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-   -   *The Official E53 Manual Transmission Registry Thread* (https://xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/x5-e53-forum/85987-official-e53-manual-transmission-registry-thread.html)

Ricky Bobby 01-31-2013 10:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JCL (Post 920002)

When you say shifts will be smoother, we should qualify that clutch engagement will be smoother, or more predictable, but that doesn't relate to gearshift notchiness, which I think of when hearing the synchro comment that was originally mentioned.


Absolutely Jeff and well put, the clutch engagement is smoother which makes for a more positive shifting experience. I have not driven in car with worn synchros so I couldn't comment on how that would be, I also suggested to smi270 to change transmission fluid to see if it helps his gearbox. I replaced with Redline MTL with great results (no better than OE fluid though)

Northernlight 02-05-2013 06:04 AM

Hi Guys,

Greetings from a newby in London!

I have a manual 3.0D 2006 model and it's such a rare car over here (99% are autos) that i'm struggling to find help with a problem i'm having.

To cut a long story short, after a long journey and never having had any previous issues, i put the car in reverse to park and there was a loud clunk, followed by juddering of the car. Parked up then the next day i came to try and drive the car and it felt like one of the brake calipers was stuck on. It eased after a while and i had the brakes checked out, none of which were sticking. I did have the 3 warn ing lights on tho, - 4x4, abs and brakes. The garage checked the code and it said 5f3a transfer case malfunction. Garage then checked the usual suspect of the actuator and said it was working fine. Therefore, i presume the only other culprit can be the transfer case itself?

Has anyone had similar symptoms? Is it usually transfer case? Are they a weakness more on the manuals than autos? Also, are the manual transfer cases different to the auto versions? Trying to get hold of a reconditioned one, but don't fancy my chances if they are different boxes!

Someone also mentioned it could be front diff. Anyone experiences this?

Thanks for your help guys.

smi2710 02-06-2013 06:39 PM

Had the truck looked at my a friend who owns a trans shop. After test drive hes got his money on the pinion bearing so looks like im gonna do a clucth on this beast in the near future. Since its tough to shift through all gears and not just one he has ruled old worn syncros and the pinion bearing no allowing full disengagement . Also as he put it the you can not ride the clutch its just a on/off point. After getting some prices I really hope i do not have to replace the pressure plat 510.00 my cost 1000.00 fromt eh dealer.

anyway i was gonna tackle the job myself but its cold and hes gonna chargeme not much to pull it and do it rather then me do it out in the cold.

clutch is 310. plus 19.00 for the are and 2.00 for a another little part.

If you guys know a cheaper setup let me know ( these are all LUK parts)

Also who has done a clutch on these trucks looks straight forward to me and i've wrestled VR6 trannys out of there tetris hole many times this one actually looks easy peasy.

Ricky Bobby 02-07-2013 09:44 AM

I would go with the OEM setup, hopefully that solves your issues! Good job that you get good pricing too, you work for a dealer?

Benvette 02-10-2013 06:16 AM

I finally got around to changing the shift detent pins and bushes today. A bigger job than I had hoped but thanks to my mate Mario, we did it in a day. We had to remove the box and do it on the bench. It has made a big difference, however it may be a bit too late as I think the syncro on second is a bit far gone. If this job is done early enough it would have saved the syncros.
For people who dont know, the detent pins allow for smooth gear changes and can get worn and sticky. I believe this is only an issue on the 5 speeds.

smi2710 02-10-2013 06:26 PM

I'm curious about these detent pins. This is the first I have eard but I will replace these also. How long did it take you to drop the trans? And do you have a link to these pins? Thanks

Benvette 02-11-2013 03:42 AM

I split the transfer case from the box to make it easier, but all up it took 3 hours to remove, 1 hour to do the work and about 2-3 hours to replace the box.

The link I used is a few pages back in this thread. Thanks to Davintosh.

How to: Service your transmission shift pins.

You dont need the drift set. I just used longreach sockets and bolts.

fc_misc 02-12-2013 11:25 PM

Hey guys, between 1-3mph, do you guys get a dead spot and then a pretty good "jerk" forward? If I let out the clutch (all the way) and then slowly roll into the throttle up to maybe 25% or so for barely quicker than normal acceleration, it lags for a split second and then jerks forward as if the clutch wasn't all the way out. I was thinking maybe the clutch delay valve but wanted some feedback.

Thanks!

JCL 02-13-2013 01:34 AM

Once you have let the clutch out the CDV is no longer a factor.

smi2710 02-13-2013 12:46 PM

That's it it went out last night(the clutch ) stuck in 4th I limped it home and AAA to my buddies trans shop. Should find out today the culprit

davintosh 02-13-2013 01:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Benvette (Post 921781)
I split the transfer case from the box to make it easier, but all up it took 3 hours to remove, 1 hour to do the work and about 2-3 hours to replace the box.

The link I used is a few pages back in this thread. Thanks to Davintosh.

How to: Service your transmission shift pins.

You dont need the drift set. I just used longreach sockets and bolts.

Did you replace anything else while you had the trans out? How'd your clutch look (how many miles?) I'd think the pivot pin and throwout bearing would be a relatively cheap pieces that would be easily replaced; with my luck I'd think I could get away without replacing it, then it would start squealing two days after getting it back together.

ruskie34e36 02-13-2013 02:12 PM

Just found the thread.
+1
2001 3.0L 5speed sport suspension
Silver w/black interior.

davintosh 02-13-2013 02:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ruskie34e36 (Post 922254)
Just found the thread.
+1
2001 3.0L 5speed sport suspension
Silver w/black interior.

Cool! Yours sounds like the twin to mine, and probably a few others as well!

ruskie34e36 02-13-2013 02:33 PM

I'll have to post some pics..
Any of those around Boise,ID? lol

smi2710 02-13-2013 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ruskie34e36 (Post 922254)
Just found the thread.
+1
2001 3.0L 5speed sport suspension
Silver w/black interior.

congrats sounds identical to mine

Ricky Bobby 02-13-2013 02:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ruskie34e36 (Post 922254)
Just found the thread.
+1
2001 3.0L 5speed sport suspension
Silver w/black interior.


Good to see you mr. ruskie i will add you to the list and have a shot of Stolichnaya in your honor :)

Green Dragon 02-13-2013 06:38 PM

UUC Short Shift Kit
 
I called UUC and inquired about their performance clutch kit for the 6-speed.....more on that later.....;)

I also asked about the short shift kit for our manual e53's. The fellow I talked to said they are ready to start production, and are just waiting for pre-orders to fill up more. If you are interested in thier Evo-3 shifter including the DSSR selector rod go here: http://store.uucmotorwerks.com/categ...bmw+x5&x=9&y=7.

They don't charge till they ship out. My "dirty toilet plunger rowing" days are nearing an end. (Okay, its an exaggeration but you get my point.)

davintosh 02-13-2013 08:03 PM

I've been wondering whether anyone has tried using original equipment shifters from other BMW models on their X5s; I know that for the e28, e32 & e34, the shifter from the Z3 is a popular alternative to aftermarket short-shifters. Provided the pivot ball and bushing where the shift rod connects to the selector rod is the same, I don't see why it shouldn't work. E28 Shifter FAQ - MyE28.com

XVII 02-13-2013 08:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Green Dragon (Post 922328)
I called UUC and inquired about their performance clutch kit for the 6-speed.....more on that later.....;)

I also asked about the short shift kit for our manual e53's. The fellow I talked to said they are ready to start production, and are just waiting for pre-orders to fill up more. If you are interested in thier Evo-3 shifter including the DSSR selector rod go here: http://store.uucmotorwerks.com/categ...bmw+x5&x=9&y=7.

They don't charge till they ship out. My "dirty toilet plunger rowing" days are nearing an end. (Okay, its an exaggeration but you get my point.)


Any idea on the difficulty of the install? DIY? Estimated hours at a shop? Would the whole center console need to removed? Just wondering as I would be very interested if this DIYable or minimal hours at a shop.. :thumbup: Either way it is exciting to finally see a mod / add-on for the e53!!

Benvette 02-14-2013 12:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fc_misc (Post 922167)
Hey guys, between 1-3mph, do you guys get a dead spot and then a pretty good "jerk" forward? If I let out the clutch (all the way) and then slowly roll into the throttle up to maybe 25% or so for barely quicker than normal acceleration, it lags for a split second and then jerks forward as if the clutch wasn't all the way out. I was thinking maybe the clutch delay valve but wanted some feedback.

Thanks!


YES.
And it pisses me off. It has nothing to do with the CDV. Its the stupid fly by wire throttle control and I havnt been able to find any way of fixing it.

Benvette 02-14-2013 12:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davintosh (Post 922243)
Did you replace anything else while you had the trans out? How'd your clutch look (how many miles?) I'd think the pivot pin and throwout bearing would be a relatively cheap pieces that would be easily replaced; with my luck I'd think I could get away without replacing it, then it would start squealing two days after getting it back together.

I looked at all that, and it looked pretty good. It has had a clutch replacement at some stage, so I wasnt that concerned.

Green Dragon 02-14-2013 06:04 AM

Quote:

Any idea on the difficulty of the install? DIY? Estimated hours at a shop? Would the whole center console need to removed? Just wondering as I would be very interested if this DIYable or minimal hours at a shop.. Either way it is exciting to finally see a mod / add-on for the e53!!
Most of the work is done from under the "SAV". Very little is done from the console that I can tell. If your mechanically inclined, I would totally do it. I'm gonna get a good look at it from the under-side to see if you can install it with out removing the transmission. My gut feeling is yes... but I'm doing mine during the clutch swap. No idea as to what shop time would cost ya. I'd ask an ind. shop in your area what they charge for reference.

Quote:

I've been wondering whether anyone has tried using original equipment shifters from other BMW models on their X5s; I know that for the e28, e32 & e34, the shifter from the Z3 is a popular alternative to aftermarket short-shifters. Provided the pivot ball and bushing where the shift rod connects to the selector rod is the same, I don't see why it shouldn't work. E28 Shifter FAQ - MyE28.com
The shift lever is pretty unique and different from other bmw shifters. Mostly it has a sharp kink above the pivot ball and has some longer sections, not saying you can't modify an exsisting shifter. Here's a link from realoem showing the shift assembly. RealOEM.com * BMW E53 X5 3.0i Gear shift parts,manual transm./4-wheel

I have thought about bending and modifying one of those solid aluminum shifters off ebay. Pretty cheap and you can use your existing shifter as a template......just with the longer section below the pivot ball....but UUC shifter package is simply amazing and the quality is second to none. I may try to build an "ebay" one for giggles and gaggles.

Quote:

YES.
And it pisses me off. It has nothing to do with the CDV. Its the stupid fly by wire throttle control and I haven't been able to find any way of fixing it.
Benvette, I know BMW came out with DME update (SIB 1220404) to address the "stumble" or "hole" in the throttle map. Mine was done in 2011. It helped a ton. You may want to look into that. The Jim Conforti Shark Injector reprogram sharpened the throttle right up and eliminated any residual lag of the fbw. I love my shark injector. I'm getting one for the wife's X3. Just a thought for you as well.

Also...check your disa valve---that can cause goofy stuff if that flap is well...flapping around.

Another thing that I will be doing is going away from the self adjusting clutch mechanism as I honestly think it can kinda kill that solid "connected" feel that these new BMW's don't have. Who cares if their clutch engagement point changed by a 1/2 inch over its lifetime. I have a good idea..."lets add complexity and a solution to a question that no one is asking!". My rant for the night...I gotta go study.

Benvette 02-14-2013 08:01 AM

Thanks Green dragon. I will look into the DME update.

Gavski 02-14-2013 08:22 AM

Put me down on the list:

2004 X5 3.0 6MT Premium / Cold Weather owned since 48K; now almost 120K in NoVA. Its a hammer for commuting around DC area once up to speed.

Just installed DISA repair kit from G.A.S (along with a new CCV kit from ECS). Huge improvement in smoothness and reduced surging off the line 1-2. Consistent all the way to redline, and eliminated jerkiness when on/off throttle. Pleasure to drive now. Often skip gears when just tooling around in stop and go traffic and amazed at how flexible the 3.0 is holding a gear at low revs. Would be interested in the UUC SSK.

Next item is installing an OEM hitch I got from ECS thats been sitting in the garage for like 6 months.

Ricky Bobby 02-14-2013 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Green Dragon (Post 922404)
Benvette, I know BMW came out with DME update (SIB 1220404) to address the "stumble" or "hole" in the throttle map. Mine was done in 2011. It helped a ton. You may want to look into that. The Jim Conforti Shark Injector reprogram sharpened the throttle right up and eliminated any residual lag of the fbw. I love my shark injector. I'm getting one for the wife's X3. Just a thought for you as well.

Also...check your disa valve---that can cause goofy stuff if that flap is well...flapping around.


+1 on aftermarket software, my old VW needed a "chip" mod for it to have smooth throttle response, shark injector sounds nice i'll have to look it up, or you could always go Dinan stage 1 software for 300 bucks or so?

I will also look into the DME software update from the dealer, is it free and would it apply to pre-facelifts? Sometimes i feel that drive by wire lag and its annoying!

Haven't done the DISA full upgrade yet but I replaced the seal with a silicone o-ring from G.A.S. and it got smoother, the flap was working flawlessly as far as I could test so I didnt bother with replacing the assembly, yet.

fc_misc 02-15-2013 02:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Green Dragon (Post 922404)
Benvette, I know BMW came out with DME update (SIB 1220404) to address the "stumble" or "hole" in the throttle map. Mine was done in 2011. It helped a ton. You may want to look into that. The Jim Conforti Shark Injector reprogram sharpened the throttle right up and eliminated any residual lag of the fbw. I love my shark injector. I'm getting one for the wife's X3. Just a thought for you as well.

Also...check your disa valve---that can cause goofy stuff if that flap is well...flapping around.

So there is something there! Any idea on cost for the reflash?

Thanks!

davintosh 02-15-2013 02:14 PM

Speaking of short shifter kits, I just bumped into this while browsing the Schmiedmann website.. Looks like a nice piece, specifically for the e53 with adjustable positions and all. $145 US doesn't sound bad for that. Anybody here using one & able to report on it?

http://static.schmiedmann.dk/Product..._87153_big.jpg

Quote:

Originally Posted by Green Dragon (Post 922328)
I called UUC and inquired about their performance clutch kit for the 6-speed.....more on that later.....;)

I also asked about the short shift kit for our manual e53's. The fellow I talked to said they are ready to start production, and are just waiting for pre-orders to fill up more. If you are interested in thier Evo-3 shifter including the DSSR selector rod go here: http://store.uucmotorwerks.com/categ...bmw+x5&x=9&y=7.

They don't charge till they ship out. My "dirty toilet plunger rowing" days are nearing an end. (Okay, its an exaggeration but you get my point.)


smi2710 02-15-2013 06:08 PM

Got the truck back today shifts smooth. needed a flywheel as well damn thats pricey but the clutch actually exploded ill post pics at a later date

glad to have her back and shifting nice now onto a few other maintence items

Happy 02-15-2013 10:13 PM

Fired up the X5 for the first time yesterday supercharged... WoW!!! The sound... Unrecognizable!!! The RMS kit is amazing. SUPER CLEAN.. To say the least. More to come......


