arktis

Thanks for the detail Olaf. I've found quite a few decent guides and videos on the process. I think what I might do is do a drain-and-fill myself, then I could consider taking it to a shop to get it properly flushed. I'd really prefer not to buy 20 litres of the stuff, let alone find a place to dispose it. I've seen a few people say that you can bring waste fluid to Repco/SCA to dispose - this is not true. I called 4 total stores and none of them do this anymore. I reckon the car is going to be a lot nicer to drive before I get this done. Really hoping it'll be all sweet without having to buy new solenoids.

This looks pretty good. How much did the service cost you? I've ordered new seals and a fluid pan from FCP Euro, so I'm fairly committed to doing it myself - but I might actually save money getting it done on this machine if it uses less fluid. Being all the way in Marton, it might not be all that viable for me, because it's a 4-hour drive there and back, and I'd probably have to take a day off. What difference did you notice with the Fuchs fluid?

Damn, no local stores have it. Do you recommend the Fuchs stuff? I’m assuming they’ll guide me as to which product I need. It’s sounding like I might need 20L of the stuff Symptoms are clunky shifts at low speeds between 1/2/3 and it slips out of reverse when reversing up my driveway. I had the car for sale, but I’m gonna have to address this first.. I’m gonna do all the sleeves and seals, fluid pan, and fluid - and pray that I don’t need to buy a set of solenoids.

So it's been a while.. Is talking to BNT about Fuchs Titan the way to go? For 6HP26 Or am I better off buying this from SCA? https://www.supercheapauto.co.nz/p/penrite-penrite-automatic-transmission-fluid---fs-4-litre/342304.html?cgid=SCN01070501#start=7 I saw @Olaf drained and filled, then refilled. I'm not sure how keen I am to fork out for 2 tanks of fluid. Is this totally necessary?

I tried a few decoders, I can only see Sport Package. I think it might be more practical to just have a regular diff and a welded one for the track. My goal is to make a car I can learn to drift in, but still be able to drive it to the track and back. I don't have space for a trailer, and can't keep one on the street because it'll get stolen immediately.

Bummer, so hunting for one with a factory is a bit of a pointless endeavour? I'll have a look at MFactory kit. Thanks Eagle.

I know this question has been asked a million times before on other forums, but: Which E36's have LSD's? I've seen so much conflicting information. "Winter package only" "is models only" "Sport package only" "328i only" Also, are there any other LSD options I can use? For example E46 M3 or E60 M5. Are there any good aftermarket options? I read a few posts saying the RacingDiffs kits were crap. Keen to hear thoughts from resident E36 nuts, I know there are a few of you here.

Dude that is heartbreaking Everything about this was perfect. Sorry this happened to you.

Sick! I'm just about to start a similar journey, and currently on the lookout for an E36 328i coupe. One limitation I have is that I don't have anywhere to put a car trailer (it'd get stolen instantly if I left it on the street). How practical is it to have a car that I can drive to events in?

Thanks man this is really helpful! Hopefully this weekend I'll be able to get under it and have a look. I see in your post there's a TIS for it too so I'll jump in ISTA and have a look. I will be very happy if I don't have to drop the subframe. It's quite a daunting task to do solo for the first time..

Thanks for the reply. I’ve managed to grab a slightly bigger jack, and another set of stands, so I can get under it properly and investigate. I reckon there’s a high chance it’s the oil pan. My understanding is I’ll need an engine support bar, and I’ll have to drop the subframe. Are there any other jobs I can do while I’m down there? For example, would it give me good access to the alternator bracket gasket? It could also make sense to replace the engine mounts, but I’m not sure how often they need doing, or how to tell they need replacing.

Funny you should mention this, after jacking up the car I noticed a pool forming right under the centre, under the oil pan. I only have 2 jackstands so I can't get fully under it to check. I'll either have to buy another jack (I only have low profile) and some jackstands, or I'll just take it into Page and get it on the hoist. I'm pretty upset it looks like the oil pan, looks like such an absolute pig of a job that I don't have any of the equipment for.

Found a lovely puddle of oil under the car after it sat for a few weeks. Are we saying I need new VANOS solenoid seals? Can't reaaally see evidence of it being timing cover gasket. Might have bumped something when I was replacing vacuum pump seals. Underside of vacuum pump is dry as a bone. Biggest concentration of oil seems to be in pic attached under the VANOS. Oil doesn't go any higher than this.

E39 M5 (by far) E30 M3 E46 M3 E92 M3 E60 M5 Other than that who cares 😁 in my opinion E60 are when BMW's stopped being decent, and even then it's only because I have a soft spot for V8's (hence E92 M3 inclusion).

@Cement what's your professional background, if you don't mind me asking? Some real multi-disciplinary handiwork here.

This is clever sh*t. Nice work man.

I hadn't heard of map-cooling, so I had a read here: https://www.meeknet.co.uk/e38/E38_Map_Thermostat.pdf Voltage is applied to the thermostat itself if the DME detects a temp overrun (113° in his example). A thermostat with a lower opening temp should still open long before this point. The dilemma is warmup fuel economy vs. cooling system lifespan. On the N62 there's a really horrible-looking job involving the coolant transfer pipe that I'd like to avoid at all costs..

I've read a bit about lowering the opening temperature of the thermostat on N62 to keep it cooler. You can get it to NZ for less than $200 from Turner: https://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-637061-performance-thermostat-90c/ This has been discussed in significant details on international forums, but I'm interested to know what you guys reckon. This seems like a smart move to me, but then there's the thought that BMW had their reasons for choosing the factory opening temp. Did they do it because it's best for the engine, or because it's best for emissions? My understanding is that cars are most ecologically friendly when running hot. What effects would you expect from this change/upgrade? Has anyone tried it?

Hey Olaf, I believe Highway Radar is available in public beta. You’ll need to enable Test Flight in your App Store. Googling “highway radar public beta” should give you a RDForums post with better info. I’m on a company phone so I’m fairly sure I can’t do it.

I think the visibility has a huge effect on drivers too. When you see a camera it's a bit of a reminder that you will get sniped eventually, and if you're going over 140 your licence is gone.

Surely there's an AliExpress special! Sometimes it seems like it's a lot easier and cheaper just to slow down.

@Driftit how much should I expect to pay for "parking sensors"? That R8 setup with Highway Radar seems damn good, but I saw a few people on RDForums saying laser was getting more common.

Forgive me, is Highway Radar some kind of app? Sounds like a really nice setup. I reckon TTS alerts would be my preference.

What do you mean here? I'm pretty impressed with Waze so far. Apart from that time it sent me the "shortest route" during rush hour and added about 5 traffic lights to my route.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0743H6CSN/ref=ya_aw_od_pi?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Huge bargain atm fellas. R3 has an incredible reputation regarding range and false positives (or lack thereof). At this price, you can try it out, and probably make a profit selling it locally.