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Qty Bolt Dia. Wrench Where Used 6 8 mm 13 mm shock tower mountConsumables: medium strength (blue) threadlocker,
2 10 mm 17 mm tie rod ends
2 12 mm 19 mm shock rod nut (included)
4 14 mm 22 mm control arm joints
ITEM Part No. Price ea. Qty Control Arms 31 121 701 058 $178.00 1 31 121 701 060 $178.00 1 Bushing Set 31 10 1 130 503 $ 39.95 1 (stock iX) or Alternative 31 12 9 069 035 $ 70.00 1 (stiffer E36 M3 bushings) Front Shock Bilstein PS6-0251 $101.00 2 Rear Shock Bilstein PS6-2028 $ 66.00 2 Front Rotor ATE 240322-0122.1 $40.95 2 Rear Rotor Zimmerman 150 126 00 $32.95 2Tools needed Tools were the key to many of the tasks, but because some can be done different ways, it's important to understand the tasks well. You may already have a different tool that will do the job as well. First you'll need a 1/2" drive impact wrench for wheel lugs, axle and control arm inner bolts. Also, a 1/2" drive impact hammer is helpful for separating joints and removing shock retaining collar (mine were air tools and also required a compressor). In addition:
Front Wheel Drive Half-Shaft Removal
by
Ken Warnock
of Essex, MA
I've been talking with
Jim Tussey
('89 iX, Caro, MI) on changing his iX front wheel bearings. I've listed below a Haynes-based,
self-edited version of the procedure for your records and/or future use. Haynes seems
to have iX- specific stuff that the Bentley 3-series manual does not carry.
Note: A number of special tools are required to perform this operation. Use the BMW
factory numbers given to shop for these from factory sources, or to cross-reference
similar tools that may be available in the aftermarket. Use 33 4 050 and 00 5 500
to drive in a new lockplate for the brake disc. The tie rod can be pressed off with 342
2 070. Control arms are pressed off with 31 2 160. Use 33 2 112 and 33 12 113 to
press the output shafts out of the brake discs and 33 2 112, 33 2 124 to press them
back in. On the left side, the output shaft is pulled out of the drive axle with 31 5 011 and
30 31 581. On the right side, 31 5 011 and 31 5 012 are used to pull the output shaft
out of the differential.
Removal
1. Loosen the lug nuts on the front wheels. Raise the car and support it securely.
Remove the front wheels. Remove the drain plug and drain the lube oil from the front
differential.
2. Lift out the lockplate in the center of the brake disc with a screwdriver. Then,
unscrew the collar nut
(NOTE: THIS REQUIRES A 30mm SOCKET. CHECK THAT THIS IS ON HAND BEFORE ATTEMPTING)
3. Remove the self-locking nut from each tie rod and press the tie rod off. A few
good whacks on the side of the control arm with a large hammer may help to loosen
the rod end if the factory tool is unavailable.
4. Remove the locknut and press the control arm off the steering knuckle.
5. Mount the factory tools listed above or a hub puller to the brake disc using the
wheel bolts. Press the output shaft out of the center of the strut housing/wheel
bearing. Repeat for other side of car.
6. Left hand axle removal: Install special tool 31 5 011 by bolting it together around
the axle to that the ring on its inner diameter fits into the groove on the shaft.
Install 30 31 581 onto the shaft so it will rest against the housing and the bolt
heads of 31 5 011 will rest against it. Screw the two bolts in alternately in small increments
to maintain even pressure on the shaft, pulling it out of the differential.
7. Right hand axle removal: Install special tool 31 5 012 on the diameter of the shaft
directly against the housing. 31 5 011 by bolting it together around the axle to
that the ring on its inner diameter fits into the groove on the shaft. Screw the
two bolts in alternately in small increments to maintain even pressure on the shaft, pulling
it out of the differential.
