Let's take a BMW Quiz

bmowner

Hi all, I can't figure out how to start a new thread so I am intruding in this thread!

My question is: I am the owner of a BMW 325i coupe. There is serious some (blue) and now black coming from exhaust. I had it with the main dealer who said top up oil but it needs a new engine as there is a cylinder problem? I have the car for 5 years and would like to hang onto it but am not prepared to spend the €1,500 for labour and €7,000 approx for a new engine which has been advised as being necessary. The car is parked up at the moment and while it starts etc I am not driving it due to excessive smoke.

It has valance problems over the years and has been prone to burning oil.

I believe you can get used engines with low mileage from breakers in uk. Are there any good non-main dealer mechanics who would put in the engine, if that is the right way to go.

mick.fr

bmowner wrote: »

Hi all, I can't figure out how to start a new thread so I am intruding in this thread!

My question is: I am the owner of a BMW 325i coupe. There is serious some (blue) and now black coming from exhaust. I had it with the main dealer who said top up oil but it needs a new engine as there is a cylinder problem? I have the car for 5 years and would like to hang onto it but am not prepared to spend the €1,500 for labour and €7,000 approx for a new engine which has been advised as being necessary. The car is parked up at the moment and while it starts etc I am not driving it due to excessive smoke.

It has valance problems over the years and has been prone to burning oil.

I believe you can get used engines with low mileage from breakers in uk. Are there any good non-main dealer mechanics who would put in the engine, if that is the right way to go.

Blue and black smoke is not good at all and means you have potentially a couple of different issues alright.
Could be anything from sensors, gaskets, seals, cylinder etc.
It also make me think this car has not been maintained properly, or if it was, could be just coincidence and bad luck and effectively you have a broken cylinder which leaks oil inside (blue smoke) and petrol is not burned properly (black smoke).

I would advise you at this stage to contact, for example, AC Car Sales (www.accarsales.ie). They are in D8. They will give you a second opinion on the issues you are having.

Now if they say the same as the dealer, yes you can source a used engine from UK. Plenty of specialists. It should not cost more than 2k for a used one in good condition. AC will fit it for you. I think it can be delivered to Dublin for around 300 quids or so. You can try FABDirect and the likes. Those guys are selling engines on eBay.co.uk too.

If you need a new one, you could upgrade to this too
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BMW-E46-3-Series-M54-Twin-Vanos-330ci-Engine-3-0cc_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ72Q3a1683Q7c66Q3a2Q7c65Q3a12Q7c39Q3a1Q7c240Q3a1318QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem120362577872QQitemZ120362577872QQptZUKQ5fCarsPartsQ5fVehiclesQ5fCarPartsQ5fSMQQsalenotsupported

No need to change anything else, same stuffs as the 2.5, just need a small ECU upgrade :-)

bmowner

Thanks for reply. car always serviced on time by main dealers. 2001 car however with nearly 100K miles so maybe that is the lifespan of a petrol engine? I always thought there was an inherent fault in the engine but in any event it seems to be shot now. Will take advice and get second opinion. regards.

CharlieCroker

I'd second FABdirect. I've got some gear from them in the past and good to deal with, quick delivery too. better off ringing them though.

S.I.R

14/20 Yawn.

Voodoomelon

13/20, meh.

I liked this one:

Who is/was ZF for BMW?

* Ziefried Freinrisch, the first BMW designer
* A transmission manufacturer and supplier

kazul

"Brake fluid do get contaminated by calipers, brake lines, master cylinders debris etc. The brake fluid is also a hydroscopic which means it absorbs water. After a year, the break fluid is 25% less effective than new. Less effective means the boiling point will be reached at lower temperatures, therefore it must be changed every year. This information is relevant for day to day car drivers commuting to work."

Source?
If I don't commute day to day to work how often should I change?
What is in my brake lines and master cylinder that could contaminate my fluid, and how did it get there?
How do I measure the effectiveness of my brake fluid in % terms?


"Why do people make Lemon Law claims (Choose best answer)?"

That's what people tend to do when answering a quiz

"When should I change my break fluid?"

Don't know, what is "break" fluid and what car do you drive?

"What spark plug should be used in the e46 M3 (Choose one only)?"

Tried choosing 2, wouldn't work

mick.fr

kazul wrote: »

"Brake fluid do get contaminated by calipers, brake lines, master cylinders debris etc. The brake fluid is also a hydroscopic which means it absorbs water. After a year, the break fluid is 25% less effective than new. Less effective means the boiling point will be reached at lower temperatures, therefore it must be changed every year. This information is relevant for day to day car drivers commuting to work."

Source?
If I don't commute day to day to work how often should I change?
What is in my brake lines and master cylinder that could contaminate my fluid, and how did it get there?
How do I measure the effectiveness of my brake fluid in % terms?


"Why do people make Lemon Law claims (Choose best answer)?"

That's what people tend to do when answering a quiz

"When should I change my break fluid?"

