Should I try this or not...

[hoser]

I posted this in another forum as well, but this is probably a better place for it:

OK, I have a '95 540iA with about 170k on it. I got it for $7500 with 120k on the clock, and have since done quite a few repairs, totalling probably close to 3K. Now I'm not looking for sympathy - you need all the data to understand my problem fully. I figured when I bought it that I could run it forever, or at least until I could afford a new m5 But that's a few years down the road...

Anyway, I now have the front-end shimmy going on, my driveshaft is knocking around, and my rear diff is leaking a bit. I have a new center bearing coming in the mail, and I'm going to replace the upper control arm bushings with the 750's. I'm blowing out the valve in the top of the diff, but I have a feeling once the gasket is compromised, it's time to reseal it.

So here's where I need help. Should I try to do these repairs myself, or just take it to a good shop? I have an excellent shop near me, but they charge $90/hr for labor. Now I'm no mechanic, but I consider myself pretty handy. I checked Bentley and the forums for these repairs, and there are quite a few tools I'd need to come up with, but I think I could do most of it. I'd have to get the bushings pressed, since I don't own a press. I'm also not entirely confident in my ability to get the shaft put back on correctly.

Should I try to tackle all this stuff myself, or take it in and let the pros do it for me?

[Kalevera]

Dropping a V8 exhaust is a lot of work if it hasn't recently been done and if performed with the car on jack stands. If the car has seen road salt, they'll almost certainly have to be torched. My philosophy is that if the nuts don't come easy, you're better off burning them (ouch!)

Resealing the diff isn't that big of a deal, especially if just the rear cover is leaking. Half shaft seals are also manageable. Pinion seal should be left to someone you feel is accountable for their actions, because getting it wrong means needing a new diff. On the rear cover - get the proper paper gasket, don't use RTV, obtain a copy of the factory repair manual (check eBay -- always someone hawking a bootleg copy).

Use good quality parts. OE stuff from BMA, a good dealer, or the like. Cheap suspension and driveline components don't last very long -- effectively throwing money in the garbage can.

http://www.bimmer.info/forum/showthread.php?t=15280


best, whit

[pbrennan10]

i tried to fix flex disc and centerbearing on e34 525i and it was just too rough getting the exhaust off with jackstands and ramps. Gave up and took to mechanic.

[Rustam]

I posted this in another forum as well, but this is probably a better place for it:

OK, I have a '95 540iA with about 170k on it. I got it for $7500 with 120k on the clock, and have since done quite a few repairs, totalling probably close to 3K. Now I'm not looking for sympathy - you need all the data to understand my problem fully. I figured when I bought it that I could run it forever, or at least until I could afford a new m5 But that's a few years down the road...

Anyway, I now have the front-end shimmy going on, my driveshaft is knocking around, and my rear diff is leaking a bit. I have a new center bearing coming in the mail, and I'm going to replace the upper control arm bushings with the 750's. I'm blowing out the valve in the top of the diff, but I have a feeling once the gasket is compromised, it's time to reseal it.

So here's where I need help. Should I try to do these repairs myself, or just take it to a good shop? I have an excellent shop near me, but they charge $90/hr for labor. Now I'm no mechanic, but I consider myself pretty handy. I checked Bentley and the forums for these repairs, and there are quite a few tools I'd need to come up with, but I think I could do most of it. I'd have to get the bushings pressed, since I don't own a press. I'm also not entirely confident in my ability to get the shaft put back on correctly.

Should I try to tackle all this stuff myself, or take it in and let the pros do it for me?

Regarding upper arm bushing replacement - I replaced mine with solid polyurethane type from bavauto.com - they work very well...

I always considered myself pretty handy - that gave me green light in starting to tackle problems on my own - smaller things first, larger things later - everything comes with experience.

The fact that you find yourself asking this question is a sign of lack of confidence - perhaps these repairs are too large for you to start with. I found confidence during repairs biggest asset to the ability to complete the job - your tools are only of amount of help proportional to it...

[Evan]

Great point. Confidence is half the battle... then you need to prepare yourself with the proper tools and information. When you're actually performing, take your time and stay focused.

Why don't you make a list of all the things your car needs and then calculate exactly how much money you'd "save" by doing it yourself... and how much money you'd lose if you screwed something up... that will give you the proper perspective.

[Johntee540]

That car will infact last you a few years down the road. these items are all standard types of maintenance on our cars. Look at it this way. You are putting the money into the car that will carry you to the M5 - and at least now you dont have a car payment. I can do a lot of really good things to my car for $800 / month. - BTW I think there a couple fo items I would farm out and the other things I think you could do. There is lots of great people here to help and lots of good documented procedures here to use! - JT

[Johntee540]

Evan - since you are in Baltimore and if you need a garage to work in - come on down to Reston and use mine - Jt

[Evan]

John, I'd love to meet you and your car so I'll stop down and visit. What's your sched like?

