December 2012
1 post
Sunday, December 17, 2012.
It’s been two months now that I’ve done a blog post, but that’s only because virtually nothing new has been done to the car! Aside from replacing my old hood roundel with a new one last week or so, that’s pretty much just about it. It is winter break now, though, which means that I’ll be performing some maintenance on the car (fluid...
October 2012
5 posts
Wednesday, October 17, 2012.
Just had an unfortunate back-to-back set of days for the E46.
After a nice, relaxed day at school on Tuesday (October 16, 2012), I was welcomed to a flat front driver’s side tire just as I was pulling out of the school parking garage thanks to a lovely nail on the road that I must’ve driven over on the way to school. I had to pull over switch that wheel...
Monday, October 15, 2012.
Had Drew stop by to adjust a few things with my suspension and he was also able to do my CDV delete. It feels so much better now, still wondering how I went so long without doing the DIY. Getting off of first is less of a drag, and going from first to second just feels simply better. Recommended!
www.eluisphoto.com
Wednesday, October 10, 2012.
Drew installed my Meyle HD FCA’s w/ FCAB’s and OEM steering coupling today. We did run into an issue with removing one of the OEM FCA’s, which led Drew to his last resort - torching it with good ‘ole Butane. Thank goodness for the Home Depot down my street! Aside from that, though, the car looks great. The camber is a bit off on all sides...
Tuesday, October 9, 2012.
Drew from Swift Motorworks (aka Drewdown from E46fanatics) came down today and installed my ST coilovers w/ Meyle HD RSM’s (w/ Z3 reinforcement plates) and OEM FSM’s (w/ OEM reinforcements), as well as my Meyle HD RTAB’s today. Turns out Kalim recommended me to him and he was free during the beginning of the week. Everything looks great so far, pretty...
Thursday, October 4, 2012.
Was supposed to drop my car off to The Shop San Bruno today and have my suspension installed, ready to pick up tomorrow. Turns out, the guy there wanted $40 more ($520) than he quoted me via e-mail ($480) and came up with some excuse to not include my OEM steering coupling (that I clearly mentioned in the e-mail) in his estimate when I came to the shop today. He...
September 2012
1 post
Monday, September 17, 2012.
Haven’t given the E46 a wash in quite a long time, so I definitely just had to take some pictures of it today after cleaning it. These images may very well be the last photos of the car in the way we see it right now! I’m excited for what awaits in these next couple of weeks!
www.eluisphoto.com
August 2012
7 posts
Wednesday, August 29, 2012.
Got rear ended today…
I was yielding to a bunch pedestrians as I was about to make my right turn (onto 19th avenue at the corner of Judah & 19th Avenue, San Francisco, for those who care), and some guy in a ‘96 Chevy ran into me. We pulled over to the side and exchanged information, and he couldn’t stop apologizing and telling me how terrible he...
Saturday, August 25, 2012.
My dad was able to help me out today by taking the E46 to Wheel Works while I was at work. Since my one-year warranty was still valid (November ‘11 to November ‘12), he was able to get my wheels & tires balanced, as well as my car aligned, in hopes of fixing the steering wheel shake that I’ve had for this passed week or so. The way things went,...
Saturday, August 18, 2012.
The stupid steering wheel shake came back again at around 35-40 MPH today while driving.. So, I’ve decided to just take both of the front and rear spacers off, and then slap them back on after my suspension overhaul which I hope to do by the end of 2012. That means new shocks & springs (ST coilovers), new RSM’s, new FCA’s and FCAB’s, and new...
Friday, August 17, 2012.
Today, I was able to check the spacers once more in attempt to diagnose everything to the fullest of my ability. It turns out the passenger side front spacer had a little play when it was mounted to the hub, that Nedal & I didn’t quite seem to address in the beginning when installing everything. That said, I removed it and cleaned everything, and took the time...
Thursday, August 16, 2012.
The E46 has been having some slight steering wheel shaking as of late (around 35-40 MPH and 70+ MPH), so tomorrow I’ll be checking everything to make sure the spacers and whatnot are properly seated to the hub, etc. If that’s not the issue, the wheels & tires may be simply in need of a balancing. Did some reading up and researching on this issue and most...
Wednesday, August 15, 2012.