Installation
1. the shafts into the differential until the circlip inside engages in the groove
of the shaft (Note: this implies to me that the inner CV joints on the axle are a
snap fit into the differential, much as the bolted-together drive flanges on the
rear axles are also snap-ins. You may be able to fab a means to pry these out without damaging
the CV boots or joint- try one of the gear pullers that consists of two collar halves
with "blades" and use it to grab the above-mentioned shaft groove ) It may be necessary to install the removal tool and tap against it with a plastic headed hammer to
drive the shaft far enough into the housing.
2. Before installing the axle through the front wheel bearing, coat with light oil
or molybdenum disulfide.
3. When installing the control arms and the tie rods to the steering knuckle , torque
to 61.5 ft-lbs and use a new cotter pin/self locking nut.
4. Torque the axle nut to 181 ft-lbs. Drive a new lockplate into the brake disc.
5. REPLACE THE DRAIN PLUG IN THE DIFF AND REFILL WITH LUBRICANT!
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Catalytic Converter Replacement
contributed by
Mehrdad Hadighi
of Buffalo, NY.
1. The catalytic is different for an IX than other E30s.
2. A Canadian company that makes a very nice aftermarket catalytic with 5-year warranty
that claims it to be IX specific. It is not--it does not fit an IX.
As a result of the above you might guess what happened. I had the whole system out,
and no catalytic to put back in, so I had to get very creative with my own catalytic
which was in perfect shape except for the expansion chamber (the spring metal part)
which had separated. Nothing that a few hours of machining and fitting could not fix.
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Hard Starting--a simple fix
by
Kevin Quinlivan
of Buffalo, NY.
I still had problems with starting my car especially after It had been turned over
successfully for a brief time seconds before. Got all sorts of bad advice from the
BMW shops in town After replacing the main gas tank relay switch for $400, my neighbor,
an executive for Towne Bmw, saw me struggling to start again my BMW one morning and
simply asked how old the battery...being 5 yrs old ...he simply suggested I replace
it. He claims that the old battery may be so drained starting the car that the electronics do not get enough JUICE to keep the engine running....then the engine floods ..and
you can not restart... Well it has worked... no further problems....I was about to
sell my BMW or pay for another expensive overhaul..it has to be reliable...I am a
Physician and I need to start and go...
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Radio Replacement
by
Dave Ritter
of Marquette, MI.
There are different versions of the stereo in the iX, as the previous instructions
posted by Mark Albert don't seem to apply to my 88 iX. I have found a page which
is an excellent reference for those with the '88 "Premium" sound system.
The URL is, <http://infomatch.com/~cbaisley/bmw1.html> This page includes the amp
location, wiring pinouts, and many other useful facts for the upgrade. The wiring
on my iX is common ground for the speakers between the fader and the amp, so I connected
to the speaker wires right after the amp, leaving the stock amp disconnected. I'm no
audiofile, but I do believe that the quality of the sound using stock speakers with
the new stereo is a big improvement over the stock radio/fader/amp setup.
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PAINTING AN iX:
(unplanned part II in a series of modifying the AWD bimmer)
-- From
Malcolm & Julie Morgan
of Larkspur, Calif.
As we mentioned in our last installment, we planned to upgrade and modify our iX in
a series of stages, beginning with the brakes, then suspension, interior, lighting,
stereo, and ending with the exterior; when our car was attacked and "keyed" on almost
every panel. So, in this segment, we divert from the mechanicals and concentrate on
the cosmetics...
Any iXers who are contemplating painting their vehicles may want to try what we did
to our charcoal black `91: We decided to change the color of the car to contrast
with the fender flares and rocker panel skirts of the original black. The engine
compartment, trunk and satin black around the windows was left untouched. The remaining portions
of the exterior were repainted dark metallic silver.
We finally decided upon Eurocal Auto Body in Santa Rosa, CA. Steve, the owner,
walked us through the process, and explained what was involved, where money could
be saved, and where it would be worth spending a few extra bucks.
