Danny's Japan Rot 540i Touring Thread

[computiNATEor]

Not too much to report, been driving the 540it as usual. The transmission is temperamental but it still works most of the time. I really should order the parts to do the 6-speed swap already, but I’m gonna try and wait until I can get a lift installed in my shop... otherwise I’ll have to do it on jack stands which would be less than ideal.

I chose to remove the headlights to minimize the mess. For the polishing I used Meguiar’s Plast-X on a Meguiar’s foam polishing pad on a Harbor Freight DA polisher. It worked out quite nicely! I probably could have gone a little more aggressive, but I wasn’t aiming for perfection since I plan on replacing the headlight lenses with Euro clears at some point in the near future.

You can do it on jack stands. I've pulled and reinstalled transmissions three times on my back with jack stands.

I recommend getting a transmission jack of some kind. I have the cheap Harbor Freight one, and it works OK for the times I've used it. You would be better off investing in something nicer for the shop, I'd bet.

When you do replace the headlight lenses, obviously do the adjusters, but I highly recommend upgrading the projectors while you're in there. The Morimoto EvoX-R 2.0 bi-xenons deliver much better output than stock. They're about $120 from TheRetrofitSource, but well worth the investment. Add in a 9005/9006 high beam wiring splitter and you're looking at about $150 all-in. Quad high beams are neat.

[dannyzabolotny]

You can do it on jack stands. I've pulled and reinstalled transmissions three times on my back with jack stands.

I recommend getting a transmission jack of some kind. I have the cheap Harbor Freight one, and it works OK for the times I've used it. You would be better off investing in something nicer for the shop, I'd bet.

When you do replace the headlight lenses, obviously do the adjusters, but I highly recommend upgrading the projectors while you're in there. The Morimoto EvoX-R 2.0 bi-xenons deliver much better output than stock. They're about $120 from TheRetrofitSource, but well worth the investment. Add in a 9005/9006 high beam wiring splitter and you're looking at about $150 all-in. Quad high beams are neat.

The adjusters have already been replaced by the guy that I got the headlights from (my car is a prefacelift so it didn’t originally come with these headlights). I do plan on installing metal adjusters though, just so that they last forever. Upgraded projectors are on the list as well, I definitely want better light output for road trips and night driving. Would I need to replace the ballasts as well, or can I reuse my stock ones?

[justinca540i]

You can do it on jack stands. I've pulled and reinstalled transmissions three times on my back with jack stands.

I recommend getting a transmission jack of some kind. I have the cheap Harbor Freight one, and it works OK for the times I've used it. You would be better off investing in something nicer for the shop, I'd bet.

Im about to tackle a clutch job on jack stands, any recommendations or tips for the 320z ?

[blarf]

You can do it on jack stands. I've pulled and reinstalled transmissions three times on my back with jack stands.

You can, but a lift is a much, much nicer experience.

I recommend getting a transmission jack of some kind. I have the cheap Harbor Freight one, and it works OK for the times I've used it. You would be better off investing in something nicer for the shop, I'd bet.

I used a small lift at my friend's house which presented a few problems. The 540 barely fit on the lift itself, and the lift wasn't quite tall enough to fit most standard transmission jacks. If you've got an extra set of hands it's not too bad without a transmission jack.

Im about to tackle a clutch job on jack stands, any recommendations or tips for the 320z ?

Shifter bushings and shift pins?

[computiNATEor]

The adjusters have already been replaced by the guy that I got the headlights from (my car is a prefacelift so it didn’t originally come with these headlights). I do plan on installing metal adjusters though, just so that they last forever. Upgraded projectors are on the list as well, I definitely want better light output for road trips and night driving. Would I need to replace the ballasts as well, or can I reuse my stock ones?

Ballasts can be left alone. The Hella Gen 3 ballasts our cars have are still widely regarded as some of the best D2S ballasts, with very quick warm up times and microprocessor-controlled output.

Im about to tackle a clutch job on jack stands, any recommendations or tips for the 320z ?

- New shifter shaft rod end joint, 25117580281. It eliminates the two plastic washers.
- E60 545i short shifter. Also eliminates the plastic washers (on the opposite side)
- New shifter carrier front bushings, 2x 25117507695. New carrier rear bushing, 25111222015.
- New shifter ball bushing, 25111220600.

If you want to, I recommend M5Jed's Einhorn Industries aluminum shifter carrier bushings, aka Unicorn Nuggets. If you do, replace 25111221852 with an M10 bolt + lock washer of appropriate length. Way easier to remove/reinstall.

Get some extra bell housing bolts from a junkyard car and cut off the heads and cut a slot into them to use as alignment dowels. Makes installation easier.

Make sure you get the input shaft aligned with the pilot bearing. I think I damaged my old 320z's input shaft by misaligning it.

Replacing the shift pins is a good idea if the trans has some shifter lean, however, it is fairly involved and a little challenging. I scored up the walls of my old 320z's shifter pin bores pretty well with the awl I used.

