Should I Buy 1989 750il-160k-Looks Real Nice..

[CORVAIRWILD]

So I picked up the car, seller was at the LAX airport in a beat up S10 Blazer, smoking a cigarette. Yuk, I hate cigs, so he tossed it.
The car didn't do well sitting in the sun, clear coat looks terrible. Rt front tire was low, so I bolted on my tags, took a selfy, and off I went looking for an air pump. The car has 1/4 tank of fuel, and the gas tank is pushed it from one corner to the other, no distinc impact point, but pretty smushed. Windows are slimy, cig butts in ashtray, but she runs smooth and quiet, no noisy water pump or alternator or idler bearings. Tires are almost 10 years old, Korea, but not cracked as best I could see in a dark gas station.
I drove 45 miles to my cousin on the 405, and the trusty V12 leaked all over his driveway, so I ceaned up my mess and parked on the grass.

It has a bad shake at 55, the fastest I went, maybe a unbalanced tire? Bad ball joint or tie rod??? I may have to buy a post bubble balancer at Harbor Freight, $70.

Tranny shifts well, fluid is red. I did order a filter, but I'll just drill and bolt on the trailer hitch.. My cousins house isn't the place to be playing mechanic. My Corvair tow bar to car adapters didn't arrive as scheduled, PIA...

I'll prolly post a video tmrw, 3.30 AM my time... I'm the mountain man, w glasses

[shogun]

Shaking at 55 miles, first items to check/replace
http://www.bmwe34.net/E34main/Mainte.../Upper_arm.htm
http://www.bmwe34.net/E34main/Mainte.../Lower_arm.htm
and the links http://www.bmwe34.net/E34main/Mainte...ering_link.htm

[CORVAIRWILD]

Great tips... Sun is shining in SoCal (Southern California) I'm going to head over to WW (Wally World what Chevy Chase called Wal Mart) and get some cheap shiny tools and a floor jack and pry bar and see what's loose.

[XAlt]

Yea, the clear coat didn't do too well. Which brand trans filter did you get? I'd assume the oil leak is the upper oil pan or the valve cover gaskets.

Once your home, these guys https://www.fcpeuro.com/ are usually the way to go, lifetime warranties on everything. They even accept refunds on used oil because somebody asked it as a joke.

[XAlt]

- - - Updated - - -

How's the suspension looking? If you need anything, go to the junkyard and look for these.

525i.jpg

1.3 million E34s vs 325k E32s.

[youngbimmer]

Probably the control arms that's giving you the shake, E32 likes to eat them. I plan to go with meyle HD in the near future.

order all your parts from FCPEuro as another user said, they back everything with lifetime warranties and I don't know how they manage to stay in business.

[XAlt]

Probably the control arms that's giving you the shake, E32 likes to eat them. I plan to go with meyle HD in the near future.

order all your parts from FCPEuro as another user said, they back everything with lifetime warranties and I don't know how they manage to stay in business.

Yea he's posted his diagnostics on YouTube. https://youtu.be/tx7yngmh7rQ?t=113. $400 pays for more or less a full refresh in his case.

Moog also makes a lot of components for the E32\E34 now, interesting.

[CORVAIRWILD]

Updates... The seller picked me up at the LAX airport, drove me in his 2wd S10 like a madman to his house a few miles away, I bolted on the tags, and off I went.
What I immediately noticed was cig butts in ashtray, filthy windows, half flat rf tire. Gassed up, filled all the tires. I drove it to my cousins 45 miles south in Alisa Viejo, and pissed him off when I left a trail of oil in his driveway.
Next day I installed the trailer hitch, changed the long expired watery oil in the back of WW parking lot, and discovered the VERY loose lf ball joint and center link. I ordered those, AC Delco lower thrust arm, $17 delvrd from Amazon, cheaper than Rock Auto. Center link still hasn't shown up to my friends junkyard near Colorado Springs.

