[kburger]

485,000 miles on my 2000 323ci shooting for a million

Hi,

I got 485K miles on my bimmer shooting for a million. Original engine minimal maintenance needed just the basics. Just did my first clutch kit with short shifter. Word of advice change your transmission mounts every 200K. They align the entire drive train.

peace

 

[kburger]

2000 323ci 487,000 miles, shooting for a million

 

[kburger]

ok, i'm 490,000 miles. I live in eastern pennsylvania. So i have been fighting rust bad. just dumped 3 grand into the body shop. The battery box was falling out of the trunk i got that fixed with oem bmw parts for 1200 alone. Proper preventative maintenance is the key, not "throwing" parts at the car. Water pump replaced with the metal impellar version lasts very long time. Had to do 2 valve cover gaskets they are notorious for oil leaks. Change oil with mobil 1 and lucas synthetic oil stabilizer. That stuff is magic. Got rid of my valve tapping for 100k miles now when i thought i needed to replace the head. The lucas replaces 1 quart so its like paying for 1 extra quart no big deal. Suspension has been a pain in the ass. I have done most of the suspension parts on the car. several left rear wheel bearings. I screwed the first one up myself i think it played into more going bad but we got that fixed for good now. replace platinum plugs every 100k. Now i am thinking 50k. Had winter misfires for several years. Replacing all coil packs at once fixed all of them. Use ecs tuning website 185 bucks for 6 yeah!! I just replaced the entire drive train at half million miles, i.e. clutch kit, trans, drive shaft, rear diff. Proper, not excessive maintenance is the key. I am going for a million on this car. So fun to drive, and its a cabrio with the 10 speaker stereo with separate amp in trunk (non hk), and it totally rocks. You got two choices, either fix your car or buy another. They got you by the nuts either way. I dont trust any new car. As soon as the warranty runs out they fall apart. Too many bells and whistles. The new bimmers too much stuff is integrated. Not my cup of tea.

 

[kburger]

515,000 miles 2000 323ci. going for a million plus. a lot of rust work I live near Phili Pa. I recommend to all to replace your transmission mounts every 300K. I am convinced I would still be on the factory drive train if I had replaced them. When they are shot your entire drive train is misaligned meaning you will wear out everything from the transmission to the rear diff. 300K is probably a high number for those mounts but I try to squeeze as much life out of everything as I can because there are sooooooooo many parts in cars you need to get every mile you can out of them because you go broke on buying parts alone even when you do your own labor. Oh, I also recommend manual trans only if you are looking to save money for the long haul. I got half a million miles on my original clutch and trans. 70% highway driving southeastern pa. We have plenty of hills but its not San Francisco -

 

[kburger]

525,000 miles on my 2000 323ci. just bought a set of lifters I tried a few different things I can still hear them tapping once in awhile. I hear they are the first thing that wears out so hopefully after I do them she will be nice and quiet again. M52tu engine is amazing when Properly maintained. its embarrassing that they can actually charge 40 dollars for one lifter and you need 24. Thank god for ECS tuning 4 bucks each after market ajusa.

 

[kburger]

well again I have 525,000 miles. Lifters are ticking. I went to European spec oil 0/40. also did envirotek engine flush before oil change. I can still hear them ticking but its much quieter. I ordered lifters from ecs tuning gonna take a week vacation from work and do it right. At that mileage I gonna examine everything carefully when it comes out especially vanos.

 

[kburger]

single mass valeo conversion kit. Not happy with the results. For me its all about wear. I got half a million miles out of the original trans, clutch, drive shaft, and diff. Too much vibration now in the drivetrain. doubt I will get 200 thousand out of this setup. The auto industry is a complete scam. All cars are designed to fall apart so you are forced to buy new ones because its more expensive to fix the car you have. All anyone in this world cares about anymore is money. Very very sad.

 

[kburger]

archbid: good question on OEM versus aftermarket clutch/flywheel. When I let the clutch out slowly in 1st gear or reverse I get awful clutch chatter. I can increase engine rpm to stop the chatter (speed shift). I just cant help but wonder if the dual mass flywheel and oem clutch kit would fix that. I spent way too much money already on the valeo single mass flywheel/clutch kit. I love warranties they don't cover labor and labor is most of the cost what a joke. I am broke from this car cant afford to spend a grand just for a stupid flywheel. I got too many other things I gotta spend money on. bottom line is there is no way to tell if my clutch chatter will go away with oem flywheel/clutch kit unless I try it and that's way to much money to waste just to have the problem still be there. I have had too many different opinions on whats causing the chatter so I just leave it alone. It would be nice if someone could say exactly whats causing it.

 

[kburger]

cool F800R. Gonna get a million miles on this car. DIY is only way to go. Its how I fight the greed that rules this world. Just did meyle HD front control arms due to failed inspection. Only got two years out of lemforder that sucks. So I got the M3 rear bushing assemblies they are rock solid. Hopefully combined with these control arms I have a winning combination for longevity. I settled on 0/40 spec oil I'm sure that satisfies many here. I used 5/30 for half million miles but after the lifter job the 0/40 gives me the quietest engine over all at cold start and warmed up and after long drives. After reading the dissection of these lifters don't think i'll ever use lucas stabilizer again.

