e36 328 ownership experience

[unstopables_7]

Ohh really.. that will be huge then.. would be nice if we have among the members here..

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[Lee36328]

Happy to see this thread has also been successfully migrated across to the new platform.

Thanks for the hard work, guys. I know migration is never easy.

Meanwhile, mileage is fast approaching half a million km. Must do something to celebrate this milestone.

Any suggestions guys?

 

[Lee36328]

I am just astounded how well this car can run when kept well-maintained.

Really good value for many, considering the prices of new cars nowadays...

I found some interesting articles which echo the sentiment - the value of driving your car as long as possible.

http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2013/04/11/why-i-plan-on-driving-my-car-into-the-ground/

http://www.fool.com/personal-finance/saving/2008/02/28/run-your-car-into-the-ground.aspx

Great to see I am not alone in this mindset! :rock: :67:

 

[Tom328]

500k km???!!! :77:

 

[slyder]

A drive and lunch sounds like a good way to celebrate it

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[lamoo]

My 1997 328i auto is for sale Buy and drive very powerful nowadays so hard to find a buyer for this well mantained and pristine conditon car any offers will be considered

pm or mobile: 012-3337811

p/s Lee sorry to intrude into your thread

 

[Lee36328]

500k km???!!! :77:

Thanks.

I use it to go everywhere, and used to travel a lot for work, and also for golf.

But now, just around Klang Valley. Still, the miles are racking up faster than one would expect.

When it is such a pleasure to drive as such, one tends to look for any excuse to start up the engine.

 

[Lee36328]

A drive and lunch sounds like a good way to celebrate it

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Yeah, sounds like a good idea.

And maybe take some pics and post it.

 

[Lee36328]

My 1997 328i auto is for sale Buy and drive very powerful nowadays so hard to find a buyer for this well mantained and pristine conditon car any offers will be considered

pm or mobile: 012-3337811

p/s Lee sorry to intrude into your thread

No problem lamoo. Sayang to let go man. Hard to find cars made like this nowadays. New car is quite different in terms of maintenance and repairability, as your workshop mechanic will tell you. Good luck w your sale.

Guys,

For those of us who know him, we know this is a car well taken care of by a loving owner. So can buy without reservations.

 

[ALIAS]

Sir Lee, how come no update from you for a year already?

 

[firdaus325]

he busy updating at fb hehe

 

[Lee36328]

Sir Lee, how come no update from you for a year already?

he busy updating at fb hehe

Wow, my thread is still here.

I'm back!

So what's new, guys?

 

[Lee36328]

Latest lessons learnt from experience...

Aircond not cold, may not necessarily be an aircond problem. Also check auxiliary fan. My fan's coupling was out, not kicking in when it was supposed to, and aircond just could not cope as a result. Luckily my workshop was able to diagnose the problem correctly, a straightforward aux fan replacement, rather than start ripping out and replacing air con system parts...

 

[Lee36328]

Another recent lesson.

When filling up the coolant, always be sure to tighten the cap completely, all the way.

Left mine a bit loose, because I found it too tight whenever I had to open it, and air got into the system.

What happens when air gets into a water cooling system? The engine risks overheating, because air does not transfer heat properly, unless you are a Porsche still running on air-cooled engine.

 

[Lee36328]

One more lesson.

Always pay attention to the 'butterfly valve' in the second exhaust pipe. It's there for a good reason.

When the engine is off, the valve should be open. When you star the engine, the valve should close. When you rev to around 3000-4000 rpm, the valve should open again.

If this is not working, have it fixed. Then your engine will feel much younger again.

 

[Lee36328]

The final one I will save for another day... Cheers guys.

 

[digilife]

One more lesson.

Always pay attention to the 'butterfly valve' in the second exhaust pipe. It's there for a good reason.

When the engine is off, the valve should be open. When you star the engine, the valve should close. When you rev to around 3000-4000 rpm, the valve should open again.

If this is not working, have it fixed. Then your engine will feel much younger again.

How to chk the condition of that butterfly valve ? Thanks

 

[Lee36328]

How to chk the condition of that butterfly valve ? Thanks

Well, basically check its behavior as mentioned in my post:
1. check that the valve is open when the engine is off
2. check that the valve is closed when you start the ignition and the engine is idling
3. have someone step on the gas pedal to around 3,000 - 4,000 rpm, and check that the valve shuts again

Also, when you drive, if you feel the car is sluggish when taking off from stationary, the valve might be stuck open.

And when you accelerate, if the car feel like it runs out of power too soon, revving high but not much pulling power, the valve might be stuck closed.

When it is working correctly, the engine will breathe and pull nicely from a standing start, and accelerate smoothly and powerfully to 3,000 rpm and beyond, without 'running out of breath'.

 

[digilife]

Well, basically check its behavior as mentioned in my post:
1. check that the valve is open when the engine is off
2. check that the valve is closed when you start the ignition and the engine is idling
3. have someone step on the gas pedal to around 3,000 - 4,000 rpm, and check that the valve shuts again

Also, when you drive, if you feel the car is sluggish when taking off from stationary, the valve might be stuck open.

And when you accelerate, if the car feel like it runs out of power too soon, revving high but not much pulling power, the valve might be stuck closed.

When it is working correctly, the engine will breathe and pull nicely from a standing start, and accelerate smoothly and powerfully to 3,000 rpm and beyond, without 'running out of breath'.

Where is the valve located ?

Thanks

 

[valvetronix]

The vacuum valve is located at the exhaust tip, the right outlet to be exact assuming you're facing the exhaust. This is only applicable if you are still running the standard / factory 328i exhaust.

Google for 'E36 328i exhaust valve'