New To Me 4.6is

[Purplecty]

Originally Posted by Mr.Couch

Thank you!I have not yet tuned it. Not sure what you mean about intake manifold. I swapped the Dinan air intake from the stock intake & installed the Dinan Throttle body in place of the stock one. I guess the Intake is cold air?

Sorry, yes I meant the air intake cone style filter as the CAI but may not be a CAI. Some 4.4s require the intake manifold swap as well because the 4.4 vs 4.6iS intake manifold is also different. The stock 4.6iS intake manifold is the same one DINAN uses for their 4.4 upgrade.

[Mr.Couch]

Originally Posted by Purplecty

Sorry, yes I meant the air intake cone style filter as the CAI but may not be a CAI. Some 4.4s require the intake manifold swap as well because the 4.4 vs 4.6iS intake manifold is also different. The 4.6iS intake manifold is the same one DINAN uses for their 4.4 upgrade.

Ahh gotcha, yes, the full Dinan air intake system w/ MAF. Yea the 4.6is Intake manifold is indeed it's own version. I wasn't aware the 4.4i dinan cars got the 4.6is manifold.

[Purplecty]

And the 4.6iS manifold is the same used on a pre Vanos M62 like a 96-98 E38 740 had from the factory AKA DINAN Intake Manifold.

[Mr.Couch]

Update 4/18/23
So I've had a bit of time getting some of the parts installed. After installing the square rear 87's it was time to move on from lowering springs w/ Bilsteins to coilovers.

I installed KW Vw coilovers and WOW! I cannot believe how wonderful this system is. The spring rates are PERFECT for this truck and soaking up bumps and road imperfections is a night and day difference. I install superpro adjustable sway bar end links as well. The truck is much, much lower than it was before. Adjustment wise, the front still has 1/3 room to go down and the rear still has 1/2. No riding bump stops at a very low ride height. I have some bump steer to deal with but more than likely is just adjusting the end links & alignment. I have put coilovers on my past 5 cars (Audi S6, F80 m3, S2000, Golf R, E90 m3) and I can confidently say this was the largest difference for the better I have felt. At this same time I installed the new OEM front LeMans fender flares to help with the poke of the massive front wheels.

I installed the dinan mufflers that I have had sitting around but didn't have time to install the new tips for them so that will be in the next few weeks.

I was able to score something I have been searching for for a while now. A Full Mtex interior popped up in Long Island so I ran out there to grab it. I have an upholstery shop that my company deals with who will pick it up, clean it up, and recondition some of the wear to the bolsters.

I think I have collected everything I really wanted for this truck to make it perfect. Now I just need to finish installing it all & getting some of the not so fun maintenance things dealt with. For those of you that go to Mpact at Pocono raceway, my shop is the headline sponsor there & my truck, as with years past is always hidden behind the booth as our support vehicle. I'm excited for everything to be complete before the event.

I'll post some pictures once it's all cleaned up, the rain this weekend and driving to Long island and CT dirtied it up a bit.

[Purplecty]

Can't wait to see the new stance!

[Henn28]

Fantastic work, love the car.

I totally missed where you put an air cooler in for the transmission. Have you followed the temps while driving, and what t-stat did you use? ZF says the low end of the 5HP24 operating range is 170, so that’s what I’m going to aim for when I do this swap to a CSF universal air cooler. I’m not sure what size to use tho yet as this is new territory for me. My torque converter is undersized for the 4.6, and I know my tranny runs on the hot side of the official ZF range (190) so I want to get the air cooler sized right so I can cool the fluid to 170 reliably.

Can I trouble you for some pics of the install when you have the car in the air next time? Would love to see how you mounted it, fabricated the lines, etc.

You may want to look at the CSF e39 M5 radiator. All aluminum, significantly more cooling capacity and now that you don’t have the water tranny cooler it should be plug and play as far as hoses. Size-wise I’m not so sure, but I bet it’s very close, or can be made to be. https://csfrace.com/csf_products/dir...oling-systems/

[Mr.Couch]

Originally Posted by Henn28

Fantastic work, love the car.

I totally missed where you put an air cooler in for the transmission. Have you followed the temps while driving, and what t-stat did you use? ZF says the low end of the 5HP24 operating range is 170, so that’s what I’m going to aim for when I do this swap to a CSF universal air cooler. I’m not sure what size to use tho yet as this is new territory for me. My torque converter is undersized for the 4.6, and I know my tranny runs on the hot side of the official ZF range (190) so I want to get the air cooler sized right so I can cool the fluid to 170 reliably.