Now back to our regularly scheduled red wagon content

[dannyzabolotny]

Welp, that didn't last long! I started noticing a steering wheel shimmy right around 40-45mph the past few days, so I got the touring up in the air to inspect the suspension. As I suspected, one of the brand new Lemforder thrust arm bushings leaked out...



This is after literally two weeks and 1,000 miles of pretty easy driving. I haven't been pushing the touring too hard since the transmission's been acting up, so it's crazy to see that the bushing failed so quickly. At the very least FCP Euro has me covered with the warranty, and I've gotten really good at installing thrust arms, given that this is the 3rd set I just installed recently on this car.

I'm just wondering how it failed so quickly, given that it was a brand new part from a quality brand. I've installed dozens of thrust arms at this point, so I've got the whole torquing technique down pretty good. I always torque either at ride height on ramps (after driving the car back and forth to allow for settling) or by jacking the wheel hub up to right around the pre-measured ride height. I haven't changed my ride height since installing this last set. What's interesting is that only the passenger side has failed so far, whereas the last time I had Lemforder thrust arms they both failed at roughly the same time.

Could it be my alignment screwing things up? I got an alignment right around the last time I replaced these thrust arms at Firestone, and according to the printouts, everything was all good and straight. The steering wheel still isn't straight though, even after repeated alignments, and the car still pulls to the right if I let go of the steering wheel. Ridiculous how nobody in this town knows how to properly align a 540it...

[computiNATEor]

Try Genuine BMW thrust arms; maybe they are of higher quality? And the dealer for the alignment?

[dannyzabolotny]

Try Genuine BMW thrust arms; maybe they are of higher quality? And the dealer for the alignment?

Aren't Genuine BMW thrust arms made by Lemforder? I might just need to suck it up and go to the dealership for an alignment after I replace this thrust arm. I'll call around tomorrow and get some ludicrous quotes... I bet it's gonna be $200-$300 for no reason at all. And yet somehow I don't entirely trust the dealership either, they don't work on E39's at all these days.

[computiNATEor]

Aren't Genuine BMW thrust arms made by Lemforder? I might just need to suck it up and go to the dealership for an alignment after I replace this thrust arm. I'll call around tomorrow and get some ludicrous quotes... I bet it's gonna be $200-$300 for no reason at all. And yet somehow I don't entirely trust the dealership either, they don't work on E39's at all these days.

In theory, yeah, the Genuine BMW thrust arms are the same. However, BMW can switch suppliers. And yes, it'll be expensive for a dealership alignment.

[blarf]

Aren't Genuine BMW thrust arms made by Lemforder?

That doesn't mean that the parts will be made to the same quality.

I might just need to suck it up and go to the dealership for an alignment after I replace this thrust arm. I'll call around tomorrow and get some ludicrous quotes... I bet it's gonna be $200-$300 for no reason at all. And yet somehow I don't entirely trust the dealership either, they don't work on E39's at all these days.

Doesn't have to be a dealership, but you should check with a different shop. What does the printout from the current shop show? Centering the steering wheel is about the easiest part of the alignment. Center the wheel then adjust the tie rods until the wheels point more-or-less straight. Checking the toe is, likewise, pretty easy to do without an alignment machine.

Any chance you got the ride height wrong on the pax side? Is there anything binding up?

[dannyzabolotny]

Doesn't have to be a dealership, but you should check with a different shop. What does the printout from the current shop show? Centering the steering wheel is about the easiest part of the alignment. Center the wheel then adjust the tie rods until the wheels point more-or-less straight. Checking the toe is, likewise, pretty easy to do without an alignment machine.

Any chance you got the ride height wrong on the pax side? Is there anything binding up?

I mean, I’ve had four different shops do an alignment and none of them could get my steering wheel straight... you’d think any reasonably competent place that specializes in alignments would know to do that.

Here’s how my steering wheel points when going straight:



The car wants to go right whenever I let go of the steering wheel. Here’s the print out of the most recent alignment (little bit water damaged because of rain).



I’m guessing they just aligned the car’s wheels according to the computer but never bothered to actually check that the steering wheel was straight... which is stupid because every single time I get an alignment I mention that the steering wheel is off.

The ride height in the front is pretty even side to side last I checked, the coilovers are adjusted identically. Though maybe I need to check that again with a measuring tape.

[computiNATEor]

My steering wheel is off center by like 3°, but the car goes dead straight. If there is a pull to one side, I’d go back to the alignment shop immediately. Something is off there.

[blarf]

I mean, I’ve had four different shops do an alignment and none of them could get my steering wheel straight... you’d think any reasonably competent place that specializes in alignments would know to do that.

There's exactly one tire shop out here I trust, and even then I think their quality slipped a little after the owner died.

Toe and camber are the only easily adjustable bits (and camber only if you use camber plates or knock out the pin). Toe is easy, straighten the steering wheel, loosen the pinch bolts and rotate the tie rods an equal number of turns on each side -- since you need to move your wheels to the left relative to the steering wheel, clockwise on the left and counter on the right. You can double check by comparing the distance between the front of the wheels to the distance between the rear of the wheels with a tape measure. And then find a different shop.

