Which motor and miles? Refresh my memory? Every m62 I helped rebuild would throw euros until I replaced a cps or two so that's my start point of mystery errors. They never are cps related


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That’s some nice work Factory6Speed. I long for a manual gearbox again, and would like to try to convert my 4.4 from my 5hp24 e53 to a manual set up to use in a project car. This is pretty well doucumented in the forums it seems. Even some kits available to move the crank sensor to the front timing cover.

Nothing so challenging happening on my weekend. I did finally pop a few parts on I’ve had sitting in the shop for a while - a new fuel hose and a new armrest tray. All parts from FCP.
My OE fuel hose has seemed stretched tight to me since the motor swap, and it’s also old as dirt. New one is a bit longer.
https://i.postimg.cc/vB3X5Mng/PXL_20...2_Original.jpg

My armrest has been a sticky, nasty mess for years so I bought a new tray, for starters.
https://i.postimg.cc/DZ2BWmS3/PXL_20...7_Original.jpg
Here is the new one, before popping it in. Two credit cards, inserted towards the back of the old one on either side, releases some tabs and the the tray comes out from the back edge first. Pic of the new tray here, next to my recently cleaned and redyed arm rest. Super happy with the way this, and the rear seats turned out.
https://i.postimg.cc/wB5wTDTk/PXL_20...4_Original.jpg

The the rest of the plastic around the tray is a bit sticky still after cleaning, but I’m not sure what can be done about that.

Wow, TIL that brake fluid testers are a thing! Looks like it is just a simple conductance measurement too. I am sure that the Chinese can still mess up a device as simple as a conductance probe but maybe I will see if I can find one and see how long it lasts.

I picked up a full compliment of Liqui Moly engine, brake, gear, steering oils for this weekends fun on the surface of the [emoji274] maintenance. Although it's supposed to only get to 47c on Friday instead of the awesome 53c of this week....

I already have a burnt sausage and toasted nuts, on the plus side I also have no fingerprints!!! [emoji3060]

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Amazon. Not expensive. Brake fluid wears out from absorb water. I already bought the fluid to do the change and it is ready to change but not overdue. I'll do this summer


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It's not expensive the first time, no, but when you have to buy another one next year from a different seller with a different made-up brand name ... and can't find real reviews because Amazon makes it easy to create fake brand names with fake reviews... thanks Amazon, for making it easy for the cheap chinese counterfeiters to sell crap in america.

Last workday for this week. 90F and cloud cover. Comfortable weather. Why not? Open the pano roof wide open and blast some music. :bmw:
Hello weekend.

Your definition of comfortable and mine are two different things, :wow:

Here in South Texas. 90F in July... is amazingly comfortable weather. I actually wore jeans this week. Normally jeans get put away in May and brought back out in October. :bustingup

It's the humidify. (or lack thereof). I'm in the Midwest and 90 usually feels like 96-97. When I visited Phoenix a while ago, it was about 106° until the sun went down. We went inside a store and came out close to 10 pm and there was a gentle breeze and we all noted how cool it felt.

Got in the car and the dashboard confirmed how "cool" it was: NINETY NINE DEGREES! (37c to you in the *majority*)

It is brutal here in the SF Bay Area when the temperature gets above 90. Close to or over 100, it is intolerable. It's not as humid as the east or Midwest, but it's not dry enough to be like the southwest. Thank go I got the AC working properly on my X. The weather is supposed to cool down some, but they're talking about another heat wave coming. More temps in the 90's. It doesn't normally get like that but once or twice a year here.

We usually get between 1 and 3 intolerable weeks in southeast Wisconsin. Typically the worst is end of August but just had a stretch of 4 days hitting upper ninety real feel.

While we're griping about heat, here's a photo from a road trip in my 2005 X5 to Las Vegas in early June. Even for a Texas resident (thought not a heat-acclimated native) it was just brutal. Black on black car, too.

Chris
Lockhart, TX

Oh my God! I cannot imagine getting into a black car that hasn't been running with the AC on for at least 30 minutes in that kind of heat.

Many years ago the wife and I went to Vegas to see a couple shows. Flew in and rode in Escalades to and from the hotel. Any trips outside the hotel were made in a town car so we didn't have to stand in the taxi stand line. It got to 117 while we were there. That's the hottest place I've ever been.

Of course we're complaining about it here and EOD is living on the surface of the sun saying "that the best you can do?" :rofl:

https://static.wixstatic.com/media/d...d15be2~mv2.jpg

Normally it is a very dry heat here which makes it bearable, but this summer has been really humid. It's been drizzling fairly sporadically - and not enough to cool things down, just enough to make it humid. Last year we had 55 days of 110+ weather and so far this year we've already hit 34 days.

Wow. Sounds miserable.

I'm spoiled now; I need cooling
 

I grew up in the days where automotive A/C wasn't found in most cars, back in the '50's & '60's.

Our family cars didn't have A/C from my birth in 1950 thru the day my father bought a used '57 Olds 98, with A/C, in 1960. Both sets of G'parents didn't get auto A/C until 1962. So I/we were used to Texas summers without cooling.

My maternal Grandfather had a '52 Chevy, black on black, but he had an evaporative "swamp cooler", hanging onto a right-side window, that he'd attach whenever he'd visit family in far West Texas (lower humidity than in the DFW area), but it wasn't used around town.
Attachment 84291

Once I got my first car, a '56 Chevy (w/o A/C), in '65, thru 1977, when I bought a used '73 Volvo 142 (with A/C) I drove for 12 years without A/C (except for 1968-71, when I had a '67 Dodge Monaco 500, with the best A/C of any car I ever owned...I got T-boned by a Pink Cadillac, so I went poor-boy driving 3 successive VW's, w/o A/C from '71-77). I never bought another non-A/C car/truck again, with one exception...my triple black '66 Chevelle Malibu.

When I bought it in '94, I fully intended to restore and upgrade it for street use, but it seems that that plan never had a chance. In '93, my new wife and I moved into a semi-rural area, about 2 miles from a dragstrip (and two circle-tracks). Though I had quit drag-racing soon after high-school, and hadn't gone to a 'strip since then,the sound coming from the nearby 'strip (usually on Wed. & Fri. evenings,all day Sat., and sometimes all day Sundays) was too much of a temptation for me to resist, so I set out to make the Chevelle into a street-strip car.

I still planned to install an A/C at first (it had been a factory A/C car), but since I only drove it to work in pre-dawn cool mornings, and back after 6pm at nght (maybe once or twice a month), and primarily to the local car show my Chevelle Club hosted once a month, or to the 'strip twice a month, I never got around to installing the A/C components I'd bought, and traded them for go-fast parts.

Later on, the Chevelle was converted to race-only, and trailered to racing venues, so no A/C was usually needed. But, there were a few special events that I raced at, which were held in summer weather, where I regretted having a triple-black car.

One time in particular comes to mind: it was over 100 degrees ambient, and there were close to 400 cars at the event, so the staging lanes were long and all drivers were HOT. At one point, after being in the lane, and finally getting to the burn-out box, the racing was interrupted so the "Jr. Racers" could run their event.

My Chevelle had no alternator (I charged the dual batteries between rounds), and I really couldn't shut off the engine, so I idled it (at 1250 rpm) for the ten minutes we waited, after 30 minutes already creeping forward in line. I had to turn off the fan inside the car, in order to have enough power for the engine cooling (dual fans, and electric water pump...alternating between each).

And, the car had an uninsulated floor (weight-saving), and the headers dumped right below my seat, so all that heat was rising up, and cooking me. I had an oven temperature gauge clipped to the visor, and it read 150-160F degrees, and I was sweltering in full firesuit, with no water to drink. After that, I always carried one or two jump boxes inside the car, so I could shut down.

I couldn't take that kind of heat these days (that was 20 years ago), but if I was still racing, I'd definitely have a refrigerated cooling vest (not invented 'til later). Heck, that might not be a bad idea, to use on the riding mower!

Or sitting at your kids baseball game!


