[swooshdave]

Here's my introduction thread. It was getting a little verbose and was turning into more than an introduction.

330xi Sedan - Not first rodeo

Just made a deal on a 2001 330xi sedan. I was surprised at the condition considering it has 208k miles. It's in fantastic shape for that mileage. I've seen cars with way less miles in horrible shape. And for the price I wasn't going to blink. Actually offered them more than they were asking. It...

www.e46fanatics.com

So I'm just going to track all of my maintenance and modifications here from now on.

Now this car wasn't dead when I got it so resuscitation might be a little strong. It's more like keeping a 200k car still going.

So if you want to follow along and provide your insights you're in the right place!

 

[swooshdave]

A couple more pictures before the fun starts.

 

[swooshdave]

My top two current issues is an occasional rough idle and the front suspension. I'll get to the suspension later as it's not horrible, yet.

I pulled the MAP, it's looks clean and nice.

I pulled the FISA. It was replaced about 50k miles ago with a BMW part. As expected it also looks new and good.

I'm not sure why there's a kink in the hose going to the ICV. I tried to move things around and it's not better. I'll go in and pull the ICV and see if I can make a difference.

It's definitely throwing lean codes so I assume there's a leak somewhere. Several of the hoses were replaced by the PO (I have the work orders) but I'm sure not all were. I'm especially suspicious of the ones on the back of the intake manifold.

I placed an order with ECS Tuning, and it finally shipped. I placed it on Sunday and they didn't ship until Thursday. So my adventures will need to wait.

In the meantime I placed an order for new spark plugs and valve cover gaskets (Felpro) from Amazon and they will be here tomorrow. Amazon makes us so spoiled on fulfillment...

I'm also getting a slapping noise in the VANOS area. It's like every second or so. I've very interested in seeing if there's anything apparent when I pull the cover.

 

[swooshdave]

Cool, I love threads like this!

If you are still trying to hunt down the source of your vacuum leak, I'd recommend doing a smoke test on the intake to help pinpoint where the leak(s) are. You can get smoke tester machines on amazon, or DIY make your own. There are a few threads on the board that show how to make one.

I wouldn't be surprised if there's a smoke machine in the house. My wife gets a little crazy at Halloween...

 

[swooshdave]

I'm not used to seeing gray headlight masks ... usually a rarity in our area, usually they are black ... I think black caps are prettier, but this is just my idea.

I had never noticed the headlight area before. Now I'll not be able to unsee it.

 

[swooshdave]

just show a photo with black masks

View attachment 965227 View attachment 965228

I may just keep the painted parts as it's more unusual.

 

[swooshdave]

Sorry to nitpick, but thought you might appreciate the slight corrections. The MAP is actually referred to as a MAF, mass airflow sensor, and the FISA is referred to as a DISA, don’t ask me what that means, I believe it’s a German acronym, could be wrong there though.

I’d be interested to know when the silver headlight bezels vs black bezels were used. Is it a 330 vs 325 thing?

No, it's ok. I keep getting those acronyms wrong. I should be corrected. I'll get them right at some point.

DISA: DIfferenzierte Sauganlage

Which almost sounds dirty, but then again most things in German do.

 

[swooshdave]

In case you're not aware, there's a bunch of helpful information here:

IMPORTANT LINKS

Plus the wiki over on Bimmerfest.

 

[swooshdave]

I've heard that you can see the front wheel move when braking indicating worn suspension bushings. Not the best light out today but what do you think?

 

[swooshdave]

just show a photo with black masks

View attachment 965227 View attachment 965228

There were several E46s at Cars & Coffee this morning. I think they all had the silver headlights.

 

[swooshdave]

Yes indeed ... a lot of gray frames on the headlights ... I wonder how BMW chose which frames to put on the headlights, gray or black)

Weren’t there two different headlight options/models? Or maybe it was just US vs. Euro?

 

[swooshdave]

Valve cover gasket and spark plugs. Except Amazon hasn’t shown up with the gasket and I ordered the wrong spark plugs. Old ones will need to go back in for now.

 

[swooshdave]

Just realized that gasket is coming via USPS. I’m fooked.

 

[swooshdave]

Well, my fears were unfounded. USPS rang the doorbell around 7pm. Got the cover back on and car still ran. Always a good sign. No change so at least it wasn’t leaking from the cover.

Still will do spark plugs next week. These ones looked like they has a few miles on them.

 

[swooshdave]

Might not seem very sexy but the lower windshield trim was in bad shape. It’s not an expensive part and not hard to replace. Plus a lot of debris had gotten behind it. Much better now.

 

[swooshdave]

Replaced the spark plugs. Also replaced the three rubber mounts for the air pump. They were all broken.

 

[swooshdave]

Thats what i think too.

The spindle which your wheel is attached to is attached to your strut, and the wishbone + associated mounts which attach it to the body, with bushings.
I bet the bushings at the wishbone are worn after considering above. assuming the spring is still in once piece

New bushings are on my list.

 

[swooshdave]

With the tinted windows it’s hard to see what behind you when backing up in the dark. I saw these bulbs reviewed on a YouTube video and they definitely help.

Scraped off the original seal on the DISA and installed an o-ring. I could tell it seals better now

Hard to tell here but one of the lines deep under the intake is greasy. I have a feeling I’ll need to dig deep one of these days.

 

[swooshdave]

I swear, you guys out in the Pacific NW have it lucky. That's some pretty outstanding paint for a car of that age. My 325xi spent part of its life on the Mass coast and it has rust on the rear 3/4 panels. Also, those rims are rare for a 330xi or at least to my eyes.

The 330 is so much more fun vs the 325 bc of the extra punch.

Unless you live on the coast around here rust is less of an issue. Keep in mind they don't use salt on the roads here.

A quick search seems to indicate three wheel types for the 2001 330ix. I'm sure there were more.

But I can't seem to find any like what are on my car. The assumption is that they were not offered in 2001.

 

[swooshdave]

I drove the other night and noticed the headlights weren't super bright. Although not as based as some headlight covers I've seen they definitely were showing their age.

I picked up the RainX kit and went at it. I certainly didn't get them perfect but it's a good enough improvement.

You can see where the main beam has actually crazed or melted the cover. Nothing I can do there.

And there's something on the inside of the cover too. I wasn't about to take them completely apart.

I'll either live with it the way they are now (improved) or replaced them at some point. I'm fine with some cheap eBay replicas if they mostly fit. I'm sure the seals are starting to fail too.