sounds kind of awesome. With the LSD its a much different story. With the wide summer tires on I simply can't get the rear end to step out on the dry at speeds I'm comfortable with on city streets. On snow however the LSD is good and bad. The good is that the car doesn't suffer from the open differential curse where one tire starts spinning and you lose all your power. The bad is that with both tires spinning the rear end can just float around on the snow, especially when turning. The good news about this is that like some pickup trucks with a positrac rear end weight over the rear axles makes a huge difference. I put 70lbs of tube sand in trunk yesterday and now my car is a snow drifting fun machine. The weight doesn't stop the rear end stepping out completely but it makes it far more predictable and controllable.
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Dec 8, 2010 17:21
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8ender posted:The good news about this is that like some pickup trucks with a positrac rear end weight over the rear axles makes a huge difference. I put 70lbs of tube sand in trunk yesterday and now my car is a snow drifting fun machine. The weight doesn't stop the rear end stepping out completely but it makes it far more predictable and controllable. I hear that. I'm carrying around a set of E30 steelies in the back waiting for my snow tyres, and I swear I have more traction. You should be happy though, on ice with summer tyres my car can get stuck on a completely flat road. Hills take some planning.
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Dec 8, 2010 17:35
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Saga posted:You should be happy though, on ice with summer tyres my car can get stuck on a completely flat road. Hills take some planning. Oh I love it. I want to kiss the original owner of my car for picking the best possible options for a 1993 525. Winter package with LSD and headlight sprayers, black on black exterior/interior, manual transmission, and sport seats. BMW eliminated the LSD in favour of ASC in later years so I'm happy to have it.
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Dec 8, 2010 17:54
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Saga posted:Maybe they turned down DSC on facelift cars? IIRC the later cars had the dual-mode DSC, mine was a 2001 which just had on or off. Up to 6/99 production E46s have ASC+T on Teves hardware 6/99 - 9/00 have DSC III software tying in to mostly the same hardware as ASC+T 9/00 and beyond have DSC III on newer Teves hardware for most models, M3 retains previous hardware but with different software once again. AWD models get DSC III 5.7 on Bosch like E38 and E39. I have an '02 and one press of the DSC button is good for the usual situations you'd want to disable traction control in normal driving, holding the button turns it all off for racing and/or loving around.
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Dec 8, 2010 22:00
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8ender posted:Sounds kind of awesome. With the LSD its a much different story. With the wide summer tires on I simply can't get the rear end to step out on the dry at speeds I'm comfortable with on city streets. You wouldn't be able to get the rear end to step out at reasonable speeds without the LSD either. On a race track, non-LSD cars are HILARIOUSLY drifty due to the one-wheel-peel effect mentioned above. Exiting a slow turn, cars without an LSD will be at a huge disadvantage (to the tune of 1-2 seconds per slow turn per lap). My impression of the DSC on my '02 E46 was that the first "disablement" turns off stability (yaw) control and the second disablement turns off traction control as well. Neither mode works at all on a track if you're even modestly competent (without an LSD). It is one of the great tragedies of the modern age that non-M BMWs no longer come with mechanical LSDs.
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Dec 8, 2010 22:31
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Hey BMW thread, just wanted to chime in and say I have an E30 325iX and but am in the process of getting rid of it. It's been fun but the cost of parts is getting annoying, and to be honest I want a car that I can beat on somewhat. My goal is to replace it with a RWD late model E30 in the next month or so. Anyways, just wanted to show some E30 love and ask if anyone in the Midwest is getting rid of a late model E30.
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Dec 8, 2010 22:46
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Yerok posted:Hey BMW thread, just wanted to chime in and say I have an E30 325iX and but am in the process of getting rid of it. It's been fun but the cost of parts is getting annoying, and to be honest I want a car that I can beat on somewhat. My goal is to replace it with a RWD late model E30 in the next month or so. Anyways, just wanted to show some E30 love and ask if anyone in the Midwest is getting rid of a late model E30. If I remember right, I recently saw someone from Wisconsin selling a white 91 318is on m42club.com. Not sure if it sold or not.
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Dec 8, 2010 22:51
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wolrah posted:I have an '02 and one press of the DSC button is good for the usual situations you'd want to disable traction control in normal driving, holding the button turns it all off for racing and/or loving around.
