rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
ordered tires... having them mounted on Sunday
245/40R17 Kumho Ecsta XS
245/40R17 Kumho Ecsta XS
Ownership Verified: 1995 BMW M3 (US 3.0L), track day car
- Thread starter rootrider
- Start date
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
got my parts in.. now I only need to buy oil, distilled water, and some drill bits (for installing the underpanel). I already have the oil filter housing gasket, waiting to go on.
the most expensive part there? the hose/pipe in the middle with the metal fittings at the end. That cost me $65. One of the belts cost $38, and the little auxiliary fan switch at the bottom right was $32. I can't wait to get this stuff on the car.
the most expensive part there? the hose/pipe in the middle with the metal fittings at the end. That cost me $65. One of the belts cost $38, and the little auxiliary fan switch at the bottom right was $32. I can't wait to get this stuff on the car.
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
new windshield today..
there was some paper down between the window and the glass that I was able to remove during this time.. as well as a couple of wires (the PO had a hardwire for a radar detector (?) and a bluetooth phone speaker for the headunit) that I removed, so that feels good
there was some paper down between the window and the glass that I was able to remove during this time.. as well as a couple of wires (the PO had a hardwire for a radar detector (?) and a bluetooth phone speaker for the headunit) that I removed, so that feels good
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2007
- Messages
- 5,851
- Location
- Maribor, Slovenia, Europe
- Car(s)
- '89 BMW E30 325iT, '95 BMW E36 318ti compact
You changed the windscreen in the parking space, just like that? Epic
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
can't tell if serious?
- Joined
- Sep 21, 2003
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- 31,044
- Location
- Portland, Oregon
- Car(s)
- 2008 Dodge Viper, 2006 MB CLS55 AMG
You changed the windscreen in the parking space, just like that? Epic
That's actually quite common. They just come around in a van and swap it out for you.
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
yeah.. this guy is very good. He cares a lot about his work and other people.. it was a pleasure to have him do the work. All he does is mobile service.. he works out of his truck.
and yes.. of course the window is glued in
and yes.. of course the window is glued in
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2007
- Messages
- 5,851
- Location
- Maribor, Slovenia, Europe
- Car(s)
- '89 BMW E30 325iT, '95 BMW E36 318ti compact
I was asking because it doesn't happen here. You have to bring your car in to a shop where you leave it for a day and pick it up the next day for this operation.
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
that's too bad.. it only takes an hour or so. There are plenty of glass shops like that here, but even then you usually just wait because the job just doesn't take very long.
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
gotcha'
yeah, there's a black adhesive/insulation that is used to attached the windshield, with a rubber seal around the outside of the glass
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
looks like I'm picking up an Active Autowerke Gen-3 cat-back exhaust, along with the midpipe & cats, on Sunday. This will free up around 15 lbs, will probably add around 10hp, and will eliminate the issue of one of the exhaust pipes being welded in between the midpipes and the cats (since I'm replacing the whole section). It'll also save me around $600 (or more) from buying this stuff new and having the weld fixed. It'll also sound pretty good
I'm hoping to install a week from this Sunday as well..
So, on the 14th, I'm hoping to do the following:
I'm also having the new Kumho Ecsta XS tires mounted this Sunday evening.
after all of that is done I'll be ready for my first track day.. hopefully on October 20th.
I'm hoping to install a week from this Sunday as well..
So, on the 14th, I'm hoping to do the following:
- replace the engine and AC belts
- replace VANOS oil pipe, hoses, gaskets, and washers
- replace oil filter housing gasket
- change oil & oil filter and use a slightly more track friendly oil
- replace existing auxiliary fan switch with low temp fan switch
- install aluminum underpanel and radiator baffle
- replace rear half of exhaust system with new midpipes, cats, and AA cat-back
I'm also having the new Kumho Ecsta XS tires mounted this Sunday evening.
after all of that is done I'll be ready for my first track day.. hopefully on October 20th.
