Project: E34 Busted Pile

[.RJ]

Old BMW's = Money pit

Clunk = Diff bushings

Front LCA bushings are surely shot too.

Vibrations = Get new plugs for sure... does it have Vanos?

Trans = I would be very careful with what you do with it. If you are sure that the fluid has never been changed then its best to leave it alone at this point. Changing it could accelerate its demise (and at almost 200k it aint too far off).

[Jake]

Old BMW's = Money pit

Yes.

Clunk = Diff bushings

Front LCA bushings are surely shot too.

Good to know, I'll check 'em out.

Vibrations = Get new plugs for sure... does it have Vanos?

The motor is the M50TUB25. To those of us who don't speak BMW, the "TU" part means it has Vanos.

Trans = I would be very careful with what you do with it. If you are sure that the fluid has never been changed then its best to leave it alone at this point. Changing it could accelerate its demise (and at almost 200k it aint too far off).

I'm not 100% sure honestly. There are receipts in the glovebox that I need to look at - and Jeff bought it from a family friend. I'm sure he could call the guy up and ask.

[Jake]

So just before winter break, one of my friends called me up. He's an RA on-campus and his car had "some issue with a gasket" that had been diagnosed in early November. He didn't drive it after that, for fear of damaging things. He asked if I'd be able to take a look at it, and I told him sure, I and hopefully other MMers could get it sorted out.

He's paying for all parts, which is why I agreed to the work. I don't mind tinkering and he doesn't need the car in any rush. I picked it up yesterday and have been driving it around town to figure out what needs to be done.



It's a 1995 525i, automatic trans, with 194,000 miles. Orient Blue Metallic with gray interior (Dove, I think?) - the paint is in good shape, the leather seats are 'meh' but might just need a good cleaning.

The "gasket issue" is a leaky valve cover gasket. He said he took it to Merchant's for a diagnosis and that's what they told him. They also said there was a little bit of oil in the spark plug wells, presumably from said leaky gasket.

The fun starts here though... There's a lot of other things that need to be fixed with this 15-year-old, 200k mile BMW.

• Driver's door handle on the inside won't pull. Joey and I looked today and it's the cable connecting to the handle. Cheap and relatively easy repair, $5 for the part.
  
  Driver's door window will not work. Needs new regulator. Conveniently, so does the driver's back door window.
  
  Auto trans could really use a fluid change. Jeff doesn't have record of that ever being done so we may as well do it.
  Same deal with coolant... should be flushed/changed.
  
  Desperately needs an alignment. The thing is all over the road.
  
  Has a vibration in the driveline at idle and at various speeds. Not trans related, I don't think. I'm thinking the oil in the plug holes is the culprit. I figure we'll clean out the holes and do new plugs.
  
  Slight 'clunk' from the right rear wheel area when applying and releasing the brakes. Jeff said the pads and rotors were done before the fall semester started, so that work should be good. Should. Any ideas there would be appreciated. I haven't looked at it yet to opine myself.]

So that's the 'rough' starting point for this project. I've already decided to send the ATF change to Mid Atlantic Motorwerkes and they quoted a reasonable price. Same for (obviously) alignment, and I don't have good luck with coolant so I might have MAM do that as well. Everything else, I figure I/we can tackle.

That all said, anyone (current students, townies) wanna help out? There's no rush on getting this stuff done and I still need to get money from him and order parts. I figure it'll be a good learning experience for myself and those less-experienced MMers who want to learn random car repairs.

[D_Eclipse9916]

its a 6-cylinder bmw, of course its the valve cover gasket.

Vanos makes noise, when you have the valve cover off pull it, clean it, put it back and start using some real oil, 15w40 Rotella.

BMWs are infamous for rear bushings and rear sheetmetal failures. Could be either or... Lift back end, take a look at all the suspension, pull interior out in rear to take a look at shock tower mounts to make sure they are in good condition.

Your really having someone change out the coolant for you? Come on, get those brass balls back on and try again, use what oyu learned last time.

ATF flush, dont do it, ive heard very bad things flushing out really old atf fluid. AKA= new fluid consistency flushes out shit and then clogs that old shit in places where you could induce a transmission failure.

