That's awesome! Can you remind me what style these are?
They are definitely the classiest wheel upgrade I've seen on an E32. And 16in is the maximum size I'd ever want to put on my 735 - anything bigger is just unsightly on an old 7'er and creates undue/undesigned-for stresses and wear on the suspension, IMHO.
1983 4-spd Mercedes 240d w/403k - Sold!
11/87 E32 735iA w/45k - Daily Driver (finally!)
04/88 E32 735iL - Parts Car
I agree They are BMW Style 61.
Similar wheels are:
Alpina originals
Style 32 (flat design)
Style 73 (17" for E46, won't fit our cars)
Style 61 (concave perfection but heavy)
Last edited by Cactuar; 08-23-2018 at 04:21 PM.
This month I ordered a work light for working in the garage, 3w bulbs for the dim gauges, 1.2w bulbs for general lighting and 5w bulbs for the side markers (all are burnt).
While waiting for the parts I had fun in Photoshop to imagine what my perfect upgrades would be. New wheels (have those, just need tires), euro smiley headlights and a showroom license plate. To me this would bring my car to OEM perfection
Changed the side marker bulbs today, it's a nice safety and visual upgrade.
Unfortunately three out of four side markers had their plastic bezel snap off. They just crumbled as I applied leverage. This is what 26 year old plastic does I suppose. Need to order new ones.
Edit: 46 CAD$ each plus shipping? Forget about it, I'll just glue those plastic bits back on. Chances are I won't have to change those bulbs during my ownership ever again anyway.
Last edited by Cactuar; 09-17-2018 at 05:05 PM.
I finally found time to raise the car today and investigate the oil leak. The lower plastic cover was filled with thick dried oil. So I looked directly above where the plastic cover would be:
leak_bottom.jpg
Lots of oil, there seems to be splattering too. Looking up a bit more...
leak_mid.jpg
Interesting, looks like the oil drips from above and splatters below. Looking further up:
leak_top.jpg
Oil under the distributor cap. Getting the camera closer...
leak_bolts.jpg
Looks like the oil is coming from the crankshaft position sensor area. Next time I'm in the engine bay I'll remove the fan shroud and fan to take a closer look. Is it safe to assume that this is the cause of my oil leak?
Edit: Looks like my belts are cracked, need to change those soon.
Last edited by Cactuar; 09-24-2018 at 01:25 PM.
I ordered a 32mm wrench to take off the fan, still waiting for that. But I did receive the belts I ordered.
They are Continental Elite belts. The cogs are unusual in that they are angled (helical) instead of straight. Continental says it's to improve flexibility and reduce fatigue and cracking.
I hope I don't sound like too much of a noob (even though I am ) but... the harmonic balancer on the M30 has straight teeth, won't the angled cogs on the belts cause a compatibility issue?? I ordered the belts from RockAuto and they listed them as compatible with my car.
This is the cog pattern. Thanks for your input!
cogs.jpg
I won't edit my post above to hide my ignorance, but I found the answer When I googled pictures of the harmonic balancer I immediately thought the teeth were for the v-belt, but the belt actually goes on the smooth surface. Doh! Looks like the belts will be OK.
What are the teeth on the harmonic balancer for then?
Tonight I tightened a loose bolt near the crank position sensor, I think this was the cause of my oil leak. I found dusty oil on top of the subframe and some dark patches on the block, need to investigate that later.
When I took off the fan I noticed that the back side of the clutch was covered in crusty oil. Does it mean the clutch is about to go? I didn't have any temp issues this summer.
Thought I'd share my experience on a side effect caused by cleaning an oil leak at the front of the engine...
I used a lot of degreaser and scrubbing to clean the oil leak around the bolt holding the crankshaft position sensor. When I was done I started the car and the idle was very lumpy, going from ~500 to 700 rpm. Just by driving around the driveway I noticed the engine wasn't as smooth, so I thought I probably sent dirt flying on the crankshaft position sensor when I scrubbed.
