MDifficult’s E82 1M Coupe & Ariel Atom 3
Discussion
Court_S said:
The M5 bills don’t look to scary…even lesser BMW’s are quite capable of racking up some chunky bills especially at a main dealer. And let’s face it, you never expect an M car to be cheap to run.
I think it's one of those 'could have been better, but could have been MUCH worse' moments 
Court_S said:
Sounds like you lucked out with the buyer. The chancers can be annoying but they can be funny too. I had one after my other half’s old 1 series. He clearly knew it was a good little car because he keep on and on at me, telling me how old never get what I wanted etc. Twenty four hours later it was gone….for the asking price!
Yeah, still very happy with the sale in hindsight which is always a good sign.Court_S said:
Your MINI is a conundrum. It looks ace and is a car you obviously enjoy it but its scope for use is quite limited especially compared to something like a GR (which you probably wouldn’t loose much cash on either).
Yeah, I think that's the issue really. I just don't have the time or organisational skills to attend more than half a dozen track days a year so making sure the car is fit and ready each time is just additional hassle. Something like a Yaris would just be 'show up, have fun, go home'. But, I would miss it a lot and tinkering with it is certainly part of its appeal. Well, not one to linger too long on a decision, I've decided to keep the MINI for at least another season. On that basis, let the tinkering begin!
I've ordered a bunch of bits that should give me some stuff to get on with...
Wheel Bearings. This'll push the limits of my spannering ability so we'll see how it goes. I've ordered all four corners and will either change them one by one until the noise goes away or just change them all on a preventative basis. Prepare for tales of skinned knuckles.
Brake cooling ducts. JDH customs do a fantastic set of 3D printed ducts that fit like factory and use the existing front fog holes, so I've ordered a set. The fit looks amazing but does require some trimming of the arch liner and the radiator mount. Proper 'racecar' mod this one
Handbrake console. The current handbrake surround has a number of broken clips on the underside so just sort-of floats and clatters around. As you may have noticed, things like this bug me so an 'as new' replacement from eBay for £10 is on its way.
Center console 'pipes'. These are the vertical 'pipes' either side of the stereo, AC controls etc. The ones on my car are silver and very battered. Ordered an 'as new' set of anthracite ones from eBay again for £14 delivered.
Replacement Sunstrip. The current one is starting to get really tatty so I've got a replacement for that on it's way too.
One of the joys of R53 ownership is that they made millions of them and so many of them are reaching the point where they're heading off for breaking, you can get good quality parts for absolute peanuts.
I've ordered a bunch of bits that should give me some stuff to get on with...
Wheel Bearings. This'll push the limits of my spannering ability so we'll see how it goes. I've ordered all four corners and will either change them one by one until the noise goes away or just change them all on a preventative basis. Prepare for tales of skinned knuckles.
Brake cooling ducts. JDH customs do a fantastic set of 3D printed ducts that fit like factory and use the existing front fog holes, so I've ordered a set. The fit looks amazing but does require some trimming of the arch liner and the radiator mount. Proper 'racecar' mod this one
Handbrake console. The current handbrake surround has a number of broken clips on the underside so just sort-of floats and clatters around. As you may have noticed, things like this bug me so an 'as new' replacement from eBay for £10 is on its way.
Center console 'pipes'. These are the vertical 'pipes' either side of the stereo, AC controls etc. The ones on my car are silver and very battered. Ordered an 'as new' set of anthracite ones from eBay again for £14 delivered.
Replacement Sunstrip. The current one is starting to get really tatty so I've got a replacement for that on it's way too.
One of the joys of R53 ownership is that they made millions of them and so many of them are reaching the point where they're heading off for breaking, you can get good quality parts for absolute peanuts.
Court_S said:
Good to hear that it’s sticking around for the foreseeable; it looks like a lot if fun.
How’s life without the M5?
I need to be careful how I answer this one, as I might come across as a bit of a soppy bHow’s life without the M5?
h On a practical level, I don't miss it at all actually. Right now I'm walking everywhere and driving so little that using the 1M for any 'mundane' stuff is fine and its really nice to use it a little more regularly. On an emotional level though... really miss it - it was such a reassuring feature of family life for a long time and it still surprises me when I step out of the front door and it's not there!
With the appalling weather making any outdoor activities pointless, it was an ideal weekend to crack on with the MINI. The wheel bearings haven't arrived yet but I managed to get all the other jobs done, without breaking anything or myself... result!