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I didn't have AC in any of cars from when I started driving in 1976 (a 1967 Buick GS400 I'm still kicking myself for selling) up until 1985 when I bought my first brand new vehicle, a Toyota 4x4 Extra cab pick up. Drove that until 1998.

I actually was thinking that [emoji1787][emoji1787][emoji1787]

I'm doing oil change today because it'll get down to 44c according to the forecast. To be fair though there haven't been any 60c days for several years.

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I had to go online to convert that to F. Man that is too hot for me.

Me too!! Even the devil has air-conditioning in the Middle East [emoji1787][emoji1787]

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:rofl::rofl::rofl:

my indy mechnic is a bit hamfisted and breaks more than I appreciate, even though the price is good. This time he mangled the headlight, I got suspicious after a bunch of parts were caulked together. Basically every fastener was either broken or missing (or both). So I got a pair of headlights for only 50 bucks that were worn but complete, polished them and fitted the right one.

https://i.imgur.com/VpT7xAe.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/qvXHv0P.jpg

had to get creative because the rubber boot was missing and I couldn't find the part seperately... anyone knows where to get that?

https://i.imgur.com/Sp0bytE.jpg

all buttoned up... the lower trim piece has also been abused, glueing it seems weird though

https://i.imgur.com/fekqZBg.jpg

Plastic welding works. Plus, wire with heating hold pieces together well. I welded up a back side light cover.


July weather has been fantastic. The mirror covers are replacements. The OEM ones had cracks in the paint. The current one are off an older X5. Clay bar took off dirt and some stains. Pictures are pre clay bar, left one clay bar vs right side pic one, products, and final outcome. Next, the spoiler. After that, the entire body!

32C+ or 90F+ is no problem for mine. Heat Shield makes great covers. I've tried other brands. Heat Shield has done the best to keep the black interior from excess heat. If no rain is expected, venting the pano roof helps even more. I try to park with the rear facing the sun. Or sides.

Got a link? "Heat shield" is too generic for search.

Prior owner replaced tan/beige interior with black from a parts car for some demented reason, except seat belts and headliner/pillar trims. Maybe due to mold? Dunno, but jeez that black leather gets HOT.

I guess I've got the only two-tone-inside E53.

Heatshield website. The windshield one does fit better. I propped it for a quick picture. All of my vehicles use them. Windshield and side windows. Any rear windows use limo 5% tint for rear doors or cargo areas. The rear windows match front door tint.

What's interesting, Heatshield also makes one for the top window! I don't know if they have the pano roof or not. Either way, my pano roof is also ceramic tinted.

Yeah I picked up the OEM sun shade, 82110008342, it was about $50 US. It fits pretty good there's maybe a half inch gap on either end and a little spot around the mirror. It only takes 2 seconds to put up and down.

I'm sure it helps a lot but still the black and new to me upper black interior is super hot after getting into it at 5:00 p.m. I'm also now cracking the windows a little bit and venting the pano roof. The max AC button works really well but it's so hot when you get into it.

Sadly I do have it parked in the sun now for a few months. At least it's out of the garage and I'm not crawling around underneath it for a bit. I did good a good clay bar on it a few weeks ago when it was inside, and a good wash and wax the other evening. So hopefully the sun doesn't destroy it. The clay bar was really satisfying to do it had the Florida sand or sea salt grit in it.

The check engine light went off on its own the other day after I put a fresh tank of gas in it. I didn't really know that could happen, but I'll take it. Mixture control. I will order the smoke tester and check the intake and CCV. But it might just be sensitive or bad fuel, it's running great.The uuc clutch kit is good. The gearbox chatter, i don't mind it, don't notice it that often. It sounds like a military vehicle. We'll see how I like the twin disc single mass on the low f30 sedan, that might be a little bit more noticeable.

Wow, upper black interior? Mine is gray. I have the same OEM shade. It's in its protective sleeve in the back. I used it for a bit. I didn't like the fit. It's why I went to heatshield covers. It's blacked out nicely.

Now that they have added rear window shades, I'll probably get one for my Ram truck.

CRL + mouse roll up: interior pano pic from rear seat view. :wow:

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

Roll your windows down with the key fob at a distance the interior temp will drop 39-40f in 20 seconds while walking to the car.

Mine won't do that. Is it a setting in the head unit?

My new (as of last June) fob has never worked more than maybe 25ft from the car.

The fob for my F30 does it, but I had to code it to do the opposite: close everything by holding the roundel button.

As for what I did to it today, nothing. I'm driving a 16' box van full of my junk to Louisville KY on Monday and have been a crazyman for a week packing stuff up. Fly back Weds, pack up the X, and hope nothing blows up like last time (f'ing Chinesium water pump).

E53 should be factory coded to roll down the windows but not up. No bmw in USA will come factory coded to roll up it's lame.

You can use the key in the key hole to roll down and up factory settings but has to be coded with computer

I picked up a set of the style 87s and will be headed out on a long trip hopefully Saturday to go retrieve them. We'll see if I make it there and back. It will be the first official test. I renewed my AAA membership and have a little bag of tools and some spare parts such as coils and injectors in the trunk.

It's been pretty good I've been daily driving it for 3 weeks now, I'm even starting to beat on it. I did smoke the clutch in reverse, have to be careful with the reverse. But nothing is leaking and the flywheel bolts haven't backed out yet.

The 9-year-old Michelin x-ice tires 235/17 are making all kinds of noise in these temperatures. This thing handles remarkably well and these tires are just not up for it, they're squealing all the time. Driving at about three tenths they start to squeal. Hopefully I can save them for the winter a little bit at least.

I'll probably end up going with the 20" michelin pilot sports but am really liking these hankook ventus that came on the E36. They may be slightly less sticky than the pilot sports but are nice and quiet, soft, I think they're great summer tires for a daily driver. If anyone has any good summer tire specs they like for the staggered 87s please advise.

Here is the OEM sunshade with hot upper black interior. The guy did a really nice job on the headliner. If I had put the water stained light gray back up I would be mad at myself.

https://i.imgur.com/iL9TSIyl.jpeg

I stood on the binders today and went 90kph to zero in the length of a 4-way intersection (important note) when you're slamming so hard with new tires and brakes it's possible compress the springs enough to make contact with the inner fender liner and pull loose the plastic rivets!!

By the way, that liner will rub your tire starting at 80kph....

FML!!https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...67d3b31c50.jpg

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Damn. That’s really surprising…springs or air suspension?

Factory6, that headliner look really, really nice!

I spent my morning yesterday helping my neighbor change the tire on her husband’s 2024 GMC monster Tahoe, or something like that. He is out of town and the sidewall blew out, likely from too many curb hits paralel parking in this town. Comedy of errors turned a 45 min job into a 4.5 hour saga.

- Floor jack wouldn’t fit under the OE lowered vehicle with 20” wheels so I had to use the Toyota tundra bottle jack I keep in the back of my X5. Why? Because there was no OE jack in the car.
- couldn’t find the key to unlock the cover to the “port” that allows the tool access to lower the spare. Turns out it was in the key fob. Should have known this, or figured it out from the owners manual…but that wasn’t in the car, or their house. Eventually we figured it out.
- the best part was finding out that the 17” spare didn’t fit on his hub with the 20” wheel and brembo brake package he has on the car. The x5 saved the day with a trip to Firestone where they put a new tire on her rim while we waited.

Good times.

Later that afternoon I went by the upholstery shop where my “new to me” seats are finally get re-covered. It’s taken way too long due to Covid, heart surgery for the owner, etc., etc. but they are in very close to being done finally. My wife won’t generally ride in the e53 currently because the 22 year old front seats are so bad.

New leather with vintage BMW “uberkaro “ center sections. The leather came in a bit too dark, and although I really like the shade, I’m going to have the new leather dyed to match the rest of the car, which is slightly lighter. I had the rear seats and door leather cleaned and dyed this past year and it all came out beautifully. The headrest on the below pic is closer to the oe and re-dyed shade in my x5 now. This pic was after the initial fitting and he is going to mark them up and then tighten seams as necessary to get the folds and creases out. New bottom foam and he added extra padding to the fabric centers.

