Blackknight530i has another new non-E39 project (E53 X5 4.8is)

[blackknight530i]

Hi Paul my name is Shaun I seen a old tread you had about instrument cluster change vin , was wondering if you could help me , I have a m3 e46 2003 and it blow the instrument cluster so I have a used one in the car but having trouble with changing the vin , I don’t care some much about the mileage. I can’t get the dsc /abs light off , it’s the same part no of cluster and it’s a

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Hi Paul my name is Shaun I seen a old tread you had about instrument cluster change vin , was wondering if you could help me , I have a m3 e46 2003 and it blow the instrument cluster so I have a used one in the car but having trouble with changing the vin , I don’t care some much about the mileage. I can’t get the dsc /abs light off , it’s the same part no of cluster and it’s a M35080 cluster , I have pa soft tool and I am in there just need a step by step to change vin

Any information much appreciated
Thanks Shaun

Hi Shaun,

I can definitely fix your M3 cluster, but PM'ing me is really better than posting in a completely unrelated thread, don't you think? You can also email me directly at mail@fixels.repair. Changing the VIN on an e46 cluster vs an e38/e39/e53 cluster is not as simple. You'll need to erase the chip (or replace it with a new one, but not recommended as there are a lot of crappy chips on ebay that don't work right) and restore it with a backup from PA Soft with the VIN/mileage cleared in the hex. Then, when you set the VIN to match (Write FGSTNR in PA Soft), it will download the mileage from the LKM. PM me if you would rather have me do it for you.

[blackknight530i]

I realized it's been a long time since I updated this thread and I just recently did a bunch of work on this car and will be doing so over the next couple weeks as well. Coronavirus quarantine has made me a bit ambitious on car projects it seems.

So, over the last week and a half or so, I've done a ton of work on both my e39s and my e53.

First was doing the window trims and cowls on both the M5 and the wagon, then new brakes and RBF660 flush on the M5, then started one of the worst jobs I've ever done on a car... the dreaded bracket gasket replacement on the 4.8is.

The gasket had failed completely about a couple months ago, and I bought all the parts to do it, as well as the valve stem seal repair and everything else that you do "while you're in there". My indy who is a good friend of mine was going to let me work on it with him on a weekend at his shop and we were going to pull the engine and do it all, has been slammed and then the coronavirus hit, so I was relegated to working on getting the garage prepped and ready for getting a lift installed so I could do it there instead. With the coronavirus, that kept me from having my buddies come over and help with that, so I decided to park the X5 for a while. Then, when I started working less hours and working from home, I decided I was going to just attempt the bracket gasket repair myself so I could at least get the car back on the road.

The job took me a week working between 4-8 hours a day, skipping a day in the middle. The biggest part of it was just cleaning everything. There was so much oil all over everything that I went through about 10 cans of brake cleaner. So much cursing at BMW engineers was done, thinking why would they design everything to block just 1 bolt on another thing, forcing so many things to be removed to get at a stupid $10 gasket.



Mine had a definite crack at the top where oil was spraying out. Replaced that gasket and the o-rings on the cooler lines, as well as the one last soft line on the power system I hadn't done previously since I was in there. Got it all put back together and at least that no longer leaks. Still need to do the valve stem seals, gaskets, valve cover gaskets, , etc., but I think I'm going to let my indy do that next week instead. This weekend will be rear suspension bushing overhaul so I can get the alignment done at the same time.

Also, got new wheels and tires put on the X5 as well. The car came with some replica E70 wheels when I got it and I always hated them since they were black on a black car, so I picked up some mint condition Style 87s and put some brand new AS3 N0 spec tires on. I haven't taken a pic with the new tires on, but here she is with the new wheels.



The headlights got sent off to a buddy of mine who is sanding them and polishing them, then clear coating. He should have them done tomorrow and I'll get those reinstalled. Here's the first one after clear:



Also, in other news, I totally forgot that I also installed a Pioneer backup camera on the X5 that connects to my Pioneer AVIC-6200NEX head unit. It works great and overall, the install wasn't too bad. Mostly I was trying all different reverse signal activation wires until I finally just settled on using the reverse light, which I didn't think would work, but it does. Yay! Fully clean install with no visible wires anywhere.

