|
Definitely not a bad thing to try. Have you fiddled with the headlight to check it out? I installed Angel Eyes, and fitted some wiring badly, breaking the seal. 1) inspect the seal. Use rubber cleaning compound to de-dirt the seal/gasket. Attempt reseal. Check seal behind lamps (sometimes they unseat). 2) Replace gaskets...
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2010 22:31
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 29, 2024 18:02 |
|
|
madrugan posted:Definitely not a bad thing to try. Have you fiddled with the headlight to check it out? I installed Angel Eyes, and fitted some wiring badly, breaking the seal. I haven't fiddled with it, but I'll give it a shot this weekend. Thanks!
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2010 23:21
|
|
|
No problem. I'm a newish owner of a 2002 JB e46 M3 SMG. Unfortunately, a previous owner in Nevada/Utah most likely let it bake in the summer/winter driveway, trashing all of the exterior rubber trim. Headlight trim included. So I've been going through the process of restoring all of that. As a side note, rubber trim can get frickin expensive. The Quarter Panel Finishers (part 15)? $250 to replace. Mainly because the metal piece and the rubber trim are sold as one frickin piece. Bah! madrugan fucked around with this message at 23:32 on Jun 25, 2010 |
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2010 23:28
|
|
|
Imperador do Brasil posted:I actually tried both ways. All the relays in the under-hood fuse box were clean, no corrosion. Doesn't matter what it looks like. I've thrown out perfectly good looking relays that didn't actually work. I keep a spare "known good wiper relay" in the glove box for when the one in use fails. You should keep spares of all your relays, really, but the wiper one is notorious for being a piece of poo poo.
|
|
#
?
Jun 27, 2010 03:47
|
|
|
Beach Bum posted:Doesn't matter what it looks like. I've thrown out perfectly good looking relays that didn't actually work. The weird thing was, I pulled the biggest relay (black one in the underhood fuse box) and tried the wipers, and they still worked. Obviously, I pulled the wrong one, but the fuse box diagram doesn't show which relay does what...
|
|
#
?
Jun 27, 2010 17:09
|
|
|
It should be a big black rectangular looking one. At least it is on my E30, and I thought my E36 was the same.
|
|
#
?
Jun 27, 2010 23:21
|
|
|
 I replaced my aux fan today. It works now! I can use my A/C again! A word of warning though, the upper right bolt is a pain in the rear end. The bumper comes off easy enough, and that bolt comes out alright, but getting the bolt back in is a royal PITA. I had to remove the right kidney as well as the right headlight, and I still had to blindly put it in with two fingers. I suppose a magnetic nut driver might have worked, but I don't have one. I have a question though: A few days ago I posted this picture:  I got a new aux fan thermostat, and the plug won't plug into that one either. Is there some trick to it, or so I have a damaged plug or what? I have it loosely in there, but I don't know if it's making the connection or not. Also, if/when I replace the thermostat (I haven't yet) do I need to bleed the radiator afterward?
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2010 03:41
|
|
|
CornHolio posted:I replaced my aux fan today. It works now! I can use my A/C again! That one is bolt is a bit of a trick -- I got it with two 1/4" socket extensions. Regarding the thermostat, I assume you mean the aux fan switch, but regardless you'll have to do it.
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2010 06:38
|
|
|
FYI for those with E46s who are underwhelmed by their A/C: Recharging the things is absolutely trivial. I thought it just didn't have a great A/C system after having driven a few other imports with similarly disappointing A/C, so I just figured I was spoiled by American cars and their ability to blow ice cubes on a 115 degree day. Turned out my A/C system was just barely at the lowest end of the "OK" section on the gauge when I hooked up a recharge kit on a whim, so I filled it up until the point the kit I had was marked as appropriate for 90 degree days and went out for a drive. It still doesn't blow as cold as my older Fords did, but I'm fairly certain one of those was an R-12 system which I've heard always tended to be colder. Now I have notably cold air within a minute of starting the car and within five minutes can have the cabin nice and chilly even in a black car on a hot day. The correct port to fill the system on an E46 is right in front of the compartment on the passenger side of the engine bay where the battery apparently goes in some regions. It took me all of five minutes in the Autozone parking lot and a $30 can of R-134 to go from getting kind of cold air with the thing set to 59 degrees and max air flow to now being able to comfortably use the "auto" feature as intended. This also made me realize how badly I had been screwed by paying people to recharge my A/C for me on previous vehicles.
