Picked up my 328i....

[LPM320]

Hi guys.

Picked up my 328i on thursday.

It is definetely everything i expected it to be and more!

It was basically a one owner car, but after driving it there some issues that need to be sorted out:

- Gear shift feels really sloppy, dont have a problem engaging gears though, but the feel is terrible. Im presuming its the gear linkages. Is this an expensive repair? Is it within the diy scope?

- I noticed that the heat gauge sits a little bit above half once the motor warms up, and on long downhills the engine temp (heat gauge) drops to the first stroke after the blue square, and then starts to rise once you start accelerating. I prefer the gauge to be sitting dead centre (For peace of mind) Im thinking thermostat and viscous fan? Do i have to replace the thermo housing as well? Is it a diy job? Any special tools needed for removal of the viscous?

- The front seats are squashed and compressed beyond belief. The owner was about 150kg and his wife looked even heavier:shocked:
I guess i will be needing 2 black leather front seats. Im in durban. Any contacts / ideas guys

Any advice on these problems would be highly appreciated.

Here are a few pics of the car, does need a good wash and polish though

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[S///Mon]

Congrats, I also picked up mine last week!

Love the power

how much on the clock?

 

[LPM320]

Thanks smon.

Its got a mileage of 175000km.

The power is fantastic, sometimes when you see the speedo needle flying around the dial, you start to think bmw underquoted the power output!

 

[DonovanPorter]

looking good , mabe just clean your camera's lense

 

[Sankekur]

The sloppy shift is most probably cause by the bushings and washers on the shifter parts and possibly the ball joint in the shift lever being worn.
Most of it is a pretty easy DIY, not sure how easy it is to do the stuff where the linkages connect to the gearbox, have never done that before.

I would say you can't go wrong with a good cooling system overhaul, just to be sure, the drop in the temp when freeing down hill is normal as far as I know . With there 6-cyl's just remember, give it good oil and never let it get too hot, and you will have years of good service from it.

 

[Snoop328i]

Congrats and enjoy the power.
DIY on thermostat and housing was very easy at least i think so after reading the DIY for it
Do it ASAP before you have overheating problems and damage your engine a BIG NO NO and very costly...Try this site below for a DIY. Replace your thermostat housing with a metal one...i got one from Goldwagen.

http://www.bimmerdiy.com/diy/e36coolingsystem/

 

[MikeR]

:wave: those are great motors...enjoy.
Gear Bushes are very easy to do..
The cooling system def needs TLC - plenty if you have a bit of extra cash check out all the hoses and replace where they are old, change the thermostat (easy job - but long) then have the radiator checked out - and the overflow bottle.
The Rubber joint on the drive shaft thinking: cant remember the name) has a tendency to go, + I would have the engine mounts done also.

and after that the mechanics are like new mate. :thumbsup:

 

[LPM320]

Thanks guys.

Yeah mike, these motors are brilliant. The 328i does really have serious punch, especially in 3rd gear.

Will be definetely giving that cooling system some attention

 

[andrewbuch]

Congrats on the new car...

the gear linkages are fairly cheap & easyish to do... I did mine on the E46 as well as a 328i shifter & it helped it 95% better..

Replace thermostat & check cooling pipes & replace where necessary & get radiator Flushed out well & top up with correct coolant concentration.

Maybe look at replacing the viscous fan with an electric one..

gear stuff:

I replaced parts numbered : 7, 10, 11 & shifter & have parts 4, 2,3, 12 that still need to be fitted as they are a bit harder to get to..

Another thing to do is the Golf T Mod (if its possible on your car)

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Also get the front control arm bushes checked & also the RTAB's & the guibo (prop shaft rubber thingy)

 

[rick540]

When you do the thermostat, make sure to Google the correct bleeding procedure for the M52 engine and make sure the air is bled out 100%..... A big point often overlooked when working on these engines and causing the thing to give major greif afterwards.

 

[LPM320]

Will do....

Thanks for the tips guys.

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Snoop 328i, you said you got your metal thermostat housing from goldwagen, i just called them now, they say they got plastic only.

Which branch did you get yours from? Do you have the stock code by any chance?

Many thanks