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#1. Need advice on O2 sensor and brakes - from eevans@planetc.com
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 02:33:48 -0400 From: eevans@planetc.com Subject: Need advice on O2 sensor and brakes Hi, My '95 M3 needs new front rotors, pads and an O2 sensor. My mechanic says that it's important to get the OEM O2 sensor because there is some junk being sold that doesn't perform properly. Brett Anderson has the OEM Bosch unit for around $90 and I trust he knows what is needed so that part I can order from him. Now for rotors and pads. I don't track my car and just want pads that don't dust as much as my current OEM pads, but I don't want to compromise stopping power. I've read so many opinions about pads that I'm totally confused as to which ones to buy, so I need some help here. Brett also says to go w/ the OEM rotors. I assume that's the way to go, but they are more expensive than Brembos from Performance Motorcars at $44.79 each for front rotors. Any one have any experience w/ the OEM vs. another brand like Brembos? Do you get what you pay for re: rotors? Please contact me privately w/ your recommendations/suggestions. TIA Evan President Smoky Mountain BMW CCA
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#2. Re: [E36M3] Re: [uuc] E36M3 Service II / what to do? parts? - from LoweSeaton@aol.com
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 02:49:43 EDT From: LoweSeaton@aol.com Subject: Re: [E36M3] Re: [uuc] E36M3 Service II / what to do? parts? melsilva@mindspring.com writes: > However, I have no MTBE and 93 Octane here in Houston, TX and I still get 18 > to 20 avg. mileage. Mel, I hate to tell you but you do indeed have Reformulated Gas (RFG). That is, you have MTBE. As somebody said earlier, oxygenated gas contains MTBE. Well - 87% of all oxygenated gas. The other 13% is found in the Midwest where they use ethanol blended gas. See the following web site for cities/counties required to comply with the EPA RFG program. Also on the list is cities/counties voluntarily complying. http://www.epa.gov/otaq/rfgarea.htm Lowell Seaton '95 M3 Dallas, TX
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#3. Going off of CPO - from Zachary Eyler-Walker
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 03:29:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Zachary Eyler-Walker <zwalker@cs.utk.edu> Subject: Going off of CPO I'm just about to go off of CPO warranty. It occurs to me that it might be worth it to take my car in to have any potential glitches shaken out. Does anyone know of a checklist or have a list of complaints I might make to the dealer to get the right things checked out and fixed? It's a 96 M3. One thing I may take it in for is a passenger power lock that seems to go on the blnk briefly every now and then. It's about the cost of the deductible to fix myself, but might as well have the dealer do the labor. Another thing is that during some previous service, the third brake light in the wing was replaced with what appears to be the wrong model. It's probably the sedan version, and had to be cracked to fit in the curved coupe wing. Really, though, I'm wondering if there are more insidious, expensive things that I might be able to get checked out if I act quickly. Thanks, Zach
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#4. bumpstops - from Kit Wetzler
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 01:01:34 -0700 From: Kit Wetzler <kitwetzler@mindspring.com> Subject: bumpstops > don't know how I would measure it with the springs in but I'm > sure I have way more than 2 7/8" of travel before my Dinan springs bind up. Yah, but I'm sure you have less than that before your shocks hit the stops. > ideal, but it works OK. Be sure to watch the bumpstop and > replace it when it starts to disintegrate. Like I told you in email, the E36 suspension along with a *lot* of cars on the road today are designed to use the bumpstop to make the suspension semi progressive. The other advantage is that it causes the suspension to "wash out" and go into terminal understeer when you push the car too much... It's safer. http://www.virkki.com/jyri/miata/bumps.html Bumpstops, like I said, are not made of rubber, they are made of an elastomer urethane that will, under proper circumstances, outlast a lot of the car. Just keep them out of UV. Mine are still great after 106K miles of H&R coilover use. -kit, who is going to stiffer/linear rate springs soon
