E91 Straight Six Bearding

[helix402]

It looks a tad shoddy. If it was my car I’d put a new tyre on too.

[anonymous-user]

will be getting new tyres in the very near future

[d_a_n1979]

eezeh said:

d_a_n1979 said:

Unfortunately all too common these days

RFTs or non-RFTs as that can make a difference too.

That isn't a bad crack though and easily repairable via a decent wheel refurb company. They'll have that welded and fixed in no time

Non rft but XL, 60 quid for the weld and ill be honest im not particularly pleased with the quality of the work, it was welded from both sides but someone doesn't have a very steady hand with the grinder!

This was after i tidied it up with a file and applied primer & paint.

Doesn't look the best; but it'll do the job I think...

Can soon tidy it up yourself with a grinder, if you wanted. But you're not going to see it unless you really look for it etc

[6cylGolf]

I know its not petrol... but heres my manual 330d that replaced my manual 325i e91, I bought it in november.



I bought it with 170k for £2500, I sold my 325i for £3500.

It had many issues tho, I didnt want to buy a car with issues no matter the price but it was local and a good spec and covid travel makes things awkward.

The original owner had ticked a lot of boxes, but no heated seats! What is wrong with some folk!

Its a manual, leather, idrive pro, front/rear pdc, washer jets, storage and lights package, folding mirrors, individual headlining and gloss black trims. individual glass, brushed aluminium cabin trim.

Ive spent another 2k on front end suspension refresh, replacement dsc unit, and tyres. Ive yet to tackle the rear wiper mech replacement, glow plugs and aux heater.

Away from my usual path I do not intend to modify this car at all, i did blank the swirl flaps which had seen better days and I couldnt resist a bmw performance gear knob and gaiter. Its mad these are half price the m sport items and mine was looking rough.

3 previous owners. last had it ten years, I dont ever intend to sell it.

Car number 60odd might well be my last! I love it, derv an all.

Edited by 6cylGolf on Saturday 23 January 11:01

[pmorg4]

JakeT said:

pmorg4 said:

Thanks for your feedback. Fair enough - the under bonnet doesn't really work for me as I tend to reverse the car against the garage so I'd need to run an extension out to the front of the car. Also it's really handy to be able to see the CTEK indicator light through the boot window. I can run the wire for my CTEK into the boot and close the lid, there's enough give in the boot seal for the wire. So the car can be secured while on the charger.

I'll have a look at how the IBS is wired in, I had assumed it was in line with the positive terminal but maybe it's on the negative. If it's relatively straightforward I'll move the CTEK connector otherwise I'll just deal with any consequences of it being wired straight to the battery.

No, it's the negative terminal. The box on tricks on top of the positive terminal is the battery safety terminal.

You can still charge at the boot, you just need to connect to the chassis 'upstream' of the IBS, so that it can see the charge going in. If you follow the negative battery lead to where it bolts to the body, you should be able to attach the eyelet there.

Digging this old discussion back up, after I finally found some time to take the trim panels off and have another look at my battery connections. Sure enough you are correct, my car does have the IBS sensor on the negative terminal, and I'd connected the CTEK negative wire pre-IBS. That would probably explain the battery warning that flashed up on the dash the next time I started the car after charging with the CTEK.

I planned to move the CTEK terminal to the other side of the battery earth cable, but it disappeared behind the trim at the back of the boot. I decided it would be far easier to connect it to the earthing point near the battery that is already accessible with the trims around the battery removed. That was a quick 2-minute job, and hopefully now the car will be happy when I top up the battery with the CTEK. I'll soon find out as it's been charging for the last 24 hours or so

[pmorg4]

I've read a few posts on this thread and elsewhere regarding tailgate hinges failing. I've noticed that when I open my tailgate (the whole thing, not just the glass part) that I get a clunking sound right at the top of the tailgate's travel. Wondering whether this is a warning of impending hinge doom, and if so is there anything I can do to solve it before it breaks other than preemptively replacing the hinge?

I could also be doing with replacing the gas struts, as although they will hold the tailgate up, they seem a bit lazy so I'm sure they are past their best. I've had a look on Autodoc and there are countless brands (most of which I've never heard of) at pretty low prices. Does anyone have any experience of changing these, and is it OK to use generic brands or should I pay up for a known brand (or even original BMW parts)?

