more mysteries: paint code sticker ??, VIN reports

[workingonit]

Today, the friend with whom I swapped cars (Chevelle for X5), came over with a couple of parts he left off (the radiator cover and attached air intake tube), and we compared notes on our trades. We went over what we knew about each car, and what we had done to build/restore/modify each one, while we hunted Chevelle parts in my garage.

I detailed each part in the drag-racing Chevelle's build, from long-term memory, since it's been garaged for 13 years (and I'm not a good record-keeper). I misidentified the engine block, which was a 454 block with a 396 crank, as a '69 Corvette 427 block (which I threw a rod at 7500 rpm in), and got the overbore wrong, as well (30 over, not 40). Oh, and said the Moser axle spline count was 31, not 33 as it really is. Getting old.

He said that the X5 came with no real documentation, but the previous owner said he'd had it from the dealer, and gave him a bunch of parts he'd bought but hadn't installed (old man, like me).

My friend detailed the work he'd done (a lot!), and explained the quirks of a BMW. I've had 14 GM, 4 VW, 3 Mopar, 1 each of Volvo, Nissan, Ford, and now a BMW...there's more to learn about this last one than all the others combined (except for the Chevelle after conversion to trans-brake, with multiple electrical timing aids, using variable ignition/carburetion set-ups).

After going over whatever I could ask him about, I asked about any build sheet he might've come across, but he said he hadn't found one. I'll pull the rear seat tomorrow, and double-check. Meanwhile, I saw the color code sticker in the engine compartment...code 364/5 topaz blue (correct), but it had "schwarz" (black) at the bottom. There's no black that I can spot, and the interior is either white or beige (faded to off-white?).

I tried several VIN sites to see why the topaz blue should have black listed with it, and what the interior was supposed to be, but found nothing. But, some VIN sites said my X5 was made in Germany, and others said S.Carolina. ????

[andrewwynn]

Schwarz is black in German as you said. My understanding is that is the original interior color. My color tag has both black.

Post your VIN, others can run the VIN also.

[workingonit]

Originally Posted by andrewwynn

Post your VIN, others can run the VIN also.

WBAFA53511LP20335

Can someone get the build sheet using this? I wonder if anything was changed or deleted by the original owner; my friend, the restorer/second owner doesn't know. There was an inoperable aftermarket radio in it, so he put in a cheap Blaupunkt Seattle 660 in, just for tunes...he wasn't going to keep it for long as the trade was approaching (I'll use it until I find something with NAV).

Also, the left strut tower has three nuts securing the strut, but also has a 1" high black post on it...what's that? I've never seen a strut tower with one.

[vbelsky]

Originally Posted by workingonit

...I saw the color code sticker in the engine compartment...code 364/5 topaz blue (correct), but it had "schwarz" (black) at the bottom. There's no black that I can spot, and the interior is either white or beige (faded to off-white?).

I tried several VIN sites to see why the topaz blue should have black listed with it, and what the interior was supposed to be, but found nothing. But, some VIN sites said my X5 was made in Germany, and others said S.Carolina. ????

The second color at the bottom is the primer color. Also, no X5s were made in Germany.

[andrewwynn]

Oh that's interesting; primer color!

I think the engines were made in Germany.

[vbelsky]

Originally Posted by andrewwynn

Oh that's interesting; primer color!

I think the engines were made in Germany.

The gasoline engines were in fact made in Germany! The diesel engines that we never got in the USA (despite the E53s being built here, then shipped away) were made in Steyr, Austria.

[andrewwynn]

I'm getting an error with the VIN. Can you double check or send a photo of the barcode I can scan?

I think the post on the shock tower is the factory lock of camber. Has to be pulled to adjust camber.

[workingonit]

[workingonit]

Attachment 80406

Originally Posted by andrewwynn

...I think the post on the shock tower is the factory lock of camber. Has to be pulled to adjust camber.

Watching a CCV delete video on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T_tev_ybg8, I saw another BMW with the same "post" on the strut tower. I've been mowing our yards all day in high heat & humidity (Accuweather real feel >105 degrees), so I didn't take a photo of mine.

Originally Posted by oldskewel

When I first got the car, back in 2014, I looked things up and saved it as a PDF.

In the PDF, it says, "created on: www.bmwarchiv.org"

clicking on that in the PDF forwards to: https://www.bimmerarchive.org/vin/bmw-vin-decoder.html

which hangs.

Here's that PDF, in case you want to see what might be available one day when the service is restored. It all seems accurate to me....And yes, I agree on how some of the leather - the middle parts, in particular - can look almost light gray depending on the lighting.

I found a VIN decoder at https://www.mdecoder.com/decode, that gave me all the options on my X5. And it shows the leather to be Montana grau (grey).

[andrewwynn]

Barcode agreed with your text, the VIN decoder I usually use won't work with it.

https://decode.youcanic.com/?vin=WBAFA53511LP20335

This one was the first one that actually showed anything useful.

bummer.work I think is the one I usually use. (irony: work).

I just went though the VIN results and was pretty useless sorry.

Try bummer.work from a computer vs. phone maybe there is a bug on webpage with their new add placements causing a problem.