Finally Joined the Longroof Club

[Jdesign]

figment

[m42b32]

78.7k 

Friday was probably the first time the car has ever sat in below-freezing temperatures for an extended period of time. I started it up after work and it went like this: *ding* standard sub-37F 'its cold' reminder, *ding* TPMS malfunction (snow tires).........*ding* low coolant warning....*ding* brake lamp failure.  Nice. 

Low coolant is likely just from thermal contraction, I haven't found any signs of leaks but topped it up and will keep an eye on the level. Turns out the brake light bulbs are some goofy type (P21W/1057/7506) that napa, o'reilly's, and even batteries plus bulbs didn't have, had to order new ones online. 

Driving around in the snow on Friday was entertaining and I didn't have any issues with grip when needed, I'm glad I went with the sportier RWD versus getting an xdrive. An xdrive on snow tires would be a beast though that's for sure. 

I also popped in a new serpentine belt and idler pulley on Saturday. The tensioner was replaced in the last year, but the belt and idler were original and definitely due for replacement. Next on the list is the valve cover gasket and water pump/thermostat.

[m42b32]

79.2k

Lame update: I changed the oil with BMW 5w30 over the long weekend. Got a car wash too, it was clean for about an hour and now it's filthy again. That is all.

[straight6pwr]

a lame update is still a good update in touring land.

[m42b32]

80.5k

Minor updates and improvements for daily life!

There was no place to keep a pair of sunglasses, so I added a euro-market glasses holder that replaces the oh sh!t handle on the driver's side

Added some front and rear OEM rubber floor mats to keep the salt out of the carpets

And I also realized it was missing some fairly critical badging so I got that sorted too

[P_Roloff]

That sunglass holder is sweet!

[Jdesign]

I agree, that is pretty nifty.

[m42b32]

P_Roloff said:

That sunglass holder is sweet! 

Jdesign said:

I agree, that is pretty nifty. 

Agreed! I was pretty excited when I came across it, it's a surprisingly convenient spot for it. Only issue I've found so far is I might smack it with a helmet on, but it would take 5 seconds to swap out if needed so it's no big deal.

[straight6pwr]

can you measure the dims of the mounting screw locations of the glasses holder?

[Jdesign]

straight6pwr said:

can you measure the dims of the mounting screw locations of the glasses holder?

I see what your doing here...

[m42b32]

straight6pwr said:

can you measure the dims of the mounting screw locations of the glasses holder?

I'll grab some after work!

[m42b32]

straight6pwr said:

can you measure the dims of the mounting screw locations of the glasses holder?

150mm center to center

[m42b32]

Randomly stopped by a junkyard in Oshkosh as I was passing by on Saturday to see what I could find. They had just gotten a 2006 330i that was hit in the front so I snagged the 3 stage intake manifold with both (untested, so who knows if they work) DISA valves for pretty cheap. It wasn't too fun to pull while it's 5F outside, but the 40hp bump will be worth it!

A little PSA for anyone doing this swap: There are two types of 3 stage intake manifolds. The manifolds on n52 cars built prior to early 2006 have a single port for the oil separator and won't be a direct swap on any of the later cars. You want the dual port manifold. I learned this after pulling/buying this one and thankfully it is correct haha

Bonus winter pic:

[Rekpoint]

Any more wagon pics/updates?

I love this thing!

[m42b32]

Rekpoint said:

Any more wagon pics/updates?

I love this thing!

Nothing exciting, just driving it a lot! Definitely have some maintenance to do as soon as it starts getting warmer. I haven't taken any good pics lately but my dad snapped this nice one last weekend:

[Jdesign]

Thats a pretty epic pic!

[YoungCR]

Yes! That’s wallpaper worthy

[m42b32]

Back to summer mode! 

I forgot just how much better it looks on the 19's! I still need to get the bike rack on, but I'd like to find a way to mount it using the T slot in the cross bars so I can use the sunroof this summer.

[m42b32]

In my quest for maximum practicality I added a trailer hitch over the weekend. I went with a Curt 11771 1.25" class 1 hitch receiver. It basically bolts right up and only some slight trimming of one of the underbody panels is required which is nice. Apparently you don't need to remove the bumper cover to do this, but the person writing the instructions either had tiny hands or some magic combination of extensions... 

My main reason for this is to switch from my roof bike rack to a hitch mounted bike rack, but the ability to also use a cargo tray and pull small trailers (if I add some trailer light wiring) will be really useful. It may not be the prettiest addition, but it honestly doesn't look nearly as bad as I thought it would. 

[Rekpoint]

As long as it doesn't look rusty it looks fine to me!