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2010 19:06
|
|
|
wolrah posted:FYI for those with E46s who are underwhelmed by their A/C: Recharging the things is absolutely trivial. What recharge kit did you use for that and what were the pressure numbers? My buddy has a harbor freight kit for recharging and the fucker won't clip onto the ports. Also, the compartment is known as the drug bin and I think the brake booster and other poo poo go on that side in RHD models. I dunno if batteries ever go there.
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2010 19:38
|
|
|
Speaking of A/C. After three weeks of trying to find a new R12 -> R134a adapter that fits the E36 and failing, I finally gave up and screwed the broken one back on and carefully charged the system. This time I was able to get it to hold the charge, thankfully. Why are there so many different varieties of the R12->R134a adapter? You'd think that there would only be one universal part necessary for such a thing, but from my experience they are all slightly different. I drove all over town, checked at the junkyard, the dealer, every parts store in town and I was not able to find an adapter that fit my car. At least I have cold air again.
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2010 21:50
|
|
|
New BMW owner here. Just bought an '00 M5 with the Dinan Stage II suspension kit and a few other goodies. 
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2010 23:52
|
|
|
KaiserBen posted:New BMW owner here. Just bought an '00 M5 with the Dinan Stage II suspension kit and a few other goodies. Beautiful car. I wish I could justify getting an E39 M5 as a daily driver, but I'm pretty stoked about not having a car payment for a couple years.
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2010 23:53
|
|
|
CornHolio posted:A word of warning though, the upper right bolt is a pain in the rear end. The bumper comes off easy enough, and that bolt comes out alright, but getting the bolt back in is a royal PITA. I had to remove the right kidney as well as the right headlight, and I still had to blindly put it in with two fingers. I suppose a magnetic nut driver might have worked, but I don't have one. I found a good trick for driving nuts/bolts you cannot possibly to start threading is to wrap them in scotch tape and jam them into a socket with another nut behind it as a spacer. I had one of the lucky early E30 starters that wasn't threaded and it is not possible to even get close to the upper one without taking off the entire intake manifold, but taping the nut did the trick.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 00:44
|
|
|
KaiserBen posted:New BMW owner here. Just bought an '00 M5 with the Dinan Stage II suspension kit and a few other goodies. christ those are gorgeous. I have been foolishly looking at them on autotrader, dare I ask what maintaining one is like, assuming proper care by the PO?
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 01:54
|
|
|
The Third Man posted:christ those are gorgeous. I have been foolishly looking at them on autotrader, dare I ask what maintaining one is like, assuming proper care by the PO? Don't test drive one. That's how I got into this mess, saw the ad on craigslist, figured "what the hell, I'll go look at it". Oops. I haven't owned it for too long (bought it today, actually :P), but I hear they're not as god-awful as you'd figure. Parts are expensive, gas mileage is not good (I've gotten 15 so far in some "spirited" driving :P), and an oil change is $100 if you DIY. That said, they're apparently decently reliable, and the common issues aren't too expensive to fix. This one has been very well cared for, and I wouldn't buy one without a complete service history.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 03:28
|
|
|
KaiserBen posted:New BMW owner here. Just bought an '00 M5 with the Dinan Stage II suspension kit and a few other goodies. You REALLY found a nice one. Talk about clean all around and awesome wheels. Love the hell out of that thing. I love my M3 but I for some reason am starting to realize the love and potential of sedans. Mainly M5. I don't even care if I own the last generation of Bangle design one.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 05:07
|
|
|
KaiserBen posted:New BMW owner here. Just bought an '00 M5 with the Dinan Stage II suspension kit and a few other goodies. Gorgeous car. It may be the camera angle, but are you missing the hood roundel? The E38 and E39 represent the epitome of BMW to me. After that generation of cars I begin to lose interest very quickly. They're stoic without being as sedate as Volvo or as gaudy as Mercedes and Audi. The newer designs have their elements, but there's too much flash and attention-grabbing for me. Every time I see the new 7 series I think it's a Lexus. 
