gjm

Unfortunately the old software was kinda end-of-life (my perception - I've not spoken to James) and getting support for it may have proven difficult. Hence the change. (Change... I appreciate you'd not necessarily agree with 'upgrade'! )

Not possible. They're different... Give it some time and James a chance to tweak the software.

Easy fix. At the top right of the page is a link to 'Mark site read'. Click that, and everything is read. Only new stuff will show when you hit 'Unread content' (formerly known as new posts, or whatever).

I posted in the Forum questions bit. The is the same software I'm moderating elsewhere. Loads of functionality.

Sweet!

Could just be air in the system. Bleed it, then bleed it again.

The rear door is the one that has me kinda stumped. Conceptually, at least - I've not gone poking around to look at it. When locked, the locking pin is down as you'd expect. And (assuming the sequence of alarm fob/key/correct door lock) is found, the rear door unlocks and the pic rises. It's just that it doesn't seem possible to unlock the rear door once it has been locked via the central locking. Something I have just remembered: sometimes,when the doors have been locked, you can hop in the driver's seat, insert the key into the ignition, press the button on the alarm fob and then all the doors will unlock. I had wondered if autoWATCH system was designed to work in conjunction with the EWS II in the car, but that doesn't make much sense if you have to be inside the car and the key in the ignition for it to function.

Interesting (if you like that sort of thing) little problem with locking the car. Separate to the ignition key, there is a remote alarm fob, with a single button, on the keyring. One push - one siren blip and light flash - and the alarm is activated. there is also an immobiliser component to this. However, the doors do not lock. A second push - two siren blips and two light flashes - and the alarm is off. If you're fairly quick, you can get in and start the car. Take a little too long, and once you have turned the key to position 2 you need to press the alarm fob button again to release the immobiliser. Locking the car is another conundrum. I have yet to successfully lock the driver's door. Using the key in the driver's door lock will sometimes lock the other three doors, the boot and the filler cap. You can however still open the driver's door. This activity does not set the alarm, but may set the immobiliser. The driver's door lock action doesn't feel 'correct' and is certainly not as precise as the lock on the passenger side. If you then unlock the car from the driver's door (bearing in mind the door wasn't locked anyway) it may or may not unlock the other doors. And if you try to start the car it may or may not start, even following deactivating the immobiliser as described above. In this situation, take the keys out of the car, go to the passenger side front door, unlock the car, come back to the driver's side and the car will generally start (after deactivating the immobiliser). However... We have found ourselves in the situation where the driver's side rear door does not unlock, and the locking pin is ineffective. You can lift it, but it is as though it is completely disconnected - it has no effect and flops down again when released - and it is not possible to open the door. It may be coincidental but the driver's door handle has to be lifted to the very top of it's travel to open the door, which means lifting the handle, pressing the locking button on the inside of the door, and slamming it closed with the handle up is pretty difficult. Someone has had the driver's side rear door card off at some point. We've worked around this so far but I obviously want to sort it. Aside from being a bit pedantic about having my cars 'right', I guess it's a kinda sorta security issue... I've had a read of the Bentley manual and I think we are dealing with the EWS II - I've had the key apart and aside from the CR2025 battery which is dead so the LED doesn't light up, there's a chip in there. The alarm fob is from autoWATCH, a Kiwi company based in Auckland with other agencies across the country. Someone with more disposable income than I seem to have would probably visit them and ask them to sort things out! Any suggestions? I've provided as much info as I can remember, but questions may jog my memory. Or I can find out more.

It's Cordoba Rot. Like most reds, it seems to suffr from lacquer peel. Still, we can make it look pretty nice with some work. I have asked another well-known forum member about fog lights (no prizes for guessing who!), and he's having a look for us, but thanks for the offer - I'll let you know how we get on.

When you consider E30s are advertised with higher asking prices now, it shows that there are great bargains to be had.

17x8.5 et13. Popular on E36s, apparently, even if they don't fit properly without significant modifications. Better on an E34.

As Miss M hasn't yet started her thread, I'll kick it off. Here's how it was when it came home. Wheels too big - wrong offset - meant the arches have been rolled, stretched and deformed. So we fitted some smaller 17x7 et47 Style 73s: Comparatively, they look a little lost! Much nicer to drive though. There's a set of ACS 17x7 et38 that we might use. We'll have a look at reshaping the arches in due course. Usual 'bought a used car' servicing completed. Thermostat replaced - temp gauge wasn't getting out of cold while travelling at normal speeds. Sorted. It's been fitted with red (colour) superlow springs. We've swapped the rears for some from an Eibach Pro-Kit which has lifted the rear ride height a little, and feels nicer on the road. Once the weather stops being so miserable we'll sort the front end, too. The rear shocks probably need replacing. They'll pass a WoF, but that just means they're not leaking. Front struts look to be fairly recent Monroes, so they'll stay. Other stuff... Front windscreen has a coupe of good-sized cracks so it'll be replaced. Paintwork is a bit shabby, but there's not much that can economically be done about that, so we'll tidy it but nothing more. For instance, we'll clean the rest of the clear coat (lacquer) from the sun roof panel, polish the paint and apply a clear wrap. There's a little dent in one door. Looks like it should push out. Interior is pretty tidy. One door card is a bit shabby, but again it's not critical and will wait. Seats are all in good condition. The a/c controls are now illuminated since I replaced the bulb. The headlight switch is imprecise and not illuminated - that'll be sorted, too. Don't think fog lights were fitted originally and there's no switch to use them, but the blanks are missing from the front. Plan to try fitting fog lights and fit the switch when sorting the headlight knob. We get a fair bit of fog here so they may actually be useful. In daily use, it's pretty economical and uses under 7.5 litres of fuel per 100km. No plans for endless modification. Might fit rear discs (the 318i came with drums), and explore making it stop and handle as well as practical, much as we were going to with the E30 plans.