I started with something nice and simple by replacing the knackered handbrake surround. A number of the attachment points were snapped off the existing one meaning gravity alone was holding it in place. The new one arrived from eBay and I had some fresh clips lying around so..
Before (once the old one removed)...
..and after. Much better!
Next up were the centre console 'pipes'. My car still has the silver pipes however almost all the rest of the interior has been changed to either anthracite or carbon, so I picked up a set of anthracite pipes from eBay. They're from a facelift model I think so required a teeny bit of Dremel action around the bottom to fit.
Before...
...new £7 pipe, with BMW anti-noise tape liberally applied...
..and after. Again, much better. I'm on role so far!
With two easy jobs tackled I thought I've move up to something a little more challenging - replacing the ageing sun strip. Removing was a doddle using Mrs M's hairdryer...
...all gone. Followed this with a good clean of isopropyl alcohol (as the per the instructions)...
...now to fit the new one. Liberal application of warm water and a drop of Fair liquid from a spray bottle and then squeegee. Like many things in life, this would have been much easier with three hands but got there in the end. Not bad!
Fitting the strip meant lots of water sprayed all over the front of the roof of the car which made me realise quite what a state it was in. 125k miles meant the paint was looked decidedly flat. For no good reason I can think of, I decided to wash, clay bar, machine cut and polish then seal the roof. Of a track car. Does it look good? Yes. Was it pointless? Also yes.
Truth is, the work on the roof has been a time consuming but easy job to put off fitting the brake ducts I'd ordered. But with all these jobs successfully completed it was time to do something that required actual spannering!
I'd ordered a set of 3D printed brake cooling ducts from a chap called JDH Customs. He's been honing the design for a while and now they're a fantastic 'almost OEM' fit that replaces the front fogs. Here's what they look like:
I was really impressed with the kit when they arrived (these aren't mine - I ordered a set without the 'bullet' on the front) - everything looked relatively easy so I decided to crack on. I decided to tackle the trickier drivers-side one first as it's a tight fit with both the pipes for my external oil cooler and the crank pulley and supercharger belt in very close proximity
First up.. crash bar and oil cooler off to move lines out of the way.
...onto stands and wheel off...
Remove wheel arch liner...
Gave everything a good clean while I was there. Love how the power-coated subframe etc really show the efforts of the original builder. A 'normal' 125k mile MINI would look very different from this angle
Mark hole #1. Most people I've seen fit these just cut a great big square hole. But, I'm a neat freak and went for an oval hole to match the pipe. Plus, a lack of corners keeps a lot more strength in the piece itself, with no weak points to crack..
Yoink! No going back now..
...and cut hole #2, sand down the holes and give everything a good vacuum..
...push my pipe in (fnarr, fnarr)...
...add the outlet (this 3D printed part is really clever, fits rock-solid in place because it has a recess on the bottom for the sub frame bolt and a tab on the left that slots into a hole on the upright of the subframe. Three cable ties and it doesn't move a mm...
...add the inlet trumpet (again, thanks to 3D printing this fits perfectly onto the existing hardware for the fog light)...
...re-fit the arch liner after cutting a small recess for the outlet (which blows on the middle of the disc and the calliper)...
...the passenger side was much easier as there's a lot more room but again, the parts fit perfectly...
...liner back on...
...Wheel back on. How good does this look?...
..and refitted the bumper. The option is there to enlarge the bumper hole if I want to at a later date but lets see how we go.
I think that's enough for one weekend. Considering I'm not the most mechanically capable person, it's always good to end on a high, with all the jobs done, nothing broken, and still got all my fingers! Next time... wheel bearings
I started with something nice and simple by replacing the knackered handbrake surround. A number of the attachment points were snapped off the existing one meaning gravity alone was holding it in place. The new one arrived from eBay and I had some fresh clips lying around so..
Before (once the old one removed)...
..and after. Much better!
Next up were the centre console 'pipes'. My car still has the silver pipes however almost all the rest of the interior has been changed to either anthracite or carbon, so I picked up a set of anthracite pipes from eBay. They're from a facelift model I think so required a teeny bit of Dremel action around the bottom to fit.
Before...
...new £7 pipe, with BMW anti-noise tape liberally applied...
..and after. Again, much better. I'm on role so far!
With two easy jobs tackled I thought I've move up to something a little more challenging - replacing the ageing sun strip. Removing was a doddle using Mrs M's hairdryer...
...all gone. Followed this with a good clean of isopropyl alcohol (as the per the instructions)...