A few driving hours after purchase I was in Benson Az and wishing for AC, so I stopped in a parking lot between O'Reilly's and WW, got some R134 (it was converted) and discovered where the fuel smell was coming from, a rotted fuel line under the coolant bottle. I got a piece and problem solved? Nope, still reeked of raw fuel, but now I had cold AC. I drove to the Corvair near El Paso, hooked up and drove 600 miles on rural Rt 24 to Colorado Springs at 35-50mph as the lf wheel shake would start at 50, or start the death wobble going downhill, especially on the brakes. I truly expected the bj to snap the stud or pull out of the socket, ending my odyssey. I drove until midnite, hvng left before 8AM. Fuel mileage dropped from 22 to 20 w AC, and then to 14 towing even tho I was going avg 45! I unhitched the Corvair and spent yest at the junkyard rmvng parts for my friends '66 Olds 98 that I just bot for him. His dad had a similar '65 new. At 6pm I returned to the 750 and found the source of my fuel smell! Spritzing fuel regulator hose, and I mean like a shower head! I vidded that, then changed the left from thrust arm, got it done and closed up as the sun went down. UPS never delivered the center like despite guaranteed delivery. It's nearby according to tracking info, and I discovered the rf bj is worn too, idler arm is tite. I ordered that from Auto Zone, $35 instead of $17 AC Delco-Taiwan, and 2 air filters, a dollar more than online, but STP junk instead of Mann. Mine are 95% blocked when looking up at sun. So I think that's not helping my MPG.
So I drove it 20 miles back to the hotel, and while it doesn't shake as badly, the death wobble is still there, mostly downhill on the brakes. And power is nothing special, more like a tired 6 cyl. But the fuel smell is GONE!
Going back to my friends junkyard this AM, loading up a ton of used AC parts into the Corvair and heading off east.
Go to Corvairwild YouTube and I post my progress daily

[XAlt]

Torque is a bit peaky on the car, and it basically does run like two sixes pulling each other. But putting it in S will help the laggy throttle, GM actually stuffed the V12 into a Caprice to test electronic throttle control out. The car should be able to get up and go without an issue though.

If you need bushings, definitely go Meyle HD or Lemforder.

[CORVAIRWILD]

I saw the button, I'll try it. Tranny shifts real hard, fine for me, not like limp mode I'm familiar with in a failing GM tranny, just nice and firm. I'll change the engine oil again in 2000 miles, and it's leaking WAY less! Tranny oil is decent red, but I'll dump it too. Does the torque have a drain plug like my '99 Mercedes?
What MPG are others getting?

[XAlt]

No TC drain plug. A decent RPM drop is normal, but if it's shifting a little hard, what you'll want to do is unbolt the valve body and clean it up. I've got a pretty smooth shifting original 220k tranny, but I'm planning on adding a third pedal soon enough.

The 6-speed swap has suddenly become affordable with new adapter plates, and you get a visit to the horse adoption center. One time I calculated 15-16 mpg via simple division on 87 octane, erratic driving patterns. I haven't bothered counting anymore, a guzzler is a guzzler.


As for your failed blower sword, here's the links.
https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...rd-repair-info
http://www.nmia.com/~dgnrg/page_4.htm

Important trans writeup:
https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...hifting-solved

[youngbimmer]

You are quite bold to be driving such a car, for the first time, for such a distance...hope you make it safely

watched some of your videos, can already tell your door handle gaskets are shot. I hope your locking mechanism is still functional. If so, order some gaskets from shogun ASAP and protect those door lock brackets! its a 15 minute job on all 4 doors.

[CORVAIRWILD]

Yup, all four handle gaskets, I noticed that. As far as what I'm doing? It's nuts, two junk $1200 cars... Time will tell...

[XAlt]

Yup, all four handle gaskets, I noticed that. As far as what I'm doing? It's nuts, two junk $1200 cars... Time will tell...

There's also cheap eBay sets (15 for 4, free shipping) that ship from the states, fits fine for me, maybe a little big.

From what I've heard, shogun's examples are quality items that will hold up better in the long run.

[CORVAIRWILD]

So rite lower-front ball joint-arm-bushing assy is installed. The bj was worn the same as the left one, the bushing was mint, just like the left side. But the rear upper thrust arm is in bad shape! And being a Friday afternoon, no Amazon or Rock Auto parts until Tuesday. As the bj's are fine, I'll drive it as is, shake and all, and replace just the bushings in 1900 miles.
I also changed the center link, it was worn at the steering pitman shaft connection. The play is GONE going down the road, but the shimmy death wobble remains. On another note, I changed the blocked air filters, and upon start up, she smoked white for several miles. I noticed a slight exhaust sputter, I revved the V12 up, and the cloud was pretty big, big enuff that my friend the junkyard owner came over wondering if I had caught fire! The smoke cleared up after a few miles, and the engine smoothed out. I've driven the car over 1500 miles, and it's the 11st time I've seen ANY smoke! She used about 1/2 quart of oil. I did add 3/4 of a gallon of coolant to the overflow bottle... Head gasket? The sputter was minor, and the EML lamp was on breifly due to the flat battery. I restarted, and the lamp went out. Exact same routine as yest, (I left the trunk ajar, I now understand the button requires that the lid be shut fully). But no smoke yest, when I changed the forward leaking fuel hose.

[XAlt]

Woah. If it was a cold morning with lots of condensation, it's nicknamed the fog machine. First time it happened to me, I was pretty scared. Don't think the air filter would have anything to do with the , maybe a battery-starved fuel pump.

Did you add the coolant because of accidentally adding oil to the expansion tank or because of the loose hose clamp? Unless your car got into the red zone, the headgasket(s) don't randomly go out. Now that you're in a colder area, does it run towards the 12 o'clock mark?

[CORVAIRWILD]

The fuel leak was repaired yest, drove 50 miles since. The temp guage never moves from just above half, and engine doesn't seem "hot". I added coolant upon purchase, and twice since, using 3 quarts total, I have to admit maybe a quart or so was bcause I accidentally let the lower hose pop off the bottle when I adjusted the clamp when changing the leaking fuel hose a few days ago in Benson Az. As far as preventative maintenance goes, should one replace the overflow bottle? I will consider dumping the old coolant, and possibly changing some or all of the coolant hoses. It does need two belts, and I'll put my telescope on the two belt idlers. Cheap Harbor Freight tool, but the Airbnb I'm stayed at overnite, his '03 Mercedes E320 V6 had quite the engine buzz. My stethascope revealed a very noisy idler tensioner which was very smooth when spun by hand. I'll prolly replace it for my host this AM, an easy swap, even tho it uses reverse Torx bolts. Its the same as my '99 E320, which siezed last year on a trip to NYC. By luck, Auto Zone had one in stock, and a tow Teeruk ride over and I was back on my way with 2 hours lost...

[XAlt]

I'm pretty sure my overflow tank is original, the later E46\E39 tanks with the bobber are horrendous designs that crack all the time. But it for sure doesn't sound like HG symptoms, not after making it 1500 miles in a blazing desert.

Those seat covers are pretty funny.

[CORVAIRWILD]

Temp needle never budges, never got hot, even at 110 in Az with AC on. You can hear the clutch fan cycle on and off.
I'll pull the seat covers once I'm home. I've taken a peak, leather doesn't seem too bad.

[XAlt]

Temp needle never budges, never got hot, even at 110 in Az with AC on. You can hear the clutch fan cycle on and off.
I'll pull the seat covers once I'm home. I've taken a peak, leather doesn't seem too bad.

Yeah, not the HG. 1OCG said he had fixed a coolant leak, and judging from the PO, maybe the car was running low the whole time he had it or some shop didn't fill it up all the way? I'd just make sure all the visible hoses are nice and tight.

The temp guage isn't particularly accurate, but if you're closer to the third mark than the 1/2 mark, I'd inspect the cooling system components. Thermostat in particular can get sticky.

[XAlt]

Looking at the morning humidity and temps, having it clear up after 10 miles or so is indicative of normal condensation in the exhaust. It's going to be a pretty normal occurrence in NY.