Tuning in progress: Be right back

fc_misc 02-16-2013 03:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by smi2710 (Post 922653)
Got the truck back today shifts smooth. needed a flywheel as well damn thats pricey but the clutch actually exploded ill post pics at a later date

glad to have her back and shifting nice now onto a few other maintence items


What caused it to explode and was it dragging making shifting difficult before?

Ricky Bobby 02-17-2013 02:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davintosh (Post 922610)
Speaking of short shifter kits, I just bumped into this while browsing the Schmiedmann website.. Looks like a nice piece, specifically for the e53 with adjustable positions and all. $145 US doesn't sound bad for that. Anybody here using one & able to report on it?

http://static.schmiedmann.dk/Product..._87153_big.jpg


Shoot that looks real nice for less than half the UUC unit! I should email to confirm fitment for our 5-speeds

smi2710 02-17-2013 02:40 PM

it was very hard shifting into gear and downshifting was damn near impossible when it finally blew i had started in 1st revved to like 3.5k tried to shift and it was stuck in gear. When the RPM's got down i shifted as usual and drove another 20 minutes before i got stuck in 4th gear :dunno:

my buddy said it looked like an over rev but it was on its way out for sure

smi2710 02-22-2013 10:38 AM

heres the problem
[IMG]http://i1239.photobucket.com/albums/...s2ba6e4e2.jpeg[/IMG]

Ricky Bobby 02-22-2013 11:08 AM

wow that thing is shot

Gregory891 02-22-2013 03:05 PM

A shame BUT you now have a chance to do some good things with the car to make it better.
  • Change transmission fluid to Redline MTL
  • Change transfer case fluid to Redline MTL
  • Remove your clutch delay valve
  • Put a better (not the LuK self adjusting) clutch in your car. Call UUC in Atlanta first, if Rob can't sort you out then go to Clutch Masters in Texas.
  • Install the UUC short shifter as well, Rob has this back in production.
Enjoy, it'll be a better X5 when you're done.

Greg

Green Dragon 02-22-2013 03:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davintosh (Post 922610)
Speaking of short shifter kits, I just bumped into this while browsing the Schmiedmann website.. Looks like a nice piece, specifically for the e53 with adjustable positions and all. $145 US doesn't sound bad for that. Anybody here using one & able to report on it?

http://static.schmiedmann.dk/Product..._87153_big.jpg

Davintosh, nice find! That looks like a pretty sweet piece of art. I like that it is adjustable at all pivot/articulation points and has a vibration dampener to reduce vibration transduction/noise into the cabin. I hope its true that they have a specific application for our "SAV's". The price is good too compared to the UUC. Hmmmm...... options are good.

Gregory891 02-23-2013 04:25 AM

Might be something to try but not on an X5 or X3. I have supplied an OEM shifter to UUC for the X5, it has a very specific bend at the bottom that this one wouldn't have. For an X3, it has a (nearly) 90 degree bend at the bottom, even worse.

This would be similar to the Evo 1 or Evo 2 release (UUC). UUC is now at UUC with a seperate shifter ball cup (Evo 3) that is also significant to shifter geometry improvements.

jarbackwards 02-27-2013 11:39 AM

New Member here...

2003 3.0 X5 Manual... so far just the aFe intake, but will be putting in a new exhaust soon.

http://s7.postimage.org/e64ry5bez/IMG_1094.jpg

Ricky Bobby 02-27-2013 01:20 PM

where in Jersey? looks nice, are those the ebay halogen headlights, not DEPO right? I'd love to do some exhaust mods for mine to get a bit more tone out of the exhaust.

jarbackwards 02-27-2013 02:21 PM

I'm in Islien, NJ..... I got Spec-D headlights (similar if not same to many of the ebay ones)

Install was pretty straight forward, but did need a mulitmeter to do some rewiring and initial troubleshooting.

If your looking for just tone... have you considred glasspacks ?

Ricky Bobby 02-27-2013 02:34 PM

I was thinking about removing the X-pipe and putting in some magnaflow resonators or something, I would like a slightly deeper tone but not necessarily overly loud, the I6 isn't really a performance motor but it would be nice for a bit more sound when shifting the 5 speed.

Happy 03-14-2013 04:19 AM

I got the truck back from Race Marque Systems (RMS) yesterday, WOW..!! Two words, Nite & Day. 1st gear is amazing (for those who like it), it allows you to spool the supercharger and the sound is amazing (Vortech V-3 Si). 2nd and 3rd are VERY exciting! Shifting from 2nd to 3rd under full throttle takes the M54 to new heights. I cannot comment on 4th and 5th because I do not drive at high speeds. I will say making a pass on the freeway easily takes you to a high rate of speed in a flash. Vehicle weight is a factor, but if you truly understand your E53 then ALL is VERY well. (This is the part that is worth every penny), that REALLY AWFUL delay or stall from a dead stop and sometimes when shifting from 1st to 2nd... GONE! I have the clutch delay and I feel the added horsepower combined with the valve gives a feather weight feel to the shifting, extremely smooth. I can't wait to swap out all of the drive fluids over to redline. With roughly 400hp at the flywheel, the RMS kit takes the X5 3.0 MANUAL to a new level of performance.

Ricky Bobby 03-14-2013 08:53 AM

VIDEOS!!!!!

davintosh 03-14-2013 09:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Happy (Post 922676)
Fired up the X5 for the first time yesterday supercharged... WoW!!! The sound... Unrecognizable!!! The RMS kit is amazing. SUPER CLEAN.. To say the least. More to come......


Tuning in progress: Be right back

Pics would be good; video... BEST!

Ldiggs910 03-23-2013 02:40 PM

Happy u almost sounded like a commercial. Show us some pictures so we know you are not spam.

Nick P 03-24-2013 03:25 AM

I can responsibiliy say you can't get 400 flywheel HPs from the stock M54 just by adding the SC. The very high power barrier for supercharged stock M54 is 300 flywheel HPs, measured on a honest dyno (approved for racing homologation). And even a supercharged M54 would never reach the torque numbers and distribution of any V8s.

400 flywheel HP is the power you can get from a supercharged 4.6l M62, tuned for harmonic power and torque curves, with 10.5:1 compression ratio you can't get over 6 psi, so the 4.4 and 4.6 would be almost the same in terms of supercharging, due to a bit lower compression ratio of 4.4 M62.

racebmwm3 03-24-2013 08:07 AM

$6k. Wow.
The dyno page is missing much needed info.

X5 3.0i Supercharger Kit

Green Dragon 03-24-2013 06:21 PM

Don't have to pull the tranny to put short shift kit in!
 
Oh, how I dream of a supercharger on my X.............I think I would lean toward a twin-screw S/C (at that price) as the power delivery is so linear.

Anyways, I was under the X5 last night working on the brakes and took a moment to look at the shifter assembly. It is indeed very easy to get at and work on. Much better than my e36 was for sure. The toughest part that I suspect would be hard to get at is the shift linkage located on the upper back of the transmission, *if you wanted to change the bushing on it.* Totally can be done as far as I can see.

Happy 03-25-2013 04:57 PM

I have been verified, I am not spam! Please don't insult me, another member ask me for my impression. I gave my take on the performance fair and partial to the best of my knowledge. Since, I've had more road time with the X5 and let me tell you.. It's FAST..! I was able to execute at FULL throttle a 1st 6500rpm shift to 2nd 6500rpm shift to 3rd perfectly, and then I backed off at 5800rpm. All I'm going to say is; I got ALL of my money's worth.! I have 15 years experience with performance cars, this vehicle is well over 300hp to the wheels. This isn't a plug and play tuned X5. It's a custom map, track tuned, and awd dyno tuned. For the video and pic guys, I have been very busy going into my vacation. Car is garaged but, she has not even bad a bath since the return from the shop. I've had less than an hour with the vehicle, so I apologize and will try to get something for you guys. Again, my apologies.


PS.. Still in the break-in period, still getting faster..!! Can't wait till the installation of the water/meth kit.

Bayerische E53 03-25-2013 05:30 PM

5 Attachment(s)
Hi, Gang.

I just wanted to introduce myself. I've had this truck for a little less than a year but I thought I might have to sell it so I didn't bother posting up pictures. It turns out I'm going to wind up keeping her (don't mistake that as being bah humbug; I am quite relieved) so here she is.

2005 (D.O.B. November 2, 2004)
3.0i w/ 6MT (69,XXX Miles)
Alpine White
Schwartz Dakota Leather Interior
A Few (ehem, incomplete) Mods

I know...she needs wheels and suspension. I'm actually not driving her at the moment for that reason. She'll reside under a car cover in storage for some time until I can sort the wheels and suspension issue.

I don't have any better pictures of her because her and I are currently in different states (it's a long story). We'll be reunited in about 3 weeks time at which point I'll take some better pictures (including interior photos) and maybe make a thread. We'll see.

Ricky Bobby 03-25-2013 08:22 PM

wow you can eat off the underside of your truck.

the exhaust looks SEX

Bayerische E53 03-25-2013 08:26 PM

Thanks, Ricky!

She hasn't even been detailed yet! She's getting a spa treatment on April 6 (already booked :) ) and then she'll be on the transporter shortly thereafter. I can't wait!

As an aside, I wanted to thank you for being supportive and kind in my FS thread and in responding to my PMs. You've been an absolute star.

I'm looking forward to getting the remainder of my project off the ground :)

Green Dragon 03-25-2013 08:40 PM

Bayerische,
Dude, I'm super glad you're keep'n her. That's a waaay clean ride. I know you've put a lot into it, so its good to see you'll be able to enjoy it. I look forward to seeing it done...so far, looks awesome.

Ricky Bobby 03-25-2013 08:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bayerische E53 (Post 929051)
Thanks, Ricky!

She hasn't even been detailed yet! She's getting a spa treatment on April 6 (already booked :) ) and then she'll be on the transporter shortly thereafter. I can't wait!

As an aside, I wanted to thank you for being supportive and kind in my FS thread and in responding to my PMs. You've been an absolute star.

I'm looking forward to getting to getting the remainder of my project off the ground :)

Been a pleasure seeing your teaser pics along the way and the trials and tribulations of having to almost lose your baby! Xoutpost is the best forum on the net with wonderful people and enthusiasts here to help each other and although we are all nutty in our own ways (what other people put the kind of money we do into 10 year old trucks lol!) it's the comraderie that we love these SAV's that matters. Only on Xoutpost have I found guys willing to meet me a half hour away to clear a suspension code on a sunday, or another friendly member in South Dakota who sent me a tool he made for axle pulling so I could try it out on my wheel bearing repair and let him know how it works, only on these boards!

Bayerische E53 03-25-2013 09:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Green Dragon (Post 929055)
Bayerische,
Dude, I'm super glad you're keep'n her. That's a waaay clean ride. I know you've put a lot into it, so its good to see you'll be able to enjoy it. I look forward to seeing it done...so far, looks awesome.

Thanks for the kind words, Green. I, too, am looking forward to seeing it done. It will not by any means happen over night but I'm not complaining!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby (Post 929060)
Been a pleasure seeing your teaser pics along the way and the trials and tribulations of having to almost lose your baby! Xoutpost is the best forum on the net with wonderful people and enthusiasts here to help each other and although we are all nutty in our own ways (what other people put the kind of money we do into 10 year old trucks lol!) it's the comraderie that we love these SAV's that matters. Only on Xoutpost have I found guys willing to meet me a half hour away to clear a suspension code on a sunday, or another friendly member in South Dakota who sent me a tool he made for axle pulling so I could try it out on my wheel bearing repair and let him know how it works, only on these boards!

Thanks, Ricky. I'm with you about the forum. :)

motordavid 03-25-2013 09:07 PM

Titz E53, and envious of your 6th gear... :thumbup:
Great looking X, imo.
GL, mD

Nick P 03-26-2013 04:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Happy (Post 928991)
All I'm going to say is; I got ALL of my money's worth.! I have 15 years experience with performance cars, this vehicle is well over 300hp to the wheels. This isn't a plug and play tuned X5. It's a custom map, track tuned, and awd dyno tuned.

PS.. Still in the break-in period, still getting faster..!! Can't wait till the installation of the water/meth kit.

Explain, why you need a break-in, if nothing were done to the engine mechanically?

What is "track tuned" in case of M54 engine in the X5?

What's your boost? With stock RMS-kit boost on stock internals you'll never get nearly to 300 AWHP from M54.

For that kind of power you'll need at least 14-15 psi, agressive cams, forged pistons and reduced compression. Remapping will einther add about 5-10% over your SC baseline or, which is much better will get you a harmonical HP and torque curves for more efficient operation.

Judging from what you said before - there's no technical understanding at all, just some phrases how great the RMS kit is (you repeat it in every posting) and some very fairy tale numbers and statements, without any technical details, which are expected from you, especially after your statement about "15 years experience with performance cars".

I'm not offensive, just waiting for more information.

Happy 04-03-2013 01:14 AM

Here are some pics.. Sorry no video, I'm still learning how to post.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...12/image-3.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...12/image-2.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...y612/image.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...12/image-1.jpg

Ricky Bobby 04-03-2013 08:21 AM

well it is an absolute complete sleeper, orange turn signals and all!

Happy 04-03-2013 12:37 PM

Just how I like'em. I had a 1988 Honda Civic hatchback same silver as the X, didn't even have a passenger side mirror. However, it ripped a 12.9 on the 1/4. On the out side, although super clean, it completely presented itself as a 90hp gas efficient 13 - 14 year old car. For some strange reason I get the same feeling from this X5 ironically.

Green Dragon 04-03-2013 08:14 PM

:drool: Ummm, yeah all I can say, is I'm drooling over your super charger! Please post a video!

X5SND 04-03-2013 09:19 PM

Do we have any concrete numbers for this RMS kit?

If memory serves me right the ESS tuning kit for the M54 was around the 250-260 at the wheels for the X5. Achieved at 7psi and stock internals.

Happy 04-04-2013 02:47 AM

X5SND, your ride is one of the meanest E53's I have seen..! Nice..! As for the #'s, the guys at RMS are pushing my M54 to the limit. I feel I can easily blow my motor by over reving. The ESS kits are very conservative. My RMS kit was designed, machined, mapped, and tuned by the owner himself and is COMPLETELY custom. The shop owner trusted that my driving style was conservative and therefor gave my kit his all. I don't care about #'s, I care about reliability, and I certainly was not in favor of having them push my block to its breaking point numerous times just to prove something I already know. No thanks. Food for thought, RMS produced a 900HP E39 M5 dubbed the Monster. I will say this, imagine rolling in your X5 and you come up on a E46 M3 and he hears your pipes roaring. Knowing that your heavy weight X5 3.0 is no match he just gives you a silly grin and blows you off until... You down shift (boy I love my manual X5) to 2nd hit redline, into 3rd and run it all the way to redline as well, then hit 4th with no throttle. I got the jump and a good one, but the M3 did not pass me until I backed off. I am sure top end he would have passed me easily, but his facial expression when he caught up to me, PRICELESS. Some here on the board think that I am in a fairy tale, but I tell you, my fairy tale is a reality.


P.S. We still need to install the Methanol

SammyD 04-09-2013 08:08 AM

2 Attachment(s)
I finally found and purchased the X5 I've been looking for last weekend :thumbup:

Ricky Bobby 04-09-2013 08:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SammyD (Post 931534)
I finally found and purchased the X5 I've been looking for last weekend :thumbup:


ahhhh very jealous of the white! Great job getting premium and sport package too, can we have specs on the mileage, options, etc, and your story to how you found and bought the car?

