split rack boot :: what to do here :disappointed:

so I put the cabrio up in the air, pulled off the lip, belly pan and fan shroud, take a closer look and found something I had been expecting, but not wanting to find. leaky rack, split boot. all this to do a thermostat.

what to do. the rack WORKS fine, and doesn't leak "much"
reboot/rebuild it and hope for the best?

[home.comcast.net]

carpe diem and do an E36 swap?
i sure like the idea of that bolt-in kid from zionsville.

[www.zionsvilleautosport.com]

which rack? if i read right, the ratio is the same on all, but the '95 M3 is the one to get.

thoughts? experiences? share!

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/10/2009 08:18PM by ducatipaso.

which boot? the tie rod boot?

we can practice the steering rack swap on my car... i have a 95 m3 rack ready to go in. its way cheaper to buy a used rack instead of buying a zionsville one.

i need to come over soon anyway to use your garage! haha. lots to do.

yeah its the boot at the end. It's damp in there. There's fluid and crap on stuff.
It doesn't appear to be leaking TOO much.
Maybe just reboot it and call it a day.
I'll take some pix.

The rack has maybe 15k on it. Tops. It was replaced with OEM a while back.

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

i'm almost sure that it isn't time to replace the rack just because of that.

i need to figure out where the leak is coming from.
it's definitely wet under there.
tonight ill do some cleaning and take pix.
time for some maintenance. considering ive had to do nearly nothing under the hood of this car for 11 years, time to bust some knuckles.

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

after doing an assessment, here's the plan:

the rack is not losing much fluid out the ends, therefore is not bad [yet]
so, remove both tie rods, replace along with a new pair of boots
the reservoir and lines down to the rack are leaky. this has caused the wetness in the area
so, drain the rack, replace both lines, and the reservoir if needed
refill with oem fluid

however, my original plan was to replace the thermostat
so, i have to do the tstat install still
drain the coolant, remove the fan, r&r the thermostat with new oring and gasket
all the drivebelts need to be replaced, so replace them too along with the idler pulley
refill with oem coolant

time to start sourcing parts and get busy

also noted, lower control arms, motor mounts as well as some dampness on the passenger side of the engine near the AC

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/11/2009 12:42PM by ducatipaso.

my poor, neglected car!








'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

note to self: parts list

thermostat - have
gasket - have
oring - have
coolant -
3 belts - $10 ea
idler pulley - $40
fan shroud rivets - $1 for 4

tie rod boots - $9/pair
tie rods - $25 lemforder, $55 OE
rack hoses - $27 and $32
reservoir and cap - $22
clamps - $2 each
fluid -

any thoughts on lemforder vs oe tie rods?

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/11/2009 01:52PM by ducatipaso.

fock the special tools to remove the fan are like $35/each
any recommendations on how to do this without buggering it up?

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

Quote
ducatipaso
fock the special tools to remove the fan are like $35/each
any recommendations on how to do this without buggering it up?

You can remove the fan with just a 32mm open-end wrench. Since this is one of the only times you will use this tool (*), and big wrenches tend to be expensive, IMHO it's OK to buy a cheapie for this job. I think I got mine at NAPA. The fan will want to turn, but you can usually break it loose just by whacking the wrench with a hammer. A sudden impact is what you're looking for here to break the nut free before the fan can turn. Remember the fan has LEFT-HANDED THREADS. Make sure you're turning it the correct way (backwards from normal).

(*)I have found two other uses for my 32mm wrench: the nut at the base of the steering column (which sometimes needs to be tightened to eliminate clunking), and the low-pressure connector on the A/C compressor.

__________
Dave
'91 325iX

Quote
Dave_G

Quote
ducatipaso
fock the special tools to remove the fan are like $35/each
any recommendations on how to do this without buggering it up?

You can remove the fan with just a 32mm open-end wrench. Since this is one of the only times you will use this tool (*), and big wrenches tend to be expensive, IMHO it's OK to buy a cheapie for this job. I think I got mine at NAPA. The fan will want to turn, but you can usually break it loose just by whacking the wrench with a hammer. A sudden impact is what you're looking for here to break the nut free before the fan can turn. Remember the fan has LEFT-HANDED THREADS. Make sure you're turning it the correct way (backwards from normal).

(*)I have found two other uses for my 32mm wrench: the nut at the base of the steering column (which sometimes needs to be tightened to eliminate clunking), and the low-pressure connector on the A/C compressor.

Another cheaper option is to visit the local bicycle shop and pick up a head wrench. They come in various sizes and configurations;some with a variety of jaw opening sizes

yup I figured out the bike shop thing
less than $20 for a headwrench

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

Quote
ducatipaso
yup I figured out the bike shop thing
less than $20 for a headwrench

i have a 32mm you can borrow

yes. can i get it this weekend?

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

Quote
ducatipaso
yeah its the boot at the end. It's damp in there. There's fluid and crap on stuff.
It doesn't appear to be leaking TOO much.
Maybe just reboot it and call it a day.
I'll take some pix.

The rack has maybe 15k on it. Tops. It was replaced with OEM a while back.

Where did you get the rack from, from what you say it seems that you bought a new one from Bmw. You can't always go by mileage but that is a small amount of mileage for it to start leaking but how much time has passed since it was put in?