Things have sure come a long ways since the good old days in high school when
we used to round up a group of friends, and the proper ratio of 1 six-pack per 1
can of spray paint. Drink a beer, squirt some paint. Drink another beer, squirt some
more, and by the wee hours of the morning, we would have a whole new paint job! Of course
it helped that the more we drank, the more creative we would get with stripes, flames
and the like...
This time there would be no such treatment for this car, this was definitely
a job for the professionals. In the end it ended up costing more than most nice used
iXes sell for, but with the insurance paying their portion we are glad that we decided
to go ahead. I now see why it costs so much to repaint a car... The BIG expense in
changing colors comes from the labor involved in painting the door jambs, the sunroof
channels, the underside of the hood, decklid, etc. Every removable part is taken
off and stripped or set aside. Doors, hood, windows, sunroof, flares, lights, bumpers, etc,
all came off and were prepped separately. Better body shops actually use a chemical
stripper instead of just sanding, and remove ALL the old paint, primer, etc and then
start from bare metal. Luckily for us when all the paint came off, no dents or major
bondo was found; Whew!
We chose to go with the more expensive paint ($300 a gallon!) made by Spies-
Hecker Inc in Germany instead of the water-based paint that is used on some of the
newer BMWs. We also took their advice and had them use a `flex' additive to the paint
to reduce the susceptibility to scratches and stone chips. The colors are original BMW
Granite Silver & Diamondschwartz Black, which coordinate beautifully together. I
would highly recommend other enthusiasts try the two-tone treatment, it really sets
the iX apart from the crowd, and turns heads everywhere we go with it. As a finishing touch,
I was able to modify a set of factory E30 mud flaps (available from Bavarian Autosport)
to keep the new finish from being ruined from flying debris from the tires. So, despite the dubious beginning to this part of the project, for now this story has a happy
ending.
And Next: BRAKES --
continued by
the Morgans.
As most of you already know, the stock brakes fitted to the iX cars are pretty decent
compared to most other cars, but to steal a quote from our fearless leader Satch
`Bad Dog' Carlson, "...if it ain't broke, fix it till it is..." So in keeping with
that theme, in this installment we examine upgrading the stoppers on our favorite vehicle.
Those wanting to improve brake performance without a complete re-hash of the brake
system may want to try what we did to our `91: replace the rotors, pads, flexible
hoses, and fluid with newer, better pieces. We finally settled on a set of stock
size, cross-drilled aftermarket front discs from Brembo, and drilled rear stock discs from ATE.
At the same time we also replaced the old rubber flex hoses with new racing stainless
steel hose assemblies. The pads we chose are made by Repco, and sold as `Metal Master Deluxe' they seemed to have the best compromise of all the different pad compounds
on the market for the way we will be using our car. (all parts ordered from Bavarian
Auto sport approx. $600 for everything)
A few words about changing over to different brake pads: Racing type pads used on
a street car can be dangerous! They work great when hot, but in a panic stop situation
on the freeway for example, the stopping distance is greatly increased. Conversely,
street pads used on the track, or even for spirited street driving will quickly fade
and lose their ability to stop at all. Chose your pad material carefully. Changing
brake pads on the iX is a simple task and after the first few bloody knuckles, you
will be able to do it in no time.
Replacing the discs is straightforward, after removing the wheels, find the two bolts
that mount the caliper bracket to the hub, and remove the caliper and bracket as
a unit. Be careful not to let the caliper hang from the hose (unless you are also
replacing hoses) Make a small hook out of an old coat hangar to hang the caliper on while
you work on removing the rotor. Locate the small socket-head screw that retains the
disc. Using some penetrating oil and a small punch, tap on the head of the bolt with
a hammer and punch to break any rust under the head; if you strip this socket-head screw,
you will ruin your whole day. Once the screw is removed, the disc simply slides off.
(Remember to release the parking brake on the rear) Being naturally anal, I chose
to clean, prep, and paint all the new bits at this time. I found that Krylon hi-heat
silver lasts about a year even under severe driving. Hint: if you paint the rotors,
quickly wipe the braking surface of the discs with acetone immediately after spraying,
this removes the paint only on this surface and keeps the new pads from becoming contaminated.
