my brand spankin new '95 525i w/ 138k!!

[ChefJRD]

I just got my first BMW a little over a week ago and have been reading up on this forum and bmwe34.net quite a bit and it's been a HUGE help. I must admit that I'm a major novice when it comes to car maintenance, but am relishing the prospect of working on my beautiful blue bimmer some more. I've done some little stuff (put on new belts, reprogram the remote keyless entry system) and plan on putting in new shocks and springs plus when it gets warmer out - though it's been friggin hot here in VA the past few days!

Anyway, I've got a few questions I was hoping you guys could help me with. First off, I've only got the stock radio/tape player in there now and would like to put in a CD/MP3 player - preferebly one that matches the panel lighting. Any recommendations for players with the BMW-red display?

Secondly, I seem to have a coolant leak somewhere.....I've seen a bunch of posts on this, but wanted to ask again anyway. Last night and this morning, near the end of driving home/to work, the car beeped and told me to check the coolant temp, the engine temp needle went up to red then came back to the midpoint within a minute. Checking the coolant after cooling the engine, the expansion tank was empty and there were some spray marks coming from the radiator cap. Put more coolant in and tightened the cap. Got home tonight and there was no leaking from the cap, but a tiny bit from the bottom, apparently from the level sensor at the bottom of the tank. Does this make any sense? I'm thinking it might just be the o-ring..... Any other ideas?

Sorry for the long post, but thanks for your help!!

[632 Regal]

there should still be enough coolant in the engine to prevent it from overheating. Did you make sure you bled it properly after you added more fluid and what does the temp needle sit it? Should be righy in the middle after warm and after and everything else.

[Brian C.]

....one of the "reliable defects" in the E34 is the water pump. With the miles that you have on your '95, I'd say that if your original pump hasn't been replaced yet, then it's waaaaay overdue to fail. Failure isn't a kind thing to the engine either. Check it's location under the hood, and then see if any of the leaks are below it. The radiator is also known to spring a leak or two, so check Brunos website @ www.bmwe34.net again and look at the "What will go wrong" area. I think it has info about the pump in there. Don Gale's excellent site HERE (http://www.nmia.com/~dgnrg/page_2.htm) has lots of good maintenance tips and a good radiator R&R write-up.

Good Luck and enjoy yoour car!

Brian C.