[blackknight530i]

And now with the headlights installed:

[purplecty]

And now with the headlights installed:

That is like 2020 NEW! Looks outstanding!

[blackknight530i]

That is like 2020 NEW! Looks outstanding!

Not too shabby. Driver side light has some stuff on the inside he couldn't do anything about, but the outside looks great. Might need a polishing still, but I'm happy.

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[blackknight530i]

So, this weekend, my buddy and I practiced social distancing while replacing every bushing and arm on the rear end of my X5 4.8is, except for the subframe bushings and shocks. I also had purchased the Lemforder swing arm bushings, so we got a chance to do those for the first time ever. I've done rear suspension on at least 5 e39s, so I was quite familiar with the process, but this was the first time changing the swing arm bushings and those were quite a pain. We even went and bought a new 20 ton press as my 12 ton wasn't really doing the job.

Tips we learned:

-You can press out the bushings with the larger center (less rubber) fairly easily with a 36mm impact socket (Morello or something like that bought from Amazon for removing a rear output flange on a M5 transmission)

-To remove the other bushing, we found that drilling out the rubber first, then pressing the center out, then using an air chisel made quick work of removing them. Every time we tried a socket to press them out, the socket went in crooked and mangled the bushing, which then made it near impossible to remove.

-Pressing in the new bushing with the larger center goes pretty easy with a flat plate on the bottom and a flat plate on top applying even pressure. The outer shell will kind of find its way into the hole and start squeezing in, but you can also use some large channel locks to push in any edge that doesn't go in easily. I highly suggest putting a decent amount of grease on the edge of the bushing and the hole in the swing arm.

-For the bushing with the large split, this was a decent bit more difficult, but mainly because of the clamps we tried to use. You can get by with a normal 2" hose clamp, but make sure it is a quality one and preferably a t-bolt style clamp if you can order one ahead of time (none in stock around here on a weekend). Clamp at the middle of the bushing until the rubber on either side of the wedge cutout is touching. You won't be able to get it to compress enough to close the metal together, so don't try (ask me how I know, LOL). Once you have it compressed, just press it in using the same method as the other bushing, using the channel locks to squeeze in edges that try to poke out. Once it's started in the hole, you can remove the clamp.

-With both bushings, when you get them started in most of the way, add a cup type receiver to the bottom that fits the ring of the swing arm hole. This will make sure that the center, which protrudes out of both ends, has the space to allow you to push the bushing in fully. I used the large receiver cup from my rear ball joint tool, which fit perfectly.

So, new swing arm bushings, ball joints, integral links, upper control arms, sway bar bushings and endlinks. I had already done the front end suspension rebuild, but hadn't done the front sway bar bushings yet, so knocked those out as well. The X5 was then dropped off at my buddy's shop for valve stem seal repair, gaskets, spark plugs, front tie rod ends (ran out of time), and alignment. A very productive quarantine weekend.

[blackknight530i]

Got my 4.8is back from my buddy's shop after getting the valve stem seals and associated gaskets and seals done, as well as spark plugs. He also did an alignment after I did the full rear suspension and front tie rods and sway bar bushings front and back. He spent a looooong time pressure washing the engine bay, so everything is probably as clean as it was back in 2004 for the first time, LOL. It looks amazing and runs great. The alignment got everything almost into spec, except for the passenger rear camber. Even with all new suspension parts and even swing arm bushings replaced, he still couldn't get it better than -2.05. Spec is -1.45 to -1.55. Driver side was able to get to -1.54. I guess I need to look into adjustable control arms to try to bring that back into spec, which sucks. At least it rides great.

[TerraPhantm]

Got my 4.8is back from my buddy's shop after getting the valve stem seals and associated gaskets and seals done, as well as spark plugs. He also did an alignment after I did the full rear suspension and front tie rods and sway bar bushings front and back. He spent a looooong time pressure washing the engine bay, so everything is probably as clean as it was back in 2004 for the first time, LOL. It looks amazing and runs great. The alignment got everything almost into spec, except for the passenger rear camber. Even with all new suspension parts and even swing arm bushings replaced, he still couldn't get it better than -2.05. Spec is -1.45 to -1.55. Driver side was able to get to -1.54. I guess I need to look into adjustable control arms to try to bring that back into spec, which sucks. At least it rides great.