Don't know, what is "break" fluid and what car do you drive?

"What spark plug should be used in the e46 M3 (Choose one only)?"

Tried choosing 2, wouldn't work

You are just useless dude and you are only looking from confrontations.
If you have constructive and polite remarks just make them...

CharlieCroker

Thats fair enough but (and no offence intended) christ, thats the worst quiz i'v ever seen.
My history leaving cert was easier than that and I'm a big BMW fan!!!!
If your gonna make a quiz, make it so that the majority of people actually know SOME of the answers, not the 1% of nerds out there!!!

mick.fr

CharlieCroker wrote: »

Thats fair enough but (and no offence intended) christ, thats the worst quiz i'v ever seen.
My history leaving cert was easier than that and I'm a big BMW fan!!!!
If your gonna make a quiz, make it so that the majority of people actually know SOME of the answers, not the 1% of nerds out there!!!

Fair enough mate point taken. I am always opened to helpful suggestions.

This quiz did well in the US within BMW communities. And it was designed for US people originally. I don't know why for some reasons they usually know better about bimmers than we do here in Europe.

But yeah I agree some questions are tough. Will change a bit.

Anan1

mick.fr wrote: »

But yeah I agree some questions are tough. Will change a bit.

Not tough, stupid. No enthusiast cares about the precise type of spark plug in an engine, to give you just one example.

mick.fr

Anan1 wrote: »

Not tough, stupid. No enthusiast cares about the precise type of spark plug in an engine, to give you just one example.

Your opinion dude. No need to call this stupid cause you don't know the answer.

If you were a real and knowledgable BMW enthusiast I can tell you you would know this kind of information by heart.

Anan1

mick.fr wrote: »

Your opinion dude. No need to call this stupid cause you don't know the answer.

If you were a real and knowledgable BMW enthusiast I can tell you you would know this kind of information by heart.

You really think that being a real and knowledgable BMW enthusiast requires a knowledge of the spark plug codes for each engine? Honestly?

CharlieCroker

Anan might be being a bit harsh but I do see where he's coming from. Having a go at someone for not knowing the diameter of the sidelight bulb of a '99 M3 or some just as obscure is taking the pi55!!!!!!!

mick.fr

Anan1 wrote: »

You really think that being a real and knowledgable BMW enthusiast requires a knowledge of the spark plug codes for each engine? Honestly?

Period! if you don't know what spark plugs to use in a bimmer, you ain't one.

There is a little difference between having his mom driving a 3 series and doing mechanical stuffs yourself, hanging on many BMW forums, participating to BMW meetings all over Europe, learning from others, making constructive remarks and trying to help instead of insulting people with no reason.

I think your BMW skills have been discussed many times, even outside of boards.ie, you are a celebrity on some Irish and British BMW forums too, where people are laughing about answers.

Man just grow up, I am always happy to help and improve my knowledge. But seriously here, you are only increasing you post counts with useless stuffs.

mick.fr

CharlieCroker wrote: »

Anan might be being a bit harsh but I do see where he's coming from. Having a go at someone for not knowing the diameter of the sidelight bulb of a '99 M3 or some just as obscure is taking the pi55!!!!!!!

Yeah well ok but we are not talking about the diameter of a bulb, we are talking about a very basic but nontheless important item that any knowledgable BMW enthusiast would know about.

Anan1

mick.fr wrote: »

Period! if you don't know what spark plugs to use in a bimmer, you ain't one.

mick.fr wrote: »

Yeah well ok but we are not talking about the diameter of a bulb, we are talking about a very basic but nontheless important item that any knowledgable BMW enthusiast would know about.

Please, mick.fr, stop. You're making a fool of yourself here to the point that i'm embarrassed for you. Spark plug codes, FFS!:D

mick.fr

Anan1 wrote: »

Please, mick.fr, stop. You're making a fool of yourself here to the point that i'm embarrassed for you. Spark plug codes, FFS!:D

Ok dude will write this down so I can remember next time

copacetic

mick.fr wrote: »

Yeah well ok but we are not talking about the diameter of a bulb, we are talking about a very basic but nontheless important item that any knowledgable BMW enthusiast would know about.

maybe at a stretch the spark plug question is ok, but the paint code one? Why on earth would anyone who hasn't had to have a car that colour touched up know the paint code?

Also the questions are all heavily skewed toward old models. You may want to realise that if you post your quiz on a open forum then you should be able to take the honest responses, not throw a hissy fit and start slagging people off.

mick.fr

copacetic wrote: »

maybe at a stretch the spark plug question is ok, but the paint code one? Why on earth would anyone who hasn't had to have a car that colour touched up know the paint code?

Also the questions are all heavily skewed toward old models. You may want to realise that if you post your quiz on a open forum then you should be able to take the honest responses, not throw a hissy fit and start slagging people off.

I am sorry what are you talking about?
Can you point me to answers about me being agressive and slagging people off here.