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 05:24
|
|
|
PurpleFender posted:What recharge kit did you use for that and what were the pressure numbers? My buddy has a harbor freight kit for recharging and the fucker won't clip onto the ports. I used a Quest brand kit purchased at the local Autozone. It's an 18oz silver can with a gauge on the hose. It has markings at 30, 40, and 50 PSI for 65, 75, and 85 degree ambient temperatures, respectively plus a chart on the side that seems to indicate not to take it over 55 PSI regardless of ambient. The valve on the Quest kit sucks and it's easy to loosen the connection between the valve and the can while opening it. That spray is cold and greasy when it loosens too much. Once you realize to hold it in place it's a workable design, just it sucks to discover the hard way.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 06:20
|
|
|
KaiserBen posted:New BMW owner here. Just bought an '00 M5 with the Dinan Stage II suspension kit and a few other goodies. Saw that for sale on m5board, mind saying how much you ended up paying for it? I'll be looking to buy an M5 or M3 in the next 2 months or so.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 06:26
|
|
|
OrangeFurious posted:Gorgeous car. It may be the camera angle, but are you missing the hood roundel? No, it's there, just so shiny so it blends into the hood. I love the E38/E39/E46 era cars, the styling on the later ones is just perfect. I might have to spend some cash on the 01+ headlights to get HIDs and angel eyes. Stealth Like posted:Saw that for sale on m5board, mind saying how much you ended up paying for it? I'll be looking to buy an M5 or M3 in the next 2 months or so. I paid 16.3k for it, including the Bentley repair manuals for the 5 series (a two volume set, easily 4" thick each, not sure how you'd ever find anything in there), and two spare wheels, both brand new (one each F+R). Possibly a bit much, I've seen several 00s go for 15-15.5k, but this one was just perfect, great shape, mods I wanted, full service history, lowish miles (75k) etc.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 12:42
|
|
|
I think the E34's look better than the E39, but I'm a fan of the classic quad headlight BMW front end look.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 15:02
|
|
|
rscott posted:I think the E34's look better than the E39, but I'm a fan of the classic quad headlight BMW front end look. I think at some point they'll go back to that for a 'retro' BMW look. I eagerly await that day.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 15:08
|
|
|
Unfortunately (in aesthetic terms) I think pedestrian impact standards may preclude a return to the shark nose. Plus I can't imagine that the shark nose is more aerodynamic and with CAFE standards being what they are every little bit of cD matters.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 16:24
|
|
|
KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:Unfortunately (in aesthetic terms) I think pedestrian impact standards may preclude a return to the shark nose. The current 6 series is pretty sharky. Not as much as earlier models, but the effect comes across.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 16:48
|
|
|
Did some minor work on the '99 M3 this week to smooth it out a bit. First, I was having some wheel vibration, so I went ahead and rotated the tires to see if I could eliminate it. Sure enough, vibration free on my commute. Then, while it was up in the air, I swapped out the (relatively fresh, only 10k mi) stock-fill transmission fluid for Royal Purple Synchromax. There was an immediate and notable difference in shift effort and notchiness. Color me impressed. Finally, I went ahead and Seafoamed the engine a couple times to hopefully clear out any carbon buildup on the valves and/or pistons. There was very little smoke, so I take that to be a good sign. No noticeable difference in idle or acceleration, but it was worth doing before I do plugs later this week.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2010 18:17
|
|
|
OrangeFurious posted:The current 6 series is pretty sharky. Not as much as earlier models, but the effect comes across. Oh yeah, you can definitely get the suggestion, but you're not gonna have an E34 or even E30 style front going on. I think the current 6 looks like rear end but that's probably because it looks really fat to me other than the nose. BMWs look so unfortunate these days.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2010 02:17
|
|
|
Q: What does a E46 M3 travelling at 50mph look like after it is hit head on by a mk2 golf travelling at 80mph? A: Probably better than the golf.        Basically some dude hit me head on while he was trying to overtake TWO cars on a blind corner, the wrong side of two solid whites. In the dark. I only saw him about 3 lengths ahead of me as I crested the corner, and managed to get the brakes on hard and keep it straight. Both belt pre-tensioners fired and so did the airbag, but I never felt like my face came into contact with it, probably because I was sitting correctly. There were no intrusions into the footwell and only the passenger door wouldn’t open. The engine and gearbox escaped under the car, and I think that’s what bore the brunt of it. However the force of it meant two of my lower vertebrae did come together hard enough to break, and they decided to cut me out. This car didn’t have the lumbar support option and I wonder if it would have made a difference or not. I think the 4 star ncap is about right, I dont really think they test for 130mph closing speeds. Anyway enough old and busted here is the replacement hotness:    2002 6 speed with HK and various other bits, including adjustable lumbar this time  . The steel grey is growing on me, and the 18"s deal so much better with crap road surfaces.Now I just need to rig up a system of mirrors so I can check there are no idiots on the wrong side of the road round blind corners.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2010 22:31
|
|
|
Holy poo poo. Glad you're OK. How did the other guy fare? Also,  at the pink dollies.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2010 22:49
|
|
|
Great Googly Moogly!! That's one hell of a wreck. Sorry for your loss. Glad you're ok, and the pics made me love my e46 m3 a little more knowing that all in all it kept you quite safe in that extreme of an accident.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2010 23:01
|
|
|
Is an E36 a good buy? My parents have been looking at picking one up after they sell their 2002 Nissan Frontier. The prices on 328I and 325I's seem pretty drat good right now, I can get a coupe with a manual in great shape for about 4g. Just wondering how expensive parts will be, and what problems to look out for. E: holy poo poo that's a bad wreck, glad you're ok man!