[d_a_n1979]

pmorg4 said:

I've read a few posts on this thread and elsewhere regarding tailgate hinges failing. I've noticed that when I open my tailgate (the whole thing, not just the glass part) that I get a clunking sound right at the top of the tailgate's travel. Wondering whether this is a warning of impending hinge doom, and if so is there anything I can do to solve it before it breaks other than preemptively replacing the hinge?

I could also be doing with replacing the gas struts, as although they will hold the tailgate up, they seem a bit lazy so I'm sure they are past their best. I've had a look on Autodoc and there are countless brands (most of which I've never heard of) at pretty low prices. Does anyone have any experience of changing these, and is it OK to use generic brands or should I pay up for a known brand (or even original BMW parts)?

Re struts; Stabilus are the ones to go for

Should be able to find them on eBay via a UK reseller

I'm not a fan of Autodoc; their shipping is horrendous currently and I've had too many wrong bits or bits go missing over the last 12 months to use them again

[pmorg4]

d_a_n1979 said:

Re struts; Stabilus are the ones to go for

Should be able to find them on eBay via a UK reseller

I'm not a fan of Autodoc; their shipping is horrendous currently and I've had too many wrong bits or bits go missing over the last 12 months to use them again

Perfect, thanks. Looks like you can get a pair on eBay for around £20 delivered which is far less than I'd expect to pay for a reputable brand.

[paulguitar]

Just a quick question for thread beards. I need to replace the front springs on my 2008 E92 330i SE. Are the springs the same for the E92 and E90?

[helix402]

paulguitar said:

Just a quick question for thread beards. I need to replace the front springs on my 2008 E92 330i SE. Are the springs the same for the E92 and E90?

The factory fitted ones are tailored to the weight of the car based on the options fitted.

[d_a_n1979]

paulguitar said:

Just a quick question for thread beards. I need to replace the front springs on my 2008 E92 330i SE. Are the springs the same for the E92 and E90?

If you look on www.realoem.com (put the last 7 digits of your VIN into the box at the top of the page); it'll bring up your exact car

Look in the 'front suspension' diagram and it'll tell you which springs match your exact car

However, springs can be hard to suss at times, so may be worth speaking with a main dealer to see what they say you have fitted (and also maybe confirm the part number)

You can either go for OEM BMW (can be cheap or silly expensive unfortunately); or go with a known and decent brand such as Boge, KYB, Sachs, Monroe etc

[g3org3y]

g3org3y said:

bmwmike said:

helix402 said:

bmwmike said:

Interesting suggestion - how does that work?

The cat or post cat lambda sensor gets a bit tired. The spacer moves the sensor away from the gases so the sensor thinks the post cat emissions are ok. It’s a slight bodge-but-it often works and it’s cheap. Also post cat emissions don’t really affect the engines operation.

(I’ve done it before and it worked).

ahh makes sense - neat! Will file that away as it may come in handy some day. Got to love a cheap fix.

Could be something to look into.

Wife drove car Sunday pm and the EML came on again.

Car went back the mechanic. O2 sensor codes again (as posted previously). He changed the sensor and now no EML and has been fine for >1 week. Did a scan, no codes in the DME so hopefully draws a line under that.

[helix402]

d_a_n1979 said:

If you look on www.realoem.com (put the last 7 digits of your VIN into the box at the top of the page); it'll bring up your exact car

Look in the 'front suspension' diagram and it'll tell you which springs match your exact car

However, springs can be hard to suss at times, so may be worth speaking with a main dealer to see what they say you have fitted (and also maybe confirm the part number)

You can either go for OEM BMW (can be cheap or silly expensive unfortunately); or go with a known and decent brand such as Boge, KYB, Sachs, Monroe etc

Realoem doesn’t list spring part Nos. Dealers use a spring table.

[g3org3y]

helix402 said:

paulguitar said:

Just a quick question for thread beards. I need to replace the front springs on my 2008 E92 330i SE. Are the springs the same for the E92 and E90?

The factory fitted ones are tailored to the weight of the car based on the options fitted.

Didn't realise it was that specific! How many different options are there out of interest?

[anonymous-user]

Anyone opened up a tailgate glass microswitch before?

[d_a_n1979]

g3org3y said:

helix402 said:

paulguitar said:

Just a quick question for thread beards. I need to replace the front springs on my 2008 E92 330i SE. Are the springs the same for the E92 and E90?

