BMW E46 330d SE Touring
Discussion
I have ordered a gen BMW lower arm as I’m not happy with the Febi Bilstein one. When I changed the track rods I also found the steering rack was leaking. I have a used rack to fit when the lower arm arrives.
At least the rack is quick to change, five bolts and the track rods to unbolt, sorted.
At least the rack is quick to change, five bolts and the track rods to unbolt, sorted.
Just changed the o/s control arm so there’s a matching pair on. I put a Lemforder Sport spec one on to match the gen BMW one on the n/s.
Shame it’s a waste of a new control arm rear bush. The moral of the story is always replace control arms in pairs.
There was an axle stand present. It’s not in the pics.
Shame it’s a waste of a new control arm rear bush. The moral of the story is always replace control arms in pairs.
There was an axle stand present. It’s not in the pics.
Today I changed some more boost hoses, there’s only one BMW one left now. That’s the egr valve one, which is a pain to do with the manifold on.
Old hoses:
New hoses in situ:
The new air mass meter has given a good improvement in low rev response and the car feels more powerful overall too.
I also changed the boost valve for a later one as I had a spare one.
Old hoses:
New hoses in situ:
The new air mass meter has given a good improvement in low rev response and the car feels more powerful overall too.
I also changed the boost valve for a later one as I had a spare one.
Oh dear. The car failed to proceed today, lost power, then stalled, would not restart.
Fortunately I was able to coast safely off the dual carriageway.
Any guesses as to the cause:
I plugged Carly in:
These faults can be caused by failed under floor pump, that had been replaced by the last owner and I could hear it priming with ign on.
They can be caused by faulty rail pressure sensor or plug-but normally only on the very early M57s.
Next option: out of fuel, have I lost at “range roulette”?
Yes, a 100m walk to the petrol station and 5l diesel, sorted.
24 miles! It lies.
Fortunately I was able to coast safely off the dual carriageway.
Any guesses as to the cause:
I plugged Carly in:
These faults can be caused by failed under floor pump, that had been replaced by the last owner and I could hear it priming with ign on.
They can be caused by faulty rail pressure sensor or plug-but normally only on the very early M57s.
Next option: out of fuel, have I lost at “range roulette”?
Yes, a 100m walk to the petrol station and 5l diesel, sorted.
24 miles! It lies.
Compared to my last 330d, this one has better bodywork, the other one handled slightly better as it had H&R springs and Bilstein B8 front dampers, I think this one is about as quick as the last one now, it may or may not be as economical-hard to tell at the moment as I’m doing fewer miles.
My wife has banned me from lowering this one, a pair of B6s on the front would make for a much better ride though. I can’t justify them though as it has quite recent new Sachs dampers all round.
My wife has banned me from lowering this one, a pair of B6s on the front would make for a much better ride though. I can’t justify them though as it has quite recent new Sachs dampers all round.
[quote=daniel-5zjw7] can you tell me is it just a top and bottom each side, the top being a standard replacement ball joint and the lower being a bush that you replace with a e46 m3 ball joint. Is it as simple as that.
Pretty much, the upper ball joint is replaced with a new ball joint and the lower bush is replaced with an identical ball joint to the upper. The lower ball joint is used on the E46 M3 (I think the E36 M3 too) but it’s actually the same part as the upper one on all E46s.
Pretty much, the upper ball joint is replaced with a new ball joint and the lower bush is replaced with an identical ball joint to the upper. The lower ball joint is used on the E46 M3 (I think the E36 M3 too) but it’s actually the same part as the upper one on all E46s.
I changed the fuel filter as I had one on the shelf and had run out of fuel the other day. It was also a chance to repaint the cooler/filter bracket as it was rusty.
It’s far from the best paint job as the rust was rather crusty. It’s better than it was and better than £30/40 ish BMW charge for a new one:
New filter is a Mahle, replacing the last one which was a Mahle with BMW stamped on it.
It’s far from the best paint job as the rust was rather crusty. It’s better than it was and better than £30/40 ish BMW charge for a new one:
New filter is a Mahle, replacing the last one which was a Mahle with BMW stamped on it.
ndg said:
Just catching up on your thread.
Z4M LCA bushes fit the E46 nicely and give a bit more castor, in the same way that M3 bushes do on E30's.
The m-sport arms have the same geometry as standard arms, but don't have the isolated ball joint, so should be swapped in pairs if switching style (I see you've done this now, but just for anyone reading in future).
Good tip re the Z4 bushes, I did buy a pair for my last 330. I changed my mind on fitting them as I liked the handling and steering as they were so sold them on. Z4M LCA bushes fit the E46 nicely and give a bit more castor, in the same way that M3 bushes do on E30's.
The m-sport arms have the same geometry as standard arms, but don't have the isolated ball joint, so should be swapped in pairs if switching style (I see you've done this now, but just for anyone reading in future).
20 years of fixing them, several years of owning a BMW specialist garage and owning three tends to make for a good spares selection!
Bumped into my friend with my old 328 today:
It could do with new rear arches as I paid someone do grind and paint them rather full new arches like I put on my last 330.
Bumped into my friend with my old 328 today:
It could do with new rear arches as I paid someone do grind and paint them rather full new arches like I put on my last 330.
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