Thanks to members BimmerBreaker for the fabric and 5s0ng for the donor seats.

https://i.postimg.cc/d0dC0LJ1/PXL-20...8-Original.jpg

I also dropped off an eBay drivers side door card, which is in fantastic shape compared to my OE panel. Particularly on the inside. All the clips and plastic bits are secure, and the pleather areas are in good shape. He’s going to dye that to match and I’ll swap it in.

I converted over to springs all way around, I really think it was because I went over a painted crosswalk letting me really lock up then hit plain asphalt where the Witch stuck the landing like a North Korean gymnast at gunpoint. My son thought it was AWESOME but it made me shit a brick with the front plunge!! I will get on this tomorrow and also make sure I don't have any broken bolts, springs, etc on my coils.

So thrilled!!! [emoji3060] [emoji849]

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The X5 is having an inspection next week so it was time for the annual hand brake adjustment today. Also installed a new trunk lid handle grip some time ago to fix the non working license plate lights and occasional switch problems and swapped the aftermarket LED tail lights from the 4.6is since the originals in the 3.0i were starting to have their typical issues and looked very faded.

Should be good to go now, apart from the oil leak most likely coming from the oil filter housing but let's see if it will be noticed inspection. I have the new gasket already and will be replacing the alternator as well so I will fix that soon anyway.

Installed e63 M6 seats in my 4.6is today.

Direct plug n play 20-30 min swap just as the e46 m3 seats are. Note: both the e46 and m6 seat belt anchors attach to B the pillar -vs- the e53 which attaches to the seat frame. You could potentially swap top seat rail, but the e53 seat belt anchor fits perfectly to the rear bolt hole where the seat and rail fasten to the chassis. Also note: unplug the battery to avoid airbag warning light. Never liked the e46 m3 seats when I had one(e92 m3 seats are nicer in every way) and these m6 seats and also have adjustable lumber and side bolsters and so far they fit my frame(6’2 205 pounds) perfectly!

If anyone in SoCal wants a pair of original 02 sport seats let me know. $250 for the pair(driver side heat element imperative.)


https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...b711f883c7.jpg
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...3265dfab77.jpg
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...47652a6f74.jpg


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So I had a strut not quite fail but it's weak as hell. All fixed now, but I still have to fix my leaking windshield washer tank at the pump to hose connection.

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Great looking seats. They are in really nice shape and look original in your x5.

You are very happy you have e53! Link on YouTube for the fix on e70!


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Look great! Thanks for posting. Very nice to know these are an option...

The Witch got a bath and wouldn't you know it...

Some Yoruba speaking twatwaffle broke the right rear DHC with an Olympic Clean and Jerk, plus the child lock is on!!
MF'r also pressure washed a wheel weight off!

I just so happen to have a new DHC on hand, but it's 50c out (47c in the shade) and I was really looking forward to spending time in Ft. Living-Room. I am starting to regret not smoking more d-bags back in the day....

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

To open from outside with the child lock on practice with the new one exactly where to poke the cable with a long skinny flat blade screw driver, you can possibly fashion a hook from thin wire to pull but I had better luck with pushing and screwdriver.

I shut my door with my only key inside. Four hours for a lock smith meaning leave my car with my key in the ignition in Chicago overnight or figure out how to get in.

I had the replacement DHC miraculously with me and not in the car so I figured out where to poke to open the door.

A strong sideways push on the cable worked to open the door. Once I knew where to poke it was less than 2 seconds to open.

The last week I've removed both front brake calipers, fitted new rotors and then painted both while finally doing a full brake fluid flush on the 4.8is.

The biggest ball ache was time spent waiting for paint to dry :popcorn:

Parts used:

1. Brembo L54210 Brake Fluid Dot 4 LV 1L Low Viscosity
2. SP Tools Brake Bleeder Kit Magnetic SP63030
3. 2 X MEYLE PD Brake Rotor Single 356mm Front 383 521 3070/PD
4. ZIMMERMANN 23448.210.1 - Brake Pad Set, disc brake
5. Meyle 300 349 5119 - Warning Contact, brake pad wear
6. Textar Brake mounting paste

And for the painting

1. VHT Engine Enamel Paint Gloss Black 325ml - SP124 (for the rotors)
2.MTN Pro Metallic Blue Brake Caliper Spray Paint 400mL (calipers)
3. MTN Pro Universal Primer Spray Paint
4. MTN Pro Acrylic Clear Gloss Varnish Spray Paint

So the MTN paints I'd give a miss to next time. The fully cure tunes are a load of BS. I waited over 48 hours after painting which is full cure time and the paint was still soft. The primer seemed good, the clear, well I'm not sure as I got impatient after the 48 hours and applied the clear coat regardless. It seems ok but not brilliant.

The VHT paint was great. I baked the rotors in the oven at 200°C for an hour to help cure and I'm happy how they turned out.

The Meyle rotors and Zimmerman pads appear excellent after bedding in. It took about 50kms to feel nice (city start stop traffic). Quality is fantastic.

I used the BMW recommended low viscosity brake fluid and used the whole 1 litre bottle for the flush starting from the left (passenger here in Australia) rear and finishing at the drivers front.

All up about 5 days work including waiting for paint to cure and then brake flush.

Pics on the way

RR DHC removed for replacement (failed with childlock on) instead did repair because some cross-eyed bastard put LR in box!!!

I have to clean my AC evaporator, because of course I do... [emoji849]

Suggestion: Open all your parts before you need them and double check it's complete and correct...https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...ce18f4435e.jpg

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Did engine oil test and the low rent model I have shows some particulates but still not too bad... [emoji28] https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...5e5282aaa5.jpg

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http://cloud.tapatalk.com/s/66e55155...914_112446.mp4

Started work on new customised door mirrors to include turn indicators and replace paddle light with bmw logo. Additionally also started modding the lower headlight trim for an updated look and lastly will mod the interior of headlight with new AEs.
I know someone will say, post without pictures is useless, but always hated to have to create a link to cloud to then share it here ��, photos soon ��

Use the Tapatalk app and you don't have to use an image hosting site...

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+1 it's worth a buck a month for automatic photo uploading.

Replaced vacuum pump, coils and plugs, installed 5mm spacers all round on 2005 4.4 without flares and style 87 staggered setup. Car now looks and drives amazing, but the steering has gotten heavier. I think the fronts could look more flash with 10mm spacers. I need to install the Servotronix steering rack.

Hit the style 130 wheels with aluminum cleaner. I need to do it more often. Years of neglect show up. Corner pitting doesn't clean up well. A lot does come off. A brush does help get into lug holes and corners.

I lost my finger prints once from aluminum rim cleaner! My motorcycle had raw aluminum rims! Talk about maintenance headache!


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Too slow, too many ads. Hate the simplistic layout. Prefer the Xoutpost site and deal with just a few ads and having to host pics.

Even BETTER, was the Xoutpost app! Unfortunately, it fell from App Store and now only works on my secondary phone ;'(
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...17825651e2.png
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...fa3a8f906a.png


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Tapatalk or a Google shortcut to the website
 

I also lost the Xoutpost app when I was having trouble with my Android phone, back in April.

Suddenly, my Samsung S9+ could receive calls or internet, but not both at the same time, so I worked with Boost Infinite techs for over a week until we found a solution (three complete reboots, two new APNs tried, a new sim card, and 24+ hours on the phone).

When the phone returned to normal, I had to reconfigure my phone, including re-installing all my lost apps and widgets, but I found that the Xoutpost app wasn't available, anymore. I tried to contact the admins of XO, https://xoutpost.com/1238126-post1.html, but got no reply from them...probably because "Xoutpost is currently undergoing a planned server migration.... stay tuned for new developments.... sincerely, the management".

So, I reinstalled Tapatalk (free), and was able to use it to see XO on my phone again, but since I've had a love-hate relationship with Tapatalk for many years (during which I've installed/uninstalled it many times, on several devices, for three reasons...fails to connect, freezes up, uses too much data in the background), I also made a Google shortcut to the XO "E53" page, to sit ready for use, on my homescreen, as a back-up.

Perhaps I'd get better service from Tapatalk if I bought the paid version, but as I said, I don't rely on their app, entirely.

