1999 M3 daily driver running log
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Picked up a set of wheels that I am super stoked about:
18x8 et35 BBS RE 847
They were used as winter wheels so the paint is bubbling a bit in a few places but the rest of my car is the same story so it doesn't bother me, down the road a light refinish and they will be good as new.
Nice! What did you end up paying for those? Craigslist find?
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Driver's side caliper seized up on me and got so bad I had to park the car last Thursday until the brake parts I had ordered the day prior showed up. When they arrived in the middle of the week, I was hoping to rebuild the calipers and get back on the road. I got everything apart and attempted to use the pressure of the braking system to push out the caliper but I soon realized they weren't worth rebuilding even though they looked alright on the outside:
I bought a pair of calipers (remanufactered ones from WBR) and was able to get everything installed this weekend.
'I replaced the rotors, pads, calipers, pad wear sensor, upgraded the lines to UUC braided stainless ones, and flushed the system with Ate Type 200 fluid.
I will note that I was a bit disappointed in UUC's lines, as the fitting that meets the hardline was too small and was able to pass through the mount on the body. I had to drill out a washer to fit snugly over the line to get it to secure in place properly.
You can see the washer just underneath the white bracket in the middle.
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Did this today:
Wrapped them in Continental ExtremeContact DW's, really impressed with this tire so far! Also put on a 5-speed ZHP knob and it definitely helped smooth out the shifts.
I am having some minor vanos rattle and it's driving me crazy... so I ordered the Beisan systems single vanos seals and anti rattle kits, as well as all the related gaskets and the upper timing chain tensioner. Hoping to get to that job next weekend
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That looks great!
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Thanks guys!
This evening finally got around to installing my AKG delrin clutch and brake pedal bushings.
The clutch pedal had quite a bit of slop and was bent to the left pretty badly. The brake pedal was more or less fine but I did it anyway because I was in there already. Now they are both really solid, and the clutch pedal is just about back to where it is supposed to be. I cleaned up and re-lubed everything as I re-assembled it too. The effort needed to push the clutch is a lot less than before so that is an added bonus.
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This makes me want to buy another e36!
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those BBS wheels look amazing on the car, nice choice!
Dan
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Did this today:
Wrapped them in Continental ExtremeContact DW's, really impressed with this tire so far! Also put on a 5-speed ZHP knob and it definitely helped smooth out the shifts.
I am having some minor vanos rattle and it's driving me crazy... so I ordered the Beisan systems single vanos seals and anti rattle kits, as well as all the related gaskets and the upper timing chain tensioner. Hoping to get to that job next weekend
Saw your post on r/BMW. Wheels look great on the car.
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I've gotten a lot done on the car in the last few weeks thanks to a bit of a scare related to a few metal shavings...
I rebuilt the vanos using the Beisan Systems seals and anti-rattle kit
Didn't get any pictures of the actual vanos unit rebuild, but it went smoothly and reinstalling everything was easy as I had all the proper tools.
Next, I dropped the oil pan in order to safety wire the oil pump nut and install a Z3 2.8 oil pickup tube. The oil pump nut was nice and tight but I took it off anyway to reinstall a drilled nut with safety wire and loctite. Also put in a magnetic drain plug from Turner to keep an eye on any shavings in the engine and keep them out of the oil pickup. The magnet is super strong so it should catch just about everything that falls down there.
While I was in there, I also installed new motor mounts and front sway bar bushings. Reinstalling the subframe and steering rack was a struggle by myself but I managed to get it done, definitely don't want to do that job again any time soon. After all this work the car feels 100 times better than before. I have so much more torque in the low end so the car isn't so finicky off the line, and the vanos rattle is basically gone. Also, having the peace of mind of a secure oil pump nut and reinforced pickup tube makes it a lot more enjoyable to drive.
I have my electric fan wired to a manual switch as I like to have control over it, but I could never tell when it was on thanks to my exhaust. I found some LED's that are color matched to the BMW interior amber lighting and wired one as an indicator light for my fan. I wired it with a 690ohm load resistor in parallel with the control side of the fan relay and it works like a charm. I'm planning on painting the mounting bezel black once I have some paint available but for now it works great. Pardon the dirty interior..
Next thing on the list is rebuilding the power steering pump and replacing the power steering lines as they are getting pretty crusty and leaking at the reservoir. I will be taking a road trip from Milwaukee to eastern North Carolina around the 4th of July, so I am hoping to knock out quite a few maintenance items and repairs before then.
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Where did you buy the led's?
http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?2025442
I found them here, but bought them through the eBay link in post #4.
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Replaced the fuel filter and changed my trans fluid to Redline D4 ATF and my diff fluid to Redline 75w90. Fuel filter was definitely original and was all plugged up with junk, trans fluid was pretty nasty too so I'm glad I got all that done, diff fluid actually looked pretty clean. Shifts are so much smoother now and I have no problems getting into any gears, I wish I would've done this sooner!
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Power steering pump was whining so I rebuilt it with the seal kit from BMW on Thursday after work. Also replaced all of the lines as they were pretty rusted, the reservoir, and refilled the system with new ATF. Pump rebuild was pretty easy except for the circlip holding the shaft in which was a huge pain. Works great and the pump noise is much quieter now!
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Just finished an 800 mile round trip in the M3 between Friday and Sunday, car ran great. Averaged 29mpg for the entire trip and was holding steady at 31 on the freeway according to the OBC, though that number is usually optimistic by 1 or 2. I will be prepping it for a road trip to NC in about a month, that one will be close to 2300mi for the round trip, so I am trying to tackle as much as I can before then.
What I noticed on my trip was that I was getting what sounded like a failed accessory component bearing (worn out skateboard wheel for reference) around 3k rpm, the only bearing left in the system that isn't new is the AC compressor so I pulled the belt and it is still there. I am thinking it is either the alternator bearings (only 5k on them) as I have heard of the reman'd Bosch bearings failing early because they are cheap, or possibly the lower timing chain tensioner.
Any other possibilities as to where a noise like this could come from? Not audible when the car is cold or at idle from what I could tell, noticeable from the drivers seat with the window open above 2.5k RPM's. All idler pulleys and accessories are new or freshly rebuilt, vanos is freshly rebuilt with seals and rattle repair kit, belt tensioners are strong and I have had no slipping. Possibly a cracked header?
I am inclined to replace the tensioner regardless of it being the problem or not, they're just expensive. Cheapest I could find is $215 shipped from ECS, anyone have a cheaper option??
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