Replacing the pads is also fairly simple, with the caliper removed from its' mount,
the old pads simply pop out, be careful to note the position of the small retaining
springs, and don't forget the sheet-metal heat shields stuck on the back of the old
pads. Use a small amount of anti-squeal paste on the back of each pad, as well as the
front and back of each heat shield. Before the new pads can go in, you must carefully
press the piston all the way back into the caliper, (I use an old wood carpenters'
clamp) to make room for the new, thicker pads. Here are two things to remember when pressing
the pistons back in:
1. Be sure to keep checking the master cylinder fluid level, it may overflow, and
remember brake fluid is just like paint remover! 2. Remove only one caliper at a
time, or as you press in the piston on one side, if the opposite caliper is just
hanging without a disc to clamp onto, it can pop completely out of its' bore, and now you have
to wrestle it back in, and then bleed the brakes! Ask me how I know!
When you have installed the new pads and discs, carefully replace the caliper over
the disc, and reinstall the caliper bolts gorilla tight. Remember when all 4 brakes
are done, you should carefully flush and bleed the system (we do our fluid twice
per year) and then proceed with the break-in procedure as follows:
Make 4-5 easy slowdowns from about 20mph down to 5mph, but without stopping completely.
Repeat the process slowing 4 - 5 times from 25mph, then again from 30mph. The idea
is to gently warm the rotors and seat the pads, then allow the car to sit and the
rotors to cool for several hours. This avoids heat shock and warped rotors, which the
iX is very prone to get.
Those intrepid iXers who wish to improve performance to the next level should consider
upgrading to the stainless steel lines as well. Replacement is a direct swap-out,
and except for the inner rear hoses access is easy. For the two inner rear hoses,
buy the best quality flare nut wrenches you can find, this is not a place to scrimp. I
had to bend one to fit, as the exhaust is right in the way on the drivers' side.
Once installed, it is well worth the time spent.
SUMMARY:
As in most hot-rod upgrades, whenever you modify or upgrade something, you pay a
penalty somewhere else; brakes are no exception. The new cross- drilled rotors run
cooler, but all those holes cost a certain amount of breaking surface for the pads
to act on. In a single panic stop situation, effective braking distance is actually slightly
longer than with an undrilled disc. However, with repeated applications, or even
a typical drive in the country, the increased cooling greatly reduces the amount
of fade; and as a fringe benefit, wet braking is greatly improved as the holes allow water
to escape. I rate this upgrade as a win-win overall, and well worth the price.
WANT MORE? The next level is to do a big brake (spelled "big buck") conversion, and
replace the stock rotors and calipers with racing type components. The good folks
at Ireland Engineering in LA had some really nice looking pieces in their showroom,
4 piston calipers with vented and slotted heat treated rotors. Jeff, the owner thought he
would be able to create a kit for under $2000, and maybe half that for the rears.
I already have a set on my Christmas list... one interesting note, at several track
sessions with our new setup described above, using a digital pyrometer to check tire and
brake temps, the rear discs run hotter than the fronts. Maybe the answer would be
to add a small duct to force air into the rotor area, I will address this when I
do brake ducts for the front rotors, and will let everyone know what I come up with.
Next project: TIRES AND WHEELS
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iXperience--My New iX!
by
Mark Johnson
of Boulder, CO
About a year ago, I decided that if I could find a 4 door, low mileage, 5 speed 325iX,
at a reasonable price, I should buy it. I had picked up a 1992 325i, and loved driving
it, but living in the foothills of Boulder, it was strictly a nice weather car; I
need 4WD where I live. My 4WD pickup has been the main vehicle for quite awhile now,
but its in the autumn of its life. I figured that after the winter, there would be
all kinds of iXes in the paper. I was also pretty sure that Colorado would be a good
place to find an iX. I was right about all of that, but none of the cars I found met
all of my requirements. The iXes that I found typically had over 100K miles, were
selling for $12K and higher (I wanted to spend around $10K unless the mileage was
very low), were automatics, and/or were pretty beat up. And there really were not that many
of them to see. By this fall I had resigned myself to the fact that I would probably
have to find an SUV to replace the truck.
