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Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

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  • #16
    Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

    There should be a center bolt (big sum*****) on the crank.

    That is a pretty standard '413' DME.

    CPS is hooked up and OK? Getting any voltage there?

    CPS = Crank Position Sensor

    interesting
    Last edited by John in Houston; 02-16-2009, 09:56 AM.

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    • #17
      Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

      Originally posted by John in Houston View Post
      There should be a center bolt (big sum*****) on the crank.

      That is a pretty standard '413' DME.

      CPS is hooked up and OK? Getting any voltage there?

      CPS = Crank Position Sensor

      interesting
      Ahh, I'll take a closer look at the crank bolt and try to rotate the engine (make sure it isn't locked up). I'll check the CPS but its not even cranking so I dunno if that's it. Barry suggested I check the starter solenoid, so I'll pull the starter and test the whole damn thing off the car.
      Terry Fair - www.vorshlag.com
      2018 GT / S550 Dev + 2013 FR-S / 86 Dev + 2011 GT / S197 Dev + C4 Corvette Dev
      EVO X Dev + 2007 Z06 / C6 Dev + BMW E46 Dev + C5 Corvette Dev

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      • #18
        Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

        Terry
        Let me know if you want any parts from my E36 325 to test on yours. I have the starter off and I have a good 402 DME if you want to try it. I don't know the actual difference from the 402 vs 413 but I believe it is the single vanos but that shouldn't matter to test fire.

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        • #19
          Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

          That 402 DME is for non-vanos M50, won't fire up that '95

          Terry, I've got a red label 413 DME in storage in the garage (for my S50)

          I could ship it to you to try if that would help, just shoot me an email.

          Thanks - Jon
          Jon D. Simmons
          1988 E30 M3 - STX #88
          AST-USA | Bimmerworld | Butler's C&D | D-Force | Russ' Garage | Import Specialists

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          • #20
            Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

            Long time no post... finally got caught up some some other car projects and rolled the non-starting red E36 onto the lift. Been so long I had to come here to read what I've done so far.

            So the battery was reconnected, still had 12.4V at the posts. This time I had help so I had Amy in the car on the lift while I poked around at the starter checking voltage. 12.4V at the starter at Terminal 30 (the big red cable) but no voltage at terminal 50 (the relay) with key on or off.

            So there's likely nothing wrong with the starter. Its an EWSII issue. Again, I have the Silver label 413 DME. The only key I got with the car is beat to hell (missing the roundel and battery inside) but the chip for the EWS code shouldn't care, as its powered by an antenna ring near the ignition cylinder and an onboard capacitor.

            Potential problems:
            • EWS is out of sync, damaged, or the key or EWS ring antenna is damaged


            Possible Solutions:
            • I cannot just "cut the green wire" to bypass EWS II as I had read on the interweb (shocking).
            • I can take the car to a shop with a GT1 and have the EWS checked, and either resynched or repaired/replaced and resynched to the old key or a replacement
            • Have to either swap to a different DME that doesn't have EWS (Red 413?)
            • Or I can buy a $300 chip for the Silver 413 that bypasses the EWS).


            Originally posted by GotCone? View Post
            That 402 DME is for non-vanos M50, won't fire up that '95

            Terry, I've got a red label 413 DME in storage in the garage (for my S50)

            I could ship it to you to try if that would help, just shoot me an email.

            Thanks - Jon
            I'm going to ask around here first, but I may take you up on that offer, Jon. Tired of looking at this piece of non-running Yard Art.
            Terry Fair - www.vorshlag.com
            2018 GT / S550 Dev + 2013 FR-S / 86 Dev + 2011 GT / S197 Dev + C4 Corvette Dev
            EVO X Dev + 2007 Z06 / C6 Dev + BMW E46 Dev + C5 Corvette Dev

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            • #21
              Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

              FYI Terry... I no longer have the red label 413. I ended up selling the S50 w/ harness, DME & extras to a local to put in his E30...



              Sorry.
              Jon D. Simmons
              1988 E30 M3 - STX #88
              AST-USA | Bimmerworld | Butler's C&D | D-Force | Russ' Garage | Import Specialists

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              • #22
                Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

                Originally posted by GotCone? View Post
                FYI Terry... I no longer have the red label 413. I ended up selling the S50 w/ harness, DME & extras to a local to put in his E30...



                Sorry.
                No worries... I'll keep looking. Chad @ Stett Performance has given me some other things to check also.
                Terry Fair - www.vorshlag.com
                2018 GT / S550 Dev + 2013 FR-S / 86 Dev + 2011 GT / S197 Dev + C4 Corvette Dev
                EVO X Dev + 2007 Z06 / C6 Dev + BMW E46 Dev + C5 Corvette Dev

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                • #23
                  Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

                  After exhausting everything I could check without a GT1 scanner I took the 325i to Eurosport here in Plano last week. They checked several things while we were at Nationals and tricked the car into cranking. They narrowed it down to either a bad key or EWS module, but probably the key. BMW keys have a chip in them that has to "talk" to the EWS securoty module before it will allow the DME to work, etc.

