Greydog

Morning Andy Welcome to the Forum, Dave

Not a diesel driver so just a guess here, but if the inline pump is working hard would that be because it was struggling to pick up fuel?? I have read were the in tank pump is not transferring fuel but you have changed that. So could the fuel pick up be blocked/damaged causing fuel starvation? Dave

Welcome Dave If you have had a modern Mini technically you have already had a BMW but the 3 series is the bedrock enjoy Dave

Hi Rhys Welcome, I use BMW 1.4.0 which works well for me, I know a couple of others who use Carly and INPA never tried bimmercode though Good Luck Dave

1st law of Gorilla mechanics "if at first it doesn't fit your not using a big enough hammer" Where us sophisticated home mechanics always do it right and only use a rubber hammer.as it doesn't leave marks. Seriously though, great job Eric Dave

Very Sexy But where does the pup sit? Welcome to the Forum Dave

Make a chalk mark on the front and rear tyres at ground level then roll the car forward by 1 revolution of the front tyre, then check where the chalk mark is on the rear. Conti's are a reasonable brand so it may be a previous set that caused the issue. I had an issue when I first got my X5 and couldn't understand it when I did the chalk mark trick I had about 20mm difference in rolling radius front to rear obviously in a mile the difference was considerable the poor old transfer box on a BMW isn't a Diff it just shares torque front to rear and was struggling to cope. Fortunately I have a friendly and knowledgeable tyre centre near by when I buy tyres we stand all 4 together before fitting and if there is difference in height they will send tyres back a bit of a faff but it has saved me issues plus allows me to safely use non star rated tyres. I also change all 4 together I have the staggered set up 285 front 315 rear if your all 4 the same size matching tends to be easier.

Once all these silly issues are out of the way you will find a BMW under there somewhere. By the stuff you have found a previous owner employed a primate with thick fingers to service it. As I understand it is a pressure bypass if the filter is clogged it allows a flow of oil, but if you haven't had one in there I guess oil has circulated but not been filtered properly. That could explain crud getting to the Vanos solenoids, engine flush and oil change time? Dave

Yes we have the same recall system here just had the recall for my airbag (14 years old) still a pain and my dealer is only 8 miles away it will still be a day if they perform as normal. That is a really jazzy card though mine was boring by comparison. Our sons Toyota and SWIMBO's Subaru were done last year interesting was that both were asked if they wanted to wait and both were complete in about an hour. My dealer wouldn't commit to a time just saying it would be better to drop it off as early as possible in case of issues!! Dave

Now you know what BMW stands "Beat The Maintenance Worker" LOL Depending which engine you have may reduce the help you get from Pelican Parts as the Yanks don't do Diesels, but www.newtis.info is a technical site with the same information that is used by Dealers so you should find everything there you need. I have just replaced the water pump on my X5 not difficult just lengthy as you have to strip so much other stuff just to get at it, plus in their wisdom BMW hide a 10mm bolt behind the Crank pulley on the V8 engine (3 guess's which ratchet ring spanner I couldn't find) which made it a fiddle Dave

Have a look at www.realoem.com put the last 7 digits of your Vin into the search box it will bring up your model then look for the Water Pump it will show a simple exploded view and the OEM Part Number Then check www.newtis.info for How too's also check Pelican Parts web site it;s a USA site but apart from the steering on the wrong side some great information plus pictures. Good Luck Dave

Google Pelican Parts they are US based and do mail order and may be more competitive that BMW or some of the factors You are learning a lot about Beemers Dave

Morning John I am quite handy with the spanners but after I read up on the top up procedure and needing the box to be at operating temp before final topping up I left it to the "expert" For Diffs and transfer box they are straight forward though often ignored, Good Luck Dave

Morning John Sorry to hear your issues. ZF state the box should be serviced every 60000 to 80000 kilometers BMW in their wisdom said "Sealed for Life" ??? I had my 5 speed serviced not long after I got the car by a ZF specialist cost me around £300 from memory and it will be done again later this year. The transfer box is separate from the transmission, as I have said in other posts do not ignore the Tyres make sure they are all (a) wearing evenly (b) preferably the same make and * rated. Transmission wind up will feel like a snatch or misfire, put the steering on full lock and reverse if you hear noises or feel snatching it is transfer box caused by most probably tyres are the cause. Be particuarly careful if you have the staggered set up (wider rear) it doesn't take much difference in front to rear rolling radius to cause wind up. Have a look at www.realoem.com and www.newtis.info they will help if you are going to DIY. Newtis says the ZF 6 speed needs Shell M-1375 4 Long Life x 20 litres

Well done Eric we will have to Nick Name you the "Sub Zero" for working in the snow and ice to get it fixed

