jeffbebe 1559 Report post Posted January 16, 2014 Good commitment, Martin. Hope mine last a bit longer... That looks like a major PITA. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted January 16, 2014 Good way to kill some time, and save a few brain cells. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kiwi535 538 Report post Posted January 17, 2014 (edited) This is not curing my desire to own one of these cars Edited January 17, 2014 by kiwi535 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bmw335i 16 Report post Posted January 23, 2014 great read. was it you in pakuranga lastnight? i was i the brown e30. if so it sounds mean !! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bmw335i 16 Report post Posted January 23, 2014 great read. was it you in pakuranga lastnight? i was i the brown e30. if so it sounds mean !! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
M5V8 337 Report post Posted January 23, 2014 never had this problem with mine. I'll need to check. I'll get the wife to drive around with me in the boot. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeffbebe 1559 Report post Posted January 23, 2014 Make sure she doesn't 'forget' you're in there. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted January 23, 2014 great read. was it you in pakuranga lastnight? i was i the brown e30. if so it sounds mean !! Yep that would've been me. Your E30 is a beaut! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted January 23, 2014 never had this problem with mine. I'll need to check. I'll get the wife to drive around with me in the boot. You should be able to smell it from the drivers seat if they're really bad. Otherwise after a thrash, open the boot and have a smell. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bmw335i 16 Report post Posted January 23, 2014 Yep that would've been me. Your E30 is a beaut! Cheers bud. When's the next Auckland meet? Would be keen to have a perv at your car. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted January 23, 2014 Cheers bud. When's the next Auckland meet? Would be keen to have a perv at your car. Not sure at this stage. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted January 23, 2014 Right O. Next on the agenda is to replace these little power robbing, idle unstabilizing, Vanos fault code producing b@stards. The e39 M5 has a total of 4 cam position sensors - 1 for each intake cam, and 1 for each exhaust cam. Unfortunately, they're located on the back of the cylinder heads, and it's a royal PITA to get to them on the passenger side. The intake CPS is located roughly where the arrow points to, but a bit deeper, under a box and a bracket that contains all the wiring to the DME, and Bank 2 ignition coils. Exhaust sensor, deeper and closer to the DME, and obstructed by the heater coolant hoses. Drivers side is a lot easier, I can see both bolts and connectors for the CPS's. Passenger side will be done using a small mirror, a torch but mostly blind. I may get to the passenger exhaust cps from underneath. I don't have spaghetti arms so it's gonna be annoying. Will include some more notes and pics for the keen diy'er when I'm done. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted January 25, 2014 Job done. Mostly easy if you have the right tools, patience, and don't mind hands that look like they've been mauled by a cat. Took me about 6 hours all up doing it slowly and carefully, with breaks and photo taking. All CPS's were original as verified by the date codes on the parts. No fault codes produced in my ownership for them being bad, so It's a bit of preventative maintenance. There are theories that these do slowly fail before producing a fault code. I guess I'll see in the next while if it's made an improvement. Below are a few notes and pics that should be helpful to those tackling this job. Remove the weather strip and cowling cover that runs along the centre of the lower windshield cover (4 screws that twist and pull out) gives your arms and hands a bit more working room : Remove these 3 hoses running to the heater. About 1 litre of coolant drips out, makes life A LOT easier if you have big mits for hands : Passenger side Intake CPS removed. These are the tools I used to remove it. There is a bracket that attaches the wiring loom box and fuel line bracket to the rear of the cylinder head. It also obstructs the hex screw required to remove the intake CPS - All needs to be removed blind. There is a 10mm bolt right in between the bracket that affixes a cover to the cylinder head - DO NOT remove it, coolant comes out. Very easy to get confused, so getting a good feel for things, and using an inspection mirror goes a long way. In these pics, you can see the hex screw for the passenger side Exhaust cps. This is why life becomes better with those heater hoses removed and tucked in out of the way. Remove the hex screw, and pull the sensor out with the plug connected - Much easier to unplug this way. Over to the drivers side now. The intake CPS is just as much of a c#nt to remove as you have another stupid bracket like on the passenger side in the way. I spent a good hour after trying to get the bracket back in after the cps was swapped out, but gave up. Next time I have access to a hoist I might install back in then. No issues afaik with it not being there for now. Looking at the reflection in the inspection mirror below, you can see the hole for where the car's original intake CPS lived. Tools used to get both intake and exhaust CPS's out, and new ones back in. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted January 28, 2014 Happy to report the M5 has got it's mojo back after swapping out the CPS's. The DSC light is now lighting up where it didn't before ;-) Feels like it's gained back an extra 30 - 40hp and a whole lot of torque in the mid range. Seemed to have taken a bout 1/3 of a tank of spirited driving over the passed couple of days for it to wake up. Will be popping it on the same dyno where it did 220 rwkw late last year to compare. Interesting to see that although the CPS's seemed fine (no fault codes, vanos tests passing) they seem to degrade over time, probably due to the numerous heat cycles since 1999. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted February 13, 2014 (edited) Finally got a spare for the M5, a genuine ACS type 3 in 18x8.5. Not too shabby. Edited September 4, 2014 by BreakMyWindow Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted February 19, 2014 The wheels have a hot date with Arrow wheels next week for a full refurb using the oem shadow chrome process. As you can see the current state of the wheels really lets down the appearance of the car, the original shadow chrome paint is bubbling and peeling off, and the driver side front wheel has been repainted at some stage in just plain silver - sticks out like dogs b@lls. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted March 5, 2014 Wheels all done and ready for a few coats of wheel sealant. Arrow wheels did a fantastic job of refinishing them in the OEM shadow Chrome. Pic of the front without a camera flash : In dark light showing the shadow chrome effect : Pic with a flash turned on showing more shadow chrome effect : 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeffbebe 1559 Report post Posted March 5, 2014 Looking good. They'll transform the car... Now, what about that bonnet! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted March 5, 2014 It's on the agenda, along with the saggy rear diffuser and new exhaust tips. ....Need at least 40 hours removing all that sika flex for the front grilles though ;-) 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted March 18, 2014 Restoration project is nearing the end. Pretty good going for less than 12 months of ownership. Has been a very enjoyable, yet frustrating experience at times... Have learned a lot about the e39 m5 along the way, and overall i'm very happy with the outcome. Have considered doing some mods, but imo it's already a modded e39 by the M divison so will leave as is for now, and just keep her well maintained. Just a few little things to be done to bring it up to my standard (famous last words...) - Fix stone chips on bonnet (re-spray) - fix corrosion on window trims - Get a jack - New front inner door sill trim panels - Install genuine xenon headlamp units (awaiting arrival) Very happy with the wheel refurb, has cleaned up the appearance. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Michael. 2312 Report post Posted March 18, 2014 Wow Dave, looks sooooo good mate. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeffbebe 1559 Report post Posted March 21, 2014 Wrong M5, Mike. This one's Martin's. Definitely looking good though. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted April 2, 2014 Update.. Xenons installed and working as they should. Massive difference between xenon and halogen with the e39 facelift headlights. The units i bought had broken adjusters, and a broken adjustment screw on the low beam side. A Few hours over the weekend, involving patience, cursing, and some epoxy glue has done the trick. Any one needing to replace the headlight adjusters in their FL headlights in the e39, PM me and I will happy to assist with the technique to get the job done without the hassle of baking/heating the units to melt the glue holding the front lenses on. Told myself I wouldn't do any mods but have made one mod which will keep the power delivery consistent... Installed an air temp sensor in the corner of the front lower grill, just before the lower air intake tube on the drivers side. Disabled the stock temp sensor in the passenger side MAF. Sucked air temp is now much closer to ambient temp at all times where as before, eg after an hours driving, the sucked air temp was at least 40 deg c higher than ambient, which results in the dme retarding ignition, adding fuel resulting in power loss. The stock temp sensor is incorporated in the MAF, which is exposed to engine bay heat, causing an atrificially high reading of sucked air temps. Thinking about making up a proper CAI setup now, similar to the kit from Evolve automotive in the UK. Seems to be a significant flaw the factory CAI setup, as Evolve have seen gains of 8 - 10BHP just from a CAI setup alone - no remapping. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BreakMyWindow 1870 Report post Posted May 29, 2014 As mentioned in another thread - Will be getting a tune done through Evolve Automotive in the UK soon. Just a simple power tune for now. Will be running the Alpha-N tune at a later stage. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tristan 338 Report post Posted May 29, 2014 As mentioned in another thread - Will be getting a tune done through Evolve Automotive in the UK soon. Just a simple power tune for now. Will be running the Alpha-N tune at a later stage. Awesome to hear. Looking forward to feedback on that. If I go ahead with an Akrapovic exhaust I'll get one of their tunes done. Not sure if there is much point in it unless I do a primary cat delete though. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
