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#1. '96 cast rims stronger than '95 cast rims? - from daanesh chanduwadia
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Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 14:12:57 GMT From: "daanesh chanduwadia" <daanesh@hotmail.com> Subject: '96 cast rims stronger than '95 cast rims? i've run 225/45R17s S)-@ PPs on my 1995 with cast 10 double-spokes for the past year and 13K miles, and i continue to bend rims regularly (so there's more than sidewall height at play here.) at this point, i refuse to straighten 'em -- anyone have some SSRs for sale? btw, the car is stationed in Boston, which is something of a worst-case scenario... daanesh p.s. no regrets changing to the 225/45s all around other than the gearing change (i'm effectively at 3.08 -- looking for a 3.38 with 40%) _________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com. Share information about yourself, create your own public profile at http://profiles.msn.com.
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#2. Replacing rear shock mounts - from Holeman, David
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Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 09:12:55 -0500 From: "Holeman, David" <david.holeman@viaticus.com> Subject: Replacing rear shock mounts I have a very detailed description on how to change the rear shock mounts yourself. It is a fairly easy process for the mechanically inclined. I am pretty sure based on your description and number of miles that your mounts are propably worn out. These are a common wear item and you have been lucky to get that many miles out of it. You can find out how to change your mounts at www.racepad.com under the tech session. If you don't mind a rougher ride you may want to consider the new urethane mounts offered by some tuners. If your car is a daily driver I would suggest the OEM mounts. David Holeman Paul writes: Date: Mon, 9 Oct 2000 19:34:33 EDT From: PDumond21@aol.com Subject: Rear Strut Mounts I am hearing some rattling coming from my rear suspension. I am sure it is coming from my rear strut mounts since I have about 50k miles on my car. I will be replacing them soon. My question is: what strut mounts should I buy? Which ones are the best how much do they run? What is the procedure for the install and can an average mechanic do the install? I have a '97 M3. Thanks in advance. Paul
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#3. Independent BMW shops in Boston area - from Junaidi Irwan
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Date: 10 Oct 00 09:15:06 CDT From: Junaidi Irwan <junaidi.irwan@usa.net> Subject: Independent BMW shops in Boston area Folks, Does anyone know any good independent BMW shops in the west Boston area (Framingham)? I moved to Boston a month ago and don't really know any good independent shops around here. TIA Junaidi ____________________________________________________________________ Get free email and a permanent address at http://www.amexmail.com/?A=1
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#4. Re: [E36M3] Oil on spark plug when changing them - from Captain Hags
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Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 10:22:18 EDT From: "Captain Hags" <captainhags@hotmail.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Oil on spark plug when changing them Oh man, have I done that before! Err, I mean, ummm, who would do that? haha? Ummmmm, yeah. >From: Monty Baugh <mbaugh@telecom-management.com> >Reply-To: Monty Baugh <mbaugh@telecom-management.com> >To: E36M3 <e36m3@bmwmpower.com> >Subject: [E36M3] Oil on spark plug when changing them >Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 08:44:34 -0500 > >Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 08:40:49 -0500 >From: Monty Baugh <mbaugh@telecom-management.com> >Subject: Oil on spark plug when changing them > > A wet plug is a sign that the cylinder is running rich. The only way I >could imagine that oil would get on the outside of a plug would be a leak >somewhere, possibly around the valve cover. > >Reminds me of an incident I saw when I was a young teenager. Guy in line >at >the gas station says he needs a quart of oil (admitting that his dad says >he >needs to add some), which the attendant sells him. He walks out to the >car, >raises the hood, and fidgets with plug wires, hoses, etc. Then he opens >the >quart of oil, pours it all over the top of the engine, shuts the hood and >leaves. True story. > >MBaugh > > >************************************************************* >List Commands >UNSUBSCRIBE - (in subject line) unsubscribes you from the mailing list. >************************************************************* > > _________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com. Share information about yourself, create your own public profile at http://profiles.msn.com.
