beeeamer

Cheers glenn, usually not a bad price too

My 323i is a bit overdue for a service, i'm just not sure what oil I should use becuase there's so much conflicting info out there.

Car has done 195k and runs great, no leaks. I think from memory JG used magnatec 10w40 last time, should I stick with this, change to synth maybe?

any help appreciated

went to the wreckers today and checked out some E36's, looks like later model sedans have the different wiper like mine. seems to be 3 or 4 different wiper styles with different spring mechanisms too.

just picked up an earlier sedan wiper, much better now!

i think the wreckers thought i was slightly insane tho... haha

righty, have taken some pictures of mine and an identical year coupe i found at Turners.

there are some slight differences, it's nothing major but they are slightly different and the drivers arm isn't as visible from inside (can't see the spring mechanism underneath etc)

blue is my sedan and red is the coupe

Nah I already have those flat wipers, it's the actual metal wiper arm that's the problem. I'll take a picture of what I mean tomorrow

on my E36 sedan, the wiper arms are quite noticeable and sit relatively high up the windscreen and annoy me because i'd rather they sit down lower, out of the way. i've tried adjusting the arms, but any lower and they mess up the bonnet when it's opened.

i had a look an identical year E36 coupe today and noticed they have different wipers that sit much lower/flush. Should there be any reason that the coupe wiper arms cannot be fitted to a sedan?

do the E36 imports have an immobilizer/chipped key? i've just got the one key and the fob is for an E46 so i don't think mine does... have heard John Bull Locksmiths in CHCH advertising they can code new keys, mate was quote $250 for a 2002 Outback key, would be cheaper without an immobilizer of course

you need a special car like mine that still has all the green service lights even though it's done more than 4000k since its last service. hahaha

i'm finding it pretty hard to find a new headunit that has the few things i'm after.

i'm basically looking for:

rear or rear+front usb or an SD card slot

direct control for ipod

lights that aren't blue or are adjustable.

i've basically come down to the pioneer deh-4250 (sd card slot, red lights), JVC KD-R716 (front and rear USB, but hideous bright blue lights) or JVC KD-616 (adjustable lights so can match them but no SD card slot or rear USB).

basically i'm not keen on a front USB because i don't want a cable hanging over my dash, i'm guessing everything's gone front USB these days thanks to iphones etc and having an SD card slot means i could just load up a card with music and leave it in there with no fluffing about plugging in ipods etc.

anyone know of any other units that might suit?

my left rear door window is a bit rattley and driving me batty. When the window is open even a relatively small amount the rattle is pretty much non existent.

i've tried looking around on the net but didn't really seem to find anything so dunno if it's common, but what would the likely cause be and a possible fix for it?

never been a fan of Turtle Wax products but decided to buy some Ice paste to try out since it doesnt leave white marks on black trim like normal wax.

i'm totally converted to the stuff! i've put on 2 layers now (on and off real easy) and the metallic flecks in the paint have come out so much more and it's hidden 90% of the swirls/buff marks that were in it.

best part is that i used it on all the black trim and it works waaay better than Mothers Back to Black. it gives a nice matt finish and after a few weeks and washing the car it's still nice and black, doesnt wash off in the rain like BTB.

it's a bit pricey ($55 i think) but the tub of paste will last so long, wouldnt have even used 5% of the tub yet.

anyway, highly recommend it if you can't be arsed masking off the black trim every time you wax

did you find these instructions? i havent followed them yet myself but may be different to some you've found

http://www.bimmerforums.co.uk/forum/f3/how...-drains-t32501/

sweet thanks Glenn, up on trademe they go

so i've gone about reinstalling orange taillights on my car, i kinda like them and it was pretty cheap to buy a pair since no one wants them, so thought i'd give it a go and see what i liked better.

the left light went in without a hitch, however the right one i've got a problem with the taillight/fog light bulb because it will not work. closer inspection of the units shows the connector plugs are different, first picture is the clear unit and the second picture is the orange unit, also there's a random cut wire on the orange unit the clear unit does not have

i think this must be a sign to leave the clear tails in?