SammyD 04-09-2013 08:58 AM

Thanks Ricky Bobby, I'm definitely digging your Topaz Blue X5 as well!

2003 BMW X5
White on Black
5-speed
Sport / Premium / Cold Weather Package
PDC
76K miles

I had been looking for a while for this combo (almost gave up) and came across one in Oregon about a month ago while travelling (total coincidence and thought it was meant to be...didn't care if I had to ship it across the country). I inspected it in person while there and it definitely needed some TLC (160K miles). Unfortunately, the owner was very difficult to work with and did not have the title in hand so I respectfully walked away.

I was really disappointed but a few weeks later I found the one I purchased in pristine condition in your neck of the woods (New Jersey). The previous owner meticulously maintained it and was great to deal with (best automobile transaction I've ever experienced). So, I sent a deposit, had BMW inspect it (found a few things..mostly maintenance), settled on price and booked a one way train ticket with my wife to pick it up and drive it home. The rest is history :)

Happy to be here to learn and contribute!

Ricky Bobby 04-09-2013 10:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SammyD (Post 931541)
Thanks Ricky Bobby, I'm definitely digging your Topaz Blue X5 as well!

2003 BMW X5
White on Black
5-speed
Sport / Premium / Cold Weather Package
PDC
76K miles

I had been looking for a while for this combo (almost gave up) and came across one in Oregon about a month ago while travelling (total coincidence and thought it was meant to be...didn't care if I had to ship it across the country). I inspected it in person while there and it definitely needed some TLC (160K miles). Unfortunately, the owner was very difficult to work with and did not have the title in hand so I respectfully walked away.

I was really disappointed but a few weeks later I found the one I purchased in pristine condition in your neck of the woods (New Jersey). The previous owner meticulously maintained it and was great to deal with (best automobile transaction I've ever experienced). So, I sent a deposit, had BMW inspect it (found a few things..mostly maintenance), settled on price and booked a one way train ticket with my wife to pick it up and drive it home. The rest is history :)

Happy to be here to learn and contribute!




Wow Sammy that is a great story, where in Jersey did you end up? That would be funny if you bought it in my backyard lol! The options are perfect too, you are going to LOVE the truck, the sports package makes such a difference. Looks like the only thing on mine that is different compared to yours is I have the 4 corner air suspension, which is a blessing and a curse in a way since I had to spend about 1500 bucks to get it working after I bought my X!

I would have loved white but as you know these 3-pedal X5's are hard to come by and you don't have much choice when you find one! In the end I'm extremely happy with Topaz Blue, I spent about 8-9 months looking for mine, along the way I was either finding manual trans X's with very high miles, or they would be in non-desirable to me colors like silver, beige, gray, etc. When I found my X in Yonkers and it had the options I wanted and low miles, and was a color that wasn't run of the mill, I knew it was "the one for me"

You have low miles which is great, there are very few of us who have low miles on these vehicles, mine currently just turned 68k miles (I don't drive it that much, my wifes car gets written off for business so we tend to take hers all over since we write off gas, etc) and I'm impressed yours is low mileage too!


What did the BMW inspection say it needed? I'd say if the brakes look good I would literally just change fluids and drive it until you need to fix something. Flush brakes, clutch, coolant, change front and rear diff fluids and transfer case, change transmission fluid, drain and refill power steering fluid, give a nice synthetic oil change and you'll have a nice base for years to come! The only thing is that even though you have low miles anything rubber like the bushings in the suspension will tend to have worn and dried out from age, so you may need to do some suspension work.

I recently replaced thrust arms, ball joints, control arms, front sway bushings, rear sway bar bushings and end links, and am preparing to do outer CV boots (preventatively since I will have components apart) and my front wheel bearings, previous owner lived in Yonkers which I think took a toll on my suspension. After that I'll have basically a new front end suspension.

SammyD 04-09-2013 11:33 AM

Thanks for the warm welcome and all the info/tips!

The X5 was located in Matawan, NJ. Is that "in your backyard" :) ?

The dealer recommended the following:

1. Replace Vanos Hose
2. Replace front right and left outer CV boots
3. Perform Brake fluid flush
4. Replace drive belts
5. Perform Fuel Injection service

Not to bad right? Any recommendations on order of importance/priority?

The previous owner was also kind enough to detail and perform an oil change on the X5 prior to pickup.

I also have to address the dead pixels in the Cluster and MID but we've already discussed that offline :)

Ricky Bobby 04-09-2013 11:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SammyD (Post 931584)
Thanks for the warm welcome and all the info/tips!

The X5 was located in Matawan, NJ. Is that "in your backyard" :) ?

The dealer recommended the following:

1. Replace Vanos Hose
2. Replace front right and left outer CV boots
3. Perform Brake fluid flush
4. Replace drive belts
5. Perform Fuel Injection service

Not to bad right? Any recommendations on order of importance/priority?

The previous owner was also kind enough to detail and perform an oil change on the X5 prior to pickup.

I also have to address the dead pixels in the Cluster and MID but we've already discussed that offline :)

Not in my backyard but about a half hour southeast of me! As for your inspection concerns, here are my rec's:

1) Is the hose leaking? I would replace if it is, if he is talking about VANOS seals you can also replace those if you have to open the valve cover. And if you have to open valve cover, replace valve cover gasket too!

2) You can get OEM GKN Loebro boot kits for 12.50 per side on Pelican Parts, that's where I got mine, I'm preparing to do my boots in the coming weeks (not ripped yet but small cracks on the folds). As long as your boots aren't spitting grease out you are ok to change them, however if grease has leaked out of a torn boot it is recommended to change the entire axle.

3) Use DOT 4 or higher fluid of your choice, and flush the clutch as well!

4) If doing drive belts (there are 2), Continental makes the OE belts for our cars so you can use the Continental branded belts or buy OE from dealer parts dept. When mine were being done I also had my indy replace the AC belt tensioner and the hydraulic drive belt tensioner, as well as the idler pulley (wanted to do all at once). He also found a faulty fan clutch which I had replaced at the same time.

5) Run one of those big bottles of Techron fuel cleaner with a full tank of Shell 93 V-power, that's a good fuel injection service :) If you notice the vehicle runs rough at all after that, I recommend checking out the fuel filter and possibly replacing (mine is still original), and after that, replace spark plugs with Bosch or NGK OE equivalents.


Hope that helps you Sammy!

SammyD 04-09-2013 12:05 PM

Awesome, thank you :thumbup:

Skip MacLean 06-21-2013 12:41 AM

I'm in too; but grumpy right now, as my X5 6MT just ate its engine. Ever heard of a bend piston ring and broken crown? 10 psi compression on #1... Absolutely no idea how. Wife and son were driving along on I5 to Bay Area, minding their own business when the engine suddenly lost power and started running rough. Trouble codes indicated misfire #1, #3. I got a pair of coils and set of plugs and set off in pursuit. Replaced those, no better. Compression test indicated above result and boroscope revealed tip of piston ring sticking above piston crown. Looks like engine replacement is in the near future. :-(.
Regarding 6MT. I like the car and the character but the gear spacing is not great, especially on 1st and 2nd gears; 1st is too low and 2nd is probably also a little low for good normal driving. Also, shifter on all BMW MT's is sloppier and less precise than I think it should for BMW's pedigree and their excellence in other driving characteristics.

Ricky Bobby 06-21-2013 09:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skip MacLean (Post 942528)
I'm in too; but grumpy right now, as my X5 6MT just ate its engine. Ever heard of a bend piston ring and broken crown? 10 psi compression on #1... Absolutely no idea how. Wife and son were driving along on I5 to Bay Area, minding their own business when the engine suddenly lost power and started running rough. Trouble codes indicated misfire #1, #3. I got a pair of coils and set of plugs and set off in pursuit. Replaced those, no better. Compression test indicated above result and boroscope revealed tip of piston ring sticking above piston crown. Looks like engine replacement is in the near future. :-(.
Regarding 6MT. I like the car and the character but the gear spacing is not great, especially on 1st and 2nd gears; 1st is too low and 2nd is probably also a little low for good normal driving. Also, shifter on all BMW MT's is sloppier and less precise than I think it should for BMW's pedigree and their excellence in other driving characteristics.

Are you the original owner? So sorry to hear about engine troubles, the M54 is usually a pretty stout motor! Any good BMW engine rebuilders out by you?


The 6MT is a rare find (some would say more rare than pre-facelift with 5-speed), and although the ratios are short especially 1st and 2nd, just be glad you have that 6th for the highway, at 80 mph I'm screaming at about 4k rpm's in 5th!

Green Dragon 06-21-2013 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skip MacLean (Post 942528)
I'm in too; but grumpy right now, as my X5 6MT just ate its engine. Ever heard of a bend piston ring and broken crown? 10 psi compression on #1... Absolutely no idea how. Wife and son were driving along on I5 to Bay Area, minding their own business when the engine suddenly lost power and started running rough. Trouble codes indicated misfire #1, #3. I got a pair of coils and set of plugs and set off in pursuit. Replaced those, no better. Compression test indicated above result and boroscope revealed tip of piston ring sticking above piston crown. Looks like engine replacement is in the near future. :-(.
Regarding 6MT. I like the car and the character but the gear spacing is not great, especially on 1st and 2nd gears; 1st is too low and 2nd is probably also a little low for good normal driving. Also, shifter on all BMW MT's is sloppier and less precise than I think it should for BMW's pedigree and their excellence in other driving characteristics.

Wow! That is an odd failure! What is the mileage of your X? I would consider a salvage motor and later do a light rebuild if there is no damage to the cylinder head or walls on your current m54 engine.

As far as the gearing goes, I'm swapping in a pair 2000-2003 4.4i differentials into my 6MT. They are a direct swap and would help reduce the gearing across the board. You 5 speed guys should definitely do this, especially if your not towing big loads. You can sell your old differentials and its a free mod minus the time swapping them out.

Thanks to Sedc, who swapped in some 3.64 ratio differentials from the 4.4i, went an additional step and made his front an LSD diff, reported that he got an additional couple of MPG's and gearing that is easier to live with.

Here's a link to the thread if your interested. Its on the top of my list of mods to come.

http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...ted-slips.html

Ricky Bobby 06-23-2013 11:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Green Dragon (Post 942619)
Wow! That is an odd failure! What is the mileage of your X? I would consider a salvage motor and later do a light rebuild if there is no damage to the cylinder head or walls on your current m54 engine.

As far as the gearing goes, I'm swapping in a pair 2000-2003 4.4i differentials into my 6MT. They are a direct swap and would help reduce the gearing across the board. You 5 speed guys should definitely do this, especially if your not towing big loads. You can sell your old differentials and its a free mod minus the time swapping them out.

Thanks to Sedc, who swapped in some 3.64 ratio differentials from the 4.4i, went an additional step and made his front an LSD diff, reported that he got an additional couple of MPG's and gearing that is easier to live with.

Here's a link to the thread if your interested. Its on the top of my list of mods to come.

http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...ted-slips.html

x2 dragon this is DEFINITELY on my list of to-do's, 3.64s front and rear would be great, I don't tow and could definitely use some improved mileage, don't need the LSD although it would be nice.

My problem is finding affordable, low mileage diffs, my stock diffs have 68k on them and have already had the gear oil changed at least once, I'm leary about buying diffs that are 120k+ miles and never had the fluids changed, wouldn't want to replace with a higher worn part you know?

And as far as the swap goes do you think swapping diffs is DIYable or is it def somthing a shop should handle?

Green Dragon 06-24-2013 12:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby (Post 942789)
x2 dragon this is DEFINITELY on my list of to-do's, 3.64s front and rear would be great, I don't tow and could definitely use some improved mileage, don't need the LSD although it would be nice.

My problem is finding affordable, low mileage diffs, my stock diffs have 68k on them and have already had the gear oil changed at least once, I'm leary about buying diffs that are 120k+ miles and never had the fluids changed, wouldn't want to replace with a higher worn part you know?

And as far as the swap goes do you think swapping diffs is DIYable or is it def somthing a shop should handle?

Ricky Bobby, (Shake n' Bake!)

It's totally DIyable. As a matter of fact, far more easy than the Bentley manual suggests. Bentley has this huge complicated process for the front diff....... but for us 3.0 guys, the diffs slip in and out. I bet about an afternoon job with swapping them both out and new fluid, which I too have done not long ago, and that's my snail meticulous pace.

I'm super jealous of your 68k mileage. I'm close to double that. ;) I'm gonna go on the cheap. I've found a set for about 300-400 bucks for the pair, just gotta know who to talk to. I plan on keeping my 4.10's for the time being in the corner, but it may make sense to sell'em. I plan on doing a write up on it next month. I'll post my source from where I find em. Good Luck bud.

Happy 07-18-2013 02:47 AM

I personally like the gearing. For me as a 5 speed owner I would REALLY like to have the 6th gear for the freeway, but otherwise find the gearing to be ok. Is there any chance the gearing and diff's are different from truck to truck? The supercharger combined with the gearing especially 1st, 2nd, and 3rd is pretty amazing. 4th I don't know, maybe it's me or I just haven't found the sweet spot but its kinda blah. 5th is cool because I can easily pass on the freeway with great pickup by flooring it. I always set my cruise at 70 mph, but once I find my place on the freeway I need 6th gear bottom line. The brand new X5's are somewhere in the 2000 rpm range at 70 mph in I believe 7th gear judging by a quick glance at their cluster, correct me if I am wrong please, curious to know. My mileage is too low to replace the tranny right now, but maybe when it's clutch time I can locate a 6 speed tranny and upgrade. 6 gears along with the supercharger should get me a few mpg's, the supercharger alone helped quite a bit in conjunction with the cruise.

Green Dragon 07-18-2013 01:42 PM

With the additional torque of your supercharger, you must be sling shotting through the gears. 1st gear is already a blip for me. I'm worried about the syncros on my tranny between 1st and 2nd. I have been babying mine with soft 2nd starts when I can. Revvving the hell out of it in first just to cross an intersection just to get to 10 mph. 3.0 all have 4.10 diffs. 4.4i have 3.64 diffs till late 03 and then switched to 4.10 with the lci and transmission update. 4.6is have 3.91 and the 3.0d have a 3.73 or a 3.46... If I remember right.4.8is have 4.10 I think.

Nick P 07-19-2013 03:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Happy (Post 947088)
My mileage is too low to replace the tranny right now, but maybe when it's clutch time I can locate a 6 speed tranny and upgrade. 6 gears along with the supercharger should get me a few mpg's, the supercharger alone helped quite a bit in conjunction with the cruise.

Any thoughts about 2 different TC-types? How do you suppose to upgrade the tranny to 6-speed?

Happy 07-19-2013 06:46 AM

Nick, I was under the impression you could swap the tranny and the case. Is it not possible? Dragon, I read another post like yours about the 10 mph in 1st thing, and I just don't understand? Mine doesn't perform like that. That's why I asked if there was a possibility some were different. I like 1st! But, I see some owners here disagree. My 1st will lay your ass back in the seat! LoL, pardon my language. It's just that last gear (6) I need for freeway cruising, and I'm getting the impression from Nick it's not possible. The one good thing I have going for me is my tranny still performs like new, it's been babied since day 1.