Does anyone know why the XO app was withdrawn from the app stores?

I use imgur and the l or m in front of the .jpg in the url to get the thumbnail. Then you can use the url tag with the original URL for the "click for large". Of course the pictures will all be gone in 10 years, like photo bucket today.

Myself, I've really just been daily driving it. It did survive a 10 hour trip. I'm getting close to a legitimate oil change. The CCV needs replaced and there might be another vacuum leak under there. Oil consumption is pretty bad and there's a slight hesitation around 2800 RPM in 4th gear up a hill that is getting worse. Not sure why I really only see it in 4th gear.

I thought the starter was not disengaging and making noise, but I think it's a weird noise from the uuc throwout bearing or clutch. I found the inpa and NCS tool suite sitting here on the laptop, and I figured out how to use them to do coding. So I coded off the clutch safety switch and if I don't push the clutch in it barely makes the noise. I think it's just a cheap throwout bearing probably, noise when cold.

I think the esys tool would work for coding, I might try that soon. The lock / unlock beeping must stop. I ended up having to do the head gasket on the E36 but as soon as I finish that I get to remove another intake manifold. I wish I could figure out a catch can for this car.

Changed the fuel filter after more than 6 - 8 years.

Did you do post mortem? When i did wife's after 15 years it still had plenty of life bit it was charcoal black on the inlet side! Definitely did it's job filtering roughly 9500 gallons of gas. Was interesting to see it cut in half and the black goo pour out the dirty side.

I’ve got the same filter set-up on my 2002….correct me if I’m wrong please, but We don’t have the valve that keeps pressure at the rail on our filter. I can t figure out where that valve is on our cars, or if it even exists. I loose pressure at the rail within 10 min with the key off. Not a huge deal as I usually turn the key to posit 2 and then strap in, giving the pump a second or two to build full pressure.

I don’t know if our cars with this older filter didn’t have a no-return valve somewhere, or if I just can’t find it.

There is a check valve built into the fuel pump. The only difference with some of the older cars AFAIK is that the pressure regulator is removable from the filter on some of the older ones.

Ok, so then my 2 yr old Delphi fuel pump could be the culprit. Its also only putting out 40psi at the rail, so maybe I need to spring for an OE BMW part. I seem to recall 50psi is the magic number but will look in Bentley.

Maybe you need a better fuel pressure gauge or connection? The pump check valve is the most common point of leaking fuel pressure but the regulator, injectors and all the lines and connections need to hold as well. Maybe start a thread if you want to look into this further?

50 is the magic number. If you FPR comes off like mine did you might find a leaky o-ring that vented the pressure back to the tank.

When check valve holding you should have 20-30 psi overnight but the FPR o-ring also must seal.

Sounds good, thanks Andrew. But where is the FPR on the smaller (older, I think) filters like in the picture above? It isn’t a separate part, so is it part of the pump?

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...29d4cd323f.jpg
Bummer i think it's built into the filter.

You could confirm the problem is in the pump or the FPR by pinch off the return line. There's a TSB on the exact procedure but if i did it i would have a helper so i can pinch the return line as soon as i turned off the key.

Or: i think foxwell can engage the pump. If your pump primes on key on you can listen for it to stop after ≈ 6 seconds.

The check valve is in the pump.

If pressure stays with the return line pinched the problem is like mine was: internal leak at the FPR draining. If it still drops it'll be the pump check valve.

If the pump check valve fails but the pump is ok, people will often just add an inline check valve.

First look into why you have only 40 PSI of fuel pressure.

Well boys and girls, it's that time again (2.5 yrs [emoji12]) so the 1st parts are in....

Front was a couple of months ago, along with brakes, tires, fluid/filter change and hood cables/latches. [emoji849]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...88855aea55.jpg

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Brings back memory of doing mine.

Definitely a different memory than I have!!

I'm hoping that I get crushed to death by Royals car knocking the White Witch of the stands.... [emoji1787]

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Wow! Where did you sit down? How do you move tools to other the side?

Drove around town with vent temps showing 4C. :bmw:

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

Sat on the bubble wrap window sun shade. Did the right side a different day inside the garage.

That tool box has wheels. Most of the tools moved in there.

Your car knows when you get paid. :confused:

I don't think that's true. The White Witch seems to wait until I don't have enough to do work all at once and whenever the weather is.. 1. Super hot 2. Dust storms or 3. Both with no overhead cover.... [emoji1787]

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I bought, for camping season, 18x8.5" Hamann HM2 wheels and 265/60/R18 Nokian Outpost APT tires to dress the new shoes. I'm not gonna be using these for about 10 more months, but I wanted to find gear now, for some reason.

Not today, but last month Frau Blücher kept throwing "Bank 1/2 too rich" codes. No noticeable excess fuel exhaust smell, fuel mileage is the same (not great), no roughness or stumbles. Codes would reset then come back within a day.

Prior owner had replaced a shitton of fuel system parts including injectors. No idea if he had access to ISTA etc. to reset adaptations. Disconnected the battery for 30min, some SES and other dash weirdness on restart but that all went away after a minute or two.

No more rich codes!

Still getting the t-stat code... "P1620 Map Cooling Thermostat Control Circuit Signal High" jiggled the wire but that connector is super-hard to access without removing stuff. Maybe that will be my winter break project. No overheating, underheating, cabin heat is fine (or was last winter anyway). No warning lights from this code either.

welded in new plate to fix left front jack area due to lovely winters in Northeast USA and all the salt they throw on the roads. other 3 jack points were only surface rust which I treated with POR-15 rust inhibitor.

I guess it's not bad for 2006 x5 & 203,000 miles

Rear suspension is all done (5 hours) plus new hood/hatch struts, 2 new keys being cut (ready tomorrow) taillight bulb, tranmission bridge seal/filter and oil change this afternoon....

I am now hopefully going to die in my sleep so I can rest!![emoji1787]
I still have to get the Witch inspected (including deviation on alignment 1km) last time was 40m via roll dyno setup. [emoji28]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...553c47859d.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...6d62019ff2.jpg

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Is this the app you are looking for?

https://apkpure.net/xoutpost/com.tap...stcom/download

Yes…cannot find a usable version for iPhone.

Went to the local pick-yer-part for a LR door seal. Found a good one on this LCI 4.8is, which has this kind of unusual interior trim color and door panel inserts. Gorgeous blue paint, still shiny, but obvs some sort of catastrophic failure sent this former beauty to the boneyard after it sat for a long time.

Wonder if it was some kind of Individual order or a special edition... anyway it's in Louisville KY and still has the pano sunroof. Seats are gone.

Good enough reason to dump apple :D

Wellllll, let’s not be hasty!

I found a shop with 3 new radiators for the e53 4.8is.

Unused, never installed for $295.00 USD each. I'm not sure how much it would cost to safely ship back to the US, but it's possible to do if the cost stateside makes it worthwhile.

My 2 aftermarket keys cost $145.00 USD for purchase/cutting and programming.

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Has anyone had any issue with driver side tail light bottom bulb going out frequently? I have to give it a little magic touch and realign the bulb before it happens again?

I probably need a new light itself but anyone have a DIY remedy?

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

Contacts fail and it overheats and melts the plastic that holds the contact making it exponentially worse.


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I drilled out the melted stand off/ stake on, bent the metal to make a stand off and installed some self tapping screws. Lasted the life of the car.

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If your e53 is old enough it won’t have pins to light up the 21w filament on both lights. Add a jumper in these two places and get 4 brake lights vs. 2 (and still have lights on both sides when a lamp fails). It’s a miracle I find those photos I’ve tried half a dozen times when it came up I couldn’t find my post because I didn't make a thread.

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

https://xoutpost.com/1047563-post65.html

Web links fail in Tapatalk. Open into browser (will open desktop version though)

Looks like Serb404 has a 2004, so this brake lamp mod doesn't apply - the LCI has single filament lamps in all four locations. :thumbup:

The fix for the failing lamps holder DOES still apply! :rolleyes:

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

What's broken on your E53 today!
https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink/top...ink_source=app

This opened in Tapatalk but off by one post go to post 65

Thanks everyone, I'm just going to do the LED upgrade, should be able to find some reasonably priced E53 LED tail light set, plug n play

I've not seen any LED "upgrades" for e53 LCI cars that are truly plug and play. The LCI cars are wired differently than the pre-LCI cars and work differently too.

