der Mumienwagen; E91 330i Touring
Discussion
peak BMW design right there. 
cerb4.5lee said:
It is great to see the N52 doing the business for you Sam with that mileage for sure. 
It is still one of the most smooth engines that I've ever had for definite.
It’s seems to be running well and has lapped up some long trips with the Lakes at the weekend and Holyhead today. We’re heading to the Peaks this Werner too, so it’ll have racked up over a thousand miles in a week. It is still one of the most smooth engines that I've ever had for definite.
It’s proving to be a good workhorse.
Not a good day with the 330i today.
After I’d finished the rear suspension on my Z4 I decided to tackle the long over due interim oil change.
Ready to go
It was after the old oil drained that it all went tits up…I went to refitted the sump plug with a new washer and it wouldn’t tighten. s
t.
Popped into the garage and found a different plug and some BMW washes. That seemed to nip up fine, so I filled it with oil ran it to temp. All fine. Turned the car off and went inside for a drink / rest and came out to notice a slight drip from the sump plug. Tits. Looks like the threads have gone which is super annoying because I’m always careful to use a torque wrench and torque to 25NM as per TIS.
Currently weighing up my options; so I attempt to tap it to an M13 plug and use the fresh oil input in today as a flush or so I bite the bullet and get the sump replaced (which is weeping a wee bit).
After I’d finished the rear suspension on my Z4 I decided to tackle the long over due interim oil change.
Ready to go
It was after the old oil drained that it all went tits up…I went to refitted the sump plug with a new washer and it wouldn’t tighten. s
t. Popped into the garage and found a different plug and some BMW washes. That seemed to nip up fine, so I filled it with oil ran it to temp. All fine. Turned the car off and went inside for a drink / rest and came out to notice a slight drip from the sump plug. Tits. Looks like the threads have gone which is super annoying because I’m always careful to use a torque wrench and torque to 25NM as per TIS.
Currently weighing up my options; so I attempt to tap it to an M13 plug and use the fresh oil input in today as a flush or so I bite the bullet and get the sump replaced (which is weeping a wee bit).
Mr Tidy said:
That's not good news. 
Might it be worth getting the sump off then tapping the thread to M13 rather than replacing it?
My 330i seems to be leaking from the sump gasket, but for now I just keep topping it up!
Removing the sump is a big old job, so I’m going to attempt to tap it in situ and use the 15 litres of old oil I have as a flush to remove the swarf (and hope for the best).Might it be worth getting the sump off then tapping the thread to M13 rather than replacing it?
My 330i seems to be leaking from the sump gasket, but for now I just keep topping it up!
Having both cars out of action (mine is just waiting for an alignment) means that I’m not that popular tonight.
cerb4.5lee said:
I've given up completely now trying to be popular with my missus, because regardless of what I do, she always finds something to be disappointed about!
Relationships eh?(or kids!). Who'd have them?!
It’s just as well we don’t live in a small village slightly out in the sticks…..oh.
Amazon eventually delivered my sump repair kit this evening and I had just enough daylight to have a crack at it. Amazon’s finest Chineseoum…
I covered the tap in Vaseline to catch the swarf. Once I run the tap though the sump drain hole I dropped 3 or 4 litres of random 5W 30 oil from half used containers and I couldn’t see any swarf of metal flakes in the catch can.
Feeling confident I torqued up a new M13 x 1.5 bolt with a washer, using my new Halfords Advanced torque Erin h which was loads better than the one I had been using.
I chucked a coupe of litre of fresh oil in the car and let it sit for a bit to check that the sump was sealing and there were no drips….there weren’t. Happy days.
I then chucked in just over six litres of Petronas oil and it started fine.
I’ll check the sump drain in a few days time to check it’s all ok. It needs a good clean too because it’s a bit messy from the last one leaking. Draining the last of the oil tonight was a bit messy because of the wind too.
I covered the tap in Vaseline to catch the swarf. Once I run the tap though the sump drain hole I dropped 3 or 4 litres of random 5W 30 oil from half used containers and I couldn’t see any swarf of metal flakes in the catch can.
Feeling confident I torqued up a new M13 x 1.5 bolt with a washer, using my new Halfords Advanced torque Erin h which was loads better than the one I had been using.
I chucked a coupe of litre of fresh oil in the car and let it sit for a bit to check that the sump was sealing and there were no drips….there weren’t. Happy days.
I then chucked in just over six litres of Petronas oil and it started fine.
I’ll check the sump drain in a few days time to check it’s all ok. It needs a good clean too because it’s a bit messy from the last one leaking. Draining the last of the oil tonight was a bit messy because of the wind too.
d_a_n1979 said:
Sounds like a good job well done Sam; fingers crossed that's it sorted
Definitely…I was fighting the light tonight so no chance for pics etc. I’ll have a look under the car this weekend and soak the area in brake cleaner. That way I’ll know after if it’s fixed or weeping.
Slightly more successful day with the 330i finally getting round to doing the spring detail. I had a supervisor this morning, who kept a close eye on my from puppy prison in the garage.