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Dec 8, 2010 23:50
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This has probably been answered somewhere in the thread, but it's 178 pages long and I'm not reading every page to find it. My roommate has a BMW and she swears to me that she can only use BMW antifreeze that is only bought at a dealership, costing around $40 a bottle and her car takes two of them. Not being able to use a type of antifreeze for all makes and models seems completely absurd to me. Is that really true?
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Dec 9, 2010 00:20
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bitchymcjones posted:This has probably been answered somewhere in the thread, but it's 178 pages long and I'm not reading every page to find it. It's not a VW. You can use regular anti-freeze. Operating Fluids February 2007 Group 17 Radiator Technical Service 1.0 General Information On Long-Term Antifreeze And Corrosion Inhibitors The cooling system of BMW cars must only be filled with reputable brand name ethylene glycol long-term antifreeze having corrosion inhibitors that are compatible with aluminum radiators. Coolants must fulfill four basic requirements. — Guarantee sufficient cooling. — Protect various metals (gray cast iron, steel, aluminum alloys, brass, copper and solder) against corrosion. — Prevent excessive silicate gel precipitation, which may cause clogging of the cooling system. — Guarantee operation of cooling system in winter (prevent freezing of coolant) and in summer by boosting the boiling point. The quality or grade of a long-term antifreeze and corrosion inhibitor is very important to be able to protect metal (gray cast iron, steel, aluminum alloys, brass, copper and solder) in the cooling system against corrosion. It guarantees full operation of the cooling system in winter and also increases the boiling point at high outside temperatures and under heavy loads. Initial Filling in Factory The factory fills the cooling system for protection against freezing, for the U.S. and Canada, down to -34°F (-37°C). This means an antifreeze ratio of 50% antifreeze and 50% water. In severely cold areas, the antifreeze can be increased to 60% which provides freezing protection down to -62°F (-52°C). Do not exceed a 60% ratio of antifreeze. The specified antifreeze ratio is important, since an insufficient amount would impair antifreezing and corrosion inhibiting protection. An excessive amount would not improve freezing protection, but instead reduce freezing protection. Change Intervals Regular checking of coolant concentration is part of Inspection I or II. Refer to applicable Model Year Service Maintenance Checklist for change intervals. Remarks and Limitations Only tap water of drinking quality with the following properties may be used as coolant. Appearance — colorless, clear Residue — without suspended matter pH value — 6.5 - 8.0 Total hardness — max. 357 PPM Calcium Carbonate Chloride content — max. 100 mg/l Sulfate content — max. 100 mg/l The antifreeze concentration in a cooling system should be checked before the beginning of winter. When determining the mixture concentration it is important to make sure that there is sufficient protection against freezing. A hydrometer (radiator antifreeze tester) is required for correct determination of antifreeze concentration. The composition of long-term antifreezes and corrosion inhibitors differs between manufacturers. BMW Anti-Freeze/Coolant contains no nitrites or phosphates and has been formulated to prevent excessive silicate dropout. Order the 1gallon container under BMW Part No. 82 14 1 467 704. Note: Do not mix BMW Anti-Freeze/Coolant with different antifreezes which contain nitrites and/or phosphates and a high silicate formulation. 2.0 Coolant Additives No aftermarket coolant additives, including but not limited to those which provide additional corrosion inhibition or seal off minor leaks are approved by BMW. Use of non-approved coolant additives may cause reduced heat transfer from the cylinder head to the coolant and the formation of hot spots. This can cause the burning through of cylinder head gaskets and/or cracking of the cylinder head. BMW NA cannot accept the liability for the resulting effects and consequential damage caused by the use of coolant additives.
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Dec 9, 2010 00:39
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bitchymcjones posted:Not being able to use a type of antifreeze for all makes and models seems completely absurd to me. Is that really true? Judging from the post above, I'd guess that's a "no," but I have heard that mixing the existing blue antifreeze from BMW with the parts-store-green stuff can cause excessive precipitate of silica gel, mentioned specifically above. Therefore I'd suggest a flush with water only, then drain and refill with your distilled + antifreeze from the parts store.