Which is not to say that some folk have used them and are happy but just be warned that when a vendor states their LED taillights fit all e53 (2000-2006) that may not be the case... :rolleyes:

I was going to do the same thing until I realized 20 minutes a side I could fix it


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Hand washed the X5 for repairs. Beers to anyone who knows the struggle! :thumbup:
The OEM regulator was installed. I removed it shortly after I bought it. I didn't know it had broken clips. The regulator was unplugged at purchase. A replacement regulator lasted almost three years. It rolled up and down too slow. The OEM with modified clips works so much faster. The wifey can now go through a drive-thru for lunch. A lot of door panel clips broke. I have a bag full of clips but forgot to take them to a friends house. The air bag was not disconnected. I used a bungee cord to hold it in place out of the way.

To do list: fix the RR speaker, install a hitch, valve cover gasket, and fuel pump.

Some new footwear. Bought to use for camping trips instead of city wheels and summer slicks... But may wear them a little longer than just camping trips.
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Wow, nice fit. What is the tire size?

Looks great! I like the running boards too. I've gone back and forth on the look over the years, but think I may try to find a used pair and powder coat them to match the plastic rockers.

Oh hey, I was just in Austin, Tx exploring. I like that city!!! This was the second time we've been to Austin and man its always been a great time at Confederation Bridge for the bats and checking out the fun between Confederation Bridge and Red River St, mainly on 6th St.
Even bought a Brane Audio Brane X speakwe from the store in South Commons. WICKED AMAZING speaker.

Anyhow, to answer your question, 265/60R18 on 18x8.5 wheels with 38mm offset (with a 25mm H&R bolted on Spacer in rear) and wheel fitmest is FLUSH on both fronts and rears this way.

I figured out that if I pump the clutch pedal a few times before starting, that squeaking noise on cold startup doesn't occur. Not sure what to make of it. It's maybe something with the slave cylinder or the throwout bearing. I did have to use the febi Bilstein slave cylinder as the OE ATE one was on a delay. So maybe it's something with that or I just need to bleed the line again.

But I'm quite relieved as that was a bad noise that could have the transmission coming down again. So I think it's good, just keep driving it. It's been really good otherwise, perfect on the highway. Just awesome to drive this thing.

Up next is the intake manifold off service, the CCV, fix some b***** fuel trim codes, and probably throw a new starter in while it's off.

Then it's on to the rear subframe build and swap for the winter. I need to order all those arms we saw a couple pages ago. I'd like to just get a second differential and everything and completely drop and swap the entire rear subframe. That might get expensive though.

Nice, hit us up next time you come to Austin. A few of us are around the area.

The door panel was removed to replace the broken clips. The two upper inner plastic holders had fallen off. Both were glued back on using Gorilla glue. After a quick dry, the door panel went on easily. All the clips are in place. Luckily, I had several clips. I have a few more extras for the next door panel removal. It's nice and solidly on. I couldn't figure out how to install the door handle light. The light is just hanging inside. The X5 was not asleep when the panel was removed. The street bulb burned my finger good! I need to find the style and replace them with LED bulbs. The stock ones get super hot!

Get the full part LED not just the lamp.

In the future put the cabin lights into shop mode with long press of the cabin light button. I've had no start situation after a repair when i didn't think of it.

I know of your struggle... and never did get the little bitty door handle light back in place so mine is also lighting up the inside of the door.

Amazon sells assortments of LEDs and I replaced every interior bulb with them. So much brighter and they won't burn you!

Next up: LR door lock actuator and door seal...

My e70 has the special lighting package. Like 9 extra lights. It's daylight! Every one is LED but they do not like the fade to light so i disabled that and they are great


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Finally had a new windshield put in. So nice to have a clear view out of the front instead of the pitted mess.

I have a fun new gremlin in the X5. The rear hatch opens at completely random moments during driving. You can hear the lock opening erratically.

Considering I had some issues during extreme wet weather with the hatch button not working for a while, I suspected the button. I took the unit off so see if it had any water ingress, but couldn't find anything obvious. The whole unit seems sealed so any exploration would be destructive.

Anyone had this before? Would you still suspect the switch or could I have a wiring problem? It happens stationary as wel as driving, so not movement-induced

Yep, mine did the same and it was the inner portion of the rubber button had deformed and was resting against one of the micro switches...

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Cheers! I've found a second-hand unit so I'll swap that out then

I had exactly this happen.

The rubber button held water in.

I removed the rubber and solved my problem. I never figured out how water got in but i turned it into a drain and never happened again.

Continuing with small but cool updates.[emoji16] Today updated the side turn signals to the more recent model type and dynamic.
Its plug and play, with the small exception that you need to bend the spring clip downwards for a perfect fitment. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...d83cdc943b.jpg

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Great update that's one of the only things making e53 look dated. I wanted to do the same never found the right one.

Nice!!

I mean..... Hypothetically if I said it looked bad, would you send them to me instead?[emoji1787]

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Thanks. It could do with being a little shorter but you can also fit the other way round.
Very good quality and couldnt believe the price

I just found this on AliExpress:
5,05€ | Sequential Flashing LED Turn Signal Side Marker Light For BMW X3 E83 X1 E84 X5 X53 E60 E61 E46 E81 E82 E90 E92 E87 E88
https://a.aliexpress.com/_Ex3bEfn

Of course! I am also finishing my customised "M" look door mirrors with turn indicator and BMW down paddle light, so if hypothetically you say they are bad, I will send them all together 🙈

More-or-less diagnosed my (increasingly) slow turn-over at start. Battery fine, cables all good - starter motor is smoking gun... have not bothered to check starter current but I'm betting it's close the 400A that many folk have seen on failing starter motors on the M57N.

Will remove starter and rebuild it myself - don't trust the aftermarket options. Another job on the list... :rolleyes:

Awesome.

Now, let's talk about that horrible amount of cash and valuables...[emoji1787]

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:rofl::D

Help a bro out! Take my $$$$. :rofl:

Are these for E70 models? :dunno:

This task rose to the top of my list in the last few days, with a couple of near non-start situations. Couldn't put it off any longer...

Removed the starter (easy to say than to do!!) out the via bottom after removing the transmission under-shield. The alloy sub-frame reinforcing plate stays in place. It took two long extensions and two universal joints, making a tool over 1m long!! Dr Suess, I believe Andrew would say...;) This was inserted from behind the transfer case, over the top of it, alongside the transmission and then (via the universals) up onto the starter bolts at the top edge of the bell-housing. Fun... :rolleyes:

(censored swearing happens here)

The "rebuild" of the starter was very straight forward, with no parts needed, just a damn good clean and re-grease. Couldn't exactly diagnose what caused the high current draw and slow operation - possibly a combination of old, dried grease mixed with a small amount of carbon dust from the (barely even worn) brushes and said carbon dust shorting the segments of the commutator. Anywho, once it was all cleaned down (using the only spend on this job - a $12 can of CRC non-flamable parts cleaner), greased correctly and re-assembled, bench testing showed it to perform well, so back into the car it went.

(more swearing happens here)

Moment of truth, holding my breath.... Wow!! This thing now spins up so fast and the engine is running almost instantly! Very pleased... esp. since the OE Bosch starter could probably last a million kms if serviced occasionally, it's so darn well made. Can't actually say if it's better than the aftermarket options but I'm betting it is... ;)

I did the same as a preventative maintenance (no symptoms yet) at 220 tkm. I would say the carbon dust shorting the device is the main culprit. Now running at 390 tkm without problems with the same starter. I also cleaned all the starter body mating surfaces and used a small amount of conductive paste on them to make the ground route to the back of the starter as good as possible.

Good work! :)
Did you guys happen to notice if the cable nut on the solenoid was not as tight as it should be ? or was that maybe checked/tightened done previously?

