Picked up new E34, a couple Q's (long)

[Cab325i/540i]

Hi all. I posted last week about my new 95 540i, and I have now picked it up and driven it 2700 miles back home and have a question or two.

1) Wheels. The car has these wheels on it:

http://zoouz.free.fr/Wheels/TMP_wheel/bmw_wheel_024.jpg

They look very nice, but are supposedly from the M3 lightweight. All I know about them right now is they're 17". I have read and heard that the offset on 3-series wheels is about double what the E34 requires, thus creating a need for rather large (~20mm) spacers. I was not happy about this and asked the seller if he had spacers in there. He said there are no spacers, just some hubcentric things because the E34 hub size wasn't compatible with these wheels. The wheels were on the car when he bought it a couple of years ago, and at first he was wearing down tires more quickly than he wanted to. He discovered that the alignment was off and he couldn't get it right, so he installed K-Mac camber plates, and has had an alignment done recently. (-0.5 degree on the front?!? That seems way too vertical to me.) Anyway, my question is first of all, does anyone know how I can find out what the specs are on this wheel? I'm used to seeing an et number stamped on the wheel, but these wheels are clean. I have not yet taken them off to look underneath. Next, would running the wrong offset wheels affect the alignment and cause poor tire wear? I can see how it would cause rubbing, and if these wheels should have a 20mm spacer to fit, how could I not be rubbing without spacers? But I'm not sure if I can see how the wrong offset would cause bad tire wear.

I don't really like the thought that he had to install camber plates just to get the alignment done, since he didn't do any shock/spring mods. He seems to think that over time the suspension components could wear down enough to require the plates, but my 90 E30, which has lived in the northeast its whole life, doesn't have any problems like that, just bushings and such that wear down.

2) Cruise control. On the highway the last couple of days, I noticed that with CC on, when I hit the brakes, turning it off, I would quite often hear a soft but audible "clunk" which seemed to be coming from the pedal/under the steering column area. Any ideas? Is that totally normal and acceptable?

3) Oil. I use Mobil1 15W-50 in my E30. The Bentley shows that this weight should be a good choice in the M60 as well for this climate. Any glaring reasons why the V8 wouldn't like this oil?

4) Electrical gremlins. I know older cars can have fun problems to track down, but I just wondered if these were common problems. The first day on the road, the sunroof wouldn't open. It would tilt but not slide back. After stopping for gas (thus restarting the car) it worked fine and has worked fine since. Also the driver's power seat will not move down (bummer, since I'm 6'5"). I know the motor works because it will move down using the memory buttons. I have to trace whether it's the switch or something not connected.

I think that's about it for now. This car is fantastic, especially on the highway! I missed my E30 desperately, and am glad to be back in the 325i, but I am also very glad to have the E34 "in the family." The wheels are really my primary concern right now, and if there are any wheel gurus here, I would appreciate the input!

Thanks.

[PhilipJCaputo]

I've read and seen several things about window sitches getting "gummed up" or getting dirty and ceasing to funciton.... I'm prettysure the same thing can/will happen with the power seat switches...

be sure to check http://www.bmwe34.net (if you haven't already) there might be a search you could do on this board to find a post/link to fixing the power seat switches..

[Jon K]

Hi all. I posted last week about my new 95 540i, and I have now picked it up and driven it 2700 miles back home and have a question or two.

1) Wheels. The car has these wheels on it:

http://zoouz.free.fr/Wheels/TMP_wheel/bmw_wheel_024.jpg

They look very nice, but are supposedly from the M3 lightweight. All I know about them right now is they're 17". I have read and heard that the offset on 3-series wheels is about double what the E34 requires, thus creating a need for rather large (~20mm) spacers. I was not happy about this and asked the seller if he had spacers in there. He said there are no spacers, just some hubcentric things because the E34 hub size wasn't compatible with these wheels. The wheels were on the car when he bought it a couple of years ago, and at first he was wearing down tires more quickly than he wanted to. He discovered that the alignment was off and he couldn't get it right, so he installed K-Mac camber plates, and has had an alignment done recently. (-0.5 degree on the front?!? That seems way too vertical to me.) Anyway, my question is first of all, does anyone know how I can find out what the specs are on this wheel? I'm used to seeing an et number stamped on the wheel, but these wheels are clean. I have not yet taken them off to look underneath. Next, would running the wrong offset wheels affect the alignment and cause poor tire wear? I can see how it would cause rubbing, and if these wheels should have a 20mm spacer to fit, how could I not be rubbing without spacers? But I'm not sure if I can see how the wrong offset would cause bad tire wear.

