The 'Oh crap, I won it' E39 530i

[swampy442]

Update time, had 2 weeks of so pencilled the wagon in for subframe bushes and exhaust. Exhaust is a no go because the stock system is basically 1 piece so need some chopping and welding. Bugger.

Subframe bushes, with the correct touring bush tool the job is an absolute breeze, all done in less than 3 hours. Car is understandably transformed, the old bushes completely shot



Then, when putting the wheels back on, hmm, that feels flat. Turns out it was. Arse. No worries, quick fix.

[swampy442]

And the phrase 'Pride comes before the fall' becomes very apt in the next event. Yesterday I was all chuffed with my achievements, saying how reliable this old eBay purchase was, it shot me in the foot




The curse of the BMW cooling system strikes! Ive always had a whiff of coolant but could never find out where it came from, as with a lot of parts on this car, I bet the rad is original




New rad arrives tomorrow, why couldn't this have happened at the start of my 2 weeks off

[swampy442]

Pupbelly said:

Any updates at all? Is the old girl still functioning?

Oh yes, still going well, in daily use doing daily car stuff 😊 Here’s a picture next to an old plane to prove it lol

[swampy442]

Which leads me on to an update and a couple of questions.

I was driving along merrily yesterday, put the window down for a bit of air, to be confronted by a would akin to a bag of spanner’s being thrown down the road. It’s so quiet inside god knows how long it’s been like that Anyway turns out there’s a heat shield extension inside the brake disc, the rivets had failed and it was dragging on the disc. So off it came

[swampy442]

Next, the questions. I’ve been losing coolant, I can smell it so it’s leaking, but I couldn’t find where. It’s on the left side of the engine, the top of the engine is dry so I’m assuming it’s water pump, would you agree?
Also there’s a not insignificant oil leak too. Right side of the engine is bone dry so, any likely culprits?

[swampy442]

Ive already replaced the expansion tank and radiator, the hoses all look dry to me, its definitely behind the belt run and accessories.
Ive already resigned myself to removing the intake manifold so Ill get round to that at some point

[swampy442]

I was always advised to do the cooling system overhaul, guess I have no chance now

[swampy442]

Ooh, also got to the bottom of the intermittent ABS fault, broken wire in the ABS module plug

[swampy442]

All was not well in E39 world. Driving to work and a big cloud of smoke out the back. It cleared quickly but still, alarming. Then starting up to go home, another big cloud of smoke. Time to do the PCV/CCV valve.

[swampy442]

Looks like it hadn’t been done in 200k miles lol. Guess what, it’s much smoother to drive, more responsive and generally feels much better for it. So when people say do the E39 big hitters list when you buy one, do it!

It’s in this morning for an exhaust, that’s the annoying rattle sorted. Getting there

[swampy442]

You’re welcome, people told me to do this stuff, I was sceptical but every part. I was advised to replace has failed

[swampy442]

GrantD5 said:

How much have you spent on CCV parts? Assuming this may need doing on my 3.0i X3 at some point. Any advice would be good!

It’s up to what you’re happy to spend really, you can get the kit for as cheap as 25 quid, not sure how long that would last or how well it would fit. I was advised to get brand name but by people like meyle or Febi

[swampy442]

I love working on BMWs, they’re so well designed they just come apart so easily.
Todays task was try and fix the non working OBC button. Think there’s a circuit fault ss there’s no continuity between the wires and the plug, new stalk it is then

[swampy442]

HazzaCrawf said:

swampy442 said:

I'm not a religious man, but in the words of Winston Zeddemore from Ghostbsters 'If theres a free long weekend off in it, I'll believe anything you say' Or words to that effect.

If I had a wife she'd say "Stop touching it, leave it alone" Instead my brother said those words, and he has a point, it works so why mess about? I want it to be right. So down the unit I went again

Just had a read through this entire thread and couldn't help but notice the 130i LE sat there in front. What's the story with that? I've just got one myself

Would love a 530i or 330i one day so I'll be following this thread with interest

Well the story was I had it, enjoyed the crap out of it, then sold it to buy a Volvo 850 T5 R ?? I’m a serial car buyer and box ticker. The Volvo came up at the right price. If that had sold I would have kept the 130. I still fancy a non LE as a cheap thrasher

[swampy442]

JeremyH5 said:

swampy442 said:

I love working on BMWs, they’re so well designed they just come apart so easily.
Todays task was try and fix the non working OBC button. Think there’s a circuit fault ss there’s no continuity between the wires and the plug, new stalk it is then

Did it work? I have the same issue on my E38 and a replacement stalk didn’t solve it. I’m told I need a new slip ring on the steering wheel.

No it didn’t fix it, I tested continuity between the button touch points and the output pins and it was open circuit so I assume an internal fault.
On the E39 the stalks don’t pass through the slip ring, all that does is the airbag and the steering wheel buttons, and they all operate fine

[swampy442]

JeremyH5 said:

swampy442 said:

JeremyH5 said:

swampy442 said:

I love working on BMWs, they’re so well designed they just come apart so easily.
Todays task was try and fix the non working OBC button. Think there’s a circuit fault ss there’s no continuity between the wires and the plug, new stalk it is then

Did it work? I have the same issue on my E38 and a replacement stalk didn’t solve it. I’m told I need a new slip ring on the steering wheel.

No it didn’t fix it, I tested continuity between the button touch points and the output pins and it was open circuit so I assume an internal fault.
On the E39 the stalks don’t pass through the slip ring, all that does is the airbag and the steering wheel buttons, and they all operate fine

Interesting, all my E38 steering wheel buttons work ok too. Given your findings and that the symptoms are the same, I think it likely that the E38 and E39 use the same wiring logic. Which means what I’ve been told is incorrect and we’re both still lacking the OBC stalk function. I can see all the information on the central dash display but it would be nice to be able to scroll through it on the instrument cluster screen.

Exactly. I’ve absolutely no desire to see how bad my economy is, but it would be nice to have it if it’s fitted

[swampy442]

Broke out the chassis washer for a winter rinse down. Ground looks like the Exxon Valdez is in town. Great news, that means there’s still oil in it

[swampy442]

You know what I love? Doing jobs twice. I’ve been dealing with a coolant leak for a while, not a lot but it needed looking at. Wisdom says it’s normally the thermostat housing or water pump, so once I stripped the front end down it was clear it wasn’t that





The next culprit was going to be the heater pipes. Why manufacturers use plastic to make pipes that connect directly to a hot engine I’ll never know. Still, stripping down exposed one of the many oil leak sources lol, the oil filter housing

[swampy442]

The culprit pipe, as you can see, totally mullered. Only a 25 quid part, readily available, no dramas. Just a shame you have to put so many hours work in to replace it!





So when this is done I’ll have new rad, expansion tank, thermostat housing, water pump and now heater pipe work .
All the big hitters done

[swampy442]

New pipes fitted, I say pipes because I knew as disturbed the lower pipe it would break. Surprise surprise.





Also, when you refit, your alternator, be sure to clear the leaves out of it!