1992 525ix - Gletscherblau Metallic

[The Chauffeur]

Not affiliated. Looks like the same blue, though?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/BMW-E32-E34...temCondition=4

[dennoz]

This has to be the best thread so far....taking notes on what to do to my E34.....this I have to say, Good Stuff.

[henfjel]

Looks kinda the same, but maybe a little darker? I've found that these blue colors are difficult to judge on photos. When I saw the sales ad for mine the interior looked black. But it turned out to be blue when I got there (seller didn't specify in the ad).
Are the E32 and E34 rear console interchangeable?

Thank you @dennoz, you are far too kind. I appreciate the kind words.

[The Chauffeur]

Are the E32 and E34 rear console interchangeable?

The rear ones are.

[henfjel]

Cool, thats pretty nice to know!

[BleedsBlue]

I found out the hard way that while the consoles are technically interchangeable, it seemed as if the E32 console was not entirely plug-and-play in my E34 w/ ski pass. I never got it to fit quite right, nor did I try very hard. The main issue with mine seemed to be a non-ski pass E32 console in a ski-pass E34.

[The Chauffeur]

I found out the hard way that while the consoles are technically interchangeable, it seemed as if the E32 console was not entirely plug-and-play in my E34 w/ ski pass. I never got it to fit quite right, nor did I try very hard. The main issue with mine seemed to be a non-ski pass E32 console in a ski-pass E34.

That's good info, too, but I think we were referring to the rear portion of the front console, like the one in the link I previously posted (at least that's what I meant but yeah, semantics...)

That said, I did assume the E32 rear seat console was kind of plug and play with the E34, maybe the bracket is to blame?

[BleedsBlue]

That's good info, too, but I think we were referring to the rear portion of the front console, like the one in the link I previously posted (at least that's what I meant but yeah, semantics...)

That said, I did assume the E32 rear seat console was kind of plug and play with the E34, maybe the bracket is to blame?

Oh...Derp. My apologies, disregard! (I do think it was the bracket.)

[5mall5nail5]

Man this is intense - I both love looking at and am at the same time not jealous lol

[henfjel]

Thanks Jon, I totally understand, lol.
These cars means a lot of work, as you of course know. I've really enjoyed your threads of the 525i daily and the turbo through the years! It's given me very much inspiration.

Playing around with my DSLR! My parents own a VW eUp! back home in northern Norway, it's a nice little thing! Very quick, and nice to run around the city with, considering the high toll rates these days. Electric cars are (for now) excluded from paying in the toll booths over here. Won't last long now that everyone is buying electric and the government isn't getting enough money in from the booths..





BUT, now to the fun stuff. Parts delivery yesterday! Only half of the stuff I ordered, but still.
This is about $600 of stuff.. Hurts my wallet, but all of this is OEM stuff so it is worth it.


Lower and upper timing chain gears, and the oil pump gear.


Timing chain guides. This one had the plastic broken off the last inch on the bottom of it when I disassembled the engine.. Going OEM on these guys.










Transmission oil seals. I have the small one for the shifter mechanism in another order.


This is a curious one. Metal sleeve, and the ball bearing sleeve on the inside moves back and forth. It goes behind the small oil seal for the shifter mechanism. It was cheap, so I bought it for fun.


And these guys are the biggest single sum spent on one "part" for this car so far. This is the kit for the transfer box, and can only be bought as a kit, not as individual seals. $150 for these, and that was with 20% off. But the good thing is that I now have the sizes, so if needs be I can order them individually from various shops that sells oil seals in different sizes. They are very normal sizes, one is 42x55mm and the other one I can't remember right now.


Nuts for the front axle shafts.


Bumper mount to replace a broken one.


English sticker for the fuse box.


One of the radiator surrounds that was broken.




Emblem for my dads style 5's. He lost one to the intense heat this summer.


And one last shot, drove around in my friends 325xi E46 wagon the other day. I really look forward to completing my engine and getting this car back out on the road.



More parts are in transit as we speak! Hoping to get some work hours in before Christmas, but January is more likely..

[m60power]

Awesome pictures and good work! I love your attention to detail on replacing parts, especially that fuse box sticker!

[dennoz]

Fusebox sticker need to replace mine as well

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G870A using Tapatalk

[henfjel]

@m60power: Thanks! I replaced it on my 520i and now it is actually possible to troubleshoot the electrical system without Google Translate, lol.

@dennoz: Do it! It is very cheap!

New stash of parts arrived! I'm so stoked to get started now! I'm picking my single mass flywheel up tomorrow.

So, what is inside this nice sized box?



Well, it's another box! And a chain tensioner.



Timing chain.



Upper timing chain.



Oil pump chain.



Upper timing chain tensioner.



Bolt for the crank pulley.



Oil seal for the transmission selector shaft.





Transmission drain and filler plugs.



Fittings for the radiator fan shroud and radiator surrounds.



Coolant level sensor. I have the infamous "Check coolant level" warning. This car will be check control-free!



I have lumbar support on the drivers side, but the switch didn't work. Got a got second hand one, hopefully it will work as it should!



Can't wait for January to come so I can get started on all this!

[henfjel]

Garagistic came through with these goodies:

Bronze clutch pedal bushings.



Delrin brake pedal bushings.



Poly rear shift carrier bushings. You only need one, but I have two of these money pits..



Alu throttle cable bushings. Supposedly these will "eliminates cable sag and restores the EMC parameters to give a crisp throttle response".

[henfjel]

So, this is not from the ix, but from the 520i. But important none the less.