Can I trouble you for some pics of the install when you have the car in the air next time? Would love to see how you mounted it, fabricated the lines, etc.

You may want to look at the CSF e39 M5 radiator. All aluminum, significantly more cooling capacity and now that you don’t have the water tranny cooler it should be plug and play as far as hoses. Size-wise I’m not so sure, but I bet it’s very close, or can be made to be. https://csfrace.com/csf_products/dir...oling-systems/

Thank you! You didn't miss anything, I'm in the process of planning out the transmission cooler as I'm going to have to do multiple repairs all at once to cut down on time. Here is what I need to attack.

Power Steering
Since I have a slight power steering leak I came up with the idea to upgrade that system a little bit.
I have a turner motorsport baffled power steering resevoir ( https://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-9...traight-mount/ ) which I have all new lines and hoses for. I'm going to remove the factory power steering cooler and add a Mishimoto universal cooler, the same one that I will be using for the transmission cooler. ( https://www.mishimoto.com/mishimoto-...ooler-kit.html )
https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/sho...diagId=32_1347
Using this diagram for reference, #14 is the cooler. I have confirmed that the quick disconnect line for the return on the cooler & return line to the rack are the same quick disconnect that the transmission lines use. I have adapters that connect to the quick disconnects ( https://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-5...ooler-fitting/ )

So here is the plan,
Install new baffled power steering resevoir
--New OEM suction hose from resevoir to pump
--New OEM return hose from resevoir to quick disconnect adapter (-10an) to mishimoto universal p/s cooler tucked in front of the pusher fan in front bumper (Aligned to drivers side)
--From Mishimoto universal p/s cooler (-10an line & quick disconnect adapter) to New OEM return pipe to rack.
--New OEM pressure hose
--Fill & make sure no leaks


The reason I am looping this together with the transmission & cooling system work is because I would like to only take the bumper off once, mount the universal coolers, install the new radiator, etc. One and done

Transmission cooler
I have the notorious 2-1 bump after driving for a bit and the transmission temps (I assume) get to high. I have not yet done a reading on the temps but the previous owner had installed a low temp thermostat & termostatically controlled puller fan which do indeed keep engine temps down. Here is the plan I have for the transmission cooler upgrade.

Install new OEM supply and return lines. Instead of them connecting to the stock BS cooler and then to the radiator I have come up with two ideas.

BMW E39 Radiator & transmission cooler
This is the first idea which would consist of installing an e39 (Up to 09/98) transmission cooler which is an air cooler PN 17221740798. If I used that cooler & the support bracket that holds it to the back of the radiator PN 17111740796 I could essentially just delete the 4.6is transmission cooler & not have to fabricate anything. This would also allow me to use an upgraded CSF e39 radiator (if the same as a 540i m62) or just use the oem radiator PN 17111702969. So for this plan to work...
-Install new 4.6is supply and return transmission lines
--New OEM early e39 transmission cooler lines can be spliced with New OEM 4.6is transmission cooler lines at the soft rubber portion of the line.
--Transmission cooler mounted in support bracket to radiator
--New OEM radiator from early e39 540i (Which is the same manual or auto)
--New CSF upgraded radiator
--Full transmission service and pray it lower temps, doesnt leak, eliminates the bumping downshifting from 2-1 when hot.

Option 2, Install a universal cooler
With this option I'm still installing new OEM supply and return lines for the transmission. I would then use the quick disconnect adapters from above in the power steering section to mate to (-10an) lines to the same mishimoto universal transmission cooler, mounted directly next to the power steering cooler & lines running to the passenger side of the truck. The only issue with this is now I need to figure out a radiator solution so that I can properly delete the BS transmission cooler that comes standard on the 4.6is. It's possible to run the same transmission I listed above but I have not yet confirmed this to work. With this option I have already purchased a thermostat that would work in line so that I can ensure the transmission warms up properly but this also might be overkill considering I wouldn't be running a thermostat for the first option & I can also just take it easy when starting/driving cold.



In conclusion,
I know I didn't answer your question directly but after doing the research I do indeed believe that both transmission cooling options will work, I just don't know which one i'm going to pull the trigger on. I think i'm leaning toward the almost OEM option (1) and see if that OEM cooler does enough to lower the temps. Realistically, anything will be better than what is currently in the truck.

