Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3

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Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Printable Version

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Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - ScottyB - 11-12-2012

hey man - were you in Chapel Hill this weekend for some reason? i was in traffic right before the basketball game on Sunday and was next to a silver M3 just like yours - same wheels, lowered like yours, and it had a small VIR track silhouette decal on the driver's quarter window. i didn't see if the plate was VA or not but i immediately wondered if it was you.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Beej - 11-16-2012

Wasn't I! Weird, because the ricer in me insists on putting track decals for the places I've been on on my driver's side rear quarter, for the "oh you track it?" "I was there twice!" props. He's a little fucker.

These wheels and a drop aren't too rare, but it'd be weird if he had amber lamps too.

Edit: enough of amberlamps dude.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Beej - 02-11-2013

aaaaaaaand another coil died. Good thing I

Beej Wrote:(and a spare, meh)

so I just dropped that one in - this time the CEL went away by itself and everything.

Also switched from the RS-3's on the 18's to the V12's on the 19's. It's goddamn Cadillac-quiet compared to the RS-3's, which are crazy loud.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Beej - 07-07-2013

Nothing fun to see here, just putting together a list of the boatload of maintenance that I've been putting off for "when I get a garage" in an effort to placate myself.

I was going to wait until we moved and put my ARC-8's on (they're in storage), and I knew it was gonna be close...but didn't make it. I corded one of the rear tires on my 19's. I'm now riding on "Nexen N3000's" (which I honestly didn't even know was a tire brand), since that's all I could get in Culpeper on a day's notice - big ups to Outlaw Motorsports, a truck shop, for the short-notice hookup on my non-truck. Since I now have "competition" tires in the RS-3's, it's nice to not care what I have on the 19's for daily driving; I don't drive aggressively on the street anymore (never really did). As long as they're cheap (yup), quiet (not too bad), and not awful, they're Good Enough.

As for the list...

Right away:

Control arm bushings, which are showing signs of not doing their job as well as they should.
Re-hang muffler so it stops rattling against the heat shield when cold. Might put new tips on while I have it off - never liked the black, and some of the powdercoating melted off at VIR anyway.
Tranny and diff fluid changes, along with differential input seal, which is seeping a bit (no drips)…though I hate seating seals.
CPV o-ring, which is leaking. Might pay a shop for this one - I tried to get to it when I did my motor mounts, but could not wiggle my homemade tool into the right position.
Adjust/replace parking brake - doesn't hold as well as it should.

Soon:

Rear subframe mounting point bulletproofing: structural foam to fill the cavity, epoxy reinforcement plates on the underside. Obviously all bushings while I have it all apart, and maybe adjustable camber arms, since they're a pain to install. Please no cracks please no cracks please no cracks. Might put off diff seals until I do this.
VANOS bulletproofing: stronger exhaust cam hub, possibly new intake cam bolts. Need cam timing tool.
Overhaul cooling system. Needle went a little too far in the red at VIR and I'm nearing 100k, so I'd like to do all of it. Maybe a better-cooling radiator.
Replace seeping high pressure power steering lines.
Mystery: driver's seat *clicks* with change of momentum (acceleration to braking, etc.). Drives me way crazier than it should.
Definitely before the next track day, rebuilt/replacement front calipers - one of my dust boots is loose, and better safe than sorry. Also new/dedicated set of rotors for the track pads. I'm hoping to get out again before the season is over, but we'll see.

So, that got longer than I expected as I typed it. Big list for a car that, highway steering wheel shimmy aside, drives great.

I'm itching for something a pinch more comfortable, too. I know I'll have a fun (autox, track) car and a daily driver at some point, but I'm not sure what the combo will be. I'm tossing around the idea of getting something slower for motorsports stuff.

And since I personally enjoy reading post more when there are pictures - Virginia has some beautiful vineyards/wineries:
[Image: Barboursville_zps83e26913.jpg]

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Beej - 07-27-2013

Problem and potential subject change.

If any of y'all were at VIR last July, my good buddy was there with his IS-F. I guess the automatic transmission ran it's course, and it's been replaced by a 6 speed with an attached Porsche. I really hope my infatuation will die down, because if it doesn't, the M3 will follow the IS-F's suit and be replaced by a P-car. What a car.

[Image: 997_zps4ca5c42f.jpg]

It's about as loaded as it gets (that aero kit, hnnnggg), and while I'm sure it's not THAT much faster or THAT much whatever than my M3 - holy shit I'd rather look at it on my way out of Kroger any day of the week and twice on Tuesdays. My car looks like a Camry next to that thing and I'm not sure what I'll do.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - WRXtranceformed - 07-29-2013

That is most definitely a beautiful P-car. What happened to the ISF transmission?? That was your friend who just sold it right?