[BLINGMW]

I don't know about this whole, "don't change the ATF, that might kill it" theory, but I think a normal pan drop and filter change would be the way to go, I can't imagine that would do anything other than help. DIY.

And yeah, you don't need to "flush" the coolant either. Just open up what you can, drain, fill, bleed. DIY.

I would hold off on the alignment until you figure out what condition the bushings are in. The front thrust bushings likely need replacement, but if everything else is wonky, and tie rods and steering box are worn out, alignment is irrelevant. Not to mention there's almost nothing to align on a BMW anyway, there's so few adjustments. You could check the toe yourself with tape measures and yardsticks, camber and caster are usually non-adjustable without eccentric bushings. Shops must love aligning BMWs. "Ok, it's all wrong, we set the front toe, we can't fix anything else, that'll be $79.99"

I have nothing else to add other than to ask how this thread got out of order? :dunno:

[Jake]

I have no idea how the thread got out of order... the clock on my computer was set correctly so maybe a server-side thing? Hrmph, I dunno.

Jeff is trying to find out if ATF has ever been changed before. I don't know how necessary it really is, I want to get the VCG and plugs changed first and see how smooth those will make things. The trans itself shifts well, just a slight hesitancy to go in and out of 4th. I flipped through the manual last night (shocking, I know) and it may be my driving style. Apparently if you take your foot off the gas too quickly, it will purposely hold 3rd and not upshift as it thinks you're in a corner or something, and you don't want 4th. Nice touch, and that would explain why it doesn't want to grab 4th as much as I think it should.

By coolant "flush" I really meant drain and re-fill. If I can get a warm (50┬░) day as we're expecting this weekend, I'll just tackle that myself.

I'll take a look (hopefully this weekend) at rear bushings and other suspension stuff. Good to know regarding the alignment stuff.

[Steve85]

By coolant "flush" I really meant drain and re-fill. If I can get a warm (50┬░) day as we're expecting this weekend, I'll just tackle that myself.

I did my daughters thermostat in her 95 Cabrio when it was 25 degrees two weeks ago. And thanks to German engineering that fucker was upside down on the bottom of the block... behind the PS pump. :finger:

We can't all be NovaZenkl and have GFs with baller 17 car heated garages with a lift to work in. MAN UP and do it now, outside!! And drain that shit into the Bay, fuck crabs, they're too hard to eat anyway.

[D_Eclipse9916]

*remembering doing a turbo swap while it was snowing in the dorm parking lot freshman year*

Man up bitches!

[BLINGMW]

There's no way the trans has lasted that long if it's NEVER been changed. No way.

[ViPER1313]

IMO, if the trans still shifts and the fluid is nasty, leave it alone. From what I understand, filling up a dirty trans with new fluid can lead to issues. The detergents in the new fluid break apart deposits stuck to the casing / internals, which can then get stuck in the 100s of tiny passages in the valve body and cause the trans to fail completely.

Oil in the plug wells can definitely lead to drivability issues - usually hesitation at higher RPMS.

[Jake]

I've decided to leave the transmission alone. Jeff really, really doubts the previous owner had it changed - unless an ATF check/change is part of Inspection I or Inspection II, then it was probably done at some point. Regardless, it shifts pretty well for the mileage, only somewhat firm shifts are getting into 4th, and even then, only occasionally.

We have a bigger issue at the moment... I can't back up. It's not like Zoolander and the "can't turn left" complex, the car actually won't do it. Trans shifts into reverse just fine, car wants to go. The right rear wheel doesn't want to move. If I prod at the gas pedal some, the right rear of the car will rise up a few inches. Left rear will move fine.

When I put it in Drive and go forward, you can hear a sort of metallic swishing sound (pad on rotor?) from that wheel. As soon as I touch the brake pedal, that wheel makes a clunk and is silent under braking, as it should be. I had the Davids watch while I tried going in Reverse, and they said that the wheel isn't trying to move at all.

This is a new issue that's appeared after my possession of the car. Brake pads and rotors were changed back in October, and Jeff has the receipt to prove it. His dad did the work, so I'm wondering if he missed something during the process. It has become worse as I've driven... started out as just the clunk when hitting the brake pedal, and has progressed from there. I've only put 60 miles on the car, but it did sit outside for all the snow and ice and nastiness, undriven, since early November.