...now to fit the new one. Liberal application of warm water and a drop of Fair liquid from a spray bottle and then squeegee. Like many things in life, this would have been much easier with three hands but got there in the end. Not bad!
Fitting the strip meant lots of water sprayed all over the front of the roof of the car which made me realise quite what a state it was in. 125k miles meant the paint was looked decidedly flat. For no good reason I can think of, I decided to wash, clay bar, machine cut and polish then seal the roof. Of a track car. Does it look good? Yes. Was it pointless? Also yes.
Truth is, the work on the roof has been a time consuming but easy job to put off fitting the brake ducts I'd ordered. But with all these jobs successfully completed it was time to do something that required actual spannering!
I'd ordered a set of 3D printed brake cooling ducts from a chap called JDH Customs. He's been honing the design for a while and now they're a fantastic 'almost OEM' fit that replaces the front fogs. Here's what they look like:
I was really impressed with the kit when they arrived (these aren't mine - I ordered a set without the 'bullet' on the front) - everything looked relatively easy so I decided to crack on. I decided to tackle the trickier drivers-side one first as it's a tight fit with both the pipes for my external oil cooler and the crank pulley and supercharger belt in very close proximity
First up.. crash bar and oil cooler off to move lines out of the way.
...onto stands and wheel off...
Remove wheel arch liner...
Gave everything a good clean while I was there. Love how the power-coated subframe etc really show the efforts of the original builder. A 'normal' 125k mile MINI would look very different from this angle
Mark hole #1. Most people I've seen fit these just cut a great big square hole. But, I'm a neat freak and went for an oval hole to match the pipe. Plus, a lack of corners keeps a lot more strength in the piece itself, with no weak points to crack..
Yoink! No going back now..
...and cut hole #2, sand down the holes and give everything a good vacuum..
...push my pipe in (fnarr, fnarr)...
...add the outlet (this 3D printed part is really clever, fits rock-solid in place because it has a recess on the bottom for the sub frame bolt and a tab on the left that slots into a hole on the upright of the subframe. Three cable ties and it doesn't move a mm...
...add the inlet trumpet (again, thanks to 3D printing this fits perfectly onto the existing hardware for the fog light)...
...re-fit the arch liner after cutting a small recess for the outlet (which blows on the middle of the disc and the calliper)...
...the passenger side was much easier as there's a lot more room but again, the parts fit perfectly...
...liner back on...
...Wheel back on. How good does this look?...
..and refitted the bumper. The option is there to enlarge the bumper hole if I want to at a later date but lets see how we go.
I think that's enough for one weekend. Considering I'm not the most mechanically capable person, it's always good to end on a high, with all the jobs done, nothing broken, and still got all my fingers! Next time... wheel bearings
Court_S said:
Good work…not much else to do in this utterly filthy weather that we’ve had this weekend.
Cheers - it was a lovely weekend really, just tinkering like some old fella with a Frog-eye Sprite I love doing jobs when I have all the right tools, those tools are where I left them, where I've actually bought the right materials, and everything goes as it should. But, as we all know, those jobs are rare indeed! I've never done wheel bearings before but again, pretty sure I've got all the right stuff and know how to do it - and doing something for the first time is always an adventure! (it's the second time onwards that feels like 'work').
MDifficult said:
Cheers - it was a lovely weekend really, just tinkering like some old fella with a Frog-eye Sprite
I love doing jobs when I have all the right tools, those tools are where I left them, where I've actually bought the right materials, and everything goes as it should. But, as we all know, those jobs are rare indeed! I've never done wheel bearings before but again, pretty sure I've got all the right stuff and know how to do it - and doing something for the first time is always an adventure! (it's the second time onwards that feels like 'work').
Those jobs are rare indeed! I was flying with my rocker cover gasket replacement until I realised that the bloody cover was cracked. Thank god I was able to leave the car in the garage.I love doing jobs when I have all the right tools, those tools are where I left them, where I've actually bought the right materials, and everything goes as it should. But, as we all know, those jobs are rare indeed! I've never done wheel bearings before but again, pretty sure I've got all the right stuff and know how to do it - and doing something for the first time is always an adventure! (it's the second time onwards that feels like 'work').
It’ll be interesting to see what hiccups both cars chuck up when I start replacing suspension components in a few weeks!
Court_S said:
Those jobs are rare indeed! I was flying with my rocker cover gasket replacement until I realised that the bloody cover was cracked. Thank god I was able to leave the car in the garage.
It’ll be interesting to see what hiccups both cars chuck up when I start replacing suspension components in a few weeks!