If the car's pulling that's a different matter and I kinda wonder if there's something related to the premature failure and the pulling.

[BimmrMeUpSnotty]

My steering wheel is off center by like 3°, but the car goes dead straight. If there is a pull to one side, I’d go back to the alignment shop immediately. Something is off there.

Loosen up the tie rod ends and adjust them dead balls evenly the proper direction, lock them up, test drive and see where the wheel ends up, still off? Do it again, it’s not that hard.

[philly98540]

The pull is messing up the centering. Something off with camber or caster or tire. Not seeing it in your printout though. Gotta fix the pull first.

[computiNATEor]

Loosen up the tie rod ends and adjust them dead balls evenly the proper direction, lock them up, test drive and see where the wheel ends up, still off? Do it again, it’s not that hard.

I know, but it doesn’t bother me enough to put in even that little effort.

[BimmrMeUpSnotty]

Probably only need one turn each in the proper direction.

[StephenVA]

^ That is what they all say.....

[itsbrokeagain]

PF bushings Danny. Just do them and never have to change em again.

[douglawrence42]

When I did my suspension I was pleasantly surprised to find the dealership really weren’t charging more than anyone else. Don’t know if that’s common or if it’s just local to Lynchburg Virginia. Good luck!


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[Mannyf540]

Ask your dealership to sign you up for their service specials, they offers discount pricing for guys like us that drive relics!!

I get promos all the time for the ol’ 335 and 540.

Last time I got an alignment for $100 or $125.

Even though they broke the side trim from my seats when they serviced the 540 last time, I had it with the service manager as he claimed initially it was an old car and that it was already broken.

Till I showed him the invoice from FCP that I had just purchased them, and replaced them myself. He agreed to repair it...

[scottieducati]

PF bushings Danny. Just do them and never have to change em again.

I think I got a few weird looks asking to have my brand new Lemforder arms have their bushings pressed out. Went PF black, zero complaints thus far.


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[Dking078]

Welp, that didn't last long! I started noticing a steering wheel shimmy right around 40-45mph the past few days, so I got the touring up in the air to inspect the suspension. As I suspected, one of the brand new Lemforder thrust arm bushings leaked out...



This is after literally two weeks and 1,000 miles of pretty easy driving. I haven't been pushing the touring too hard since the transmission's been acting up, so it's crazy to see that the bushing failed so quickly. At the very least FCP Euro has me covered with the warranty, and I've gotten really good at installing thrust arms, given that this is the 3rd set I just installed recently on this car.

I'm just wondering how it failed so quickly, given that it was a brand new part from a quality brand. I've installed dozens of thrust arms at this point, so I've got the whole torquing technique down pretty good. I always torque either at ride height on ramps (after driving the car back and forth to allow for settling) or by jacking the wheel hub up to right around the pre-measured ride height. I haven't changed my ride height since installing this last set. What's interesting is that only the passenger side has failed so far, whereas the last time I had Lemforder thrust arms they both failed at roughly the same time.

Could it be my alignment screwing things up? I got an alignment right around the last time I replaced these thrust arms at Firestone, and according to the printouts, everything was all good and straight. The steering wheel still isn't straight though, even after repeated alignments, and the car still pulls to the right if I let go of the steering wheel. Ridiculous how nobody in this town knows how to properly align a 540it...

Join the club danny. It must be a design problem, as mine crapped out before 3k too .

[dannyzabolotny]

PF bushings Danny. Just do them and never have to change em again.

I think I got a few weird looks asking to have my brand new Lemforder arms have their bushings pressed out. Went PF black, zero complaints thus far.

Isn't PF stiffer than stock? I already experienced that with the Meyle HD bushings, I hated them. Way too much NVH. I'm trying to take the touring back to a stock-ish level of firmness, the roads here are very bumpy. They're technically "good" roads in that there are no potholes, but the heat makes them crack and expand so almost none of them are smooth.

When I did my suspension I was pleasantly surprised to find the dealership really weren’t charging more than anyone else. Don’t know if that’s common or if it’s just local to Lynchburg Virginia. Good luck!

I'll call the dealer tomorrow and see how much they'd want for an alignment. I was going to have a trusted Indy do it, but it turns out he closed his shop so that's not really an option anymore.

Join the club danny. It must be a design problem, as mine crapped out before 3k too .

Yeah, maybe they changed suppliers for the bushings. The originals lasted waaaay longer.

[blarf]

Yeah, maybe they changed suppliers for the bushings. The originals lasted waaaay longer.

Lemforder moved a ton of production overseas (incl. China). It's certainly possible you got a bad bushing, but to me it seems more likely that there's just something wonky going on with your front suspension. I went with TRW units from FCP since they're about half the price of the Lemforder units and TRW is now part of ZF (as is Lemforder). Fingers crossed.