E34 525 new questions

[robbo86]

Right, I managed to win an e34 525 on ebay accidentally yesterday (stuck a tenner on top of the currnt bid in the last few minutes and won) I did not expect to win it but hey ho.

I may keep the car or I may shift it on.

Few questions to ask about them. First of all, the steering seems not to recentre by itself all that well. Is this anything to do with the fact it has a steering box or is it knackered?

Second: Chattering from the engine. Tappets I assume?

Thirdly: The dash mounted speaker on the drivers side seems not to work. Is this easily accessible to check the connections

Lastly: The leccy mirrors dont adjust. I would assume this to be the switch rather than the mirrors.

One more thing. It has a 6 button OBC. Is putting the higher spec OBC in easy?

[eko]

Every E34 ive driven has had vague/shite steering so probably just the usual worn ball joints etc.
What engine is fitted?Could be tappets/chain/guides/vanos....
Dash speakers are easy to change.
Could try cleaning the mirror switch but think from memory they are the same as E30 ones??
Again from memory I seem to remember all E34`s being pre wired for full OBC,maybe worth you looking into this.

[robbo86]

Cheers dude. I cant remember if it is the same as e30 one but currently winning bidder (99p) on an e34 switch. Also needs a wiper stalk as the wipe works but not the wash!

Are the gearknobs the same fitting. The one I have is shagged!

[fingerman]

I'm 99% sure the elec mirror switch is the same as an E30.

Is it an M50, or M20 ??? Tappets M20, rattly vanos unit M50

What's the item number - let's have a look

[robbo86]

Tried to have a look on real OEM but couldnt find it. Its M20

[fingerman]

Tappets then - let's have a look, what's the item number dude

[robbo86]

Ohhhh the ebay item: 220533409330

[ImysE30]

Looks quite clean:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BMW-525I-SE-1989- ... 3358d0c632

[mad4amanda]

dont 6 cyl e34 have a rack & v8 have a box?
OBC is easy to retro fit prewired
looks a bargain to me well done!

[robbo86]

Its not as much a shitbox as I expected. Damn good hoover and a polish inside and it will be infinitely nicer! A new drivers seat may be in order also.

[fingerman]

Looks nice and original but a bit of a vague advert, so a bit of a gamble there

Take it the dude selling it was in the e-dirty-6 ?

Hope it turns out okay

[robbo86]

Dirty 6 was his. Advert was a gamble but then I didnt expect to win and if I did, bargain! Chettering form engine but nice and easily adjustable tappets.

Mad4 I was under the impression all had a box.

[TheHeap]

Looks nice and original but a bit of a vague advert, so a bit of a gamble there

Take it the dude selling it was in the e-dirty-6 ?

Hope it turns out okay

That's what i thought. Far too vague for me. Good luck with it though matey.

My local scrappy has a few of these in giss a shout when/you need the number.

[robbo86]

Sweet. Will let you know!

[mad4amanda]

yep sorry yours has a steering box ! 525ix and e39 had racks apart from v8 which have boxes too!

[robbo86]

Still havent worked out if they are meant to be vague and not self correct!

Can the bulbs in switches be replaced? Headlight switch does not light up!

[B7]

It'll probably be the idler arm on the steering worn but worn steering boxes are no unheard of also. there are so many joints in an e34's steering / suspension that it only takes a couple of joints to have a little wear, and it's magnified into a shite feel.

They should drive straight and true, with nice feedback and positive too.

Dead ringer for my first ever BMW back in 1996 that. Alpine White 525i on the "G". Mine had anthracite trim but many white ones came with natural (read tan). Was a nice car though.

[robbo86]

My trim is a bluey grey if thats what you mean by anthracite?

[320ise]

vauge steering is more than likely the idler arm or lower arms, stiff or non centreing steering could be an over adjusted steering box or the top mounts bearings are stiff and dead.

[Fushion_Julz]

The vague steering is worn idler arm, most likely...could also be a worn steering box.

The steering box has been adjusted up too much..probably to try and get rid of the vagueness...and this is causing the stiff, non-centering action...

Try adjusting it properly, first, topping up with fluid and then seeing if the vagueness gets worse. If so, then a new box is likely to be the remedy. If not, then new idler arm.

Dash speaker is easy...The grille pops off from the top and the speaker is screwed in from the top...

Engine chattering on an M20...tappets or exhaust manifold gasket...

If both mirrors don't work, then it is either the fuse or the switch...Most unlikely to be both motors dead, but you never know!!

All E34s from 525 upwards (so not 518, 520, 524td, 525td, 525tds) have the wiring for the OBC already in place...If you already have the 6btn version you also have the temp sensor and gong...You may need the radio surround panel, too, otherwise you have to modify the back to take the deeper full OBC unit...
There is a fitting and conversion guide here: http://www.bmwe34.net/Wiki/tiki-index.php?page=OBC

[robbo86]

Cheers Julz. I have a mechanic mate who is going to give it a once over for me so I will see if he can work it out. Looking forward to a day where I can get to work cleaning up the inside and maybe the outside also, but may wait until the snow has totally gone.

