warrenp

No worries, I found the code!! I rang BMW dealers until one had a book of codes. So now I am rocking away to 20 year old sound technology... Pitty I can't hook my diskman or mp3's up to it though...

Fixed it!! I had overlooked that fuse number 12 had also blown. Now the original alpine is saying CODE to me once again. Jochen, If you have any idea how to work out what code to put in I'd be most appreciative! Warren

Thanks for replies! Sorry, my car is an e30 325i 1987. And yes, the Alpine stereo just says (or said to be precise) CODE at me. The Model is CM 5905, and Serial number is 145123. I will check as you have advised...

My fiance wanted sounds for our trip down to Timaru and so I tried to replace the uncoded head unit with a working sony, and while testing which wires to connect where I saw a few sparks... Then the stereo power wires stopped giving off 12volts (tested with multimeter) and when I drove down to get fuses, I noticed I was doing 0 kph the whole way... I replaced two blown fuses in the engine bay fuse box (not sure if they were recent blow outs or not) and still the stereo isn't lighting up (the original alpine unit) and the speedo doesn't budge at any speed... Anyone ever have this happen? Any idea what I've done? Are there fuses anywhere else other than the engine bay? Cheers in advance for any replies!

Thanks for replies! I'll try my luck with crc... (after the holiday down south)

Hi folks, I failed my WOF today on (among other small things) an exhaust manifold leak... And I've heard it's best to let these things alone if you can get away with it because the risk of snapping a nut will mean pretty much a new engine, or equally massive job... Does anyone know of a trick on m20's to loosen the nuts? Any way to pre-lubricate them before trying to turn them? What about spraying crc on them every morning for a month? Any ideas much appreciated!!! I also need headlights, right outer (facing front of car) and left middle. Anyone have these parts for sale?

Many thanks for all the very informative replies! Considering all this wisdom, I've decided to spend a few bucks and send the heavy stuff (fridge, freezer, washing machine etc) with a moving company and get a small trailer to tow the remaining fiddly bits (pillows, clothes, computer, stereo, books etc). So now the tow weight should not exceed about half the cars weight. I'm much happier with this idea! Provided we take breaks every hour or so I'm guessing that it will not be necessary for me to get a cooler for the trans. Before buying a trailer I will check that the towbar is rated to handle even this weight (cheers rxsumo). I'll also have Haven BMW in Nelson give the car a full check over. This should make for a far more pleasant trip/adventure... This is truly a great website!

Hi everyone, We're moving house from South Island to North (back home! ) and I'm hoping to tow all the stuff in either a horse float or a tandem trailer with my trusty e30. But... I really don't wanna do this if it's going to ruin (or even damage a little bit) my car!! So here I'm asking for opinions and advice. It will mean driving over the Takaka and Rimutaka hills (600m and 500m each with some steep bits) and towing probably about 600kg of stuff in a trailer that may weigh 700kg... (ie up to 1300kg of weight behind my little 1200kg car). As you all probably know, the m30 2.5 has 170hp and the 4 speed auto has a first gear which is like a low 2nd compared to manual, with 2-3-4 having same ratios as 3-4-5 in the manual. My car is mechanically in order and the engine has 90,000 on a replacement motor. Now if anyone here thinks I could do this without damaging my car (transmission/motor/chassis/brakes etc etc), then any thoughts on how to best go about doing it (ie weight distribution, which gears to use, appropriate speed, how often to stop, what to check in advance etc) would be very much appreciated!!