95 540i sport budget build thread

[summitp]

Good idea. I'm doing that with the glove box.
Yeah maybe premature with the chrome,. But they easy to put on and off. After my surgery in activity the last couple weeks, I need to spend a little less time on cars for a bit. Also need to put a new alternator that is sitting on the bench into the 944 turbo. Putting a Nissan quest one in, significantly smaller than the Bosch one creating more space for turbo plumbing, and runs cooler, cost less, etc. Does require some grinding of a bracket.

[summitp]

Did a little work to this the last week or so. I pulled out a manual heater control valve, and put back in a used but functional oem heater control valve and pump. Nice to have the climate controls functional again.
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I also rewired the 4 channel amp in the trunk so it is functional again, it drives some speakers in the stock location in the back, and also a set of 6x9 that someone along the way put in the back. Sounds decent. Not great, but decent.
I had massive seat twist and general power seat woes in nearly every direction in both seats. So out they came, and got a good cleaning along with all the plastic trim, etc... I've done the seat cable repair on a previous e34, and it was pretty easy. Well, this time, someone had tried to fix the cables already, and did a bad job. They had used the fuel line trick on them outside of the housing, and it was greasy and slippery, so the housings were backing out. I had to redo each of those repairs, and I glued on tighter fitting fuel line, and also used zip ties to help hold them tight. Then I pulled the housing end off, trimmed a bit off, (like you are supposed to do in the first place!) and did the fix. Now the both seats are fully functional again. That really makes the car feel like a nice car again. And I love the price. $0.00.
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I also pulled out the ecu to check the chip, because the car sort of gurgles and pops a little bit when cold and coasting in gear down a hill, so I suspected an aftermarket chip. Indeed, someone has replaced the ecu with a 404 ecu and a dudmd m60b40 chip. So, buttoned that up and called it good. However.... check this out. The intake air temperature sensor on the filter housing is disconnected, and car runs great. If I plug the sensor in, quickly throws a check engine light. Perhaps I'll plug it in and see what code it throws.

In the mean time, I drive this car basically everyday, and it is great. I really really like it. I really liked my last 540i/6 as well. They are great cars.
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[summitp]

So I haven't updated in a while, just been driving the car everyday for months with zero love given to it. It's been perfectly reliable, and even just took it on a 600 mile road trip, cruising at triple digit speeds for extended periods, and it runs great. Brakes were giving me some gnarly vibes on the hard braking, so I put new discs in up front. The ebrake had also decided to quit doing its job, so I pulled that apart and rebuilt with new hardware and pads, and is doing it's job again. Rubber was torn on my steering tie rods, but they hadn't developed any play yet. So put new ones in. Also threw an 8" JL sub and box in the trunk. PO had it wired for an amp, so I tossed a 4 channel Alpine amp in there to run the rear speakers and sub (that is all the PO had wired it for...) I realize the real solution is a 4 channel amp for cabin speakers, and a separate amp for the sub. That is on the list. Been working a lot on the Porsche 944 stereo system. You can see a thread for that here...
https://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum...o-install.html

I also replaced the guibo, (it was not as good as I had remembered,) and while I was in there, I did the CSB for good measure. And an air filter. I also had developed a power steering leak, down in front, where the two short hoses are. One of the hose clamps had given up the ghost. PO had replaced with standard screw type clamps rather than the crimp oem type. I tightened up the 3, and replaced one, and it seems to have done the trick there. no more leak.
Gotta get back to taking better pictures....

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[summitp]

Update. Did a little preventative maintenance, rebuilt the other side parking brake so now both sides are properly rebuilt, and installed new disc rotors in the rear. Put new pitman links in the rear. The old ones were SHOT!
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I also bought some new tires recently, I went with 235 45 17 pirelli pzero nero gt. Sort of a jack of all trades summer tire. Rides nicely, quiet, sportier than the winter tires that just came off. I do expect more snow, but got a flat the other day, so off they came. I mounted the tires up on a set of wheels that came with the car when I bought it, but did not have tires at the time. I kind of like. Think I need to lower the car properly with some H&R sport springs, and that will make it look real pretty.
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I've also done a bit of audio work on the car lately as well. I installed a couple of amps, and replaced the aftermarket junk coaxial speakers with better ones. I started off with a 3 way passive front stage, but have switched to a 3 stage semi active setup for the front. I have no speakers in the back now, and no plans to install any. I tried to do this on the cheap, but it had to sound good. I think it worked out great. Critical to good sound, and good mid bass is properly mounting up the speakers and sealing off the back of the speaker from the front. This prevents the waves from the rear of the speaker cancelling out the waves from the front. Take your time, and focus on installation. Love the way it sounds.

