Tatty E46 330cd convertible - good idea or bad?!
Discussion
10 days ago some young lad who had just passed his test a month earlier failed to stop on the a303 east of Stonehenge somewhere and went in to the back of our little 2008 mini clubman cooper d. Sorry if you were stuck in the tailback!
My wife called and as soon as she described what happened I knew it was a write off and headed off in the ancient landy to get her home again. Who doesn't love 4.5 hours driving in an old 200tdi rag top 90?!
So the excellent condition little mini that has survived many long trips was no more, time for new wheels for my other half! The insurance paid out £1750 which we are pushing back against as our mini had lots of history, new clutch, dmf and we found some adverts that show them selling for more than that. Fingers crossed there
There wasn't much around that appealed really, everything we saw was pretty knackered and over priced which is saying a lot at the bottom end of the market. Her ladyship suggested a BMW and we found this!
Why did we buy it? Well mostly based on the colour really and the fact we were there and couldn't be bothered to drag ourselves around looking at any more tat. So we paid £1900 (probably a bit to much) and went for lunch.
Condition wise it was much as to be expected. It has been bazzed up a bit and not looked after so the last week I have been working on that! So far I have found it had a poorly done EGR delete which I have now tidied up properly and also cleaned out the inlet manifold as it was very blocked up and then put it back with the swirl flaps removed and new gaskets.
It wouldn't come up to temperature which is pretty common on the M57 engine as no one bothers replacing the thermostat - oddly with a new one its running nicely now at temp and much nicer to drive with the roof down on a cold morning.
Given it a oil and coolant change which is making is sound much happier.
The horrid 3d number plate that doesn't fill the gap is gone to.
Its off to the body shop soon to get the bumper sorted out and the small scabby bit on the wings. You thought I wasn't going to talk about rot didn't you?! The body is actually really clean on this one with a tiny bit of surface rust on one wing that hasn't bubbled or gone through, a 1cm bit of lacquer peel by the aerial and a small rust bubble on the boot close. Another reason why we went for it really, the mechanical stuff can be fixed easily enough usually but I hate rust!
Its also had some 'flash' remap but we have no details on this - what I do know is its terrifyingly fast and annoyingly done badly as at WOT it smokes and it only does it at full throttle so I am fairly sure its either a badly done map or some idiot has decided to make it 'coal roll'. I have checked for oil in the intercooler pipes and cleaned it all out, the turbo appears fine as well, read the codes and there were some historic ones but the only one that remains now is glowplug module. I would have thought that would cause trouble cold starting and a bit of smoke there.
Pulling the maf plug out makes it better at WOT ( still a bit smokey but its an old diesel with years of crap in the system from running cold) so I am going to try and book it in to have a proper mapping session done. I don't really care what the power output is as long as its usable and doesn't do its impression of an old locomotive.
Then I think the last bit to sort out mechanically is the suspension which would appear to be 'lowered' at the back and again done badly as its slightly wonky. My money is on the original springs being present but not correct. I suspect they have been cut. So I need to get some good springs and shocks on it all round. Any recommendations on something not bank account busting but not crap?
So yes - any tips on getting the handsome old 3 series back to good condition?
My wife called and as soon as she described what happened I knew it was a write off and headed off in the ancient landy to get her home again. Who doesn't love 4.5 hours driving in an old 200tdi rag top 90?!
So the excellent condition little mini that has survived many long trips was no more, time for new wheels for my other half! The insurance paid out £1750 which we are pushing back against as our mini had lots of history, new clutch, dmf and we found some adverts that show them selling for more than that. Fingers crossed there
There wasn't much around that appealed really, everything we saw was pretty knackered and over priced which is saying a lot at the bottom end of the market. Her ladyship suggested a BMW and we found this!
Why did we buy it? Well mostly based on the colour really and the fact we were there and couldn't be bothered to drag ourselves around looking at any more tat. So we paid £1900 (probably a bit to much) and went for lunch.
Condition wise it was much as to be expected. It has been bazzed up a bit and not looked after so the last week I have been working on that! So far I have found it had a poorly done EGR delete which I have now tidied up properly and also cleaned out the inlet manifold as it was very blocked up and then put it back with the swirl flaps removed and new gaskets.
It wouldn't come up to temperature which is pretty common on the M57 engine as no one bothers replacing the thermostat - oddly with a new one its running nicely now at temp and much nicer to drive with the roof down on a cold morning.
Given it a oil and coolant change which is making is sound much happier.
The horrid 3d number plate that doesn't fill the gap is gone to.
Its off to the body shop soon to get the bumper sorted out and the small scabby bit on the wings. You thought I wasn't going to talk about rot didn't you?! The body is actually really clean on this one with a tiny bit of surface rust on one wing that hasn't bubbled or gone through, a 1cm bit of lacquer peel by the aerial and a small rust bubble on the boot close. Another reason why we went for it really, the mechanical stuff can be fixed easily enough usually but I hate rust!