When I started, it looked like this (it was on the jack so I could wash the under tray after the oil spillage last week).
Soaking in Garage Therapy Zero to break down any of the old wax still left.
It was rinsed and washed before being soaked with fall out remover.
After it was washed and dried again and I was happy that there were no more tar spots etc, it was time to break out the DA. I used a Koch Chemie heavy polish with a heavy cutting pad to start with.
Part way through my DA stopped working but luckily I remembered where I’d put the spare motor brushes. A few minutes of faf later and I was good to go. I then went over the car with a Koch Chemie fine pad and micro-cutting paste before wiping the whole car down with panel wipe. I then applied a layer of Fusso Coat which was later topped of with a layer of Kiwami Extreme.
Glass done, interior vac’d etc. I did have a set of new centre caps but they might have ended up on my Z4 the other week. Luckily the centre caps that came with my 261’s are in ok shape and much better than the ones on the car, so they were popped in. The willingness to spend another £48 on centre caps is low at the moment, so these will do.
I need to remove the wheels at some point to clean the wheel arches and do the inner sides of the wheels but I ran out of time / motivation. The car scrubs up well considering it’s ticked over 172k recently.
Pretty please with the paint overall now. It’s pretty much swirl free, it’s just deeper scratches and chips now. I’m basically fighting against its previous life where it was used as truck and its age.
The sump repair appears to be holding up too. The oil on the under tray is too clean to have come from the sump, so it’s the spilt oil still making its escape.
When I started, it looked like this (it was on the jack so I could wash the under tray after the oil spillage last week).
Soaking in Garage Therapy Zero to break down any of the old wax still left.
It was rinsed and washed before being soaked with fall out remover.
After it was washed and dried again and I was happy that there were no more tar spots etc, it was time to break out the DA. I used a Koch Chemie heavy polish with a heavy cutting pad to start with.
Part way through my DA stopped working but luckily I remembered where I’d put the spare motor brushes. A few minutes of faf later and I was good to go. I then went over the car with a Koch Chemie fine pad and micro-cutting paste before wiping the whole car down with panel wipe. I then applied a layer of Fusso Coat which was later topped of with a layer of Kiwami Extreme.
Glass done, interior vac’d etc. I did have a set of new centre caps but they might have ended up on my Z4 the other week. Luckily the centre caps that came with my 261’s are in ok shape and much better than the ones on the car, so they were popped in. The willingness to spend another £48 on centre caps is low at the moment, so these will do.
I need to remove the wheels at some point to clean the wheel arches and do the inner sides of the wheels but I ran out of time / motivation. The car scrubs up well considering it’s ticked over 172k recently.
Pretty please with the paint overall now. It’s pretty much swirl free, it’s just deeper scratches and chips now. I’m basically fighting against its previous life where it was used as truck and its age.
The sump repair appears to be holding up too. The oil on the under tray is too clean to have come from the sump, so it’s the spilt oil still making its escape.
Gallons Per Mile said:
Wow, as always I'm very impressed with how clean you keep your cars. I'll have to take notes on which products you're using and try to replicate for my new shed. Good fix on the sump plug too. They're a bugger when they strip like that.
Cheers. The pics are quite flattering, hiding the deeper marks that I can’t get shot of.Yeah, I was gutted when the sump stripped. It’s good that it seems to be holding up….it was a good excuse to buy a properly good torque wrench though.
buy_cheap_pay_later said:
Good work on the sump. What a bugger.
Yours is on a similar mileage to my trusty Skoda vRS, but looks a thousand times better! Might have something to do with my not being arsed to clean it ever.
Cheers. It was a proper ‘oh sYours is on a similar mileage to my trusty Skoda vRS, but looks a thousand times better! Might have something to do with my not being arsed to clean it ever.
t’ moment when it went especially knowing that dropping the sump on these is a bit of a pain in the arse.Ticked off some jobs on the 330i today.
The sump repair appears to be holding well enough; the oil level hasn’t dropped since it was sorted. There are no drips under the car on the floor but there are still some minor signs of oil around the the access flap on the undertray. Albeit it looked like that before the sump thread gave up the ghost.
Anyway, today it was time to replace the stty TRW dampers that I fitted last summer with some Bilstein B4’s. Lesson definitely learnt there. I decided that it would be a good time to replace the upper arms whilst the car was on stands.
Stating the disassembly of the boot
I soon had access to the top mounts. It was much easier taking the boot apart this time.
One of the bushes pressed into the arm wasn’t looking too clever.
And out.
It was about this point that we had a biblical downpour, so there was a great deal panic getting tools etc into the garage. Luckily it only last about 20 minutes but my picture taking slowed right down after.
New arms and dampers fitted.
Once both sides were done, I cleaned out the rear arches which were caked in crap after just a year.
The the arches washed out and the wheels back on, I have it a quick wash.
Hopefully this will go some way to dealing with the slightly wallowy, soft rear end. I think those TRW dampers had a lot to answer for. I’m almost hoping that it’ll stop the car sitting on its arse so quickly when loaded (we’re going camping at the back end of the week).
At some point this month I’ll fit the M3 front arms and get it aligned agin.
It’s MOT time in a few weeks and then before we go on holiday in August, I want to make sure the CCV is replaced because some or the hoses look a bit shagged.
The sump repair appears to be holding well enough; the oil level hasn’t dropped since it was sorted. There are no drips under the car on the floor but there are still some minor signs of oil around the the access flap on the undertray. Albeit it looked like that before the sump thread gave up the ghost.
Anyway, today it was time to replace the s
tty TRW dampers that I fitted last summer with some Bilstein B4’s. Lesson definitely learnt there. I decided that it would be a good time to replace the upper arms whilst the car was on stands. Stating the disassembly of the boot
I soon had access to the top mounts. It was much easier taking the boot apart this time.
One of the bushes pressed into the arm wasn’t looking too clever.
And out.
It was about this point that we had a biblical downpour, so there was a great deal panic getting tools etc into the garage. Luckily it only last about 20 minutes but my picture taking slowed right down after.
New arms and dampers fitted.
Once both sides were done, I cleaned out the rear arches which were caked in crap after just a year.
The the arches washed out and the wheels back on, I have it a quick wash.
Hopefully this will go some way to dealing with the slightly wallowy, soft rear end. I think those TRW dampers had a lot to answer for. I’m almost hoping that it’ll stop the car sitting on its arse so quickly when loaded (we’re going camping at the back end of the week).
At some point this month I’ll fit the M3 front arms and get it aligned agin.
It’s MOT time in a few weeks and then before we go on holiday in August, I want to make sure the CCV is replaced because some or the hoses look a bit shagged.
d_a_n1979 said:
More good work there Sam. Deffo not the weather here to be working on cars... We're top if a big hill and still under water haha
One thing I really like re the F31 is that none of the interior needs to come apart for suspension.
The top mounts are all bolted from underneath on the rear. Makes life much easier...
Cheers Dan. One thing I really like re the F31 is that none of the interior needs to come apart for suspension.
The top mounts are all bolted from underneath on the rear. Makes life much easier...
Aside from the biblical downpour yesterday it wasn’t too bad, today is looking like a different story though!
My M140i was the same with the top mounts accessed from the underside of the wheel arch. I do wonder how much of a pig they’ll be though once they’re 15 years old and a bit crusty underneath.
Jhonno said:
Having just done this on my mum's 120d.. It's worth doing the ball joint and bush in the hub also.. Toe arms are an easy job too.
I know, after fighting with the RTAB on the Z4 my appetite for tackling those is low…I’ll see how I feel when I do the M3 arms (I’ve got the parts left over from my 130i) including the tow arms. We’ve not long got back from a trip to Wales camping and the 330i was a great companion (again). It needed a wee tip up for oil when we got home (250ml) to get it back to full. Oil usage is about the same as it was before the issue with the sump plug.
A slightly heavier oil hasn’t made any difference by the looks of it (I accidentally bought 5W 40).
Hard to say if it drives any better because it was very very full! A tent, plus camping gear, food, beer and a paddle board meant that there were few opportunities to enjoy the roads.
A slightly heavier oil hasn’t made any difference by the looks of it (I accidentally bought 5W 40).
Hard to say if it drives any better because it was very very full! A tent, plus camping gear, food, beer and a paddle board meant that there were few opportunities to enjoy the roads.
We’ve not long got back from a trip to Wales camping and the 330i was a great companion (again). It needed a wee tip up for oil when we got home (250ml) to get it back to full. Oil usage is about the same as it was before the issue with the sump plug.
A slightly heavier oil hasn’t made any difference by the looks of it (I accidentally bought 5W 40).
Hard to say if it drives any better because it was very very full! A tent, plus camping gear, food, beer and a paddle board meant that there were few opportunities to enjoy the roads.
A slightly heavier oil hasn’t made any difference by the looks of it (I accidentally bought 5W 40).
Hard to say if it drives any better because it was very very full! A tent, plus camping gear, food, beer and a paddle board meant that there were few opportunities to enjoy the roads.
d_a_n1979 said:
Sounds a good run that Sam 
Where abouts where you?
We've a week off in early July before schools break up; thinking of 4 nights down on Anglesey at Kingsbridge camping site near to Beaumaris..
Then again I was looking at Cala Do'r in Majorca again too this morning...
A week away in the sun for pure R&R is more appealing...
We stayed at Llyn Gwynant, it’s a big, busy campsite but you wake up looking at Snowdon and have a lake literally on the doorstep. Where abouts where you?
We've a week off in early July before schools break up; thinking of 4 nights down on Anglesey at Kingsbridge camping site near to Beaumaris..
Then again I was looking at Cala Do'r in Majorca again too this morning...
A week away in the sun for pure R&R is more appealing...
We headed up to Porth Trecastell near Anglesey (you’d have thought that I’d have had enough of being that way but the beaches are lovely and generally pretty quiet).
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