I took it to the dealership to get it diagnosed it was also time for its 120000 miles tune up. Mostly because I didn't want to figure out where the oil and coolant leaks were coming from myself. I also had a list of other small annoyances I wanted them to track down such as check engine light coming on when engine is cold and idling. I plan to do most of these repairs myself, I have access to a shop with a plethora of tools and equipment for working on cars, my uncle builds drag racers.
UPDATE: Things are not even close to as bad as the dealership wants me to believe.
1. Oil leak, apparently the oil supply line is leaking. More or less it is a glorified hose that costs way too much. ~200 dollars. First thing I am going to fix.
UPDATE: Banjo nuts at either end of the oil supply line were loose and leaking. Tightened and fixed, line looks perfectly fine.'
UPDATE2: Oil supply line is leaking still, going to put the new hose in there.
2. Coolant leak, upper radiator hose was loose easy quick fix. Apparently the radiator itself has a leak when put under artificial pressure over night. This will probably be the last thing I fix unless the radiator actually starts to leak. New radiator ~300-400 dollars.
UPDATE: Ordered new radiator, about 200 bucks.
3. Trim is starting to come off... Trim glue, done.
4. Check engine light while idling = leak at oil separator, located under the engine assembly. I haven't figured out how much parts are for this yet but the dealership wanted 500 dollars for parts + 1400 dollars for labor so judging by their labor price and the location of the leak this will not be fun.
5. The Steering was very stiff when the car was cold. Dealership claims the steering gear box/rack is getting old and will need to be replaced eventually. Their price.. $2500. I am going to investigate this further, I doubt a majority of the steering system needs to be replaced after 120000 miles.
UPDATE: Banjo nuts on Steering system were loose and not holding pressure, tightened and steering has never felt better.
UPDATE2: A 1989 BMW 535i is going for sale for 3000. I'm considering grabbing it and taking the rack out of it and a lot of other big parts. (assuming it is in good shape obviously)
6. Engine mounts need to be replaced. This will suck, the mounts are under the engine and to replace them I'm going to have to either remove the engine or work some magic. I have seen pictures of people just raising one side of the engine at a time and doing it that way. ~200 dollars per mount. I'll probably do this a lot later down the road.
UPDATE: Dealership is full of sh!t mounts look fine, rubber worn a bit but they don't need to be replaced.
UPDATE2: They sort of kind of need to be replaced. Basically its whether or not I want to live with the slightly noticeable vibration at stop lights.
7. For some weird reason my new front brake rotors are already getting warped. Not to mention the brakes squeak at every stop. I'm going to have to track the cause down of this. I hope it isn't the Calipers that would really suck.
So I have my work cut out for me. Strangely I'm not too bothered probably because I love this car so much. Oh yes here are some pics.
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l174/OVerLoRDI/540i2.jpg
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l174/OVerLoRDI/540i.jpg
UPDATE: Things are not even close to as bad as the dealership wants me to believe.
1. Oil leak, apparently the oil supply line is leaking. More or less it is a glorified hose that costs way too much. ~200 dollars. First thing I am going to fix.
UPDATE: Banjo nuts at either end of the oil supply line were loose and leaking. Tightened and fixed, line looks perfectly fine.'
UPDATE2: Oil supply line is leaking still, going to put the new hose in there.
2. Coolant leak, upper radiator hose was loose easy quick fix. Apparently the radiator itself has a leak when put under artificial pressure over night. This will probably be the last thing I fix unless the radiator actually starts to leak. New radiator ~300-400 dollars.
UPDATE: Ordered new radiator, about 200 bucks.
3. Trim is starting to come off... Trim glue, done.
4. Check engine light while idling = leak at oil separator, located under the engine assembly. I haven't figured out how much parts are for this yet but the dealership wanted 500 dollars for parts + 1400 dollars for labor so judging by their labor price and the location of the leak this will not be fun.
5. The Steering was very stiff when the car was cold. Dealership claims the steering gear box/rack is getting old and will need to be replaced eventually. Their price.. $2500. I am going to investigate this further, I doubt a majority of the steering system needs to be replaced after 120000 miles.
UPDATE: Banjo nuts on Steering system were loose and not holding pressure, tightened and steering has never felt better.
UPDATE2: A 1989 BMW 535i is going for sale for 3000. I'm considering grabbing it and taking the rack out of it and a lot of other big parts. (assuming it is in good shape obviously)
6. Engine mounts need to be replaced. This will suck, the mounts are under the engine and to replace them I'm going to have to either remove the engine or work some magic. I have seen pictures of people just raising one side of the engine at a time and doing it that way. ~200 dollars per mount. I'll probably do this a lot later down the road.
UPDATE: Dealership is full of sh!t mounts look fine, rubber worn a bit but they don't need to be replaced.
UPDATE2: They sort of kind of need to be replaced. Basically its whether or not I want to live with the slightly noticeable vibration at stop lights.
7. For some weird reason my new front brake rotors are already getting warped. Not to mention the brakes squeak at every stop. I'm going to have to track the cause down of this. I hope it isn't the Calipers that would really suck.
So I have my work cut out for me. Strangely I'm not too bothered probably because I love this car so much. Oh yes here are some pics.
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l174/OVerLoRDI/540i2.jpg
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l174/OVerLoRDI/540i.jpg