BlueInGreen44 wrote:buzzboy wrote:Oh, duh. For some reason I was looking for a trim piece that was separate from the cowl cover.BlueInGreen44 wrote:Looks like Bavauto has them for 20 per side. Sounds worth it to me.buzzboy wrote: Where did you get the window trim piece? I need one pretty badlyI haven't fixed that yet. I too am not sure where to look.
Iirc the to piece might be different/unique. If not a compact part, at least sedan part not coupe
From what I've read an e36/5 is identical to the e36/4 from the A pillar forward. I'd imagine that means the cowl as well but I'll look into it.
So, I've come across a 1995 318ti with 92k miles.all black exterior, grey cloth interior. It looks surprisingly clean with a clear title. Has a automatic trans that won't shift past second. Owner wants $750 for it. Appears to be base model.... steel wheels, no fog lights probably no LSD.
I would be buying it only for a hoon mobile, track toy. If it's clean, is it worth the effort to trans swap to a manual? Are these things fun enough to justify a resurrection... At least to track slut status? Is there a way to identify a LSD equipped car?
In reply to TGMF:
The only way a base model has a limited slip is if someone swapped one in, which is probably unlikely with an automatic transmission car.
I think it's a fun car as a daily driver but the 4 cylinder can be underwhelming. I imagine it would be more so on the track. So if you'd be swapping in a 5 speed why not just find a 325/8i donor and drop in the 6 cylinder too while you're at it 
I was hoping to replace the front wheel bearings last night but I didn't plan ahead and the local parts stores don't carry a 46mm socket, needed for the front axle nuts.
So I did some other stuff.
Old and cracked:
New and not broken:
I got some not-faded emblems. Looking sharp, now I know what kind of car I have.
And finally I modified the airbox to get some extra hp. Sticker power is totally legit.
These are the things that happen when I get bored 
1-13/16" will work for the axle nuts- Tractor Supply carries a socket that size, it's what I used on ours.
In reply to ¯_(ツ)_/¯:
That's good to know. I can order a "Front Wheel Bearing Retaining Nut Socket for BMW - 46mm" and have it by Saturday with Amazon Prime but a 1-13/16" socket from TSC would probably be less expensive.
In reply to BlueInGreen44:
Mine is 3/4" drive- I would price it out if you're worried, since you'll have to buy an adapter if you don't have a 3/4" drive breaker/impact.
Keep an eye on craigslist and you can pick up a full 3/4in drive socket set cheap alot of times. Its been pretty much my favorite tool for axle nuts! Thats not much help to you now but it seems to be a toolset that comes up for sale alot.
I should visit the tools search on craigslist more often. Looking for tools that I need is probably more productive than searching for project cars that I don't need
It might need to be ground down to fit into the space. That's what I had to do.
Today was finally front wheel bearing day.
Euro garage 
Got me a big socket and borrowed dad's big impact gun. Made short work of the axle nuts.
Instead of trying to bang the frozen rotors off the old hubs...
...just add hammer, punch, and stir.
The inner race on the driver side came off when I pulled on it with my hand. The passenger side was stuck on pretty good. I didn't have a puller that would fit in there so I loosened up the dust shield and got a screw driver in there to pry it off from behind.
Curious: both Timken brand hub assemblies, both ordered from RockAuto at the same time. One says "Made in Germany" and the other says "Made in Japan."
Both pressed on without too much trouble.
And now the shiny new parts are covered up by old grungy brakes. All done!
The bearings must have been pretty worn. The car goes down the road much more smoothly now.
Hopefully I'll be able to do the rear wheel bearings sometime next week.
Busy weekend. My brother and I were crew for a team at the Chumpcar race at Watkins Glen, which was fun. On the way home, on I-86 near the Allegany River, a deer ran into the car. I saw it and was able to slow from 70 to ~30 before it hit us. It rammed the front fender and then rolled down the side of the car and left a big dent in the door. The hit on the door pushed the door handle into the window track which kept the window from going up or down. Fortunately the power window mechanism wasn't damaged and it worked fine after I was able to bump the dent out a bit. In the end, in terms of a deer hit on the highway, it could have been a lot worse. Now the car is officially not too nice to put on a track
Roadtrip carnage:
Trying to fix the door.
Before:
After:
I tried to be frugal and used an aftermarket brand flex disc when I replaced the drive shaft two months ago. It's already developed cracks in the rubber.
Lesson learned, don't be cheap
I woke up to a dead BMW. It coughed once when I turned the key and now the the starter goes "whir-a-whir-a-whir-a-whir" but nothing else happens.
Edit: not the nasty whirrrrrrr of a bad starter. It was cranking. after ~20 seconds of cranking and then pressing on the throttle it eventually fired up under protest.
And after some coaxing it quickly started idling normally and after warming up and a test drive it runs like it always has.
No CEL throughout this process, which I thought odd. My hypothesis: I hadn't driven it for a few days so it was jealous and had a dramatic meltdown.
I haven't been driving it much lately. Got married a couple weeks ago and now the wife and I carpool now so commuting duty falls to her 2012 Focus. I've been noticing some whine from the rear end when coasting at higher speed so I'm going to change the diff. oil in hopes that quiets it down. There's also a shudder that gets worse under hard acceleration. That, coupled with clunks from the rear end at low speed lead me to suspect a worn diff. mount.
Check lug torque
TGMF wrote: So, I've come across a 1995 318ti with 92k miles.all black exterior, grey cloth interior. It looks surprisingly clean with a clear title. Has a automatic trans that won't shift past second. Owner wants $750 for it. Appears to be base model.... steel wheels, no fog lights probably no LSD. I would be buying it only for a hoon mobile, track toy. If it's clean, is it worth the effort to trans swap to a manual? Are these things fun enough to justify a resurrection... At least to track slut status? Is there a way to identify a LSD equipped car?
sorry this is an old post.. but. The 318ti only came with an LSD if it had the "cold weather package" which also usually includes heated seats. Anything past early 1996 did not get an LSD no matter the package. Only the M cars got them after that.
So... driving through the grocery store parking lot and the gas gauge decides I don't need to know how much gas is in the car It dives to read "empty" At the same time the temp gauge jumps all the way to the red. Then when I brake the temp gauge swings all the way back to the cold side as the car slows down. Accellerate and it swings all the way back the other way. The fuel gauge and temp gauge spent the rest of the drive home alternating between this behavior and their proper positions. Amusing, yet annoying since those are both important pieces of instrumentation.
AngryCorvair wrote: Check lug torque
Gee, how'd you know? I guess I didn't use the torque wrench when I rotated the tires a few weeks ago. Derp.
In reply to BlueInGreen44:
Because the '95 M3 I bought instead of buying your ti had similar symptoms and same solution. Plus I'm just wicked smart!
BlueInGreen44 wrote: So... driving through the grocery store parking lot and the gas gauge decides I don't need to know how much gas is in the car It dives to read "empty" At the same time the temp gauge jumps all the way to the red. Then when I brake the temp gauge swings all the way back to the cold side as the car slows down. Accellerate and it swings all the way back the other way. The fuel gauge and temp gauge spent the rest of the drive home alternating between this behavior and their proper positions. Amusing, yet annoying since those are both important pieces of instrumentation.
Found the culprit.
No extra 15amp fuse so now I don't have a glove box light
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