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

[Ricky Bobby]

Originally Posted by davintosh

Replaced the #^$&%*# CCV/oil separator. What a job. I'd like to meet the guy who decided it was a good idea to mount that thing under the intake. In a dark alley, please.

Otto makes it look easy. It's not. I've got about ten hours in the job. DIY Video – Replacing the BMW M54 Crankcase Ventilation System, PCV, Oil Separator, Cyclonic Valve | Bavarian Autosport Blog

In other news, the X5's new owner should be here tomorrow to take it home.

No way Dave you're getting rid of it?

The CCV is a bear the first time, luckily I actually have small hands so its somewhat manageable. After all was said and done, and replacing the dipstick guide tube with the newer cold weather version, I was approx the same amount of time start to finish.

Sorry to see it go, but I guess the new owner would be happy you did the maintenance. Anything replacing it or are you just sick of the X?

[davintosh]

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby

No way Dave you're getting rid of it?

The CCV is a bear the first time, luckily I actually have small hands so its somewhat manageable. After all was said and done, and replacing the dipstick guide tube with the newer cold weather version, I was approx the same amount of time start to finish.

Sorry to see it go, but I guess the new owner would be happy you did the maintenance. Anything replacing it or are you just sick of the X?

Yeah, selling it. It's been a good car, but the wife has been hinting at wanting something smaller. A BMW friend from Michigan was shopping for a winter car a few weeks back & asked my opinion of the e53 X5; after some chatting, I mentioned that we may be selling, and next thing you know, he's made an offer, I've accepted, and he's on his way here on a bus(!) to pick it up. He was planning on driving out with another guy, but that fell through. I've steered him toward this site, so he'll probably show up here sometime and introduce himself.

That oil separator job was a lot more difficult than the Bentley makes it look. The Bav Auto video was pretty helpful in getting me through it though. I thought about pulling the manifold, but needed to get it done and didn't have a gasket set. I had trouble with the shorter hose that feeds through the manifold to the valve, so my son with the magic fingers did that one; sure glad I had him around!

I was really surprised to find that the valve that came out of it was NOT the cold-weather insulated unit. And one of hoses didn't have insulation on it. The documents I got from the previous owner said that it had been replaced with the cold weather unit, so I'm thinking somebody got taken by a shady mechanic. Bad deal.

[crystalworks]

Originally Posted by Joshdub

What specifically are you guys having problems with? My stuff looks rather fresh, but is the uninsulated. I have been thinking of getting the insulated kit. It doesn't look too difficult.

It's getting to the bolts under the manifold to release the CCV and associated tubes. No way (for me) to get under there to release ALL the tubing without pulling the manifold. When I do it I replace everything... breather tube, dipstick drain tube, etc. As such it's usually just faster for me to pull the manifold.

[Ricky Bobby]

It's totally doable with the manifold in place. Just unbolt the distributor air piece on top. Key is getting the wire harness junction box out of the way and the throttle body out.

Watch the BavAuto video. You have to get the bolts off blindly, but you can feel them if you stick your arm under there. It's a blind R&R of the 2 retaining bolts for the valve itself, and a blind install for the hose that comes up from under the manifold, you have to press it on the valve and twist it up into place. It's all blind, but doable if you're familiar with the orientation.

I replaced mine, and all hoses and the updated dipstick tube in June and took me approx 7 hours DIY start to finish taking my time. Would be able to do it in half the time now that I know what I'm doing.

[StephenVA]

Sorry to hear your leaving the family.
Your the only person I have met on the BMW boards who is from that area of country. My mom is from Emery SD which as you know is a few miles west of there. Sioux Falls was the "big city" to her.

[SANSABA1]

hi all, i have problem when i start a car after 2rd gear to 3rd gear, when the car is cold safe mode prog come on board and move is very slow.after i turn off car and start after 10 second , there is no messege and no promblem all day long, next day morning there is same problem!! today i checked by computer and there was problem slipping 2rd gear to 3 gear, can anybody tell what i do, some say me there is problem of brain some say abot transsmission problem but why its comes when the car is cold???

[Jack_James]

Installed my Nokian snow tires on my Kromag 9960 steel rims. Fitment was perfect for the rims, and ride is smooth. Checked tire pressure this morning and no drop, so looks like I remember how to work a tire machine

edit: speaking of CCV, mine also looks in great shape with no oil loss happening. Engine has 130,000km on it, runs strong. I use Quakerstate Defy 5w30 (great zinc and zddp content!) and 5oz of seafoam every oil change (reduces moisture build up, and helps clean varnish/emulsified oil residue, petroleum based).

Think I should look into the cold weather kit as well for safety though? It's winter time here now, and I'm only slightly concerned about it since there hasn't been any issues since the frequent oil changes (left film of oil in the valve cover breather tube after long drives before) now it's basically dry just feels oily. The seafoam really does its job well lol.

[davintosh]

Originally Posted by Joshdub

What specifically are you guys having problems with? My stuff looks rather fresh, but is the uninsulated. I have been thinking of getting the insulated kit. It doesn't look too difficult.

When I looked at the job as described in the Bentley manual, I thought it didn't look too bad either, but it didn't take long to figure out that the Bentley skipped a number of important things. Like the fact that you can't see any of what you're doing unless your head is the size of a baseball and you suspend yourself from the rafters of your garage, upside down, to do the job. And it helps to have hands the size of a capuchin monkey.

I was able to get it done without removing the manifold, but it's one of those jobs that would work well for a DaVinci laparoscopic robot, unless you take the time to pull the intake manifold off. It's not an easy job. Not impossible, but one where you need to budget your time wisely, and not dive into it when you've got a short window of time where it has to be done.

Originally Posted by StephenVA

Sorry to hear your leaving the family.
Your the only person I have met on the BMW boards who is from that area of country. My mom is from Emery SD which as you know is a few miles west of there. Sioux Falls was the "big city" to her.

She may not recognize Sioux Falls these days; the city plus the surrounding "suburbs" is well over 250,000 people now. Not huge compared to some places around the country, but it's feeling a lot bigger than I remember it being when I was a kid.

I'm not necessarily leaving the family; I still have a herd of BMWs to care for, and this is one of the few boards with a decent signal-to-noise ratio where a guy can get some good answers to questions that come up. We just bought an e46 325i last week, which also has an M54 in it, so I'll be around. And who knows; we may end up in another e53 sooner or later. They're at about just the right age where the price/condition ratio makes them an excellent buy.

[LVP]

Tossed on the 19" staggered winters. There is something to be said for unsprung weight. My summers are the staggered 20" with run flats. The 19" non-RFT make the X5 feel nimble. Steering isn't as heavy, acceleration much better, softer ride with the new tread and taller sidewalls. Road noise on pavement at 100km/h+ is noticeable, but I'd trade that for the traction any day.

Splurging for an alignment at the dealer tomorrow morning. We'll see if I can get them to pre-load it and follow my instructions for the rear camber/toe. I'm bracing myself for a wonderful experience. I'm sick of the hack, lack-lustre alignment shops that have touched the X to date. Stay tuned.....

[Ricky Bobby]

The dealer won't set the toe to .01 because that would be "out of spec" I've found only indy shops would do it. BMW low spec in the rear on toe is like .07 which is still too much.

Good luck with it, an I recommend if you want to save weight on the 20s to go with non RFT. That's at least 5 lbs per corner.