The General's F13 M6 Coupe

swazi85

Active member
Been debating selling my m6 recently. So hard to replace these cars for what they offer and the price point that at.

Sent from my SM-S906E using Tapatalk
 
Hi all, so update on a little bit of work done on the M6 so far.

I never noticed, but the side sills on the M6 light up, i never get in the passenger side lol, so i never saw, when i did i thought it was amazing and investigated the Drivers side and saw it was just a funky connection on the illuminator, so fixed it, as well as gave it a damn clean underneath the sill cover:
IMG-20231019-WA0021.jpeg
IMG-20231019-WA0025.jpeg

Also, (i know this is a V8), but I've been getting pretty heavy fuel economy, and have always had "Catalytic Converter: Efficiency below limit value" and "Catalytic Converter 2: Efficiency below limit value" errors, i know this has been due to the Downpipes.
So ive had 3 options:
1. Get Stock Dowpipes - Expensive
2. Get and try Cat Foolers - Cheap as chips
3. Get software - MHD is around 13k for a super license

So i decided on Option 2 and purchased a set of Cat Foolers and fitted them yesterday evening.
IMG-20231024-WA0008.jpeg
IMG-20231024-WA0012.jpeg
IMG-20231024-WA0019.jpeg

I cleared the errors and went for a drive, i knw there needs to be a drive cycle or two generally, but after a bit of a hard drive, no errors returned yet, so i will monitor it for a while.

For those that don't know, ill explain the Cat and lambda sensors briefly.

The Pre Cat O2/Lambda sensor (Primary - Wideband) measures the Air/Fuel mix coming straight out the motor, the Catalytic Converter then heats up and "cleans" the exhaust gasses for emissions control, and the Post Cat O2/Lambda Sensor (Secondary - Narrowband) measures how clean the gasses are after they've been burnt up.
With the Cat removed, both sensors are measuring the same quality of Gas, this puts the secondary sensors in Low efficiency mode making the car think that the Catalytic Converter is damaged or not doing its job, this puts the car into a default Air/Fuel program and essentially just dumps fuel in to try "burn out" the cats to go back to correct efficiency, hence the high fuel consumption. - Im sure Ive got this right, happy to have a discussion on it, but this is how I understand it from my research.

So with all that said, i need to monitor the Codes and fueling for a while and see how the car responds. I know the best way to handle this is to get software, and have he secondary sensors removed from the software instead and tuned for it. it will be the most ideal.
Saying that, this is a Temporary measure till i can do MHD Software (Stg0 with the option for Catless DP ticked)

So thats the update for now :D
 

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swazi85

Active member
Hi all, so update on a little bit of work done on the M6 so far.

I never noticed, but the side sills on the M6 light up, i never get in the passenger side lol, so i never saw, when i did i thought it was amazing and investigated the Drivers side and saw it was just a funky connection on the illuminator, so fixed it, as well as gave it a damn clean underneath the sill cover:
View attachment 19086
View attachment 19087

Also, (i know this is a V8), but I've been getting pretty heavy fuel economy, and have always had "Catalytic Converter: Efficiency below limit value" and "Catalytic Converter 2: Efficiency below limit value" errors, i know this has been due to the Downpipes.
So ive had 3 options:
1. Get Stock Dowpipes - Expensive
2. Get and try Cat Foolers - Cheap as chips
3. Get software - MHD is around 13k for a super license

So i decided on Option 2 and purchased a set of Cat Foolers and fitted them yesterday evening.
View attachment 19088
View attachment 19089
View attachment 19090

I cleared the errors and went for a drive, i knw there needs to be a drive cycle or two generally, but after a bit of a hard drive, no errors returned yet, so i will monitor it for a while.

For those that don't know, ill explain the Cat and lambda sensors briefly.

The Pre Cat O2/Lambda sensor (Primary - Wideband) measures the Air/Fuel mix coming straight out the motor, the Catalytic Converter then heats up and "cleans" the exhaust gasses for emissions control, and the Post Cat O2/Lambda Sensor (Secondary - Narrowband) measures how clean the gasses are after they've been burnt up.
With the Cat removed, both sensors are measuring the same quality of Gas, this puts the secondary sensors in Low efficiency mode making the car think that the Catalytic Converter is damaged or not doing its job, this puts the car into a default Air/Fuel program and essentially just dumps fuel in to try "burn out" the cats to go back to correct efficiency, hence the high fuel consumption. - Im sure Ive got this right, happy to have a discussion on it, but this is how I understand it from my research.