[Purplecty]

Any updates on this?

[Mr.Couch]

None at the moment, I've been swamped with work and home life. I won't be running the power steering cooler but replacing the whole system full of lines & resevoir.

I did tune the truck (Dinan) both engine and transmission and the 2-1 downshift hasn't shown it's ugly face yet. I still plan on doing the cooler however to help keep the temps down.

I should have some time in the next month or so to start tackling some maintenance items.

[Mr.Couch]

Update 9/26/23
Sorry, it has been a busy work summer & lots of needed repairs done to the 4.6is. I also ended up purchasing a very clean Land rover LR3 for my wife to drive since the X1 35i is just too small for having two kids under 2. Here is what I've dug into in the past few months..

Power steering
I dove into this to refresh with new OEM parts. All lines were replaced along with the reservoir from Turner Motorsports. 2 weeks later, the reservoir started leaking pretty badly, all over my abs module below it and the Aux water-pump. I had to change the reservoir out for a new OEM one & re flush the system. Not only was this a bummer since the reservoir looked great but I soon after got the dreaded trifecta of warning lights and a fault for my aux water-pump. On top of that, I only realized this after my power steering pump started screaming at me.

-Power steering reservoir, all lines, cooler, pump all replaced with a flush

Other leaks & issues
So after the power steering issues were resolved I decided to bite the bullet and tackle the not so fun stuff all at once. I have had my valve cover gaskets leaking for a few thousand miles, a little green crud just below my waterpump and lastly I needed to address my ABS, TC, Brake warning lights on the dash. I don't drive very spirited so the first time I went over 80 mph Transmission failsafe program warning as well. Here we go...


-Scanned for faults and found:

EGS speed signal n-ou (output
DSC Wheel speed sensor, Front left, transmits no signal
DSC No message from EGS control unit
DSC No message (DMER1) From DME/DDE control unit
EGS CAN timeout DME
IKE EGS signal line disturbed
IKE No CAN Identification (DME)
IKE No CAN identification (DME)
IKE No CAN identification (DME)
IKE No CAN identification (EGS)

Yea, it was a lot of faults. I started by looking at the LF wheel speed sensor and found the blue connector was broken and the wires starting to fray. SCORE! this could make my life easy and just be a wheel speed sensor. NOPE! Installed a new LF speed sensor & vehicle side connector & the faults remained.

I decided to remove my ABS control module and send it out for repairs as hopefully this was indeed the issue with all my faults. I sent it out to Matt @ Cheap-ABS.com overnight with a return overnight label. He was great to deal with, responded back to me quickly with my questions and found a few broken wires inside the unit. Car was only down for 5 days (including a weekend). Installed the ABS module this morning with a new Aux water-pump (the aux waterpump had split in two when I removed it to make room to remove the ABS module, also had a buildup or power steering fluid and coolant in the connector). I cleared the faults and voila! No more warning lights, symbols or faults. I was very happy I didn't have to recode the module either since I didn't move or start my car while the module was out for repairs.


Lastly, I wanted to get some worry free, leak free miles on this truck as it's had its weeping / leaks since I purchased it. I bit the bullet and ordered brand new OEM valve covers, gaskets, hardware, water-pump, water-pump gasket. Installed all of it with a fresh oil change & coolant flush.

Future project/needs
So now that the truck is modified the way I want it to be I'll be needing to address a few things all of which are not pressing.

-I need to get the squared front wheels refinished in factory silver and mount up a set of snow tires.
-I need to adjust the Dinan exhaust & replace the tips with the new ones I have
-I need to replace the drivers front window regulator vapor barrier etc.
-I need to install the M tex full interior I have just sitting at my shop
-I need to work on my headlight swap over to clear side markers
-I need to hunt down a rattle in my trunk after installing the trunk loading floor
-I need to replace my windshield (the top trim came off, its a bit chipped and pitted, no cracks)
-I need to re-tint the windows after the regulators are done
-I need to install that damn roof spoiler I've had sitting in front of me for months and actually spend the 5 minutes doing that
-I need two new rear all season tires & alignment
-I need to start putting money aside to get ready for the timing chain / guide replacement end of 2024

I hope all is well with everyone here on the forums & well wishes to get through the end of the year!