I don't really like the thought that he had to install camber plates just to get the alignment done, since he didn't do any shock/spring mods. He seems to think that over time the suspension components could wear down enough to require the plates, but my 90 E30, which has lived in the northeast its whole life, doesn't have any problems like that, just bushings and such that wear down.

2) Cruise control. On the highway the last couple of days, I noticed that with CC on, when I hit the brakes, turning it off, I would quite often hear a soft but audible "clunk" which seemed to be coming from the pedal/under the steering column area. Any ideas? Is that totally normal and acceptable?

3) Oil. I use Mobil1 15W-50 in my E30. The Bentley shows that this weight should be a good choice in the M60 as well for this climate. Any glaring reasons why the V8 wouldn't like this oil?

4) Electrical gremlins. I know older cars can have fun problems to track down, but I just wondered if these were common problems. The first day on the road, the sunroof wouldn't open. It would tilt but not slide back. After stopping for gas (thus restarting the car) it worked fine and has worked fine since. Also the driver's power seat will not move down (bummer, since I'm 6'5"). I know the motor works because it will move down using the memory buttons. I have to trace whether it's the switch or something not connected.

I think that's about it for now. This car is fantastic, especially on the highway! I missed my E30 desperately, and am glad to be back in the 325i, but I am also very glad to have the E34 "in the family." The wheels are really my primary concern right now, and if there are any wheel gurus here, I would appreciate the input!

Thanks.

A 20mm spacer would be easy to spot. If the wheels have no spacers at all... then they are replica wheels and are in the right (or close to right) offset for the E34. The offset for the M3 is like -42 in the front or something, and the E34 is somewhere around -22... the wheel/tire would be touching the strut housing and spring perch pretty severely. I suspect replica wheels...

my sunroof occasionally gets jammed or something. i use it very often. i am not sure why it does it but occasionally (once every 6 months) i'll have to push on it a little to open or close or what not.

[Cab325i/540i]

Thanks guys.

Something else came to mind. When it's dark and the lights are on, there is no illumination on either temp control dial or the fan speed dial. I'm assuming that there is supposed to be some light coming through the dash panel, yes? I haven't looked it up in the Bentley yet, or tried to take it apart, I'm thinking there's just a burned out bulb.

[Cab325i/540i]

Our car has the keys with the built in remote keyless entry. The batteries appear to not be working so well anymore. Does the key need to be reprogrammed if the battery is removed? I hope not, but I don't want to pull the old battery out if I'm going to have to pay the dealer and arm and/or leg to reprogram the key.

Thanks again.

[Elekta]

Thanks guys.

Something else came to mind. When it's dark and the lights are on, there is no illumination on either temp control dial or the fan speed dial. I'm assuming that there is supposed to be some light coming through the dash panel, yes? I haven't looked it up in the Bentley yet, or tried to take it apart, I'm thinking there's just a burned out bulb.

that fix is on bruno's site. pretty easy. take out the ac rear defrost switch and the obc, and then carefully unclip the vent slider cables and you will be able to unhook and remove the temperature and fan wheels. Then unscrew the white plastic back panel and remove the bulb. Take that bulb with you to the dealer. You might as well replace the three obc bulbs while you're at it, and the center temp wheel bulb between the two vents above the temp panel. be careful not to break the cable clips, as they are brittle plastic. This is not a job for fat hands

[JonE]

Our car has the keys with the built in remote keyless entry. The batteries appear to not be working so well anymore. Does the key need to be reprogrammed if the battery is removed? I hope not, but I don't want to pull the old battery out if I'm going to have to pay the dealer and arm and/or leg to reprogram the key.

Thanks again.

Hi,
For the remote reprogram try Bruno's site, http://www.bmwe34.net/e34main/mainte...rog_remote.htm
Good luck,
Jon

[Cab325i/540i]

Awesome! I haven't fully explored Bruno's site yet, I should probably check it out before I continue to drop FAQ's on the forum.

It sounds like I can replace the battery without a reprogram, though, and if it does get wiped, I can use this procedure to reprogram.

Thanks!

[Elekta]

Awesome! I haven't fully explored Bruno's site yet, I should probably check it out before I continue to drop FAQ's on the forum.

but first you need to show us your e34!

[Cab325i/540i]

but first you need to show us your e34!

Okee dokee. How do I put a sig pic on? I guess I could probably figure it out myself. Until I do, here's the new member of our family:

http://home.comcast.net/~cab27/E34_Front_3-4.jpg

http://home.comcast.net/~cab27/E34_Rear_3-4.JPG