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#5. Re: [E36M3] More bumpstops functionality [was Klunk Found] - from Jeff A
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 07:44:31 -0500 From: "Jeff A" <aabel@austin.rr.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] More bumpstops functionality [was Klunk Found] Lowell, Citing spring length doesn't mean squat, or at best, misleading. Think = about it this way. . . let's assume that your car is dropped 1" in the = rear and you measure 12" center to fender lip. Let's say mine is 12" = too. This means that the distance from top to bottom rear perches on = both our cars are exactly the same. Assuming the same perch stack = heights, this would also mean that the springs have identical compressed = (static) lengths How can this be? You have a 10" spring with a bunch of dead coils. Your first 4" of = travel is eaten up by the weight of the vehicle. OTOH, my spring = applies 525 lbs every inch of travel, including the 1st inch. What really matters in getting rear wheel travel is the delta b/t static = ride height and full block. This delta is far, far below 10". You'd be = surprised how little rear travel your suspension has from static height. = How can you be so sure you have more than 2 7/8" of travel when you've = never measured? Next time I'm on the phone with some folks that have = that data, I'll ask about stock measurements. A couple more points: Spring manufacturers will quote linear spring = rates even when their spring have dead coils as a part of the spring. = Case in point are the H&R race springs, the rears rated at 515 lbs. = When you run the numbers based on static ride height and block length to = get travel, these springs (much longer than my 6" 525 lb springs) = actually had *less* travel than mine. I got the numbers on spring rate, = static length, and block length directly from H&R. If they had more = travel, I'd have them in my car. Jeff FWIW, I get exactly 2 7/8" of rear shock travel until spring goes to = full block. I have enough bumpstop now that the last 3/4" of travel is = into the bumpstops <snip> When I was running H&R coilovers, before the GC setup, I was certain = that I was into the bumpstops quite a bit. Lowell, I'm not sure of the = reason why your car is immune to bumpstop setup,=20 Oh! This is easy to explain. I have a lot longer springs! You have = coilovers. You are using Eibach 2.25" diameter springs right? What = length on the rear? 6"? 7"? I've got Dinan OEM replacement springs. = My rear springs are almost 10" long. Stock OE rear springs are about = 10.5" long. I don't know how I would measure it with the springs in but = I'm sure I have way more than 2 7/8" of travel before my Dinan springs = bind up.
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#6. Re: Negatives of E30M3...Now Creeper Tour - from shane.a.kleinpeter@accenture.com
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 09:30:54 -0400 From: shane.a.kleinpeter@accenture.com Subject: Re: Negatives of E30M3...Now Creeper Tour Yeah, this is what I do before every event with my race car. The solid bushings on the car tend to rattle stuff loose. I go under before every event with a pile of sockets resting on my chest and roll from location to location with a torque wrench. Takes a bit of time, and I have used loctite on some of the more loosening-prone fasteners. I highly recommend this to any newbie race car owner (like myself). I only knew to do it when I was trying to locate a noise at the track one weekend and got under the car after about 4 events and noticed that A LOT of stuff had backed off from their original torque. Now it's part of every pre-track checklist. Shane K. <--- lots to learn >-------------------- 2 -------------------- >Date: Wed, 11 Sep 2002 18:57:16 -0400 >From: <melsilva@mindspring.com> >Subject: Re: [E36M3] Re: Negatives to E30M3 Control Arms? [Long] >The Norcal-Shelby guys refer to this as a "Creeper Tour", whereby before any >track/autox event the car is lifted into the air and the would be >pilot/owner/builder uses the creeper to roll around under the car and inspect >every thing that is bolted, welded or otherwise connected to the chassis. >With experience this becomes a rote process that can be accomplished in an >hour or two. >Mel This message is for the designated recipient only and may contain privileged, proprietary, or otherwise private information. If you have received it in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete the original. Any other use of the email by you is prohibited.