Getrag 250G holds a total of 1.25 litres of fluid. Not much, really... I have 8 liters of Penrite ATF-FS in the garage, waiting for the next change in the 320d. That said, I've used it in the 500SE and 190E too... I'll check of course, but it should be suitable for the 250G: it is suitable for any gearbox where Dexron II, III or VI is specified. It's specification exceeds Dexron III. I may get something a little cheaper (but still appropriate specification) to use to flush the gearbox first. Not a pumped flush, just a drain, use for 100km or so, and replace. The car has covered over 225000km and I doubt anyone has given it a thought. Such is all-too-often the case with a 'filled for life' statement from the manufacturer.

It's Sunday! And I think Kayne is out of the country anyway... Edit: He's been at Manfeild.

The Redline website offers some slightly different information (although it concurs in the case of Miss M's car): "Respected BMW tech expert confidently recommend MTL for every BMW manual gearbox (early boxes right up to currect day) without complaints and many years of success. The early gearboxes (through 1985) take our MTL, a 70W80 GL-4 fluid. From 1986 to 1992, it is a bit trickier in that there are three different transmissions identified by a label on the passenger side of the bell housing. That with a green label and a 17mm hex drain plug uses MT-90, a red label and 17mm plug uses D4 ATF, and that with no label and a 15mm drain plug uses MTL."

For a while it appeared to be pot luck. If there's a black label, it requires MTF- LT-2. If there's a red/orange label, it requires ATF. If there's no label, refer to your main dealer. However, there seems to be a break where BMW introduced the use of MTF- LT-2, sometime around 1998. This was used in the later E36s, and the E46s etc. I've even now found a 1995 US-spec 318Ti owners manual which states "Manual Transmission: 1.2 quarts. Use only brand name automatic transmission fluids of Dexron II." I thought it was Dexron III, but that's details given neither is manufactured any longer. Later Dexron fluids are said to be backwards compatible, so Dexron VI can be used where Dexron II would have been specified. Regardless, it looks like Miss M's car needs ATF, and not a MTF. Now I need to find something suitable, and suitably priced!

No BMW work today (Miss M had a driving lesson, though). Trying to trace a misfire on the 500SE. Checking resistance on plug leads (a new set wouldn't hurt, but on a Sunday afternoon?) showed a couple to be a bit out. However, removing the plug lead from number 6 proved problematic. Not quite as bad as Dave's issues (above) but it turned out the plug and the lead had corroded together. Not sure how that happened, but it can't be helping.

Could do, but I know there's a problem. I can smell antifreeze...

Thanks Jared.

I'm unsure of the route the water is taking, and I know the matrix needs to be replaced so I'll go down that route. I'll find where the water is, and where it's coming from more precisely once I start removing large pieces of dash.

But you liked my powers of diagnosis? I feel quite proud, even if it may have been obvious to those more experienced .

Oh, you guys...!

I think I have diagnosed the issue. It looks as though the heater matrix has leaked water across on to the relays behind the fuse board. This could have caused a failure in the circuit to one or other of the fuel pumps. When I pulled the relays, there was water on top of them. I've just received a new heater matrix, but don't currently have anywhere under cover to work and with the weather being the way it is - rain for 30 minutes, sun for 30 minutes, repeat - it's not ideal for the entirely unenviable task of E46 heater core replacement. This requires removing the entirety of the interior at the front of the car - seats first, just to make enough space to do the rest. I can't say I'm looking forward to it! But at least it is less expensive than a replacement high pressure pump. in the meantime, I dried out the relays and the entire fuse/relays area generally, replaced everything, and had the car running for about 5 minutes before cutting out. Removing the relays again showed more water.

Thanks Ron. From Castrol: "Check for colour-coded label next to filler plug. If no label fitted, use MANUAL VMX 80. With orange coloured label, use ATF DEX III; with green or blue label, Refer to Dealer or Castrol Technical Department 0800 10 40 60. Do NOT mix fluid types." It did confirm I have the correct engine oil and diff oil!

Thanks Muzz.