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#5. Re: [E36M3] Bent wheels...bend the forged ones, too - from Ben Liaw
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Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 10:21:58 -0400 From: "Ben Liaw" <ben@shortshifter.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Bent wheels...bend the forged ones, too > > Are the five spoke forged rims as soft as the stock ten spoke ones? > > No, they are probably 5 times stronger, less likely to get bent. I bought > the BMW forged rims after I got tired of looking at bent rims on my M3. I > bent 6 of the stock '95 wheels but so far none of my forged rims. 5 times stronger? i'd argue with you there. i bent a forged, BMW double spoke on a lovely NJ Rt. 80 pothole from hell, bad enough to bend the lip (so i thought). needing to have perfectly round wheels, i purchased a new, BMW forged wheel to replace the bent one. the bent forged wheel went to wheel collision center where they *tried* to fix it as best they could. the paint job was only "ok" but dispite having their "patented" repair process, the rim was still bent (under close inspection). it's my feeling (and superstition) that bent wheels are really only good as full size spares or as wheel chocks. SSRs are cheap enough to buy, bend, and throw away (compared to new prices of stock BMW wheels). ben liaw uuc motorwerks
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#6. Re: Replacing rear shock mounts - from Andrej Dolenc
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Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 10:31:54 -0500 From: Andrej Dolenc <adolenc@erols.com> Subject: Re: Replacing rear shock mounts I followed David's step-by-step instructions on changing the rear shock mounts on my '97 M3. When I changed the RSM's, I didn't end up having to remove the shocks, I was able to compress the (stock) shocks enough to slip the shock mounts over the top. Great job on those detailed instructions, David! Andrej '97 M3 > I have a very detailed description on how to change the rear shock mounts > yourself. It is a fairly easy process for the mechanically inclined. I am > pretty sure based on your description and number of miles that your mounts > are propably worn out. These are a common wear item and you have been lucky > to get that many miles out of it. You can find out how to change your > mounts at www.racepad.com under the tech session. If you don't mind a > rougher ride you may want to consider the new urethane mounts offered by > some tuners. If your car is a daily driver I would suggest the OEM mounts.
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#7. Re: Bent wheels...bend the forged ones, too - from Andrej Dolenc
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Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 10:39:50 -0500 From: Andrej Dolenc <adolenc@erols.com> Subject: Re: Bent wheels...bend the forged ones, too > needing to have perfectly round wheels, i purchased a new, BMW forged wheel > to replace the bent one. the bent forged wheel went to wheel collision > center where they *tried* to fix it as best they could. the paint job was > only "ok" but dispite having their "patented" repair process, the rim was > still bent (under close inspection). I'll echo Ben's sentiment of doubt - even forged rims can be bent. At some point on my road trip last fall I bent and slightly cracked the inside lip of one of my Fikse rims. Not sure how or where it happened (17k in 2 months, you tend to lose track of some details!), but it's possible to bend even those. When I bought the Fikse's, I didn't think much of the fact that it was a 3 piece rim. For slightly more money than repairing a bent rim, tire store ordered a new rim half from Fikse and replaced the bent rim half. Presto, chango, rim that's straight and strong, not weakened from a bend & repair. Andrej '97 M3
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#8. RE: Bent Wheels - from Dorffer, Rich
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Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 10:36:19 -0400 From: "Dorffer, Rich" <RDORFFER@CleIndians.com> Subject: RE: Bent Wheels Sean wrote> 99% of bends can be "fixed" by balancing. in fact, if wheels weren't bent you'd barely need any weights on your rims. ever wonder why you have 2 ounces on one patch and 3 ounces in another? it's not because your wheel is that much out of balance, it's because it's bent. Or the tire is out of balance so the weights applied to the rim/wheel are to get the entire tire/wheel package to balance (not just if your rims/wheels are bent). I have seen brand new wheels mounted up with some new tires which needed a lot of weights to balance (the bigger the tires like the 31" x 10.5" x 15 on my Toyota Truck need a lot of weight to get balanced). Then again, I have so much tread wall height I am sure these wheels are safe from pot holes. Heck, I almost try to hit potholes in that thing compared to playing dodge'em with the M3. Regards, Rich Resubmitted after utilizing an inappropriate word instead of "Heck" or leaving the subject header in digest format or both.
