Before I begin, let me remind you that I still wish to receive copies of your vehicle inspection reports from the new, enhanced NJ DMV inspection I have written so much about this year. You can either mail a photocopy of your report or simply e-mail the test data. If you choose the latter, please include both the test results for your Bimmer and the pass/fail criteria for each pollutant. The criteria depend on vehicle model, year, and, I have been told, odometer reading.

On Wednesday, 20 September, approximately 50 Bimmerphiles again descended upon Hunterdon BMW for our second meeting there this year. The format of the meeting was to put several of our members' Bimmers up on Hunterdon's new lifts and point out items requiring maintenance and repair. As usual, a whole lot of discussion was generated, and some really good questions were asked. Hosting for Hunterdon were Parts and Service Manager Brian Monahan and BMW-Certified Technician Rebecca Schindler. NJ Chapter hosts were Chapter Activities Director Big Al Drugos and yours truly. In addition, Hunterdon auto-body guru Matt Webb was in the body shop holding forth on the finer points of unbending bent Bimmers [and a refugee Scirocco named Vincenzo Wolfgang].

This meeting's Bimmer 'victims' were an immaculate 1971 3.0 Cs, a just-purchased 1989 E30 M3, and a 1995 E36 325i. Some of the more interesting topics addressed were as follows:

Brakes: To change pads on the two more modern Bimmers, one must first remove the caliper by removing the socket [Allen] head caliper mounting bolts. The heads of these bolts are hidden under plastic dust covers which sometimes, somehow, disappear when you have your pads changed by someone other than yourself. The M3 was missing a couple dust covers, while the 325 still had them. We established that the 325 dust covers would fit on the M3. No, we didn't steal the 325's dust covers, although Karl Rentler wanted to.
Brakes: When changing pads, it is important to thoroughly wire brush the surfaces which the caliper and brake pads slide on. The M3 and 325 use single-piston, 'sliding' calipers which need to move freely to compensate for pad wear. The 3.0 uses a 4-piston race-style fixed front caliper which is a more expensive, heavier design. The 3.0 has two-piston, fixed calipers in the rear. Even on the fixed calipers, you should wire brush the surfaces where the pads contact the calipers.
Brakes: When changing a brake hose or doing caliper work on an ABS [Antilock Brake System]-equipped Bimmer, DO NOT let all the brake fluid drain out of the hydraulic system. This will allow air to enter the ABS hydraulic module, and the air can be a bear to remove. A way to prevent draining the system is to fabricate a temporary brake line plug from an old brake hose. I have a photo of such a plug if anyone is interested.
Driveline: BMWs use a flexible rubber coupling to connect the transmission to the driveshaft. This so-called 'Guibo' fails after maybe 60,000 miles on M3s and maybe 100,000 miles on other Bimmers. You can tell if your Guibo is failing by examining it for cracks while slowly turning the driveshaft by hand from under the car. The M3 had a recently-installed Guibo and the 325's original one was severely cracked. Of course, the 3.0 had had its Guibo changed several times, and we suspect that owner George Washburn even Armor-Alls the dang thing! George, incidentally, is an inveterate driver school attendee who was recently 'hired' as a Lime Rock School tech worker.
Driveline: Replacing a Guibo requires disconnecting and lowering the front half of the driveshaft. This in turn requires removal of the exhaust system. Remove the exhaust as one assembly by disconnecting the pipe flanges at the exhaust manifold. Lowering the exhaust is a two-person job. When you remove the exhaust, be sure to renew the flange gaskets and copper-plated flange nuts along with any deteriorated hangars. While the exhaust is down, examine the driveshaft center support bearing and replace if necessary. Also while the exhaust is down, change the Oxygen sensor if it has more than, say, 50,000 miles on it. Sometimes an old sensor, which screws into the exhaust system, is impossible to remove with the exhaust in place. [Ask Treasurer Warren 'Oxygen Sensor' Brown how he knows this!] Note that '96 and newer OBD [On Board Diagnostics] II cars have more than one sensor. The critical ones to replace are those between the exhaust manifold and catalytic converters. The other sensors are located between the converter and muffler and are used for catalyst monitoring .
Air Conditioning: On E30 M3s be sure to check the air conditioner hoses where they leave the compressor. The hoses have a tendency to rub on the unibody in this area. If the hoses are severely abraded, it may be due to sagging engine mounts.
These cars also lose their compressor mounting bolts and crack the mounting brackets.
Transmission Mounts: E30 M3s seem to have short lived transmission mounts. If you change your Guibo, change the mounts whether they need it or not as you will be removing them to change the Guibo.
Trans. and Diff. Fluids: When changing these fluids, be sure to remove the FILL plug before you remove the DRAIN plug. The fill plug is generally harder to remove, and you don't want to discover that it won' t come out after you drained your trans./diff. The diff. plugs have seal rings which should be renewed. The trans. plugs use a tapered thread and should get Teflon [plumber's] taped prior to installation. Remember that the trans. plugs are steel and the trans. case is aluminum. Too much installation torque together with some Teflon tape can result in a cracked case! [Say E$$PEN$IVE]
Oil Leaks : Most Bimmers on the road today have a cast iron engine block and an aluminum oil pan. [Indeed, all three victim cars were so equipped. The newer sixes and eights have aluminum blocks and pans.] The different thermal expansion characteristics of the iron and aluminum can result in deterioration of the pan gasket /loosening of the 6 mm [10 mm hex] pan bolts, resulting in an oil leak. You should periodically recheck the tightness of the pan bolts. Use a torque wrench and 8 lb.-ft.. A ¼ - inch drive, 10 mm universal-joint socket [maybe $15 at Sears] makes all the difference in the world when you are doing this job. The M3's pan bolts were a bit loose, and the 325's and 3.0's were OK. Curiously, the 3.0 and 325 had apparent oil pan leaks. Sometimes it is very difficult to determine the source of an oil leak. If you thoroughly de-gunk the motor and spray the area with talcum powder, sometimes the source of the leak is revealed. The more trick method [Say E$$PEN$IVE again] is to put a special tracer dye in the oil and scan the suspected leak area with an ultraviolet lamp.

Thanks to Brian, Rebecca and Matt for letting us again overrun their nice facility and eat all that pizza they graciously provided. Thanks also to Big Al for arranging the meeting. In speaking with Brian the day after the meeting, he is has invited us back and is already asking how the next meeting can be made better. Any suggestions?

Hunterdon BMW [908 236 6302] is located on Rt. 22 West in Lebanon, NJ, about 15 minutes West of Rt. 287. In addition to their service and repair facilities, they have high caliber collision repair and parts departments which cater to nuts like us. [Example: Many times they have spent a half-hour helping me determine the part number of a $5 part. Of course, finding ANY 5$ part for a Bimmer is a challenge!] Moreover, Hunterdon has been able, somehow, to help folks resolve seemingly irresolvable warranty problems. Oh yeah, they sell Bimmers, too. Be sure to mention your NJ Chapter affiliation when you stop in. Tell 'em Philes' Forum sent you. If they ask if you know Big Al, say NO!

Anyone wishing to contribute to Philes' Forum should contact me via the info on the masthead. I'm interested in tech tips, repair /maintenance questions and/or tips, dealer horror stories, product evaluations, etc. Please call before 8 PM, and if you leave a message, PLEASE INCLUDE A PHONE NUMBER WHERE I CAN REACH YOU ON WEEKDAYS. Also, please be patient, I try to return every phone call, but it sometimes takes a while. If you don't hear back from me within a few days, please call again. The best way to contact me is via e-mail.

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