BozzaFC

181,000 kms. Since I've had the car I've been battling a rough idle when cold, and more recently I've noticed an occasional small puff of blue smoke on startup. It did this at seemingly random intervals with no noticeable pattern. After a fair amount of reading online I decided my issue most likely stemmed from the PCV, which is located at the back of the engine. Rather than replacing the entire PCV unit (which never rarely fails), most people opt to replace the rubber diaphragm only which is far easier to remove. These rubber diaphragms are notorious for developing cracks or small holes which enables oil to seep through and thus create a puff of blue smoke on startup. I decided to try and tackle this job on my own with the aid of several online videos and armed with a flat head screwdriver (only required tool). At first access proved to be an issue, as most of the videos online were done using an E38 which has much more space at the back of the engine. I decided to remove all the plastic panels and other bits which freed up a lot more space. This made the job much easier and I was able to get access to the PCV, pop off the plastic cover and remove the old diaphragm (pictured below - I'll let you decide which one is the old). The old diaphragm was buggered, and fell to bits as I took it out. I installed the new diaphragm, put the car back together and took it for a test drive (pictured below - clearly much more powerful!). Upon start up it was still pretty rough and there was a small puff of smoke which was slightly disheartening, but most people say the system takes a few days to clear its throat. Once on the road the power deliver felt noticeably smoother and the engine overall happier. Over the next week or so there were probably 3-4 very small puffs of smoke on startup, which was completely eradicated after a week of driving. What's more, the cold idle was 100x smoother. Still slightly lumpy but a huge improvement. This is the most involved job I've ever done on a car by myself, which was satisfying and rewarding when it actually worked. I fixed something! This car is a great base to learn to wrench on cars in my opinion. It's great getting below the surface and discovering all of the other design elements of the car that 90% of owners will never see. Removing all of the plastic panels blocking access to the PCV was so methodical and beautifully simple (I'm sure not everything is this way!).

Notice any difference with this done? Did you have any rattling beforehand?

Engine bay looking very tidy!

The best BMW interior colour. Where'd you get your steering wheel done? That looks great too

That is such a cool car.

180,900 kms. Couple small jobs ticked off this week. Replaced faded side indicator bulbs as per WOF note. Replaced the nasty crumbling left headlight gasket with a fresh genuine BMW one.

VHT satin black vinyl dye

Armrest sold

Sorry to hear about the E38. SWB E38 740i M-sport in black is the dream. Any more pics?

180,700 kms. Passed its WOF first go on Monday. Just two notes: one for the side indicators which apparently are very faded, and another for a weak handbrake. I'll sort both these out before the next one. She marches on.

Got a chance to do some nice cosmetic upgrades just before Christmas. First was the rear parcel shelf. It was faded and looked tired. I took out the rear seats, c-pillars and lights and @str8_6 very kindly helped me to dye the shelf back to its former glory. With the c-pillars out, we used this opportunity to glue the loose material back up to where it should be. I also cleaned and conditioned the rear seats while everything was in pieces. After leaving it out of the car for a week to dry, the shelf was popped back in and I'm very pleased with the result. The rear of the car looks much fresher! Next I installed the shiny new 540i badge. I reckon it looks epic. I also bought new centre caps and valve caps for the wheels. I was going to wait until I got them refurbished but I got impatient. The centre caps seem to be a slightly different design to the old ones - more sleek without the bulky outline (they also fit a lot more snug). Finally I got round to getting euro plates. Man, what a difference euro plates make (see picture of the M62 in its second home).

SOLD Armrest - $30. This is the sliding phone delete option for E39 armrests. I got this as a spare when I bought my car but I like the phone so will leave it in. It's in very good condition apart from the plastic cracking in the centre storage space (this piece alone can be bought off Amazon). Driver's side headlight gasket - $10. In very good condition. Meant to replace my passenger side gasket but bought the wrong side. This has come out of my car but there is nothing wrong with it. Steering wheel lower trim - $30. These are really expensive to buy new (>$200) and this one is in good condition apart from the coating peeling at the bottom. Can either be sprayed or dipped. Believe this also fits the E46 M-sport steering wheels.