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
got new tires mounted last night. Old Bridgestone's are on the left.. and new Kumho's are on the wheel to the right:
brought an Active Autowerke cat-back exhaust home along with OBD-2 mid-pipes & cats on Sunday morning. I may have to wait to install it since I'll need to make sure I have a place to install the o2 sensor. I'll have to look at it more closely this week.
and.. after driving the M3 around a bit yesterday I pulled back into my parking spot and the windows wouldn't go up. The switches for the windows and the sunroof had stopped working, and they're on separate circuits. So, after spending a few hours reading online and inspecting the bentley manual and the bmw electrical troubleshooting manual I see that the only commonality between the two is the alarm module and the ZKE IV module (central body electronics). It's unlikely that the ZKE module has failed, especially since everything else connected to it is working (as far as I've seen so far). It's more likely that there is a short somewhere in a circuit that connects to one of those modules and it's causing the sunroof and windows to not work from the switches (common result from a short elsewhere, from what I can tell ). So, I'll be troubleshooting this for a while.
Thankfully I got the windows back up today by holding the key in the 'lock' position in the driver's door lock. So I can at least drive the car around and park it outside without worrying about rain for now. This also means I can probably still track the car in a couple of weeks.. we'll see.
brought an Active Autowerke cat-back exhaust home along with OBD-2 mid-pipes & cats on Sunday morning. I may have to wait to install it since I'll need to make sure I have a place to install the o2 sensor. I'll have to look at it more closely this week.
and.. after driving the M3 around a bit yesterday I pulled back into my parking spot and the windows wouldn't go up. The switches for the windows and the sunroof had stopped working, and they're on separate circuits. So, after spending a few hours reading online and inspecting the bentley manual and the bmw electrical troubleshooting manual I see that the only commonality between the two is the alarm module and the ZKE IV module (central body electronics). It's unlikely that the ZKE module has failed, especially since everything else connected to it is working (as far as I've seen so far). It's more likely that there is a short somewhere in a circuit that connects to one of those modules and it's causing the sunroof and windows to not work from the switches (common result from a short elsewhere, from what I can tell
). So, I'll be troubleshooting this for a while.Thankfully I got the windows back up today by holding the key in the 'lock' position in the driver's door lock. So I can at least drive the car around and park it outside without worrying about rain for now. This also means I can probably still track the car in a couple of weeks.. we'll see.
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
tomorrow's the big work day.. I'll try to take pics, so Blayde can be satisfied even though he doesn't post here.
also.. paid for OEM US obd2 headers today. They're from the same guy that sold me the exhaust last week, and he dropped the price on the headers from $75 to $40 since then. And, since then, I've learned that both the obd2 midpipes and headers are a very nice upgrade for my obd1 car, and obd2 headers normally go for over $100, which means I would be stupid to not buy them for $40
also.. paid for OEM US obd2 headers today. They're from the same guy that sold me the exhaust last week, and he dropped the price on the headers from $75 to $40 since then. And, since then, I've learned that both the obd2 midpipes and headers are a very nice upgrade for my obd1 car, and obd2 headers normally go for over $100, which means I would be stupid to not buy them for $40
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
finished everything but the exhaust install. It probably would have been fairly quick to do the exhaust.. but then everything should have been faster and easier than it was today, so maybe it would have been a nightmare instead
The maintenance work itself took about as long as I expected, but it took longer than I expected to pour oil back into the car, and to clean oil and debris around the oil filter housing. The work was pretty easy, especially with a little extra help here and there.
What actually took way too long was the underpanel install. It was cumbersome installing this large thing, and we got hung up on a couple of things that shouldn't have been as difficult as they were. We did get it installed though.. it looks good, and I now finally have my brake ducts secured, since they are dependent on the wheel liners not moving, and the wheel liners are now screwed onto the underpanel.
