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#1. Almost 30K miles..what to replace or repair? - from Chester Wong
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Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 12:55:26 -0800 (PST) From: Chester Wong <chester_p_wong@yahoo.com> Subject: Almost 30K miles..what to replace or repair? What should I be looking to replace or overhaul on my '99 M3? It's almost 2 years old (Dec 16th) and has ~26k miles on the odo. Some things I'm thinking of: - Fan belt - Control arm bushings (NYC streets can take their toll) - Tranny bushings Anything I left out? I wonder if I can get the fanbelt covered under warranty? I've complained about a belt squeak while the car is idling, but the service reps always say there's nothing wrong. Also, what's the best/easiest way to R&R the bushings? Thanks, Chester ===== __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Shopping - Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. http://shopping.yahoo.com/
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#2. RE: Head Gasket Leak - from Monty Baugh
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Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 15:00:00 -0600 From: Monty Baugh <mbaugh@telecom-management.com> Subject: RE: Head Gasket Leak Just curious, what is the nature of the leak? I.e. compression into crankcase, compression into water jacket, water into crankcase, etc. Jim P. recommends a hardware upgrade because he runs F1-type boost. For us who draw breath normally, I can't imagine why the stock head fasteners wouldn't do. MBaugh
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#3. Re: [E36M3] RE: Head Gasket Leak - from Jim Powell
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Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 13:10:56 -0800 From: Jim Powell <jsp98m3@home.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] RE: Head Gasket Leak Its not that I recommend an upgrade ONLY because of boost levels. You aren't supposed to reuse the bolts. Take 'em out? You should buy new ones. If you run boost I personally believe you ought to pop for the ARP studs. Jim Monty Baugh wrote: > Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 15:00:00 -0600 > From: Monty Baugh <mbaugh@telecom-management.com> > Subject: RE: Head Gasket Leak > > Just curious, what is the nature of the leak? I.e. compression into > crankcase, compression into water jacket, water into crankcase, etc. Jim P. > recommends a hardware upgrade because he runs F1-type boost. For us who > draw breath normally, I can't imagine why the stock head fasteners wouldn't > do. > > MBaugh > > ************************************************************* > List Commands > UNSUBSCRIBE - (in subject line) unsubscribes you from the mailing list. > *************************************************************
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#4. [E36M3] Eibachs - from DiVincenti, A.J.
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Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 15:12:30 -0600 From: "DiVincenti, A.J." <ADiVin@lsuhsc.edu> Subject: [E36M3] Eibachs I would agree that the more stock the suspension is, the more you need a stiff front bar. Since the Eibach bars a 26mm front and 24mm rear, stiffer front, wouldn't settings of soft\soft accomplish this? I'm thinking stock suspension, 26mm\24mm and stiff\soft settings would be more understeer than desired. With the larger diameter bar in the front, and soft\soft settings, the car would still tend to understeer, but not as much. Even on soft\soft the Eibach bars should reduce body roll considerably from stock. AJ ....... Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 12:27:54 -0500 From: Ron Katona <rkatona@bellatlantic.net> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Eibachs Stiffer sway bars transfer more _lateral_ load on the end of the car they are installed on. The result is that that end of the car turns in better, with less body roll, but also has less grip. By the book, stiffer in front means more understeer. That's a good place to start if you're installing new bars. My feelings on it are the closer to stock your springs, shocks, and alignments are, the more you need a stiff front bar. In this case, the additional roll stiffness is needed to keep the contact patch squarely on the ground. That offsets the lack of grip normally caused by stiffening the springs or sway bars. The farther your springs are from stock the _less_ front bar you need on an E36. With springs in the 400, 500, 600... lb/in range, the car has plenty of roll stiffness. The only purpose of the sway bar at that point is to balance the handling of the car which can be accomplished with thin bars. Of course, by this time you probably have camber plates and adjustable shocks which will help fine tune the handling as well. Note that this is only Ron Katona's view of the world - YMMV. I will tell you that I recently autocrossed an E36 323is with H&Rs and Konis at an event in VA with the front (RD Sport) sway bar disconnected. I did this to show the owner that he had to much front bar. He was unconvinced, but after the event agreed that he needs a smaller bar. The car was totally neutral in steady state and tended towards oversteer on turn in. It was actually pretty cool for autocross, although a bit too extreme for the track. Only problem was that it tended to unload the inside rear and spin tires on corner exit. I think we'll try a stock M3 bar on that car attached to the LCA rather than the strut. -- Ron Katona
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#5. Re: [E36M3] Almost 30K miles..what to replace or repair? - from Andrej Dolenc
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Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 16:12:45 -0600 From: Andrej Dolenc <adolenc@erols.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Almost 30K miles..what to replace or repair? Chester Wong writes: > What should I be looking to replace or overhaul on my '99 M3? It's almost 2 > years old (Dec 16th) and has ~26k miles on the odo. Some things I'm thinking > of: > - Fan belt > - Control arm bushings (NYC streets can take their toll) > - Tranny bushings > Anything I left out? I wonder if I can get the fanbelt covered under warranty? > I've complained about a belt squeak while the car is idling, but the service > reps always say there's nothing wrong. Also, what's the best/easiest way to > R&R the bushings? If you haven't done the plugs yet, I'd consider changing those. I noticed better gas mileage after changing my plugs at 24k. Andrej '97 M3
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#6. Re: [E36M3] Almost 30K miles..what to replace or repair? - from Chester Wong
