What did you do to/for your 1er today?

[Gangplank]

Originally Posted by low135

God this color is bright haha gonna be interesting

It's gonna be a Chiquita Banana!!

[chris_flies]

Originally Posted by Gangplank

It's gonna be a Chiquita Banana!!

I read that in an overly-enthusiastic hispanic accent and nearly choked on my root beer float...

[low135]

Originally Posted by Gangplank

It's gonna be a Chiquita Banana!!

guilty that I drunkenly bought this to throw on the trunk while doing some top down donuts :

[Esteban]

Originally Posted by chris_flies

I read that in an overly-enthusiastic hispanic accent and nearly choked on my root beer float...

Root beer float...

Ahhh, that sounds really good right about now.

Currently 101 degrees and I've been working in the yard the last few hours.

[JimVonBaden]

Originally Posted by low135

guilty that I drunkenly bought this to throw on the trunk while doing some top down donuts :

You absolutely MUST take photos/video of this!

[chris_flies]

Originally Posted by Esteban

Root beer float...

Ahhh, that sounds really good right about now.

Currently 101 degrees and I've been working in the yard the last few hours.

It is very refreshing

It's been overcast and drizzly here for the past few days, so it's been a pleasant temperature, but it's been impossible to get outdoor work done. We must be turning into Florida; by the time you get everything ready to mow the lawn after it's stopped raining (finally), it starts raining again, and you get caught in this vicious cycle...

I was very productive today, despite not doing any yardwork. I helped a friend replace his Acura TL's dead alternator, which was extremely easy. And...

I got my LSD installed!!!


I didn't install fresh diff bushings, since we didn't have the right tools, and I know what a pain it is to try without the right tools, and I didn't want to have the car down for the time it'd take to get the right tools. So, I swapped a diff in about 6 hours (including a few breaks, dinner, and some space-casing).

Early-on review: It's very different, even just driving around neighborhood streets and neighborhood speeds. The new 3.73 gear ratio is fantastic, and this diff is SOOO much quieter and less clunky than my old one (which was AWFUL, after taking it off the car and spinning it freely). The LSD is not yet broken-in, but, so far it's very subtle in it's changes, but has fundamentally changed the character of the car (still at neighborhood speeds). It's really hard to explain with only 5 minutes of seat time. I'll get more into it tomorrow after I've done the break-in procedure (many figure-8's) and can go on a decently long drive in the car.

Oil change tomorrow. Liqui-Moly 5W-30 and a Mann filter. Easy-peasy!

[low135]

A couple more pics from that shoot last week. Wrapping should start tonight

[HyeWarrior]

Looks great. Perfect fitment imo. What were your wheel tire specs again?

[low135]

Originally Posted by HyeWarrior

Looks great. Perfect fitment imo. What were your wheel tire specs again?

Thanks! I do have 15mm spacers for the front to try and flush it up some more.

VMR 701
18x8.5+45 on 215/40
18x9.5+45 on 245/40

[minirips2]

I finally got around to replacing my non-powered, non-sport seats with a set of powered sports. I found this thread on E90post:
https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=480313
I read it a bunch of times, and printed the diagrams of the connectors and made some notes. The bottom line is that all you really need is 30 amp power to the seat modules, two grounds per seat, and 10 amp power for the side bolsters, which do not get power from the modules. Then, to make it all happy, you have to connect the modules to the K-CAN network, which turned out to be the most nerve wracking part, because the K-CAN wiring is something like 22gauge. I used some R/C model connectors to tap into the network where it goes into my I-Drive controller. BMW terminal ends are available at BavAuto. The part numbers are in the thread I linked.
Installed the new perches, connected the negative battery terminal, and voila! they are 100% functional, and oh so comfy and supportive. Shoot, the memory function even works, but only from the seat buttons, since I don't have comfort access.
Needless to say, I'm ecstatic. If anyone here is contemplating this mod, go for it!

[chris_flies]

Oil changed. Liqui-Moly 5w-40, and a Mann filter. 15 minutes (it was hot in the garage). Boom. Done.

Those jugs of oil are awesome, they have a cool built-in spout and I didn't have any oil run down the side of the jug. Easy.

Also did the break-in procedure with the diff. Man it was unhappy when we were done, super grabby, and just brutal. A lot like a welded diff at that point. I wasn't much better off; figure eights for 30 minutes straight, and then fast circles for ten minutes in each direction. Now it's feeling a lot better than when it was new, so I'm happy. I might want to adjust the lockup characteristics later on, but it's just nice to have a real diff in the car. It behaves so different to the open diff, there's going to be an adjustment period...

EDIT: Adding a question to this. I have a heavy vibration that starts immediately and consistently at 70 mph, it continues all the way through 80, and then slowly fades through 90-95 mph (noticed on track). What could be causing this? I'm thinking inner tie rods, as it is most apparent in the steering. These tires are brand new, were mounted and balanced three weeks ago. The wheels don't look out of round from spinning them in the air, but that's still a possibility. I recently did an alignment, but it's not perfectly perfect . This vibration is only present at the speeds mentioned above, nowhere else.

[BimmerAg]

Originally Posted by Matticus91

I know this life... I wish you the best on this journey lol

Thankfully, I think the worst part is behind me now. I've spent probably a solid 10-12 hours to get to where I'm at so far and most of that was pretty labor intensive. At least with painting you have some breaks between coats. Also, these just have 5 split spokes so hopefully they won't be quite as labor intensive as your CSL style wheels.