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Evan - 07-29-2013

yes.

love that color too.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Beej - 07-29-2013

I've settled down enough to not make any rash decisions, but man, I couldn't stop thinking about that thing on Saturday.

Lee, the IS-F was fine, never had a single issue. Don't want to put too many words in his mouth, but I think he just wanted to get something sportier and I'm pretty sure the two pedals had a lot to do with that.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - D_Eclipse9916 - 07-30-2013

997s with the aero kit just look right.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Beej - 09-01-2013

Well after having nothing but a dedicated parking spot cramping my wrenching style the whole time I've owned this thing...finally:

[Image: bd27906f4601dd58f59d4b1bd2c8e444_zps5a652765.jpg]

[Image: bd27906f4601dd58f59d4b1bd2c8e444_zps5a652765.jpg]

The great part is its insulated/heated/cooled, too. So I'm hoping I can catch up on everything this thing needs...already ordered a bunch of stuff, but I have a feeling that the house is going to win the battle for budget/time/etc for awhile.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - WRXtranceformed - 09-01-2013

Congrats! Looks like you'll have plenty of space to work on her!

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - ScottyB - 09-02-2013

awesome. it is seriously the best feeling ever to have a roof over your car and concrete under it when you want to wrench. it gets even better in the winter.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Beej - 09-11-2013

I am in hog's heaven with this whole having-a-garage thing. Sweet jesus. No carrying of jacks, jack stands, tools up and down apartment stairs, can leave the car on stands for days...hey, you hot? Turn up the a/c. Beer is much closer, too. Can't wait to set the thing up proper. Also, I'm in love with the Esco jackstands with rubber pads on top - well worth the money, IMO.

Put the stock muffler back on with the intent of doing some adjustment to the Scorza while also getting the tips Jet-hotted in something shiny. They're black which has always sucked, but going to the track made the powercoating melt off in places and they look pretty stupid.

[Image: 0c382df100ab8d490c3b34882e0b314e_zps3bae9636.jpg]

[Image: 0c382df100ab8d490c3b34882e0b314e_zps3bae9636.jpg]

I do think I'll miss the sweet raspy goodness a bit too much, but if I can't get it to fit well, off it stays - the OEM one fits so much better. Can we not embed youtube videos? Anyway, it sounded like this.
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IR6u-9UCT_o">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IR6u-9UCT_o</a>

Was also going to do the control arm bushings, but the mounting hole for the underbody plate isn't centered on one of them, and I don't want to drill out the plate - I'll ship the part back and get a new one or find someone that can press the new bushing into the old lollipop.

[Image: 6332d5ed0f2c00fca5f0aa8a307ad9de_zpsd24028ca.jpg]

[Image: 6332d5ed0f2c00fca5f0aa8a307ad9de_zpsd24028ca.jpg]

The differential has upgraded from seeping to leaking - I'll top off the uber-expensive fluid until I have time to take a good chunk of the car apart - perhaps subframe mount time.

My rear springs have, from time to time, "clunked" when going over uneven stuff (like parking lot entrances). It seems that sometimes they seat in a way where it will happen more than others - kinda changes every time the car is up in the air and then back down. There is a tiny amount of lateral (well it's round, so all directions) space between the adjuster perch and the "knob" it mounts over. Any ideas on how to fill that, or with what material? I know my old e30 GC kit had perfectly sized rubber-washer type things that I used back in the day.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Beej - 12-18-2013

I don't think I have any modifications planned, so most updates will be nice boring maintenance stuff unless something asplodes.

Control arm bushings reduced the steering wheel shimmy quite a bit, but it's still there with both sets of wheels. Not a whole lot else to be loose up there except some ball joints, which I've never had the privilege of going bad. So what's the best way is to check for ball joint play - by hand? Jiggle a mounted/raised wheel? Need a pry bar of some sort to get enough effort into it?

Found the rubber washer type things for the rear springs, no more clunk!

I lost my third ignition coil, so I decided to go ahead and replace the remaining 3 with Bosch's. Naturally, the 4 new Bosch coils didn't match the other 2 I got a couple years ago, so I had to tuck my OCD away when shutting the hood.

Got an OEM lit Homelink thingie that gets mounted in the headliner next to the sunroof switch - I hate having garage door openers on the visor. Nice'n'plug'n'play.

I'm still totally in love with the thing, and really can't think of anything that would make me as happy (especially for the money), but two things in combination are making me consider something else:

Eventually, I'll have two cars - comfy 4 door DD, and fun car (if I do as many HPDE's as I hope, it gets safety equipment).
The Merits of Going Slow. Again, if I can get to real tracks as much as I hope, I'm considering stepping down to something less powerful as the fun car.