[robbo86]

So let me get this straight. Source a 13 button OBC, whip out 6, replace and plug in 13. Job done?

What wheels would look good on this? Nothing pimp, but my tyres are looking close to the limit, if I were to be able to source a decent set of wheels with tyres, does anyone have any recommendations?

What about a discreetly placed e30zone sticker? Yay or nay?

[E34-520iSE]

Hi Robbo86. The OBC should just plug & play, assuming your dashboard has the digital Check Control display below the dials. You may get a PPPP error when you first switch the ignition on, as it is looking for data from the dashboard coding plug. After a couple of seconds it should work. If not there's a small wiring mod to do, no big deal.
Wheels - wider wheels give the car a good stance, whereas cheap alloys just look naff. in my humble opinion nothing looks better on an E34 than M5 throwing stars or M-parallels.

Shaun M

[robbo86]

I would probably not put any crappy after market rubbish on. Something BMW probably, just wondered if anyone had any suggestions.

Does have the check panel below the dials as well so hopefully if I can find one without too much difficulty and not to expensive, I will definately swap this out. I cant wait for a day to clean the car up inside, but thats likely not going to be till sunday as working up till saturday.

Never mind!

Just thought of another couple of questions as I just popped out to move the car from round the corner (really not confident about leaving my car out of view of my house after my e30's exhuast was stolen but anyway)

Is the dash similar to the e30. IE if you have a fuel guage which, when it reaches the final white line before the red, drops right down and puts the warning light on and the moves back up, is this likely to be the earthing nut behind the fuel guage like on e30 clocks, or something else?

Second of all, the 6 button OBC I have. Is that supposed to come with the gong for temperature etc as I have not driven it where the temperature has been above 3 degrees and is it not supposed to bong, when being turned on, to warn of ice or not?

Hope that makes sense.

[E34-520iSE]

The fuel guage on the E34 known to be a little vague once the yellow low fuel light comes on. In fact I think it's quite common, and something to do with the dashboard design/operation. I have had three or four different clusters in, a new fuel pump/sender unit and a complete wiring loom refit from a 535 and my guage still does it. If you fit an OBC it will tell you how many miles of fuel you have left anyway so running out will never be an issue.
I've never had a 6 button OBC so I can't help you with specifics about it, but if your car is fitted with a gong you can set it off by driving forward with the handbrake on. It is fitted on the right hand underside of the dashboard (near your right knee towards the pedal area on a rhd car).

Hope that helps!

Shaun M

[robbo86]

Ok will try that. Just wondered if perhaps the gong wasnt working.

[robbo86]

I have another question. I was fiddling with the radio (its the standard pioneer deeley with 6 cd stacker) trying to get the sound right and I have noticed I am getting little more that a scratchy crappy sound from the rear speakers. I reckon the connections might be poor or the speakers knackered but I want to remove them to inspect them. Anyone any ideas how I do this?

[E34-520iSE]

The speakers in the rear shelf come out from above. Remove the plastic trim cover and remove the screws that hold the speaker down with a stubby screw driver.

HTH,

Shaun M

[robbo86]

Cheers bud!

[E34-520iSE]

Any time!

Good luck,

Shaun M

[robbo86]

Have solved the steering not self cancelling. Thought as I have not checked the tyre pressures since buying the car, that I would go and check them out. Not sure of the correct pressure (on standard BBS 15s) but aimed for 29 PSI as thats what I had to do on my e30. Every single tyre was up over 40 PSI. All of a sudden the steering works fine and the ride is better.

The next thing is, what is the likely cause of the nearside front outside edge tyre being scrubbed bald. Am going to need new tyres PDQ but obviously dont want to ruin any new tyres if I get some!

Tracking?

How much do you reckon on changing a headgasket also or is it easily done on an m20 by oneself.

[E34-520iSE]

40 PSI? OMG that thing will have been boinging all over the road!

Outside edge of tyre showing excessive wear = excess toe in or something is bent.

M20 headgasket R&R is fairly straightforward though not that cheap if you do it correctly.
You require new head bolts, head & rocker cover gasket (obviously), skim(?), belt, belt tensioner, coolant.....also a new waterpump & stat are always easy preventative maintenance while the head is off. Don't forget that the M20'd E34 can be a swine to bleed for the unwary, due to the height of the heater valves & air locks in the matrix

HTH,

Shaun M

[robbo86]

Thanks for the info dude. Not cheap isnt what I wanna hear though!

[E34-520iSE]

I know, I hate spending all this money on cars as well, Im pretty skint after Xmas lol.
If you do the job properly it'll last a long time. If you do a quick head off - clean up, head on jobby something will break, probably the old timing belt and that's pretty much game over for the M20. I suppose its just down to how long you want to keep the car/engine for.

Shaun M

[Gortour]

Tyre could be taking roundabouts like a boy racer maybe...