My 3 way semi active front stage is setup as follows:
Equipment:
Front stage amp: Alpine MRV f540 4 channel 80 watts per channel with band pass capable crossovers for all 4 channels.
Front stage speakers:
Tweeters are stock.
Mids are 3.5" Peerless by Tymphany 4ohm mid range. These are inexpensive at $15 a piece, and sound great.
Woofers are nokia 5.25 woofers out of an 89 Porsche 944 Turbo. I think they are the same as the stock oem e34 kick panel speakers. Good little units.
Front stage frequency control:
Tweeters and Mids in one corner run off one amp channel, and crossover is controlled by a 3 way crossover. Woofer is not hooked to crossover. Just the tweet and mid.
tweeter and mid range speaker are hooked up to a passive crossover and a single channel on the amplifier. The amp has a high pass filter in place to ensure any frequencies meant for the 5.25 woofer, go there. The woofer is hooked up to it's own channel on the amp, and the low frequency cut off is controlled by a high pass crossover at the deck, and the high end cutoff (to match the mids) is controlled by a low pass crossover on the amp.
So 6 speakers driven by 4 channel amp. mids and tweets on 2 channels, and the 5.25 woofers on the other 2 channels.
Subwoofer:
Kicker comp r 12" 2 ohm with ported box. Driven by an Alpien MRP m350 amp.

Future upgrade: I have a Phoenix Gold ti2 1600.5 amp sitting at home that will replace both amps in the car and drive all speakers.

This picture of the wiring shows the stock speaker wires that would have come from the factory amp. They are nicely bundled together. You can pull a speaker out in the front, and match the wire colors to what you find in the back, and label the wires. In this picture, it shows the 3 way crossover wired up to all three speakers in a corner. This is not the current wiring setup. The woofer wire has been cut from the xover and hooked directly to a channel on the amp. (amp shown is gone).
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This is the 3 way passive crossover from the Porsche. These will likely get pulled and newer ones installed at some point.
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[summitp]

I also put in one of those ukrainian m5 center console inserts. Looks good. I like it.
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And she make me smile, even when she's peering out of the garage on jack stands. :-)
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[summitp]

Did some more work on it wednesday evening. New fuel filter, new front sway bar end links, new oem transmission mounts, oil change, and reset the service indicator. I had begun to develop an engine speed related vibration recently, and as I had recently replaced the transmission and clutch, I was paranoid that re using the DM flywheel was a stupid thing to have done. But I ordered up the transmission mounts just in case. When I got in there, the aftermarket poly transmission mounts had stripped some of the threads on one side causing it to knock a little bit. As knocking increased, and vibration increased, that led me to go ahead and order the mounts. They solved all my problems. No more clunk, no more vibration, just smooth quiet engagement and acceleration. The end links resolved my suspension clunk as well. Clunk free is the way to be.
I posted a separate thread, but as I took a couple pics, might as well add them to this thread as well. My car appears to have had an early e39 airbox from an m62 added to it, as there is an intake air temperature sensor in the airbox, and there should not be one, as our cars have them located by the throttle body. And mine does have one there as well, that is plugged in. Stranger though, is that the wiring harness has a plug that goes right to the airbox for the intake sensor. I am beginning to think that my car has a wiring harness from a different car, as there is a grip of wire connections made inside the box that houses the ecu unit. When I plug in the airbox sensor, car runs awful and check engine light comes on. So I just leave it unplugged and car runs fine, cold starts fine, idles fine, etc... Started this morning covered in snow like it does everytime, on the first time with a nice smooth idle.

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[401michael]

awesome thread!

[summitp]

Thanks Mike.

I started smoking on the occasional cold start, and oil consumption went up, and idle got rough. So I figured the PCV had taken a crap. So I put a new one in, and all is well with the world again. Pretty easy job, just be careful with the torx bolts, and keep that driver straight in the bolt when you apply the torque. Mine all came off without drama, but others have not been so lucky.
When I busted the old one apart, it was gnarly in there, and while not torn, the diaphragm had been sticking to the housing preventing it from functioning as designed.

Recently mounted up a tv in the garage now that hockey playoffs are underway.

