E39 M5 restoration project

[M5V8 337]

this is awesome martin. i'd love to hook up my M5 and give it the same test.

[Phil-540i 166]

I like this car, lots!! Nice to see it getting some TLC. Neat being able to do own test on VANOS ops like that - that'll always give you peace of mind. Funny bit, going back through your pics, is you've got same 'Shelly BMW' sticker, in same spot, as my 540 has got...... And there, the common-ness probably ends, well in your favour though.

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

I like this car, lots!! Nice to see it getting some TLC. Neat being able to do own test on VANOS ops like that - that'll always give you peace of mind. Funny bit, going back through your pics, is you've got same 'Shelly BMW' sticker, in same spot, as my 540 has got...... And there, the common-ness probably ends, well in your favour though.

Yes that pesky sticker is quite difficult to remove. I think it will need some heating up... off to go break the other halves hair dryer

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

this is awesome martin. i'd love to hook up my M5 and give it the same test.

If you're ever up in AKL let me know and I'll be happy to hook the Gt1 system up.

[M5V8 337]

If you're ever up in AKL let me know and I'll be happy to hook the Gt1 system up.

funny you say that..... (i'm moving in the NY).

Once settled I'd like to get the engine checked as I intend to then get the ecu remapped.

Edited December 12, 2013 by M5V8

[Phil-540i 166]

Yes that pesky sticker is quite difficult to remove. I think it will need some heating up... off to go break the other halves hair dryer

Should leave it there, its history from 'back in the day' when it was probably new, from a dealership that I've heard was quite good, but then taken over by Jeff Gray..besiding which I've heard a rumour that females can get a bit funny when 'their stuff' is used on vehicles, or out in the shed.

### Please note - your even using 'her stuff' on her vehicle is not a defence under any circumstances either, apparently.

[Arma 134]

Awesome stuff - was nice bumping into you at Ray's yesterday.

Funny, didn't know about the difference the x5 bushings would make - would they fit a 530i? Intrigued.

Also - have you done some work on your exhaust? Sounds even more beasty now, or maybe I wasn't listening properly before

[jeffbebe 1560]

Also - have you done some work on your exhaust? Sounds even more beasty now, or maybe I wasn't listening properly before

I think the previous owner 'worked' on it by ripping the mufflers off. It certainly barks! Rattled our windows when you took off yesterday... My wife was impressed, Martin... Not! haha

I think the sound's a bit raw at the moment - I reckon a couple of these tru x Magnaflow mufflers would sound epic and they're super cheap (these guys ship cheaply to NZ).

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

Awesome stuff - was nice bumping into you at Ray's yesterday.

Funny, didn't know about the difference the x5 bushings would make - would they fit a 530i? Intrigued.

Also - have you done some work on your exhaust? Sounds even more beasty now, or maybe I wasn't listening properly before

I'm not sure, it's a mod/hack for the v8 cars. Certainly tightens up the turn-in and braking feeling.

Yeah, as per Jooles - Gutted rear mufflers. It's got a nice growl, but when it comes on cam it's a bit raspy. I like it though, wish there were more tunnels..

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

Restoration is coming along nicely. Bumper and all the bits around it are back on. Got a few suspension bits to sort so the cosmetic resto. side will be taking a break.

Some pics I took after a wash and a wax earlier this week.

[jeffbebe 1560]

Gets better every time I see it, Martin.

[NZ BMW 368]

Very nice, I see the hi-beams are almost blueish front on. Does this car have xenon lights?

[Phil-540i 166]

Just. Makes. Me. Want. One. Even. Worse. Than. 'Normal'.

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

More progress for this coming weekend :

- New timing chain tensioner (preventative maintenance, and should quieten the idle down a bit)

- New rear upper control arms. LH side ball joint is shot. Causes a rear shimmy at around 100+ km/h and a bit of nervousness in my experience.

- Relocating the Inlet air temp sensor. As the sensor is built in to the MAF, during summer, the sensor does get terribly heat soacked. This means excessive ignition retard, and more fuel resulting in 540i performance :-P More on this coming soon...

[jeffbebe 1560]

More progress for this coming weekend :

- Relocating the Inlet air temp sensor. As the sensor is built in to the MAF, during summer, the sensor does get terribly heat soacked. This means excessive ignition retard, and more fuel resulting in 540i performance :-P More on this coming soon...

Where will its new position be?

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

behind the bumper, under the headlight at the beginning of the inlet tract. This should give a more accurate reading of sucked air temp. There is I reckon about 30 - 50hp difference in power when the sensor is heat soaked. very noticeable when putting the hammer down...

[jeffbebe 1560]

behind the bumper, under the headlight at the beginning of the inlet tract. This should give a more accurate reading of sucked air temp. There is I reckon about 30 - 50hp difference in power when the sensor is heat soaked. very noticeable when putting the hammer down...

Interesting... Would I have the same issue on the 540i?

