New user, "new" E34! And some problems :/

[dabigboy]

Hi all, I'm new. I was on here a couple weeks ago asking about a '95 325i I was thinking about buying. Well yesterday marked my first BMW purchase. I ended up with a '94 530i, black exterior, tan interior, 143k miles, auto (would prefer a manual, but can't find any). So far I love the car! Very good looking car, nicely built, good interior and features, nice ride. But it's got a lot of little issues, and a couple of big ones I wasn't quite prepared for. I probably should have looked at the car a second time and done more detailed checking on it (was at night when I looked at it, as that's about the only time I'm free to go car-shopping anymore). I did get a pretty good price on it, so I guess I can't complain. Anyways, I've been soaking up info from the boards here, got some ideas on things to try.

My main concern right now is that the car is burning coolant. The weather was quite cold when I looked at the car, so I assumed the white smoke was just, in fact, steam. But the weather is warmer now, and it still smokes. Also I can smell burnt coolant faintly (which I did not smell the night I looked at it). I'm afraid it's a head gasket, or even (I hope not!) a warped head. It also seems to burn a little oil on startup, but only if I rev the engine before it's really warm. Once it gets going, I don't see any blue smoke or smell oil. What's odd about the coolant problem, is that it comes and goes. When the car is first started and left to idle, there is no white smoke at all (or very little). Once it's warm, it smokes somewhat consistently, and more when under acceleration, but occasionally the smoke will almost go away entirely (usually while idling, so far). The car runs and drives great, and pulls good, but I will be doing a compression check this week. Also going to change the oil and coolant this week as well and keep an eye on the quality and quantity of both. It just seems weird that the smoke goes away sometimes.

Aside from that, I need to get it aligned, replace one tire, diagnose/clear up some engine error codes, and fix the driver's power seat so I can move it back and fit in the car! But I don't mind those things so much, I generally do all my own work and quite enjoy it. Anyways, I'll throw some pics on here in the next couple of days. Lovely little car, I think it will make a nice stable mate for my Alfa Romeo. :)

Matt

[wgait]

Congrats on the purchase. The E34 is known for its eventual cooling problems. My '95 only has 67K original miles on it but in the last year I overhauled the entire cooling system but still kept the original radiator. I see a lot of radiator replacements in the forums - not sure what history you know on the car but it's reasonable to think yours has been replaced at least once. If not, it probably needs it...

I think the biggest issue with your car is the possibility of the Nikasil lining issue. Did you read up on that before purchasing the car?

Check the front end before just getting it aligned. Another notable on the E34s is worn bushings etc. I had my front end redone at 49K because of wear - and I truly take care when driving my cars - so it was a surprise to me when I had to have it done. There was noise coming from the end and sure enough the busing on the passenger front was completely shot.

See you have a 280 ZX - loved those cars and first one I drove was an 81 Turbo. That car was a blast! I owned two 300s (85 and 86). It was a blast to drive. Good luck -

[whitey21]

If it is a cracked head or head gasket you can buy a copper sealant to fix it, you flush your radiator and refill with just water and add the sealant and drive how ever far it says to although longer is better.

I have had to use it a few times and has worked great it will also fix cracked radiators and you should be able to pick it up at your local car shop its rather inexpensive to.

[nirvana19]

Fairly thick white smoke is normal for all E34 models...a lot of moisture can get into those exhausts and you can get a pretty thick white cloud on days with even mild weather. Today has been cold AND rainy so every time I go out and drive I'm nearly completely surrounded in a white cloud and can't even see out the rear window. Is the coolant smell inside or outside the car? Most of the heater cores are seeping (failing o-rings) as this age so a slightly coolant smell in the cabin is far from unusual. I'm not sure about the oil burning, could be a Nikasil issue but those aren't too common anymore as most of the affected engines are long dead and the poor quality fuel that caused the breakdown hasn't been in the US for nearly 10 years. Here's some information about that http://www.usautoparts.net/bmw/engines/nikasil.htm

[zubbie]

Are you sure it is burning coolant? Is your rad level dropping? As stated before the exhaust system on an E34 has more metal in it than an entire corolla so it takes a long time to get warm enough to not condense the exhaust into vapour. Take the car for a good long drive (30 minutes or more) and then reassess the issue.

Sometimes the cats lighting off can emit a smell similar to burning coolant before the whole exhaust system is warm.

[dabigboy]

Wow thanks for the replies, I didn't realize my profile wasn't subscribing to threads by default! Just now checked it after realizing this. Anyways, I wasn't aware of the lining issue, thanks for the link. I'll check my engine info tomorrow, but it sounds like this may not be my problem ayway (whew). In fact, between what I've observed over the past few days, and from the comments above, I am GREATLY relieved. Here's what happened, basically: my girlfriend drove the car home, about a 20 minute drive, and I saw white smoke the whole time. After getting home, while the car was still running, I got out and there was quite a bit of smoke, and I could definitely detect a coolant'ish smell, outside the car (never inside). But, since then, it's gotten better. Sometimes it does it after I rev the engine in the morning after a couple minutes of running. But I have not detected the coolant smell much (just very slightly sometimes) since gettng her home. It does seem to be worse on the more cool, humid mornings we've had lately. Now tonight, after having it parked for a few hours, I stopped after about 10 minutes of driving and there was definite smoke, not much smell. But after filling up with gas and coming home (another 10 minutes or so), I revved the engine pretty hard and got no smoke whatsoever!

Also, I changed the oil tonight, and also checked coolant level. I was pleasntly surprised to see that the old coolant was at a normal level, and didn't look suspicious, just a little brownish (judging from the chronic neglect the car has obviously suffered, the coolant has probably been in there since the Clinton administration...). The old oil was very very dark, but didn't smell at all like coolant. There were some bubbles on the surface of the old oil after draining, but maybe it was just from the oil dribbling in (it was getting splashed around by wind). I'll be keeping an eye on oil and coolant in the next few days. But I'm now pretty sure the engine is OK. I'm slowly feeling a HUGE relief!!!!! She has other problems for sure, but I'm ok with those.

wgait, I do have some front end issues. It needs an alignment badly, and there's a pretty severe vibration right around 60-63mph, not sure if the alignment will fix it or not. I do know the right front tire needs replacing, and was left flat (and drove around in the dealer's parking lot) for a while, so I'm sure it's got some odd shape to it. The only thing I'm not sure about at all is that after backing up and then making an immediate left turn, there's a loud pop from the front passenger side of the car. Bad bushing somewhere? I'll have the shop check it out when I take it in for the alignment.

Fun side note: tonight I played with the car a little with ASC off, it's surprisingly nice for having stock suspension. :)

Thanks so much for the replies. I'm really enjoying this car! I knew BMW's were nice but this car surpasses my expectations in all points so far.

[5senses]

For that 60-63mph shimmy its your thrust arms/control arms...buy the 750 bushings and have the shop press them in... hold up.. check the arms and make sure the boots are good if not you'll have to buy a new arm

[whitey21]

Fun side note: tonight I played with the car a little with ASC off, it's surprisingly nice for having stock suspension. :)



hhmmmm my car wont even spin :( its doesnt have asc tho and shocks are gone:(

[dabigboy]

Really? What car do you have? I see it's an E34, is it a 3 series or 5 series? My 530 gets a fair amount of wheelspin on hard acceleration. I've also discovered it sweeps through turns nicely......more even and forgiving than my Datsun Z cars. They are tighter and quicker, the BMW is more easy and forgiving, and very smooth through the turns. I suspect the E34 would make a nice "drifter", if someone is into that sort of thing.

Ahhh so I discovered what's up with my front end. 5senses was right on. While having the tires replaced a while back, the mechanic grabbed my front wheels and showed me how much play they have. Crazy! Turns out the bushings are shot, and the left tie rod is bent a little (???) in addition to needing new thrust arms etc. I found a front end kit on ebay for $230 which I will probably buy after I get some other commitments out of the way (honestly, on the ABYSMAL Oklahoma roads, I'm hesitant to put much into the suspension of a daily driver). I also discovered the right front wheel is pushed in a tiny bit, presumably from hitting a curb or something in the past. So, I have a little laundry list of things to do on the car, but that's fine.

So far I'm still loving the car, and it continues to be a solid, reliable, enjoyable driver.

Matt

[attack eagle]

DO NOT BUY CRAP ON EBAY. ESPECIALLY NOT THE FCP GROTON 'suspension rebuild' kits.

ONLY BUY LEMFORDER ARMS OR YOU WILL BE DOING IT AGAIN IN 3-6 MONTHS.

[whitey21]

my car spins half assed but i have to get the brake just right for a stand still and thats the only time i can get it to spin. Its a 530i with a m60b30 v8

[znmiller]

(honestly, on the ABYSMAL Oklahoma roads, I'm hesitant to put much into the suspension of a daily driver)

+1

Good to see another E34 nearby.

[AlmostStock]

znmiller that valve cover is pretty, how much/where to get my m30 cover done like that?