yeah it was sweet until the constant rain started, just assumed it might have started to corrode a little bit inside maybe.

pretty sure dad's got some graphite dust, i'll try that next time i pop over

in the last few weeks the drivers door lock has started getting sticky when locking/unlocking the door with the key. i sprayed a bit of CRC in there which fixed it for a few days but started sticking again, so weekend before last i shoved some grease in there which fixed it but now it's sticking again after a week and a half.

it can require a bit of force to turn the key so i've started unlocking/locking using the boot or passenger door since they work sweet and i'm worried about snapping the key or damaging the lock.

any idea what would be causing this?

i think it's a sign to get an alarm with remote central locking haha

sweet, thanks for all the info

hahaha , yeah thats my old car, You got a bargin there as i spent alot of $$ on it, M3 cab's and melye outer ball joints, Retrofitted in the 18 button obc, new door seals, door cards up front but you will have to do the rears. New water pump and and hyd tensioner and ider bearings, new rotor's and pads all round. 3 series stainless door sills. The list goes on.

Anything you want to know about it just give me a yell, Did most of the work on it myself

haha cool. it was advertised on trademe thursday arvo and i bought it saturday morning, wanted it as soon as i saw it.

probably a long shot, but don't suppose you still have the old orange corner lights/tail lights? i may be against the norm, but i think the orange lights look real good on this colour blue 3 series so looking to convert back at some point i think

Mr Gray is ok but very $$$$, Try acton automotive, they know there beemers and have all the tools required and you will be presently surprised at the savings while still getting the same service (except the complementary car groom).

>>Clicky me for google map<<

Off topic where did you get your car. You say you have only had it a few months and has 190k on the clock. Just curious as that is about the time I traded mine in and traded up.

hahaha yeah i think i so, the dealer (chch european) said it was traded in on a later 325 motorsport in a similar colour. hope there's nothing wrong with it!

i'm not 100% sure about it since it was just my doctor telling me and haven't had a chance to have a proper search on it yet, but i have seen a post where it was recommended to use BMW coolant.

i can do oil/coolant change myself and can get a reset tool for the service lights, so just not sure whether it's worth paying extra for a proper service if they dont pick up things that need doing that i dont know about hmm

I've just had my E36 for a few months but unsure where to take if for servicing in Christchurch.

I'm pretty happy with doing my own oil changes, but i do like taking it somewhere that knows what they're doing and pick things up that also needing fixing/replacing and puts in the correct oil/filter the car needs (has done 190k and know it has Magnatech in it now).

Main concern at the moment is the radiator coolant. my doctor (i know haha) told me to only use BMW supplied coolant which is blue, something about generic coolant cracking the plastic radiator head(?) but my car has green coolant. it's last service by the previous owner was in Jan at Jeff Gray so would have thought they'd change it if it had the incorrect coolant though.

quick search of google only brings up Jeff Gray and Kevin Burt M-B and BMW specialist for Christchurch.

anyone have any recommendations?

thanks for the info. i think the first thing i'll check is the door card seal, the front doors have had the fabric trim redone at some point due to the usual sagging so the door card would have been removed for that and may have damaged the seal.

i dont think it will be the a/c, just because i never use the a/c and only used it due to the car fogging up so easily from being damp inside, but will check this out too.

i've also found some instructions on how to clear the drain pipes around the firewall so that'll be the next step after the door card

with the heavy rain we've had in the last week, i've noticed the carpet in the front passenger footwell is a bit damp. was first getting a bit suss because the car was fogging up inside so easily and started smelling a bit.

it's not coolant, so just water getting in. are there any common known leaks with the E36? mine has a sunroof so i'm going to check out the drain pipes, but wondering if there might be anything else. my sisters MK4 golf had a similar problem due to leaves blocking the drains by the firewall so will check that too.

cheers

that's awesome thanks, i'll check them out

hah, tried some CRC on the hinge and it worked perfect, thanks!