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I picked up this white convertible in Phoenix and drove it back home to Utah on Friday/Saturday...
Manual transmission, limited slip, sport seats, ��

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[summitp]

I did a bunch more work on the car. Installed new H&R sport springs. In the front, I did not know what shocks were installed, but the Blue Bilstein boot was present. So I pulled them out and inspected the assembly. Shock mounts looked new. Shocks looked new, and were indeed bilsteins. A quick check on the part number revealed they were b8. So I installed the springs, and reinstalled the shocks and in they went.
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[summitp]

In the rear, I ordered a set of b8 shocks to match the front, as well as some new mounts. Because the rear ones, definitely did not look new. In fact, they were cracked, and looking like they might fail. I trimmed the bump stops down in the rear by 1/3 or so, and reused the spring pads and upper cup, as they all looked fine. Everything went back together nice and easy.
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[summitp]

I also got some new rubber and wheels for the car. I had just recently put on a set of style 42 that came with the car, but did not have rubber. I put 235 45 17 on all four corners, and used pirelli pzero nero gt tires. They were ok. Never felt inspiring to me. My favorite tire of all time for a sedan was the old Bridgeston re760, and so anyway, I put maybe 500 miles on the Pirellis, and then the wheels I really wanted popped up for sale. Some style 32 17x8 and 9. So I got them powder coated and put some 235 45 17 F and 255 40 17 R tires on. I chose the Firestone Indy 500 this time around due to all the good reviews, and the excellent price. Look meaty! Probably overkill on this car, but whatever. Outta my way commuters!

Review to come once I have some miles on them.

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[401michael]

I also got some new rubber and wheels for the car. I had just recently put on a set of style 42 that came with the car, but did not have rubber. I put 235 45 17 on all four corners, and used pirelli pzero nero gt tires. They were ok. Never felt inspiring to me. My favorite tire of all time for a sedan was the old Bridgeston re760, and so anyway, I put maybe 500 miles on the Pirellis, and then the wheels I really wanted popped up for sale. Some style 32 17x8 and 9. So I got them powder coated and put some 235 45 17 F and 255 40 17 R tires on. I chose the Firestone Indy 500 this time around due to all the good reviews, and the excellent price. Look meaty! Probably overkill on this car, but whatever. Outta my way commuters!

Review to come once I have some miles on them.

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I run 245/45-17 sumitomo htr 2s on my style 5s. great tires they have pretty good treadwear and were reasonably cheap like 350 for all 4 mounted and balanced. living in Miami I drive 22 miles to work in the morning but they feel good on I-95 especially going over all the bumps and repairs on the road and have decent grip around corners. I am looking though to trying some nitto tires or just buying a set of Michelin sport pilots once I find a set of style 21s.

[summitp]

As she sits today...
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[moroza]

Looks like it's coming along nicely, but where's the door bottom trim?

[summitp]

The old ones are sitting on the workbench. They are probably trash, and I am struggling to prioritize the money for it. I have a new project e30 convertible that is sucking up time and money, and of course, the 944 turbo is a perpetual money pit. This car is just a my budget daily driver. So, yeah... I need to bite the bullet and get some new ones...

[summitp]

I was getting the dreaded shimmy at 80+ mph, so it was time to get under there and see what was going on. I took a video, and it was pretty clear that it needed a new idler arm. So I replaced it with a nice lemfoerder piece. Made in Turkey. So not quite German, but probably better than chinesium. Solved that bit of slop. You can also hear a bit of clunking when I turn the wheel. The 32 mm nut on the steering column solved that. So off to get the toe checked this afternoon and make sure it is all good to go. I love taking this car on longer distance high speed runs, especially when we get off the Interstate, and hit the rural 2 lane highways of Central and Northern Utah, and Idaho.

[summitp]

Update.
I recently completed a bunch of work, and if you look at the facebook group, you have probably seen the progress. But I think forums are a better venue for details, and tips and tricks. I was getting some looseness in the rear end, and the occasional rear end clunk when stompin on it. So I decided with the miles, now up at 183k, that it was time for a rear end refresh.

Dropping the subframe
I dropped the whole subframe with axles trailing arms and diff all still intact. Just a bunch of unhooking stuff. A lot of people say to pull out the e brake lines when you drop the rear sub frame, but I did not. I disassembled the e brakes on either side, and pulled the cables out of the hub carrier in the trailing arm. Pretty painless. disconnected the abs sensors, and undid the brake lines. disconnected the main driveshaft from the diff, and using a transmission jack, dropped the whole assembly in one go. Pretty smooth. On the ground I removed the driveshafts, diff, and trailing arms.

I bought all new oem style replacement bushings for the subframe, diff mounts, and trailing arms from Febi, lemfoerder, and BMW, as well as FAG wheel bearings. I dropped the pieces off at a local shop who made short work of pushing the old stuff out and pressing the new stuff in. I used paint to number and put alignment marks on all pieces so the shop would know exactly what to do.

Power Steering Refresh
While the shop was working on that stuff, I decided to tackle my power steering system which was leaking and had the wrong fluid in it. Had the red stuff, and the cap on the reservoir specifically called for chfs-11. So, disassembled the intake, fan, shroud, and pulled out the ps pump and alternator. To pull the alternator out, remove the bolts for the alt, and then pop off the small nuts holding the oil filter housing to the timing chain cover. Then you can pull the filter housing out just enough to finagle the alternator out to access the cable connections. Remove those and drop it out.