Its also had some 'flash' remap but we have no details on this - what I do know is its terrifyingly fast and annoyingly done badly as at WOT it smokes and it only does it at full throttle so I am fairly sure its either a badly done map or some idiot has decided to make it 'coal roll'. I have checked for oil in the intercooler pipes and cleaned it all out, the turbo appears fine as well, read the codes and there were some historic ones but the only one that remains now is glowplug module. I would have thought that would cause trouble cold starting and a bit of smoke there.
Pulling the maf plug out makes it better at WOT ( still a bit smokey but its an old diesel with years of crap in the system from running cold) so I am going to try and book it in to have a proper mapping session done. I don't really care what the power output is as long as its usable and doesn't do its impression of an old locomotive.
Then I think the last bit to sort out mechanically is the suspension which would appear to be 'lowered' at the back and again done badly as its slightly wonky. My money is on the original springs being present but not correct. I suspect they have been cut. So I need to get some good springs and shocks on it all round. Any recommendations on something not bank account busting but not crap?
So yes - any tips on getting the handsome old 3 series back to good condition?
W00DY said:
The Mini looks about 30 seconds work to repair, can you not buy it back?
Good luck with the BMW, I do like an E46 rag-top, hopefully it''ll tidy up into a nice car.
Yeh it could be patched up easily enough but what you can't see is the rear door was dented now and wouldn't open, the wheel spat on the other side was also broken. So new bumper, wheel spats and holders, bracket underneath to hold the bumper, fill the door and sort the opening bit out and then it would need paint work. The door made me concerned there might be some damage under the back I couldn't see to. Good luck with the BMW, I do like an E46 rag-top, hopefully it''ll tidy up into a nice car.
With all that hassle to do to have a car that would be flagged as a cat N didn't really make any sense plus with all that falling off at the back we didn't fancy a 3 hour drive home with it!
The list seems a little longer than I hoped, driving along and I had to question why the front was pretending to be a dragon and smoking. Maybe it was jealous that the back got to be a coal power station?
Or maybe the radiator is shot.....
The intercooler is very blocked up but seems ok so thats had a good clean out and a new rad is waiting to be picked up to get it back on the road.
Or maybe the radiator is shot.....
The intercooler is very blocked up but seems ok so thats had a good clean out and a new rad is waiting to be picked up to get it back on the road.
On the wonky back end, if it's low on the right, they all do that sir, probably because that's where the battery sits. You can get thicker spring pads to level it out.
If it's on M Sport springs the rear may look lowered but actually be normal, the rears do tuck into the arches more than most cars, especially with the extra weight of the top and the bracing. It's also tricky to get the right springs, there's an incomprehensible colour coding system for the BMW ones, other sources don't seem to differentiate between coupe and vert, so quite possible that aftermarket springs won't be strong enough. I put MSport springs on my non-Sport temporarily and forgot about them until I took it for an alignment and they couldn't get the level gadgets attached because of how close the arch was.
If it's on M Sport springs the rear may look lowered but actually be normal, the rears do tuck into the arches more than most cars, especially with the extra weight of the top and the bracing. It's also tricky to get the right springs, there's an incomprehensible colour coding system for the BMW ones, other sources don't seem to differentiate between coupe and vert, so quite possible that aftermarket springs won't be strong enough. I put MSport springs on my non-Sport temporarily and forgot about them until I took it for an alignment and they couldn't get the level gadgets attached because of how close the arch was.
E63eeeeee... said:
On the wonky back end, if it's low on the right, they all do that sir, probably because that's where the battery sits. You can get thicker spring pads to level it out.
Thats interesting! I will jack it up and have a look at the weekend to double check but would be nice not to have to do it yet.So whilst I was in doing the radiator it made it easier to double check other things - one I wanted to look closer at was the intercooler pipe from the turbo. I had inspected what I could before but not removed it. With other things out of the way I got it off for a closer look.
This is the pipe once removed, you can't easily remove the clips at all sadly.
This is the damage, its a pinhole at the moment but that entire weird thumb size spot is almost through and looks to have been rubbing on the earth nut that is down there.
Luckily I am pulling the old X5 apart at the moment so its engine and box can go in my 200tdi defender 90 so I had a few bits to chop up. A quick measure, cut and clean up and I had a straight pipe
and now I have a new section with out the pin prick hole!
It could be massively optimistic but a pin prick hole there could certainly draw a load of extra unmetered air in especially under full load so could this be the cause of the coal rolling? Can't be helping....
Anyway tomorrow I will get it all back together and find out
This is the pipe once removed, you can't easily remove the clips at all sadly.
This is the damage, its a pinhole at the moment but that entire weird thumb size spot is almost through and looks to have been rubbing on the earth nut that is down there.
Luckily I am pulling the old X5 apart at the moment so its engine and box can go in my 200tdi defender 90 so I had a few bits to chop up. A quick measure, cut and clean up and I had a straight pipe
and now I have a new section with out the pin prick hole!
It could be massively optimistic but a pin prick hole there could certainly draw a load of extra unmetered air in especially under full load so could this be the cause of the coal rolling? Can't be helping....