[Mandinca]

I just threw a code for misfires in #6.
Now, #6 was replaced a few months ago with an eBay refurb while I figure out how to sell my first born to pay for new index 12's. I didn't bother to code it since the numbers on the refurbed injector are probably not even accurate (since it's a refurb). A month went by with no issue then I started getting a poor idle issue on an overnight start. It's been like that for a couple of months, gradually getting a little bit worse but nothing terrible. Then today, I stomped on it and it immediately started misfiring...or should I say, #6 stopped working. I was close to home so I carefully got to my garage and plugged MHD in with the engine still running on 5 cylinders. Read the code, misfire on #6 then reset the DME codes and the car started running perfectly again.
Now correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't the misfire throw the code, seems that in my situation, removing the code removed the misfire.

Anyone got any idea how that could be ?

Edit* I think one or both of my VANOS might be on their way out, could that have caused it all ?

Incidentally, in the name of the thread, I added paddle shift this weekend after finally picking up the correct wheel controls on eBay. What a difference D/S makes over Drive.

[asiflicious]

Originally Posted by chris_flies

Oil changed. Liqui-Moly 5w-40, and a Mann filter. 15 minutes (it was hot in the garage). Boom. Done.

Those jugs of oil are awesome, they have a cool built-in spout and I didn't have any oil run down the side of the jug. Easy.

Also did the break-in procedure with the diff. Man it was unhappy when we were done, super grabby, and just brutal. A lot like a welded diff at that point. I wasn't much better off; figure eights for 30 minutes straight, and then fast circles for ten minutes in each direction. Now it's feeling a lot better than when it was new, so I'm happy. I might want to adjust the lockup characteristics later on, but it's just nice to have a real diff in the car. It behaves so different to the open diff, there's going to be an adjustment period...

EDIT: Adding a question to this. I have a heavy vibration that starts immediately and consistently at 70 mph, it continues all the way through 80, and then slowly fades through 90-95 mph (noticed on track). What could be causing this? I'm thinking inner tie rods, as it is most apparent in the steering. These tires are brand new, were mounted and balanced three weeks ago. The wheels don't look out of round from spinning them in the air, but that's still a possibility. I recently did an alignment, but it's not perfectly perfect . This vibration is only present at the speeds mentioned above, nowhere else.

Did you get a clutch LSD or helical?

[xQx]

Originally Posted by asiflicious

Did you get a clutch LSD or helical?

Given the description of handling and the break in procedure, it's safe to say it's a clutch LSD.

What did you end up getting chris_flies and what's your impressions on what it's done to the car?

[asiflicious]

Originally Posted by xQx

Given the description of handling and the break in procedure, it's safe to say it's a clutch LSD.

What did you end up getting chris_flies and what's your impressions on what it's done to the car?

That's what I thought. I bought a helical and was curious if I needed to do the break in as well. I'm assuming no

[xQx]

Originally Posted by low135

A couple more pics from that shoot last week. Wrapping should start tonight

Man that's a sexy looking vert. You make me want to lower mine.

Mine got new //M coloured kidney grills and one less ///M badge ... photos to come after I've washed it.

[chris_flies]

Originally Posted by xQx

Given the description of handling and the break in procedure, it's safe to say it's a clutch LSD.

What did you end up getting chris_flies and what's your impressions on what it's done to the car?

I got the MFactory 1.5-way LSD(clutch-type). It's made the behavior of the car much more throttle-dependent. It dives (almost violently) into the inside of a turn when you lift off. When you get on the gas mid-corner, it pushes wide. It's a cool thing to play with; slight push on entry, rotation to the apex, power through track out. I could get used to this

It's also made turning right onto fast roads in the rain from a stop very...interesting. It really wants to push sideways and carry momentum through the turn, but I think a nanny is interfering (probably ediff) and I'll have to make sure they're coded out.

asiflicious The helical-type diffs don't need to be broken-in, as there's no wear material, only gears. You'll still want to change the diff oil about 1k miles after it's installed to make sure all the packing coatings and whatnot are out of the system, but after that, you'll be set. I have to change my diff oil after 250 miles during the first part of break-in, then 1000 miles later for secondary break-in, and then the 10-15k mile regular service interval.

[low135]

So, I was wanting to do a power dome hood but hate the look of pins or latches. I finally found a separate weld on dome so that I can modify my OEM hood and not worry about adding latches or the hood flying up. Best of both worlds for people that want that look

[Matticus91]

Originally Posted by low135

So, I was wanting to do a power dome hood but hate the look of pins or latches. I finally found a separate weld on dome so that I can modify my OEM hood and not worry about adding latches or the hood flying up. Best of both worlds for people that want that look

I saw that too and considered it. I think in the end after looking at cost to mod the hood for the dome it was roughly the same cost as the Seibon CF hood. I only went with the Seibon hood since it's a bolt-on option and I like CF and don't mind the latches, the weld-in option is great as well. And honestly, unless you're serious about tracking and cutting weight, you'll never notice the weight savings from the CF vs the stocker.

[low135]

Originally Posted by Matticus91

I saw that too and considered it. I think in the end after looking at cost to mod the hood for the dome it was roughly the same cost as the Seibon CF hood. I only went with the Seibon hood since it's a bolt-on option and I like CF and don't mind the latches, the weld-in option is great as well. And honestly, unless you're serious about tracking and cutting weight, you'll never notice the weight savings from the CF vs the stocker.

I was ready to pay extra to find a way to reinforce the seibon without needing pins/latches so this seems to be the smart move for me. I'd be wrapping it body color either way too so the carbon would have been negligible. I'm glad I found it as I was going to ditch the idea altogether due to the pins/latches. For $180usd plus shipping, I think my guy can come in a fair bit below the $900 range for the seibon. Even if not, worth it to me for the cleanliness

[HyeWarrior]

Finally set an appointment in a couple weeks to get my subframe bushings, catless downpipe, MHD tune, and a fresh battery installed lol.

Also will be installing koni yellows + dinan springs, along with a fresh set of coil packs and spark plugs myself.

Should be an interesting couple of weeks