Took the White Witch in for inspection and registration renewal.

She failed because they said that I need new brakes.... (done 2 months ago [emoji849]) and that the alignment has a drift of 4m per 1000m.

Of course they said for a small "fee" they could fix the issues and it would pass....

I may have accidentally informed NAZAHA the anti-corruption police [emoji848] this coming weekend is the "free" re-inspection. I now have a REALLY good feeling for this one...[emoji1787][emoji1787]

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My starter has never been touched, as far as I know. All hardware was about as tight as I would expect.

I snugged them up well when re-installing. I had a PDF on hand with all the correct torque specs but getting a torque-wrench down in there was just a step too far... :rolleyes:

Source?

Replaced LR door seal that I suspect was the source of water intrusion in the rear footwells when Hurricane Helene blew through while it was parked outdoors at the airport. The prior one had split at the join and had about a 3mm gap at the bottom. That's the only place it could have leaked as the sunroof does not leak at all. Pulled it from that once-gorgeous Estoril 4.8is I posted upstream. I need to go back to that yard and see if the wheels are still there. Vacuumed up the camping season debris after we closed up the camper.

Delivered stored washer and dryer to the in-laws yesterday, a 100+ mile drive towing a box trailer (never towed with this rig before). Frau did fine but the shitty old U-Haul trailer socket was worn and it clanked bad all the way. The turn signals blinked fast like when you have a bad bulb, is that normal?

7B Map Cooling code came back... t-stat time I guess. Frown.

edit: added pic, and she's def a 20-footer. Hood is peeling like a bad sunburn. Roof paint is down to primer in spots. Some asshole hit the back bumper last time I parked there and put a nice crack in it, so I hope the hitch ball popped their radiator... I hate that people think "eh it's old, nobody cares" and don't give a shit about others' property.

They were originally for the E90 but came and fit other models. Just surprised it fits the E53.
I put a link up on where I got them. Check it out

Wow, never heard THIS was Estoril?!? Any chance the f/r bumper covers were still on it? I heard oh May be stopping back by the salvage yard for something from it and would love to know about those bumper covers! If there and in good shape - I love to pay you to ship them to me!


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If I go this weekend I'll check! I have to fly to So Cal Sunday for a work trip but I'll try to get out there. I want those wheels.

How hard is it to remove those bumper covers?

I have finally hit a pothole harder than ever before and didn't bust a rim!!![emoji3060]

I did however do a little something, something....[emoji2962][emoji2962]

That's more F'd up than a handful of mashed potatoes. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...88cb6ff100.jpg

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Broken spring end?
Mine has an annoying light knock at slow speeds. I've checked a few parts. I need a lift to check it good. I first suspected the links but they are tight.

Yeah and I will say that, my light knock sounds more like an empty 55 gallon drum falling off a truck onto hard packed dirt....[emoji854]

FML

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Already posted the link on my post 16912!Be more aware 😁

Replaced coils and mounts.

I really enjoyed messing with basically sewer water and dirt...

PS. Using a pressure washer beforehand only made it "reconstitute" and may have been a bad choice! [emoji848] [emoji53] [emoji51] https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...f4fb10046a.jpg

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Went back today... no rear bumper cover, front is there but has rotten cracked PPF over it. All four 18" wheels are present but need refinishing, and this yard charges stupid money for them so I passed. But I cound a pre-LCI with a perfect headliner that I'm gonna grab next weekend.

Also according to VIN it is "Le Mans" blue, not Estoril. We regret the error.

Here's the VIN: 5UXFA93554LE81467

And here's the bumper, you can see the cracked film. But other than that it's in good shape.

AliExpress express is scary! :rofl:
I've ordered mine from Amazon. I'll post a video and pictures after installation. I did see an E46 with some on it. It looked cool during the day. Night time will be better.

THANKS for checking! Glad you found that headliner! Mine just started falling on 2006 so I'll be searching for a pano headliner. It's my only working pano sunroof out of FOUR and it's the only one that is failing.


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That blue one has an intact pano roof but who the hell knows if it's any good. Headliner looked good cursorily but as it wouldn't work in mine I didn't look that closely.

AliExpress, same manufacturer Amazon, only cheaper 👍

Big day for the x…well, more for me. I put a “new” (to me) drivers side front door card in that is in much, much better shape than my OE card. I’d reglued various parts of that panel back together more time than I can recall, with varying success. I even got out the heat gun and re-adhered the vapor barrier to the door. My wife liked the fact that the new card has the “airbag” plug still in tact, and approved 3 more to cover the holes in the remaining doors where those plugs long ago went missing or broke. They came in from FCP and look great.

https://i.postimg.cc/wjJkV5FG/PXL-20...5-Original.jpg

I also made it back to the garage where my 4.4 motor is and got a bit more done on my my 4.4 disassembly. I’ll update thst thread with pics when I get a chance.

Center Support Bearing replaced.

This was the only brand available, the stealership said 2-4 weeks (inshallah) @765 SAR but the Matrix brand was 200 SAR. I just couldn't wait and wasn't going to keep driving on that P.O.S.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...2569e814c0.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...0e79c9899f.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...4d842c8b71.jpg

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What was that now effed up thing?

Replaced my shift shaft seal (GM trans). Replaced the o ring on the coolant temp sensor on the lower radiator hose. Messed with my leaking PS hose. Hopefully got it stopped. Put grade 12 bolts and nuts on the stiffening plate when I put it back on from doing the shift shaft seal. Was going to give her a bath, but rain coming tonight and tomorrow, so it will wait.

Spring mount (I switched to coils years ago)


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Today is my sunday and I didn’t feel like working on anything actually important, so I cleaned and lubed my window seals and tracks. The rag and credit card trick is fantastic, and the dry silicone spray seems to help a lot.

I also replaced the hedgehog, which I was hopeful would fix my IHKA issue. The car won’t blow over bar 3 in the auto mode, and the (main) dash vents never seem to blow as hard as they used to. However, with max ac, or manual fan selected all variations of fan speed work. Also, the center/dash vents blow fine when selected on the panel. This tells me it isn’t a switch or stepping motor, or the main blower, and the hedgehog didn’t seem to fix anything.

So I pulled the IHKA panel and saw a lot of dust and lint inside of it, thru the various vents and holes. The fan especially was clogged with a ton of lint. I wasn’t sure how to open it up, so I got out the compressor and blew it out from all angles, and then shot a bunch of contact cleaner into it. The fan seemed to turn well with the compressed air.

My 1 min test in the drive way after buttoning it up seemed promising. I’m headed out to run errands and will report back.

***Update***
So far so good. Drove the car for a while running errands and the dash vents were blowing fine again. I also got back in it after it sat in the sun for a bit and the blower came on at roughly 50% immediately. Before the cleaning it wouldn’t do more than 3 bars in Auto.

I don’t think the hedgehog did anything, but replacing a 22 year old resistor that had a few bent bits isn’t the end of the world. I didn’t spring for OEM, so hopefully it will last a while.

What I think is the blower as been squeaking in cold weather, but if I’m really lucky maybe it was the little fan I cleaned out in the IHKA controller.

Finally wired my E53 back up for trailer lights. When I bought my E70, I planned to sell my E53, so I sold the factory trailer hitch and wiring harness. Plans changed and I kept the E53 around, so I put a Curt hitch back on it so I could haul bikes at least. Then on occasion I really wished I had lights so I could pull a small trailer.

No coding is required, so all I had to do was buy a $60 module off Ebay, the plastic plug and the individual pins are available from FCP, and lastly a generic pigtail (I only made a 4-pin hookup for now). It's a really clean install doing it this way. The blank plastic plug and pins were about $10 and a Curt pigtail was about $6 on Amazon. I crimped on the pins to the individual wires and then soldered each for durability.

Plug the module in behind the battery, plug in my homemade, but good-as-factory harness, and I have lights!

AM.

