Z4 Quagmire Car

[clarkitect]

So to update on the process of getting the car running like it should. I took the following steps:
- Intake manifold gaskets and CCV. These looked original, so it was time, plus was able to clean up under there. A must.
- New DISA since the old one was roasted, literally.
- Smoke tested intake as well as engine crank case. Tight as a drum.
- Fuel pressure test. 50 psi at idle, tests fine.
- Injector cleaning and testing. Injectors tested fine. See flow test before and after:







With all this testing and repairing car was still backfiring through intake and dying when giving it the gas. Running super lean. Ran great with MAF unplugged. Bought a used MAF on ebay, sixty bucks. BOOM. Car runs like a champ!

Brakes: New pads and rotors, Repack front wheel bearings.










I would recommend just repacking the front bearings/hubs. No need to buy new unless they are making noise. If they have never been replaced and have a lot of miles they are probably dry, but may not be in bad shape. Mine we good. Should be good to go.

Pads and rotors. Had already rebuilt calipers and replaced all hoses, flushed the system.




Now to deal with these dash lights:




My biggest issue now is dealing with INPA and/or PA Soft, neither program will read EWS or IKE, regardless of whether or not pins 7 and 8 are bridged. Makes it hard to diagnose these lights. Am planning to see if my mechanic can reset the airbag light now that I have cleaned up those main connections. Fingers crossed. Tire pressure maybe bad sensors in the wheels. brake and dsc lights, maybe brake pressure sensor? Kind of an expensive part.

Also need to replace those front splash shields between the bumper and wheel well liners. Made of gold apparently.

New front control arms and sway bar end links showing up today to resolve front end clunk. I feel like I am building this thing from scratch sometimes.

[Clearancediver]

I had a ‘04 3.0i… There is a SRS wire pair that connects to the battery terminal BST… about 18” backwards from that point is a connector… if it is “dirty” and the resistance seen by the car is greater than 3.2 ohms… the airbag light will illuminate. Use electrical contact cleaner to clean. I eventually had to cut this connector out and replace to lower the resistance to the required spec last summer… kept going out of spec and eventually wouldn’t… hence the R&R….. While you are at it… clean the connectors under both driver and passenger seats with electrical cleaner… SRS wiring goes through both. My connector issue showed up as a low voltage error using INPA ( diagnosed/repaired by BMW tech when I originally bought car 9+years ago) and confirmed again numerous times with INPA on my dedicated BMW laptop… INPA and INSTAD both will identify the error and let you drill down to the point that you can test the resistance of that wire pair….with the software.

The error showed up as a seat belt tensioner issue on a handheld scanner by independent … hence the reason I had the car seen by a BMW tech ( car just bought from dealer so diagnosis/repair was free… ) and obtained the INPA software originally and the INSTAD software later when it came out (paid for it then… you can download for free now…)

The software has paid for itself numerous times over the years.

I would clear all the codes and then take it for a drive and see what “pops back up”… and deal with that….

Low voltage will cause all sorts of fault codes to be set. They have to be reset via the software… very few handheld scanners are capable of clearing them.

Pump up your tires to correct pressure and reset the low tire indicator system button just before you do your test drive…


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[Clearancediver]

I just re read your last post… sorry if I seemed to preach about INPA… forget details about what I read at times… joys of getting old…

You can get the proper cable off of eBay or Amazon with it properly bridged.. or being able to be “switched” between pre face lift and facelift… I have both… My original INPA cable doesn’t like INSTAD….go figure.


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[clarkitect]

I would clear the codes but need to get INPA and PA Soft sorted out. Neither are reading any modules other than the DME. INPA worked fine on my E38 but not on this Z4 or my 330. Odd that both software packages are having the same issues. Very frustrating. Maybe I will buy the switched INPA cable and give that a try.

Tire pressure system will not reset. I think I am missing one or more sensors.

There is nothing on this car that didn’t or does not still need attention. Getting there a little at a time.

[clarkitect]

Old exhaust was super loud. Mostly because it was just fart cans, so mission accomplished. Deafening to drive a car with a cloth roof with these things.




Will give them to the wife to put in the garden to put some lovely flowers in.