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#9. Wheel studs - from Holeman, David
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Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 09:36:37 -0500 From: "Holeman, David" <david.holeman@viaticus.com> Subject: Wheel studs Hi, The thread of wheel studs has surfaced and since I use them I will comment. I use the 75mm studs that Turner supplies and have been very happy with them. The bolt on and are secured with loctight and have a broken thread so that when you install them you can't drop them too deep into the hub. I use several sets of wheels and spacers and this makes changing wheels a breeze as I do not have to carry different sets of different length bolts. Mounting the wheel is a breeze as well. Just slide the tire on and thread the nuts. I would recommend recommend the studs only if you are using the car as a track car on a consistent basis. The studs are steel and and can rust. I use antisieze to facilitate the frequent removal of the wheels. The bolts are prone to rusting as well. Frequent use and antisieze keeps mine in good condition. David Holeman www.racepad.com
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#10. RE: Torn rubber door gasket - from Legerlotz, Alan
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Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2000 10:43:34 -0400 From: "Legerlotz, Alan" <alegerlotz@kronos.com> Subject: RE: Torn rubber door gasket >>I just noticed this weekend that the rubber door / window gasket on the >>passenger side of my 2 door '97 M3 is torn a bit. Right up in the top back >>corner, it's enough of a tear that sometimes I lower and raise that window, the >>rubber will straddle the window as the window goes up - in other words, as the >>window goes up, the rubber will end up on the outside of the window at and >>beyond the tear (instead of on the inside as it's supposed to be). And this is >>kind of a pain since on the 2 door, the window automatically lowers and raises >>when that door is opened. I had the same thing happen on my driver's side. In my case, the window was not aligned properly after a (professional) repair. Actually it was aligned properly after the repair, but it wasn't aligned properly after a subsequent day at the track...a few too many transitions going from the oval to the road course and back again at NHIS and you rattle the car around a bit... 8^) I took the door panel off and realigned it myself; taking care of the cause of the torn rubber. I'd suggest that you determine (and fix) the cause of the tear first, then fix the rubber gasket. >>So, 2 questions: >>- is this reparable? Can the rubber be glued together somehow? Doesn't seem >>like it to me, but what do I know?! I didn't bother trying to repair it. I suppose it's possible, but given the cost of the item and the fact that it might not hold up, or cause wind noise, I quickly dismissed this. >>- barring that, how much of a PITA is replacing this rubber? I think that the part cost me about $115 after a BMW CCA discount, but I'm not 100% sure on that. The repair is straight forward, but IS a bit of a frustrating chore. You need to remove the kick plate on the bottom of the door opening...this holds the gasket and the carpet in this area. It uses clips (and lots of 'em) that look like they should slide out. Good luck getting them to do that. I just pulled until the damned thing came off. You have to look at where this kick plate piece (or whatever its actually called) mates with the rear side panel trim. They interlock with a little clip, so you need to fuss with the two pieces to get them into position properly. I was a bit impatient with mine when I put it in and cause a small tear in the process. This way my own fault and not something that you should worry about unless you're planning on rushing through the job. The gasket itself is going to seem a little too large for the job, as well. I started the gasket in the very corner where the tear is. The reason for this is that the corner is the only place where there are two surfaces on which to position the gasket. With this positioned properly, the rest of the gasket will automatically be in the right position. If you start somewhere else, the entire thing may be out of position. You'll have to patiently work from the corner and push the gasket hard into position around the entire door opening. Go around a couple of times because it'll want to buckle a bit and you need to get it completely on. When this is done, you reinstall the bottom kick piece and rear trim panel and you're done. It probably took me 1/2 hour to 45 minutes. I was taking my time for the most part until I realized that I didn't do the trim in the back correctly, and that's where I muscled it and created the tear. -Al