My Car My Life

BMW E90 AC Blower Service

2011-11-05T02:09:00.000-07:00

2007 BMW E90 N46B20

Mileage: 61k km

Been suffering from this squeaky sound when ever we change speed [accelerate/decelerate] or turning the car. I’m suspecting the blower bearing need oiling or greasing.

Thanks to a head up by BCM Club Guest Kimi Yap, I took the plunge to take the AC blower out for servicing.

1. Slide the front passenger seat backwards.

2. Locate the 2 Torx screw under the dash and remove them.

3. Slide the dash bottom panel out. The the Item 11 in the following figure. Sorry the one in the photo is left hand drive, mine is right hand drive..

4. Now you can squeeze yourself into the footwell and look up.. haha! [~Kinky]. Figure out a way to pull the vent duct out. There’s a metal clip, I just pulled hard.. Nope, it’s not broken..

The vent duct item 6 in the following photo. Again, sorry for the LHD orientation.

5. Once the vent duct is out of the way, you see item AC Blower [Item 1]

Location “A”: Remove the wire connector

Location “B”: Suppose to be a screw point to secure the AC Blower BUT no sight of screw?!

Location “C”: A tab where we need to slightly pull/press the tab down towards the footwell with one finger and another hand rotate the AC blower counter-clockwise. Viola! The AC blower just FALL out.

6. Flip the bottom cap open to oil it.

7. Oil from the top too.. check out the dirt on the fan blades. So I decided to clean them, u can use vacuum cleaner, brush but I use water..

Just beware don’t let water wet solenoid. To be safe, I use hair dryer to blow dry whatever excess moist to prevent rust to the motor components.

8. Reinstallation is just reversing the steps.. but I added a screw at Location “B”

Before:

After:

Breakfast after a satisfying morning DIY..

The end..

Avanza’s 4th Battery

2011-10-30T08:16:00.000-07:00

Used the car on Saturday morning, but failed to start in the same evening when we want to drive out for dinner. I got the following replacement.

The translucent shell on the MF battery allows us to check water level.. too bad no ready stock for NS40, had to settle for this NS60 replacement.

Age of car: 6 years 4 months

Mileage: 167,000km

Some useful Youtube collection

2011-10-16T20:11:00.000-07:00

1. BMW Front Brake Rotor Replacement
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3spy5jtvXo

2. BMW M52/M54 6-cylinder Valve Cover Gasket Replacement
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ww8qc3Y4BxA

3. BMW Power Steering Fluid and Filter Reservoir Replacement.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4Gp1vNgOLc

Will update when discover new useful clips.

Avanza: DIY Squeaky Drum Brake / Brake Dust Cleaning

2011-10-10T04:21:00.000-07:00

I just found this in my archive. It is a procedure to clean our rear brake dust because when it cumulates, it created squeaky noise. This job was done in October 2010.

Tools needed:

1) Wheel opener

2) Size 12 bolt

3) Brush

4) Size 12 wrench

5) Car jack

6) Rubber hammer

Loosen (not remove!) the wheel lug, jack up the rear, remove the wheel, use the size 12 bolt to screw in for pushing the hub cover out

Hint: Secure the all 3 others wheels from rolling because to perform this, you must release the parking/hand brake. If not, the parking brake will grab on tight to the hub cover and you wouldn’t be able to remove the hub cover. This is not a front wheel drive vehicle, so the front wheel will roll freely if we lift the rear.

The rubber hammer is to knock the hub to loosen it while screwing in with the size 12 bolt.

This is how the rear brake internal looks like. You can clearly see the rear brake shoe still appears to be very thick. This is at above 100k km. Original 6 years old brake shoe, never replace before.

This is a close up of my humble tools. Check out the hub cover on the left, there a tiny hole for the size 12 bolt to screw in, that’s how we force the hub cover out.

Check out the amount of dust I managed to dust out.

To put the hub cover back, just put it back in and fasten the wheel.

Hint: Jack one rear wheel at a time because the other rear wheel needs to remain on the ground. The transmission selector set to ‘P’, the other rear wheel will help secure the car from rolling. Still, for extra precautionary measure, use objects like bricks to block both front wheels and the other rear wheel from rolling. When jacking, do it slowly and monitor the car for the slightest rolling if any. Can be potential safety hazard if this is not observed.

That’s all for now. Hope you enjoy my write up.. till next blog update, Adios!

Avanza: DIY Repair Transmission Mounting

2011-10-09T09:50:00.000-07:00

A recent change of transmission fluid has led me to inspect the transmission mounting while I crawled under the car, and I’m suspecting it has cracked.

I also noticed an occasion knocking sound from the central cabin tunnel when going through bumps.

So I came across this epoxy adhesive which is perfect for the job.