The factory fitted ones are tailored to the weight of the car based on the options fitted.

Didn't realise it was that specific! How many different options are there out of interest?

Lots! It's a bit mad really...

[helix402]

g3org3y said:

Didn't realise it was that specific! How many different options are there out of interest?

Sorry, don’t know I’m afraid. Quite a few I’d guess.

[Jakg]

g3org3y said:

helix402 said:

paulguitar said:

Just a quick question for thread beards. I need to replace the front springs on my 2008 E92 330i SE. Are the springs the same for the E92 and E90?

The factory fitted ones are tailored to the weight of the car based on the options fitted.

Didn't realise it was that specific! How many different options are there out of interest?

As an example, my 335d SE gets the larger M-Sport rear anti-roll bar because it's got a pan roof.

But just because from the factory (say) an 330i E92 gets a different spring to a 330d E93, doesn't mean that the basic cheap spring EuroCarParts will sell you won't just be the same for both.
Having said that, when I bought my B12 kit I had to find the specific kit for an E91 335d as although I think the dampers are the same, Eibach do actually make a variety of spring fitments.

[skullandbiscuits]

g3org3y said:

JakeT said:

I'd give the oil a change and then rag the tits off it for a while. You'll soon know if there's been any lasting damage. I know yours has been a bit of a problem child, but mine feels every bit as solid as the M52 in my old 328i. You've not done massive miles, so I'm sure it'll be fine.

Absolute worst case scenario, there's engines for sale on eBay, although let's not think about that for now. If the pressure was low enough to really cause lasting damage, you'd have seen plenty of warnings.

Used a few times today, I wouldn't say the idle is perfect but tbh neither is it on my (N52 engined) Z4 to start.

When you start with the a/c on, it seems to idle at ~750-800rpm. When you turn the a/c off, the idle really drops down to just over 500rpm. In fact the car seems to feel happier idling at the higher speed. I'm assuming that's normal given the increased load required for running the a/c.

The idle is still a touch odd, almost pulsing (if that makes sense). Could that be because of the valve cover oil leak?

Still no further DME/Vanos codes so that's good news. Bought a new oil filter from ECP today. Got a new jack coming tomorrow so hopefully will change the oil on Saturday. Also ordered a new Vanos solenoid. Debating about new Vanos filters.

Sir_Dave said:

Genuinely, being that your car had an oil change and then suffered these symtoms, i would perhaps be having a conversation with the "specialist" that did the work. As i said before, its downright incompetent that they either removed the filter, or didnt notice that it was missing imho, so it might at least help the next poor sod that goes there for an oil change

Personally, id just give it a quick compression test, change the oil & do the other vanos solenoid. Im sure it'll be fine

It's my wife's car. After I had the work done she was driving it so exactly sure how long after the issue surfaced.

I noticed it a few weeks later when we going somewhere in two cars, she started the E91 it did the funny idle and immediately she put it in drive and then it stalled. On questioning she stated she thought it might have been going for a bit but just thought she wasn't used to driving an auto so thought she was 'driving it wrong'.

The Specialist did do an oil/filter change when they changed the sump gasket so regardless, the missing insert should have been spotted/highlighted, that I agree is a bit disappointing. Having trawled various forums, seems to be quite a common thing that occurs (as main dealerships as well!)

Edited by g3org3y on Thursday 8th August 16:24

Apologies "g3org3y" for the blast from the past quotes. Very interesting about the oil filter cover filter cage....

I have the exact same symptoms with a single error in DME "2A82 DME Vanos Intake" plus a lumpy cold start idle that drops down to about 600rpm. Fine once on the move (will try cold start with AC on next).

Over the weekend I changed the oil and filter, and noticed the oil filter cage was a bit loose seated in the cover. Before I step into Vanos solenoid world (I find it odd intake errors before exhaust), I will be ordering a new cover and see if that improves the situation.

Edited by skullandbiscuits on Sunday 24th January 18:45

[Mr Tidy]

pmorg4 said:

Perfect, thanks. Looks like you can get a pair on eBay for around £20 delivered which is far less than I'd expect to pay for a reputable brand.

I haven't used them, but I've read some positive feedback about tailgate struts from here:- https://www.sgs-engineering.com/