So with all that said, i need to monitor the Codes and fueling for a while and see how the car responds. I know the best way to handle this is to get software, and have he secondary sensors removed from the software instead and tuned for it. it will be the most ideal.
Saying that, this is a Temporary measure till i can do MHD Software (Stg0 with the option for Catless DP ticked)

So thats the update for now :D
Have stock cats if you ever need them. Just sold my m6 so have no need for them.

Sent from my SM-S906E using Tapatalk
 
Any updates?
No major updates so far bud.
ive done a few small things, replaced Fuse for Cigarette Lighter sockets.
Fixed/greased the rear sun blind as it got stuck in the up position, thought maybe the motor was toast, or a fuse, but the plastic just got dry, so greased with Motul EZ-Lube, worked it manually, then after a few cycles with the switch up and down, i put a little bit of Lithium grease, very little, at a few points along the guide rail, works smooth now.

Other than that, all good.

I am getting a "Charge Battery" warning, but i note on the battery its stamped "36 16" so the 36th Week of 2016, and its a 95ah AGM battery, and not the 105ah AGM battery that was coded for the car, even though i did code the battery correctly when checked it, seems the battery is old, and may need replacing soon.
But had her on the Trickle charger last night, and this morning was ok, wasnt fully charged, but was almost there, but shell be back on charge tonight again.
 
Small update:
So not much has happened on the M6, other than enjoying it.

Last month i had a very very strong smell of fuel, and found that the Passenger side fuel rail was leaking on the feed to Injector No.7, so had to source a new Fuel Rail, as i found out that the Fuel rails on the S63 are a complete rail, unlike the 6cyl where each rail to injector pipe can be removed individually.
The work was done by Gustafs Garage in Fairlands, Randburg. A great gent by the name of Matthew, Ex BMW Tech. and very pedantic and meticulous, if anyone wants his number, feel free to PM me, and ill forward it on.

Then this last week, I decided to do a Software Update on the car, to bring the BMW iLevels up to date from 2013 software to 2023.
This turned into a little bit of a story. scared the hell out of me...
The car was booked in at BMW JSN, and the The initial update failed on the CAS module, and as a result the car was a paperweight for a small timeframe, but they recovered the car, and then the Keys wouldn't work. this was due to the fact, unbeknown to me, the one key I've using was actually an aftermarket key. so somewhere in the past a key must of bee lost, and replaced with a non OEM unit, and therefore the Key had to be coded. so the new Software update overwrote all that, and essentially de-sync'd the keys.

BMW wasn't able to code the keys, as they don't do that, apparently they don't do coding in this sense, hence why you order new keys, they come from Germany written for your specific car.
Anyways, the car was able to be started, with the Key against the Steering column, so i found a gent by the name of Mauricio in Randburg also, he is/was a technician for BMW SA doing coding and programming, and he sorted me out in 25min, keys all working. and car back to normal. very happy result. Ill share his details too if anyone needs coding done. (not coding in the sense of activating features, but issues, like Modules, Keys and any other gremlins)

So all in all. the following was done:

BMW M6 iLevel updated from F010.13 to F010.23 firmware.
IMG-20240516-WA0003.jpg

New Airbag done via the Technical Campaign on the car.

Ill be going back this week sometime to have the DCT Relearn procedure and adaptions done, the Tech will do it for me while i watch in the workshop. so thats a plus. and i wont be charged. so may as well have it done.

This is all i have at the moment, but other than that, the car is driving beautifully.
 

VinceM

Well-known member
Good work Justin

Your car is in great condition. Looks good.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 

GravityLee

Well-known member
The iStep upgrade can turn into a nightmare quickly, especially if there is any coding done on the car.

On my 4 series, it bricked the HU (because I coded BT streaming), and necessitated HU replacement.

Glad to hear you’re enjoying the car man.
 
Good work Justin

Your car is in great condition. Looks good.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
Thanks man, was good to meet you in the flesh and the car also looks and sounds great.

The iStep upgrade can turn into a nightmare quickly, especially if there is any coding done on the car.

On my 4 series, it bricked the HU (because I coded BT streaming), and necessitated HU replacement.