Then in mid November, I had a Hollywood moment. I was reading the paper before going
to work one morning, and I was ready a little early, so I checked the used car ads.
I hadn't checked them for a couple of weeks. There it was. A red 1989 BMW 325iX,
5 speed, 78,000 miles, leather interior, 4 door, $8500. My first thought was what could
be wrong with the car. I looked in the prior day's classifieds, and it wasn't in
that paper. The phone number listed also had an extension, so I figured it was the
person's work phone. I went to work, and called the number a little after 7:00 am, and left
a message that I was interested in the car, on their voice mail. I left a couple
more voice mail messages that day, and the next. Finally, a day and a half after
seeing the ad, the woman who owned the car called me back, and I arranged to see the car that
night (Friday) at 5:30. She told me on the phone, that the car also had a sun roof,
an OBC, a dent in the front fender, the radio antenna wouldn't go down, and the glove
box had a problem. I thought for the price, I could deal with the problems, so I was pretty
excited to see the car. She also told me that I was the first one to whom she was
showing the car.
It turned out she lived only a couple of miles from me, so I drove by early, so I
could see the car in the daylight. The car I saw at her address had a flat tire,
so I knew it wasn't going anywhere soon. The dent in the fender was definitely a
dent, but not real obnoxious. The car was dirty outside, but except for the fender, it looked
in good shape, and, there was a lot of "stuff" inside. I drove home, and came back
at 5:30. By then, it was practically dark. The owner explained to me that she had
bought a new Mercedes SUV, and couldn't keep both vehicles. She apologized about the flat,
explaining that she had bought new rear tires, and that one of the wheels had a slow
leak, and she would have the tire store fix it the next day, and call me so that
I could drive it. She also promised that she would detail the car before she sold it. I was
able to start the car that night, and it sounded fine to me in the dark. She also
promised me that she would not show the car to any of the other people that had called
about it (evidently there were a few others) until I got to drive it. That made me feel
good, but I also knew that promises can be broken. So, I went home to wait.
I had trouble sleeping that night. Late afternoon the next day, I still had not heard
from the owner, so I called her home. I got a hold of her son's nanny, who told me
that the owner had been gone all day, and nothing had been done about the tire. I
was irritated and sad, but I figured no one else could drive it yet either. The next day,
Sunday, I called around 10:30, and I volunteered to put the spare on, so that I could
drive the car and make a decision. The Broncos were playing at 2:00 that day, and
no matter how excited I was about finding an iX, I didn't want to miss the game. She
agreed to let me do that. I changed the tire, drove the car, and agreed to buy the
car from her for $8500, putting $1000 down. There were a few more little glitches
after that, such as she backed out of detailing the car because she couldn't afford to since
she had meant to sell the car for $8900 but put the wrong price in the paper, and
didn't understand why I wanted to have the emissions tested (a requirement for licensing
in Colorado) before closing the deal, the interior was really vinyl leatherette, and
the OBC was just the clock and outside thermometer, the timing belt had never been
changed, and the mileage was really 79,500.
As soon as I could make an appointment, I took the car to Bimmerwerks in Broomfield,
Co. to get a new timing belt, do an Inspection II, check and grease the front drive
shaft. And later replace the RIBE hex hcadbolts with torx headbolts. I got the car
detailed, fixed the glove box, cleaned the antenna and put graphite powder on the antenna
(that fixed that), bought two new tires so that all four are the same, replaced the
hood and trunk roundels, and bought two new wheel caps (the car only came with two).
I replaced the NiCad batteries for the Service Indicator and rewired them to the steering
column kick panel for the next time they go bad. And $10 for the iX registry. Bimmerwerks
says I also need new shocks, front brakes, and a rear muffler. I figure I've added about $1500 to the $8500 purchase price, so I'm where I had budgeted to be for
a purchase. After I get the new shocks, brakes and muffler, and fix the dent in the
fender, I'll probably be out another $2000. But that still keeps me in the price
range of a low mileage, good condition iX. So, I'm pretty happy.
