Sufs' 330d M Sport w/ SMG Paddleshift retrofit but otherwise generally falling apart body ....

[The_Judge_]

Well I figured it's time to put some photos up of my car. I bought it last December, no mods as yet unlike some of the other glorious albums I've seen, fairly stock for now.

Its my first Diesel, my previous car was a 328 SE Petrol (http://www.e46zone.com/forum/topic/50758-the-judges-titanium-silver-e46-saloon/). This car has M sport trim, looks pretty good right now so won't be doing much to that apart from a few re-furbs, but lets see as time goes by. So far I've been spending all my money on engine repairs!

Here are a few pics from the Winter, I'll post a few more recent pics including the great Vredesteins ...

Car when I bought it:




Car on the Drive:



Engine after it was cleaned by local Indy - shout out to Motologic.co.uk in Harrow - John is the most honest tech I've ever met! (Not to be confused with motologic.com)



Xenons in Action:



Brodit on the dash, well worth the cash


After getting screwed by Kwik-Fit too many times, I bought a spare set of MV1's off eBay, here's my winters in storage in the garage:


Since purchase I've had the swirls done, a bunch of other repairs, installed a Brodit and new Bosch S5 battery, an aftermarket bluetooth/sd card player behind the dash running between the standard ISO connections and the tape deck. I've also had poly bushes fitted to the front, plan to do the rears later this year. Also repaired the wiring in the rear lights which give the faulty bulb indicator: http://www.e46zone.com/forum/topic/52124-rear-lights-connector/ and removed the old Nokia Phone Car kit: http://www.e46zone.com/forum/topic/51289-nokia-phone-kit-removal/ and Drivers side Window Regulator

Going forward, I'm tempted by a black grille, I will defo look into refurbing both sets of the mv1's (one set at a time!!) I think they suit the car so no reason to switch to any other kind of alloys for now. My last car had lowered suspension fitted by the previous owner, I wish I knew what he had done as it gave the car a great feel on roundabouts so I might look to do something similar to this one. Other than that, time and money will tell .... Oh and I definitely want to get the ten+ years of muck cleaned off professionally by someone who knows what they are doing, so any recommendations near Harrow are appreciated.

Edited March 1, 2017 by The_Judge_

[The_Judge_]

More Random Pics:

Vreds:

A few interior issues that need sorting out:

Also, removed the cr*p M badge from the rear:

http://www.e46zone.com/forum/topic/53141-m-badge-on-rear/

Edited January 11, 2015 by The_judge aka Suf

[The_Judge_]

Some of the jobs I'm planning for the weekend ....

[MRyan]

Very nice! How are you finding the vreds? I need to invest in some new front tyres soon and they're on the radar

[The_Judge_]

Vreds are awesome, very smooth, quieter than previous tyres, it kinda feels like you're on slicks, gotta thank Bungers for the tip

[DJ Syxx]

looks a tidy car.

[The_Judge_]

Installed EGR Bypass Kit and upgraded my Breather from Loo Roll to Vortex.

EGR Before:

Dirty EGR:

New EGR Bypass Kit Installed:

Oily Loo Roll Breather and Housing:

Some of the problems I had:

http://www.e46zone.com/forum/topic/53120-egr-and-breather-valve-upgrade/

http://www.e46zone.com/forum/topic/53487-hep-removing-my-egrthermostat/

Edited January 11, 2015 by The_judge aka Suf

[jut]

Nice car, looks just like mine lol. I put black grills on mine and think they look ok, keep the updates coming.

[The_Judge_]

Thanks Jut, yup have seen the black grille on other people's pics, looks better than I thought. Did you respray or buy a black grille, if so where from?

[mjn]

I bet that black is a bitch to keep clean!

[Daz 330 Cs]

Loving that wall mounted wheel storage, very neat

[jut]

I think I got mine from m style and as said black looks lovely when clean but it does take a lot of effort

[The_Judge_]

Loving that wall mounted wheel storage, very neat

Quite handy, but don't install it on your own as I did. -> "err yeah, one Side is meant to be lower than the other.. "

Edited April 21, 2014 by The_Judge

[The_Judge_]

Right, so in the four months I've owned the car I think I have unearthed bodged repairs from the cars former life. In the time I've had it, I've had to have the fuel injector return line replaced as it was leaking fuel (the evidence is the black stain still on my driveway). I had the leak fixed a month ago approx.

Now, when I upgraded the breather valve I noticed a lot of oil in the housing so I'm glad I replaced the housing as well. Today, I decided to replace the air filter as well, it was BLACK and clearly it had also been affected by the leak too. After all these changes the car is running a lot smoother, just a coolant leak to now get to the bottom of..... ..