Went over to Nedal’s house today and he helped me put on my 12mm front and 15mm rear spacers, and I helped him out by coding convenience features and some other stuff on his E46! The installation of the spacers went smoothly and I’m hoping everything turns out well. The car definitely looks a lot better with a slightly more aggressive look. Unfortunately,...
Tuesday, August 14, 2012.
Went to O’Reilly today and purchased a can of CRC MAF sensor cleaner and tackled the 15-20 minute DIY job today. Everything was super straightforward and went very smoothly. I wasn’t able to drive the car after, though, but I’m sure that I’ll notice a difference the next time I drive it (which will probably be tomorrow) since I’m not quite...
July 2012
6 posts
Friday, July 27, 2012.
Got around to replacing my pre-cat O2 sensors today with Bosch #13477 as preventative maintenance, courtesy of this DIY guide, and wow - the new sensors in comparison to the old ones (which could quite possibly be over 150K miles old) are truly night and day.
Pictured: old (above) and new (below).
The DIY was relatively straightforward and fortunately, I was able to get...
Friday, July 20, 2012.
Passenger side window regulator is just about done - just my luck, right? After a rather successful cooling overhaul and whatnot, something had to give out. I’m planning on holding it off for a while since it’s still partially functional (as far as opening and closing the passenger side door is concerned), but I’m sure that it will trigger my OCD after a...
Wednesday, July 18, 2012.
Received my set of ten extended lug bolts in the mail from Turner.. For 15mm spacers!
What I’ve been holding off for about a week or so (from posting on the internet, at least) is that I recently came across a superb deal on E46fanatics for a set of used Rogue Engineering 12mm spacers with extended lug bolts for only $30, and later came across a set of very...
Thursday, July 12, 2012.
Finally completed my DIY of the E46’s expansion tank, upper & lower radiator hoses, water pump, water pump pulley, idler pulley, and belts today. Definitely got a lot of work done today and was also glad that I was able to properly bleed the cooling system (drove the car today for easily over 1.5-2 hours combined and noticed no ill-effects whatsoever; when the...
Wednesday, July 11, 2012.
Decided to finally take on the cooling system overhaul today (replace expansion tank, water pump, upper & lower radiator hoses; the thermostat would have been replaced but the PO got it done right before selling the car to me) and was able to get the hard stuff done - taking out the ET, upper & lower radiator hoses, and that good stuff. Unfortunately I...
Monday, July 9, 2012.
Placed an order today on two Bosch (13477; OEM) pre-cat O2 sensors and two quarts of Red Line MTL manual transmission fluid from Amazon today! Gotta love Amazon Prime, can’t beat free two-day shipping.
This upcoming week and next week, I’ll be tackling the cooling system overhaul job, followed by replacing my pre-cat O2 sensors, as well changing my manual...
June 2012
10 posts
Sunday, June 24, 2012.
Got around to installing my E60 545i short shifter today with the help of this guide, courtesy of E46Fanatics. I took the car out to San Francisco with the intent of giving it a test run. My initial observations, for now, are that not only was shift throw reduced by a pretty good amount (25-30%, I’d say, which is great!), but the precision was also improved - possibly a...
Wednesday, June 27, 2012.
Just did the Coupe Rear Windows One-Touch Close DIY, with the guide I used courtesy of E46Fanatics. I didn’t have access to a dremel (which would’ve most likely made the job so much easier), so I got it done with a combination of various tools: small needle-nose pliers, small diagonal pliers, and a good ‘ole steak knife. My reason for waiting so long to...
Tuesday, June 26, 2012.
Went to Radioshack today and purchased two Piezo buzzers (273-0060), then got around to wiring both of them up to my car to successfully complete the $5 lock beep DIY (in my case, it was around $10 since I wanted a little more sound from the 85db sirens since I enjoyed the tone of those).
The ZKE5 coding looks identical to what it did from yesterday’s post, aside...
Monday, June 25, 2012.
Finally received my BMW Scanner 1.4.0 in the mail from the USPS lady today, courtesy of xcar360 and Hong Kong Post. After a bunch of headaches and whatnot in attempt to figure out what the best and easiest way was to run Windows XP on my laptop (since the software isn’t really all that compatible with anything else), I ended up running Windows XP on my MacBook Pro...
Thursday, June 21, 2012.
Got my newly updated USA SPEC PA12-BMW interface module as well as iPhone cable in the mail today, and put it into the E46 as soon as it arrived. Everything is working great and as advertised - no complaints coming from me!