Anyway tomorrow I will get it all back together and find out
Mr Tidy said:
I'm not sure the remap is causing the smoke-screen. My bog standard 2004 320td smoked like a trooper at full throttle in 2005!
Anyway that looks like a decent car for the money so I hope it all goes well.
There is certainly the issue of dirty old diesel, but the 2005 X5 with the same engine but no dpf from factory and the egr removed didn't smoke! So I think it's something they don't have to do. At least not as badly. I hopeAnyway that looks like a decent car for the money so I hope it all goes well.
Yesterday I got it all back together and went for a test drive... Lost power again.
This time it was the air temp sensor!
I also discovered the spare wheel was in a pond!
Then there was a nail in the tyre...
Right now her ladyship has just left on its maiden voyage from Devon to London for work tomorrow. Fingers are crossed and break down cover has been renewed 🤣
This time it was the air temp sensor!
I also discovered the spare wheel was in a pond!
Then there was a nail in the tyre...
Right now her ladyship has just left on its maiden voyage from Devon to London for work tomorrow. Fingers are crossed and break down cover has been renewed 🤣
It made it there and back with out incident which was a relief - reports are it was very comfortable and she was able to do the drive without stopping as it was so much more relaxed to cruise in than that old clubman.
But apparently there was a knock from somewhere... I had a quick look this morning and was able to diganose it as as the random subwoofer thats been put in a box in the boot right in the way of the ski shoot. Its not connected to anything at all and will be coming out, it might find a home in the old defender where more volume would be helpful.
But apparently there was a knock from somewhere... I had a quick look this morning and was able to diganose it as as the random subwoofer thats been put in a box in the boot right in the way of the ski shoot. Its not connected to anything at all and will be coming out, it might find a home in the old defender where more volume would be helpful.
I had an Audi A4 1.8t with a power loss that could not be explained or found despite going to the dealers on more than one occasion and a specialist on two others. I then attended a dyno day with an owners club and on the dyno with the bonnet up doing a power run on WOT you could hear a hiss quite audibly and the dyno showed it 30+ hp down.
On investigation there was a turbo pipe with a tiny hole in it much like the one you had, on the day we wrapped it in a bunch of electric tape and I got back all my power, that tape lasted for a good few weeks until I sourced a replacement pipe - so yeah a small hole can have a big impact.
On investigation there was a turbo pipe with a tiny hole in it much like the one you had, on the day we wrapped it in a bunch of electric tape and I got back all my power, that tape lasted for a good few weeks until I sourced a replacement pipe - so yeah a small hole can have a big impact.
I shall follow this with interest.... having my own E46 318i SE, which is mint apart from the usual 'rust on the wings issue'
I shall be curious as to how you find the car when you have it sorted ...
Mine was a low mileage/not used in the winter/ high spec/ ex BMW company car, and due to lack of use prior to my ownership it took quite a while to get it to where it is now. IIRC the convertibles and coupes had the sports suspension OEM, whereas mine has the softer suspension, which funnily enough I prefer....after having an E36 that had been 'barryed' with 50mm dropped Schnitzer springs and the wrong ( ie rubbing ) alloys.
I am sure that engine will surprise you with all that torque....but I agree that I would also make it driveable without all that smoke....!!
More photos ....!!
I shall be curious as to how you find the car when you have it sorted ...
Mine was a low mileage/not used in the winter/ high spec/ ex BMW company car, and due to lack of use prior to my ownership it took quite a while to get it to where it is now. IIRC the convertibles and coupes had the sports suspension OEM, whereas mine has the softer suspension, which funnily enough I prefer....after having an E36 that had been 'barryed' with 50mm dropped Schnitzer springs and the wrong ( ie rubbing ) alloys.
I am sure that engine will surprise you with all that torque....but I agree that I would also make it driveable without all that smoke....!!
More photos ....!!
AnduHowman said:
Mr Tidy said:
I'm not sure the remap is causing the smoke-screen. My bog standard 2004 320td smoked like a trooper at full throttle in 2005!
Anyway that looks like a decent car for the money so I hope it all goes well.
There is certainly the issue of dirty old diesel, but the 2005 X5 with the same engine but no dpf from factory and the egr removed didn't smoke! So I think it's something they don't have to do. At least not as badly. I hopeAnyway that looks like a decent car for the money so I hope it all goes well.
It reminded me of my old 2-stroke motorbikes.
AnduHowman said:
Yesterday I got it all back together and went for a test drive... Lost power again.
This time it was the air temp sensor!
I also discovered the spare wheel was in a pond!
Then there was a nail in the tyre...
Right now her ladyship has just left on its maiden voyage from Devon to London for work tomorrow. Fingers are crossed and break down cover has been renewed ??
Pond in the boot - there are drain tubes under the rear roof fixings that get blocked, then overflow onto the rear deck and spill into the boot.This time it was the air temp sensor!
I also discovered the spare wheel was in a pond!
Then there was a nail in the tyre...
Right now her ladyship has just left on its maiden voyage from Devon to London for work tomorrow. Fingers are crossed and break down cover has been renewed ??
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff