evan 10 Report post Posted July 12, 2023 Just bought my first BMW, a Japanese import 323i. It was looked after really well, until it wasn't. Under the rubbish, parts of the carpet were immaculate. The headliner is sagging and the door skins, no surprise (I went into this with full knowledge and denial of what I getting myself into). However the rest of the interior is in fairly good nick and the stereo is bluetooth integrated. The boot lining and plastic panels beneath had been destroyed by the weight of the old transmission in the boot and the black oil leaking from it. It only needs two tyres, they are bald (massive understatement) as for the running gear I haven't had a close look yet but it seems goodish. The engine idles rough but is otherwise good, I will find out more after I figure out why the Transmission is in limp mode. I've put a new battery in the remote and replaced the fuse that got the central locking working and now I can programme the remote. Reading all this I feel like I paid too much, but I'm stoked every time I see it and hear the doors close and figure out something new on it and I spend most of my spare time watching YouTube videos on e36s and all associated repairs (its cold outside). I've bought a user manual and I'm ready to get my hands dirty. Wish me well on my journey 7 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cement 784 Report post Posted July 12, 2023 Nice one and welcome ! There is a wealth of knowledge in the forum content and members to help you out 👍 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
C-130 Hercules 556 Report post Posted July 12, 2023 Welcome and great car to learn on. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Olaf 3236 Report post Posted July 19, 2023 Welcome Evan, enjoy the journey! e36 was an amazing car when new, unlike anything else on the road. A great drive. Concentrate on one thing at a time, chart your progress in a project thread. Plenty of knowledge in this place to help you. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
evan 10 Report post Posted July 23, 2023 Thanks all. I picked up some plastics an indicator and a new boot liner from a friendly enthusiast who is parting a car in christchurch. Then got a couple of secondhand tyres to throw on in the meantime. I cleaned the interior and discovered one grill under the driver's seat (which I had broken, pulling on it before I figured out how to raise the seats) I've done the soldering fixes on the cluster and the climate control unit and checked faults and cleared the srs light (already fixed drivers setbelt tensioner) for the faults I used an OBD1 to OBD2 adapter and the Xtool anyscan A30M. It was my first time using it and I was a bit worried because I'd bought it from aliexpress and it wasn't cheap but a couple of hundred cheaper than other places I had seen them. Anyway it seems pretty good. I found the back nut on the intake manifold was finger tight and the vaccuum line to the fuel pressure regulator has fallen off so the engine is running better. Next are the transmission issues, wish me luck. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