Then again, this is probably just the same daydreaming we all do, or a 3 year itch, or something. Plus I'm looking at a decent chunk of maintenance being due ($3-4k worth?), nearing 100k and all.

In the meantime, it got a garage buddy and has been relieved of Carrying Shit duties: [Image: 93dd45b890216f89c1aec0660f23e0a3_zpsf735845b.jpg]

[Image: 93dd45b890216f89c1aec0660f23e0a3_zpsf735845b.jpg]

Except for the annual M Tree tradition, of course: [Image: 8092013a3dee07b22e99f622d8fc3174_zps4f90865f.jpg]

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Jake - 12-18-2013

Nice JGC! What trim/motor?

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - D_Eclipse9916 - 12-19-2013

Nice! Car looks great. What 3/4k maintenance do you mean?

Solid lifter adjustment/rod bearing/diff fluid/trans fluid/oil/brake flush/air filter/fuel filter? All that should only be about $900 in parts. Labor though on that stuff is killer, I can see if thats what you mean by 3-4k. Plus pads/tires etc.

Doing everything but the rod bearings to my mom's m3 in the next couple weeks here. Rockauto has the filters cheap using Mahle filters. Glad to see you are enjoying it. I keep having evil thoughts of S54 in the race car with tunes for gts2/3/4, TT3/2, ST3/2. The maintenance schedule and expense is like 4x the S52 though.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - ScottyB - 12-19-2013

Beej Wrote:

sports cars getting used are the best!

nice jeep btw...those cherokees are the high water mark for that model IMO. truly handsome, capable SUVS and the powertrains kick ass.

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - Beej - 12-19-2013

Jake Wrote:Nice JGC! What trim/motor?

Thanks! It's a V6 Limited 4x4. I forget the exact options already - fancy infotainment/nav, sunroof, 20's, tow package, I think? Had it been my car, probably would've gone diesel Overland...but then again, had it been my car, it would've been some sort of German wagon.

We're super pleased with it - I had never pictured buying American, but it's a damn nice vehicle.

D_Eclipse9916 Wrote:What 3/4k maintenance do you mean?

Already have the valve shim kit (actually, maybe you do?). I'll be doing it all myself, but the parts, roughly: diff seal + "while you're in there" just came to $500, redo cooling system is $1k, reinforce subframe mounting points $800-1k (those tubes of foam ain't cheap), preventative VANOS stuff (exhaust hub, intake bolts), $800-1k. And yeah, all the "Inspection" type stuff, which I have all the fluids/parts for and have been doing in bits and pieces.

Overkill? Maybe. But if I'm in it for the long haul, that's the list.

Yeah, s54's end up being a bit more expensive - 4x more to run it though? Man, I remember when s52's were big dough to all of us obsessed with swapping them into our e30's. What year/mileage is your Mom's?

ScottyB Wrote:nice jeep btw...those cherokees are the high water mark for that model IMO. truly handsome, capable SUVS and the powertrains kick ass.

Thanks, and totally agree! We cross shopped a lot of stuff - some more fun to drive, some with more space, but as an all-rounder, this didn't have much competition. Thanks, short-lived DaimlerChrysler!

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - premiershine9 - 12-21-2013

Now that I moved to Richmond we gotta meet up some time for a couple beers! I gotta see the garage!

Dan

Re: Used to be on a poster in my dorm: 2005 M3 - D_Eclipse9916 - 12-23-2013

Beej Wrote:Yeah, s54's end up being a bit more expensive - 4x more to run it though? Man, I remember when s52's were big dough to all of us obsessed with swapping them into our e30's. What year/mileage is your Mom's?

S52s are dead nuts reliable. Throw a good cooling system and take care of the oil pump nut (do that as well on your E46), and its pretty darn near bulletproof. When my previous motor let go at ~160k miles and 3 years of tracking/racing, it was just the headgasket, all the bearings in the motor looked 100%.

My mom's is a 2002. Between ~$200 alternators, $250 water pumps, $560 rod bearing changes, $400 in specialty tools for doing the valve shims, $120 minimum oil changes, Special "M performance" only diff fluid for the variable diff.....yeah, at least 4x an E36 M3.

I use Rotella Diesel oil for engine oil, redline "off the shelf" oils for diff/trans, never replaced alternators, $60 water pumps, no special tools unless replacing a headgasket (same shelf life as an E46 M3).

The E46 M3 is a spectacular vehicle and it has a "real race" motor compared to the E36. So you gotta pay to play. You also have the MK60 Teves ABS that even Porsche guys swap into their cars. It is a superior platform in every way to the E36, just $$$.