Oh yeah, I finally got to drive the car in some snow this weekend. MOM upside down!
Its about 0 degrees this weekend, and light snotty snow everywhere. The roads are
so cold, the snow is not melting off. I got up early both days this weekend to avoid
the Christmas traffic, and iXed in the snow all over Boulder. Not only did the car handle
great, it was so much fun too! I rationalized, when I bought the car, that if I only
put 5000 miles a year on the car, the car will have 140,000 miles on it when my daughter turns 16, and it would be a good learning car for her. Well, at least I didn't
tell her she would get it with 140K on it. Come to think of it, I didn't tell her
I was thinking about giving it to her at all. You know what, she can find her own
car.
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Other iXperiences
-
Ken Fehl
, Caldonia, WI.
The iXchange has been a great help for me in getting familiar with the car and its
common (and sometimes obscure) issues. Here are some I have iXperienced so far:
Water Soaked Carpet Problem
- I got the soaked carpet problem when I washed the car for the first time. It seemed
like even if the drain tube on the firewall is clear, if you get a hose aimed just
right at the cowl vents below the wipers you can end up with water on the inside
floor. The car sat in the driveway for a week and I foolishly used the hose to spray off
the leaves which had collected in the cowl. The volume of incoming water must have
been to much for the drains inside the cowl and water overflowed through the heater
ducts to the passenger side front and rear floors. I snipped off about 1/4" of the drain
tube on right side of the firewall in the engine compartment to make overflow draining
easier and I am now more careful when washing the car to avoid too much water in
cowl area. The problem has never returned since.
Weird Electrical Problem
- After I first started driving the car regularly I noticed that the instrument panel
lights and rear bumper side marker lights were on whenever the ignition was on even
with the headlight switch off. I accepted the situation for awhile until one day
everything on fuse 23 circuit stopped working. This includes the license plate lights
and one tail light, so the faults displayed on the overhead LEDs with the 'check'
flashing in the instrument panel. I checked the fuse box and found a blown 30Amp
fuse in 23 (should be a 7.5Amp). There was also a jumper from fuse 23 through a 30Amp fuse to
fuse 17 (power windows). As a first attempt I tried to put everything back to how
it is supposed to be in the fuse box. It resulted in everything working to well -
now even with the ignition off and no keys in the ignition, the instrument panel lights, rear
side marker and license plate lights all stay on. Pulling out fuse 23 was the only
way to turn them off. Being darkest December, this got annoying very fast. I eventually
traced the problem to a combination of a bad headlight switch and a "hack job" installation
of the aftermarket stereo. I never found out exactly which connection caused the
problem since I replaced them both.
My best guess is that whoever installed the stereo mistook the dimmer wire from the
headlight switch as a ground since it is ground potential when the switch is off.
Then, when the switch went bad, some circuits were backfed power causing them to
be on when they were not supposed to be. Anyway, I installed a new headlight switch (~$45.)
and took the factory stereo which was left in the trunk to an audio shop to test.
The stereo worked fine - only a couple of burned out bulbs were replaced, tape belt
replaced, and some circuit cleaning - total about $40. The hack installer of the aftermarket
stereo had cut the original connection plugs off of the wires but fortunately left
them in the stereo. I spliced the connectors back onto the proper wires and installed
the unit.
At first I didn't get any sound out of the left channel so I removed the unit again
and used a jeweler's screwdriver to bend the prongs in the unit which contact the
plugs closer together to make a tighter contact. Now the factory premium sound system
works great and all the lights of the car operate properly. To assist with the original
stereo receiver installation and removal, I purchased the BMW factory anti-theft
stereo tool from the Ultimate Garage (201-262-0412) for $13.00. One end has the 5-sided
Allen wrench for the face plate screws and the other end is a nice thin flat blade for
prying up the little covers on the stereo faceplate to expose the screws.