 

[kburger]

2000 323ci 540000 miles. I record everything I do to the car. The problem with the entire industry is they put way too many parts/technology into cars now. I have recorded everything I do. When I fix stuff it stays fixed but there is always something else breaking because there are way too many parts in all cars now. That is how they "engineer" them. To fall apart so you give up and buy a new one. Well that works for them but we have tons of bills and food and gas and other stuff to pay for. Less than one percent of this country makes more than 99 percent of the money. sorry I'm not in the one percent so I will fix this car myself and get a million miles on it. The best mechanic I know on my car told me and I quote, "the tolerances inside the bmw engine when its shot are still tighter than the American engine when its brand new". That's how I will get to the million miles. The new cars are junk because they took all the parts and combined them into modules. Now when something small breaks you gotta break your bank to fix it replacing something much bigger. Solution? buy a new car. NOT

 

[kburger]

list of repairs? hehe way too long to list. but I see ridiculous stuff like coolant refresh kits? install the coolant snitch and fix what breaks. that's hard enough. been chasing check engine (service engine soon) light for the last year. so many repairs, most diy. I fix large machines for a living for the last 25 years. I do preventative maintenance on machines for a living. it's all about WEAR. I don't agree with what they are doing now. No more books in hard cover like Bentley manual? I think the newer cars are all designed to fall apart quicker. Turbo? their all turbo. makes me think about the old saying, "its better to burn out than fade away?" bmw and Mercedes now are getting the bad rap they need. go back to making quality cars that are built to last. They are trying to compete with the hundai and kias of the world. Hey I need to save every penny but I drive 30 to 50k miles per year. those cars would be junk very quickly in my world. I already posted pic of my odometer gotta be around this site somewhere. probably 20k miles ago too. whats the matter? don't belive me? :read:

 

[kburger]

sure mango. I am original owner. engine and head are original. I have done probably a dozen long trips to north Carolina and florida I live near Phili PA. Problem with the car was plastic impellar in water pump. Aftermarket pumps now are metal impellar most recent water pump I have had in at least 200K miles. I have been driving a 3 series since I was 21 I am 47 now. Just looking for some help with INPA data how to interpret. I have bad clutch chatter going into first, second, and reverse (standard obviously). Someone here said replace injector orings. That's how crazy this stuff is. I have seen engine, drivetrain, and suspension problems be fixed in this way with something seemingly so unrelated. I fix large machines for a living so its kind of a hobby keeping this beast going. You just gotta be persistent and determined to fix anything wrong with the car. I diy just about everything way too expensive and too many things break to pay someone. Plus I use some aftermarket parts. When they fail I can return most of them and its my own labor.

 

[kburger]

i'm in hear already. such a long thread. 2000 323ci 555,000 miles original engine/head. cluster pic i'll give if you gotta have proof there's one in here somewhere like 75K ago

 

[kburger]

I been here a few times but what the heck. Kburger here. 2000 323ci 575,000 miles.

 

[kburger]

goin for a million

View attachment 648122

 

[kburger]

I just posted a text message and got no response. I figured a pic of the cluster might get some attention. Been drivin a 3 series for 27 years. Fixin things for a living 25 years. It's the old adage "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". Rust is toughest part I live hour north of Philadelphia pa. Don't overdo the maintenance just listen to the car when you are driving it and stay on top of problems. besides oil I do most of the maintenance at 100,000 mile intervals all together. makes it much easier. every 100,000 I do spart plugs, fuel filter, air filters, replace (not flush) engine coolant, replace brake fluid. change oil every 15-30k mobil one 0/40 full syn. I record everything I do to the car. The key with that is to be able to retrieve your records 20 years later. I have data from work from 2003. nobody seems to be able to retrieve old data QUICKLY. that is the key. And you never miss an oil change or routine maintenance that will break the car too.

 

[kburger]

lol I like the low mileage thread. rlordjr how does that car run? what shape is the engine in. very curious cuz like most cars its use it or lose it they are meant to be driven. you are averaging like 900 miles per year. I do 30-50000 miles per year.

 

[kburger]

voortman your timing is perfect. entire drivetrain has been replaced from transmission to rear differential. a lot of that I don't think was necessary. I wish I was still at your mileage. Here is what you should do. There are a lot of bushings in the drivetrain that are critical to drivetrain alignment. these are motor mounts, transmission mounts, rear differential mount bushings and subframe bushings. not sure if center support bearing mount has bushings. When they wear out they must be replaced. but that's the problem. I don't care what anyone says. I been fixin things for a living 25 years. There is no objective way to determine when something is worn out. But stay on top of all those bushings and you should get long life out of entire drivetrain. my clutch/flywheel/transmission/driveshaft/rear differential were all replaced around 500,000 miles. take my advice maybe you could get to a million on original drivetrain. my car is 75 percent highway miles. when its cold never rev the engine. start it cold and drive it but let it warm up before revving it up. that's one reason I love stick shift. you control the rpms not the automatic trans. I believe some spirited driving is good for bmw engine. needs to be pushed once in a blue moon. So many things go into making a car last. two biggest jobs I have done myself are hydraulic lifters in the engine and rear subframe replacement. You can diy pretty much everything between Bentley and these forums instructions are all there. and you become a good mechanic in the process.

 

[kburger]

do motor and trans mounts first they are easy. when big differential bushing is shot replace subframe you can get used subframe from California rust free with all seven bushings already new and pressed in for 100 bucks. leave trailing arms and control arms in the car subframe yanks right out much easier IMHO. I coated my subframe with 3 coats of por15 cuz rust is real bad where I live. also replaced the hard brake line that sits behind the subframe. I did all new ebrakes and cables while in there.

 

[kburger]

kburger again. 610,000 miles. if you are not a good mechanic I do not recommend doing this lol. not the best pics but you get the idea. front subframe is dropped. doing oil pan gasket, rear main seal, and 3 transmission gaskets. fun fun fun!!