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#1. Re: Timing chain... - from Steve Klein
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Date: Wed, 19 Oct 2005 13:04:41 -0500 From: Steve Klein <klein@robinsonad.com> Subject: Re: Timing chain... Roger that. The least I can do is distill all the wisdom I gain from others into a coherent slice of information for the common database. Wikibimmerpedia. I'll take plenty of pics on this journey and detailed measurements of both chains. Steve On Oct 19, 2005, at 12:52 PM, Townsend, William wrote: Be careful in there. Let us all know how it went and how to do it.... Would like the pictures.... --Bill
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#2. Control arms... - from Mo Karamat
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Date: Wed, 19 Oct 2005 15:10:02 -0400 From: Mo Karamat <karamatm@optonline.net> Subject: Control arms... -------------------- 9 -------------------- Date: Tue, 18 Oct 2005 10:11:56 -0800 From: "Som Naderi" <som@dimensionracing.com> Subject: Control arms... Som, Try calling Scott at FCP... 877-634-0063. I buy all of my parts from him, his prices are the best! Have fun. Mo 98 M3/4 95 M3 - track car under development 91 325IX - Let it snow!
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#3. Check Control: Brake Light Failure - from Shane Kleinpeter
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Date: Wed, 19 Oct 2005 11:54:37 -0700 (PDT) From: Shane Kleinpeter <sak335@yahoo.com> Subject: Check Control: Brake Light Failure I've been getting this message again, despite a new brake light switch. Lights are all working. Should I replace the bulbs next? Any other suggestions? Thanks, Shane <--- Annoyed in Charlotte '96 M3 <---- The source of the problem '94 325i <----- Needs two fuel pumps after Road Atlanta, I have lousy luck __________________________________ Yahoo! Mail - PC Magazine Editors' Choice 2005 http://mail.yahoo.com
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#4. Cage Builder in NJ? - from Mo Karamat
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Date: Wed, 19 Oct 2005 15:27:23 -0400 From: Mo Karamat <karamatm@optonline.net> Subject: Cage Builder in NJ? Dear All, Hello. I too am looking into cages for my e36. One source a friend showed me is www.kirkracing.com. They seem to have a reasonable bolt in or weld in cage for the e36. Does anyone have experience with them (other than you Ahmed! :) ) Does anyone have a suggestion of a reasonable cage building person in the NY-NJ-PA area? I am planning on doing either i-stock or i-prepared CCA club racing. Thanks Mo 98 M3/4 - Retired track car 95 M3 - race car in progress.. Waiting for a cage!
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#5. Question: How much to build a cage? - from Neil Maller
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Date: Wed, 19 Oct 2005 14:37:04 -0500 From: Neil Maller <neil.maller@gte.net> Subject: Question: How much to build a cage? Alan Leung asks: >> Can anyone tell me roughly how much it is to build a CR spec cage and what >> considerations should be taken when doing so? on 10/19/05 1:12 PM, Carlos.F.Lopez@jci.com replies: > I would consider which class you plan on running the car in first. That > determines how extreme you can go with the cage. I'm assuming that when you > say build a cage you mean a custom welded in cage which is the way to go in my > opinion. And further to that, SCCA has recently published some changes to its cage construction rules (Section 18.3 Touring Roll Cages) regarding welded joint construction and side protection. To the extent that CR rules follow SCCA or that Alan may also want to race in some other series like ITS then this should be taken into account also. I'm no expert at all on this, but the point is that the cage fabricator needs to be, so choose accordingly. Neil Fort Wayne, IN 96 M3 - Bastard child 03 525iT - Sterling Grey Metallic 77 MGB - Original owner, need to sell 05 Mini - Cooper S with LSD!
