hunter 408 Report post Posted June 5, 2020 Drivers seat upholstery fix this week at Waikato Motor trimmer. new lower outside bolster foam and material and a re shaped upper bolster too with small price of new foam to bring the shape back to factory. A pic of the removed lower bolster and a shot of the rejuvenated seat. 4 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted June 7, 2020 Drivers seat upholstery fix this week at Waikato Motor trimmer. new lower outside bolster foam and material and a re shaped upper bolster too with small price of new foam to bring the shape back to factory. A pic of the removed lower bolster and a shot of the rejuvenated seat. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted June 7, 2020 Replaced the windscreen cowl today with a genuine replacement part. Thanks to @hqstu for the pulling tool and extra pair of hands. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted June 7, 2020 So on a drive to dinner tonight a rather strong smell of fuel filled the cabin when stopped at traffic lights. Recently, A fuel smell has been present on start up for a few weeks but clears as i drive off. this stronger smell while driving is a bit of a concern especially with the kids in the back. I'll be pulling the back seat cushion up today to check for leaks around the top of the pump / sender units as this seems quite common based on my quick googling last night. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
B.M.W Ltd 950 Report post Posted June 7, 2020 Check the fuel pressure regulator as well. They are prone to rupturing the diaphragm with age and then leak out of the vacuum hose which also perishes with age 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted June 8, 2020 On 6/8/2020 at 7:31 AM, B.M.W Ltd said: Check the fuel pressure regulator as well. They are prone to rupturing the diaphragm with age and then leak out of the vacuum hose which also perishes with age Checked the for, and the pump etc under the back seat. No issues or visible leaks. I did notice my left hand aircon tube was one funny angle again, fractured and broken clips, 2 of the 3. .. so I need a new one, again. This dangle was creating a gap in the seal in the firewall and I think the fumes are coming in here whilst driving. I'll get another replacement and see how the fume situation is Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hqstu 780 Report post Posted June 9, 2020 Get to the fuel filter area... the underside tray comes off easy enough for a look, a gap in the air con vent will not lead to fumes of that significance in cabin without a leak... check fuel fittings in engine bay as well. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
B.M.W Ltd 950 Report post Posted June 9, 2020 7 hours ago, hunter said: Checked the for, and the pump etc under the back seat. . Did you also check the return side on the L/H side under the rear seat? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted June 9, 2020 (edited) 3 hours ago, hqstu said: Get to the fuel filter area... the underside tray comes off easy enough for a look, a gap in the air con vent will not lead to fumes of that significance in cabin without a leak... check fuel fittings in engine bay as well. Engine bay looks dry as a bone, even after start up and immediate check with engine running with engine covers removed. Will recheck underbody tomorrow. 2 hours ago, B.M.W Ltd said: Did you also check the return side on the L/H side under the rear seat? Yep both side dry as, no apparent leak there from visual check with torch, no significant smell either. Edited June 9, 2020 by hunter Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted June 13, 2020 for my upcoming MFL + PAddles conversion I have this week i removed the lower part of the steering column cover to ocnfirm what wiring is present, there is only 6 wires into the Green plug on the slip ring. if the MF wiring is installed there would be 9, so that all good. to prepare for this i have now ordered the e46 MF retro fit loom, its the same as the e39 one aside from the colors of 2 of the wires. and is available, unlike the "official" e39 one. i've also used this thread to order bits for the loom that needs to be made for the paddles https://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=895897&=1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted June 14, 2020 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted June 16, 2020 On 6/9/2020 at 5:38 PM, hunter said: Engine bay looks dry as a bone, even after start up and immediate check with engine running with engine covers removed. Will recheck underbody tomorrow. Yep both side dry as, no apparent leak there from visual check with torch, no significant smell either. recheced the areas above Saturday no visable leaks, rechecked again after a decent drive. nothing. smell was less in cabin too, untill i turned the heat on, then it was noticable again. Switching between cold and hot chnaged the smell too, hmm. I've got a new Aircon tube on order from BMW. When that arrives and it fitted, i'll know if that lack of proper seal was the issue or i need to keep chasing.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted June 26, 2020 Washer level sensor warning appeared again yesterday with a full reservoir. Managed to get the sensor out of the tank this time, it was very corroded on the both sides of the sensor contact. I suspect this corrosion is blocking the signal that the reservoir is full. Pulled the sensor apart and cleaned it up removing all the surface rust on contact points, plugged back in and tested, works fine. Yuss. Reinstalled everything and hope the cleaning was enough to get it working normally full time. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted July 6, 2020 BMW genuine Wiring and connectors for the paddle shift loom today. All going to plan Friday, the paddles and MFW will be going in. my new aircon tub also arrived today looking forward to having that sorted. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted July 10, 2020 (edited) Paddle wiring was delayed until next weekend to ensure we have enough time to complete, without competing priorities. So instead, today I added a euro number plate surround to the front bumper plate carrier. I also installed my brand new air con tube, once and for all removing engine bay smells from the cabin. Edited July 10, 2020 by hunter 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