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Dec 9, 2010 01:00
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 It's only $800. I could probably learn how to repair it. I'm sure it's a quick fix. Why no, I've never even so much as a looked at a wrench in my life. 
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Dec 9, 2010 02:06
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manchego posted:
do it. I just picked up the same car w/ 142k for $700.
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Dec 9, 2010 02:08
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manchego posted:
Do you have a driveway and tools? If so, it's always good to learn. I taught myself to do some of the more difficult maintenance. It is really satisfying to teach yourself (once you actually manage to fix something that is). If you don't have tools, there is probably an upfront investment cost of another few hundred to get wrenches, a decent jack, jackstands, etc. Either way you could probably turn around and resell it for the same price even if you don't manage to fix it.
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Dec 9, 2010 02:53
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It's not supposed to do this, right?  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zo4sU6gUWV0 At least it broke loose the day after I got back from the track instead of on it. TMS solid diff bushings, here I come. On a serious note, should I do subframe bushings and rear control arm bushings at the same time? (Car is 02 M3 w/ 86K mi, it does DD and HPDE duties) It would ruin the alignment I had done literally last week.
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Dec 9, 2010 03:36
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manchego posted:
I bought my e30, and I will attest its a great car to work on. The fuel injection system is simple, every thing is easy to get at, a great project car for a first timer, plus its fun to drive it around like a banshee.... I wish my e30 didnt burn up 
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Dec 9, 2010 03:58
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After searching for a nice 3 series for a long time I've finally one. It's a 97' 328i Individual Coupe with 155000kms in Orinoco Metallic with a spearmint leather interior. Not sure what the interior is actually called but that's a good description. On with the Phone camera pictures!   Only had it for a week, very happy with it so far. Is there any way to find out more about car's individual options?
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Dec 9, 2010 05:50
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Phelan posted:After searching for a nice 3 series for a long time I've finally one. It's a 97' 328i Individual Coupe with 155000kms in Orinoco Metallic with a spearmint leather interior. Not sure what the interior is actually called but that's a good description. Not sure if it's the same with your car, but my 8 had a factory build sheet tucked under one of the rear seat cushions with the option codes on it. It wouldn't surprise me if BMW did that with all of the models, although the hiding spot for the sheet might be different. I seem to remember there being converters online that you can type the codes into and it pulls up a description of the associated option.
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Dec 9, 2010 06:11
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Dyscrasia posted:If I remember right, I recently saw someone from Wisconsin selling a white 91 318is on m42club.com. Not sure if it sold or not. Thanks for the tip, I'll probably go check it out this weekend. I've wanted to turbo an m20 for a while though, so I'll probably hold out until the right 325is comes along. Yerok fucked around with this message at 03:05 on Dec 13, 2010 |
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Dec 9, 2010 06:37
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When I turn left, I get a fairly quiet but noticeable ticking/thunking that sounds like it's coming from the shifter/center console. Only happens when I turn left (haven't pinned down exactly when it starts, but I'd say around a quarter+ rotation of the wheel), and I've heard it only when the car is warm. Engine speed doesn't effect the rate of ticking, but car speed does. Is this anything anyone recognizes?
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Dec 9, 2010 07:08
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Just ordered a licence plate frame and a new set of hood/trunk emblems, officially making this BMW the first car I didn't buy something for that wasn't needed to pass inspection/drive to the nearest service station.
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Dec 9, 2010 09:11
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I just found out one of my friends knows guy that works at BMW's corporate HQ in NJ. He can get parts at cost, and my friend also has two BMWs and a nice garage and a good set of tools for working on them. First order of business is to exploit this to get some new front brakes for my E90. I've replaced brakes many times on my old Honda's, but never on the BMW. Is there a good guide online somewhere that can give me some guidance? I figure it's pretty straightforward but I know there's some added complexities like a sensor wire. Any tips or direction? I've also convinced my wife to let me start saving up for an old E30.
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Dec 9, 2010 14:54
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Jerk McJerkface posted:I figure it's pretty straightforward but I know there's some added complexities like a sensor wire. Any tips or direction? From what I've been able to find, this guide from the E36 still applies for everything but resetting the pad wear indicator. For that, quoting here: quote:Push start button twice with the foot off the back and clutch....when check control image disappears and all that is left is current time on the LCD panel of the instrument cluster, press and hold the odometer reset button. After a few seconds, a yellow icon will show up showing that you have service indicator light on. Push and hold the "BC" button of the turn signal stalk until it states "Reset?" let go of the button and push the button back in and hold, a little clock will come up, once the clock graphic besides the reset goes away let go. Turn the car off and resart as normal. The brake light service indicator has now been reset.