Also received my package from TheBMWPartStore in the mail today regarding my E60 545i shifter business. While I wasn’t able to get to the...
Sunday, June 17, 2012.
Placed an order on an OEM E60 545i “short” shifter (along with the bushing & retaining clip) today from TheBMWPartStore! Pretty excited for that to come in as I’ve actually looked into it for a while, debating on the Z4 lever or 545i lever. When it came down to it, I wanted the feel of the stock shifter paired with a shorter throw, and...
Wednesday, June 13, 2012.
Purchased two quarts of Red Line 75w90 from Amazon, as well as two o-rings (drain plug washer gaskets) from FCPEuro for my differential fluid change. After I get this done, I’ll be purchasing two quarts of Royal Purple Synchromax (unless I get convinced otherwise down the line before purchasing) for my manual transmission fluid change, and possibly two Bosch 13477...
Monday, June 11, 2012.
Took the USA-Spec PA12-BMW iPod cable & interface out (not the data cable, thankfully, as that’s what I had routed and stealthily installed coming from the car’s trunk), packed all up, and shipped to USA-Spec today for the firmware & cable update. Hopefully everything goes smoothly, as this is all already quite unnecessary.
www.eluisphoto.com
Monday, June 4, 2012.
Diptych from today: Ocean Beach!
www.eluisphoto.com
Saturday, June 2, 2012.
So, after a good 3 or so hours, with the help of my cousin.. I was able to wire my USA SPEC PA12-BMW (that I picked up from the post office today since the mail man missed me yesterday) through the rear driver’s side firewall, under the rear seats, and to the glove box. I then took the sunglass holder out and drilled a hole into it, and that’s there the iPod...
May 2012
18 posts
Sunday, May 27, 2012.
Finally got around to finding time and finishing my VANOS seals and VCG (after the replacement teflon o-rings came in on Saturday) today! I also replaced the cabin air filter while I was at it since it was pretty much a no-brainer. Feeling very accomplished to have done this DIY given that I’m an 18 year old who’s only really done oil changes & spark plugs,...
Saturday, May 26, 2012.
Went to Peter Pan BMW with my dad & cousin today after we were heading back home from Hayward since my dad had to go and pick up a few things from a junkyard over there. I bought two quarts of BMW 5W30 oil - nothing special.
An image I took at Peter Pan BMW.
Upon arriving home, I received my package from Beisan and immediately went back to installing everything....
Friday, May 25, 2012.
Finally decided to bite the bullet and place an order on the BMW Scanner 1.4.0 from xcar360, $32 + free shipping (albeit, from China, although I’m not in any rush)!
Even if the coding stuff doesn’t come to me right away, it’ll still be very useful for reading engine fault codes, resetting lights, and all that good stuff. I’m excited! I do, however,...
Wednesday, May 23, 2012.
Spend pretty much my entire day tackling the VANOS and VCG do-it-yourself maintenance job with the help of various online guides. Due to some technical difficulties (most of them being user error, unfortunately, which definitely made me pay the price..), I probably won’t be able to finish this DIY until Friday or so (waiting for parts, etc.) but as soon as I get...
Sunday, May 20, 2012.
Gave the car a very well-deserved wash yesterday with the help of my cousin. As much of a headache it can be, it never makes excuses and always gets me from point A to point B safely and surely.
Quick image from yesterday!
www.eluisphoto.com
Saturday, May 19, 2012.
Got my little coolant sensor o-ring in the mail today, courtesy from FCPEuro, as well as a little envelope from Pelican Parts as well - they sent me a couple of cool little stickers! Definitely a fun way of showing appreciation for their customers and thinking of them!
www.eluisphoto.com
Friday, May 18, 2012.
Got up early today & pulled everything out again regarding the voltage regulator, checking all of my connections.. Turns out one of the nuts that were connected to the positive connector was terribly loose.. It goes like this:
15mm hex nut | positive connector | 17mm hex nut
The 17mm hex nut was snug, as I suspected (because I clearly remembered tightening it well...
Thursday, May 17, 2012.
Received my package of Dayco pulleys from RockAuto today, thanks to the guys over there! Upon taking the car for a drive to a friend’s house with the voltage meter on (via car’s OBC “Easter Eggs”), everything is going perfectly. However, fifteen or so minutes into the drive.. The voltage starts to drop again to the 12.x’s.. I immediately turn...