I'm planning to jack it up and remove the wheel tomorrow. The E34 has the parking brake inside the rear rotors, apparently. I have no problem calling Mid Atlantic (since I'm not going there for ATF now) but would rather diagnose and fix on my own...

[D_Eclipse9916]

Pull it apart and diagnose. I could tlel you a million things that it "could be", but sometimes you just gotta start tearing apart.

[CaptainHenreh]

[Jake]

I got home today and (after parking sideways in 3 spots all night, for lack of backward potential) jacked 'er up. Took the wheel off and discovered a few things. The sensor for the Check Control's brake pad level is missing. Jeff knows about that and doesn't care to have it fixed - but the car says "BRAKE LINING" below the gauges all the time. Whatever.

I couldn't quite figure out the lack of reverse. Knew it was something with the caliper but nothing jumped out at me after poking and prodding. Brakes are not my strong suit. I drove it down to Jenkins' Automotive, since they're 500 feet from Pheasant Run, and they fixed it for a few bucks. The caliper was missing 2 of the 3 bolts that hold it in place. Apparently Dad missed a step with the brake change. All better now.

Some parts are coming in tomorrow afternoon - looks like this Saturday will be a valve cover gasket, new spark plugs, oil change, and repaired door handle cable. After that, the only other big things are the two window regulators and perhaps a coolant drain/re-fill. I need to check tire pressure and even that out, too.

Hooray, progress

[Dave]

After that, the only other big things are the two window regulators and perhaps a coolant drain/re-fill.

Just so you don't discover this the way I did, if you are removing the old motor and just replacing the regulator (not replacing the unit as a whole), be very careful how you hold it when you pull it. The motor holds the regulator in compression and that spring is heavy duty and snaps fast. Just don't put your fingers in anything that appears like it could operate like a scissor; it'll probably earn you some stitches and a broken finger or two if you don't pay attention...

[SlimKlim]

+1

[Jake]

Hey now.



I have everything needed to do the VCG, spark plugs, oil change, and door handle. We'll be wrenching on that, plus a few other cars, tomorrow (Saturday) starting around 11, at Cabell's place downtown. Call me or him if you need directions and want to help or hang out.

[Jake]

Post-wrench-day update:

After a long day we did get the motor-related stuff sorted out. BIG thanks to Cabell, Chad, Chris and Joey for all their help on a car that isn't even in the MM family. :bow: This would not have all been done today without their assistance.


Check out the darkness of that plug well, aka oil.


Oh hey, oil where it shouldn't be.


Maybe THIS is why it felt like it was running on 4.5 cylinders.


Took a lot of time to get the oil out of the bad places.


Cabell putting the sealant on for the new gasket.


Me and Chad's project - cleaning the underside of the valve cover. Sprayed it with some degreaser and the old gunk came off in sheets and chunks. The previous owner really didn't take great care of the car.


Cleaned up and ready for sealant and gasket


Obligatory shot of one BMW lighting up another...

We attempted the new door handle cable and had to call it quits as the sun went down. Cabell got the old cable off the mount, but none of us could manage to get the new cable on. It may be easiest to do a bit more reading, and remove the entire latch/lock mechanism and re-cable the door that way.

At this point, we have the door cable and both windows to tackle. Jeff had to take the car back for an emergency trip home, but it should be back in MM's hands by Monday night. I'm glad to say the Busted Pile is less Busted. More updates to come as I/we progress.

[Jake]

Fixed the door!

And no thanks to BMW, for making the lock/latch mechanism such a pain to remove. There are two obvious bolts, a third behind the weatherstripping on the door, and a fourth that allows you to remove part of the window track (?!) and thus remove the mechanism.

This is the mystical fourth bolt:


The old cable and new cable, aka why the handle didn't pull:


The cable hooks into that little rubbery grommet on the right side of things:


...and hooks onto the door panel's similar yellowish rubbery grommet:


So, that little task is done. Now for the window regulators (shipping soon) and to diagnose the rough idle and slight misfire while running. She shudders pretty bad around 2,000 rpms, and the idle will randomly dip a few hundred. I kind of remember putting the coils back on the plugs, and seeing one of them look a bit melted. That'll be where I check first.

[CaptainHenreh]

I HAVE COILS. 6 Known good ones. Call me <3.