Can you share the exact part #? I've been wanting to put a factory light control in my e70 and had no luck determining exactly what i needed so i have a 3rd party controller. It gets the job done but i have to deal with PDC alarm constant when reversing and i think three DSC program works differently to account for a trailer when you have factory trailer power

Edit: I just re-read your question and didn't catch that it was about your e70. I actually have an extra E70 module p/n 7160685049701. PM me your address and I'll send it to you. You've been very helpful to me over the years, so this is a small token of my appreciation.

Now back to the E53 for anyone interested: Here's the module I got, though I think there were a lot of different part numbers over the years and basically any of the E53-compatible ones will work:

Attachment 84562

Then from FCP:

https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw...ol-61131378138

https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw...-2-61131376204

Then all you need is a generic trailer wire pigtail of your choice (7 wire or 4 wire).

AM.

Nice, I'm getting ready to install my hitch. Should be all plug and play, right? I read your has coding, is that correct?

Here's the post for a hitch.

Guess what I have to do this weekend... [emoji28]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...8dfd871c12.jpg

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I think I'm confusing it with my E70 install. The E70 definitely needs coded to work right, but I just looked at the original trailer hitch instructions for the E53, and they don't mention any coding needed. I think you'll be good to just plug and play.

AM.

Pollak 11898 is a nice universal 7-pin harness…I think the OEM harness was made by Pollak.


Connect the pins and connector plug mentioned in post 16946 above, add a trailer module and you’re in business.

Took advantage of a warm afternoon. The body line trim is now complete. 18 years of dirt wiped right off. The sequential light is so fast, I can't see it. The black lens looks great. The OEM clear cover was well overdue to be replaced. I can't wait to see them at night.

What did you do to / for your E[emoji2[emoji2391]9[emoji2391]][emoji2391] today??
 

That’s a nice upgrade. Those side markers get really aged.

my upgraded side markers came with my new model. I think your version was likely less expensive.

What is this fantastic trick?

I think using a cc to get a spray soaked rag under the seal against the glass.


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I first saw the credit card trick on m539 restorations here, he was using it to get the area between the rear window glass and the pillar. I guess you guys are sleeping on this channel. :stickpoke

This is a good watch it's pretty much how to paint correct. Especially if you have a black car.

https://youtu.be/ITgiFp_l01A?si=p58ifJi_z1Wokhdr

The x5's been really good. There's still a fuel trim code that comes and goes. I'm finally done with the m52 stuff. It's running fantastic but there's still a piston slap, as I suspected the entire time. Great. This weekend I'll be bringing the x in the garage for a little checkup. I got a smoke tester kit. Hopefully the intake manifold is not off tomorrow afternoon.

I bought a smoke tester too recently. Great tool. Just moved it into the storage space yesterday after smoke checking the x5 vacuum plumbing a couple weeks ago. DME is showing that it’s correcting for a bit of a lean condition, and my brake pedal is firm initially, then sinks rapidly.

Smoke tester showing everything is tight, so now im thinking that maybe the 20+ year old injectors need to be changed. I saved some money when I put the motor in and bought the rail and injectors off of eBay. Had them cleaned and flow tested within spec though.

On the other hand, it could just be the N62 throttle body I’m using. It’s got a bigger bore than our OE. Sounds good, but not sure it adds power.

Replaced rear window regulator, the first time in the life of my 2005 4.4 to replace any window regulator. Followed this great DIY procedure https://youtu.be/9hWGIU6Z3rM?t=10

I removed my rear wiper, and used a vacuum cap to cover the threaded post.

I've got a group of semi-feral cats that I keep around our semi-rural house, that have eliminated the snake and rodent population we formerly had. We've spayed and neutered them, so the cat population is now steady.

One drawback is that there are one or two that like to get atop my X5, and lay on the home-made roof rack up there, then slide down the rear window glass when vacating the roof. And the wiper arm gets relocated in the process.

Since I haven't used the wiper but once or twice a year, in the three years I've owned the X, and though I've used three different wiper assemblies (OEM E53, replacement E53, and replacement E70), none ever cleaned the glass that well, I figure that the long-handled squeegee I have in the trunk will do the job better anyway, so I removed the wiper at last.

After removing the wiper arm and lock nut (needed if I ever decide to reinstall), I used contact cement to glue a large vacuum cap over the threaded post, and called it good. I was thinking about removing the motor and using a wiper-delete kit to fill the hole in the glass, but for me, I'll always choose the quickest, cheapest solution, as long as it works.

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Nice side indicators! What model are they from?

powers1,
The LED lights fit any of these models: BMW E90 E91 E92 E93 E46 E53 E60 E61 X3 E83 X1 E84 E81 E82 E87 E88. Search for black LED turn signal lights to fit any model listed.

After reading the description on them, I didn't notice that they are not sequential. The lights all turn off and on at once. I may upgrade later to sequential ones. The LEDs are bright at night. The signal is very bright. :bmw:

Andrew Wynn, I tried to PM you, but I don't think it's working. See my response to you on post 16946. Let me know if you are interested.

AM.

Reply sent. My outbox was full it wouldn't let me send reply


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I still can't reply to you, but it's in the outgoing mail for tomorrow. Enjoy!

AM.

Thanks. Thats the ones I got for mine,but in silver
Didn't you need to bend the metal spring clip for tighter fit?

What did you do to / for your E[emoji2[emoji2391]9[emoji2391]][emoji2391] today??
 

Check your PM saved msg. If you get to 50 you can't send or receive that's what happened to me.

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No Strings No Problem in Your Town
 

added $10 extenders to make filling the spare easier
 

I changed the oil in my wife's Lexus ES350 a couple of days ago (first time for me), and she asked me to check her tire pressures...the TPMS was showing two tires to be low. When I got around to checking, none were less than 30 psi, and the tire sticker and manual both call for 33, so I filled all to 34 and called it good. Then I went to check the tires on the X.

It's been awhile since I did, getting side-tracked by other projects with the X lately, and I'm ashamed to admit that all four tires were 5-6 psi low. So, I filled the fronts to 34 psi (with cooler weather approaching, I always go a coupla psi extra, to make up for it), and the rears to 41 psi (same reason). Then, I emptied the trunk of all 3-400 lbs of tools, spare parts, and miscellanous gear, so I could lift the cover off of the spare, to add extenders.

When I replaced the battery recently, I checked the tire pressure in the spare, and found it to be at 25 psi. I probably haven't checked it for two years or more, since it's a real chore to empty the trunk and put it all back in some sort of order. Today, the pair of extenders was added, along with two right-angle metal fittings, with the access point at the right rear corner of the trunk, so now I can easily check the spare with gear and cover intact. One of the fittings pokes up between the cover and trunk floor, so I'll not have to empty the trunk after this, just to check the spare.
Attachment 84583 rubber hoses link together, right-angle fittings on opposite ends

Nice tip on the spare air extension! I usually keep my m12 inflater with me so i can just air up if i need to but now with e70 no spare i only have the inflater but I'm working on making a spare for trips.

The spring was nice and firm. I test fitted it first. It was a tight fit. I removed them, took the tape backing off and installed both lights.

Whoever at BMW decided spare tires were no longer needed (why when we gave you garbage noisy hard-riding expensive runflats?) should be stranded on the Autobahn in freezing rain waiting for a tow after a run-flat shreds itself.

My F30 came with horrible runflats that I replaced with lighter staggered rims and Michelin PS4s a few years later. Totally transformed the handling for the better. I had a runflat go out prior and the cost to replace it was quite shocking.

But my "spare" in that car is an inflater/sealer kit now, plus a handy booket with prayers to Gummi, goddess of rubber things.

So thanks for reminding me to check the spare in the X.

Bit the bullet
 

Finally caved. Needed valve cover gaskets, valve stem seals, and RMS. The RMS has been leaking since I got her at around 180,000km. She's at around 420,000km now. The stem seals were hard as rocks. I had a shop in Burlington, ON do it - a guy I know/trust. Plus a lot of "while you're in there". She's back now after a week or so in the shop with a new lease on life. Ready to tow some sleds:)

You are the man, this ISSUE caused me grief for years indeed was a known issue with alternator, on each crank eventually draining more current....i got it swapped out with aftermarket, could not be without car if i had gone for revuild otpion, the old one is in a box now...