Next I removed the long hose that goes from the reservoir to the pump, and that let me access the heat shield on top of the steering box. I found the front nut on the heat shield pretty easy to access with a 13mm box wrench, and the first nut for the back of the heat shield (not really on the shield, just the support bracket for the ps line) was pretty easy from the top, and I could access the inner nut from the bottom pretty easily. Pop off the bracket and then finagle the heat shield out. No need to lift the motor or any of that jazz I had read about. Undid the ps lines from the box and removed the rest of the large power steering lines. My main leak had been from the old original short soft power steering hoses that go from the hard lines tucked behind the brake linkage, to the cooler in the front of the car. They sit right above the frame in the very front left corner of the bay with a bunch of dirty nasty leaky hose clamps. Couldn't get them off without moving the hard lines, so I removed the two nuts on the frame that hold the brake linkage and bracket (the front nut here was tough to access), and removed the two nuts up behind the brake booster so I could wiggle that assembly around. Pushing the bracket towards the engine, I could get my 10mm on the plastic nut that holds the hard lines in place, pulled that, moved the hard lines back and removed the two small hoses. Put new ones in with new hose clamps. Button it all back up, fill with Pentosin chfs-11 (or whatever the hell the green stuff is called), and all good.

Oil Filter Housing Return Line (budget edition)
My oil line from the filter housing to the block (oil pan? can't remember) was also leaking, so I pulled that line, used a pipe cutter to cut out the rubber bit and fittings, and replaced that section with a fresh hose and some serious hose clampage. Oh, should go without saying, but all new crush washers everywhere, do it once, do it right.

Brake Refresh
Also, while I waited for the sub frame bits, I pulled all 4 brake calipers apart, hit them with a wire wheel to get remaining yellow paint off, painted them all black with engine block paint, and greased all the pins. All new pads in all 4 corners, and new rotors for the 850 e31 calipers. Looks much better. Stops better too.

Sub Frame install
Subframe bits came back from the shop, and everything was copacetic, so i put it all back together, except for the driveshafts. before I put the frame in, I used a big hammer and knocked the bolts up out of the body to make getting the frame in easier. located the frame, put the bolts back in the body, and bolted it back in. Put the driveshafts in, reassembled the e brakes, located all the lines, and hooked everything back up. Before reinstalling the exhaust, I lowered the car on ramps to compress the suspension, and tightened up the trailing arm bushing bolts. Reinstalled the exhaust, put the back bumper on, and made sure everything was tight. Bleed the brakes, go for a test drive. All good.

Impressions (one way commute, I should be working right now)
Drive the car to work today, and the rear end feels firmer, yet more compliant, and has a definite planted feel to it that feels great. No more clunks. Just feels solid, yet smoother if that makes sense. At this point, all steering linkages are updated, all front end suspension pieces are updated, and all rear suspension and subframe bits are updated. Chassis should basically be feeling like new. Gonna take a few days off on car projects....
phew.

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[dannyzabolotny]

That's quite the update! I just finished doing a power steering overhaul on a friend's car at my shop... removed the huge SLS reservoir and some remaining SLS bits, since the system had been deleted ages ago. All new lines, new reservoir, new hoses, and no more leaks. It's a messy job with finicky access but it's certainly worth doing!

Glad to hear it's still doing great as a daily, I love seeing people use their E34's and not just have them sit in a garage.

You're in SLC, right? I'd love to visit there someday. Also hit me up if you're ever in Phoenix for whatever reason.

[summitp]

Yeah, I'm up in Salt Lake. I was in Phoenix for work about a year ago, and instead of catching my flight home, I drove this thing home... This pic is at the mall parking lot in PHX where I picked it up. Agree about driving them, they are good, reliable cars when maintained, and they drive soooo nice.

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[moroza]

All new rear, cool. What did you use for trailing arms and the three subframe mounts? I just noticed FCP had the center mount on sale, and jumped on that to include it in my manual swap (wallet was too tight to fit it into a rear end refresh two years ago).

I boycott Fakebook for their unethical privacy and other practices. Thanks for posting here.

[a777fan]

Awesome work!

Pic request for you, can you take a snap of your power steering pump and pulley installed? A different thread has me second guessing which way the pulley gets mounted.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[summitp]

Yeah I'll try to snap one next time I pop the hood. Yeah Facebook sucks, if it weren't where so much of the part swapping is happening, and car club stuff, I would have nothing to do with it. As it is, I buy stuff on facebook from classifieds for car and audio stuff all the time. I never post family or friend stuff on there.

For rear bushings, I used Febi for the trailing arm bushings, lemfoerder for main subframe bushings, bmw for all other bushings and mounts.

[a777fan]

Yeah I'll try to snap one next time I pop the hood.