I'll just have to do the exhaust some other time..
some pics..
after draining the oil. The alternator was a pain to remove without a little extra help.. not difficult though.
alternator out.. power steering pump had to have 3 of its 4 bolts removed in order to take the oil filter housing out
it's out. We noticed a lot of built up oil at the bottom of the gasket, and the gasket itself was pretty hard. So, between that and the oil pipe, and the o-ring for the vanos breather connector that I replaced today, this should eliminate all of the oil leaks.
this shot was after I spent about an hour cleaning as much as I could from around the hole
all of the oil leak culprits removed...
oil filter housing with new gasket installed
the expensive vanos oil pipe and on of the vanos breather lines that was also soaked in oil crud
installing the underpanel. It's meant to be used as a template to drill holes in the bottom of the bumper. We had the panel shift on us slightly when drilling holes though.. so we ended up needing to modify the panel a bit to get some of the studs to come through
finished.. it's in there good
I also got the radiator baffle installed on the underpanel, so air coming through the lower grille is nicely directed toward the radiator. The low temp auxiliary fan switch is also installed now.. which is when I found out that my car has green coolant, and the BMW coolant I bought is blue. *grrrrr*
I should be all ready for the track day this coming Saturday.. once I get the new tires on the car
The maintenance work itself took about as long as I expected, but it took longer than I expected to pour oil back into the car, and to clean oil and debris around the oil filter housing. The work was pretty easy, especially with a little extra help here and there.
What actually took way too long was the underpanel install. It was cumbersome installing this large thing, and we got hung up on a couple of things that shouldn't have been as difficult as they were. We did get it installed though.. it looks good, and I now finally have my brake ducts secured, since they are dependent on the wheel liners not moving, and the wheel liners are now screwed onto the underpanel.
I'll just have to do the exhaust some other time..
some pics..
after draining the oil. The alternator was a pain to remove without a little extra help.. not difficult though.
alternator out.. power steering pump had to have 3 of its 4 bolts removed in order to take the oil filter housing out
it's out. We noticed a lot of built up oil at the bottom of the gasket, and the gasket itself was pretty hard. So, between that and the oil pipe, and the o-ring for the vanos breather connector that I replaced today, this should eliminate all of the oil leaks.
this shot was after I spent about an hour cleaning as much as I could from around the hole
all of the oil leak culprits removed...
oil filter housing with new gasket installed
the expensive vanos oil pipe and on of the vanos breather lines that was also soaked in oil crud
installing the underpanel. It's meant to be used as a template to drill holes in the bottom of the bumper. We had the panel shift on us slightly when drilling holes though.. so we ended up needing to modify the panel a bit to get some of the studs to come through
finished.. it's in there good
I also got the radiator baffle installed on the underpanel, so air coming through the lower grille is nicely directed toward the radiator. The low temp auxiliary fan switch is also installed now.. which is when I found out that my car has green coolant, and the BMW coolant I bought is blue. *grrrrr*
I should be all ready for the track day this coming Saturday.. once I get the new tires on the car
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2007
- Messages
- 5,851
- Location
- Maribor, Slovenia, Europe
- Car(s)
- '89 BMW E30 325iT, '95 BMW E36 318ti compact
Very interesting.
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
took some pics of the TR Motorsport wheels on the car before I put the Kosei's back on. I think I like the look a little better..
rootrider
Mr. TDI SportWagen
so the car is basically ready for track time.. except that the windows won't go down. The organization running the track day will most likely require point-by's out the window, which immediately disqualifies me from running on track if I don't roll the windows down.
I did notice today that the locks don't lock when I turn on the ignition any more.. that was a feature of the alarm. So, I'm hoping that if I pull the alarm it fixes things... maybe. I might have to forgo being at the track this Saturday to spend time pulling the alarm and troubleshooting. I can always go next Saturday instead. I just hope I can fix this.
I did notice today that the locks don't lock when I turn on the ignition any more.. that was a feature of the alarm. So, I'm hoping that if I pull the alarm it fixes things... maybe. I might have to forgo being at the track this Saturday to spend time pulling the alarm and troubleshooting. I can always go next Saturday instead. I just hope I can fix this.