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

Possibly, feeling a bit sluggish after driving in stop/start traffic, or when the radiator fan turns on? The M62tu runs a lot hotter in terms of KTMP. My old 540i used to in summer range between 100 - 106 deg. C Where as the M5 sits between 78 and 90 deg C. Not sure about the M62tu, but the s62 dme does use KTMP as an input for when controlling ignition timing and fueling.

[jeffbebe 1560]

KTMP was up over 110°c (got as high as 119°) before Ray replaced thermostat for me. Since then runs between 90-100° - usually around 96-97 on the open road. Fuel economy has definitely improved since thermostat replaced but did so many other things around the same time (vanos overhaul, tune, fixed vac leaks, etc) it's hard to pinpoint what's made the biggest difference.

[kiwi535 538]

Ktmp? Wassat?

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

Coolant temp. Test no.7 in the 'secret' obd in the dash shows it in real time.

[kiwi535 538]

Coolant temp. Test no.7 in the 'secret' obd in the dash shows it in real time.

So the coolant temp can be displayed for as long as you drsire

[jeffbebe 1560]

So the coolant temp can be displayed for as long as you drsire

Yep. Not sure if it works in low OBD but definitely in high (the one with LED readout only not the little pic of the car).

Here are unlock instructions and list of hidden menu items. Coolant temp is Test #7.

http://www.bimmerboard.com/forums/posts/129948

Edited January 12, 2014 by jeffbebe

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

Weekend turned out well for maintenance items :

1.) Replace both rear control arms

2.) Replace timing chain tensioner

In typical fashion, the first control arm took me 2 hours as I was mucking about with tools and getting my vice grips to grip on the ball joint thread end. I had also installed the new control arm with the cable routed underneath it, so I couldn't secure it to the control arm. The second one was done in 45 mins.

Below are a few pics and notes for reference that should help if some one else plans on DIY'ing the control arms in their e39 sedan.

Remove wheel, and use as additional support in case the car falls on your head..

Unsecure the cables first from the control arm and be careful not to damage them when removing the nuts. 18mm for the connection to the sub-frame. 21mm for the connection to the hub carrier. tightening torque 110 and 142Nm respectively. Nuts must be torqued in the normal position, which can be achieved by jacking up on the hub carrier to the position when fully loaded with a full tank of gas. In my case it was approx 34.5cm from centre of wheel to wheel arch.

Get a damned good grip on the thread end of the ball joint side of the control arm. You can use a 10mm spanner, but that nut is pretty tight and you will probably end up rounding the thread end like I did on first attempt. The drivers side control arm removal is a lot easier in this regard as to counter-act against removing the nut, you can place the vice grips up against the shock absorber making removing the nut a breeze.

Bolt for connection to sub frame goes in towards the rear of the car.

The ball joint on the passenger side control arm was f**ked, no resistance at all, nothing left of the rubber boot either. This was an original item as it was date coded 99'

Drivers side, not too far behind from f**kedville, still had some resistance, but still very loose compared to the new items. Rubber boot a gonner as well.

I did a visual on the other control arms known as guide links, and they appeared fine, the rubber boots were in good order, probably some looseness in the ball joints as they are original, but I'll leave them for now. The rear sway bar brackets felt a bit loose, so I'll be doing those along with the sway bar bushes soon.

As for the timing chain tensioner, it took 20mins to replace. After 170kms the original one was still good, and came out in one piece. Oh well, preventative maintenance ftw.

[BreakMyWindow 1874]

Finally got around to fixng a problem with exhaust fume coming in to the cabin when doing some full-throttle driving. Here are a few reference pics, and notes if you intend on tackling this yourself. The trunk vents are about $12USD each.

On all e39 sedans there are 2 trunk vents, they are one-way and are designed to let air flow out from the cabin when the fans are on. When they get old the rubber flaps loose their seal and cause an undesirable smell from the exhaust to enter.

The new vents before some labour takes place :

The vents are held in by 6 plastic clips, and are near on impossible to remove from inside the trunk, or from underneath in behind the bumper. To install the passenger side vent, the Audio and NAV system needs to all come out as the supporting brackets are in the way. Off comes some trunk trim, the Audio and NAV system, and then finally the rear bumper. There are 3 press-in-type plastic fasteners holding the rear bumper to the rear wheel liner, they are a pain to remove unless you remove the rear wheels. 3 nuts on each chassis leg inside the trunk come off, unplug the PDC sensor, some careful pulling on the bumper and she's off

The old vents are removed by pressing in the bottom 3 clips from in between where the bumper sits and the lower rear quarter panel. E39's are getting on so these vents where well stuck even with the lower clips pressed in. A rubber mallet and some hitting did the trick.

The old vent about to get the bash :

Pic of the old vent removed, and Audio and Nav gear brackets removed, and the wirey mess left behind.

Installation of the rear bumper can be tedious with one person, but can be done. The 3 nuts attaching the bumper support to the car can be loosened to adjust how much gap you have between the bumper, and the lower tail panel. Recommend putting some masking tape around the rear quarter panel edges to protect the paint work.