Evan

[hoser]

sorry i haven't gotten back to this post in a while - work sucks...
thanks for all the feedback. every bit helps. so now i'm not quite sure about my original diagnosis.

here's what i do know: already replaced ball joints, tires are great (brand new snows and 3 seasons; get same shimmy with both sets), the shimmy is mostly in the steering wheel from 45-60, then mostly in the seat and floorboards at higher speeds (70-90), but still present in the steering wheel.
I hear a slight clank sometimes when I take off under large torque, but i can romp on it at low speeds and get no vibration. When I stand on the brake, at any speed, seems pretty smooth - VERY slight tremor in brake pedal when I brake hard. I have had it on a lift and a couple different (not very bmw-experienced) mechanics and myself fooling with it, and determined that there is a small amount of play in one rear control arm(?), but can't feel anything loose in the front.
Finally, I drive a horrendous section of highway twice daily. huge potholes sometimes cannot be avoided. So I'm 99% sure something isn't right in the front end, but that shake under my seat has had me thinking shaft as well.
I know you guys don't have magical powers to tell me exactly what my problem is (with my car I mean). Just looking for ideas...

[ThoreauHD]

For all of those problems, it might be worth it to have an experienced shop do a diag and then do it yourself- if you can. The shops below are dinan specialists as well.

Bavarian Motor Village
Address : 45550 Dequindre Blvd., Shelby Township
Zip Code : 48317
Performance Representative : Mike Wilson
Phone : (248) 997-7700
Website : www.bavarianmotorvillage.com

Erhard BMW of Bloomington Hills
Address : 4065 W. Maple Rd., Bloomfield Hills
Zip Code : 48301
Performance Representative : Ken Widerstedt
Phone : (248) 642-6565

Website : www.erhardbmw.com
German Auto Service
Address : 1014 Scribner N.W., Grand Rapids
Zip Code : 49504
Performance Representative : Dan Dixon
Phone : (616) 454-3289
Website : www.germanautoltd.com

Nikolas Motorsport
Address : 2683 Orchard Lake Road, Sylvan Lake
Zip Code : 48320
Performance Representative : Bob Nikolas
Phone : (248) 682-7755
Website : www.nikolasmotorsport.com

[hoser]

thanks thoreau, I actually took it to german auto service for my most recent repair that I couldn't do myself. Valve cover gaskets and rear oil control plate, plus serpentine, only set me back $1200 (note sarcasm). Those guys are awesome, I was very impressed and they beat the crap out of a couple other places' prices. I just wish I could diagnose it myself and save $90/hr for however long it will take to chase down the problem(s).

then again, i'd lose the same amount of coin fooling with it myself for 3x as long and missing out on work, and i still wouldn't know what the probs are. Maybe I'll just do the control arms myself, since I know it needs to be done anyway, and take it to them if (when) i still have problems.

2 more q's: where can i find 540 control arms with 750 bushings already pressed in? is it possible that bad control arm bushings can cause a vibration in the driver's seat and front driver's side floor?

[Rustam]

2 more q's: where can i find 540 control arms with 750 bushings already pressed in? is it possible that bad control arm bushings can cause a vibration in the driver's seat and front driver's side floor?

The bushings can cause vibration particularly around 50 mph. You can try using

www.bavauto.com
or
http://www.racingking.net/Parts/PartDetails.asp?ProductID=53

in north america.

I use soft polyurethane bushings in my thrust arms, after I realized that my car "eats" 750 bushing setup. Bavauto has those as well...

Undoing the thrust arms may be an extremely arduous task unless you use good ball joit separator. Many have mentioned that their ball joint separators had bent under the load in this job. My ball joint separator is made of some tough metal and does the job without problems. I got it at this website:

http://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/Product/showCustom-0/Pr-p_Product.CATENTRY_ID:2004158/c-10101/Nty-1/p-2004158/Ntx-mode+matchallpartial/N-10101/tf-Browse/s-10101/Ntk-AllTextSearchGroup?Ntt=ball+joint

The separator appears exactly as mine for the exception of color.

[hoser]

thanks a lot, Rustam. I just took my snow tires off and put my 3-seasons back on, and had the tires balanced (same rims). That stopped the worst of the shimmy, but it's still there. I'll have to do the bushings eventually, but I'm thinking about putting it off for a while. I just hope it doesn't ruin my tires with uneven wear.

[632 Regal]

spin the tires and make sure they are round, you can balance an out of round tire but it will never run true... went through this with a couple different brands of tires.