New OEM muffler was an old one I bought on ebay for like $80 shipped. Was from a 3.0 automatic, but only difference must be around the transmission or something, because it seems to fit right on perfectly with a little help from a pipe stretcher.




New ones look tiny!




Old ones:

[clarkitect]

Strut mounts were cracked, front struts leaking. Clunky ball joint up front. I think every replaceable part on this car needs to be replaced.

I had my mechanic down the street disassemble these because my hook spring compressors did not seem to do the job.



Could not get anyone to put them all back together with the new struts and mounts, so had to go it alone, with a little help from a dude on FB. Hook compressors only can grab adjacent coils otherwise the springs get all bent out of shape and look like danger, so needed to improvise. Get them squeezed down all the way, and it will be so close to getting back together I used some hand clamps to get them down enough to reassemble.






If you think that was dangerous, think again. Once the hook compressors are all the way down, I used the hand clamps to evenly compress additional coils. Even if they pop off, it only springs back very little. Once I got it down enough to install the top spring plate and nut, I could really tweak the clamps to press the springs down enough to remove the nut to install the washer, grease seal, mount, and nut. I am super paranoid doing struts, but I never felt like I was going to get punched in the face or nuts. Probably a second set of these hook compressors would also do the job, or just by the proper plate type compressor.

Back together.





Hit the top nut with the Ryobi impact gun to spin it down without counter-holding, then finished torquing it once installed in the car.

So it was new control arms, bushings, replaced cracked engine mount bracket, new motor mounts, struts, mounts, sway bar end links. Also replaced both steering rack boots. One was torn, the other dried out. Both were full of water. Cleaned the ends of the steering rack and greased up before installing new rack bellows.

Next up a front end alignment to set the toe since I had to remove the tie rod ends to install new bellows. I will post up some picks of my string alignment. Never done one but it seems pretty easy.

[Clearancediver]

I bought a strut compressor to do my struts on the Z as well….. when I had one compressed I looked at and decided my life wasn’t worth going further… and I say that as a former qualified EOD tech. The $90 I paid a shop to do them was well worth it.

I’ve pretty much done everything else on the car that could be done on ramps/jackstands…. Except for the transmission flush and CV delete. I don’t go under cars where there isn’t room for me between the ground and the frame.

Had a old garage air lift drop 12” with my car on it when I was a stupid kid. I was underneath the car…. Flash Gordon had nothing on me in that moment. Had it dropped further not sure what the outcome would have been.


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[clarkitect]

I bought a strut compressor to do my struts on the Z as well….. when I had one compressed I looked at and decided my life wasn’t worth going further… and I say that as a former qualified EOD tech. The $90 I paid a shop to do them was well worth it.

I’ve pretty much done everything else on the car that could be done on ramps/jackstands…. Except for the transmission flush and CV delete. I don’t go under cars where there isn’t room for me between the ground and the frame.

Had a old garage air lift drop 12” with my car on it when I was a stupid kid. I was underneath the car…. Flash Gordon had nothing on me in that moment. Had it dropped further not sure what the outcome would have been.


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I tried to have someone else put them together. One shop had them for three days to no avail. Second shop said they spent over an hour trying and could not do it. I’m not a mechanic but I got them done. My dad was was a mechanic. Some of him rubbed off on me. Thanks Dad.

[Clearancediver]

Interesting that they couldn’t do them. The shop I took them too had a spring compressing “machine” that took them about 10 min max to compress/remove/reinstall new struts….. for each assembly. Was less than 30 min for the two to be done.

My dad also was a marine engineer/mechanic … got my skills from him too. Runs in the family as my son is a mechanic as well…and my daughter buys her own tools lol. The only thing he’s done on my car was the VANOS while I assisted. Ohh.. passenger motor mount will fit up through the oil plug hatch if you need to change it.

The two steel rods on my compressor “bowed”, there was that much stress. No way was I going to touch that top nut…let alone try to unscrew it. Too much tension still present.


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[clarkitect]

Ok another update. First of all INPA. Could not get it to work to save my life. But realized that the method I was using to jumper pins 7 and 8 was shoddy. I decided to go all in and solder them together for real, and voila, the damn thing works perfectly.



Also soldered 7 & 8 as well as 1 & 2 on my PA Soft cable. Now that works. Sometimes I just kick myself in the ass for not doing it right the first time. Oh well. Moving on.