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#7. Re: MPG - from Paul D Agustin
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 09:31:38 -0500 From: Paul D Agustin <agustin@iaxs.net> Subject: Re: MPG Wow Rich I'm envious! My 95 M3 just turned 35,000 and I only get 20-21 mpg. Granted my drive is 8.5 miles and over half of that is city stop and go driving. I also have the LTW wing w/o the spacers installed, so my mileage would go up about 1 mpg if it were not installed. My cross country trip to bring the M3 home I got a little over 24 mpg. I was averaging 77 miles an hour so I wasn't really pushing her at all and I still can't attain your mpg. Like I said I'm completely envious. :) Paul
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#8. Heim joints (was ker klunk) - from Chester Wong
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 07:31:00 -0700 (PDT) From: Chester Wong <chester_p_wong@yahoo.com> Subject: Heim joints (was ker klunk) When you say TCKline monoballs, are you talking about the trailing arm ones or the rear shock mount ones? I'm almost sure that you replaced your trailing arm bushings with powerflex units, so I doubt you have the monoballs in the trailing arm. However, TCKline does not sells, AFAIK, monoball rear shock mounts like the JTD ones. But anyway, as I said before, the tinyest amount of play will translate into a klunk and will actually do more harm than good. Unless you have a dedicated track car and replace those heim bearings often, it's best to stick with either OE rubber or polyurethane. Chester > Since the TC Kline monoballs were a recent addition, they're the next > wild card I'm going after. And for the record, Koni SA's, H&R OE Sports and > Untrimmed poly-celular-pneumatic-linear-spring-progressivity-assistance > spongie things. ===== __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! News - Today's headlines http://news.yahoo.com
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#9. Re: [E36M3] Re: Not the Diff, just a doof. - from Chester Wong
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 07:35:52 -0700 (PDT) From: Chester Wong <chester_p_wong@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Re: Not the Diff, just a doof. > Once again, thank you Cester. Fastest Fiche in the West. I live on the East coast :) > What part(s) of the VANOS wear and and are the noisemakers? I asked them > to save my old one so I could play with it, so I've disassembled it to marvel > at the solution to the aspiration problem. The only loose fit I found was > where the spindle of the > aluminum 'diaphragm' passes through the main housing, but one is enough, > right? Just curious about my new desk sculpture. Some have said that it's the plunger that causes the rattle, but I doubt that. If the plunger is gone, then at most, the VANOS would not function correctly. You see the gear teeth that are on the end of the VANOS adjuster? These (and the mating teeth on the intake sprocket and cam gear) are what wear and the smallest amount of play will cause the rattle. You'll have the rattle, but the VANOS will still function correctly. I've already worked out most of the tools needed to R&R the VANOS (and replace cams for that matter) and will hopefully make this a fairly straightfoward procedure. > Also curious about some rattling noises that persist in the upper front > of the engine. Upper chain tensioner? I've replaced the lower recently. It is > quieter, but not as quiet as I remember. What usually happens is that they just replace the VANOS adjuster (your desk sculpture), but there are the other two sets of gears that could have been replaced... They probably weren't so that's why you still have some rattle. Chester ===== __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! News - Today's headlines http://news.yahoo.com
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#10. Re: Heim joints (was ker klunk) - from Steve Klein
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 09:35:12 -0500 From: Steve Klein <klein@robinsonad.com> Subject: Re: Heim joints (was ker klunk) Hi, Chester- You are correct. Not the trailing arm as those are now Powerflex, but the RSM's. And correct again in that I don't see them listed on the site. When I called to order the Streetline kit, they were offered and I purchased them at the same time. When the shocks came, they were already installed on the rears. Interesting. As it stands, I've got a pair of the E46M3 RSM's waiting for me at the dealer, so I'll be picking those up over lunch and installing them tonight after a soothing hour of acupuncture. Healing mind, body, car, spirit. Thanks, Steve On Thursday, September 12, 2002, at 09:31 AM, Chester Wong wrote: > When you say TCKline monoballs, are you talking about the trailing arm > ones or > the rear shock mount ones? I'm almost sure that you replaced your > trailing arm > bushings with powerflex units, so I doubt you have the monoballs in the > trailing arm. However, TCKline does not sells, AFAIK, monoball rear > shock > mounts like the JTD ones. But anyway, as I said before, the tinyest > amount of > play will translate into a klunk and will actually do more harm than > good. > Unless you have a dedicated track car and replace those heim bearings > often, > it's best to stick with either OE rubber or polyurethane. > > Chester
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#11. Rear Alignment?!? - from twisty M3
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 07:49:04 -0700 From: "twisty M3" <twistym3@hotmail.com> Subject: Rear Alignment?!? Oy! Enough stories about this damn car of mine. ;) So, yesterday I go in for an alignment, and it all goes sour. It's the "old" Hunter machine that requires the two front bits to "see" each other across the car. Due to my camber, those two pieces can't get a reading off of one another, so he tries swapping the back and front pieces to see if that work. Long story short... No dice. I ended up wasting 2.5 hours of my life AND had to pay for it. Argh... Away from the ranting and on to the questions... 1) The alignment guy claimed that the rear camber on our cars couldn't be adjusted at all (toe only). Is this true?? I could swear that I had the rear adjusted a couple of years ago. 2) Would replacing rear shocks require an alignment if nothing else were replaced. (H&R Sport springs, switching from Koni s/a to Blist.) Thanks, Jonathan _________________________________________________________________ MSN Photos is the easiest way to share and print your photos: http://photos.msn.com/support/worldwide.aspx