Weird. Was the car ever involved in an accident?

[blackknight530i]

Weird. Was the car ever involved in an accident?

Not as far as I'm aware. I've also heard that if the subframe bushings are bad, it can cause it to do this as well. That's next on the list. They are original with 145k miles on them and if they are anything like the e39 touring bushings, I'm sure they are done.

[purplecty]

Here is that alignment of how my e53 4.6iS came out after doing the rear suspension minus those swing arms...
Attachment 670361

[computiNATEor]

Any updates? Always love to see your threads, Paul.

[blackknight530i]

Any updates? Always love to see your threads, Paul.

Hey Nate,

Not really, though this past weekend we did swap the transfer case with a used one that had lower miles and didn't have different sized tires installed that tore it up, as well as did a fresh transmission fluid/filter service. It shifts a lot better now. Other than that, the X5 has been doing pretty great and I haven't really needed to do much to it after the valve stem seals. We did find that the transfer case rubber mount is pretty much shot on the replacement transfer case and the old one was as well, so I need to order one of those, as well as a DM-TL pump as I got a code for that the other day.

Small things.

In other news, I do have two other projects going on right now. I have a S54 swap into a 530i for a customer: https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...t530i-Edition/ and a 4.6is engine swap into my 2005 Range Rover: https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...er-4-6is-swap). Those are both coming along nicely.

[Trasportador]

i simply don't know where you find the time to get into all this madness. lol. Well done man, congrats on the E53.

[blackknight530i]

i simply don't know where you find the time to get into all this madness. lol. Well done man, congrats on the E53.

I live for this stuff, man! When I'm not working on the cars, I'm thinking of parts I need to order for the cars. I think I get more enjoyment out of building them than driving them LOL. That's not totally true, but maybe a little. I also don't like good cars going to the scrapyard and rescuing them just seems like a good way to do it. While I'm rescuing them, might as well make them a bit more unique, too. I'm really excited about the 530i S54 swap and Range Rover 4.6is swap. Both are at the engine refresh stage for now until I get the lift installed in the garage, which I'm hoping will be in the next month or two.

[blackknight530i]

Hey guys,

Been a while since I've done anything on this project as it's been a pretty reliable daily driver for me for the last 2 years or so since I updated the thread. Regular oil changes and I did install some Powerflex rear subframe bushings and thrust arm bushings have been about all I've done. Well, one thing that had become pretty annoying and I finally am getting around to taking care of is the awful shifting. Ever since I got the car, it's always shifted somewhat erratically for what I would guess this thing should shift like. I read a bunch of forum threads that talked about the ZF 6HP26 valve bodies being an issue as they wear out where these symptoms would present. I had planned on getting RevMax Converters here in Charlotte sell me a rebuilt one, but I never got around to it as it was $900 after the core charge (I could skip that as I'm local and could bring them mine when I picked up the new one) and I couldn't get them to pre-build it as I didn't know the information on my existing one. Well, now that I am finally ready to do it, they said they no longer rebuild them and didn't have a company to recommend either. So... I decided to do it myself. I was also getting a coolant leak from the back of the engine from the coolant transfer plate in the bellhousing and since I'd need to drop the transmission anyways, I would take care of the rear main seal at the same time. To add to that, I was also getting a thermostat error code, even though the engine seemed to be normal temp, so I change the thermostat at the same time since I'd have to drain the coolant.

Well, we got started this weekend pulling the transmission and it actually went pretty smoothly. I got the exhaust removed without too much trouble and got the front and rear driveshafts disconnected. Drained all of the coolant from the radiator, then the two block drain plugs and the transmission fluid. Dropped the pan, filter and pulled the valve body. I can't even begin to tell you how messy this job is. Coolant dripping from everywhere, transmission fluid constantly draining and coming from who knows where.





I wasn't able to finish the rear main seal job yet as it appears I'm missing one of the dowels that locates the rear main seal plate. I'm not sure if it fell into the oil pan or if it wasn't there at all and that's why it was leaking, but I have to wait for a new dowel to come in before I can button it all up. The coolant transfer plate was definitely leaking and looked awful. Gooey coolant and oil were everywhere along the back of the engine and in the bellhousing. Got that all cleaned up and the new plate installed.