I replaced mine with a Bosch during a coolant pipe refresh. Preventative maintenance. The new starter spins the motor up fast. The OEM one is in a box. I was going to take it to a shop and donate it as a core. Now, I'm tempted to open it up and inspect it. It still worked find. If it doesn't have small pieces that I need 8 hands top put back together, I'll take a stab at it. :thumbup:

No kidding….great work. I now wish I had my OE starter to try to rebuild. But it died in the grocery store parking garage a year or two ago. Had to get the X5 towed to my house. I was pleasantly surprised that the Oreillys near my house had a rebuilt Bosch in stock, but I turned my old one in.

The Witch decided to suck in a semi-tractor tire tread at 120 (RF) at 0415. I now have a dicked-up front valance, a dripping leak from the transmission cooler and a driving light removed from the backside along with a super ventilated inner fender liner... [emoji2959][emoji2959]

On the plus side I can now reach in and replace a driving light without tools..[emoji849]
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At least it didn't trigger all your air bags!

Hell, I almost triggered the airbag with a punch to the horn...[emoji28]

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Repainted my style 74s in a darker silver
 

I needed a set of 18s for my F10 winter wheels. So, decided to sand down the 74s one more time. The F10 is silver and I always wanted to see how the 74s would look in a mid-gray metallic. Quite like the way they came out. Here they are, I need to take a picture with them on the car. Not strictly E53 news but hey, the 74s did come off my X5. :-)

F10 & e53 share the same hub? I have a full set of e53 wheels from my e53 and wife has an f10. Hmmm.

Problem is they also have e53 size tires on them.

F10 & E53 same hub bore
 

Yes indeed, they are the same hub bore but you need at least 15mm spacers otherwise the wheel inner edge doesn't clear. My F10 has IS33 wheels and the 74s are IS48. I'm running mine with 20mm.

That's good info. I have special spacers to put e53 onto e70 id have to use rings to center them onto f10 that's a hoot. Thanks for the feedback

pics w/ 74s
 

Here are some pics with the 74s on the F10. I have 20mm spacers in the back and 15mm in the front. I just received a set of 20mm that will go on the front tomorrow. A 25mm H&R set is waiting for me in the UK at a friend's house. Those will come back with me when we return from our trip to the UK for the holidays.

On a different note, this morning I put the E53 transmission back together. But I can't find the torque spec for the bolts holding the bell housing to the case. I guess it will have to be Gut 'n Tight....

Saturday my order from FCP should come in with the rest of the stuff I need to put the oil pan back on the motor.

On our way to vist family in Asia and (unbeknownst to the wife) pick up a new old stock radiator for 300 USD. At the lounge ran into a Billionaire who has quite a car collection who said we can check them out if we make it to his island of Iloilo. (Jose Chan) https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...f3f1e2571b.jpg

The radiator was just luck, but with the wife's birthday and Christmas we were taking this trip anyway...[emoji28]
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Picked up the Witch's new radiator and got back to my island without hassle![emoji41]

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Did get to see a couple of neat rides so far....
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What did you do to / for your E[emoji2[emoji2391]9[emoji2391]][emoji2391] today??
 

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Some JB Kwik and a tiny screw (and a fair amount of luck), didn't need to replace mine last January!

(Took two tries: apparently brake kleen alone didn't prep the aluminum good enough it needed wire brush and heat with a micro torch: it was about 34f=1.1c at the time)

The fins bent are part of the repair process: needed to work the metal to get enough surface area for JBK to grab). Been almost a year since the repair still going strong.

(Not surprised I've repaired the high pressure line on AC evaporator same way and that's 250 psi vs. 15).

Installed a new water thermostat on the X5.

The old thermostat did not warm up the car quickly so i ordered a thermostat from ebay and installed that.
Well i tried to install it... but it was a faulty item so ended up paying more for a better quality part that fitted with NO issues.


Tomorrow is another day, another project on the X5

Reattached the recording camera after having an eyebrow tinted on. It looks great.

How much coolant did you have to drain, and from where?

I need to do this eventually; no heating/overheat issues but I've been getting a repeat code P1620 thrown about "Map Cooling Thermostat Control Circuit Signal High".

When i do the e53 stat I just caught the fluid with a bin and using plastic to guide the fluid away from the front of the motor. Under a quart i think came out.

Having the last of the damage from ingesting that 18 wheeler tire repaired while I'm on vacation...

New rack inbound, new steering pump hoses. I'll have 3 days upon returning to get the new radiator installed [emoji41]

When the wife found out about the side trip to get a N.O.S. radiator, I can say what I DIDN'T get for Christmas...[emoji57]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...c18289c2c3.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...2734c11462.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...49a56cfd0b.jpg

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Sound system upgrade, part….too many
 

This one was a gift from the wife and kids. The kenwood I put in washed out under event the the slightest sunlight coming thru the windshield.

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10+ inch floating touch-screen is huge, and adjustable up/down and tilt. The connections are identical the one it replaced, and this one has HD radio. Not everyone’s cup of tea I’m sure, but I like it a lot. I need to monkey with the install a bit to get it closer to the dash, but it’s a nice upgrade to the useability of the car.

I also need to find a good, unobtrusive place for the microphone. I had it set into the plastic radio surround piece that came with the radio, but the sound wasn’t that great when on the phone. Where is the OE location in the E53, in the overhead panel?

Yes. You can run the mic along the a pillar, and windscreen headliner to route the cable. Warning tho:

I have 10yrs and 1/2 dozen of these Android units across 4 different chassis. The microphones suck so bad that I didn't even consider the Android unit for use as a phone in the F25 install. I also don't use the Android onboard Navigation, so I left out the satellite antenna as well. I much prefer Apple CarPlay or Andorid Auto with Waze maps to anything static.

The work around I have so far is to connect to the F25's bluetooth and carry calls with the factory hardware. It's a bit of a finagle, but these units are TinkerToys.

I suspect the answer is a 12v powered mic, but I am unsure. It *should not* be the specs of the radio since it is 8 core with 16GB RAM/32GB ROM. That's pretty much the max specs on these.

Enjoy it! For some fun, download Tourque and connect to a Bluetooth OBD. You'll get real live information on temps for air intake, water, but not oil (on the N62). Kinda fun to lose yourself setting up for an afternoon.

Had to install new tie rods. Put new tires on last week then tried to have it aligned. The rods were frozen solid and wouldn't move. No toe adjustment without being able to turn the rods. Put new ones in and put the old ones in a vice and tried to turn them with a very long bar. No go. Tried PB Blaster, heat and beating on them. They would not move. They are on the way back to FCP for credit.

Probably too late now but you should put a bit of anti-seize on them when you install. I guess if you are careful you still could do that after the alignment or it will the same next time.

I thought about the anti-sieve AFTER I installed the new ones, Of Course. Wasn't willing to take it all apart again. I don't understand it though because I live in California. I don't drive in the snow and they don't salt the roads here anyway. There is very little rust on the underside of the car,

I was able to loosen wife's with a 24" pipe wrench though it did bend the tie rod (didn't affect the function). I eat able to align after and i did use anti seize.

When I did mine i used a band saw to cut off the old outer tie rod and used the cut off piece aa a thread chasing die to clean the inner rod before installing the new one.

Wife's 24" pipe wrench situation led to only adjusting one side and a steering wheel not straight when done, but good alignment that stopped chewing up tires in weeks.

Valve cover gasket and cover were replaced. Super nice look! The vanity cover covers most of it. :(

Another oil leak stopped!

So the alum valve cover was not warped and quality was otherwise okay?

Yes, the cover sealed good. I'm daily driving it today. I'll be driving it all week. A little cleaner smell was still there this morning. I expect it to burn off quickly in slow traffic. I'll get the part number and update the valve cover post. I'll clean up the OEM cover and inspect it. Looks like the main seal and cap gasket were the main issues of smell leaks.

Quick question for the people who have run into this: the cover for the cup holders is starting to disintegrate, several of the sections are breaking loose. Any idea if this is possible to repair without massive cost? I figured a second hand unit will probably have a similar state, being 24 year old plastic