Its been my experience once they start leaking it's not long till they really start leaking.

Rick

well, the dealer installed a reman. dunno if that's good or bad.
the leakage appears to have been coming from above the rack, so i might have caught this in time.
what a damn mess in there. ugh.

thanks to daniel for use of BF wrench.



its really gross in there. shows how nasty things can get if you don't open up an engine bay for a long time



did some cleanup. I need to degrease in here for real and figure out where that's leaking from.



tstat housing. love the crust.



cleaned up and everything reinstalled



I'll order belts and hoses tonight, next up is the steering stuff

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

woot hoses and belts ordered. need to score an idler pulley.
rockauto has em.

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

It's a good thing I waited to ask this question, otherwise I would have ended up looking dumb.

I've been scratching my head all this time wondering why the heck you'd bother with struggling to remove the fan and all the belts simply to replace a thermostat. On my car, a 325, the thermostat housing sits right up on top of the engine, easily accessible without removing any of that other stuff.

I didn't realize yours is a 318 and that the thermostat is buried like that. Nice job getting things all cleaned up.

thanks. i got more to do, too. its gonna be a long week.

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

Quote
ducatipaso
well, the dealer installed a reman. dunno if that's good or bad.
the leakage appears to have been coming from above the rack, so i might have caught this in time.
what a damn mess in there. ugh.

Well, I had a rebuilt for Bav go bad a months after it was put in but I had a year warranty so at least I got the rack replaced for free When I was shopping for a rack, the one good place I used to go to said they gave up on older Bmws because no one would spend a little more money for a good factory done rack....too bad, most if not all of the rebuilds are crap and rebuilding your own is definitely the wrong way to go!

Rick

well, if this one craps out, I'll do an E36 swap. in the interim, I'll get the leakage cleaned up and keep an eye on it. we dont drive the car much.

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

Quote
ducatipaso
well, if this one craps out, I'll do an E36 swap. in the interim, I'll get the leakage cleaned up and keep an eye on it. we dont drive the car much.

Good luck, make sure the hoses are dry also, the return (non pressure side) lines are always leaking by the pump. That leak tends to make a mess of the engine bay.

I'm replacing both lines and the reservoir

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

quoting myself from elsewhere:

20:38 [@ducbox] i have been verbin the noun all evening
20:38 [@ducbox] verb = cleaning
20:38 [@ducbox] noun = e30 engine bay et al
20:39 [@ducbox] what a mess
20:39 [@ducbox] what jagoff at bmw decided to use rubber goods in the power steering system that is permeable by power steering fluid?
20:39 [@ducbox] the hoses, the boots, they all go bad
20:39 [@ducbox] eats that shit for lunch
20:39 [@ducbox] then oozes out
20:40 [@ducbox] and slowly deposits a black funk in your engine bay
20:40 [@ducbox] underneath your intake and airbox
20:40 (@ducbox] /rant

anyhow, I put a couple hours in with some zep citrus. I'm sure I'm not alone amongst this crowd in saying that I hate working on a dirty, greasy engine bay. no thanks.

this is good shit


there's a lovely goo under the airbox thanks to the leaky ps system


looking better


found the reman sticker on the rack


next up... remove power steering reservoir, hoses
I'm going to fix all the engine bay stuff first, then dive into the tie rods last
at least this way i can drive it for a bit to see how much is coming out of the rack itself after everything is cleaned up
i might postpone the tie rod job until i have lca bushings in hand, too

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

guys, take a look at this motor mount



I'm thinking it's replacement time. They're $88 each. The car has 139K on it.
I read somewhere that an E28 533i mount is an oem+ performance upgrade. thoughts?

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

Quote
ducatipaso
guys, take a look at this motor mount



I'm thinking it's replacement time. They're $88 each. The car has 139K on it.
I read somewhere that an E28 533i mount is an oem+ performance upgrade. thoughts?

That motor mount doesn't look bad but replacing these after 100k+ miles is certainly a good idea, I usually do all three if I'm in there!

Yeah, people think they can use anything on the return lines for the power steering

That rack sticker looks like a ZF factory rebuild, can't get any better than that. From what I hear they are no more...

there are 2 engine and 2 trans mounts right?
the engine mounts for the M42 are $88 each (!) the trans mounts are $10 each
$180 vs $200 might as well run the gamut

i hope that none of the leaking was coming out the end of the rack. would be nice to have that factory zf rebuild last a decent amount of time.

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/16/2009 12:41PM by ducatipaso.

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto

Quote
ducatipaso
there are 2 engine and 2 trans mounts right?
the engine mounts for the M42 are $88 each (!) the trans mounts are $10 each
$180 vs $200 might as well run the gamut

i hope that none of the leaking was coming out the end of the rack. would be nice to have that factory zf rebuild last a decent amount of time.

Yes, I count the transmission mounts as one. You should get a good long life out of that rack

well, I will prolly place the order tomorrow. i hope that i caught this boot in time and that once i get the tie rod assy off the rack I can clean it up and reboot it and keep it in good working order for a long time.

'93 190E 2.6 » days
'92 318ic » weekends
'85 280TE » resto