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#12. Re: [E36M3] Re: [uuc] E36M3 Service II / what to do? parts? - from alex.fadeev@verizon.com
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 10:40:08 -0500 From: alex.fadeev@verizon.com Subject: Re: [E36M3] Re: [uuc] E36M3 Service II / what to do? parts? "matthew c. mead" <mmead-bmw@goof.com> wrote: > > On Wed, Sep 11, 2002 at 05:23:10PM -0500, Dames, Mark wrote: > > I average about 75-80 mph on the freeway. I've got a sedan. I've > > got 245's on the front. > > So assuming Matt is crawling along, with a coupe, 225's, and a > > tailwind, would that account for 4 mpg?? > > I don't generally crawl. I drive a pretty consistent 8-9 miles > per hour over the limit, unless it's an area I think appears risky > with respect to enforcement or I'm in a construction zone, where > I generally stick to 4-5 over. Matt, Based on the above testimony, you clearly CRAWL! > I don't generally use the right foot too much on the highway > because how fun is going fast in a straight line? :) Ahem, Directly proportional to the speed at which you are traveling, of course ; -) alex f
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#13. re: E36M3 Service II / what to do? parts - from Burgess, Kim L
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 09:18:06 -0700 From: "Burgess, Kim L" <kim.l.burgess@boeing.com> Subject: re: E36M3 Service II / what to do? parts Just recently I traveled with the wife two children and all our gear for a weeks vacation from Seattle out I-90 to mid Washington State - traveling in a stock car @ 55-60 w/cruise I got 28 for the three hour cruise across the Cascades. The trip home however, a different route w/more aggressive driving, I averaged 22. Throttle input, tire width (hysteresis), tire pressure (hysteresis-again), ambient temp., altitude, fuel quality, etc., etc., all play a roll in mileage, most notable though are the right foot input (or lack thereof) and steady state (reasonable) speed. Kim Burgess
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#14. Motor Removal - from David Sanchez
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 09:28:44 -0700 From: "David Sanchez" <sanchez918@msn.com> Subject: Motor Removal Recently had a new engine installed due to over-rev of previous owner. Remember the threads on piston rings? Thanks to the members who responded to my questions. Special thanks to Michael Schaublin regarding engine break-in techniques. The technician who installed my engine had to remove the transmission because it was dual mass (?) and the engine would not fit in without removing it. This was his first M-3 install. There is a flex disk that should be checked out to see if the rubber is worn. Good luck on removal and installation. David M. Sanchez 95 M-3 Daytona Violet, Sharked, New Engine Sin City Chapter _________________________________________________________________ MSN Photos is the easiest way to share and print your photos: http://photos.msn.com/support/worldwide.aspx
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#15. Re: [E36M3] Re: [uuc] E36M3 Service II / what to do? parts? - from matthew c. mead
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 12:53:02 -0400 From: "matthew c. mead" <mmead-bmw@goof.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Re: [uuc] E36M3 Service II / what to do? parts? On Thu, Sep 12, 2002 at 10:40:08AM -0500, alex.fadeev@verizon.com wrote: > > I don't generally crawl. I drive a pretty consistent 8-9 miles > > per hour over the limit, unless it's an area I think appears risky > > with respect to enforcement or I'm in a construction zone, where > > I generally stick to 4-5 over. > Based on the above testimony, you clearly CRAWL! This is amusing to me because in my family and friends I have a reputation as driving FAST. I earn that by driving at most 10 over and NOT STOPPING TO PEE. I pee when the car needs gas. > > I don't generally use the right foot too much on the highway > > because how fun is going fast in a straight line? :) > Ahem, > Directly proportional to the speed at which you are traveling, of course ; If there's no turning, it's not much fun to me. Acceleration for acceleration sake is fun, but just plain going fast - yawn. -matt -- matthew c. mead 97 Dakar M3/4 - sharked, xbraced 97 White GS-R/4 - stock (wife's) 92 Black Miata - dropped, dampened, headed towards SM http://www.goof.com/~mmead/
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#16. Re: Motor removal? - from James Clay
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 13:18:31 -0400 From: "James Clay" <james@bimmerworld.com> Subject: Re: Motor removal? They will come out as a unit two ways. Hardest is put the rear of the car on a lift, pivot the back up, hook up the engine to a hoist and drop the trans end and pull it out fan first. For racecars and most street cars, we also remove the front end of the car - everything unbolts except for 2 spot welds on the radiator support (hidden by hood shocks, drill and touch up with paint to keep rust away. This is by far the easiest and fastest way. James ------------------------------------------------------------------ James Clay http://www.bimmerworld.com Engineered BMW Performance World Challenge / SCCA / BMWCCA Racecar Rental Genuine and OEM BMW Parts (540) 639-9648 ------------------------------------------------------------------ Please inquire about our new line of performance street, track, and full race clutch/flywheel systems.
