Yeah, could be any number of things unfortunately (check table 3f in the Bentley handbook). Also check fuel pressure (pump may be dieing), distributor cap wear, leaking/sticking injectors. Cheers, Simonby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Good onya for sticking to it! Unplug the O2 sensor and see how the car runs without it. If it runs better (maybe not perfect, just better) then the "coolant bath" has killed the sensor.by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
I don't know exactly (mine is ABS), but basically it's a custom made splitter to send the fluid to the separate front and rear circuits on non-ABS cars. Apparently you can get a brake shop to make one up pretty cheap. Useless E30 trivia: the RHD models have separate clutch and brake reservoirs cos the brake master cylinder is on the other side of the engine bayby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Good call on getting the new rocker. They are a known weakness of M20 engines, usually the first thing to go due to over-revving.by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
On our M20 engines, the block is iron (just the head is aluminium)by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Quotejaffarfor the steering wheel, you can see the part that pushes in this photo Ahhh...I'd assumed that tab was for the steering lock. You learn something new every day! Sorry for the off-topic...carry on...by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Hi, When jacking the car up, I've managed to tear some of the rust-proofing (black lumpy stuff) off one of the chassis rails. How do I fix it please? Simonby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Congrats that the saga is over! We should get a bulk deal on front lower lips for our cars Hope you're enjoying driving it again.by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Thanks John. The permanent fix with be a change-over oil pan (avoids the time the car is off the road dragging out while waiting for an aluminium welder). A reco'd oil pan is ~US$175 which seems fair enough, but 2 independant workshops have said about US$350 in labour to swap the oil pan. That's more than a timing belt swap! They say it's a hard job, so I think I'll cough uby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
I've driven the car a couple of times since I've been back, and I think the crack is growing. It is about 1/2" long and right in the front-right corner of the oil pan. Would welding (proper, not JB ) stop the crack from growing? Or is the oil pan now destined for the scrap heap? Thanks, Simonby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
I had no idea that such a vehicle was required for travelling in NYC :tongue: As for the E30 sump, my 2nd JB Weld attempt was much better but still not perfect. Enough for a small bowl to contain the drips while I was away though.by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Quoterkj It sounded like your leak was a slower constant type so if you monitor it with a piece of cardboard under the pan you should be able to keep tabs on it. Did you drain the oil and clean that crack the best possible?, did the crack stop oozing oil before the JB weld went on?? Rick Despite my pathetic initial attempt, it actually sealed the main leak so now it's dripping slow enoughby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Cool! That would be a great bonus if it could actually be the permanant fix. My feeble first attempt didn't hold, I'll try harder to get it "hospital clean" (!) tonight and have another go.by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Thanks guys. Rick, I got the JB Weld and my DIY Blister Pack looks pretty dodgy, so fingers crossed it holds. Will this survive a sump's operating temperature for the odd trip or 2, or do I need to avoid using the car until I take it somewhere to get a proper fix?by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Hi All, Can you suggest a DIY bandaid fix to stop a cracked sump from dripping until I can get it fixed properly? I was enjoying a great drive down a dirt road and, sure enough, the vulnerably-low M20 sump hit a rock and now has a crack which is slowly dripping. I'm going on holidays (not in the E30) in a couple of days and don't have time to get it fixed before then, so I'm juby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Noisy injectors CAN be heard from the cabin. Mine are. Also, it could be the cylinder head. Out of spec valve gaps or engine wear can cause a ticking noise. The best way to find the source of the noise is get yourself a stethoscope. Everyone will laugh at you(!), but it's the easiest way to pinpoint the source.by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Quoteigor325Even funnier mishap was when coolant had a slow leak in the middle of nowhere and I had to refill it...after a while I rigged-up a hose from windshield wiper reservoir and kept refilling the coolant reservoir while driving (by pressing the lever on the steering column). It kept me from stopping as often... That is genius!!! Gold.by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Thanks Andy. Yeah, I did it without removing the sunroof in the end. In fact, I adjusted the motor without even removing the trim, I just poked around inside the little access panel. It was such a pain in the arse doing it this way, so I'd highly recommend removing the trim to anyone else adjusting their sunroof!by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Quoterkj Huh, I wouldn't have thought that. I know in motorcycles a larger bore master (at the bars for the front brakes) is supposed to help with lighter lever action and more stopping power. That's what I read anyway Yeah, I'm not 100% sure how it helps, either. Maybe it's different because our brakes are vacuum assisted and the master cylinder is downstream of the vacuumby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
QuoteArcheo-peteriX Quoterkjthanks for the tip, nomis? Is that your name??? Rick Think back to front That's it!! The E32 bore is bigger, so you're pushing more fluid for a given distance > more braking force and a "harder" pedal. Like Peter implies, it doesn't actually increase you're braking power, just the pedal feel (which is a personal preferenceby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
To get rid of the mushy brake pedal feel, yesterday I upgraded the master cylinder to a 25mm model from a E32 750i. The part bolts straight in (although a T-piece is needed if you don't have an ABS car) and the result is amazing!!! The pedal is now rock solid, with great feedback. A great improvement for our cars, just wanted to pass on the news.by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
QuoteEarendilStill, it made me wonder what everyone else does I rent in an apartment block, so can't do anything major at home. For the bigger jobs, I go to a friend's place who has a dugout. The biggest hassle is transporting tools, you gotta bring everything you might possibly need. Try to find somewhere that you can get back home easy from, for the times when the job isn't fiby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
QuoteBob P 325is 88BTW, I am not the Bob is the oil guy, but I guess I could be! You're are "Bob is the (other) Oil Guy"!! FWIW, my car also has an oil cooler.by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Ahh "hub centric spacer ring", now I even know what to ask for! Thanks. Quotewodcutr After market rim manufacturers get a wider fitment of cars by making the center bore big enough to fit most makes. A hub centric spacer ring specific to your car is then purchased to ensure the fit. I believe if you go to tire rack you will be able to find the proper spacer and if you need to correby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Thanks, I'll go get the right spacers. It's strange that the spacers are wrong, cos the seller reckons they've been previously fitted to an E30. And I've been looking around at a heap of wheels, but never seen anything saying what size "centre shaft" (or whatever it's called) each of them is for. Thanks for helping me avoid Out-Of-Balance-E30-Bad-Karma!!by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Hi All, I bought a second-hand set of 15" rims (the brand is PCW, not sure if they're popular outside Australia) and went to fit them, but came across something strange. There is a removeable plastic spacer ring inside them that reduces the diameter of the middle hole (where the shaft in the centre of the hub goes) 1) With the plastic spacer ring fitted, the centre hole on the whby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Hi, Thanks to everyone for the replies. I'm leaning towards yearly changes now, which I can do no probs. I'll send off a sample to be tested just to be sure. I won't stretch it to 120,000km(!), but 6 months seemed a bit overkill when the car would only do about 1,500km in that time.by nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Quoteigor325...take an oil sample every few months and send it to a lab for testing. That will give you an realistic and accurate answer if your oil is still good or it's broken down and ready for change...you can take oil sample from oil pan drain bolt, and at least in US test kit costs about $15-30 (iirc) - you simply mail it in and get your results back in a week or two. Thanks Igor. Caby nomis3613 - Technical Forum
Hi Folks, I switched to fully synthetic 5W-40 about a year ago and am wondering what oil change interval to use now. The manual says 6 months or 7 500 miles, but I am wondering if that's too often now that I am on synthetic and considering how the car gets used: - yearly mileage of 3000 miles - very few trips less than 10 mins - worst case (very rare) cold start of 10 degC (50 degF), mosby nomis3613 - Technical Forum