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#6. Control arms - from jakeadavis@comcast.net
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Date: Wed, 19 Oct 2005 21:31:43 +0000 From: jakeadavis@comcast.net Subject: Control arms There's a decent writeup on control arm replacement at Pelican Parts....for reference http://www.pelicanparts.com/bmw/techarticles/JF-Tech/E36_Control_Arm_Replacement.htm
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#7. Re: [E36M3] front bumper interchangibility between years and coupe, - from Kent L. Shephard
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Date: Wed, 19 Oct 2005 14:37:58 -0700 (PDT) From: "Kent L. Shephard" <kents@kls-consulting.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] front bumper interchangibility between years and coupe, sedan, and convertible? Hi, As far as I can tell it's the same for all years. There was mesh vs slats (Sport vs Lux). I don't know about coupe vs sedan. Kent > Date: Wed, 19 Oct 2005 10:37:23 -0700 (PDT) > From: Barrett Nicholas <barrettn@swbell.net> > Subject: front bumper interchangibility between years and coupe, sedan, > and convertible? > > Anyone know the interchangibility for the front bumper > cover between years and models? I find several part > numbers in the online parts catalog, but I'm being > told by a salvage yard that the part is the same for > any M e36. I caught a retread off a semitruck and it > killed my bumper cover, need a new one. > > Thanks, > > Barrett > > > ************************************************* > Please help support the E36M3 list by visiting our sponsors: > > Bimmerworld http://www.bimmerworld.com > Turner Motorsport http://www.turnermotorsport.com > Eurosport High Performance http://www.eurosporthighperformance.com > Rogue Engineering http://www.rogueengineering.com > Treehouse Racing http://www.treehouseracing.com > Elephant Motorsports Inc. http://www.elephantmotorsports.com > > DIGEST INFORMATION: > http://www.bmw-m.net/resources/digest_info.htm > ************************************************* > > >
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#8. Nissan Armada track car tow vehicle??? - from Townsend, William
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Date: Thu, 20 Oct 2005 10:09:48 -0400 From: "Townsend, William" <wtownsen@enterasys.com> Subject: Nissan Armada track car tow vehicle??? So I am looking at the Armada (LE 4x4) as a combined kid hauler and track car tow vehicle. (Has same seating as our minivan, required.) Anyone using this SUV out there for this? Can you use the stock hitch it comes with? Initial quality issues? How well does it tow? Gas mileage??? Will be towing a steel trailer and a 3300 lb M3.... With my budget, an open trailer. The 2001 T&C minivan would not even make it down the street with a trailer behind it and is currently eating parts too quickly for my taste. Thanks, --Bill 96 M3 coupe
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#9. Re: [E36M3] Nissan Armada track car tow vehicle??? - from Scott McClung
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Date: Thu, 20 Oct 2005 11:07:23 -0700 (PDT) From: Scott McClung <smlists@pacbell.net> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Nissan Armada track car tow vehicle??? Yup - I do. I have a 2004 LE 4x4 which comes standard with the "big tow" package so is rated at just under 9K lbs. The thing tows like a dream, so much better than a 1/2t suburban and you cannot even feel a 5Klb car trailer behind it. The 5-speed trans is just superb - very low first gear, smooth shifts and even compression brakes down hills. I would highly recommend one for combo use - there is not much else out there with seating for 7, 4wd and a big tow rating. You might also look at the new Jeep Commander - the review in the latest C&D was quite favorable, but the 3rd row seats are a bit cramped. Plenty of space in the 3rd row of the Armada - no problem there. And plenty of cargo space with all the seats folded flat for track use (I bring everything). The ride is outstanding for a full size truck with the capabilities. Gas mileage is poor. The new Suburbans and Tahoes do better. I get ~14mpg in combined driving mostly around town, ~16 on the freeway, and ~12 towing (which isn't bad). At least it runs just fine on 87 octane. If you really drive a lot of miles and can tolerate a larger vehicle you should also look at a Ford Excursion with the 7.3L diesel - a buddy has one and gets mid to upper 20's mpg with it, towing or not. Pretty impressive. Comes with everything you need to tow including a harness for the brake controller. Factory hitch is fine and rated to ~9Klbs as long as you use a wt. dist set-up (I do on long trips, but not needed around town). The auto load leveling feature works really well when towing too. I would highly recommend getting the nav with it too - I think only available with the technology pkg which also gives you the auto tailgate, which at first seems goofy but turns out is pretty handy at times. And that also gives you the back-up sensors which are very handy for a vehicle this size. I have 17K miles on mine so far. The one weak area is the brakes. Supposedly there is a fix that is getting rolled into new ones and will be retrofitted to older models as needed. In my case the brakes last about 5K miles before developing a bad shudder. Then the dealer replaces it for you and you wait another 5K miles for it to happen again. The fix is thicker rotors and beefier calipers, mine is due for the retrofit which I will do shortly. Other than that no problems. I have heard of some rear end problems, so I changed fluid at 15K to redline just to be on the safe side. I think the main issue is not enough cooling capacity, so I will also upgrade to a deeper diff cover which should help. But it's all covered for 5 years / 60K, so not too worried about it at this point. The interior has been trouble free, no fit / finish issues at all. There is a bit too much plastic, but other than that is a good design with great legroom and comfort all around. It takes some time to learn where the front corners are for parking, but driving it is just a pleasure. If I had to do it all over, I don't think I would do anything differently. I use mine as an occasional daily driver, for family trips, camping, skiing, hauling stuff, and towing the race car (1991 Corvette). Does it all. Not a cheap choice, but a very quality vehicle and they should be deeply discounting now that gas prices are through the roof. Scott "Townsend, William" <wtownsen@enterasys.com> wrote: Date: Thu, 20 Oct 2005 10:09:48 -0400 From: "Townsend, William" Subject: Nissan Armada track car tow vehicle??? So I am looking at the Armada (LE 4x4) as a combined kid hauler and track car tow vehicle. (Has same seating as our minivan, required.) Anyone using this SUV out there for this? Can you use the stock hitch it comes with? Initial quality issues? How well does it tow? Gas mileage??? Will be towing a steel trailer and a 3300 lb M3.... With my budget, an open trailer. The 2001 T&C minivan would not even make it down the street with a trailer behind it and is currently eating parts too quickly for my taste. Thanks, --Bill 96 M3 coupe ************************************************* Please help support the E36M3 list by visiting our sponsors: Bimmerworld http://www.bimmerworld.com Turner Motorsport http://www.turnermotorsport.com Eurosport High Performance http://www.eurosporthighperformance.com Rogue Engineering http://www.rogueengineering.com Treehouse Racing http://www.treehouseracing.com Elephant Motorsports Inc. http://www.elephantmotorsports.com DIGEST INFORMATION: http://www.bmw-m.net/resources/digest_info.htm *************************************************
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#10. Q's on replacing center support of CV type driveshaft - from Dave Thomas
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Date: Thu, 20 Oct 2005 15:11:03 -0700 From: Dave Thomas <dave@sasdatalink.com> Subject: Q's on replacing center support of CV type driveshaft Greetings list. Been lurking for a few weeks, we just picked up a real nice 95 M3 a few weeks ago and I am glad to have found this list as it seems to have some pretty good technical discussions. A few weeks ago I replaced the drive-shaft flex disc (it had a lot of cracks...but had not gotten real bad yet) but was unable to change the center support bearing as I could not get one before the weekend. The center support on the car now is the original one and the rubber on it is quite hard (no cracks though) so I think its about due for replacement so I am considering doing it this weekend. My questions: 1) Any 'gotchas' to look out for when splitting the CV type shaft? (other than normal) 2) Any tricks to get the bolt out that secures the two halves? 3) The TIS says "secure screw with screw retainer" (screw that secures the two halves). Is this a re-usable screw retainer or will I need to source a new one before I split it? 4) Do you know what the dimensions of the tool (24 1 040) are to press the center support onto the shaft once its been split? 5) Would you even bother replacing a center support bearing that seems OK but just has real hard rubber? Thanks for any advice, Dave Thomas dave@sasdatalink.com