Brake Light Switch
- When the weather got below zero in December, occasionally the brake lights would
not function while the car was cold and the 'check' light would flash with the brake
light fault LED illuminated. I traced the problem to the brake light switch on the
brake pedal. It was sticking and got worse when the car was cold. I bought a new switch
from the dealer (~$12.00), but when I removed the panel below the steering wheel
to install it I noticed it looked different than the original. It appeared as if
it was longer and I thought there may be problems with pedal travel. I brought the part back
to the dealer and was told the part was changed at some point and was indeed correct.
I went back home and installed it and found the dealer was right. There is a red
sleeve in the switch in which the plunger travels, and this sleave adjusts to the right
length when installed. This cured the problem and maybe can prevent a return trip
to the dealer for someone thinking they have been given the wrong part as I did.
Obscure ABS Problem
- When I purchased the car the 'Anti-Lock' fault light was illuminated constantly.
During the initial servicing of the car I had the ABS protection relay replaced.
This reduced the problem from a constant one to being intermittent, but not random.
About 20 seconds after starting when cold, the light would come on and remain on unless the
ignition was cycled after the car warmed up. I did some hard braking tests to verify
that I truly had ABS when the fault light was off and did not have ABS when it was
on. Even though I did not suspect either of these, I cleaned the ABS sensors in the brake
calipers and inspected the toothed wheels which looked good. My suspicion is that
if some thing goes wrong with a sensor or tooth wheel is that the fault would be
much more random and occur while driving. Nevertheless I wanted to eliminate them from possibly
and see if it changed the symptoms - it did not. Kudos to iXchange issue #7. The
service bulletin (34-02-89-1857) which was included in the issue turned out to be
the problem. Apparently there was an electrical tolerance problem in a signal between
the DME and ABS control unit prior to 5/88. Unfortunately, the adapter harness called
out in the bulletin to fix the problem is no longer available. After a lot of bugging
of the local dealer, they contacted the regional manager of BMW NA to locate one. After
about four weeks they found one in Germany - price $175.00. I had it installed and
the problem was cured. The part was expensive, but was worth it to finally get the
problem resolved - no more driving while being illuminated by the soft glow of the 'Anti-Lock'
light.
OBC Display
- In December the display for the On Board Computer went out. A closer look showed
the computer was still operating - I could see the correct time/temp displayed when
in direct sunlight. Gordon, thanks for your perfect instructions in issue #18 for
replacing the OBC light bar - they worked to the letter. Dealer price for the new light
bar was $25.00.
Rust Problem Area??
- In January one of the license plate lights burned out, and when I went to replace
it I noticed some rust around the mounting screw holes for both license plate lights.
I suspect this may be a problem area for E30s since there is no rust anywhere else
on the car. After removing the carpeted panel in the trunk, I noticed it looks like
some water can collect on the horizontal metal panel which the license lights mount
onto. I used some fine steel wool to remove as much of the rust around the screw
holes as I could, then treated the area with a rust converter product called '
Extend
'. I'll try to check this area frequently to make sure the rust does not spread.
Quick Summary of the Products
I Used in Detailing:
Armorall Cleaner
- Worked well to remove some nicotine stains around the ashtray and heater controls.
Lexol Cleaner/Conditioner
- Outstanding product, the leather looks excellent.
Fabreeze
- An organic odor remover available at Walgreens. This is supposed to use an enzyme
to break down odors. After cleaning the carpet with a rented carpet cleaner with
auto attachments, I sprayed this onto the carpet in the car and trunk. The product
worked great - both still smell fresh.
So far I have not had much success with the black plastic/rubber bumper surrounds
and trim pieces which have faded. Some areas are actually pitted - from UV exposure
I suspect. I have tried Mequire's '
Back to Black
' and another product called '
Bumper Black
', neither produced good results. Any suggestions for this would be appreciated.
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THANKS, CONTRIBUTORS !!