Sure enough, it was partially covered in oil:
dirty.jpg
Cleaned it with isopropyl alcohol:
clean.jpg
Now the idle is smooth and the car drives great!
check this bolt: Quick fix for M30 engine oil leak http://www.evansweb.info/2003/02/19/...gine-oil-leak/
Shogun tricks and tips for the E32 series are HERE!
Yes that's the bolt I tightened, it was loose. I applied some blue thread lock like the gentleman in the post suggested. No oil leak so far after a short drive.
Last edited by Cactuar; 10-20-2018 at 10:24 PM.
Installed new 68mm center caps for the Style 61 wheels today (part# 36136783536). The chrome ring really makes it pop compared to the old center cap with the plastic ring. The domed shape of the badge adds some nice curvature as well.
center_caps1.jpg
center_caps2.jpg
Hi all. I've been servicing the brakes on the 735, basically just cleaning the calipers and pads (lots of seized parts) and applying lubrication.
I see that the Bentley manual says to not grease the guide pins. Is that correct? Do the rubber bushings need to be cleaned thoroughly then? Many guides online say that the pins should be lubricated.
Last edited by Cactuar; 02-21-2019 at 02:25 AM.
Can someone please advise on the condition of the spark plugs?
They are numbered #6 to #1.
20190316_221039.jpg
20190316_220949.jpg
They are BOSCH W8LCR (not W8LC+), possibly original equipment from the factory.
Could that explain the dark color?
Or is the engine running too rich?
I don't know when they were last changed. But considering that W8LCR are no longer available, I'm fairly confident these are the original plugs.
Comments?
Last edited by Cactuar; 03-17-2019 at 10:36 PM.
Shogun tricks and tips for the E32 series are HERE!
Thanks for the links.
I suspect that the spark plugs are just very old and will install the NGK ZGR5A when they get here. After a few hundred miles I should be able to read the new plugs better.
While I wait for the spark plugs to arrive I fixed the stuck telescoping steering wheel on my car.
It took far longer than I planned, because I didn't expect everything to be so stuck. I thought you could just let the grease dissolve but you have to really work at it with a pick and loosen all the greasy bits.
In the end it worked great and I now have a much better driving position.
I made a video for anyone who faces the same issue (sorry for my bad English).
your English is great, nice repair!
Thanks!
I installed the new spark plugs, the engine runs well. I still have the uneven idle so I will need to replace the two vacuum hoses and go from there.
Last edited by Cactuar; 03-27-2019 at 12:22 AM.
try to build a smoke machine (can be done under 20 dollars easily) or have a smoke test done by someone. then your vacuum leaks will be visible and the solution will be direct as opposed to a wild goose-chase.
Yes that's an even better idea. Then I'll know exactly if there is a leak and where it's coming from. Thanks.
Finally after a year of waiting, I installed new tires on the car today
They are Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 in 225/55/16.
The car no longer rides on tires manufactured in 1991 and on Style 2 wheels.
Even if I only drove a short distance the ride is much better, so is the road noise level. Great upgrade!
newtires1.jpg
newtires2.jpg
This video is excellent. Actually, I like all your videos because of your steady camera hand and your good and very well articulated explanations.
Now I'd like to repeat what you did. I took the driver's seat out because I also need to replace the bushings on the accelerator mechanism and swap the seat memory module. This gives me much better access to that beautiful 32mm nut. You said it took you a while to figure out how to turn that thing. Were you just confused or this actually a left-handed thread? I can turn mine a bit in both directions, but that's it. How much force is required here? I hope it will be less than what's required to break the steering wheel lock...
here some pics http://www.bimmerboard.com/forums/posts/293173/
the nut is a fine thread, tightening the normal way, see here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SU-vDo-xtbQ
Force depends on how much the old grease has dried up
Shogun tricks and tips for the E32 series are HERE!
You can see in the video Shogun posted that the nut is reverse thread. He turns counter-clockwise to tighten it.
Like Shogun said the force required will depend on the state of the grease on the spline. Hardened grease (like what is most likely on your car) will be pretty tight.
Sometimes I could loosen it a few turns then it would become stuck and require much more force. It wasn't a constant resistance.
You can hold the steering wheel if you don't want to risk damaging the steering lock.
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