Wednesday, May 16, 2012.
Received my package from Pelican Parts today, and immediately got to work with the voltage regulator (the belts and Water Pump pulley can wait for now until I get everything else settled!). Removed the air box from my car’s engine bay, as well as moving the power steering pump out of the way, and then went in for the kill - Managed to get the original voltage...
Tuesday, May 15, 2012.
Water pump arrived, thanks to AutohausAZ!
Hopefully the voltage regulator that I ordered will arrive tomorrow, from Pelican, and I can get the car back to optimal voltage by Thursday!
Pulleys and whatnot (once they’re received from Rockauto) will be replaced at the same time I do my cooling system. Plans are, of course, subject to change though. As of right now I...
Monday, May 14, 2012.
Got into the car today and headed out to South San Francisco, as I had to drop off a CD to a fellow client (recently did a Pre-Quinceanera photoshoot and finished editing the files yesterday). Upon dropping off the CD and getting onto the freeway, my red battery light turned on. Then it turned off, then it turned on.. I immediately pulled over, turned on my hazards,...
Saturday, May 12, 2012.
Received two packages in the mail today! One from TheBMWPartStore (actually very impressed with the shipping time for this particular order, as my last order from them took slightly longer but was still very timely considering the $5.50 super saver shipping option) and of course, Amazon.
While I wasn’t really able to get anything done today (due to being very busy...
Friday, May 11, 2012.
Found out today that I forgot to purchase the coolant temperature sensor o-ring from when I purchased all of my preventative maintenance items on Wednesday (for my cooling system, VCG, and whatnot), so I just confirmed my purchase of a whopping $1.65 @ FCPEuro (can’t beat their free shipping!) for the OEM temperature sensor o-ring.
It’s actually an o-ring for...
Thursday, May 10, 2012.
Hopped into the car today and headed into the city to pick up my little sister from school. I park the car, wait for ten or so minutes, and upon starting it again.. The car cranks and cranks but doesn’t start. The radio, A/C, and all of the other electronics on the car work perfectly. Upon setting the ignition to position two, the fuel pump can be heard initializing...
Wednesday, May 9, 2012.
Today, my aftermarket stereo head unit (Kenwood KDC-428U, which is a superb aftermarket head unit by the way!) started experiencing some issues, which was more or less expected considering the fact that it’s been working flawlessly for the passed 7 months, despite never being fully seated (the wiring harness was huge and the spade connectors took a ton of valuable...
Tuesday, May 8, 2012.
E46 325ci + three people in the backseat and two in the front (driver & passenger) = [sort of] low & [even] slow[er].
Looks good, though! Excites me for when I finally get my suspension upgrade. Please excuse the dirty car.
Take it easy.
www.eluisphoto.com
Thursday, May 3, 2012.
Successfully changed out my spark plugs today with 6x NGK (#3199) BKR6EQUP, courtesy of Amazon.
Used this youtube video, as well as some other threads on E46fanatics to do the DIY. Everything was pretty straightforward, if I say so myself!
Despite the rain finding a way to interfere with my maintenance (this isn’t the first time, either…), causing this supposed...
Tuesday, May 1, 2012.
Got my spark plugs in the mail today, courtesy of Amazon!I purchased 6x NGK Laser Platinum’s (BKR6EQUP; #3199), which are the OEM ones that BMW uses.. Except without the BMW logo that seems to cause the price to inflate!
Expecting to do a large catch-up on my maintenance stuff once school & finals are all said and done, which is only two more weeks away (5/16 is...
April 2012
7 posts
Saturday, April 21, 2012.
Washed the E46 for the first time in a pretty good while (thank you, San Francisco weather…) on Saturday, and gave the car a proper mini-photoshoot at my local shopping center’s parking garage!
Images were taken with either my D700 + 28-75/2.8, or D700 + 80-200/2.8. Decided not to use the 85/1.4 for that shoot, since I love the image & depth of field...
Tuesday, April 17, 2012.
Bought JB Weld WaterWeld at my local home depot on Monday (April 16, 2012) and gave it a try on my car’s trunk handle, which was broken by the ever-so-lovely previous owner. The only thing that was allowing it to still stay on the trunk was the fact that only one of the four T-20 screws was still in place, properly. The other three had broken through the plastic,...