So I was a little overwhelmed by this amazing light show.




Fortunately I figured out INPA and was able to reset all the stored errors in the car. Restarted and basically all the lights came back (except the check engine because I nailed that one at this point knock on wood). Read the codes again (here via PASoft) and found some for a Yaw sensor and something called a sensorcluster.




After some searching found this video:



Well well well. So that is what is a sensorcluster. A bad yaw sensor results in the yellow brake, tire pressure and DSC lights being illuminated. Good to know! Looks like we are going back in here again.




I had taken old one apart to make sure it looked ok but apparently it was not OK. Old one junk. New used on from some dude on FB looks brand new.





Also came to the realization that I don't believe this car has TMPS in the tires, it relies on wheel speed sensors. In any event, that is resolved, so I am pretty stoked. Now I am down to just two warning lights. So exciting!



I am hoping the airbag light is easy as it is a driver's door airbag issue. I was futzing around in that door so maybe I screwed something up. At least I know the repair to the central module was a success.



For those using INPA, on this car you can't read from the Airbag Menu you need to read from the Safety Information Module menu, and reset codes from the individual sensors in the doors, pillars, and main SIM85 module.

Now for the steering, which seems to be a little harder to track down.




If anyone knows anything about these codes I would love to hear what you had to say. The power steering is intermittent, and I am considering sending the motor out for rebuild to ECUtesting in England.

[a777fan]

Wow! This is true dedication.

Great work so far. How did this one drop into your lap?

Also- for those INPA screens in German, download the google translate app. Its got a ‘magic’ mode that can translate automatically via the camera, live! No pic required. Very handy, and while it might not get you 100pct of the way there, its better than nothing!

[clarkitect]

Wow! This is true dedication.

Great work so far. How did this one drop into your lap?

Also- for those INPA screens in German, download the google translate app. Its got a ‘magic’ mode that can translate automatically via the camera, live! No pic required. Very handy, and while it might not get you 100pct of the way there, its better than nothing!

Great idea on the Google Translate! I’ll def do that although my german has been improving haha.

Found the car on one of my daily craigslist trolls for cars I apparently can’t live without. Thing was abandoned by the previous owner and left for his roommate to pay past debts. It looked so sad in the ad I had to grab it. I had immediate buyers remorse but have enjoyed tackling all the issues and getting it going again. I’m a sucker for down and out things and have a need to restore things.

Thanks for checking in!

[clarkitect]

Replaced broken rear springs in the ship of theseus.

[clarkitect]

We are selling the E36 so thought I’d throw these M Contours on the E85. Not sure they are doing it for me but not quite a crying emogee like the FB ppl trot out.

[clarkitect]

Took some pics in no particular order cause it’s a pain cutting and pasting on the iphone. Man these really are good looking little rigs.

[clarkitect]

Good news everyone!

Regular readers will recall I have been trying to solve a bunch of dash warning lights. Was down to two - airbag and steering. Cross airbag off the list!

I was getting one code in the Safety Module menu Satellite B Column Left submenu - 986A for low resistance at the left door airbag. Took the door apart and everything looked fine until I did a little more internet sleuthing and realized that I was missing the black clip from the airbag connector.




Once again, hoarding old parts saves the day, another connector harvested from the spare door harness.






There we go! Down to one stupid thing to deal with!




Best tools for these cars: INPA and INTERNET.

[clarkitect]

WTF. Got the 5E38 code again - Yaw Sensor Electrical Failure. Gotta pull the seat back out and look at it again. Not sure what would cause it to fail again unless there is water in there although the car has not been rained on in almost a year. I did wash the convertible top though hopefully it did not get drenched under the carpet.

[clarkitect]

Bone dry under the seat. Power surge? Can I accidentally toast it with INPA the way I did to the nav on my E38 one time?

[Clearancediver]

Z4 Trifecta….. based upon the dash fault indicators in the picture.

Can be caused by low voltage issue(s)….

Google the term above…

Check your battery voltage “cold” and then with engine running. Google proper voltage outputs if not familiar with correct range. Bad battery/low voltage and alternator voltage regulator issue can cause the “trifecta” …

Easy to check and easy to fix …. Clear codes afterwards and see if they reappear ……or Clear codes first and see what happens… if they fault lights reappear then check battery/voltage regulator output ….