balancerider 771 Report post Posted July 10, 2020 should be possible to replace the rear lower plate surround panel on the boot lid (saw this on M539 Restorations on YT) for the full euro-spec experience. looking good! 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted July 10, 2020 Yeah I’ve seen that too. Might do it one day. Once I’ve got all the other things in my list for this year done. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted July 14, 2020 (edited) New rubber today for the 530. Michelin PS4, all round 40% off at Hyper Drive and fitted by my local tire shop. Brilliant all for a hair under 1500. Incl shipping and fitment. have also noticed that the rear drivers side door doesn’t always unlock when I come back to the car. This is likely the actuator and some that will need attention sooner rather than later to ensure it doesn’t fail leaving the door stuck shut. This would mean a potentially damaging door car removal with door closed as per his vid from e39 source. Edited July 15, 2020 by hunter 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted July 20, 2020 (edited) Massive day this past Saturday, helps to have a good mate with eletrical engineering skills, as we set about installing paddle shift and MFW intothe E39. It was a Solid 6 hour day day of trim removal and reinstall, wiring, creating new paddle shift looms, ill fitting airbag, straightneding brackets andthen good fitting airbags. For the paddles shift a new loom was created running from the slock spring to the shifter area to intersect without cutting the steptronic wiring in the shifter area. this allows paddlesot be used once the gear stick is moved into sport mode. Genuine OEM wiring, connectors and clips were used for that factory look, fit and finish and to ensure all bits were new and sure to work. The MFW (cruise and stereo control) was a bit more indepth with Factory installation guides and wiring used, splicing intothe LCM and running 1 wire to the DME, The airbag bracket was bent, fomr previous air bag removal at wreckers or by former owner?? so that needed removing and straightening up, now fits perfectly. after all ofthis and a good vacuum, I now have OEM cruise control, stereo control and sport mode paddle shift in my 2001 530i. now i need an alignment, also due to new tires last week and i'll be good to go oh except fo rthe freshly failed door lock actuator - doh! Edited July 20, 2020 by hunter 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted July 21, 2020 (edited) Replaced the door actuator in rear passenger door. Easier than the internet would have you believe. Haha. only slight issue was the lock knob stalk falling off and me needing to remember which way it went around. new actuator worked first time. Now waiting on some new Butyl tape to seal her back up again. new one on top, old on bottom. Old one had lost all its resistance and drive, i think you can see evidence of that when comparing the the state of the black "strips" in the larger opening. Edited July 21, 2020 by hunter 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted July 23, 2020 Butyl tape arrived thanks @hqstufor sharing ? Cleaning the old adhesive off was a real PITA but got most of it off the half of the door I was working on before putting new adhesive tape on. Once tape was mounted I got it with the wife’s hair dryer to soften ( it was also quite cold in my garage today) and reseated the weather membrane. Slightly paranoid about the lock working once the door was put together I was testing the locks a lot as I didn’t want to have to pull it all apart again. Everything works from the key fob and central lock button on center console. Door is now all back together and working perfectly. Job done. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hqstu 780 Report post Posted July 23, 2020 On 7/21/2020 at 2:54 PM, hunter said: Replaced the door actuator in rear passenger door. I also need to do this in the M5, right rear... good work Ben. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted July 23, 2020 (edited) 17 hours ago, hqstu said: I also need to do this in the M5, right rear... good work Ben. They are expensive units. 350 incl gst. Each. That is dealer prices but was happy ish as I didn’t want to roll the dice on a 2nd hand one Edited July 23, 2020 by hunter Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted July 26, 2020 Slight problem with the + Paddle emerges Friday, it wont shift up reliably hmmm - shift works fine, Steptronic from the gear lever works fine, both up and down. When we installed all wiring was tested and good to go so something in the paddle isn't working. Some googling reveals a common issue with these SMG wheels and the up shift being intermittent due to dirty / worn contact switches. This weeks mission is to inspect and clean said switch on the upshift Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted July 29, 2020 (edited) frustrating 2 steps forward one back on paddle shift today. the Clock Spring I have has partially failed (after a week of intermittant paddle shift functionality) with only cruise and stereo controls working. no paddle shift. i purchased some new paddle micro switches 4 dollars each. after reading how common the up shift failing is, due to a dirty or faulty micro switch. Thinking being, go new parts wherever possible from here on in. new switches were soldered inplace, switch loom bench tested, all working fine - yuss. re-installed switches in car, nothing working- what the!? checked all connectins nothing wrong or missing cruise control works stereo control works more prodding with a multi meter commenced. tip tronic shift from gear stick still works - tested ok tested paddle shift loom from steering column to gear box with miltimeter, (no clock spring) - tested ok tested Paddle shift switches to rear of clock spring pins with multimeter - Failed So looks very much like the 2nd hand clock spring is the culprit or atleast the circuit / ribbon section of it that passes the Paddles signal through to the transmission. sh*t. So, atleast i have 2 new switches, and understand the problem area, now I'm on the hunt for a new clokcpring or really good working 2nd hand one Edited July 30, 2020 by hunter 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