You're a lot braver than me - I look at the stuff you do to your cars in awe It’ll be interesting to see what hiccups both cars chuck up when I start replacing suspension components in a few weeks!
I just wish I'd started 'tinkering' earlier in life. I did some stuff like exhausts etc, and installed big stereos, amps and speakers in a bunch of mate's cars, but never got into the really difficult greasy stuff.
Another lovely thing about the R53 is that Youtube is absolutely chock full of really great content. Yes, there's a million 'here's how you change a wheel bearing, by the roadside, using two house bricks and a sovereign ring' but for every 10 of those there's a guy who does a really good, step by step mechanical walk-through of doing it properly.
MDifficult said:
You're a lot braver than me - I look at the stuff you do to your cars in awe
I just wish I'd started 'tinkering' earlier in life. I did some stuff like exhausts etc, and installed big stereos, amps and speakers in a bunch of mate's cars, but never got into the really difficult greasy stuff.
Another lovely thing about the R53 is that Youtube is absolutely chock full of really great content. Yes, there's a million 'here's how you change a wheel bearing, by the roadside, using two house bricks and a sovereign ring' but for every 10 of those there's a guy who does a really good, step by step mechanical walk-through of doing it properly.
Ha ha, I’ve not just start fiddling with my cars now late in life…..I never even pissed about with car stereos when I was 17! I’ve enjoyed it though (even when it goes tits up).I just wish I'd started 'tinkering' earlier in life. I did some stuff like exhausts etc, and installed big stereos, amps and speakers in a bunch of mate's cars, but never got into the really difficult greasy stuff.
Another lovely thing about the R53 is that Youtube is absolutely chock full of really great content. Yes, there's a million 'here's how you change a wheel bearing, by the roadside, using two house bricks and a sovereign ring' but for every 10 of those there's a guy who does a really good, step by step mechanical walk-through of doing it properly.
YouTube has been a saviour for me too.
With the wife and kids out for the evening there were no more excuses for putting off the wheel bearing swap. I'd done everything I could to diagnose which one was creating the 'hum' from driving with my head out the window to jacking up and twirling, rocking and jiggling each wheel. Not a sausage.
In that position I could pay a professional to diagnose or use my incredibly limited spannering skills and just start changing them until I found the culprit. The latter would be cheaper, hopefully fun and teach me something (about myself and the car). Youtube assured me that it was something I could accomplish in my garage with my Halfords socket set and a bit of patience, so why not...
I decided to start with the driver's side rear. Firstly because it seemed the most likely candidate based on my limited diagnosis but also because the rears looked to be easier as no potentially seized driveshaft end to worry about.
With the wheel off, I had to remove the disc bolt without rounding it off and unwind the wheel studs. I'd researched different methods and went for the 'breaker bar through the studs to the ground' method as I didn't have anyone handy to stand on the brakes for me. This worked absolutely fine and I used the two-bolt method to unwind each of the studs no bother...
With the disc and calliper successfully removed I hit my first snag. I should have undone the drop link while the car was on the ground as it was blocking easy access to the hub bolts and now the car was jacked on one side undoing it would be a miserable prospect. Rather than monkeying around with that, I grabbed a trusty spanner instead and pushed it really hard and all good...
With the bolts out, and after a couple of healthy thumps with a soft mallet to break the corrosion still holding the hub to the arm and... bingo! Successfully removed without buggering the wheel speed sensor (again, a key Youtube 'watch out').
I cleaned everything up with a copper brush and whacked on the new wheel hub. Mmmm.. shiny! As my car is a bit of a bitsa it was a tough to make sure I'd ordered the right wheel bearings for the rear. My wheel studs are 12mm (the R53 had 12mm and 14mm in it's lifetime) but also that I was fixing to an R56 rear suspension rather than R53. Once I'd figured that out, and picked from the multitude of brands on offer (I went with FAG who seemed the upper end of quality and I'd actually heard of) I was all good..
'Refitting is a reversal of removal' as the saying goes, so I put everything back together with the new bolts supplied, using a little thread lock and torquing everything to the specs - a process I enjoyed FAR more than removal and one that massively appealed to the pedant in me.
Wheel back on and out for a test drive! Did it fix it? Did it b*llocks! Time to repeat the process on the other side and thankfully it was as easy as the first. Everything came apart without fighting me, and went back to together in the same smooth, simple, correct torque wrench setting way it did before.