@hunter I think your E39 needs its own thread...

180,600 kms. Over the Christmas period I was finally able to test out this thing. Intentionally, I set off for my drive home to the Manawatu in the evening to avoid all of the holiday traffic, and scouted out every tight, twisty back road I could find. Oh my. In spite of all my efforts, I was unable to get it to break a sweat. Its ability to hunker down and grip when coming out of a corner amazes me - it seems that the harder I accelerate out of a corner the harder it grips. And then there's the power. Regardless of whether I’m in 2nd or 5th, there is always oodles of torque. I found myself glancing away from the gauges for only a couple seconds before glancing back and seeing a stupid number. (It's hard to imagine how the M5 can be much better than this.) And obviously, in true E39 fashion, it was uber comfortable in between the go-fast moments, with a boot full of presents and other luggage. But best of all, it was flawless. Zero issues whatsoever. And what's more, even with all my spirited driving I still managed to pull off 10.2L/100km. On a side note, as I pulled into my garage last night concluding the 600 km trip I realised that I've already done 5,000 kms in this thing. I don't dare calculate my cost per km, but at least now I've got a car that looks and drives a hell of a lot better than it did only a few months ago.

In its natural habitat ?

Ended up getting them from BM Workshop Auckland. Excellent service and reasonably priced. Highly recommend!

180,000 kms. Vanos solenoids + gaskets installed. The engine is running smoother and has more mid-range torque. Unfortunately, hasn't fully gotten rid of my lumpy cold idle. I've noticed there is occasionally a puff of blue smoke on startup. PCV? Front + rear pads and rotors installed by Jon at Auto 38. Managed to source ATE parts from BM Workshop Auckland. Great service and reasonably priced. Highly recommend. The brakes feel great and the stopping power is immense. You can't go wrong with these brakes. Got the windows tinted last week. Took it to the same guy in Whanganui as I took the 530i to. Again, he's done a great job. I took the rear parcel shelf out too, which he said made the job a lot easier. I also had a few days spare so I spent some time on the paintwork. The paint definitely needed some love; it felt rough and lacked shine. Fortunately though, it had very few swirl marks. Using mostly AutoGlym products, I first gave the car a quick shampoo as it was covered in bugs from night-country driving. I then applied the Magma iron remover over the paint and rims and shampooed the car again. Then I clay barred the entire car, followed by another shampoo, polish and AutoGlym paint sealant. Really happy with the results! The paint has got so much more shine and is seriously smooth to the touch. Also took the M badge off. I'm liking the de-badged look at the moment, but I've got a 540i badge for it which I will put on eventually.

That would be awesome thanks! I'll PM

That one’s been on TM for months at the same price. Think it might have been discussed on here before somewhere

Chucked you a PM

One satisfying (albeit eye-wateringly expensive) upgrade last weekend. Thanks @str8_6 for the help! This was actually quite an involved process - first the airbag must come out in what is a very finicky process (after disconnecting the battery), then after removing a few screws the two pieces of plastic trim (controls and lower trim) can be removed. These two pieces are attached with more screws, so they too need to be unscrewed before doing all the steps in reverse to put the new trim in. This bugged me every time I got in the car. Looks really nice now.

@hunter https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32899251958.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.0.0.3a7876b1nu2T3h&algo_pvid=b15be1ff-fce5-472c-a81b-e71392ae835e&algo_expid=b15be1ff-fce5-472c-a81b-e71392ae835e-0&btsid=7f926f50-36cc-4b08-a97c-d46c44b0cd8f&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_3,searchweb201603_55 Alternatively, if you'd like the original auto-dimming mirrors, I'm happy to sell my working one to you for far less than the dealer. You'll obviously have to find another one though

This has been on TM for months. Understandably so, given the price. Looks to be in great condition though

Yep. They're on the list

Yeah, you're right. It's just personal preference. I think a 540i badge is far cooler. For me, it's being proud of what you own.