With the valve body removed, I was able to get the part numbers I needed to get the new solenoids, Sonnax Zip kit, and new ZF separator plate ordered.



Another issue that I'll be tackling while I'm in there is that when I did the alternator bracket gasket job, I think we might have damaged either the o-ring between the front differential and the oil pan, or differential seal between the diff and oil pan, so the front differential will be coming out as well to take care of that.



Rear shocks are also going to get changed as they are the only remaining suspension part that hasn't been replaced on this car. The Bilstein B4s are finally back in stock and those are OE for the car.

My buddy Stephen also detailed my M5 this weekend and since it's supposed to rain this week, I wanted to be able to still park it in the garage, so fortunately, the lift works great for that.



Will pick this up more once I get the other parts in. Hopefully next weekend.

[blackknight530i]

So, no new pictures from the weekend where we put the X5 all back together again as we were in full work mode, but we got a lot done. During the week as parts came in, I got the valve body disassembled and drained of as much fluid as I could (it never ends, fluid just keeps coming out) and got started on the ZipKit. If you don't know what a ZipKit is, Sonnax (no, not Sonax the detailing product company) makes a "refresh" kit that replaces a bunch of end plugs and some redesigned plungers and such for many different valve bodies that make it easy to restore a valve body to new condition that will last longer than the original parts, without needing to ream out any of the channels and such. The biggest cause of these newer transmissions not performing as they should is due to leakages around the valves in the valve body, which are not externally apparent, so someone buying a used car might never know how it was originally supposed to shift. I'm not saying all this because I have anything to do with them, just cool that they make the products and they aren't terribly expensive and can easily be purchased by regular DIY people.

I also installed a new separator plate (pretty much a necessity if doing this job as it has a printed gasket like surface that is specific to the version of valve body you have and it wears away over time) and new solenoids. I only had codes for 1 or two of them, but I figured while I'm in there, I don't want to do that job again. The solenoids were biggest expense, but likely what make all the difference in rebuilding the valve body.

Got the rear main seal installed and torqued and put the flex plate back on. Changed the CSB on the rear driveshaft and reinstalled the transmission. That made it easier to reinstall the rebuilt valve body. Last thing was to replace the rear shocks with new Bilstein B4s that are actually the OE replacement. The original shocks had a sleeve over the top that holds the dust boot, but the B4s have a slightly different sleeve on them that doesn't fit the dust boot. Fortunately, these knock off easily with a dead blow hammer and slide onto the new struts, so everything looks factree . I did check the original shocks and found the Bilstein square logo on them in the same place as the replacements, so it's cool that it's that obvious.

Filled up the coolant and transmission fluid, but found out during filling the transmission that I was a bit short on fluid. I originally bought a fluid and filter change kit from FCP that included enough fluid for just that, but when you drop the valve body and disconnect the cooling lines, turns out it needs a bit more fluid. I had an extra bottle left over from the last fluid and filter change for some reason, so that helped, but I needed to order some more. I ordered 3, but when those came in that Friday, it turns out I only needed most of 1L. I'm using LiquiMoly Top Tec 1800, which was recommended by my local indy shop buddy and I've been quite happy with LiquiMoly's stuff.

So, I was able to clear adaptations and take it out for a bit of a drive last Friday when I got it all filled up and initially, every shift felt like someone was smashing into my car, but I just kept it really easy and let it learn how to shift. After a few miles, it was quite apparent that it was shifting so much better than before. Shifting between drive and reverse used to take several seconds, but now it's instantaneous. I also can't reproduce an issue it had where at about 35 MPH cruising with light pedal it would jerk every few seconds, so that seems to be fixed as well. Overall, it shifts much better, but I'm still needing to drive it around more for it to learn the adaptations.

[purplecty]

Alot of great work as always! Where did you purchase the B4 shocks from?

[blackknight530i]

Alot of great work as always! Where did you purchase the B4 shocks from?

Thanks!

Got them from FCP. They were like $118 each.

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