Number 2 done, time for a test drive! Did it fix it this time? Nope! Which is amazing when you look at the state of the bearing I pulled off the passenger rear...
Mmmm, crusty!
With the rears changed and no improvement in the 'hum' it was time to tackle the front. Forum expertise had suggested the passenger side front would actually be the most likely culprit as it gets the worst of the weather and the roads so I started there.
Would you believe it but this one went as smoothly as the rears and came apart like a dream! I hammered the locking section of the hub nut out of the way, used the trick with the breaker bar, had my 1m long breaker with 32mm impact socket and the hub nut came off pretty easily. As did the wheel studs, the brake calliper and the disc. The hub even came off the drive shaft and the upright with the minimum of effort...
I cleaned all this up again with the brush, and plonked on the new hub...
Thankfully my torque wrench juuust went up high enough for the hub nut so I could continue my pedantry of doing everything to spec. Happy days..
Wheel back on. Test drive and... GREAT SUCCESS! The hum is banished from the car! I can finally hear the cacophony of other interesting noises it makes in undisturbed clarity
With everything having gone so smoothly by this point, I was convinced that I was some kind of 'natural' at this and therefore there was no point in leaving a job 3/4 done - and I should swap out the last wheel bearing on the driver's side. Right? RIGHT?
You know what's going to happen now don't you... fought me at every turn and took me HOURS
Firstly, the hub nut was done up tight. Very tight. Very, very, ungodly tight. My breaker-bar trick wasn't working (either the bar or the studs were going to shear off - I was putting so much torque through my long breaker bar I was actually lifting the car off the axle stands). I honestly started wondering if hub nuts were 'handed' and I was idiotically doing it up by accident!
I bit of googling assured me that they weren't so I went back to huffing and puffing and failing. Eventually though I hatched a new idea. I have a spare wheel with no centre cap so I put that on the car, lowered it to the ground with the handbrake on and then put the 32mm socket through the hole in the wheel. And gave it EVERYTHING. EV-ER-Y-THING.
How the breaker bar didn't break I've no idea. I honestly can't recall a time where I've exerted every single ounce of my strength over such a short period of time. And then... it moved!
A couple of things happened in very quick succession.. the breaker bar made a 'break' for freedom and nearly bounced off the ceiling. I missed punching myself in the face by about 2mm and my brain immediately jumped to.. I've snapped something expensive!
Thankfully, no. Against all the odds I'd simply undone the hub nut. The unadulterated joy of defeating that little f*cker without the need for borrowing power tools or asking a grownup for help washed over me like a summer holiday!
Hub nut loose it was time to unwind the studs. Two of which were in there so. bloody. tight I basically had to repeat the hub nut experience all over again!
By this point I was absolutely knackered and seriously regretting my decision to do this last corner. But it's always darkest before the dawn and eventually I got everything off. Praise the lord!
Being super-super cautious (I knew I was tired and it would be easy to make a mistake) I put everything back together very slowly, carefully and methodically with the new hub - checking everything twice and revelling in the joy of reassembly...
Job officially jobbed. Phew!
In hindsight, I really enjoyed it but I recognise I was extremely fortunate that the 'difficult' one was the last one and not the first! Goodbye you crusty b*stards!
In that position I could pay a professional to diagnose or use my incredibly limited spannering skills and just start changing them until I found the culprit. The latter would be cheaper, hopefully fun and teach me something (about myself and the car). Youtube assured me that it was something I could accomplish in my garage with my Halfords socket set and a bit of patience, so why not...
I decided to start with the driver's side rear. Firstly because it seemed the most likely candidate based on my limited diagnosis but also because the rears looked to be easier as no potentially seized driveshaft end to worry about.
With the wheel off, I had to remove the disc bolt without rounding it off and unwind the wheel studs. I'd researched different methods and went for the 'breaker bar through the studs to the ground' method as I didn't have anyone handy to stand on the brakes for me. This worked absolutely fine and I used the two-bolt method to unwind each of the studs no bother...
With the disc and calliper successfully removed I hit my first snag. I should have undone the drop link while the car was on the ground as it was blocking easy access to the hub bolts and now the car was jacked on one side undoing it would be a miserable prospect. Rather than monkeying around with that, I grabbed a trusty spanner instead and pushed it really hard
and all good...With the bolts out, and after a couple of healthy thumps with a soft mallet to break the corrosion still holding the hub to the arm and... bingo! Successfully removed without buggering the wheel speed sensor (again, a key Youtube 'watch out').
