The search for a BMW E66 Barge Borker
Discussion
I had to do a rear wheel bearing on my old E38, it turned out to be the worst job I've ever had the misfortune of doing, ended up having to take the whole hub assembly complete with a few suspension arms to the press! The big nut certainly was the least of my worries!
Good barging so far, loved the bit about locking yourself in the boot, a brave man!
Good barging so far, loved the bit about locking yourself in the boot, a brave man!
Well, back in the boot again.
I have a leek near the battery and the holder with all the different modules in it.
First time i found i had an issue was the dash boing-ing "Levil control system failure".
Great. One side of the suspension was down slightly. ok, new sensor time.
That didn't fix it. Diagnostics out and apparently the module isn't communicating. Took a look, yep. its full of water.
Dried it out. no dice. Reflowed the board. Same.
New ecu time... on to eBay and the prices are eye watering. £200 odd quid for a ropey used one. So have taken a chance on one from the USA. just as ropey but only £40.
hopefully arrive in a few days time, will try to take pictures of the car this time.
I have a leek near the battery and the holder with all the different modules in it.
First time i found i had an issue was the dash boing-ing "Levil control system failure".
Great. One side of the suspension was down slightly. ok, new sensor time.
That didn't fix it. Diagnostics out and apparently the module isn't communicating. Took a look, yep. its full of water.
Dried it out. no dice. Reflowed the board. Same.
New ecu time... on to eBay and the prices are eye watering. £200 odd quid for a ropey used one. So have taken a chance on one from the USA. just as ropey but only £40.
hopefully arrive in a few days time, will try to take pictures of the car this time.
Hereward said:
Great thread.
Why did you replace the conventional battery with an AGM one? Do the AGM ones resist sulphurisation/deep discharge better?
The car kept throwing random errors, and some times a low voltage error. These cars are notoriousley sencitive to batterys. When you replace one, you need to tell the ECU about it so it can run its own charging cycles. NUTS.Why did you replace the conventional battery with an AGM one? Do the AGM ones resist sulphurisation/deep discharge better?
The battery it came with was new, and good. But BMW recommend an AGM battery. So i gave it one.
Not had the same wing wang faults since.
Long term E65 owner here (9 years) and these cars really stand up to abuse well, so if you see a shagged out one, it's REALLY been thrashed. The very early ones had a bad rep, but mine feels tighter than cars with a fraction of the age and mileage.
Mine is a Dec 2005 model and has just ticked round to 130k miles. It's my daily driver and has only ever let me down once, when the starter motor crapped out. The list of bork isn't extensive for nearly a decade:
- starter motor - £200
- torque converter - £1500 (this hurt a bit)
- button to open the armrest (phone charger lives in there, so pressed a lot) (£100)
- xenon headlight leveler mechanism - £150
Apart from that it's just been regular maintenance, like discs, pads, fluids etc which are very reasonable from somewhere like ECP, even for OEM quality Pagid stuff.
I'm very fortunate to have an AMAZING indie, a former BMW master tech, who is totally unfazed by these big beasts and has had all the training on them. I really wouldn't want to be using a back street have-a-go hero with an E65.
Yours looks nicely specced, and with a proper engine too!
Mine is a Dec 2005 model and has just ticked round to 130k miles. It's my daily driver and has only ever let me down once, when the starter motor crapped out. The list of bork isn't extensive for nearly a decade:
- starter motor - £200
- torque converter - £1500 (this hurt a bit)
- button to open the armrest (phone charger lives in there, so pressed a lot) (£100)
- xenon headlight leveler mechanism - £150
Apart from that it's just been regular maintenance, like discs, pads, fluids etc which are very reasonable from somewhere like ECP, even for OEM quality Pagid stuff.
I'm very fortunate to have an AMAZING indie, a former BMW master tech, who is totally unfazed by these big beasts and has had all the training on them. I really wouldn't want to be using a back street have-a-go hero with an E65.
Yours looks nicely specced, and with a proper engine too!
Car is now off being repaired. Getting the dent / scrape down the side fixed. Also having the wheels refurbished at the same time.
Then it will be time to spruce up the callipers with some silver paint. Re-Colour the leather and maybe carbon fibre the wooden bits in the dash.
I also need to flatten off (Sand) one side of the car to get it to shine properly.
Then once its just the way i like it, will probably sell it.
Then it will be time to spruce up the callipers with some silver paint. Re-Colour the leather and maybe carbon fibre the wooden bits in the dash.
I also need to flatten off (Sand) one side of the car to get it to shine properly.
Then once its just the way i like it, will probably sell it.
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