This is the heater fan resistor. Full of pine needles, insects and other crap from outside.
Went to check it since my fan has been only working on min. and max. the last few days. The day I decided to take the time to check it it was because I felt a burning-smell. No wonder, a lot of current passes through here and could have set some of the debris on fire. Some of it was noticeably burnt. Check your fan resistors, people!

Cleaned it out meticulously and the fan is working perfectly now, and the burning smell is gone.

[moroza]

Yup, I just had to do the same. It's routine maintenance.

I'll take this opportunity to remind everyone to carry a fire extinguisher in all cars, regardless of age or type. E34s have a specific fire hazard, but any car can go up in flames. Better to have a stinky interior and an electrical repair bill than a charred hulk.

[henfjel]

I seriously need to get one. I got the bracket two years ago, but haven't gotten around to buying one. I have no excuse, just laziness..

[henfjel]

The assembly has begun.

I've finished cleaning the block and started assembling the new parts.
New chain guides are in places, as are the new timing chain and new lower sprocket.




Oil pump and pickup tube (not shown) is in place, as is new oil pump chain and sprocket. The Jesus-bolt will be replaced, I have a new one laying around.



New rear oil seal is pressed in place (it looks a bit crooked but it is just the picture). I just need to get the pilot bearing out before I'm bothered to mount it.



Oil filter housing is cleaned and a new filter is installed. I went to mount the housing to the block, but I realized that I forgot to order the two dowels that holds it centered.



Also started to clean the oil pan. People. If you ever have an oil leak. PLEASE fix it asap. This whole engine and oil pan had a thick layer of oil and dirt all over it. It never ends! I think I've been scrubbing the pan for an hour and a half, and I still have half of it left..



I also installed the Garagistic clutch pedal bushings to get a break from the engine. Also tried to install the brake pedal ones in delrin, but they didn't fit. The shaft that goes inside the bushings that the bolt that holds the pedals goes through wouldn't fit inside. Might ask for a refund on those, if I don't try to drill them out or something.
Installed the throttle cable/CC alu-carriers as well. Fits nicely, and I'm looking forward to see if there is any improvement.

Timing cover should go on tomorrow. Gaskets are ready.
I also hope to get the pilot bearing out, new one in and the rear oil seal installed. Also contemplating on getting the oil pan on.

[sbeckman7]

Nice progress

[henfjel]

Thanks @sbeckman7!

New pilot bearing is in.


And the rear oil seal is on.


Out to get some Drei Bond 1209-equivalent sealant, and then the lower timing cover is going on.

[henfjel]

This post concludes this weeks updates from this project!

I got the lower timing cover on. Also got the Jesus-bolt in place (not torqued, tho) and the new bolts for the harmonic balancer.


This part is the right side carrier for the front axle. It sits on the right side of the oil pan. On the other side sits the front diff. The axle goes through it and seals in the oil from the diff on that side. Cleaned up and new seal installed. You can also see the ball bearing that supports the axle behind the seal. It's in great condition, so it won't be replaced.



Here seen installed on the oil pan, which I haven't mounted permanently yet, I just had to put it on there to see it all.


Also bolted the oil filter housing on just for show, still missing the dowels.


Going to replace this plastic thermostat housing with an aluminum one. The head that was on the engine when I got it (not the original head) had one of the housing bolts broken off and part of it stuck in the bolt hole. You can clearly see where it was broken, as it didn't seal right. The plastic seal on the right is from the thermostat itself. It looked like it wasn't installed right. The o-ring on the left on the other hand.. I found that behind the thermostat inside the housing.. Wonder where it came from. Does anyone know where it might belong?


Next time around I'll be permanently installing the oil filter housing and the sump. And I'll be removing the transmission and the transfer box from the car so that I can clean them and replace the oil seals and oil and freshen up the shifter mechanism. Then I'll get the block, trans and transfer box back on the car and begin working on the head.

[TGreene]

Very fun reading this, thanks for posting.

[henfjel]

Thanks @TGreene! I really appreciate it.

Was planning on waiting to do this, but I just ordered engine mounts, trans mount (ix-special mount) and waterpump pulley. Figured out that why not be completely done with engine and trans when I put it back in the car?
There is a big sale at a Norwegian BWM parts dealer this weekend, so I got 20% off everything. But the trans mount still cost me $95 and the engine mounts were $70 each. Got the plastic water pump pulley since I couldn't find a metal one and the Febi/Bilstein plastic one was cheap and my metal one is a little damaged. I'm planning to get an underdrive pulley for the water pump and PS pump this year anyway, so the plastic one should at least last that long.

I also have intake valves on order, clutch centering tool and the last serpentine belt roller I need from INA.

Going to get some work done in about a week, hopefully the block will be ready, the trans and transfer box will come out and be resealed, and all of that will be put back in the car.

[henfjel]

Parts just got in. Very excited to get to work on sunday!

New blinkers for the front fenders.


Trans mount.


Engine mounts.


Water pump pulley.


Various bits, dowels for the crankshaft (to center the flywheel), head, oil filter housing and trans. O-ring for the water pump, screws for the water pump pulley, two special bolts for one of the chain guides, c-clip for the other chain guide, white plug for the crank lock tool.


Nuts and washers for the engine mounts, thermostat o-ring and some more dowels.


Intake valves have also arrived, but I forgot to take pictures.

[E28E34]

Your thread has really inspired me to create a thread on my 525i. Sorting through a decade's worth of photos and writing my story.... a lot of work. Have wanted to do this for years. More than halfway through. Look for it soon.