COVID-19 Quarantined or Stay At Home X5 Projects

[crystalworks]

Originally Posted by Bmwe5320023.0

Removed my exhaust manifold cuz I wanted to replace the gasket/heat shield.
Then I thought to replace the exhaust manifold with headers, but there are no headers for M54 on ebay in the $100-200 range.
Decided to clean up the manifold and paint it with high heat paint.
Naval Jelly is nowhere to be found in Canada so I'm applying what i think is a similar product.
Once all the rust dissolves I'll wash and paint it

Trust me, you don't want any part of headers that are $100-200. Been there done that. Cost another $300 to have an exhaust shop finish the installation because nothing lined up, interferences were crazy, etc. Nice idea to clean your OE ones and paint them. Will look much nicer.

[Bmwe5320023.0]

That's true. The cheapest ones that have a factory fit are from Russia for $530 USD or $750 CAD
Probably not worth it, half the price of my car lol
https://www.ebay.com/itm/332380752293
I read that the heat actually goes up with cheap headers because they're made from thin metal, so you have to ceramic coat them and wrap them on top of everything

[TriX5]

So I started a headlight mod years ago and when life got hectic and the e53 engine had to come out, it went in to a box and wasn't seen for a good while. https://xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/...highlight=turn

At the time I put the engine back in and rebuilt the front of the car, I left the trim strips below the headlights off. Since then I have been thinking what to do about the mod. At first I thought to go with Crystalworks' supplier but it would take weeks to get the rings from China and I thought of something different than that.

Today I completed the passenger side and halfway done on the driver's side. Should be done with the other one tomorrow and maybe have some pics with them in the car on Wednesday or Thursday. Till then suspense :-)

[crystalworks]

You tease! Fine, I'll wait. What else am I gonna do.

[Overboost]

Waxing the paint is complete on the E46. Still have to do the interior but glad the rubbing is over. Tell me I'm not the only one that waxes door jambs and behind the gas flap.

[tmat1977]

thats a beaut white nice job

[crystalworks]

Originally Posted by Overboost

Waxing the paint is complete on the E46. Still have to do the interior but glad the rubbing is over. Tell me I'm not the only one that waxes door jambs and behind the gas flap.

You might not be the only one who does it... but you might be the best at it.

Very nice OB. Very nice indeed.

[Overboost]

Originally Posted by crystalworks

You might not be the only one who does it... but you might be the best at it.

Very nice OB. Very nice indeed.

Thanks CW. I wish I could do more in the stay at home orders but honestly this is the only thing I can do that doesn't cost me a cent, just effort.

*EDIT* I did have to get approval from the CFO for the $3 wax applicator pads from Advance Auto. I can't believe my life has come to counting pennies.

[blackknight530i]

So, over the last week and a half or so, I've done a ton of work on both my e39s and my e53.

First was doing the window trims and cowls on both the M5 and the wagon, then new brakes and RBF660 flush on the M5, then started one of the worst jobs I've ever done on a car... the dreaded alternator bracket gasket replacement on the 4.8is.

The gasket had failed completely about a couple months ago, and I bought all the parts to do it, as well as the valve stem seal repair and everything else that you do "while you're in there". My indy who is a good friend of mine was going to let me work on it with him on a weekend at his shop and we were going to pull the engine and do it all, has been slammed and then the coronavirus hit, so I was relegated to working on getting the garage prepped and ready for getting a lift installed so I could do it there instead. With the coronavirus, that kept me from having my buddies come over and help with that, so I decided to park the X5 for a while. Then, when I started working less hours and working from home, I decided I was going to just attempt the alternator bracket gasket repair myself so I could at least get the car back on the road.

The job took me a week working between 4-8 hours a day, skipping a day in the middle. The biggest part of it was just cleaning everything. There was so much oil all over everything that I went through about 10 cans of brake cleaner. So much cursing at BMW engineers was done, thinking why would they design everything to block just 1 bolt on another thing, forcing so many things to be removed to get at a stupid $10 gasket.



Mine had a definite crack at the top where oil was spraying out. Replaced that gasket and the o-rings on the cooler lines, as well as the one last soft line on the power steering system I hadn't done previously since I was in there. Got it all put back together and at least that no longer leaks. Still need to do the valve stem seals, timing cover gaskets, valve cover gaskets, spark plugs, etc., but I think I'm going to let my indy do that next week instead. This weekend will be rear suspension bushing overhaul so I can get the alignment done at the same time.

Also, got new wheels and tires put on the X5 as well. The car came with some replica E70 wheels when I got it and I always hated them since they were black on a black car, so I picked up some mint condition Style 87s and put some brand new Michelin AS3 N0 spec tires on. I haven't taken a pic with the new tires on, but here she is with the new wheels.



Headlights got sent off to a buddy of mine who is sanding them and polishing them, then clear coating. He should have them done tomorrow and I'll get those reinstalled. Here's the first one after clear:



So that's it so far.

[Purplecty]

Originally Posted by blackknight530i

So, over the last week and a half or so, I've done a ton of work on both my e39s and my e53.

First was doing the window trims and cowls on both the M5 and the wagon, then new brakes and RBF660 flush on the M5, then started one of the worst jobs I've ever done on a car... the dreaded alternator bracket gasket replacement on the 4.8is.

The gasket had failed completely about a couple months ago, and I bought all the parts to do it, as well as the valve stem seal repair and everything else that you do "while you're in there". My indy who is a good friend of mine was going to let me work on it with him on a weekend at his shop and we were going to pull the engine and do it all, has been slammed and then the coronavirus hit, so I was relegated to working on getting the garage prepped and ready for getting a lift installed so I could do it there instead. With the coronavirus, that kept me from having my buddies come over and help with that, so I decided to park the X5 for a while. Then, when I started working less hours and working from home, I decided I was going to just attempt the alternator bracket gasket repair myself so I could at least get the car back on the road.

The job took me a week working between 4-8 hours a day, skipping a day in the middle. The biggest part of it was just cleaning everything. There was so much oil all over everything that I went through about 10 cans of brake cleaner. So much cursing at BMW engineers was done, thinking why would they design everything to block just 1 bolt on another thing, forcing so many things to be removed to get at a stupid $10 gasket.



Mine had a definite crack at the top where oil was spraying out. Replaced that gasket and the o-rings on the cooler lines, as well as the one last soft line on the power steering system I hadn't done previously since I was in there. Got it all put back together and at least that no longer leaks. Still need to do the valve stem seals, timing cover gaskets, valve cover gaskets, spark plugs, etc., but I think I'm going to let my indy do that next week instead. This weekend will be rear suspension bushing overhaul so I can get the alignment done at the same time.

Also, got new wheels and tires put on the X5 as well. The car came with some replica E70 wheels when I got it and I always hated them since they were black on a black car, so I picked up some mint condition Style 87s and put some brand new Michelin AS3 N0 spec tires on. I haven't taken a pic with the new tires on, but here she is with the new wheels.



Headlights got sent off to a buddy of mine who is sanding them and polishing them, then clear coating. He should have them done tomorrow and I'll get those reinstalled. Here's the first one after clear:



So that's it so far.

Damn! The headlights look oustanding! Night and day difference! You will love your front end more now...