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Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 13:16:12 -0800 (PST) From: Chester Wong <chester_p_wong@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Almost 30K miles..what to replace or repair? So you're telling me to put those Splitfires in, right? +) The wires should still be good, right? What about the throttle body cleaning that someone brought up on bimmer.org? Worth looking into? Chester > If you haven't done the plugs yet, I'd consider changing those. I noticed > better gas mileage after changing my plugs at 24k. ===== __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Shopping - Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. http://shopping.yahoo.com/
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#7. Re: Engine Whine - from Peter Fanning
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Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 13:23:01 -0800 From: Peter Fanning <pfanning@premier1.net> Subject: Re: Engine Whine Ed, If it's more of a whistling sound it may be the rear main seal. I've had mine replaced twice. When you hear the sound, remove the oil filler cap. If the sound goes away, this may be your problem. The whistling comes from air being pulled through the leaky seal by engine vacuum. Peter Fanning '98 M3/4 At 10:42 AM 12/11/2000 -0600, you wrote: >ate: Sun, 10 Dec 2000 20:46:08 -0500 >From: "ENF" <enf@iglou.com> >Subject: Engine Whine > >Recently I started noticing a whining sound from the engine. It is the kind >of sound one would hear if a belt were slipping or a bearing of some sort >going bad. I took it to the dealer and they replaced the idler pully and >tensioner . > >But I still hear the sound after the car has been driven awhile. If I give >it some revs (in park or drive) I hear it right as the engine comes back to >idle. The service guy said "it's normal" and that it is the timing chain >running on a nylon track(???). I still don't think it's right. He said >there's a lot going on with this type of engine. Maybe so but I don't think >an annoying sound would be one of them. > > >Ed Frank >97 M3/4
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#8. Re: [E36M3] Almost 30K miles..what to replace or repair? - from Daniel Smith
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Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 13:27:40 -0800 From: Daniel Smith <dls@daniel.org> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Almost 30K miles..what to replace or repair? At 3:02 PM -0600 12/11/00, Chester Wong wrote: > Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 12:55:26 -0800 (PST) > From: Chester Wong <chester_p_wong@yahoo.com> > Subject: Almost 30K miles..what to replace or repair? > > What should I be looking to replace or overhaul on my '99 M3? It's almost 2 > years old (Dec 16th) and has ~26k miles on the odo. I had to replace my Rear Shock Mounts (went with ground control) at ~30,000. If you track your car, check them. Daniel '97 M3 - MMM JAVA -- Daniel L. Smith - dls@daniel.org - Sonoma County, CA
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#9. Re[2]: [E36M3] Almost 30K miles..what to replace or repair? - from Andrej Dolenc
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Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 16:29:19 -0600 From: Andrej Dolenc <adolenc@erols.com> Subject: Re[2]: [E36M3] Almost 30K miles..what to replace or repair? Chester Wong writes: > So you're telling me to put those Splitfires in, right? +) The wires should > still be good, right? Nope, no splitfires. The plugs in there are better anyway - 4 prongs! No platinum plugs either. We've had several tech sessions here in the DC area, the topic of platinum plugs has always come up. The response has always been the same - don't use 'em. BMW engines don't seem to like them. I replaced my plugs with the same plugs that were in there, FG8 something or other. I have a used one at home, can check on the exact plug model number later tonight. Once you go to replace the plugs, you'll see that you don't have plug wires - each spark plug is connected directly to its own ignition coil. There's this box thingy with a protrusion underneath it you pull out to change the plugs - that's the ignition coils. The spark plugs are REALLY DEEP in there. Best way of putting them in I found was to use the weird tube looking tool in your car toolkit. It's a spark plug tool. Spark plugs don't need to be torqued down very hard, does somebody on the list have the exact spec? To make sure all the bases get covered - you're going to need to remove the plastic cover to get to all of that. There's 2 plastic covers when you look at the engine, you want to remove the cover closest to the passenger's side edge. I removed the wrong one first, so hopefully this will save somebody the 30 seconds it takes to pull off the cover. > What about the throttle body cleaning that someone brought up on bimmer.org? > Worth looking into? Dunno, haven't read about it (don't tend to read over there). I think a new air filter should be good enough, or just clean out the filter on whatever intake system you may have. Andrej '97 M3
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#10. Re: [E36M3] Re: Engine Whine - from Jim Powell
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Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 13:35:45 -0800 From: Jim Powell <jsp98m3@home.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Re: Engine Whine If that makes the noise go away, make sure the oil dipstick is seated all the way. If it isn't, it might be the whistle. Vacuum leaks also cause a lumpy idle. Usually. Jim Peter Fanning wrote: > Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2000 13:23:01 -0800 > From: Peter Fanning <pfanning@premier1.net> > Subject: Re: Engine Whine > > Ed, > > If it's more of a whistling sound it may be the rear main seal. I've had > mine replaced twice. When you hear the sound, remove the oil filler > cap. If the sound goes away, this may be your problem. The whistling > comes from air being pulled through the leaky seal by engine vacuum. > > Peter Fanning > '98 M3/4 > > At 10:42 AM 12/11/2000 -0600, you wrote: > >ate: Sun, 10 Dec 2000 20:46:08 -0500 > >From: "ENF" <enf@iglou.com> > >Subject: Engine Whine > > > >Recently I started noticing a whining sound from the engine. It is the kind > >of sound one would hear if a belt were slipping or a bearing of some sort > >going bad. I took it to the dealer and they replaced the idler pully and > >tensioner . > > > >But I still hear the sound after the car has been driven awhile. If I give > >it some revs (in park or drive) I hear it right as the engine comes back to > >idle. The service guy said "it's normal" and that it is the timing chain > >running on a nylon track(???). I still don't think it's right. He said > >there's a lot going on with this type of engine. Maybe so but I don't think > >an annoying sound would be one of them. > > > > > >Ed Frank > >97 M3/4 > > ************************************************************* > List Commands > UNSUBSCRIBE - (in subject line) unsubscribes you from the mailing list. > *************************************************************