What did you do to / for your E53 today??

[PropellerHead]

Originally Posted by Bdc101

We really need a "like" button for this board.



A lot of times I have nothing to add to a discussion, but want you guys to know I appreciate that you are active on this board. Wish we had that like more modern boards. I wouldn't be able to keep this damn car on the road if it wasn't for this board.

Ahem.... Uhhh.. ya know.. Like.

[Serb404]

Originally Posted by Bdc101

We really need a "like" button for this board.



A lot of times I have nothing to add to a discussion, but want you guys to know I appreciate that you are active on this board. Wish we had that like more modern boards. I wouldn't be able to keep this damn car on the road if it wasn't for this board.

<3

[crystalworks]

Originally Posted by sidneyj

Began tear down.....finally. Been itchin to do this for a couple years. There wasn't any sagging or issues I just love this stuff. I'm doing the same fabric/color, 9002 Anthracite, that's in the E39 M5. I was a little hesitant to do it because I wanted to keep it bone stock in case I ever sell it one day. I think a collector/purist, might want it stock. Tear down so far was fairly easy but I haven't tackled the pano roof shades yet.

The pano roof shades aren't too bad. Couple of fiddly spring clips though. Did it when going to suede on my E61. Will also be doing it on the E53 soon as the headliner is beginning to sag by the rear hump. I won't be using anthracite though as I love getting in the E61 with the suede.

Here's the TIS procedure.

[Henn28]

All the parts finally showed up so I spent the last two days after getting home from work replacing the large coolant pipe. I would have done the small pipe even thought it wasn't leaking, but new versions are no longer available. I robbed the pipes from my old motor and thought I cleaned them up well enough, but something caused the large pipe to leak. Fortunately the small pipe wasn't leaking. The o-rings looked fine, but there was a decent amount of crud around the joint to the rear manifold.

I opted to do the job via the rear manifold. I had reused that part too and wanted to make sure that I hadn't missed something like a burr, or some crap in the o-ring groove. Getting it off wasn't terrible after pulling the cowl and intake, but getting the gasket pieces off was a pain. I had to use a scrapper and then go at the mating surfaces with 800 grit wet sandpaper. The gasket remnants were completely baked on. I opted for a thin layer of permatex blue on each surface, along with OE gaskets because it was tough to tell if the block surface was completely clean and that I didn't mar it with the scrapper. The car went back together quickly and I filled and bled it fine with no static leaks appearing.

However, when I went to start it I was rewarded with multiple misfires. I had replaced the coils while I had it apart so I rechecked that all the connections were secure. My foxwell was telling me initially that I had "multiple misfires", and then separate codes for misfires on 1 and 5. After checking general integrity the motor ran great for a few seconds, then started missing again. Codes this time for "multiple misfires" and misfire on cylinder 1. It sounded better than it did initially, but definitively wasn't happy.

New plugs today (which I should have done initially) and I'll swap coils to begin troubleshooting in earnest. In the back of my mind is a fear that I've got a shorted/broken wire(s) in the engine harness which needs to be removed and folded over to the right side of the engine bay to get the intake out. The harness is getting pretty brittle.

On the plus side, I thought I had a slow rear main leak, but it turns out the silly oil return hose that snakes from the bottom left of the PCV valve, under the coolant pipes and down to the nearly impossible to reach tiny return pipe (to the oil pan), had come off the nipple on the PCV valve and had been slow dripping into the valley. Small victories. This hose is a huge PITA to get attached on both ends, while setting the manifold in place. This time, I threaded a screw into the end that goes to the oil return pipe on the right side of the block, tied some string to it, attached the hose to the PcV nipple and threaded the string down the hose path to the return pipe (which I had to use a mirror to accurately view and thread the string to). Then I very gently pulled the string as I set the intake in place and worked the end of the hose down its correct path to the return pipe. After that it was painful, but not too hard to unscrew the screw and work the hose end over the pipe with the help of a mirror as needed.

I'd rather be working on the differential project, but I need to get the car back up and running. Regardless, I ended up having to order a set of snap ring shims for the diff as the OE shims were clearly too big to work. The new diff or the new bearings (or both) are likely a fraction of a MM to large. I've never put a diff together, but I'm learning that they work on some pretty tight tolerances.

Given an upcoming painful work schedule starting tomorrow, I will likely turn the X over to my indy to sort out if I can't find a smoking gun today for the misfire project.

[Homerlovesbeer]

I pulled out my Xtron head unit, pulled the connectors off and then soldered in the I-Bus USB adaptor to unlock all the full E53 goodness accessible straight from the Xtrons head unit.

Money very well spent

https://ibus-app.de/

[Homerlovesbeer]

Also new personalised plates to reflect all the dramas I had with my car when I bought it (full engine rebuild).

[X5chemist]

Removed the rear wiper to reposition it. I have no idea how it ended up 180 degrees off! Installed a new water pump. Removed an OEM marked water pump. It was a plastic impeller. It's metal now.

[Salty B.]

Originally Posted by crystalworks

The pano roof shades aren't too bad. Couple of fiddly spring clips though. Did it when going to suede on my E61. Will also be doing it on the E53 soon as the headliner is beginning to sag by the rear hump. I won't be using anthracite though as I love getting in the E61 with the suede.

Here's the TIS procedure.

My HL is detaching/saggy in spots too. No pano sunroof. Anyone replaced the headliner before? It sounds like a huge pain in the ass. Also the A-pillar fabric is loose, and I think that means windshield out. T/F?

[Henn28]

Originally Posted by Salty B.

My HL is detaching/saggy in spots too. No pano sunroof. Anyone replaced the headliner before? It sounds like a huge pain in the ass. Also the A-pillar fabric is loose, and I think that means windshield out. T/F?

Mine needed it badly but I didn’t trust myself to do it cleanly and have it look good afterwards. I had a local shop re-cover it and it was well worth it. No more saggy, dirty, worn brown cloth hanging down.

[andrewwynn]

I've never done the X5 but I did redo on a Volvo where I had to remove the whole headliner through the front door peel off the fabric, pressure wash the old glue off the foam backer and then glue the fabric back on. I think I ran the fabric through the washing machine


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