Ricky Bobby 07-19-2013 08:17 AM

Happy, maybe you could take a video of driving around? 1st gear for all 3.0's should be a really short stump puller gear, what Dragon talks about is when you are trying to pull out into traffic quick, if you drop the clutch and go, 1st is so short that by the time you are doing 10 mph you are almost at redline lol! And I know what he means, 1st is ridiculously short but I think the 3.0 is geared tall to have better response on highway and acceleration (when doing 80 mph in 5th on the highway we are at 4k, so no need to downshift to pass)

Green Dragon 07-19-2013 11:17 AM

Happy, you gotta post a video of that supercharger madness. I'm not even a little jealous. I'M A LOT JEALOUS! Plus I would really like to see those shift points, tach and all. Nick brings up a good point about the 6 speed swap with the t/c in the mix and adding xdrive logic. It was my understanding that the 5speed and 6 speed were interchangeable, but I could be wrong.

As far as a diff swap, that can easily be done. My wife's X3 has the 3.64 gearing in the diff, and similar tranny ratios and it's awesome. Combined with 6th gear on the highway, mpgs are great. 80 mph is about 3k rpm if I remember right. That taller gearing gives you some more gear to grab and really feel the power swell as you climb in rpm's. Coupled with a supercharger would be nothing short of intoxicating.

Nick P 07-19-2013 12:14 PM

What I've done only makes sense (if at all) if we're takling about V8 engines.

The GS6-X53 box of 6-speed manual X5 won't fit - it has bigger TC input shaft and the lenght is also different, due the 5-speed is much shorter.

If you swap the tranny you'll also must swap the TC, which isn't quite logical

davintosh 07-19-2013 01:02 PM

Pretty sure the 5- and 6-speed transmissions are physically interchangeable, but I don't know if the 6-speed would give anything more at the top end. I'm pretty sure the 5- and 6-speed have similar ratios in their highest gear, but the intermediate gears are spaced more closely in the 6-speed. Anybody know of a good resource for determining what gear ratios are used in either transmission?

Nick P 07-19-2013 01:13 PM

Again - 5-speed and 6-speed manual gearboxes on X5 are not interchangeable!

5-speed box has 1.00:1 ratio in final gear, 6-speed has 0.86.

davintosh 07-19-2013 02:00 PM

Not to argue the point -- just curious -- but what about the 6-speeds from the 3.0 X3? Different TC?

Nick P 07-19-2013 02:35 PM

X3 6-speed box with ATC400 will only mechanically fit to facelifted X5s ATC500 (both x-dirve), but not to the pre-facelift NV125 (fully mechanical unit, coupled only to 5-speed manuals).

Happy 07-20-2013 03:37 AM

Ok.. Got a chance to test 1st gear today. 10 mph is at 3000 rpm, 27 mph at redline. It's exactly the same as 1st gear for a Honda Civic I previously owned. My X5 has NO tow options at all. Do you think having a tow package would make a difference? 70 mph in 5th was at 3300 rpm. So, if 6th gear put me at 2850 rpm at 70 mph, I would be super satisfied!! One can only dream.. LoL.. Green Dragon and Ricky Bobby, I will try and figure out how to post video ASAP. I am new to message boards, but I had to be a part of the E53 Manual board!!

motordavid 07-20-2013 08:53 AM

Happy, from fading memory the final drive of all 5 speed manual cars is ~4.10
There really was no official 'tow pkg' in terms of BMW putting in a diff rear drive ratio; all the 5 speed manual trans cars, regardless of MY had the same trans ratios and final drive gear ratio.

Your speed/rpms in first are consistent with what I see. The redline comes up in a heartbeat, very short time/distance, vs my m'cycles and Vette, lol!
GL, mD

davintosh 07-20-2013 10:15 AM

Those speed/rpm figures are exactly what I see on mine; must be the 4:10 diffs on yours as well. That Honda you had must've been a stump-puller! ;)

bmwman528e 07-25-2013 08:34 PM

Add me to the 3 pedal list.

My name is Madison and I just snagged this ultra clean Alpine/Truffle Brown 2005 X5 6 Speed. 122,000 miles with black headliner, pano roof in Houston. Im flying out there and driving it home to Metro Detroit.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...ps2a5892c2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...ps90521359.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...ps152f3c02.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...psbacb7794.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...ps8df220d1.jpg

Ricky Bobby 07-26-2013 08:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bmwman528e (Post 948314)
Add me to the 3 pedal list.

My name is Madison and I just snagged this ultra clean Alpine/Truffle Brown 2005 X5 6 Speed. 122,000 miles with black headliner, pano roof in Houston. Im flying out there and driving it home to Metro Detroit.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...ps2a5892c2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...ps90521359.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...ps152f3c02.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...psbacb7794.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...ps8df220d1.jpg

Wow Madison, ultra clean is right! Alpine White/Truffle is a seriously rare combo, and you have Sport and Premium packages from what I see, also rare to have both on the manual models!

Facelifted sports package in Alpine White was my dream when I looked for my X, but all I found were silver and gray across the country, none with Sport Package.

At 122k, the miles are higher but I'm sure you already know that the 3.0 will run forever with good maintenance (as your '01 showed, I knew I recognized the user name!), and with the manual trans you don't have to worry about catastrophic transmission failure like the other 90% of this forum! You mark the 47th registered manual owner, almost to 50 members in about a years time of this thread being active, nice job!

davintosh 07-26-2013 09:22 AM

What RB said: ^^^ That's a nice machine. Love the interior color. Did you find that on eBay or????

Green Dragon 07-26-2013 12:16 PM

+3! Holy sweet mother of Moses. That is one awesome addition to the three pedal club. Love the color and option combination. Truffle was at the top of my list. Looks super clean. You will love the drive home. I've driven across country a few times in a new ride and its the best.
122k on the odo is nothing. What did you pick up this gem for? (if you don't mind sharing) Congrates and good luck.

bmwman528e 07-26-2013 01:08 PM

You guys are going to be mad at me. I paid less than $10,000!!!! I wasn't even shopping for a new car because I already have my 01 X5 that I love to death but when I found this color combo 6 speed in Alpine I pulled the trigger. My main worries for the long commute home is the cooling system because my guess is that its original but we will roll the dice and see what pans out. :thumbup:

Ricky Bobby 07-26-2013 02:18 PM

shut the fuck up seriously? Less than 10, for a sport package equipped manual trans X5 (In my opinion ALL X5's with 3 pedals should be equipped with sport package!) I won't even begin to tell you that I paid $15,000 for mine in late 2011!


Even if the cooling system is original just drop the 600-800 bucks, replace all hoses, water pump, expansion tank etc, and then do all fluids and give an oil change and drive the hell out of it!

DillonInCO 08-15-2013 07:20 PM

^ After seeing that car go for < $10K, I'm starting to think I should shop around :confused:

I drove an '01 5-speed yesterday at a stealership and loved it. Specifically, it's this one. It's the only manual trans E53 available in the state right now. I'm wondering about price. It seems good to me (already below NADA) and they're willing to come down a few hundred since it's been sitting on the lot for a while. Worth it? Or should I start searching nationally?

Also, while the car drove great overall, 2nd gear was a bit notchy / grindy. It never hesitated to go into gear, but I could feel it. Anyone else experienced that? If so, did you do anything to help correct it, or did you just live with it (hopefully not until synchro failure)?

One more question, can anything be done on these to improve clutch pedal or shifter feel? I know BMWs have some kind of a valve in the clutch line, supposedly for smoother engagement, but I've never liked that feature. My M3 has had it removed I believe. And I can't find anything as far as short shifters go, so I assume none exist currently. Could the shifter be rebuilt for a more precise feel?

Edit: Found some answers to both of those last two (CDV delete and fluid change or linkage adjustment), but input still appreciated.

motordavid 08-15-2013 07:56 PM

DillionInCO:
No Xpert, but a cursory glance tells me it's non-sport, 17" wheels, (good for putting on dedicated snow tires in CO winters, but you may want some bigger wheels for summer/looks), base HVAC system and steering wheel, softer and maybe worn out base/non-sport suspension, etc.

That beige interior looks decent for its age, though that light color is not kid/dog/dirt friendly, imo.

Mileage is what it is: I would want as much history as I could get, number of previous owners, and a serious PPI by a knowledgeable BMW Indie...
My 50Cts.
GL, mD

PS: My 2nd gear has been a bit notchy/rubbery from about Day 2. Not missed shift, but the entire shift situ is a bit rubbery/vague. Compared to my Vette, my '01 X is like stirring a malt with a straw.

DillonInCO 08-15-2013 09:48 PM

Yep, it's a base model with a few options: it definitely has the cold weather package, and some other things like sunroof, power passenger seat and premium sound. I actually much prefer the manual climate control, but I will miss some of the other options. Suspension didn't feel worn out at all when I drove it; in fact, I was pleasantly surprised at how nimble it felt. And I really want one with a sport package, but good luck finding one of those with a manual trans at a reasonable price. I unfortunately have a time constraint---I need to get something better for the winter within the next month or so---or else I'd just wait for the perfect one. My budget is < $10K so that also puts a damper on my search. I wasn't even planning to buy an X but after driving this one I'm sold.

Personally I love the tan interior...no kids or dogs at this point in my life, so it won't be quite so hard to keep clean. But even if I do get it dirty, I'm used to cleaning it every week or two as my M3 is dove gray / white :yikes:

Since it's a dealership, getting service history won't be easy. But for sure I would have it inspected by a BMW shop. I'm looking around for a good one now. Local BMW stealership wanted $260 for a PPI that wasn't all that detailed. I do know that it only had two owners and it's been in-state its entire life. And the first owner must have loved it, because they had it for 10 years.

Green Dragon 08-16-2013 02:56 AM

Yeah c/d valve delete is a must. You can rebuild the shifter bushings and linkage ends etc, to firm things up. My shifter cup is on the loose side, so I added some high vescosity silicone lube the the junction of the plastic pivot ball and the cup. Helped for the moment. As far as a short shifter goes, no dice so far. I will be buying a SS kit from Schmiedmann and modifying it for my 6mt. My 2nd gear is the same way. I have become quite good with rev-matching to take it easy on it.

Ricky Bobby 08-16-2013 08:21 AM

My 2nd has never been notchy, but I have less than half the mileage of the '01 you posted however. Wonder if the MT fluid has ever been changed? I changed mine shortly after I bought my '03 sport at 60k miles, and usually use an interval of 40k for manual trans fluid (about the same as diffs and transfer case). If its on old dirty fluid that might contribute to the notchiness.

CDV delete is a must, you can either drill out the stock valve or buy a replacement valve for 40 bucks, easy to install yourself, just flush the clutch/brakes when you are done with it.

Do you have to keep your search local? If you expand your horizons nationwide you may get more hits, I literally was searching for a Sport package manual transmission X5 for about 6 months nationwide, lost a few bids on some, until I got extremely lucky and found my X a little over an hour away in Yonkers, NY. I was specifically looking for low mileage, the newest model year I could find in my price range, manual trans obviously, Sport package, and no silver or beige.

Restricting your search to CO may have you waiting a while, there was a member recently (Bayerische E53) who had an '05 non-sport 6 speed Alpine White X5 which was fully resprayed, he put a ton of cosmetic work into the vehicle, and ended up selling it to CarMax for 10k. Maybe PM him and see if it's still on the lot there?

Search ebay, search craigslist (although I don't have luck there for cars), and search cars.com advanced search including transmission search, and the word "manual". You will still get a lot of listings with auto's bc most of the dealers are effing stupid putting manual trans (they don't think people are searching for a manual) but you will have to weed through listings to find a good one.

FWIW, that X has been on the market for almost a year if not more now, as I frequently search for manual transmission X5's just to see what other examples pop up, and distinctly remember this high mileage, base model '01 in Colorado. It looks clean, but I think you need to widen your search to get what you want (sport packages are out there!) patience is key.

DillonInCO 08-16-2013 11:51 AM

Thanks for the input! I've been looking nationwide as well, just out of curiosity, but there aren't any sport package manual trans cars out there as far as I can tell. I didn't check CarMax before, but I just did and they have 0 manual trans X5s right now. I'm not opposed to buying out of state, but it would have to be THE right car at the right price. I've done it before and it's a PITA...plus with the cost of flying out on short notice, and paying for gas on the way back, it might end up being more expensive. And I have that time constraint too; we're expecting a rough winter and it's coming up fast. If I don't find a car here soon I'll end up having to buy snow tires for the M3, and raise and realign the suspension.

DillonInCO 08-16-2013 01:27 PM

Wellll as luck would have it, I just found a manual trans sport package, and it's exactly what I want. It's at a BMW dealer in NJ---quite the trek for me, but man, is it nice. It's a 2004 (6-speed!), pano sunroof, cold weather package, etc. Being that it's at a BMW dealer, where it has been serviced its entire life, I assume I wouldn't need to have a PPI done. And it's a one-owner with only 101K miles. The catch is...it's out of my price range (dealer site says $15K, and they've already dropped the price from $18K). But...I don't know, I could probably make it work. They also have it listed on eBay at a starting price of $10K with 0 bids, so maybe I could talk them down. However, NADA says $14,700, so probably not much.

Can anyone comment on how much wiggle room there might be as far as price goes? Also, is there anyone on here who lives in NJ and would be willing to check it out for me? It's in Newton. One more thing, can anyone comment on the durability of the 6-speed vs. the 5-speed?

JCL 08-16-2013 01:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DillonInCO (Post 952090)
Wellll as luck would have it, I just found a manual trans sport package, and it's exactly what I want. It's at a BMW dealer in NJ---quite the trek for me, but man, is it nice. It's a 2004 (6-speed!), pano sunroof, cold weather package, etc. Being that it's at a BMW dealer, where it has been serviced its entire life, I assume I wouldn't need to have a PPI done. And it's a one-owner with only 101K miles. The catch is...it's out of my price range (dealer site says $15K, and they've already dropped the price from $18K). But...I don't know, I could probably make it work. They also have it listed on eBay at a starting price of $10K with 0 bids, so maybe I could talk them down. However, NADA says $14,700, so probably not much.

Can anyone comment on how much wiggle room there might be as far as price goes? Also, is there anyone on here who lives in NJ and would be willing to check it out for me? It's in Newton. One more thing, can anyone comment on the durability of the 6-speed vs. the 5-speed?

See sentence in bold. Bad assumption.

Six speed is no less reliable than the five speed. It is a better match to the vehicle and is thus desirable.

motordavid 08-16-2013 01:44 PM

6 speed vs 5 speed...'better', all things being 'equal'.
The first 5 gears in the 6 speed are identical to the 5 speed box, with the addition of a slightly overdriven 6th gear = slightly less rpms at cruising speed.

Newton,NJ...my guess is Bell BMW, where I bought my '01, way back in Sept 2001.

If I still lived in NY, I would wander over and give it a look.

Just because a BMW is selling it, doesn't mean they looked at it very hard. If they are willing to cough up its 'history', that would be helpful, but doubt they will.

Interesting car, even with the 101k miles...
GL, mD

Ricky Bobby 08-16-2013 01:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DillonInCO (Post 952090)
Wellll as luck would have it, I just found a manual trans sport package, and it's exactly what I want. It's at a BMW dealer in NJ---quite the trek for me, but man, is it nice. It's a 2004 (6-speed!), pano sunroof, cold weather package, etc. Being that it's at a BMW dealer, where it has been serviced its entire life, I assume I wouldn't need to have a PPI done. And it's a one-owner with only 101K miles. The catch is...it's out of my price range (dealer site says $15K, and they've already dropped the price from $18K). But...I don't know, I could probably make it work. They also have it listed on eBay at a starting price of $10K with 0 bids, so maybe I could talk them down. However, NADA says $14,700, so probably not much.

Can anyone comment on how much wiggle room there might be as far as price goes? Also, is there anyone on here who lives in NJ and would be willing to check it out for me? It's in Newton. One more thing, can anyone comment on the durability of the 6-speed vs. the 5-speed?


I live 40-45 minutes from Open Road BMW of Newton, I'd be willing to check it out but my schedule doesn't leave a lot of time. I saw that silver X5 on ebay a couple weeks ago.

In my opinion, it might be tough to get them down to your price range, if they gave a lot of money on the local trade in to get the previous owner to buy a new vehicle, they may not be willing to let it go cheap, and would rather sell it at auction than take too much of a loss.

I agree, 15k is still rather steep considering it is over 100k miles (nothing for a M54), but trust me, the manual X5's don't fly off the shelf unless someone is looking for one. No "Saturday shopper" is going to randomly walk in the dealership and buy a 10 year old X5 with 100k miles for 15k if it has a stick.


Dealers don't really use NADA as far as I knew, more on black book value, but again, you don't know how much the dealer "showed" on trade in value to the previous owner, and how much of a deal on the new car they gave to the guy to get him to trade it in. A lot of times there isn't much wiggle room on the newer cars so they will give more in trade to get them to buy the car that day.


This weekend is shot for me but I might have an evening next week I could take a ride up to Newton for you. I checked the ebay pics and it looks clean to me, pm "Naz24" he is also local and has dealers license, he can look up the carfax/autocheck report to get the vehicle history for you.

EDIT: I didn't see you said its listed on their website at 15k. If it is, I think you have some room there, they obviously want to move the car and see that its not easy to sell, as they have already dropped the price 3k in just a few weeks time. Dealers hate when cars sit. If its clean, I'd offer them a reasonable deal, and also just caught that you said its a one owner car, if that is so, good news as well. One owner cars are USUALLY cared for well, and as we know in the "manual transmission" club, we all care for our 3-pedal machines as they are special E53's. Sounds like a nice car.

Ricky Bobby 08-16-2013 02:17 PM

UPDATE as I just went through the Free Carfax and looked at the pics again:


Dillon, just from seeing the service records on Carfax and the pics on ebay again, it looks extremely clean, Silver is a color that holds up great over time but as a one owner (who bought it out after leasing it) it looks well cared for, it was in for service every 10k at least, if not more. Brakes were changed at 76k, coolant was flushed 20k ago, brake fluid flushed, oil changes were regular, etc.

Only issue I see from pics is the peeling on the trim for the steering wheel ($50 part)


It has been serviced there at BMW Newton its whole life so I wonder if they could release the maintenance history on it, that literally would be amazing if they could.

Looks like an extremely clean and rare 6-speed/sport equipped vehicle, and honestly for one that is well cared for and in good shape, I would up your budget and buy it if it checks out.

DillonInCO 08-16-2013 03:08 PM

Thanks for checking into it! Not sure about NJ, but dealers here use NADA almost exclusively. If it were closer, I think I would pursue it. But I just looked up the cost of a trip out there to pick it up, and unfortunately I don't think it's worth it for me right now---the total cost, including plane ticket + hotels + food + gas, would end up being around $800. That's money I feel would be better spent on registration fees (which are VERY costly in CO, it would be $600-700 for that 2004), or maintenance / upgrades. I think I will have the white one inspected next week as planned and go from there. If it checks out I'll likely buy it, and if not, then I guess I'll have to wait. Thanks again.

Green Dragon 08-17-2013 01:55 PM

I've owned both the 5-speed and 6-speed. That extra gear does make a huge difference. Call the dealer up and make a firm offer and see if they bite. It's worth it, in my opinion, to go for the 6 speed as well as the updated x-drive. I live in Northern Utah, so I understand your winter needs. I've bought all my manuals (X3 and two X5s) out of state. Pa, Sc, and Tx. It is a PITA I know. Good luck with which ever route you go with and unofficially welcome to the three pedal club. You'll love your manual X5! Best decision I've made, times 3! Keep us posted.

Gregory891 08-17-2013 05:18 PM

Own a 2002 X5 3.0 diesel 5 speed (manual), take the plunge. The 2nd gear things you feel are likely the fact that the factory "lifetime" synthetic oil needs to be changed (use Redline MTL). Change the transfer case oil as well, if NV125 - either Redline ATF or MTL.

THEN replace the CDV valve. Been there, done that.

Green Dragon 08-20-2013 04:10 PM

1 Attachment(s)
Just ordered a Schmiedmann adjustable short shifter. It will be here Monday. It's not gonna be a plug and play, as I will have to match the oem shifter angle. But this seems to be the best option out there for us 3 pedal e53 guys right now. I'm pretty excited. Full pictures to come.
Also, I built a new selector rod for the e36 a few years back that was similar to the uuc dssr. Don't be suprized to see me fire up the lathe........ The mad scientist has entered the building.;)

DillonInCO 08-20-2013 10:09 PM

Nice! Do you think you'll be able to just bend the non-threaded part in the center?

Tomorrow I may be buying the white base model I posted a while back. I'm taking it to have a PPI done at a reputable indy shop (that specializes in BMW), and if it checks out, pretty sure I'm going for it. First thing I'll probably do is replace the shift bushings / carrier pin, and change the tranny fluid. Anyone used teflon ones, like these? Also, recommendations on what fluid to use?

SammyD 08-20-2013 10:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Green Dragon (Post 952755)
Just ordered a Schmiedmann adjustable short shifter. It will be here Monday. It's not gonna be a plug and play, as I will have to match the oem shifter angle. But this seems to be the best option out there for us 3 pedal e53 guys right now. I'm pretty excited. Full pictures to come.
Also, I built a new selector rod for the e36 a few years back that was similar to the uuc dssr. Don't be suprized to see me fire up the lathe........ The mad scientist has entered the building.;)

I'm excited for you :thumbup:

Please keep us posted :popcorn:

Green Dragon 08-21-2013 12:44 AM

1 Attachment(s)
Quote:

Originally Posted by DillonInCO (Post 952799)
Nice! Do you think you'll be able to just bend the non-threaded part in the center?

Tomorrow I may be buying the white base model I posted a while back. I'm taking it to have a PPI done at a reputable indy shop (that specializes in BMW), and if it checks out, pretty sure I'm going for it. First thing I'll probably do is replace the shift bushings / carrier pin, and change the tranny fluid. Anyone used teflon ones, like these? Also, recommendations on what fluid to use?

Yeah, I gotta match up the angle of the stock shifter. I think there is enough tolerance with the adaptability of the rod, that I can find the sweet spot. "Fingers Crossed". Worse case, I may lose some of the upper adjustment of the upper most part due to the high oem angle. I can always make a new threaded rod if necessary..... and a few clones for my e53 brothers to adapt it over.

Congrats on the new ride. I used Red Line fluid when I changed my gear box fluid. I went with the Red Line D4 ATF. 2 quarts. You can go with their MTL, or do a hybrid of 50:50 MTL and D4 ATF. I had read that you get better winter performance with the D4 ATF straight, but honestly, I think I will try the hybrid approach next. The BMW OEM "lifetime" fluid can be purchased in 5 quart quantities at a premium price. You can also purchase a cross compatible fluid made by....Pentosin (German made)at Oreilly's at about $20 a quart which is good stuff. My personal vote is Red Line.

Good find on the Teflon bushing. You'd be the first that I know of. I'm putting in a new cup and assessing the rest of the bushings as I go.

Ricky Bobby 08-21-2013 08:42 AM

I changed my manual tranny fluid to Redline MTL when I bought my X, shifts phenomenally. Used Redline 75w-90 in both diffs, and Redline D4 ATF in the transfer case.

I like having fresh fluids at all times, good luck at the PPI Dillon!

Green Dragon 08-21-2013 06:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby (Post 952844)
I changed my manual tranny fluid to Redline MTL when I bought my X, shifts phenomenally. Used Redline 75w-90 in both diffs, and Redline D4 ATF in the transfer case.

I like having fresh fluids at all times, good luck at the PPI Dillon!

RB,
Do you have any issues with winter temps (other than the normal, "go easy till it warms up") with the MTL? Just curious. Thinking about swapping fluids.

DillonInCO 08-21-2013 10:50 PM

Welp, now you can officially welcome me to the three pedal club :thumbup: The PPI on that white car went well, save for a few things---most importantly, driver front window regulator (which actually imploded on my way back tonight) and a rear upper control arm---but these are minor and expected on a vehicle of this age. I made an offer for what I felt was acceptable, and they took it. Here she is next to my M3. Can't wait to learn all about these things!

http://i892.photobucket.com/albums/a...g?t=1377140005

Ricky Bobby 08-22-2013 08:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DillonInCO (Post 952971)
Welp, now you can officially welcome me to the three pedal club :thumbup: The PPI on that white car went well, save for a few things---most importantly, driver front window regulator (which actually imploded on my way back tonight) and a rear upper control arm---but these are minor and expected on a vehicle of this age. I made an offer for what I felt was acceptable, and they took it. Here she is next to my M3. Can't wait to learn all about these things!

http://i892.photobucket.com/albums/a...g?t=1377140005

Awesome Dillon, based on their asking price i'm assuming you came around 8k or under, which is a great price for reliable winter transportation! Welcome (I'll add you to the list!)

You already know the inline 6 is dead reliable if all else is maintained, just take care of the broken stuff (window regulators, suspension pieces, etc), and do some mods along the way and drive the hell out of it!

Ricky Bobby 08-22-2013 08:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Green Dragon (Post 952955)
RB,
Do you have any issues with winter temps (other than the normal, "go easy till it warms up") with the MTL? Just curious. Thinking about swapping fluids.

Nope! Go ahead and switch it up! Have you done a fluid swap yet on your 6-speed? (not sure of your mileage) Or are you looking to just try a different fluid lol!

That would be the MT-90 that might be slightly "notchy" until warmed up, because I was worried about that too. The MTL from what I read is about 70w-80 fluid (OEM MTF is 75w-80), so the MTL is closest to what comes in the transmission stock.

MT-90 is recommended more for manual transmissions that don't see much of a winter as far as I knew, and my BMW indy recommended staying as close to OEM viscosity as possible, so he said the MTL would be best for me.

smi2710 08-23-2013 09:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DillonInCO (Post 952971)
Welp, now you can officially welcome me to the three pedal club :thumbup: The PPI on that white car went well, save for a few things---most importantly, driver front window regulator (which actually imploded on my way back tonight) and a rear upper control arm---but these are minor and expected on a vehicle of this age. I made an offer for what I felt was acceptable, and they took it. Here she is next to my M3. Can't wait to learn all about these things!

http://i892.photobucket.com/albums/a...g?t=1377140005

Congrats and enjoi i love my 3 pedal machine. Too bad i didnt see the one for sale in newton nj im 15minutes from there. i would have sold you my 5 spd with sports package and bought that one :D

Gregory891 08-24-2013 06:44 AM

For a manual, per Mike Miller of the BMW CCA (aside M cars), Redline ATF is good but Redline MTL is better. I've tried both my 5 speed manual X5 (2002 3.0 diesel), I'd say the MTL is even better - and no negative issues in winter (coldest here is perhaps -10 C).

As for a short shifter, I spoke to UUC last week (I call every two months). They HAVE produced the first "restart" Evo 3 for the X5 E53 5 or 6 speed manual. Why "restart" you say? When UUC last produced this for the X5, it was many years ago, and it was the Evo 2 stage design. They naturally wanted to update to current design - which has taken quite some time.

First one recently went to a customer in Illinois and they had to make a change to accommodate something in the carrier (where the shifter ball goes) which is modestly different on the X5. I've been advised to check back mid September, and I'll keep people informed of this - as I am one of the people who have pre-ordered this.

Green Dragon 08-25-2013 03:59 PM

3 Attachment(s)
Thanks Gregory and Ricky Bobby! I will switch from Red Line ATF D4 to the MTL.

Here's an update on my custom Schmiedmann Short Shifter project. Ordered it Monday, arrived at work on Wednesday all the way from Europe! :wow: Schmiedmann has been awesome to work with. Really impressed!

I did a pre-fit yesterday, and so far so good. I will have to pull the stock shifter out completely to get specifics, but I'm on track. Here's a few pics I took the other day. More to come.......

Ricky Bobby 08-26-2013 09:17 AM

subscribed for Schmiedmann updates, interested to see just how much work you have to do to make it work!

DrRick 08-26-2013 01:33 PM

Hello.
Purchased My 2003 3.0 5-speed October 2008. It originally was for my son's 16th BD. Got it amazingly enough from Hertz $22,000 then. Got passed on to my Daughter when she turned 16. She got a jeep for graduation, and I now have the X5 all to myself. (My daily drivers during that time were 1996 TT 911 (sold), 1995 750iL, chevy truck(s), 1986 Carrera).

I must admit that I have ignored the X5, except for the bi annual Oil/filter change + other smaller items (expansion tank, coils.......front suspension).

It was hard finding a Manual transmission, but my kids were not able to drive independently until they could drive a stick, change a flat, change oil/filter(s). I choose the X5 for their first rides because they are SAFE.

Now that I am using it as a daily, I have got to fix all of the little things that have gone bad.

"Honey, (talking to my daughter) how long has the brake and check engine lights been on?? ahh daddy, not sure. So I just replaced the rotors, pads and sensors. The lean burn notice is next. I plan on replacing Oxy sensor(s).
Great forum.

skialex 08-26-2013 04:42 PM

Got our black base model 6-speed 2004 E53 a couple years ago. My wife and I refuse to drive an automatic, so the search was long, but worth it. Overall we are happy, except a few minor problems that crop up from time to time and a fair bit of maintenance (I am doing most of it myself to keep the cost down). An SUV has no right to drive that well.

Ricky Bobby 08-27-2013 08:24 AM

Welcome skialex and DrRick, and just to let everyone know, we now have officially have 50 members on the registry! Wow!

Green Dragon 08-28-2013 06:20 PM

Bad News......
 
I'm looking for a new 6-speed X5. If you guys know of any..... let me know. Long story, and still working out details, but the X is a goner. Got hit Monday.... not my fault. Front Right corner, frame and all pretty jacked. Pretty sad about it.

I found Bayerische's white one. Just got sold today. Looks like it made its way to Illinois from Carmax where someone flipped it for close to $14,000. I got beat by a few hours..... dang.

The one in Newton NJ is gone. Dang.

Anyways, sorry to break the bad news. Photos and details coming shortly. Thanks. You guys are awesome!

rubber duckie 08-29-2013 02:22 AM

its been 5 years since i have been on this forum, but i came back just to help you out.

MACKEY AUTOMOTIVE :*SUVDETAILS

its silver and although the description says auto, its a manual.

Green Dragon 08-29-2013 09:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rubber duckie (Post 954041)
its been 5 years since i have been on this forum, but i came back just to help you out.

MACKEY AUTOMOTIVE :*SUVDETAILS

its silver and although the description says auto, its a manual.

Rubber Duckie,
Thanks Man! I'm looking into it today. Thanks for coming out of your 5 year retirement to help a brother out.

rubber duckie 08-29-2013 11:12 AM

they are willing to take 10,250 if that matters.

Ricky Bobby 08-29-2013 11:34 AM

Dragon, you gotta be kidding me man! So sorry to hear, I know you loved your '04 Kalahari, I remember it for sale out by you when I was shopping for my manual X! I thought to myself "wow a 6 speed with a custom exhaust", it was a beautiful car.

Hope you and loved ones are ok (our X's are great for protecting us thank Gosh!), i'm guessing insurance is going to total the car and hasn't given you a value yet on what they are going to pay out? I'll keep my eyes peeled for another 6 speed for you, I can't believe you found Bayerische's White X and just missed it!


Are you able to at least part out some of your mods and get a few bucks back that way?

Ricky Bobby 08-29-2013 11:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rubber duckie (Post 954074)
they are willing to take 10,250 if that matters.


wow I just checked that one, offer them 10k, not bad for a facelifted 6 speed, under 100k miles too!

Green Dragon 08-29-2013 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby (Post 954077)
Dragon, you gotta be kidding me man! So sorry to hear, I know you loved your '04 Kalahari, I remember it for sale out by you when I was shopping for my manual X! I thought to myself "wow a 6 speed with a custom exhaust", it was a beautiful car.

Hope you and loved ones are ok (our X's are great for protecting us thank Gosh!), i'm guessing insurance is going to total the car and hasn't given you a value yet on what they are going to pay out? I'll keep my eyes peeled for another 6 speed for you, I can't believe you found Bayerische's White X and just missed it!


Are you able to at least part out some of your mods and get a few bucks back that way?

Ricky, my man. Yeah I know. I'm way sad about it. Still in the early-mid phase of the whole insurance shenanigans. Things are going well none the less. I will find out about all my mods soon.

I found a '05 6-speed Alpine white with truffle/black and sport pac. 114k, which to me is fine mileage wise. I think I'm gonna move on it today. If I get it, I will be passing through your neck of the woods in the next couple of weeks. We gotta get up for dinner...

Thanks for all the help from everyone. If you see a good one keep posted.

Ricky Bobby 08-29-2013 04:02 PM

Alpine with Truffle! Jump on that mother trucker man!

Where is it at? PM me the listing I'll let you know how far it is from me, sounds awesome though if it's Alpine with the Sport Package (Bayerische's didn't even have sport!)

A fellow manual X owner is always welcome at our house, would love to pour you a beer and admire your ride or meet up for a drink locally!

rubber duckie 08-29-2013 04:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Green Dragon (Post 954125)
Ricky, my man. Yeah I know. I'm way sad about it. Still in the early-mid phase of the whole insurance shenanigans. Things are going well none the less. I will find out about all my mods soon.

I found a '05 6-speed Alpine white with truffle/black and sport pac. 114k, which to me is fine mileage wise. I think I'm gonna move on it today. If I get it, I will be passing through your neck of the woods in the next couple of weeks. We gotta get up for dinner...

Thanks for all the help from everyone. If you see a good one keep posted.

You beat me to it. I have seen that one for days now, wondering if I shoud pull the trigger. Just fyi there is rust on the driver door. They will take less then asking btw.

Ricky Bobby 08-29-2013 04:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rubber duckie (Post 954133)
You beat me to it. I have seen that one for days now, wondering if I shoud pull the trigger. Just fyi there is rust on the driver door. They will take less then asking btw.

Where is the listing lol I want to check it out! haha

rubber duckie 08-29-2013 04:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby (Post 954135)
Where is the listing lol I want to check it out! haha

Pmed

rubber duckie 08-30-2013 12:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Green Dragon (Post 954125)
Ricky, my man. Yeah I know. I'm way sad about it. Still in the early-mid phase of the whole insurance shenanigans. Things are going well none the less. I will find out about all my mods soon.

I found a '05 6-speed Alpine white with truffle/black and sport pac. 114k, which to me is fine mileage wise. I think I'm gonna move on it today. If I get it, I will be passing through your neck of the woods in the next couple of weeks. We gotta get up for dinner...

Thanks for all the help from everyone. If you see a good one keep posted.

were you able to lock it down?

Green Dragon 08-30-2013 01:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rubber duckie (Post 954133)
You beat me to it. I have seen that one for days now, wondering if I shoud pull the trigger. Just fyi there is rust on the driver door. They will take less then asking btw.

HahaHa! You must be the guy from Cali that emailed him. He told me about you! Crazy small world! Yeah I made an offer and am waiting to hear back in the morning. Your right about the rust.... thanks for the heads up. They seem like pretty straight shoot'n folks. I like them.

FYI, there is a really nice and super clean Alpine white/tan fully loaded minus sport pack for 10,500 in OH. I mean really clean. 109K on the odo.
2004 BMW X5 AWD 3.0i 6-Speed w/CLEAN CARFAX Cleveland, Ohio | Autos Direct Online

Also there is a sweet Toledo Blue/tan down in VA. Waiting for pics.
2005 BMW X5 3.0i Midlothian, Virginia | Ultimate Motors

Green Dragon 08-30-2013 01:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby (Post 954131)
Alpine with Truffle! Jump on that mother trucker man!

Where is it at? PM me the listing I'll let you know how far it is from me, sounds awesome though if it's Alpine with the Sport Package (Bayerische's didn't even have sport!)

A fellow manual X owner is always welcome at our house, would love to pour you a beer and admire your ride or meet up for a drink locally!

You freak'n know it! Thanks brother!

rubber duckie 08-30-2013 01:33 AM

just so you know the one in NH was listed for 9600 for dealers.

i would have bought it if it wasnt white. not that i dont like white, but in my community if you are vietnamese, you buy a white car. you see houses around here were the entire family everyone has a white car. not just parents and kids, im talking grand parents, aunts uncles, cousins, brother sisters. if it wasnt so dark out i would take a picture of my neighbors drive way for you. lol

the wife is kind of glad i didn't buy that car, she was sad when i told her it wasn't an auto.

since your in a sharing mood, ill help out,

04 in TX http://www.edirectmotors.com/04x5-6/index.htm
01 in NY http://www.msnpreowned.com/2001-BMW-...ngupi2YPeOs%3d

i found this one , and if it goes cheap enough i might pick it up, its a 01 with 104 miles, and its RED!!!
Type code FA53
Type X5 3.0I (USA)
E series E53 ()
Series X
Type GEFZG
Steering LL
Doors 5
Engine M54
Displacement 3.00
Power 170
Drive ALLR
Transmission MECH
Colour MAHAGONI METALLIC (436)
Upholstery STANDARDLEDER / HELLBEIGE 2 (ARBEITSN (N6HC)
Prod.date 2001-04-30
Close Options
Code
Description (interface)
Description (EPC)
S386A DACHRELING Roof railing
S403A GLASDACH, ELEKTRISCH Glass roof, electrical
S417A SONNENSCHUTZROLLO HINTERE TUERSCH. Roller sun vizor, rear door
S437A EDELHOLZAUSFUEHRUNG Fine wood trim
S441A RAUCHERPAKET Smoker package
S459A SITZVERSTELLUNG, ELEKTR.MIT MEMORY Seat adjuster, electric, with memory
S464A SKISACK Ski bag
S473A ARMAUFLAGE VORN Armrest front
S494A SITZHEIZUNG FUER FAHRER / BEIFAHRER Seat heating driver / passenger
S502A SCHEINWERFER-WASCHANLAGE Headlight cleaning system
S521A REGENSENSOR Rain sensor
S533A FOND-KLIMATISIERUNG Air conditioning, rear
S534A KLIMAAUTOMATIK Automatic air conditioning
S676A HIFI LAUTSPRECHERSYSTEM HiFi speaker system
S690A CASSETTENHALTERUNG Cassette holder
Code
Description (interface)
Description (EPC)
S761A INDIVIDUAL SONNENSCHUTZVERGLASUNG Individual sunshade glazing
S926A ERSATZRAD Spare wheel
S945A BERUECKSICHTIGUNG PREISABHAENGK. Dummy-SALAPA
Close Standard equipment
Code
Description (interface)
Description (EPC)
S249A MULTIFUNKTION FUER LENKRAD Multifunction f steering wheel
S302A ALARMANLAGE Alarm system
S309A LM RAEDER / STERNSPEICHE 57 BMW light alloy wheel, star spoke 57
S354A GRUENKEIL-FRONTSCHEIBE Green windscreen, green shade band
S640A AUTOTELEFONVORBEREITUNG Preparation f tel.installation universal
S645A RADIO-STEUERUNG US BMW US Radio
S661A RADIO BMW BUSINESS Radio BMW Business (C43)
S692A CD WECHSLER I-BUS VORBEREITUNG Preparation, BMW 6-CD changer I-bus
S845A AKUSTISCHE GURTWARNUNG Acoustic belt warning
S853A SPRACHVERSION ENGLISCH Language version English
S876A FUNKFREQUENZ 315 MHZ Radio frequency 315 MHz
S992A STEUERUNG KENNZEICHENBEFESTIGUNG Control of number-plate attachment

Green Dragon 08-30-2013 01:46 AM

Warning: Graphic vomit inducing photos.
 
4 Attachment(s)
No words needed........

rubber duckie 08-30-2013 01:48 AM

wow that sucks, glad to see you werent hurt, are you going to buy the car back from insurance and part it out?

Green Dragon 08-30-2013 01:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rubber duckie (Post 954197)
wow that sucks, glad to see you werent hurt, are you going to buy the car back from insurance and part it out?

Yeah, I thinking about it real hard. I'm still working the details out with the ins.

My wife and I were rolling about the whole Vietnamese comment. That was so damn funny!

Ricky Bobby 08-30-2013 08:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Green Dragon (Post 954198)
Yeah, I thinking about it real hard. I'm still working the details out with the ins.

My wife and I were rolling about the whole Vietnamese comment. That was so damn funny!

Can you get the intake off at least (replace with stock airbox) and get a credit on your Shark injector so at least for the next one you can start out with those two mods?

Honestly Dragon, I haven't seen the one in NH with sports package, but the white one you posted in Cleveland is clean as shit, lowest mileage of the bunch too!

If I saw some pics of the White/Truffle from Manheim I'd definitely recommend either of them, the Gray one with the Xenons is ok, I just love Alpine White though.


Nasty pics of the accident btw, glad to hear you are safe! Hell of a front end hit too, are you injured at all?

Ldiggs910 08-30-2013 09:22 AM

Here I found a free X5 being offered!

http://www.xoutpost.com/classifieds/...ebody-kit.html

rubber duckie 09-01-2013 10:02 PM

any updates GD??

Green Dragon 09-02-2013 01:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rubber duckie (Post 954469)
any updates GD??

Hey man. Pretty much have the white 05 on lock down. Insurance co took labor day early it seems. Couldn't get much done before the weekend. Still trying to figure out if I'm gonna let the new tires and headers go....... Well see I guess.

jgold47 09-02-2013 10:15 AM

Nasty accident. Are you parting out?

Ricky Bobby 09-03-2013 02:03 PM

Good to hear you almost have the 05 GD!

Looking forward to seeing those sexy Truffle sport seats!


Here is another Alpine White 6-speed, its a 2005, looks to be lower optioned model as I don't see heated seat buttons, but mileage is very low at 69k, and besides some wear to the drivers bolster (normal), looks good! Already has black kidney grills and a black roof as well (don't know if its painted or wrapped)

BMW : X5 3.0i in BMW | eBay Motors

rubber duckie 09-05-2013 01:02 AM

i have a question for you guys,

is a post face lift worth double the price? say 01 vs 04?

i really want a post FL with 6 speed, but is it really worth double the price (considering they have the same miles)?

Gregory891 09-05-2013 04:28 AM

What does the blue book say for each car (to give you a relative idea of price for both)?

What are the option differences between the two cars?

How well have each been followed in terms of maintenance and proactive (change transmission fluid and other items)?

Color - do you like one vs. the other? A perfect car with pink exterior might perhaps not be someone's first choice :)

An '01 has some advantages (simpler driveline) vs. an '04 (iDrive with solenoid system).

Ricky Bobby 09-05-2013 08:14 AM

If apples are to apples, the options are equal, the miles are equal, the colors are both desirable, I would definitely NOT think that 01 vs. 04 garners double the price.

Perhaps 01 compared to an '06 6-speed with everything else the same would creep up slightly, but even then, that's pushing it.


Care to share the ones you're looking at so we can offer opinions?

rubber duckie 09-05-2013 03:52 PM

besides the one in NH, i have not found anything of that caliber yet. still looking.

bmwman528e 09-09-2013 12:44 AM

Well I did the CDV Mod today on my 2005 and I can say after driving my new vehicle 1500 miles I can't believe I didn't do this mod on the first day I bought the SAV! Anyone who has yet to do this mod I will let you in on a little tip. THERE IS NO NEED TO PURCHASE THE NEW CDV VALVE from ZECHHAUSEN. All you do is remove the valve and reinstall the line into the master cylinder and voila perfect shifting. My old CDV valve is in the garbage and my wallet still has the $60 in it that I was thinking about spending on the Zechhausen unit. Cheers!

Ricky Bobby 09-09-2013 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bmwman528e (Post 955314)
Well I did the CDV Mod today on my 2005 and I can say after driving my new vehicle 1500 miles I can't believe I didn't do this mod on the first day I bought the SAV! Anyone who has yet to do this mod I will let you in on a little tip. THERE IS NO NEED TO PURCHASE THE NEW CDV VALVE from ZECHHAUSEN. All you do is remove the valve and reinstall the line into the master cylinder and voila perfect shifting. My old CDV valve is in the garbage and my wallet still has the $60 in it that I was thinking about spending on the Zechhausen unit. Cheers!

I found that out the hard way myself, when my mechanic was bleeding the brakes/clutch and installing the CDV for me he said "you know you probably can just thread the line back in the master" and I was like "ah just put the valve in anyway"

Every manual X5 needs their CDV deleted though you are right!

davintosh 09-09-2013 12:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bmwman528e (Post 955314)
Well I did the CDV Mod today on my 2005 and I can say after driving my new vehicle 1500 miles I can't believe I didn't do this mod on the first day I bought the SAV! Anyone who has yet to do this mod I will let you in on a little tip. THERE IS NO NEED TO PURCHASE THE NEW CDV VALVE from ZECHHAUSEN. All you do is remove the valve and reinstall the line into the master cylinder and voila perfect shifting. My old CDV valve is in the garbage and my wallet still has the $60 in it that I was thinking about spending on the Zechhausen unit. Cheers!

Awesome news! :thumbup:

I was just thinking about that job the other day, wondering if it would work out like that, and if I should have the Z-unit on hand before starting, just in case.

You said above that you reinstalled the line into the master cylinder; did you mean slave cylinder there? If memory serves, the CDV is on the slave... (lucky #13 in the diagram.) Just checking.

http://realoem.com/bmw/diagrams/i/w/131.png

Did you have any trouble bleeding the clutch after the mod? Did you have to bleed the brakes at all?

bmwman528e 09-09-2013 08:15 PM

Sorry I meant the slave cylinder! #12 in the picture goes straight to #14 and its good to go. I pinched my rubber line with vice grips. I lost 1 drip of brake fluid and didn't even need to bleed it.

davintosh 09-09-2013 11:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bmwman528e (Post 955449)
Sorry I meant the slave cylinder! #12 in the picture goes straight to #14 and its good to go. I pinched my rubber line with vice grips. I lost 1 drip of brake fluid and didn't even need to bleed it.

Awesome! That settles it; I'll have this done on mine by the end of this week. :thumbup:

Ricky Bobby 09-10-2013 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davintosh (Post 955471)
Awesome! That settles it; I'll have this done on mine by the end of this week. :thumbup:


Let us know how you like it Dave :)

A great popular mod has suddenly become a great FREE mod (and that's always a good thing!)

JCL 09-10-2013 04:16 PM

The machined out CDV was designed for owners with new X5s who didn't want to alert BMW to a modification that could theoretically impact driveline wear. It was never necessary, it was just cleaner to use the dummy CDV. All that has fallen by the wayside now that these vehicles are 10+ years old and the BMW warranty is ancient history.

Green Dragon 09-10-2013 05:27 PM

Here's Bayrieche's X5 on Auto Trader. For any that are intrested. Funny how much this gem of an X5 has changed hands....

Cars for Sale: 2005 BMW X5 3.0i in ADDISON, IL 60101: Sport Utility Details - 354012714 - AutoTrader.com

Ricky Bobby 09-10-2013 10:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby (Post 954682)
Good to hear you almost have the 05 GD!

Looking forward to seeing those sexy Truffle sport seats!


Here is another Alpine White 6-speed, its a 2005, looks to be lower optioned model as I don't see heated seat buttons, but mileage is very low at 69k, and besides some wear to the drivers bolster (normal), looks good! Already has black kidney grills and a black roof as well (don't know if its painted or wrapped)

BMW : X5 3.0i in BMW | eBay Motors



Its funny you should post Bayerische's E53 Dragon, I posted it last week!

LMAO! It is clean as hell but 16k! He traded to carmax for 10!

latenightflyby 10-23-2013 12:16 PM

Seems this is the place to post that I added a sport package three pedal x5 to my collection last week. I got a great deal since the battery had a short and nothing worked. So far I've replaced the battery and alternator. Along with the belts and throttle body elbow which was half missing. The condition of it is very good by used car standards but with wotk should equall the condition of my 540i.

davintosh 10-23-2013 12:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by latenightflyby (Post 960697)
Seems this is the place to post that I added a sport package three pedal x5 to my collection last week. I got a great deal since the battery had a short and nothing worked. So far I've replaced the battery and alternator. Along with the belts and throttle body elbow which was half missing. The condition of it is very good by used car standards but with wotk should equall the condition of my 540i.

Well done! Got any pics? What part of Iowa do you call home?

latenightflyby 10-23-2013 12:53 PM

Don't have any pictures yet. I live in tye country near amana and work in cedar rapids. Today I plan to change the oil and install the magnetic drain plug as well as attempt to fix abs sensors. Only the front drivers is sending a signal. Also have to look at my brake switch on the pedal since the brake light don't shut off. Lucky for me I have a snap on verdict to use

Riggodeaux 10-24-2013 09:04 AM

Add me to the registry ...
 
1 Attachment(s)
2006 X5 3.0L 6 speed, Black sapphire metallic mit trueffelbroun sportsitzen, sports and premium packages, no nav [thank goodness!] Build sheet attached. Purchased as soon as it appeared on the market from a fine BMW performance shop, Enthusiast Auto, outside Cincinnati. Paid more than I would like, but close to blue book in excellent condition with $4k worth of work [brakes, tires, other fixes] done for the sale.

Count me in for the CDV replacement and UUC ssk shift kit once they have it. I'm a clutch and shift guy from way back, had an E36 5-spd until two years ago, and love everything about the E53 w/M54 six, except the goofy 'short' 1st gear and sloppy shifting. I'll reach out to UUC, located about 20 miles from me, and offer mine up for the first install when I have them do the CDV [though I would otherwise do that myself]. Given my experience with Redline products in the E36 and a Ford diesel truck, I'll go to MTL in the gearbox, their ATF in the transfer case, and their gear oil in the diffs when I get to 90k miles .......

Ricky B, can you get the moderators to make this a sticky, and see if you can get a list of serious 'buyers' for the UUC shift kit for my sales pitch to UUC? Great site, I've already learned a lot.

Ricky Bobby 10-24-2013 09:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Riggodeaux (Post 960844)
2006 X5 3.0L 6 speed, Black sapphire metallic mit trueffelbroun sportsitzen, sports and premium packages, no nav [thank goodness!] Build sheet attached. Purchased as soon as it appeared on the market from a fine BMW performance shop, Enthusiast Auto, outside Cincinnati. Paid more than I would like, but close to blue book in excellent condition with $4k worth of work [brakes, tires, other fixes] done for the sale.

Count me in for the CDV replacement and UUC ssk shift kit once they have it. I'm a clutch and shift guy from way back, had an E36 5-spd until two years ago, and love everything about the E53 w/M54 six, except the goofy 'short' 1st gear and sloppy shifting. I'll reach out to UUC, located about 20 miles from me, and offer mine up for the first install when I have them do the CDV [though I would otherwise do that myself]. Given my experience with Redline products in the E36 and a Ford diesel truck, I'll go to MTL in the gearbox, their ATF in the transfer case, and their gear oil in the diffs when I get to 90k miles .......

Ricky B, can you get the moderators to make this a sticky, and see if you can get a list of serious 'buyers' for the UUC shift kit for my sales pitch to UUC? Great site, I've already learned a lot.


CDV delete is free if you want to do it yourself, will definitely fix the sloppy engagement and the truck will be driving much smoother! Appreciate you checking into UUC for us, wonder how different the 5-speed shifter is than the 6-speed? I know Gregory891 from Switzerland has been following up with UUC for over a year now trying to get the shifter made for 5-speed models.

Personally, I wouldn't mind putting in a short shifter as I always enjoyed more solid engagement and such on my VW's, and I'm sure at about 100k all the bushings in the shifter need to be replaced as they are sloppy anyway. I'm not so big of a fan of the $350 price tag of the shifter though, I miss the old days of my Volkswagens where short shifters were 150 at the most, so depending on availability and pricing, I might pass on it, but it would be nice to see it available for purchase!

A late model 6-speed with Sports package and premium package is extremely rare to come by, so glad to hear you picked it up (and truffle brown leather mmmmm)! If tires, brakes and other items were being fixed on it I'd definitely pay a premium, as opposed to an X that needs work.

How many miles on that bad boy? As far as fluids go, I changed my diffs with Redline 75w-90, my pre-facelift transfer case with Redline ATF (you have Xdrive so you must use factory fluid on that, I saw you mentioned Redline ATF but the facelift transfer case does not use it, the factory fill is not cheap but it only takes a liter I believe, you definitely want to change that to fresh fluid when you can), and manual trans with Redline MTL fluid over a year ago, I was clocked at about 63k miles then. My intervals for driveline fluids have always been around 50k, its cheap insurance in my opinion, so I'd recommend if you are above 50k to just switch them out.

Honestly I don't know another vehicle I would give up an X5 manual for, this vehicle with a proper transmission drives better than any car I've had, and can literally do anything and go anywhere I would need it to, love my manual X.



I'll reach out to one of the mods as far as making it a sticky goes, you're right it would be helpful to the community if you register and see this at the top of the forum, good idea!


Pics when you get a chance (and latenightflyby, you too!)

Riggodeaux 10-24-2013 09:52 AM

Trueffelbroun Sportsitze
 
4 Attachment(s)
Ok, if you guys lust after truffle brown sportsitzen, I'll post a couple of pix, provided by the seller.

I understand I can just remove the CDV, but will pay the UUC guys to install their replacement if it helps motivate them to machine a ssk to fit this six speed. RB, I'm with you on the old VW gearboxes; my first car was a yellow 1970 Karmann Ghia convertible with four on the floor .... my only fame on sorority row in college was being known as "that guy with the cute car" ;)

Please do make the registry a sticky and lets' get together 'prospect lists' for 5 and 6 speed UUC shift kits and make it worth UUC's while ...

Ricky Bobby 10-24-2013 10:01 AM

wow man, she looks gorgeous! the only thing missing on it (for me) is the cold weather package, the Jersey winters I need my heated seats! But to be honest since it is late model and sport equipped 6-speed, I probably wouldn't miss those at all! You don't need them in Georgia anyway lol.

Looks clean as hell man, I'm jealous! How many miles on her again?

And I see what you're doing with the UUC thing, you'll pay them for service (scratch their back) a little, hopefully they can do us a solid and make shifters? Nice!


PM Gregory891 if you'd like, he has had UUC's ear about making the 5-speed shifter for a while now, maybe you two could coordinate a plan of attack for getting these in production. Any plans for any sort of mods on the X!


Karmann Ghia, wow man, talk about old school! That's solid though, a classic for sure!

Riggodeaux 10-24-2013 10:27 AM

81k and change mileage at purchase; good tip on the transfer case fluid. I'll try and visit UUC over the next week or so when up that way to make the pitch. My seller is an "M" speciality operation, got my non-M X5 in as a trade. I would recommend them for anyone interested in buying an M or other bimmer passing through their very professional operation.

Riggodeaux 10-28-2013 06:19 PM

UUC Shift Kit update
 
Had a nice visit this afternoon with Rob at UUC. They have a couple of 'test' X5 installs out and about and he's heard nothing back from the owners: a good sign. He'll reach out to them to confirm no issues and get back to me; they are understandably reluctant to put kits out on the market without feedback from their 'beta' testers. Apparently, the Double Shear Selector Rod [DSSR] they sell is a no-go in our application; he suggests minor OEM wear part replacements rather than a DSSR coincident to the shift kit install.

If the reports are good, I'll take the new ride up to UUC in the next couple of weeks for their install of the SSK and their clutch delay valve [CDV] replacement, and change the tranny fluid to Redline MTL and do the diff fluids and transaxle, too. With these, I might have an SUV that does justice to my driving experience with E28 and E36 bimmers .....

If this works out, it looks like quality shift kits will soon be available for all of us 'gearjammers,' at least in the USofA. The Euro regulatory state might be an obstacle for exports, but who knows?



Happy 10-29-2013 04:13 AM

That 1st gear ain't so goofy when you're blown! LoL..

Ricky Bobby 10-29-2013 09:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Riggodeaux (Post 961446)
Had a nice visit this afternoon with Rob at UUC. They have a couple of 'test' X5 installs out and about and he's heard nothing back from the owners: a good sign. He'll reach out to them to confirm no issues and get back to me; they are understandably reluctant to put kits out on the market without feedback from their 'beta' testers. Apparently, the Double Shear Selector Rod [DSSR] they sell is a no-go in our application; he suggests minor OEM wear part replacements rather than a DSSR coincident to the shift kit install.

If the reports are good, I'll take the new ride up to UUC in the next couple of weeks for their install of the SSK and their clutch delay valve [CDV] replacement, and change the tranny fluid to Redline MTL and do the diff fluids and transaxle, too. With these, I might have an SUV that does justice to my driving experience with E28 and E36 bimmers .....

If this works out, it looks like quality shift kits will soon be available for all of us 'gearjammers,' at least in the USofA. The Euro regulatory state might be an obstacle for exports, but who knows?



Awesome to hear Riggo and thanks for visiting Rob at UUC! Would be interested to know which shift parts he recommended replacement on in lieu of the DSSR not being included in their SSK kit, most likely just a few bucks worth of bushings.

Pricing still set around 350 or so correct? Looking forward to your updates!

Riggodeaux 10-29-2013 09:47 AM

We didn't talk price, I assume same as they charge for their other SSKs [$350]. I don't recall the details of the stock parts replacement alternative to a DSSR, but will likely know soon. He did say the costs were nominal, $30-50, so I'm assuming its bushings, or something similar.

davintosh 10-29-2013 01:18 PM

Spammer alert. ^^^^ DO NOT click qiajuytera0009's links!

While I applaud UUC's efforts to put together a good shorter alternative shifter for the e53, I don't see how this would be any more complicated than it is for other cars. I still think that off-the-shelf parts from other BMWs could be used to successfully get a short shifter on the X5 without going to a third-party. It's been done for a long time with other cars (info on this business for the e28 is here, and the e39 here) And if you check the application cross reference of the parts that mate the shift lever (#5) with the shifting arm (#1) and selector rod (#9), they look to be off-the-shelf items, used on many other cars (e28 and e39 included.) What you'd want is a lever with a shorter distance between the pivot ball and the knob and a slightly longer distance between the pivot ball and where it connects with the selector rod.

#11, Part #25117571899, is used on many cars, as is #6, Part #25111220600.

http://realoem.com/bmw/diagrams/v/e/92.png

RealOEM.com * BMW E53 X5 3.0i Gear shift parts,manual transm./4-wheel

Quoted below is some of the pertinent info from the e28 Shifter FAQ thread on mye28.com; since part numbers 6 & 11 also fit the e28, I wouldn't be surprised if the levers mentioned here would also work on the e53. Assuming they would interface properly with the bearing cup and the selector rod, the two things that would make it a go/no-go would be the bend in the lever and if the distance between the pivot ball and the selector rod joint were long enough that it would interfere with driveshaft. The bend is less critical than the distance on the lower end of the lever. I think the only way to really tell is to get up in there and take some measurements, and maybe do some fitment trials. I haven't spent enough time underneath mine to know how accessible things are; I know on other cars you can get at the bits with the exhaust and driveshaft in place, but it's a lot easier with them out of the way. Next spring I'll likely be tackling the job of pulling the transmission out to replace the shift detent pins, and will take copious notes along the way.

Quote:

As we know most BMW shift levers will work in an e28, some better than others. Below is the diagram that has been posted all over the internet showing the difference in critical dimensions of some of the popular options.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...0-shifters.jpg

I also thought that Ron Stygar's site would be worth linking to.
Unofficial BMW Shift Lever Info Page

The following images were used from Ron's site.
http://www.unofficialbmw.com/images/ratio.jpghttp://www.unofficialbmw.com/images/shiftkd.jpg

http://www.unofficialbmw.com/images/shiftg3.jpg http://www.unofficialbmw.com/images/shiftg4.jpg
http://www.unofficialbmw.com/images/shiftg1.jpg http://www.unofficialbmw.com/images/shiftg.jpg
http://www.unofficialbmw.com/images/selrod1.jpg

Ricky Bobby 10-29-2013 01:45 PM

Dave I'm totally with you man, I remember in my VW days it was a 50 dollar mod with a shifter and 2 bushings to upgrade your MKIV GTI shifter to the "Audi TT shifter" which was about 25% shorter, and more solid gear changes.

If we are talking about just replacing the selector rod itself (and a few circlips and bushings), I would be hopeful that some BMW part would fit (a manual transmission X3 part comes to mind = FALSE I just checked RealOEM) in place, but not sure. Gregory891 in Switzerland did send a stock shifter piece to UUC for testing, maybe he took some pics of the stock piece and took some measurements?

Here is a pic of the E53 shifter, I cross checked to be sure and 5 and 6 speed are same part, so if we either find a solution or if UUC comes out with theirs it will be beneficial to owners of both manuals:

http://c1552172.r72.cf0.rackcdn.com/250102_x600.jpg

http://c1552172.r72.cf0.rackcdn.com/250104_x800.jpg

Looks to be one hell of a wicked bend if you ask me, not to mention the length between the bottom of the "rod" and the distance to the pivot ball on the bend is extremely long compared to other models. Just going over E39 dimensions, E46, and E83 dimensions, it's unlikely that another shifter will fit.

Riggodeaux 11-05-2013 04:32 PM

Quick update: I haven't heard back yet from Rob at UUC, I'll give him a call this week. I'm generally familiar with Stygar from my E36 days. I, too, would like a less expensive way to improve the shift linkage and pattern, but if UUC can provide a long-lived, effective solution, I'm prepared to spend a couple extra benjamins for the pleasure.

epdarks 11-06-2013 12:26 PM

Hey guys. Remember me?

Just curious... what are the going rates on E53 X5 3.0s with 5 or 6 speeds?

Found a 6 speed locally for $10k, 120k miles.

Ricky Bobby 11-06-2013 12:44 PM

Miss you Dan :wavey:


6-speed is nice, 10k sounds pretty good too, miles are a bit high but if its been maintained well, and is nicely equipped, I'd say its a good starting point for negotiation.

Let us know color combo, options, mods and maintenance history. 1 owner maintained well is definitely a plus as well!

Would love to see you back on here :)

Riggodeaux 11-06-2013 01:02 PM

All prices are condition/mileage related, but a primo 2006 six speed, w/the bells & whistles, puts the top end around $18k [both blue book and reality of the marketplace .....]. I saw 04-06s, mileage well under 100k, on the market for $13-16k. One I considered in Colorado [06, 70k miles, but needed some TLC] is asking $15.9k.

davintosh 11-06-2013 01:53 PM

What Riggodeaux said ^^^. Prices are all over the place, but $10k could buy a decent vehicle. Shop carefully though.

Here's one that came up semi-local to me (about an hour north) that is on the lower end of the scale: 2001 BMW X5 MANUAL TRANS

2001 BMW X5 6-Cylinder L6, 3.0L 5 SPD MANUAL 149,500 miles
$6,995
605-692-2793 or 605-
420 Main Ave S.
Brookings, SD 57006

2001 BMW X5 3.0i Silver
K & R Auto Sales
2001 Bmw X5 3.0i For Sale In Brookings SD - K & R Auto Sales

I'd be a little leery of it though; small town used car dealer with a car like that, who knows where it came from. Probably very little if any maintenance history, but if it's clean and runs, a little sweat equity could make it a nice driver.

epdarks 11-06-2013 04:41 PM

This is the truck: 04 BMW X5 (AWD/6 SPD)

Thanks for the input, guys.

mcurcio1989 11-11-2013 09:45 AM

Go ahead and add me to the list. I did 24 hours worth of driving over the weekend to grab a loaded 2004 6spd manual x5 with 77k on the odo. Grabbed it for 11k. I'm in northwest ohio - I grabbed the vehicle from vermont.

It is the highland green metallic color and has sport package, premium package, tow package, winter package, navigation, panoramic sunroof, xeonon's, dakota leather, 6 disc cd changer, and somewhere along the line someone added dvd players in the headrests, and probably forgetting some other things. Overall the exterior is very clean. The interior needs a good vacuuming (thanks to the po's dogs) but its pretty clean as well. There are a couple little things that need to be taken car of but no rips stains or anything major.

Currently the Panoramic sunroof has been disabled as it had the "no close" issue and their is an issue with the motors that fold the mirrors in. The mirrors will close but don't stay and the PO claimed they were actually draining the battery so he has been pulling the fuse on them overnight. He was a dealer service only kind of guy so I'm gonna take a couple diy swings at the pano. I have no idea about the mirrors. I do know that the actual adjustment works fine other than that when I go in reverse instead of just going down the passenger side acts like a drunk bobblehead doll.

As with any new car, especially bimmers, I have loads of questions and i'm trying to find all of the little easter eggs bmw threw in. Couple quick things - under the settings section in the nav their is one called memo with an on off selection. What the heck is that?? The manual on this is so generic I am finding certain things are hard to get explanations on. Also the owners manual contains an extra paper with information on bluetooth. I have tried putting my phone into discover mode but it finds nothing? where would that module be located and how can I determine if I have it or not? Since my phone finds nothing I would guess It isn't their but that extra sheet in the owners documentation makes me think otherwise.

mcurcio1989 11-11-2013 09:45 AM

Go ahead and add me to the list. I did 24 hours worth of driving over the weekend to grab a loaded 2004 6spd manual x5 with 77k on the odo. Grabbed it for 11k. I'm in northwest ohio - I grabbed the vehicle from vermont.

It is the highland green metallic color and has sport package, premium package, tow package, winter package, navigation, panoramic sunroof, xeonon's, dakota leather, 6 disc cd changer, and somewhere along the line someone added dvd players in the headrests, and probably forgetting some other things. Overall the exterior is very clean. The interior needs a good vacuuming (thanks to the po's dogs) but its pretty clean as well. There are a couple little things that need to be taken car of but no rips stains or anything major.

Currently the Panoramic sunroof has been disabled as it had the "no close" issue and their is an issue with the motors that fold the mirrors in. The mirrors will close but don't stay and the PO claimed they were actually draining the battery so he has been pulling the fuse on them overnight. He was a dealer service only kind of guy so I'm gonna take a couple diy swings at the pano. I have no idea about the mirrors. I do know that the actual adjustment works fine other than that when I go in reverse instead of just going down the passenger side acts like a drunk bobblehead doll.

As with any new car, especially bimmers, I have loads of questions and i'm trying to find all of the little easter eggs bmw threw in. Couple quick things - under the settings section in the nav their is one called memo with an on off selection. What the heck is that?? The manual on this is so generic I am finding certain things are hard to get explanations on.

Ricky Bobby 11-11-2013 10:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by epdarks (Post 962632)
This is the truck: 04 BMW X5 (AWD/6 SPD)

Thanks for the input, guys.

Dan, looks like a fairly clean Toledo Blue/Beige (is that beige gloss interior trim too?) without many options, not sure if premium package as he doesn't disclose Xenon lights in the description, no sport package either. But it looks fairly clean, has average mileage at 132k, etc.

If you're not too hot on this one, I can extend my searches to look for one for you if you give me a budget and some of your desired options, just shoot me a PM!

rubber duckie 11-16-2013 04:07 AM

i found this
asking 9500 with 129k miles, if anyone is interested please pm me and ill pass on the info.

Colour TOLEDOBLAU METALLIC (482)
Upholstery LEDER DAKOTA / TRUEFFELBRAUN (LCTE)
Prod.date 2006-02-23
Close Options
Code
Description (interface)
Description (EPC)
S1CAA SELEKTION COP RELEVANTER FAHRZEUGE Selection of COP-relevant vehicles
S226A SPORTLICHE FAHRWERKSABSTIMMUNG Sports suspension settings
S248A LENKRADHEIZUNG Steering wheel heater
S255A SPORT-LEDERLENKRAD Sports leather steering wheel
S2LBA LM RAEDER Y-SPEICHE 131 BMW LA wheel Y-spoke 131
S321A EXTERIEURUMFAENGE IN WAGENFARBE Exterior parts in vehicle colour
P330A SPORTPAKET Sports package
S386A DACHRELING Roof railing
S402A PANORAMA GLASDACH Panorama glass roof
S417A SONNENSCHUTZROLLO HINTERE TUERSCH. Roller sun visor, rear door
S438A EDELHOLZAUSFUEHRUNG Fine wood trim
S441A RAUCHERPAKET Smoker package
S442A GETRAENKEHALTER Drink holder
S459A SITZVERSTELLUNG, ELEKTR.MIT MEMORY Seat adjustment, electric, with memory
S461A SITZLEHNENVERSTELLUNG IM FOND, ELEK. Electric seat backrest adjustment, rear
Code
Description (interface)
Description (EPC)
S464A SKISACK Ski bag
S481A SPORTSITZE FUER FAHRER / BEIFAHRER Sports seat
S488A LORDOSENSTUETZE FAHRER / BEIFAHRER Lumbar support, driver and passenger
S494A SITZHEIZUNG FUER FAHRER / BEIFAHRER Seat heating driver / passenger
S502A SCHEINWERFER-WASCHANLAGE Headlight cleaning system
S521A REGENSENSOR Rain sensor
S522A XENON-LICHT Xenon Light
S524A ADAPTIVES KURVENLICHT Adaptive Headlights
S533A FOND-KLIMATISIERUNG Air conditioning, rear
S534A KLIMAAUTOMATIK Automatic air conditioning
S609A NAVIGATIONSSYSTEM PROFESSIONAL Navigation system Professional
S639A KOMPLETTVORB. HANDY USA / CDN Preparation f mobile phone cpl. USA / CDN
S676A HIFI LAUTSPRECHERSYSTEM HiFi speaker system
S761A INDIVIDUAL SONNENSCHUTZVERGLASUNG Individual sunshade glazing
S775A INDIVIDUAL DACHHIMMEL ANTHRAZIT Headlining anthracite
Code
Description (interface)
Description (EPC)
S8SPA COP STEUERUNG Control unit COP
S926A ERSATZRAD Spare wheel
S945A BERUECKSICHTIGUNG PREISABHAENGK. Dummy-SALAPA
Close Standard equipment
Code
Description (interface)
Description (EPC)
S249A MULTIFUNKTION FUER LENKRAD Multifunction f steering wheel
S302A ALARMANLAGE Alarm system
S354A GRUENKEIL-FRONTSCHEIBE Windscreen, green-tinted upper strip
S645A RADIO-STEUERUNG US BMW US Radio
S692A CD WECHSLER I-BUS VORBEREITUNG Preparation, BMW 6-CD changer I-bus
S785A WEISSE BLINKLEUCHTEN White direction indicator lights
S845A AKUSTISCHE GURTWARNUNG Acoustic fasten seat belt reminder
S853A SPRACHVERSION ENGLISCH Language version, English
S876A FUNKFREQUENZ 315 MHZ Radio frequency 315 MHz
S992A STEUERUNG KENNZEICHENBEFESTIGUNG Control of number-plate attachment

Ricky Bobby 11-16-2013 08:15 PM

Nicely equipped and a late model for the price wow! Navigation, sports package and a rarer color (Toledo blue)

Hope someone on the boards scoops this up!

rubber duckie 11-16-2013 08:26 PM

I hope so. We reallly do not need another suv, already have a mdx, and I really want another m car ever since I sold my e60 m5.

sarends 11-17-2013 10:35 PM

I am in Fort Collins, CO and am looking for an E53 manual. Would like one with lower miles and in the best condition possible - don't mind paying more for low miles and great condition.

Ricky Bobby 11-18-2013 10:40 AM

I see you saw RamVA's car in the classifieds already? Basically any manuals you find you most likely will need to travel some ways for, unless you get lucky.

sarends 11-18-2013 11:06 AM

No problem for me to have a little road trip for the right car!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby (Post 964481)
I see you saw RamVA's car in the classifieds already? Basically any manuals you find you most likely will need to travel some ways for, unless you get lucky.


sarends 11-18-2013 12:41 PM

I am a little new to the E53. I am a Bimmer fan from way back. We currently have an 11 Xdrive 5.0 M Sport Adaptive Drive and a 97 M3 Sedan.

I am looking for the E53 manual for my daughter. She really really wants a manual, and I am good with this idea. I like the idea of the E53 because it is a decent size and she is outdoors oriented (wants to haul bicycle, skibike, Kayak, tents, etc). She is also a BMW fan - the M3 is her older sister's car. Plus, I have always liked the E53. I am hoping to find one that has been well cared for.

Riggodeaux 11-18-2013 05:31 PM

There is/was an 06 X5 stick in Grand Junction at a Subaru? dealer. I had it inspected before I bought mine in Ohio last month. If its still available, it should kick up on Cars.com. It needed some TLC, from the inspection, but might be worth a look since its [generally] in your neighborhood. Good luck with your search!

Riggodeaux 11-18-2013 05:31 PM

There is/was an 06 X5 stick in Grand Junction at a Subaru? dealer. I had it inspected before I bought mine in Ohio last month. If its still available, it should kick up on Cars.com. It needed some TLC, from the inspection, but might be worth a look since its [generally] in your neighborhood. Good luck with your search!

Mpughjr 11-25-2013 06:15 PM

1 Attachment(s)
Add another one to the list I just picked up this pretty clean 2001 5 speed with 125000 for only 6500$. It literally fell into my lap after a deal fell thru on an auto one with more miles but fully loaded. I am totally happier with this purchase and love the stick shift. My other cars are an 2003 gti vr6 6 speed and a 1997 f150 the x fits right in as the new daily driver. This is actually my first post on here too so cheers fellas. I've been looking over sites like this for years biding my time to pick up my x I've been hooked ever since riding in a friends back in college. Looking forward to learning from you all, I've already learned soo much. Not sure if I. Have the hang of posting pictures so hopefully this works!

95M3Gretchen_&_06X5Rolf 11-29-2013 12:12 PM

Rolf made 2 long roadtrips this past year
 
Hi all - just checking in to give you a fun update on Rolf.

Rolf (2006 manual E53, 28K miles, like new, found him in Minnesota) made our two long road trips this year an absolute pleasure - Maryland to Florida (12 hrs) and Maryland to Toronto (9 hrs) - 2 adults, 2 kids, a golden retriever and luggage - and it felt like first class all the way. We overloaded the cigarette plugs with 5 or six things plugged in at once, so I'd bet a blew the fuse - otherwise the trips were uneventful. I average 80mph on trips like those and saw about 21-22mpg as the average.

Rolf has 42K miles on him now, I've only added an aux. audio input and a rear bumper protector (both BMW OEM) but I'm watching eBay for the rear entertainment package (DVD and headrest screens) - I'd add that for the kids if the OEM one popped up for the right price...in case anyone sees a good buy.

I'm thinking of putting snow tires on the stock 17" wheels the car came with and then getting 18-19" type63s or Type177s for performance all season tires - in case anyone has some they'd like to get rid of!

pbe gummi bear 11-30-2013 03:57 AM

My car's identical twin is on ebay. BMW x5 3 0i RARE 5sp Shade PWR Leather Heated Seats | eBay $12k BIN, 79k mi, Sienna Red Metallic 03 5spd premium.

Riggodeaux 12-03-2013 06:44 PM

Congrats, MPughJr on your silver 5 speed. You'll need to pick up the 3m headlight restoration kit [the one you use with a drill, and the only 'consumer' one that works] to fix those faded headlights. The replacement units cost a fortune ....

95M3Gretchen_&_06X5Rolf 12-04-2013 11:34 AM

For those fogged headlights, you don't need one of the kits - all you need is a tube of P21S and a half decent buffer (or the drill attachment buffer ball). P21S is magic - and is also perfect for bird-gunk/tar removal on paint, smears on glass, stubborn stuff on exterior plastics, etc.

P21S® Multi-Surface Finish Restorer- This extraordinary German car polish from P21S will bring back luster and reflective brilliance.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Riggodeaux (Post 967601)
Congrats, MPughJr on your silver 5 speed. You'll need to pick up the 3m headlight restoration kit [the one you use with a drill, and the only 'consumer' one that works] to fix those faded headlights. The replacement units cost a fortune ....


mcurcio1989 12-09-2013 10:02 AM

Is anyone here aware of any issues with our oil pumps nuts?? I know that specifically on the e46 with 3.0 m54 's and manual transmissions there has been an ongoing issue of the oil pump nut backing off and causing the engine to rapidly lose oil pressure (in some cases this causes catastrophic bearing / cam wear). From what I understand this is due to a harmonic that the engine develops at or above 6k. It is not super common and I realize that probably most of us here rairly get above 6k. I am just kind of curious as to what the concensus is on this as we share a very similar powertrain.


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