BLACK Air Filter!




Filthy Air Filter Housing


New Bosch one Installed:

Edited January 11, 2015 by The_judge aka Suf

[Seb]

Nice car same colour and spec as mine,love those MV1's

[momo]

Very nice!

[S444M]

looks quality mate, all 5 cars prev to my silver touring were black is a remap on the cards at all?

[The_Judge_]

looks quality mate, all 5 cars prev to my silver touring were black is a remap on the cards at all?

Hmm, I've read that auto's don't seem to take too well to remaps thanks to GM... .. There are a few other must do jobs in the cards that I have planned first though before i can think about fun stuff like that anyway ......

[The_Judge_]

so I learnt today:

• One of Fuel Injectors is out of tolerance and needs refurbing/replacing
• Exhaust flexi-section is blown and needs repairing/replacing
• Water housing above thermostat needs replacing, but atleast I now know its the cause of my coolant leak

So, this weekends jobs are: fix the coolant leak, replace fuel filter, play with NCS and raise some cash by selling my winter wheels on ebay.

[The_Judge_]

Jobs for tomorrow if it doesn't rain!

[The_Judge_]

It's time for a RANT!! In as much this is a rant to myself as much as it is about the car. I love it, but I also hate it. I hope I can stop spending money on it soon! Just ignore this post, or have a laugh at my tale of misery .... If anything I want this post to act as a warning to anyone else stupid enough to just go out and buy a cheap second hand diesel

Why do I blame myself?? When I bought this car it was a very impulsive decision. I saw the car on Autotrader, test drove it and bought it - ALL ON THE SAME DAY. For the first few months I was very excited to have my first black car, my first diesel car, my first sporty looking car and not to have spent a fortune! That decision to buy is something I now almost regret. To all those who say don't buy a car that has obvious signs of being neglected, well I have to say I've learnt the hard way you are absolutely correct, I commend those who have the patience to wait for that right car!

The lesson I've learnt is, "no you just can't pick up a cheap second hand car from a slightly shady dealer and expect their to be only MINOR issues". I've now invested a lot in this car so I don't feel like turning back, but it ain't been easy! In the 5 months I've had the car I've had to:

• Fix a parking sensor - pretty easy
• Replace drivers side window regulator - bit tougher
• Get the Swirl Flaps Removed - had to trust my mechanic on this one
• Replace the Front Bushes with polyflex - again not a job for me
• Replace the Glow Plugs (only 4 of 6 could be replaced)
• Replace the main thermostat
• Replace the Fuel Injector Return Line
• Replace the Battery - ahh back to jobs I can do
• Install EGR Bypass
• Replace the Breather/Housing
• Do Service
• Replace Fuel filter
• Purchase 2 tyres and get them fitted (not to mention the winter tyres I bought which I now regret ......)

After all that, this week I've discovered I now have to replace my EGR Thermostat as it appears to be the source of my coolant leak, something I tried and failed to do today but I'll have a go again tomorrow.

Also Injector 2 is out of tolerance (it is showing as +5.57mm^3 on INPA). While I can get the injector refurbed, I am far out of my comfort zone in attempting to remove it myself so will have to get some professional help (again)

Once all that is done, it won't be long before I can continue ignoring the fact that I still have a to do list:

• I suspect since one injector has gone, the others are likely to follow ....
• Flexi part of my exhaust is broken and is effectively spraying soot over the bottom part of the car
• Rear Bushes need replacing
• All Four Brake Discs need replacing - I may have to take the plunge and do this myself
• Heater resistor needs replacing - I think I can try this one

and then, maybe then I can start doing some fun stuff ........

[JasonK]

Of you have an EGR bypass fitted, consider removing the EGR cooler and stat completely, as I have done - see me thread in sig...

Sent from my Lumia 1520 using Tapatalk

[TriggerFish]

I know the feeling currently!

At least you'll know the works been done, and as long as it's less in total than one without those issues, you're still up financially. Even if not - most of those parts would need changing on another e46 anyway...

[Wash]

I just read in another thread you grew up in B'ham, if you're still living there and you need a decent mechanic who is very reasonably priced let me know and I'll PM you. I know a guy who runs an exhaust place who can sort your flexi out easily too.

Sent from my GT-N7100 with a cracked screen using Tapatalk 2

[The_Judge_]

Thanks Wash, I'm now in Harrow but kind offer However PM me anyway, just in case I'm visiting my parents and something goes foul in the car ....