EGR Cleanout

After reading around on various BMW forums, it became apparent that cleaning out the EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) valve should be high priority. Over time it becomes clogged with soot and can effect the running of the car.

I set to work on removing the EGR, which was actually rather painless, just remove a few plastic trim panels and hoses.

Once off the extent of the clogging could be quite clearly seen. Mine was pretty clogged, not the worst example I had seen though.



Using a bath of petrol, some white spirits, some Autoglym Engine Cleaner and a tooth brush I set to work cleaning it up. Some of the soot came off fairly easily, but a lot of it was properly caked on there.

After quite some time, it was looking pretty respectable, as you can see below, quite an improvement.




Falken FK452 Rear Tyres

When I bought the car I was aware that one of the rear tyres was quite badly worn and near the limit. Had to investigate quite promptly, so I read some 3 series owners posts on www.bimmerforums.co.uk. The general consensus was that Falken 452 tyres were excellent value for money.

The current arrangement on the back was a Pirelli P Zero and a Fulrun budget tyre. I had been noticing significant road noise and a tyre whine coming from the rear, I couldn't quite tell which one it was that caused it though. Another problem was the spinning up, in any conditions planting the throttle in 1st or 2nd, even 3rd sometimes, would spin the rears.

Anyway, I decided on the Falken FK452's and ordered two 255/35 ZR18 94Y XL from camskill at the bargain price of £115 each (I was quoted £175 each at two local tyre fitters). I took them to be fitted at a local Selecta Tyre and they charged £35, which included re-seating one of the fronts.

I have to say, the car is completely different to drive, the road noise is non-existent, the grip is fantastic. It will no longer spin in 2nd or 3rd in any conditions. The rear also feels completely planted. At the price I paid for them, I couldn't recommend them more. When the current budge front tyres wear out, they will be replaced with Falken 452's.




Roundels Replaced

This post is also a How-To Guide to Replacing BMW E46 roundels / badges.

The roundels on this car were looking very sorry for themselves, and as a proud BMW driver, they needed freshening up to best show off the cars good looks.

Again, I jumped on eBay and ordered a full set of roundels;
  • 82mm for the front
  • 73mm for the rear
  • 68mm x 4 for the wheels
The front and rear roundels were sold as genuine BMW ones, but the wheel centres were some pattern copies.  They all arrived ok and are all very good quality, I was cautious not to purchase some stick on cheap badges that would look worse than my current ones after 5 minutes.

Anyway, onto fitting them. The wheel centres were easy to fit, just popped the old ones out and pushed the new ones in.

Unfortunately I didn't take a photo of the before and after whilst fitted to a wheel, but I do have one of them separate next to each other. A big improvement you must agree.


Now onto the front and rear. These were slightly more difficult to replace, due to their fitting. 

Starting with the front, wedging a screw driver under there and levering would just have scratched the paintwork to crap. The gap was so tight that I decided to use a bit of thin plastic and gradually slip it behind the badge. This would give a safe surface to lever on top of, it also allowed me to pull the badge up slightly to increase the gap so a tool could be inserted under it.

I had previously bought a full set of trim pulling tools in anticipation of replacing the speakers, but they actually turned out to be really good for removing the badges. I got the largest of the tools and slid it under the badge and levered up. It was tough but eventually it popped off to reveal an unsurprisingly gunky surface.





I cleaned up the area and added a layer of wax then fitted the new badges. Pretty simple to fit as they simply pushed in, I added a blob of silicone sealant behind them so it wouldn't drop off too.


Before and After

 


Comparison




I used the same method with the rear too, the badge wasn't as bad as the front, but why not have a fresh one?

Comparison






Fog Light Surround Replaced

Just a quick post this time, whilst doing the deep clean, described in this post - First Detailing Session, I noticed that one of the fog light surrounds was missing.

Jumped on eBay and ordered a brand new genuine BMW one. Arrived in the post shortly after, wrapped in BMW packaging, took it out and it simply clips in and you're away.


 

Here's the before and after







First Detailing Session

As mentioned in my first post, when I bought the car it was in dire need of a deep clean.

This was first on my list of things to do to the car, and what a transformation it made.

The process took two days to complete, working around 6 hours a day. The clean included inside the cabin and the body.

Here's the order of events;


  • Wash, using Meguiars Gold Class Shampoo and Conditioner.
  • Clay bar, using Meguiars Quik Clay kit.
  • Wash and dry, to remove and clay residue left over.
  • Polish, using a friends rotary and Meguiars Step 2 Polish. Not really the right polish for the job, but I had to make do as I don't have my own machine polisher yet.
  • Wash, to get rid of the spots of polish from machine polishing.
  • Wax, using Meguiars Step 3 Carnauba Wax.
  • Tyres dressed, using Meguiars High Gloss Endurance Tyre Gel

The paintwork came up a treat, even with products that weren't really right for the job, so I was really chuffed. I was surprised just how mucky the paint was, check out the clay bar below, that was jsut from a 12" square! I am intending to get my own machine polisher, with the correct polishes, after that it should be brought back to it's best.

Nevertheless, here are the results.

 







BMW E46 330D M-Sport Manual

This is the first post on my new blog. I intend to update with every service, modification and significant clean, mostly for personal enjoyment but if it helps someone out or is an interesting read for anyone that's great too.

I kept a similar blog for my old car, a Rover 25 1.4 Impression, which can be found by following this link:

andybuckr25.blogspot.com


So the new car; a 2002 BMW E46 (facelift) 330D M-Sport Manual in Sapphire Black. It has the M57 2.9L turbo diesel engine in it and is running great.

Overall, the car was in ok condition, but in need of a very, very thorough clean, and a bit of TLC in the mechanical upkeep department too. There are a few niggles, I won't list them, but what do you expect from a car that's done 124k miles.

The advert for the car only featured one picture, which is shown below.




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