I cleaned everything up with a copper brush and whacked on the new wheel hub. Mmmm.. shiny! As my car is a bit of a bitsa it was a tough to make sure I'd ordered the right wheel bearings for the rear. My wheel studs are 12mm (the R53 had 12mm and 14mm in it's lifetime) but also that I was fixing to an R56 rear suspension rather than R53. Once I'd figured that out, and picked from the multitude of brands on offer (I went with FAG who seemed the upper end of quality and I'd actually heard of) I was all good..
'Refitting is a reversal of removal' as the saying goes, so I put everything back together with the new bolts supplied, using a little thread lock and torquing everything to the specs - a process I enjoyed FAR more than removal and one that massively appealed to the pedant in me.
Wheel back on and out for a test drive! Did it fix it? Did it b*llocks! Time to repeat the process on the other side and thankfully it was as easy as the first. Everything came apart without fighting me, and went back to together in the same smooth, simple, correct torque wrench setting way it did before.
Number 2 done, time for a test drive! Did it fix it this time? Nope! Which is amazing when you look at the state of the bearing I pulled off the passenger rear...
Mmmm, crusty!
With the rears changed and no improvement in the 'hum' it was time to tackle the front. Forum expertise had suggested the passenger side front would actually be the most likely culprit as it gets the worst of the weather and the roads so I started there.
Would you believe it but this one went as smoothly as the rears and came apart like a dream! I hammered the locking section of the hub nut out of the way, used the trick with the breaker bar, had my 1m long breaker with 32mm impact socket and the hub nut came off pretty easily. As did the wheel studs, the brake calliper and the disc. The hub even came off the drive shaft and the upright with the minimum of effort...
I cleaned all this up again with the brush, and plonked on the new hub...
Thankfully my torque wrench juuust went up high enough for the hub nut so I could continue my pedantry of doing everything to spec. Happy days..
Wheel back on. Test drive and... GREAT SUCCESS! The hum is banished from the car! I can finally hear the cacophony of other interesting noises it makes in undisturbed clarity
With everything having gone so smoothly by this point, I was convinced that I was some kind of 'natural' at this and therefore there was no point in leaving a job 3/4 done - and I should swap out the last wheel bearing on the driver's side. Right? RIGHT?
You know what's going to happen now don't you... fought me at every turn and took me HOURS
Firstly, the hub nut was done up tight. Very tight. Very, very, ungodly tight. My breaker-bar trick wasn't working (either the bar or the studs were going to shear off - I was putting so much torque through my long breaker bar I was actually lifting the car off the axle stands). I honestly started wondering if hub nuts were 'handed' and I was idiotically doing it up by accident!
I bit of googling assured me that they weren't so I went back to huffing and puffing and failing. Eventually though I hatched a new idea. I have a spare wheel with no centre cap so I put that on the car, lowered it to the ground with the handbrake on and then put the 32mm socket through the hole in the wheel. And gave it EVERYTHING. EV-ER-Y-THING.
How the breaker bar didn't break I've no idea. I honestly can't recall a time where I've exerted every single ounce of my strength over such a short period of time. And then... it moved!
A couple of things happened in very quick succession.. the breaker bar made a 'break' for freedom and nearly bounced off the ceiling. I missed punching myself in the face by about 2mm and my brain immediately jumped to.. I've snapped something expensive!
Thankfully, no. Against all the odds I'd simply undone the hub nut. The unadulterated joy of defeating that little f*cker without the need for borrowing power tools or asking a grownup for help washed over me like a summer holiday!
Hub nut loose it was time to unwind the studs. Two of which were in there so. bloody. tight I basically had to repeat the hub nut experience all over again!
By this point I was absolutely knackered and seriously regretting my decision to do this last corner. But it's always darkest before the dawn and eventually I got everything off. Praise the lord!
Being super-super cautious (I knew I was tired and it would be easy to make a mistake) I put everything back together very slowly, carefully and methodically with the new hub - checking everything twice and revelling in the joy of reassembly...
Job officially jobbed. Phew!
In hindsight, I really enjoyed it but I recognise I was extremely fortunate that the 'difficult' one was the last one and not the first! Goodbye you crusty b*stards!
Court_S said:
Good work.
I’ve learned the hard way to take the ease at which jobs can be tackled with a massive pinch of salt. Every made out that the M3 LCA retrofit was easy….was is balls. They’re so bloody snug to fit that it makes you think that it can’t be done!
Cheers! Yeah, there was always this sneaking suspicion that YT was leading me down the garden path. But if a lad in a tracksuit can get it done at the curbside in the dark, I fancied my chances I’ve learned the hard way to take the ease at which jobs can be tackled with a massive pinch of salt. Every made out that the M3 LCA retrofit was easy….was is balls. They’re so bloody snug to fit that it makes you think that it can’t be done!
Now I'm pondering some other potential jobs. One is that it was obvious my rear brake discs are not too long for this world (but that's an easy job now!).
The other is that R53s with big brake kits are notorious for poor pedal feel - as is mine. 50% of the pedal travel is nothing, the next 25% is something and the last 25% is where all the magic happens. Doesn't fill you with confidence and isn't very 'racecar'. Some people go for R56 master cylinder, others go for M3 master cylinder (although recent research suggests that's a very bad move) and still others go for a proper pedal box, AP master cylinder etc. There's talk that the last option can be done while retaining the ABS which really does sound interesting.
Now that's a 'proper' challenge - lots more research required first
MBeemerman said:
Amazing work well done for having the confidence to take the job on !
I know only too well how soul destroying it is when things just won't come apart and everything fights you all the way.
I've just had a similar experience working on my old e21.
Thanks - it's probably more 'misplaced' confidence to be honest! If it had gone proper pair-shaped I would have left it where it is and phoned someone who knows what they're doing to sort it out. If it had been my daily driver then I wouldn't have gone anywhere near it I know only too well how soul destroying it is when things just won't come apart and everything fights you all the way.
I've just had a similar experience working on my old e21.
I can only imagine the challenges are infinitely greater in a 35yo car - good for you!
Really chuffed to be booked onto the first PH track evening at Snetterton in May. Should be good fun!
https://www.pistonheads.com/news/trackdays-pistonh...
MrTouring will also be there!
https://www.pistonheads.com/news/trackdays-pistonh...
MrTouring will also be there!
MDifficult said:
With this big bad boy gone, I thought it might be interesting for any prospective future M5 owners to take a look at what it cost to own during my 6 years and 58,000 miles.
Firstly, depreciation...
Actually, very very good. I think I bought well and sold during a purple-patch for the market.
Total depreciation: £19,500. Sounds like a lot, but absolutely peanuts compared to the first owner who waved goodbye to £50k in 3 years!
But let's be honest, you're not here for the depreciation, you're here for the big bills!
So here we go...
30k miles, my first service was FREE as remainder of service pack (this is where the good news ends)
30k miles, new passenger sun visor (I spotted the glass was cracked after I bought the car) - £100
36k miles, first big bill, rear brake pads and discs, plus replacement rear wheel hub due to Kwikfit cross-thread with previous owner - £1,541
45k miles, BMW replaced both turbos as goodwill, I paid the labour - £1158 (on the bright side, £7k of turbos were FREE!)
48k miles, front bumper re-painted, full PPF, diamond cut wheel refurb and new TPMS sensor - £1,633
50k miles, brake fluid service and both front wheel bearings replaced - £889
61k miles, Full service, spark plugs, filters etc - £895
64k miles, Oxygen sensor replacement, front disc friction rings added, rear diff seals replaced - £1092
68k miles, front discs, front pads and rear pads - £1,252 (I bought the discs and pads online for £1k and paid bmw £252 to install)
74k miles, brake fluid service - £96
76k miles, full service, new door handle (£300!), dipstick recalibration - £965
83k miles, Camshaft sensors replaced - £206
83k miles, Replace all injectors - £2827
84k miles, Bulkhead seal replacement - £612
85k miles, Full service, diff service, spark plugs - £758
Also, 2 full sets of Michelin Pilot SuperSport @£1k each - £2,000
Grand total of... (are you sitting down?)... £16,096 (or £2,682 per year).
Sounds a lot! But some observations to put it into context...
Firstly, approx £2k of that isn't the car's fault. I broke the door handle by pulling it too hard when the door was frozen shut. Kwikfit ruined the wheel-hub and I chose to do the bumper repaint and PPF (a really good decision as the car still looked mint at sale time).
Secondly, I firmly put the camshaft sensors, injectors and bulkhead seal (approx £3,700) down to COVID. I'm absolutely convinced that if i'd been using the car every single day as I had been up until that point, none of them would have been an issue, particularly the bulkhead seal. Sitting idle for months on end just isn't good for cars - regular use is so much better for them.
Lastly, BMW picking up the tab for the turbos was a real win. Otherwise it would have looked a LOT more painful. Mainly though, it's all the things you expect, brakes, pads, servicing, seals, sensors and tyres, plus the desire to maintain a full BMW Service History.