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2010 23:16
|
|
|
Nitr0 posted:I hate reading this thread because it makes me want to buy a used '96 328i or a '08 335i depending on which post I'm reading. Stay away from the 335i. Run. They break down and leave you stranded and all sorts of unreliable poo poo.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2010 23:27
|
|
|
Jaxx posted:The engine and gearbox escaped under the car, and I think that’s what bore the brunt of it. Yes, the mounts are specifically designed to break in this fashion, helping to dissipate the energy of the crash by throwing the engine under the bus, so to speak.
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2010 04:05
|
|
|
SlapActionJackson posted:Yes, the mounts are specifically designed to break in this fashion, helping to dissipate the energy of the crash by throwing the engine under the bus, so to speak. When did BMW start to actively design and impliment this kind of behavior for an accident? Call me ignorant, but I feel like it's a fairly modern safety feature.
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2010 08:20
|
|
|
fartingfool posted:When did BMW start to actively design and impliment this kind of behavior for an accident? Call me ignorant, but I feel like it's a fairly modern safety feature. Not sure, but our 1994 Nissan Maxima has that feature.
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2010 13:42
|
|
|
fartingfool posted:When did BMW start to actively design and impliment this kind of behavior for an accident? Call me ignorant, but I feel like it's a fairly modern safety feature. I'm not sure of the exact start date either, but pretty much every design in the modern era (90s +) does this to help meet modern crash safety standards.
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2010 15:40
|
|
|
Volvos starting doing it sometime in the 80s, unless I came up with it in my own mind then it already existed in production vehicles.
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2010 16:24
|
|
|
CornHolio posted:How did the other guy fare? I never really thought about it before, but the consultant told me that NEW seatbelts can stretch up to 15cm in a high speed impact, other dudes old mk2 golf one stretched so much his head hit the windscreen somehow. He was well enough to appear in court recently but he was in intensive care for at least 3 weeks, whereas I just had to lay flat in osteo for 2 weeks then they let me home. I only had light bruising on my hips and hardly any across my chest and shoulder. PROTIP: Think about what sort of belt you wear, or like me now, make sure you tuck it either under or over the seatbelt without disturbing that from your hip bones. Otherwise the seatbelt will bend the steel buckle using your abdomen as a backing plate.  Also anyone know how to calculate what g force I went through? As in I did 50 to 0 in about less than 6 feet, but the other dude was doing 80 so I don’t know how to factor that in. The consultant was ex air force and he said that to see spinal fractures in helicopter crashes, when they whump straight down into ground, they have to be in-excess of 30g for a point of a second on the occupant, that sounds really high and obviously mine is a car with crumple zones and lateral deceleration.
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2010 21:38
|
|
|
ozziegt posted:Stay away from the 335i. Run. They break down and leave you stranded and all sorts of unreliable poo poo. I wouldn't mind not having a monthly payment on a car so I'm heavily leaning towards the '96 328i. Anyone own one and have any sage advice for me? It looks like a decent enough car for about 4k
|
|
#
?
Jul 4, 2010 02:06
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 29, 2024 18:02 |
|
|
Jaxx posted:Also anyone know how to calculate what g force I went through? As in I did 50 to 0 in about less than 6 feet, but the other dude was doing 80 so I don’t know how to factor that in. The consultant was ex air force and he said that to see spinal fractures in helicopter crashes, when they whump straight down into ground, they have to be in-excess of 30g for a point of a second on the occupant, that sounds really high and obviously mine is a car with crumple zones and lateral deceleration. Assuming uniform deceleration, you experienced e: I had my math wrong, now I get 14.2gs. kimbo305 fucked around with this message at 07:17 on Jul 4, 2010 |
|
#
?
Jul 4, 2010 07:04
|
|