It has 3 types, 4min, 5min and 90min and each can withstand 3 tons, 3.5 tons and 4 tons respectively. I think 90 min is too long, hence I picked the 5 min variant. The entire car doesn’t even weight 3 tons..

Going under the car again and yes, the black clean line is created due to rubbing, meaning there are movement between the top plate and the 2 rubber support blocks, which shouldn’t happen unless the section has cracked or broken.

This following photo is taken from the rear, notice the same black crack lines between the V-shape top plate and the 2 rubber blocks? Oh! That’s my pet taking her nap in the back ground..

Found a jack point, it’s at the flywheel housing, at the joint where the transmission is connected.

After jacking the transmission up, the gap between the top plate and the 2 rubber blocks are clear!!

Since the gap is not wide enough for me to apply the epoxy adhesive, I had to remove the mounting. 2 size 14mm bolts at the top and 2 size 14mm nuts at the bottom, to be accessed through the bottom cross beam. Look at the following picture after ripping off the 2 sections.. The 2 sections are supposed to be moulded together.

Here goes nothing.. mix the epoxy with the hardener.. the mix is actually hot, an increase in temperature due to the chemical reaction.

I only apply one side, the top plate. Then slide the top plate over the rubber blocks.. I need to act swift because I only have 5 min before the epoxy harden even though it takes hours to fully cure.

Installing the transmission mounting back to it’s original location.. Hint: Put in the top bolts first before tightening the bottom nuts because the top bolts do not have free play while the bottom has.

Slowly lower the jack..

Hint: I lay some old newspaper under the jack to distribute the weight because I worry I might crack my tiles.

Viola!

I think the past 7 years, 160k km of flying over speed bumps and uneven road have finally taken a toll on the transmission mounting.. but fear not, after tonight, flying continues.. !!!

Thank you for reading. Comments are welcome!

Avanza: DIY Power Steering Fluid Replacement

2011-10-07T20:41:00.000-07:00

Hand wash pump, stick it into the power steering reservoir and pump. Be careful not to pierce the strainer inside the reservoir. This is not a perfect method because:

1. The insert of the hand pump too hard, can damage the metal strainer netting in the reservoir.

2. The hand pump suction is not powerful enough to siphon out debris in the reservoir. After I siphoned out the fluid, a peek with a torch light revealed that there’s debris inside the reservoir.

The next time I do this, you should see some improvement to my method.

Check out the fluid color. On the left is from my 1 day old partial drained transmission fluid, taken out due to overfilled. On the right, is the one taken out from my power steering reservoir. Dirty eh?!

Still the power steering fluid appear less dark comparing to the transmission fluid. Planning for a full drain in 20k km time. Stay tuned!

The 3L partial drain of transmission fluid is really hopeless!

Thank you for reading..

Comment appreciated.

Avanza: DIY Removal of Excess / Overfilled ATF

2011-09-23T00:53:00.000-07:00

1 day after I replaced the ATF, even with around 2.3L of ATF, I still felt overfilled. So that prompted me to perform this next DIY: To siphon out excess or overfilled ATF.

I connected the hand soap nozzle to a rubber hose as my siphon device. Insert the other end of the rubber hose into the transmission via the transmission fluid dipstick entrance. Use an empty drinking bottle as a catch, keep pumping the ATF out. It takes less than 3 minute to get rid of my following excess ATF. Don’t forget to check the ATF level once in a while during pumping to avoid over siphoning of the fluid leaving insufficient fluid in the transmission..

Check out my state-of-the-art device.. LOL!

The ATF I managed to siphon out.. Check out how dirty the fluid is despite only 1 day after the ATF change. This is because only less than 40% of the oil fluid is drained through transmission oil pan. The bulk of it still stuck in the torque converter. So moral of the story, replace your ATF more often. I am practicing every 40k km but I certainly recommend 20k km if your time and budget permit. In fact every litre of the genuine Toyota D-III ATF sold by the authorised service centre only cost MYR19, so 3L only cost less than MYR60. You can even fill your empty fuel tank with that amount of money. By the way, the balance fresh ATF can be used to replace your power steering fluid in the power steering reservoir. They share the same type of fluid. To siphon your power steering fluid from it’s reservoir, same technique, via the power steering fill / dipstick cap.

Avanza: DIY ATF Replacement

2011-09-23T00:26:00.000-07:00

Unscrew the drain bolt under the transmission oil sump/pan, it’s a size 14 bolt.

Don't understand why the ATF drain bolt is not located at the lowest point of the sump, how to fully drain the old fluid on the sump? The only explanation I can think of is IF the bolt were lost, not all fluid "escape" so gearbox may survive.. I had to lift the front right wheel using the jack until maximum the jack can provide.. to tilt the pan to try get as much of the old fluid out. Next time can consider siphon technique, releasing from drain bolt doesn't get rid of old lube as well as siphon technique since the siphon tube can reach the bottom of the pan.

Only about 2L is drained..

I bought the drain bolt washer from the authorised service centre, the metal o-rings are for the rear diff, one each for drain and refill screw. The “paper” type is the same as engine oil drain bolt gasket, meant for transmission drain bolt. Didn’t get to use though because lazy to remove the old gasket. Very tightly stuck onto the ATF pan.

For refill, I joined some larger diameter straws, to be exact, 3 of them together using salophen tape to pipe the fresh ATF in.

I bought extra ATF but seriously, 3L is more than sufficient.

Check out the DIY funnel.. heh! liquid medicine measurement cup for the kid + silicon sealant nozzle, hot glued together..

Avanza: DIY Fix to Air Filter Box Leakage

2011-09-10T02:19:00.000-07:00

Been noticing a loud hissing sound at he engine compartment, coming from behind the engine, towards the firewall. A close inspection discovered that there’s a tear on the air filter box seal. The fix is very simple, just use some 3M double side tape to secure the loose foam seal.

Check out the red colour 3M double sided tape, with the protector yet to be removed.

Discovered this while cleaning my K&N air filter, cleaned my throttle at the same time.

BMW E90 320i DIY Removal of Front Bumper

2011-05-15T01:01:00.000-07:00

Moving my car into my porch with auto gate fail to fully deployed has cause the gate to slice my front bumper leaving a 6” cut right next to my bumper light. Darn.. The consolation was it didn’t damage my bumper light.. phew~..

So I took off my bumper and sent it for repair.

First, open the top 4 big screws..

Lift up the rubber liner seal..

Unscrew bottom 7 screws.. check out the scrubs under the lip...

.. 2 fender arch screws each side..

2nd screws..

.. rip the fender liner and 2 more inside.. (1st)

2nd..

slide the clip out (plastic portion).. the metal clip remain on the bumper.. and unplug the fog light sockets.. Notice the nasty cut at 12 o’clock?!

Viola! .. less than 10 min..

Removing the fog lights..

.. going to the paint shop..

1 for the album! Say “Cheeszzz… ”

Bumper repaired, sprayed, enjoying sun bathing..

Securing my big mouth to prevent stones hitting my radiator.

Thank you for reading, comments are welcome!

2009-09-24T23:21:00.001-07:00

Undergoing MyBlogLog Verification

Avanza: DIY Aircond Service

2009-09-13T07:47:00.000-07:00

Break through discovery!

Before..

Close up..

During..

Close-up..

After..

Close-up..

Interested?! :D

Avanza: Cabin Filter Perfected!

2009-09-13T07:38:00.001-07:00

Avanza Cabin Filter Perfected!

Neat installation.. took over 3 years to be perfected. :D

Roadtrip: Zoom down to Singapore F1 style

2009-09-09T09:05:00.000-07:00

70 photos here, "take your time".. Old Town style.. :D

8am at Sg Besi rendezvous point..

Few familiar faces and some new faces.. mingling, putting on stickers, thanks to XXX's soap water which makes putting the stickers a breeze and even removal is no sweat! Too bad Fabian's little flag none survived the trip. :o

Cold morning makes driving refreshing! vrooom.. vroooomm..

First stop Pagoh where few members joined us here.

No.1 car..

First distress call hit us not long leaving Pagoh. We stopped to waited for awhile before continue our journey.

Gelang Patah exit.

Gelang Patah R&R for lunch and changing money. The money changer do not have enough SGD for all. But the money changer reloaded themselve with SGD before we finish out lunch. Talk about efficiency, man!

Few Southern members meet us here.

Briefing before we "invade" Tuas check point!

First fleet of UDM sent over the straits..

Poolside reception at Golden Landmark Hotel.

The so called Indian Island? :eek:

Pool view room

The famous alcohol place.. :p Clark Quay. My family didn't join the Tepak Sireh dinner. We had dinner in China Town with some friends and drove to Clark Quay after dinner.

We brought the kids for a boat ride into Singapore river in Clark Quay. This is the famous Merlion, photo taken from the boat ride.

The Sands Casino in construction.

The bridge in F1 track, notice the overhead light rail.

We saw this big human "yo-yo" during the boat ride and human screaming in the "yo-yo"

After the boat ride, saw some were flying kites in the dark and this is how their kites look like, all different shape and size.

Illuminated kites in action. All running electric fans, real quiet in operation but very nice.

Day 2: Breakfast.

Shopping trip to Orchard road for some of us after breakfast. We chartered this transporter who sent us to the loading bay of ION shopping complex.. Yes! loading bay.. :p It was raining, otherwise we would have taken MRT.

The quiet newly opened ION shopping complex, not many stores are occupied.

We quickly find our way to TANGS to spend the voucher.. :p .. and yes, still raining outside. So we were looking for underpass.

Saw these 2 GT Queens along the way. ;-)

Finally found our way there..

Shopping with the missy.. same old story in a foreign land.. :(

The SGD20 voucher couldn't last 15 min.. soon enough, we find ourselves in Orchard Road..

One of the fail shots.. waste my film.. :p

Another shopping center..

The new //M?

Spot the 7..

Wet Orchard..

Shopping continue..

Lunch time..

More yummy stuffs..

Baby fair?! :o

Lunch finally!

Sharing an point of view.. ;-)

Standard ticket, non-standard ticket, *&^%$#@!! tickets..

Our ride back to Bugis..

Wah! I felt being watched! Mana mau lari?!

4pm TT with S'pore folks in Kallang.

Futuristic vs Classic.

Another classic..

Day 3: 9am check out to F1 track. 2 more cars died in the parking.. :p Luckily Chili e30's DIY jumper cable managed to rescue one of them..

Rendezvous in Pan Pacific Hotel before entering the S'pore GP track.

The amazing Pan Pac..

Media Briefing.. :p

Saw this on our way to the GP track.. :o Check out the huge propeller underneath.. :o

The entrance of the track..

My precious..

Story telling time..

The podium.. where Champagne rain will shower on GP day.

Podium walk about.. :p

The Ferrari pit..

This is where the "5 lights" will be hanged to flag off the race.

Turn 1.

Apex..

Top-up before u leave.. ;-)

There u go, 70 photos.. ;-) Thanks for watching..

DIY Avanza Front Brake Pad Replacement (2nd Set)

2009-09-06T07:01:00.000-07:00

Mileage 113k km, last front brake pad change was 50k km.

New replacement part chosen this time. RM90/-

Tools needed, and of course, the OEM jack.

After remove tyre, check out the balance of my front brake pad, no more than 3mm.

Size 14, anti-clockwise, use the small hammer to whack the wrench a bit. Shouldn't be too difficult. Make sure the wrench is securely mounted to the bolt and not risking damaging the bolt.

Pull out the size 14 bolt and lift the brake caliper up.

Un-slot the brake pad, see how thin is the worn pad compare to the new ones.

Relocate the attached shim and the "don't-know-what" to the new pads.

This pad wear indicator is too short to be workable. By the time the brake disc rotor scrub the indicator to produce screeching noise, the pad would be have been all gone and we are running on metal-to-metal!!

Check the brake fluid level before pushing the brake caliper piston back into its chamber. When we start pushing, brake fluid will be forced back into the brake fluid reservoir. If too full, it will overflow and mess up the engine bay. Bear in mind that this brake fluid is corrosive in nature!! Must be careful. If fluid level too full, need to siphon some out from the reservoir before we continue.

This method of pushing the caliper piston back to its chamber is my latest new discovery, after few other fail attempts. Check out my previous post on brake pad changing back in 2007 and see what a fool I have been. My previous method is very risky to damage the caliper chamber because a slight tilt of the pushing angle will permanently damage the cylinder. The damage can result in the piston coming out in an off tangent angle and cause uneven pad wear.

While forcing the piston in, try to get rid of some brake dust stuck in the rubber sleeve. Something I didn't do in the last change. And of course, monitor the brake fluid reservoir level as well. It's raising..

Piston fully recessed into its cylinder. Make sure the loose rubber sleeve is not at the wrong place when lowering the caliper back to its operating position. The rubber sleeve can get trapped in between the piston and brake pad which will potentially puncture the sleeve.

New brake fluid level after one side of the wheel is done.

Now lowering the caliper back to its operating position, with the new pads.

Now move on to the other wheel and after the 2nd wheel, this is the new brake fluid level.

After pumping the brake pedal and driven the Avanza around, this is the latest brake level.

When the wheels are taken out, its the best time to inspect all your ball joints and bushes, they all look good except this!!

This is the front anti roll bar link. See the damage rubber sleeve. The trapped factory filled grease has seen day light and is all over the place.

Avanza: DIY Swap Battery Terminals

2009-09-05T22:30:00.000-07:00

Been wanting to do this but keep forgetting..

Our battery terminals are having odd orientation and for the 2 replacement batteries I bought for the Avanza, the terminals are at the wrong size.

Before: Notice how the wires to the terminals has to run over the top of the battery and if its a conventional lead acid battery, I will have problem opening the filler caps.

After: Now the wires to the terminal are not obstructing the battery filler caps.

This needs to be done, the size 10 screw mounting the battery ground to the side needs to be relocated to the strut housing for the short ground wire to reach the new further negative terminal.

While I was doing the job, I took the opportunity to open the reach for the conceal maintenance free battery filler cap.

Viola! There's acidic liquid inside.. ;-)

Avanza: Dead Battery

2009-08-17T03:20:00.000-07:00

One year and 2 months after using the MF battery, it finally died on me last night.. :'(

The kids were playing with a portable DVD player in the back seat which comes with the little interesting mount:

So they switched on the rear cabin light and left it on for 2 hours after reached home returning from dinner.

When I tried cranking the engine after that, only hear "ge-dek..ge-dek..dek..." the starter actuator trying to push the starter rotor into the flywheel but no cranking.. :o

Had to went for Eneos to pickup a battery just in case. Saw they selling Yokohama N40 for RM180 and N60 for RM183.. :o Contemplated for a awhile because I'm against putting a bigger battery than necessary and suffer the weight penalty... but the RM3 price difference is really a BIG DEAL!! :p

So die die decided on the N60. The battery wasn't filled with acid, so had to get the Eneos mechanic to fill the acid. Its a small terminal battery, just nice for our Avanza.

Understanding the fact that once MF battery is drained, there's no charging back because the technology doesn't allow as one of the published disadvantage of MF battery.

I put in the N60, tried to crank, same thing, fail! :o Maybe the newly poured in acid has not work itself into the lead plates yet.. So I use a jumper cable to run both battery in parallel. Still fail. At the end, no choice by to use my other car's DIN100 to jump the 1.3L and it works. So after it started, I connected the N40 and N60 in parallel to let them share the charge for a while, then remove the N60, leaving the MF N40 for charging for about 10 min. Then kill the engine and crank it again. And it works! So I wrap the newly bought N60 and kept it in the car as spare.. and see how the rescued N40 goes. Will keep u folks updated.. ;-)

By the way, the terminals for the N60 despite is the correct size, but wrong orientation. Need to pasang terbalik and the terminal wires will run over the battery refill cap... :-(

Anyone out there care to share their battery use experience? My mileage now is 112k km. First OEM N40 battery lasted 34 months!! :o

Avanza: DIY Oil Change

2009-07-20T01:33:00.000-07:00

Its 110k km..

Tools:
1. Oil filter wrench.
2. size 14 wrench.
3. waste oil container.
4. Old news paper.
5. Tissue or toilet roll.

Parts:
1. Oil filter.
2. Engine oil.

~ No need to jack up the car.
~ Size 14 wrench need to be reasonably long to make the open of drain bolt easier. Quite tight.
~ Warm up engine or take a short breakfast drive, let the engine cool down a little so the oil release is not boiling hot.
~ Lay the old news paper on the floor so any spillage will not dirty the floor.
~ Loosen the size 14 drain bolt.
~ Place the waste oil container below the drain bolt.
~ Open drain bolt. I use hand to open. The oil when come in contact with hand, its hot. But not boiling la.
~ Leave it drain until u are satisfied. I left it for about an hour.. :p
~ Now u can loosen (not open) oil filter while waiting for the oil to drip. Just loosen it will do. Open it now will spill oil to the floor. Wait!
~ Clean up the drain bolt and the outlet on the oil sump. Screw the bolt back in. No need very tight, just a slight torque using the size 14 wrench because you may damage the little bolt.
~ Drag the waste container until its directly under the oil filter.
~ Now open the oil filter with the oil filter wrench.
~ The oil filter is directly in the exhaust manifold, so its a little cramp in there. My little plastic oil filter opener get a little handful because get caught by the exhaust manifold. DON'T DO THIS WHEN ENGINE IS VERY HOT BECAUSE EXHAUST MANIFOLD CAN BURN YOUR HAND.
~ Once open the open filter, use toilet paper or tissue to clean the contact area and this is what it looks like:

~ Apply some fresh engine oil over the filter oil seal to wet it so it seats better.
~ Can actually hand tight the oil filter.. ;D
~ Pour in fresh oil, and measure using the dipstick. DON'T POUR IN THE WHOLE BOTTLE, WE DON'T THAT MUCH.
~ Start the engine, visually inspect for leakage.
~ If no leakage, take it for a short drive, then check again.
~ Stop the engine and check oil level again. Top up until it reached the MAX mark on the dip stick.
~ Check on leakages again the next morning and so forth (subsequent days to come) until you are comfortable.

DONE!

This is the oil filter. I bought it from SC, very cheap only, don't risk getting from outside spare part shop just to save few Ringgit. Very different internal design.

BMW E90 320i DIY Washing Air Filter "Sleeve"

2009-07-04T00:45:00.000-07:00

I suspect nothing was done to my air filter during my 1st BSRI service last week at the SC. At 24k km I figured the OEM air filter is pretty clogged up because if its K&N, it would be pretty dirty at 20k km. Since our air filter element is covered/protected by a synthetic wool sleeve, it's washing time! :D

Refer here for instruction to open the AF box:
http://upgr8s.blogspot.com/2008/03/bmw-e90-diy-opening-air-filter-box.html

"Prying" open the air filter box after removing the several T-20 screws:

Separated the sleeve from the element:

Dip the sleeve into a bucket of water premix with dish cleaning detergent:

Moving the sleeve in and out of the soap water repeatedly for several minutes and this is what u get:

After cleaning, it dries pretty fast because the synthetic wool repels water:

Slot it back to the filter element and kao tim!

Now, expecting my all time FC meter to drop from 11.5L/100km to below 11 region.. :p :D

A new discovery while doing this DIY:

I got this Air Filter buffer box removed by unscrewing T-15 screws marked with the red cross in the photo.

Flipping it over I noticed the interesting rips and air tunnel EXCEPT the huge green question mark:

Check out the inlet in this close up:

When in position, pay attention to the right inlet:

You see what I see? :eek:

DIY: An attempt to repair a windshield crack

2009-05-18T21:05:00.000-07:00

A sudden drizzle on a hot sunny afternoon has cracked my windshield. Saw a chip with an impact point at the edge on the windshield towards the rubber trim, 1 more mm towards the rubber would have reverse my mis-fortune.

The chip may have been there for days without me realising it because it's at the edge and I didn't wash my car for more than 3 weeks.. :p

So when I saw the crack, its already 4" long and within the same day, grew another few inches and stop at about 8".

My windscreen repairer always advise me to put a cellophane tape over the chip or crack to avoid contamination which will make repairing less perfect. So I did the same.

Contacted my repairer and told him the situation, he asked me to replace the windshield because crack too serious. I managed to locate another repairer that'll do the job for me but I decided on the more adventurous path.... DIY!!

After some sourcing and finally bought this:

While waiting for it to cure under the sun... :D

BMW E90 320i DIY Headlight Adjustment

2008-08-16T23:56:00.000-07:00

If you don't want a VIOS to tapao u at night on the highway just because you can't see the road ahead due the poor low beam upper range illumination, please make sure you do this.. :D

This is a DIY for E90 headlight beam height adjustment.

Tools required:
1. A cross head screwdriver or 6mm Allen key.
2. Some masking tape.
3. Blade

Step 1: Identify the headlight beam height adjuster screw, it's located behind the headlight assembly, facing up, very easy to find.

Step 2: Cut/tear a small piece of masking tape and mark a line with a pen.

Step 3: Stick the masking tape on the edge of the screw to mark its position, then use a blade to slice the masking tape to free the upper part which can rotate with the screw.

NOTE: Anti clock wise higher beam throw and vise versa. Recommendation is 3 x 360 degree turns anti clock wise. I just did one turn and leave the masking tape there so can adjust if I'm not happy.

I have no problem with my passenger side head light, so I just adjusted my driver side headlight.

The screw. Can use either the 6mm Allen key or the Philip/cross head screw driver. I prefer using Allen key because confirm won't slip and damage the screw, and easy to count the turn.

The masking tape marker. See carefully how the masking tape is sliced in the middle.

This is where the screw is located.

Result? I have not tested yet.. :p

DIY Avanza Throttle Cleaning

2008-07-27T14:25:00.000-07:00

Just did my 80k km service and took the opportunity to check my K&N if its still there after the service.. :o

Well, the K&N is still there and I also clean the K&N while checking it. Also I noticed my throttle butterfly plate is pretty dirty.. so here goes...

Took out my STP Carb Cleaner..

Check out the dirt surrounding the throttle plate..

Inside the intake manifold but rotating the throttle where the throttle cable is located.

What I did was just start the engine, and slowly spray a little of the carb cleaner into the throttle a bit at a time so you don't "choke" the engine. Rotate the throttle a little by twisting the throttle cable plate. This will bring up the rev, again slowly spray the carb cleaner.

BMW E90 DIY Opening Air Filter Box

2008-03-24T12:46:00.000-07:00

It was a lazy weekend morning to many, but the thought of wondering what kind of air filter the E90 320i is having, simply kept me awake all night and I couldn't wait for the first ray of sunlight so I can rush down to my porch to have an early date with my E90.. :D Is it CONICAL? .. or CYLINDRICAL? .. or just FLAT.. :p

Here goes..

A cool morning engine.. which is half asleep and I am already all cite up to “undress” her.. :p

2 size 10mm screws at the right of the AF box to be first unscrewed..

Remove the Air Flow Sensor lead rubber boot plug..

Lift up the plug and u will see the leads and the socket. Must unplug the socket before we proceed.. tiny wires.. be extra careful not to injure the wires..

Unplug the following AF buffer box.. (I initially thought that’s just an ornamental cover with a roundel.. :p) must unscrew 3 tiny Torx screws which hang the box to the upper plastic cross-member beam..

Loosen the hose clip connected to the throttle body inlet, unplug and lift the AF box… Voila!… its out of the E90 lio.. :D

Flip the box over and you will notice there are few Torx screw fastening the box together.. 5 of them… if not mistaken.. :rolleyes:

I think this is the BMW OEM code for the replacement filter element..

After unscrewing the 5 Torx screws fastening the AF box, just rip the box open like open a Durian.. :p …the 5 Torx screws are design to remain stuck on one side of the box.. so don’t waste time figuring out how to remove them… they won’t.. :D

This is what I’m looking for.. looks like a synthetic element like the HKS element… minus the oil.. :p

This is the neck of the element.. the air flow sensor is just next to it..

This is the other end… can slide the element out…look at my RED arrow..

With the element lifted off, the air flow sensor is instantly revealed.. be careful not to damage this delicate and vital “organ”.. don’t even think about touching it!! :D If I must find a descriptive word for it, the word would be “G-Spot”.. :D

Close up on the G-Spot.. :D

Macro shot.. :D … or rather MICRO.. :rolleyes:

Take a peep inside the element..

Close-up… amazing sight!

Tons of codes on the element..

See…. It’s a CYLINDRICAL shape.. :p

Let’s do some measurement.. in inches.. :D

A little over 5 inches in overall diameter..

Now in Metric..

8 mm inner diameter… that will be the measurement I need to look for a matching open port K&N.. :D

Now the outer diameter in Metric..

A little short of 14mm..

Inner diameter in inches..

A little over 3 inches..

Now the height.. read the measurement yourself.. :D

With the cylindrical element lying down..

Check this out… the outer synthetic wool layer is wrap on like a sarong kaki !!!! :eek:

We can actually change “SOCK” !!! :eek: which keep the actual element clean.. :eek:

That’s all folks!

Took this opportunity to take a photo of the throttle..

Not forgetting.. the alternator..

No oil stain found over this side of the engine.. what a relief!!

Conclusion
Since the element is protected by a layer of synthetic wool.. I reckon it keeps the air flow very clean (double layer mah!) and keep the combustion chamber extremely clean..

By just removing the wool, I believe we will experience instant performance improvement… if straight away put K&N.. Wow! I cannot imagine how much performance gain we will get.. and it’s a definite gain for sure!!

Anyway… I’m not in a hurry to swap the OEM element out.. kind of admire the OEM technology though.. again I stress.. u will never see JDM filter element wearing socks.. :p UDM rocks!! :rock:

Oh well! I will be looking forward to wash my "socks" once every few months.. :D

BMW E90 320i DIY engine oil change

2008-03-22T01:31:00.000-07:00

A friend came over the weekend and ask me to help her replace her fluid.. She confirmed warranty for her 320i is over, so she wish to service outside.. :D I told her I will try because I have not done it to an E90 before.. here goes..

First of all, I was looking for a place to jack. I realized the E90 does not come with a jack because it’s on Run Flat Tire and does not intend for owner to jack the car for replacing flat. So no jack. I took my Toyota jack and start looking for a spot under the E90 to rest my jack. Voila! Found a “jack stand”.. or rather a plastic mount where its meant to support a workshop hydraulic car lift. To avoid breaking the plastic mount, I found a rubber muffler mount in my store and cut it into shape so can slot into the E90 plastic mount as follows to disperse pressure to avoid the risk of breaking the plastic mounting:

Check out the brick I inserted under the tire.. :D Kiasi.. :p and check out those green carpet tiles.. that's my mat.. :D

A look under the E90… Wow! Amazing sight! Reminds me of the Darth Vader’s Empire Mothership carrier.. :D

Once I am comfortable with my reach to the drain bolt, then only I proceed to replace the oil filter.. I should have released the drain bolt first so allowing more time for the oil to drip while I replace the oil filter. I was worry of unable to open the oil filter, so must try opening the oil filter first because if unable to open, I would call off the project.. :D

I first mark the oil filter cover with a masking tape so I know how much to tighten the cap later. I don’t have a torque wrench and I ‘m suppose to tighten it to 25Nm of torque as written on the cap.. :p

Line the cap with a piece of cloth so the filter wrench won't harm the cap.. :D Open with anti close wise rotation just like unwinding a screw..

See how dirty the thing is.. yuukkk.... If I tell u this filter is only 5k km old, would believe me?

Hold the dirty filter element with one hand and tap the central core with your other hand, the element will slide out.. took me quite awhile to figure this out.. almost broke the core while struggled with it.. :p

The el-cheapo Austrian filter I got for her.. :p

Slot the new filter element into the core.. make sure the side with printed code number is facing out.. don't ask why... just follow.. :D Don't forget to replace the oil seal. 3 of them.

Screw the filter back and make sure the cap return to our "mark", well aligned! That's 25Nm I suppose.. :rolleyes:

Now move on to the drain bolt.. not easy to open for a new car because the bolt was bolted onto the pan before they assemble the engine and coated with a layer of paint, thus very tight. Luckily this an old car.. :wink: It's using size 6mm hex wrench. I got my wrench from a bicycle shop.. :p Normal anti clock wise unwinding... DON'T SCREW UP!!! If u break the nut, don't call me!! :D

Some closeup to show u the screw... if you don't have the hex wrench, it will be difficult because of the thin top. Too thin to fit a wrench (its size 17mm). The black finishing is actually the oil sump paint (in&out), painted over the nut because when they paint the oil sump before assembly, the bolt is already in place..again I must stress, it should be very tight for a new car.. I think :rolleyes:

Check out the dirty oil.. what they called BMW-LL :stupid:

If I were to tell you these are 5k km original BMW-LL fluid, would you believe me.. :p :D

If these are good for another say... 5k km... would u pour it into your Kancil or something..? :p :D

Hope u enjoy reading the above! :wink:

DIY K&N Cleaning

2007-10-12T23:00:00.000-07:00

Been running my K&N for 20k km now. Suspect the efficiency has somewhat deteriorate, despite sun light can still penetrate the element.. :P

By chance, a friend came along for TT and he introduced me to a place for cleaning our K&N for RM8.40 per wash and oiled, somewhere at PJ 222. We made few wrong turns and finally reach the place. It was non other than….. “SPEEDWORKS” ~ the sole agent for K&N!

Meaning they actually use the original cleaning agent and oil it with original lub, confirm! No ragu-ragu! ;D Still remember more than 10 years ago, my pomen did it for me for RM10 and it’s cleaned by petrol and oiled with power steering oil. :( So this RM8.40 is DAMN CHEAP!

We happily went in and soon realised our lady luck was not with us. They actually ran out of cleaning agent!! They still have the retail pack though but I refused to buy because my store room simply run out of space, and not ready to part with my near RM100 despite my friend want to share the filter charger with me.. ;D

Contacted an old friend from the industry and consulted him on what is the suitable oil to apply on K&N filter. He told me to use mineral engine oil because that’s the mildest, non-corrosive oil in relation to all the other automotive lubricants.

Then I complaint that the oil should be in “RED”, not gold or clear mah! Then he asked me to use 2T oil la! Bingo… that’s the answer!

During a filling trip to Shell, I went into the Shell shop and look for 2T oil. To my surprise, they have more than 4 types of 2T oil !! from non-synthetic, to super, to synthetic for a price difference of about RM1 between the most expensive and the cheapest. What a market strategy!

Anyway, I bought the cheapest one for less than RM5 per 500ml bottle.

By the way, the oil applied onto the K&N filter element is to keep the element damp and of course to absorb dust particles and that’s about all. Just need to be careful in choosing the non-K&N specified oil to make sure its non-corrosive in nature so it doesn’t damage the element in the long run.

Ta..DA.... Let’s do it!

Fill the kitchen sink with tap water and add detergent (I used 2 tea spoons of Dynamo.. ;D)

Try not to fill the sink with too much water (no more than an inch deep) because u don’t want to submerge the K&N into the water and allow dirty water to mess up the clean side of the filter. Actually the heavier dust particle will settle at the bottom of the sink lio la. Not to serious wan la. I am just being demanding.. :P

Use both hand to grab the filter and move it in & out of the soap water like you want to choke some one to death.. :P

After few “choke”..

After about 20-30 “chokes” and I think enough lio.. [b]Remember[/b], u r not removing the oil. You r just removing the dust particles that stuck on the element. So its alright after the 30 choke, your element still felt oily.

Rinse it with clean tap water, again, clean water should go in from the clean side of the K&N to bring dirt out through the dirty side. Avoid high pressure tap water which can damage the element. Replace the dirty soap water in the sink with clean tap water and “choke” the K&N again to get rid of the soap water. One rinse should be enough.

Let the filter drip dry for about half an hour on my still warm engine. No need 100% dry la. Then prepare for oiling.. ;D Check out the oil I used.. :P ;D

When I opened the 2T bottle, I was shocked :o to find out that the 2T I bought is actually GREEN color !!! :o :o Now I’m running a GREEN K&N filter :( ;D I use about 3 cap full of 2T oil applied on the element. Not to worry of applying too much as excess oil will be sucked into the combustion chamber and burn together with the petrol and blow out through the exhaust. Hey! your exhaust now is more lasting as it too get oiled.. :P ;D

Disclaimer: You attempt the DIY at your own risk of damaging the filter element. On the safe side, get it cleaned by Speedwork for RM8.40. DIRT CHEAP minus the dirt on your hand! And be careful when drying your K&N because one of our member’s K&N kena stolen when drying on the house pagar.. :P ;D