Glad to hear you’re enjoying the car man.
Ah this is a good point, I had also done a fair bit of coding on the FRM, CAS and Heads-up Display to add additional items. so you're saying this would of also impacted the iLevel update, causing it to fail?

Well with the car on the current level, I certainly wont be doing any further updates. no longer needed.
 
Morning kids.

Small update, havent done much to the car. but a few small things.
I purchased 2 Brand new Bosch Primary O2 Sensors (Wideband). i havent taken any photos of them so will take a few pics of the old O2 sensors when i can, they actually not bad at all.
I realised i needed the O2 Sensor socket, so contact @Bugger and he loaned me his one, so much appreciated to have the right tools (I must still make a plan to come return it bud.)
The O2 sensors were changed in under 5min, was very quick, and the car felt a little smoother, however the voltages and values when logging read the same, so safe to say the refresh of the sensors wasnt needed, but always good to have new i guess, but i have a spare set if i ever need them now.

Also i got the OEM Downpipes from @swazi85, was a pleasure to meet you man, and the F90 looks good in the flesh.
1720594247367.png

I then also tackled the disconnection of the Comfort Access handles to try diagnose a battery drain i have, after 2 weeks or more, i still have the same issue, so its safe to say its not the handles, so when i have a gap i will be reconnecting them (Yes i did clean the grime that you see there):
1720594322075.png
The 4 wire connector was for the Comfort Access, and the 2 Wire connector is for the LED Puddle Light, so quick and easy test. just finicky.

So i believe the issue has to be a forgotten Tracker unit somewhere in the car, i just need to spend some time and strip out all the engine bay covers, Footwell covers etc to try find the damn thing and remove it.
My battery health on the Bimmerlink app shows as 55% fully charged (on an apparently new battery), but within about a week, its dropped down to about 41%, and slowly gets lower.
Also, as the battery drops and gives me "Charge Battery" errors, it starts to affect the car, like causing Rail Pressure Sensor errors and then the car runs badly till i clear the error, i was worried about the HPFP going bad, but there is no way they both fail at the same time, and since keeping the battery at a decent level of charge, the Rail Pressure errors havent returned, so i know for a fact its the battery causing it.

So requirment is to buy a new OEM battery, or, at the very least, buy a new Varta AGM 105aH battery, as they are the OEM supplier. I have a First National Battery currently fitted, which i think i got screwed on. but it is what it is.

Some things i want to fix that are bothering me a bit, but not a major issue:
1. The coolant hard lines running to the turbos are sitting a bit higher than they should, and i see that its because when they rebuilt the motor, it looks like they werent routed perfectly, so instead of slipping under one of the lower pipes, its resting on top, and keeps the pipes lifted. so ill tackle that when i replace the Auxillary Coolant pump under the Charge Cooler.
2. Change the 4 rubber Coolant Pipes and Heat blankets by the turbos as preventative maintenance, pretty cheap from BMW.
3. Maybe new Charge pipes, as the locating clips for the Coolant hard lines are broken, but its not a major issue, ill assess once i eventually fix the routing issue on the coolant lines.

Also since the Software update from BMW a few weeks back, i lost all my coding i did to the car.
So i redid a few things:

Turn Signals on HUD
Entertainment info on HUD
Navigation on HUD
Lane Assistance on HUD
Comfort Closing Delay disabled
Easy Entry on seats activated (Moves the seat back when you switch the car off so you can get out and in easier, and puts the seat back to the Memory position when you Close the Door and put IGN on again. )
Easy Entry for Steering Wheel activated (Moves the Steering wheel inward, and then upward to help make space for exiting and entering the car)

There are a few more tings id like to play with, but for now thats all i need really, the Easy Entry has been the nicest addition, now i dont have to rub the side bolsters when getting in and out.

Also, i sorted the Seatbelt issue where it doesnt retract, i pulled them out completely, quick rub down with a microfibre, then sprayed Silicone Spray very liberally on the belt, and inside the mechanism as i was feeding it back.
Both Driver and Passenger belts now retracted and feel like new.

Shot everyone, so far, im enjoying the hell out of the M6. :D
 

VinceM

Well-known member
Coming along nicely bud, Glad you ditched that terrible idea (of selling your car).

Look forward to the update on the mentioned fixes.
 
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