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[clarkitect]

Battery is brand new. 12.2v Charges fine 13.7v running. Reset the code and it comes right back. Bad sensorcluster again. Had the issue before and resolved it by replacing the sensor. Something caused the new one to fail. Error is 5E38 Yaw Rate Sensor Electrically Defective.

[Clearancediver]

Replace yaw rate sensor would be my first suggestion. That said download real oem.com and locate its position which I think is in the cab somewhere not something I’ve worked on before lots of posts on this though.

I would use INPA/INSTAD to further drill down on the error to see what the suggested repair/fix is for this.


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[clarkitect]

Replace yaw rate sensor would be my first suggestion. That said download real oem.com and locate its position which I think is in the cab somewhere not something I’ve worked on before lots of posts on this though.

I would use INPA/INSTAD to further drill down on the error to see what the suggested repair/fix is for this.

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See post #35 above .

My issue is I just replaced the f-ing thing, now it is bad again. Literally days later. That is the source of my frustration.

[Clearancediver]

Yup you did…

May I suggest you change INPA to English from German… did this years ago somehow but don’t remember….BUT….read this post..

https://www.bimmerfest.com/threads/i...nguage.521229/

and…. https://www.bimmerfest.com/threads/f...-inpa.1267140/

…and watch this YouTube video…

https://www.google.ca/search?q=chang...elS3F7NxU,st:0

However, I would look at downloading INSTAD as it is available in English but you will most likely need to get a cable for it too…. my INSTA Cable didn’t like INSTAD.

In the meantime… disconnect the module and clean the connectors with electrical cleaner… nothing to lose by doing so… and then clearing all codes via INPA.

I can understand your frustration as I had those same fault lights and for me it turned out to be a corrupted GPS I had plugged into the car. Hard to believe but I was able to reproduce the issue by removing /clearing/test drive car and no issue.. plug GPS in and fault reoccurred… rinse and repeat a couple of times to confirm and then replaced GPS.. no further issue. Spent weeks trying to figure out what was going on…. But every connector in that car is “clean” now.

So… it might not be Yaw sensor specifically but something else in proximity….

Again personally… I’d go go clean/re-clean any connector you can reach/access including GM5 to establish a basis. That includes the under seat drivers connector and it’s mate under the passenger seat ( once cleaned I zap strapped them to ensure a tight connection). Reconnect battery cables and clear codes whether or not it says there are or not.

Perhaps you will get lucky while you get the software to translate German to English and download INSTAD…


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[Clearancediver]

Also…. Ensure you remove the ashtray/console (one screw) and remove and clean the push button connectors ensuring you push buttons in and out doing so…. DSC button is one of them so why not….

Then if possible take the car for a drive… even if you need day insurance…. do some gocart left/right movements to “exercise” the yaw sensor…

Why?… when my battery died last summer after 8 years use I had all sorts of fault indicators on the dash (including DSC if memory is correct… I’m old so forgive me if it wasn’t one of the ones that came on after first clearing when driving afterwards)… after clearing and I went for a drive had various dash indicators come on again… pulled over and turned off car for a few minutes started car and they disappeared… drove further and new indicators came on… rinse and repeat a couple times and all was cleared never to reappear…. Take INPA with you and leave plugged in (copilot) to clear codes on the fly as you drive and see what comes back etc.

All the above … exempting day insurance… only costs the price of a spray electrical cleaner and eliminates or identifies corrosion/bad connection issues.

Clean battery posts and cable connectors coat terminal posts with a little dialectic grease and retighten battery connections …. Just part of eliminating any potential issues later down the line….


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[clarkitect]

Well replacing the DSC Sensor a second time fixed the problem for a second time. Hopefully there will not be a third time. I cleaned all the connections that did not even look dirty at all, they looked perfect, that did not help. Battery is new, connections are clean because I made sure it was all good before I installed the battery.

Moving on to the next item I found someone to send me a used EPS motor to disassemble and see what's inside. Hoping to discover that it might be something as simple as cleaning the brushes and commutator, but need to see how to get into those without wrecking my own motor. Figure it's worth doing before removing to send to ecutesting.com for repair.