                  So I ordered a new key (lots of drama at the tax office that I won't get into) but in the end it was much easier and cheaper than I had been told. Took a the title and my driver's license to Classic BMW and 24 hours + $47 later I had a brand new key. Eurosport then re-synched it to the EWS module on their GT1 and VROOM! It started. Well, it wasn't quite that easy, but eventually it ran.

                  Big thanks to Howard and the guys at Eurosport for getting it fixed! Those guys always bail me out when I get in over my head on electronics, plus they do great alignments and all repair work to European makes and models.

                  After towing it back to the shop today I fired it up and drove it around for about an hour this afternoon, to deliver the remaining packages after the 2nd UPS truck had come and gone & go to the bank, and it drives great. Motor makes good power, trans shifts perfectly, brakes work, suspension is tall and floaty, A/C blows cold, Alpine radio sounds good, pretty much everything works. Still have lots of clean up work to do inside (its... just plain filthy) and tons of interior parts to reinstall. The last mechanics that worked on it before I bought it left pretty much the entire dash and interior apart.

                  Its no show car but it is running and paid for daily driver and finally worth what I paid for it (cheap). Beats using my 3/4 ton truck to go to the post office and deliver batches parts to/from the plater and such (when we're not taking big pallets of parts at least).

                  So this is probably the last thread post on the Red Bullet... because its never going to be a race car, won't have any flashy parts, probably will stay semi-ugly and isn't very exciting.

                  Now the DSP E36 I'm planning will get its own thread. Searching for a 1996 BMW 328is 5-spd no-sunroof car now... give me a heads up if you know of a rust free 1996 2 door!
                  Terry Fair - www.vorshlag.com
                  2018 GT / S550 Dev + 2013 FR-S / 86 Dev + 2011 GT / S197 Dev + C4 Corvette Dev
                  EVO X Dev + 2007 Z06 / C6 Dev + BMW E46 Dev + C5 Corvette Dev

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                  • #24
                    Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

                    If you talk to Brian Bell, he might sell your are STX 1997 328is. Sunroofless. I know he wants to try to sell the Motons off it. Since you're going to drop ASTs on it, might work out well. Car needs some cosmetic work (side skirt has issues), but it's overall a great car. He's building up his STR S2000 and my co-driver and I can't afford it so you might want to talk to him at the end of the month (when he's officially selling).

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                    • #25
                      Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

                      Originally posted by rp1 View Post
                      If you talk to Brian Bell, he might sell your are STX 1997 328is. Sunroofless. I know he wants to try to sell the Motons off it. Since you're going to drop ASTs on it, might work out well. Car needs some cosmetic work (side skirt has issues), but it's overall a great car. He's building up his STR S2000 and my co-driver and I can't afford it so you might want to talk to him at the end of the month (when he's officially selling).
                      Well... I'm looking for a 1996 328is hardtop. 1996 is the first year of the 2.8L, but 1997+ has door mounted airbags. If I got a 1997+ I'd have to swap the doors later. Already dreading the 1992 dash swap (to lose the pass side airbag), but that beats a 2.8L swap into a 1992...

                      DSP = the land of crazy update-backdate dilemmas!
                      Terry Fair - www.vorshlag.com
                      2018 GT / S550 Dev + 2013 FR-S / 86 Dev + 2011 GT / S197 Dev + C4 Corvette Dev
                      EVO X Dev + 2007 Z06 / C6 Dev + BMW E46 Dev + C5 Corvette Dev

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                      • #26
                        Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

                        See, I thought a 1992 325i with a 2.8L swap would have been way easier. OBDI swaps are legal in DSP right? We had a hard enough time finding a non-sunroof 328is, let alone a 1996 version.

                        Also, if the OBDI is legal, we have a local shop here called The Racer's Market (our sponsor) that has gotten spectacular gains with OBDI 2.8L engines and their ECU tunes. Really a great bunch of electronics guys.

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                        • #27
                          Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

                          moved the DSP discussion here: http://www.vorshlag.com/forums/showt...ed=1#post53962
                          Terry Fair - www.vorshlag.com
                          2018 GT / S550 Dev + 2013 FR-S / 86 Dev + 2011 GT / S197 Dev + C4 Corvette Dev
                          EVO X Dev + 2007 Z06 / C6 Dev + BMW E46 Dev + C5 Corvette Dev

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                          • #28
                            Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

                            The Red Bullet has been neglected for the last 8 months and hasn't been washed since December. I was washing and detailing my truck Saturday and had a bucket of suds left over so I washed the red bullet, too. Turned into an hour of serious cleaning...

                            The car had been parked next to the shock dyno for 8 months or so and in that time a few test shocks had popped and spilled their guts all over the hood. The band saw was on the other side of the car so lots of metallic grit was embedded into the oil, too. The hydraulic oil + grit mess was baked onto the paint good... A fresh batch of Dawn dish washing detergent was used along with some de-greaser, Goof Off adhesive remover, then finally a lot of claybar and elbow grease. Got it all off, thankfully.



                            Parts of the paint look really good (like the freshly claybarred hood and front fenders!), but the clearcoat is peeling on the front end, roof and trunk, and both the trunk and RR door need a little bodywork. The interior is still dirty, and a lot of it is still in boxes. Once I get the interior back together and cleaned up its time for a low buck paint job. Then we'll see what we do with the Red Bullet. Might sell it and then find an E46 sedan (or wagon), which is what I wanted in the first place... (el es jaun)
                            Last edited by Fair!; 09-21-2009, 10:41 AM.
                            Terry Fair - www.vorshlag.com
                            2018 GT / S550 Dev + 2013 FR-S / 86 Dev + 2011 GT / S197 Dev + C4 Corvette Dev
                            EVO X Dev + 2007 Z06 / C6 Dev + BMW E46 Dev + C5 Corvette Dev

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                            • #29
                              Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

                              Or coupe...
                              Adam
                              It's not so much the heat as it is the humidity

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                              • #30
                                Re: Fair's '95 BMW 325i - the Red Bullet!

                                After spending about a dozen hours replacing interior pieces last month (half the screws were lost, etc), I've been slowly finishing up the interior cleanup the last couple of weeks while daily driving the car. A few weeks back I rented a carpet shampooer, removed the front seats and gave the carpets a good scrub down and shampooing. Here's what the carpets looked like before (coffee, anyone?):


                                "cleanup on aisle 3..."

                                I found over a dozen ink pens and $4 in change under the seats, plus some vintage french fries. Vacuumed up the loose stuff then got to scrubbing with the carpet cleaner and a carpet brush (looks like a horse brush). The water from the shampooer would come out dark brown - yummy! I put 2 bottles of carpet cleaner and 10 gallons of hot water thru the machine, over the course of 3 hours of usage, before the carpets cleaned up. Not perfect, two small holes on the driver's side remain, but at least clean. New floormats finished off the job and covered up the wear marks. Next I spent an hour of scrubbing on the door panels, dash and seats with a spray bottle of Mother's new product "Vinyl and leather cleaner". Lots of grime came off the interior plastic, and now everything is clean instead of sticky.



                                Then when putting the passenger side front power seat back in, the tilting mechanism broke (don't ask me how!?) so it was left in place "totally laid back" for a few weeks. Front seat passengers had to "roll deep" in the red bullet. On Thursday I finally dragged another pass E36 tan seat out of the attic and swapped it in. This one was a perfect condition, manual seat from a 2 door E36, so I had to swap over a trim panel that was different. Once that panel was in place and the seat fully cleaned up to my standards, the lower seat belt mounting point was uncovered, and the 4 door belt was attached (the 2 door E36 uses a "sliding rod" floor mount for the seat belt). This seat has the same adjustments as the power seat (fore-aft, up-down, & tilt), and is in better shape than the one I pulled out. I wish I had as perfect of a seat on the driver's side, but the driver's side is always more worn in cars of this age.


                                new pass. side seat

                                Also tackled the glove box repairs last Thursday. All sorts of stuff was disassembled in the interior, removed by a previous mechanic trying to find the starting problem (which was a bad chip in the key), and the glove box door cover had come off in the process. Its glued on from the factory, so I just bought more adhesive and glued it back in place, holding the cover on with boxes and pieces of wood for 24 hours while it dried. The factory wood grain trim piece just snapped back in place above the door, too.





                                I didn't capture it in the "before" pics but the dash and all controls were covered in sticky grime, but the Mother's vinyl and leather cleaner took it all right off with some scrubbing (yet it left the silk screened writing alone). Turned some white towels black. Also used the "Spot Shot" spray on the A-pillar and headliner to remove greasy hand prints (those mechanics again) with ease. That stuff is magic - you spray it onto carpet or fabric and anything just blots right off onto a white towel. Replaced the missing DME and fuse box covers with new BMW parts, as well.



                                So the car's cleaner than its probably been in a while, but its not going to win any car shows. There's still a few things I'd replace if I was going to keep it, but I think that's all I'm going to do to it now. We're buying several cars in the coming weeks and it looks like this one is going to be sold to a friend of Vorshlag, for a cheap commuter and future LS1 swap candidate. The Red Bullet is going to be replaced (hopefully if the guy can get me the title info!) with this e46 4 door... that's also red, with a tan interior, 2.5L and a 5 speed. Red Bullet 2!


                                Red Bullet 2?
                                Last edited by Fair!; 10-31-2009, 12:28 PM.
                                Terry Fair - www.vorshlag.com
                                2018 GT / S550 Dev + 2013 FR-S / 86 Dev + 2011 GT / S197 Dev + C4 Corvette Dev
                                EVO X Dev + 2007 Z06 / C6 Dev + BMW E46 Dev + C5 Corvette Dev

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