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Thread: *** E24 Links and Information ***

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    *** E24 Links and Information ***

    Check here before posting questions! Either PM me with information/links you feel should be included, or to let me know about dead links or erroneous information.


    Excellent E24 6-series Overviews:

    Overview of E24 History from Ate Up With Motor
    E24 6-Series Overview from European Car, February 2009
    BMW 6-series buyer's guide from Classic and Sports Car mag (UK)
    The Subtle Sharknose Buyer's Guide from Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car.
    Buying and Maintaining an E24 Six Series from BMW First.com.
    Buyer's Guide: BMW E24 6 Series from European Car Volume 35 No. 1. Must be logged to bigcoupe.com to view.
    E24 6 SERIES BUYER'S GUIDE SUPPLEMENT from European Car, April, 2009
    John G. Burns buying guide


    Technical Library and Articles:

    http://normgrills.net/bcg/
    http://bigcoupe.com/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=11


    FAQs:

    http://normgrills.net/bcg/Fundamentals_FAQ.html


    Factory Manual:

    Full factory manual online:

    http://www.malloc.nl/BMW/635CSi/pages/en/index.html

    There was no E24-specific Bentley manual created. The E24 shared the E28 5-series chassis starting in mid-1982, so the Bentley manual for that car is applicable to most repairs not including the E24-specific body or interior:

    http://www.amazon.com/BMW-5-Series-S...dp/0837603188/

    The E32 and E34 Bentley manuals are helpful when diagnosing problems with the M30B35 engine fitted to the '88-'89 E24s:

    http://www.amazon.com/BMW-E34-Servic...dp/0837603196/

    For Bosch L-Jetronic diagnosis, visit:

    http://www.firstfives.org/


    Electronic Troubleshooting Manual Online:

    http://members.roadfly.com/kcroncarter/etm001.htm


    Paint codes and info:

    http://www.e-24.ru/eng/theory/colors/gallery/


    Nice image gallery:

    http://sharknose.de/damals.htm


    Wheel Information:

    The BMW "wheel bible:"

    http://felgenkatalog.auto-treff.com/

    Quote Originally Posted by CW6er View Post
    The size of the original rims and tires that came from the factory:

    ...................................... Rim Width x Diameter - "ET" or Offset (mm) - Tire Size
    Stock wheels ('76 to '81) ............ 6" or 6.5" x 14" - ET22 with a 195/70 -14" tire that has a diameter of 24.74"
    Stock wheels ('82 on) ................. 6" or 6.5" x 14" - ET22 with a 205/70 -14" tire that has a diameter of 25.30"
    TRX (165mm x 390mm) ............... 6.5" x 15-3/8" - ET22 with a 220/55 -390 tire that has a diameter of 24.88"
    TRX (195mm x 415mm) (M6)....... 7.6" x 16-3/8" - ET19 with a 240/45 -415 tire that has a diameter of 24.84"
    TRX (210mm x 415mm) (M6)†.. 8.26" x 16-3/8" - ET15 with a 240/45 -415 tire that has a diameter of 24.84" (early "///M" rim)

    The typical replacement rim is

    7" or 7.5" x 16" - ET20 or less with a 225/50-16 tire that has a diameter of 24.85"
    7.5" or 8" x 17" - ET20 or less with a 235/45-17 tire that has a diameter of 25.32"
    7.5" or 8" x 18" - ET20 or less with a 235/40-18 tire that has a diameter of 25.4"
    (A front rim of 8.5" will need an ET of 13 or less for 235 or wider tires. An ET of 18 will bolt on but only a 225 or smaller tire will not rub and that may depend on the brand)

    The Tire diameters range from 24.8" to 25.4" .

    The rears have plenty of space and can take an 8", 9" or even a 10" wide rim with the proper offset and tires of 255 or 265 unless you have the SLS accumulators, in which case over 255 and up can hit them in hard cornering. It is the front that is the most critical and an 8" wide rim is generally the largest without a spacer or a smaller ET (IS).

    The larger the rim and tire the more stress that is put on the front suspension and the more likely to inroduce a shimmy into the front unless the front suspension is tight.

    All BMW rims with 5 lug bolts use a 5 x 120mm bolt pattern and are "hub centric", i.e. they are centered by a lip on the hub, not the bolts. They all have the same size hub hole (72.56mm) with the single exception of the larger hole in the e39 which will still fit fine, but they will need hub centering rings (not spacers), $15 from Discount tire. Most after-market rims have hub rings also.

    The 3-series rims generally won't fit because the offset is too high, running around ET40/48 and the 7-series with an ET of 23 will generally need a hub centric spacer of 5-10mm depending on the width of the rim. Sometimes a narrower tire (215/205) can be fitted to the 7-Series rim without a spacer and not rub also (but I think is depends on the rim width).

    †(US M6s and mid to late Euro M635s were fitted with the single piece 195X415mm, ET19 TRX rims with the black strip. Early M635s were fitted with the fatter factory issued 210X415mm, ET15 BBS 3-piece RS 007 rims. Both BMW and BBS letterings were stamped on the these wheels. It maybe intentional or unintentional, but both BMW and BBS have obliterated any info and specs on these original modular RS 007s.
    ____________________________

    Article on rim sizes: http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum....php?t=1826811
    ____________________________

    Here is a good Rim/Wheel Size Calculator:
    http://www.wheelsmaster.com/rt_specs.jsp

    ____________________________
    Quote Originally Posted by AntriebVerliebt View Post
    Spacers: ALWAYS buy hub-centric spacers, regardless of which wheel you are swapping onto which car! Along with most manufacturers, BMW does not intend for the bolts/studs to handle all the force!! This is unsafe, and can result in serious wheel wobble issues (I just dealt with this on my 6, idot before me had e46 3 series wheels and non-hub centric spacers in the front. This caused a truly scary wobble at 40+ - I purchased a set of 16x8 style 5s from an e38 to remedy the issue x) The hub center bore is there for a reason! Using a non-hub-centric spacer can be equivalent to intentionally balancing your wheels improperly. Even if you have access to air tools and an extra set of hands to center the spacer initially, a non-hub-centric spacer will inevitably become lose over time and cause a wobble equivalent to what it feels like when you lose a wheel weight.
    Cliffs: non-hub-centric spacers are meant as a 'one-size-fits-many' solution and they WILL become loose even if you manage to center them initially, which will result in the speed wobble to end all speed wobbles!

    E39 wheels - you may run into a less extreme (but equally as unsafe!) version of the wobbles here if you're not careful with spacers/ring choice. When fitting wheels from a non-m e39 onto any other bmw, you end up with the bolts bearing all the load because there will be a ~2mm gap between the car's 72.56mm hub and the larger diameter 74mm e39 wheel hub center bore. I have no experience with this myself and maybe to some this gap is negligible. Personally, I'd err on the side of caution and order spacers/rings to eliminate that gap and take the load off of the bolts. In this scenario, the inner bore of your spacers would be 72.56mm and the outer protruding ring on the opposideside side would be 74mm.

    Cliffs II: when buying e39 wheels for any other bmw, count on purchasing custom spacers/rings to take the load off of the bolts for safety's sake.

    Cliffs III: style 32s are beautiful wheels, but they come at a price, as unless you're willing to buy 18" wheels, you will need custom spacers, or hub rings if they're from an e39.

    Other Contributions:

    Check for rust in the usual spots; fenders; rocker panels; shock towers. etc.

    engine is pretty bullet proof; as long as the oil has been changed; valves adjusted and the oiler bar "banjo bolts" kept nice and tight - .

    Auto tranny's are the first thing to go - 100K or so - but some folks have gotten 200K+ out of them with regular fluid changes - revving auto in neutral is bad thing to do.

    Mostly - you want records to insure the car has been maintained. buying a fixer upper will cost you as much or more (to restore it to good driving specification) than buying one that's been maintained.
    It's typical for rust to build up inside the trunk: I'd check rear shock towers. Also the rear fenders. I've seen cases of severe rusting on the front shock towers as well. In 1977, the bodies were made by Karmann who had the worst of the rust protection techniques. Their body quality concerns were the reason that BMW started manufacturing the bodies. I'm not an E12-based guru, but I'd definitely check the underside of the car for rust on the floor pans, rocker panels, and frame rails. The reason you'd wanna walk from a rust 6er is that the cost of repair would exceed the value of the car. For some people, that doesn't matter, though, but it is something to be aware of. I believe it's also tough to find replacement body panels, but I honestly have never looked into that sort of thing. E12-based parts are harder to come by as well.
    Last edited by BoldUlysses; 07-05-2013 at 01:17 PM. Reason: full factory manual link added
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