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Dec 9, 2010 16:27
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televiper posted:When I turn left, I get a fairly quiet but noticeable ticking/thunking that sounds like it's coming from the shifter/center console. Only happens when I turn left (haven't pinned down exactly when it starts, but I'd say around a quarter+ rotation of the wheel), and I've heard it only when the car is warm. Engine speed doesn't effect the rate of ticking, but car speed does. Yes, this could be a couple things: - heat shielding from the tunnel around the driveshaft rubbing/bouncing on the driveshaft - bad CV joint in an axle Check it out on some jackstands.
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Dec 9, 2010 17:11
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wolrah posted:From what I've been able to find, this guide from the E36 still applies for everything but resetting the pad wear indicator. Thanks! I appreciate the help.
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Dec 9, 2010 17:14
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The new 1 M coupe, I want: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1spzeR-giq4
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Dec 9, 2010 23:19
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Jerk McJerkface posted:I just found out one of my friends knows guy that works at BMW's corporate HQ in NJ. He can get parts at cost, and my friend also has two BMWs and a nice garage and a good set of tools for working on them. That's interesting. I used to work at the Mercedes-Benz HQ next door to the BMW HQ in NJ (Montvale), and corporate workers were specifically excluded from parts discounts at both offices AFAIK. They did, however, get amazing deals on one-year leases. I was hired as a consultant, so I didn't get to take advantage. 
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Dec 10, 2010 01:27
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http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/09/officially-official-2012-bmw-1-series-m-coupe-is-ready-to-cut-a/ 1 Series M. Yeah, super, whatever. That E30 M3? UNF. 
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Dec 10, 2010 05:58
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opengl128 posted:http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/09/officially-official-2012-bmw-1-series-m-coupe-is-ready-to-cut-a/   
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Dec 10, 2010 06:23
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manchego posted:
It probably just needs a new battery and fresh fuel, if it really did run before it sat. I don't know if gasoline goes bad with age, but water condensates in the tank and ruins it with time. Jerk McJerkface posted:I've also convinced my wife to let me start saving up for an old E30. drat, grow some balls.
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Dec 10, 2010 12:33
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Pilsner posted:It probably just needs a new battery and fresh fuel, if it really did run before it sat. I don't know if gasoline goes bad with age, but water condensates in the tank and ruins it with time. Hahaha, well, she just quit her job because we're having our first child, so money is extremely tight. Also, I don't consider making a several thousand dollar purchase with out consulting my wife as something "manly."
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Dec 10, 2010 14:15
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Pissingintowind posted:That's interesting. I used to work at the Mercedes-Benz HQ next door to the BMW HQ in NJ (Montvale), and corporate workers were specifically excluded from parts discounts at both offices AFAIK. They did, however, get amazing deals on one-year leases. I was hired as a consultant, so I didn't get to take advantage. That's the place, but I'm sure that the guy gets the discount. My friend has already purchased a bunch of parts for his 5 series. EDIT: After reading the guide, it indicates that there's no reason to do the brakes before the indicator light comes on. My light is not on, but the front right brake is starting to squeal. Maybe the caliper is locked up? For what it's worth, my car only has 33k, and has never had the front brakes replaced. The ultimate service ended in September, and the brakes were doing a little squeal, but they wouldn't replace them because they were with in specs still. Super-NintendoUser fucked around with this message at 14:22 on Dec 10, 2010 |
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Dec 10, 2010 14:16
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Jerk McJerkface posted:I've also convinced my wife to let me start saving up for an old E30. Walk down the side of the highway a couple of times to collect cans, that should gather enough money to purchase you a nice E30. Or maybe one with a touch of rust. I admit it, a 1 series M gives me some chub. I still can't see how they compare the e30 to this current car. Maybe a NA high strung 4 cylinder, and a bit of a diet would make them comparable.
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Dec 10, 2010 14:20
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