[biasvoltage]

just to add to your collection of things to worry about, there are two more rubber fuel hoses in the engine compartment. When you replaced the ones up top at the rear, they connected to metal lines that ran off towards the driver's side under the heater valves. There are two more short rubber hose sections down there that connect to the lines that run under the car. They are real hard to get to! But they have the potential to spray directly on the exhaust manifold.

[CORVAIRWILD]

I've made it to within 400 miles of my destination having covered about 3300 miles, 2200 or so towing my Corvair. The 750 has run well, just the know worn thrust bushings in the rear-upper control arms, I'll install LemForder bushings, or is there a better choice from the aftermarket?

I'll review the other mentioned fuel lines, as well change the two fuel filters. Where I live ethanol free fuel is readily available, but only in pricey premium, and after paying a low of $1.89 for regular in Ohio, and never more than 2.25, in Colorado, I'm now in the 2.45 range in NY. Fuel mileage is 18 w AC on, 20 off, but my odometer reads 5mph fast at 60, and the trip computer indicates 16mpg, when it works. Keep in mind I'm towing a 3000 lb Corvair, but I never exceed 60mph, usually 50-55 or so, and lite-footing it up hill and mountain.
What's the scoop on pushing the turn signal in? Sometimes the dash displays a variety of info, something nothing appears. I tryed twiddling with the knob protruding from the dash, but it really displays when it wants to.
The clouds of white smoke I saw at the junkyard in Colorado has not reccured, it was definitely more than exhaust condensation steam.
I've added about 1.5 quarts oil after said 3300 miles. Coolant level has remained level since adding 2 quarts a couple of days ago. Temp needle remains just past half, but I honestly havn't watched it rise from cold, so maybe it's broken at halfway? I open the hood at least twice a day, and it's definitely not running hot, just a little leaking engine oil cooking on the hot exhaust.
I'm considering new tires, presently 3/4 worn China junk, and the rt front appears to have been run nearly flat as there's scrub marks consistent with running on a flat tire. Plus the flopping front end has led to scallops in the tread. TireRack offers Continentals with a 600 wear number, on the higher end of the scale. But shipping is $76, I'll wait for a sale... There's also the free shipping offers if anyone has a suggestions.
My back two wheels are rust stained from some PO running the rear pads down to the rotors. I don't think the rust stains will clean up. Anyone have used ones? 15"
I need a couple if little twisty things to hold the rear trunk panel in place, in the trunk. Are these available from Amazon or eBay or junkyard or BMW dealer???

Back in New York now, temp (as indicated on dash display-when it works) is 45f, so I've been running the heater. And lo and behold, the fan speed dial works! It worked a couple times with the AC on, but seems to work consistently when calling for heat on the two temp dials. Is this normal if the sword is dead or dying? Pushing in the AC button (and turning down the temp dials) cancels the variable speed, it seems.

I also notice the rt passenger door lock button never moves from its "down" position, yet the door is unlocked, and it doesn't pull up. Weird...

That's it for now, time to hit the road...

[XAlt]

- Explains most of the electronic systems.

- Lemforder is the go-to for thrust arm bushings. Powerflex has poly bushings for about $100, a little pricey.

Trunk\door panel clips can be found off any junkyard car (90's-early 2000's), and fairly cheap on amazon as well.

Door lock - Probably a part of the microswitch has failed due to bad gaskets while the car was "deadlocked". I'd get a set of door handle gaskets before damage occurs as it still responds to the key.

-If it's running a bit to the right of the 12 it's usually a sign of the thermostat becoming slow, which you can replace when you do the belts. The temperature tolerance is pretty high on these cars, they have a 160, 185, 203, and a 230F stat in the final 5.4 version.

Wahler sells the 70C\160F stat for $31 + $3 for the gasket on ECSTuning.

[CORVAIRWILD]

A couple little things... The PO gave me a spare key, and I lost it. I still have the electronic key, but I would like to have two spare keys. What's the deal on those? The European dealerships near me are over an away, so do I have to bring the car there like my Mercedes? My remaining electronic key seems to work pretty well, is there a battery inside it? And my headliner is in pretty bad shape around the sunroof buttons, there's only one trim shop near me, I don't know if they handle issue like this, but is it a common problem?4