Footnote: Let's not mention the 12,000 litres of Super Unleaded. And the £5k of tax & insurance
But either way, it was totally worth it. What a brilliant car, never let me down and looked after my family and I in style...
The real metric is cost per mile (except for the tax, everything is roughly mileage related)Firstly, depreciation...
Actually, very very good. I think I bought well and sold during a purple-patch for the market.
Total depreciation: £19,500. Sounds like a lot, but absolutely peanuts compared to the first owner who waved goodbye to £50k in 3 years!
But let's be honest, you're not here for the depreciation, you're here for the big bills!
So here we go...
30k miles, my first service was FREE as remainder of service pack (this is where the good news ends)
30k miles, new passenger sun visor (I spotted the glass was cracked after I bought the car) - £100
36k miles, first big bill, rear brake pads and discs, plus replacement rear wheel hub due to Kwikfit cross-thread with previous owner - £1,541
45k miles, BMW replaced both turbos as goodwill, I paid the labour - £1158 (on the bright side, £7k of turbos were FREE!)
48k miles, front bumper re-painted, full PPF, diamond cut wheel refurb and new TPMS sensor - £1,633
50k miles, brake fluid service and both front wheel bearings replaced - £889
61k miles, Full service, spark plugs, filters etc - £895
64k miles, Oxygen sensor replacement, front disc friction rings added, rear diff seals replaced - £1092
68k miles, front discs, front pads and rear pads - £1,252 (I bought the discs and pads online for £1k and paid bmw £252 to install)
74k miles, brake fluid service - £96
76k miles, full service, new door handle (£300!), dipstick recalibration - £965
83k miles, Camshaft sensors replaced - £206
83k miles, Replace all injectors - £2827
84k miles, Bulkhead seal replacement - £612
85k miles, Full service, diff service, spark plugs - £758
Also, 2 full sets of Michelin Pilot SuperSport @£1k each - £2,000
Grand total of... (are you sitting down?)... £16,096 (or £2,682 per year).
Sounds a lot! But some observations to put it into context...
Firstly, approx £2k of that isn't the car's fault. I broke the door handle by pulling it too hard when the door was frozen shut. Kwikfit ruined the wheel-hub and I chose to do the bumper repaint and PPF (a really good decision as the car still looked mint at sale time).
Secondly, I firmly put the camshaft sensors, injectors and bulkhead seal (approx £3,700) down to COVID. I'm absolutely convinced that if i'd been using the car every single day as I had been up until that point, none of them would have been an issue, particularly the bulkhead seal. Sitting idle for months on end just isn't good for cars - regular use is so much better for them.
Lastly, BMW picking up the tab for the turbos was a real win. Otherwise it would have looked a LOT more painful. Mainly though, it's all the things you expect, brakes, pads, servicing, seals, sensors and tyres, plus the desire to maintain a full BMW Service History.
Footnote: Let's not mention the 12,000 litres of Super Unleaded. And the £5k of tax & insurance
But either way, it was totally worth it. What a brilliant car, never let me down and looked after my family and I in style...
Depreciation £19,500
Maintenance/ Repair £16,000
Fuel Tax Insurance £20,000
Total £55,500
Mileage 58,000
Cost per mile £0.95 per mile.
This type of car are great value for money if you can keep the mileage below 5k per year.
MDifficult said:
Really chuffed to be booked onto the first PH track evening at Snetterton in May. Should be good fun!
https://www.pistonheads.com/news/trackdays-pistonh...
MrTouring will also be there!
See you there gents. And at Mercedes-Benz World Sunday Service too! https://www.pistonheads.com/news/trackdays-pistonh...
MrTouring will also be there!
paddy1970 said:
The real metric is cost per mile (except for the tax, everything is roughly mileage related)
Depreciation £19,500
Maintenance/ Repair £16,000
Fuel Tax Insurance £20,000
Total £55,500
Mileage 58,000
Cost per mile £0.95 per mile.
This type of car are great value for money if you can keep the mileage below 5k per year.
Yup, I would agree - If you can keep the mileage sensible (but use it relatively regularly) I think they're a great choice. Having said that... I did sell it before super unleaded went up by 50% Depreciation £19,500
Maintenance/ Repair £16,000
Fuel Tax Insurance £20,000
Total £55,500
Mileage 58,000
Cost per mile £0.95 per mile.
This type of car are great value for money if you can keep the mileage below 5k per year.
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff