My 2001 740iL Project Car

[dville]

I bought this car to give me something to work on, since I am familiar with what it takes to keep it going.
I had a 1999 740iL that I got rid of in November 2013.





First task, transmission fluid change since it had 161K miles, and the transmission was hunting for top gear.



Took a while to get old gasket off the pan





Old filter



The guts



The magnets



Missing rubber plugs for most of the holes


After pan installed



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Next job was changing the camshaft sensor. Previous Owner used FLAPs sensor and Service Engine Soon light was still on.

Bought OE brand from BAV Auto. Part is a BMW part with the logo and part number ground off.


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Next job was lowering the car on H&R springs.
This car has S-EDC so I had some additional precautions on this job. Namely that wire going through the center of the shock.



Measurements before:
FR


RR


LR


LF



Stock height



shock loose:


Shock out:

[Raudi Driver]

Look at my thread and test your shock before you reinstall it.


If it reacts like my old one did, you should replace it. Those springs will do a number on them.

[dville]

Too late, I already am putting miles on this baby. Thanks for the help....




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AFTER:




My OLD 99


The new 2001


My trademark blacked out front grill. Spray painted and drying on AC condenser.


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Did a mini wax job











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Considering removing the AC Schnitzer roof spoiler. PM if you are interested in it.

Rear speakers, 4 different speaker types installed...



Fixed Driver's seat plastic.


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Car has new control arms, upper and lower, and I installed new sway bar end links.

Car still had 60mph braking shimmy. I noticed thrust arms were made in Taiwan, so I assumed some lesser quality bushings.

I decided to do the bushing mod.

Front control arm


Thrust arm bushing as found


Front arm bushing as left.













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Test drove car and shimmy appears to be gone!!!
Love it.
I will report on status here.

[dville]

More on the Thrust arm bushings : http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/sh...fore-replacing

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Heater Control Valve rebuild: http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/sh...Rebuild-for-12

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Intake Gasket Leak Fix: http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/sh...k-Engine-Light

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Headlight rubber seals :http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/sh...ber-Seals-look

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Ride Height Tuning: http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/sh...r-without-Rake

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Final Stage Blower Resistor Replacement : http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/sh...many-pics-2001

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All my other threads:
http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/se...vBForum_Thread

[NordmanMg]

Nice work budd

[board57796]

Great thread!



Looks like a clone of my car in this picture.

[NordmanMg]

Wish I where there to grab those spoiler))))

[dnyceli]

Great post. keep us updated on future repairs. I really like that VW Bus. Would you be willing to sell it?

[AquilaBMW]

Very nice work going on here. Car looks great.

I was just about to ask about that Mini-Van/Bus as well - looks nice!

[daytonatrbo]

I think you tire size/offset/something is whacked.

Or your fender liner has been flapping in the breeze.

[dville]

At stock height it was rubbing.
After I lowered it, the rubbing stopped.

The car had accident repair on that side,so that is what made the piece messed up in the first place.

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Finished installing new power steering hoses.

[AlkalineOm3n]

Ive need to fix my driver's seat plastic for awhile now, I think I'll probably use your idea on that one. Looks good so far!

[clarkitect]

Yeah your car looks awesome. Nice and clean. So jelly of you guys in warm climes!

What did you use to paint your grills? I need to paint mine and also the upper bumper trim black (unless someone is selling some cosmos trim and headlight washers)

[dville]

Rattle can satin black from hardware store

[clarkitect]

Rattle can satin black from hardware store

Geez, guy like you I would have thought an Imron paint finish ...

[dville]

Got this after the power steering hoses.

About 1/4 mile from house ENGINE FAILSAFE PROG shows up on dash.
Drive back home.
Next start the check engine light comes on.
P0120 TPS / Pedal Position Sensor A Circuit Malfunction.
P0221 TPS / Pedal Position Sensor / Switch B CKT Range / Perf





Disconnected battery, cleaned terminals above battery.




Checked ECU DME by removing connecters and inspecting each one. No issues found.
Reconnected battery 10 minutes later and code has been cleared.

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Leaving the house 3 days later, about 1 mile away I get the "trifecta" ABS / DSC / Brake lights on at the same time.

[daytonatrbo]

Test your precharge pump.

[MrCi]

Definitely want that ACS spoiler if still available!

[dville]

Ran scan with INPA and initial test had lots of codes.










Cleared all and redid it.
Only two left.

[dville]

Spoiler is boxed up...

Fixed my seat back map pocket
http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/sh...et-on-seatback

[dville]

Did this today.
http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/sh...for-sport-trim

[dville]

Removing old Tint and trying to save the defogger lines.

Used this...


Applied to pieces left on glass by spraying rag with Aircrafrt Cleaner

[Bell740il]

If you haven't got the codes to go away, I think you problem is in the steering angle sensor. After every suspension job or anything to do with the steering you need to recalibrate it by putting the wheels straight forward and line up the two lines on the steering rod right as it enters the steering box. This is all done using DIS, not INPA or Progman.

[dville]

I really like VW Monsoon speakers. They are very durable and sound excellent in my Jetta.
Decided to hack the E38 and fit some in there....see how they sound...




The speakers are NOT flush mount, so I have to get creative...
















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Why stop there....I'll put them in the doors too...













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Removing the tint from the door glass is easier with the glass out of the car...










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Used Magic Eraser to clean some stubborn stains from the M-Parallels.
BEFORE:


AFTER:









No tint looks clean, I will leave it like this for a little while...

Finally installed the C-Pillar rubber trim from GMC Paul




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Testing Wheel speed sensors before shipping ABS Module out for repair....


Found this:


And This...



Rushed to the Junkyard in the rain before it closed, I knew where a scrap 2000 E38 was...
Got this:


Picked up a rear subwoofer box, with 4 speakers (edges faded), a rear deck cover without the child seat anchor holes, a rear bumper trim, a hood release trim piece, the wheel speed sensor, the lumbar support pump/valve all for the awesome price of $29.
Went back and picked up the BMW branded water cooled alternator from the car for $40...

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Installed used wheel speed sensor, and ABS, DSC, Brake light trifecta is cleared. Cleared Check Engine Light and dash is once again error free !!!!

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Installed engine mounts from the same car unto mine (they looked almost new)


MY OLD engine mounts were shot....


Inspected my Hot Glue Bushing inserts that are still working great...




Cleaned the BACK of the wheels with Magic Eraser, and elbow grease.



Replaced the engine cover latches.



Started to break up a speedometer from the junkyard to learn how to take mine apart, only to discover the one in the junkyard car was a factory replacement manufactured in 2004, and modified to fix the pixel problem... :-( Bummer....



The ribbon is permanently attached to the LCD screen.

[purplecty]

That magic eraser worked great! I need to try that on my mpars