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#17. Re: Motons in an E36? - from James Clay
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 13:34:12 -0400 From: "James Clay" <james@bimmerworld.com> Subject: Re: Motons in an E36? >> The Moton name, as well as JRZ, gets throw around all the time in Club Racing circles as well as other enthusiast circles. Does anyone have any experience with them in an E36? Price aside, are they a possible option for a street/track car? What advantages could one expect to gain from running these in a Solo I or II environment? I understand that they are double or triple adjustable, but so are modified Koni's. ---------------------------- I have set up two different BM cars in the last month, one with JRZ (=Moton=Pro-Trac), the other with Advanced Designs. I don't like the JRZs (double adjustable). They are off the shelf shocks, every E36 gets the same set. The adjustment range is huge - one click completely changes the feel of the car, so it is hard to fine tune. These are great for pro racing where we change springs a lot because you can dial them in fairly close in the limited test sessions quickly. Triples are good, but few spend the time to learn how to dial them in and actually do it - it takes about a year of a lot of driving to get quick at diagnosing the correct adjustments. I prefer to sell the Advanced Design by far. It is a true custom shock, valved to work within the spring range we use. The adjustments from that valving fine tune the car. I think I like them better than the expensive stuff based on performance alone, but throw in the fact that they are 1/3 the price and it is a simple decision for most. The car we tuned with the AD dampers felt much more dialed when I was done. Use any of these on the street and they will need to be rebuilt often. Recommended schedule for club level is once a year for racecars. Huge advantages in auto-x or track. James ------------------------------------------------------------------ James Clay http://www.bimmerworld.com Engineered BMW Performance World Challenge / SCCA / BMWCCA Racecar Rental Genuine and OEM BMW Parts (540) 639-9648 ------------------------------------------------------------------ Please inquire about our new line of performance street, track, and full race clutch/flywheel systems.
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#18. F/S 2001 E46 M3 - from parm3@comcast.net
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 12:35:11 -0500 From: parm3@comcast.net Subject: F/S 2001 E46 M3 I am moving to Florida and downsizing garage space. As a result, I am selling my 2001 M3 with 7,000 miles. The car was broken in following BMW's specifications and listed for about $57,000. Details are: 2001 M3 coupe VIN WBSBL93401JR10769 Jet black/black leather 6 spd manual Cold weather pkg Power seat pkg Moonroof Xenon headlights Navigational system H/K sound Exceptional condition. $50,000 Please contact me off line or by phone at 317-319-7758. Bob Biggs parm3@comcast.net
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#19. Re: [E36M3] E36M3 Service II / what to do? parts? - from Jim Bassett
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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2002 10:50:29 -0700 From: Jim Bassett <jimbassett@attbi.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] E36M3 Service II / what to do? parts? At 07:19 PM 9/11/02, matthew c. mead wrote: >On Wed, Sep 11, 2002 at 11:47:12AM -0700, Jim Bassett wrote: > > Check the water level in your battery. > >Yeah, I omitted that as it's in the standard list. Ah, good (I didn't have the list in front of me). >And the local dealer wanted $600-700 to do an Inspection II. I >asked about their lead time (3 weeks) and said, "Thanks for your >time." I would suggest that at some point you have a mechanic give the car a good look-over. I usually accomplished this when the car went to get a drivers school tech inspection. Maybe an hour's worth of time, but all the "checks" on the Inspection II list got, well, checked <g>. Even as much as I was working on the car myself there's no substitute for getting the car on a lift and having a professional look at it. And in general, an independent BMW mechanic will be cheaper than the dealer, and you can usually have services done "a la carte" - have the mechanic do just the "checks". And they usually charge "real" time, not "book" time. IME, YMMV. Cheers, Jim Bassett