Well said Eric, the situation here is not much different what is scary to me is in the UK according to Government figures there were 38.4 million licensed to use the roads in the UK in September last year. That figure doesn't included cars and trucks from the EU and raises the first question how clever will the system be as there are 2 speed measurements to be dealt with MPH KPH? Coming back to the UK registered vehicles how many are new and would be fitted with the device? A fairly small percentage I would think, the same of course applies to Europe. So we would have a situation where automatically restricted vehicles will be mixed with unrestricted vehicles on the same roads. Makes me wonder if this is a revenue raiser (automatic fines) or for our safety? Government figures again in 1958 the Road Research Laboratory was set up due to concern over road deaths with 7 million cars on our roads and just under 5000 fatalities, now we have 38 million cars and 1793 fatalities or 0.005%. The reduction is due to a mixture of better vehicles with more safety features for pedestrians and passengers and better roads plus improved driving techniques in my opinion we will struggle to reduce fatal accidents much further without stopping all traffic. The real issue with having 38 million plus vehicles on our roads is pollution, will slowing everything down really help pollution significantly as again not all vehicles have start stop technology? Ultimately and particularly in the UK we have so much congestion that speed is traffic regulated rather than legislated What if a vehicle fitted with the system malfunctions and a driver receives a fine? is the driver at fault? What position will insurers take in the event of an accident? Then there is the personal position imagine how the guy who just paid £100k+ for his new Lambo is going to feel when he is passed by the guy in the 10 year old Fiat Punto because his new car is limited and the Punto isn't, that will be fun to see. Big Brother and George Orwell spring to mind, we have more cameras per head of population in the UK than any other Country, we can be tracked by our mobile phones and soon our cars. They want us to have "Smart Meters" in our homes, to what end I fail to see as most of our housing stock is to old to be successfully made carbon neutral. Glad I am an old bloke but feel sad for my children and their families will they eventually legislate the fun out of life??

Hi Ant Based on what you say I think you should be able to get 2009/10 low mileage models or later depending on what mileage they have covered and specification. Engine size depends on the performance you want but the 2.0 litre is a pretty good compromise in my opinion for power/performance and economy. BMW AUC warranties are excellent but can be pricey but there are some good alternatives out there. Good Hunting let us know what you end up with Dave

Welcome to the Forum John Mega engine in the X3 Enjoy If your previous X was destroying the transfer box actuators it points to Tyre's or wrong diff at one end!! I did read of a 4.8 X5 brought cheap as it kept eating actuators turned out that a previous owner had replaced the rear diff with a second hand (wrong ratio) diff then pulled the fuse for the transfer box and traded it?? If your new X3 has the same size wheels all round they tend to be more forgiving but it is still better to change all 4 together and preferably from a reasonable manufacturer, if the set up is staggered then BMW recommend * rated tyres as they will have a very close rolling radius front and rear it doesn't take much variance to put stress on the transfer box. Reverse on a tight radius if you hear or feel clicking you will know. also if there is a clicking under the driver when you switch off. Dave

Morning Ant Welcome to the Forum £10k is a good budget, as with any used car condition and history are paramount. Modern Diesels are not lovers of short journeys as they don't get a chance to reach full exhaust temperature, so unless you are going to use the car for longer journeys at weekends a petrol may be a better choice. Then there is the spec, leather, electric everything, aircon, sports or comfort seats, we make our choice and pay our money. Same with performance better performance normally equals less MPG another choice. So I would put together a need to have and nice to have list that should help to narrow the choice, things like: Need to have's- Leather Seats, Climate Control, Sat Nav, Bluetooth, Body type/Colour, Alloys(style) Nice to have's- Engine (Petrol Diesel), Gearbox (Auto/Manual) Power/Performance, MPG, Warranty, Low tax bracket. Hope this helps Dave

Morning Rhys Welcome to the Forum They need an inline resistor, normally the "error free" lamps have it built in clearly not the case for you? You can buy the line resistors separately, one per lamp. If you put the original bulbs back does the error go? How ever you should be able to buy "Canbus Error Free" items from a good Motor Factors, Halfords (worth a try) or online from someone like HID's direct (my preference) then of course Ebay (but often origin uncertain) Dave

Very Nice Best engine as well (in my opinion) Welcome to the Forum Davie Dave

Before you get carried away have a look underneath the rear it may be that a previous owner changed the suspension to coil springs (not un-common) then turned off the warning. If you are still on the air suspension then it will likely be one of the ride height sensors, they are often put back incorrectly and cause the warning. Belt tensioner's are likewise often not installed correctly and will allow a squeal under load changing them wont break the bank just needs sockets and skinless knuckles !! Ask how I know

You buy two, it looks flash on the drive but one is for spares

I still think you will have codes there if there is an ECU issue, senor issue, fuel issue it will log a code you need a BMW specific code reader. I did read somewhere about the ignition switch barrel giving problems but I can't for the life of me remember what it was sorry. Dave

Make sure it is the right battery Eric the previous owner may have fitted an over-rated battery in due to the sticky starter, an over-rated battery will never reach full charge as the alternator output will not be suitable. I believe yours should be 70ah 760Cca (cold cranking amps) but check your hand book. There was a lot of issues recorded on forums here in the UK with starter motor failures but they tended to be pre 2005 and Magneti Marelli starters, symptoms were slow cranking or intermittent cranking but drawing massive current which fried batteries. I did read of one guy who measured over 900amps draw on cranking !!! Bosch starters were the replacement of choice. When I was in business we built a huge distribution centre for Honda in the UK just to give Dealers an overnight spares service it helped perpetuate the myth of them never breaking down?? With one of my AMG.s the super charger bearings at the nose pulley failed more than once, clearly the bearings and housing weren't up to the task. In the end I got hold of a nose section from a breaker and with the help of a friend with an engineering shop re-machined the nose bearing housing to take better bigger bearings and increased the oil feed. We also up rated the output with a 10% smaller drive pulley. I never had another failure and George sells upgrade kits for Range Rovers and Jags here. What was the old joke we all drive around in cars made up from 50000 parts all supplied by the lowest bidder!! No matter what they throw at us we will fix it and make it better