Melv1958 Posted October 25, 2015 Report Share Posted October 25, 2015 Cheers gaz mate, what did you do cut the right hand plastic bit in the cage? gaz-777 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted October 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 25, 2015 Yeah, whilst it was out the car I cut the right hand vertical side of the cage out with a hack saw and filed it down smooth. Also cut out the rear of the cage to allow more room for the cables etc. I didn't take any photos when I did it unfortunately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melv1958 Posted October 26, 2015 Report Share Posted October 26, 2015 Is that the heater box thingy at the back u cut into mate? gaz-777 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted October 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 26, 2015 No I didn't touch the heater box behind it, just cut out the rear of the stereo cage. Melv1958 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted February 17, 2016 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2016 (edited) Hi guys, not updated for a while now so here's what I've been up to with the car. Now before the winter I topped up the wax and sealant on the paint work and popped on the MV2's for the winter months. The car was due an oil change so I have now completed that using the beloved castrol edge oil and replaced the oil filter. This didn't go to plan though as whilst I was removing the sump plug, it decided to break causing the bolt head to snap off and the thread to stay put in the sump pan. The oil still drained through the hollow thread but I then had the dilemma of removing the thread from within the pan. I googled it and found that this is a common problem and watched a guy on YouTube use an extractor tool to remove it. Luckily the retired mechanic my dad is, had some extractor tools and using the number 4 tool it came out with just a few rotations by hand. Dilemma over and a trip to BMW for a new sump plug and washer. Here is the broken bolt and the tool used. And new washer(left) vs old one I wanted to replace the air filter at the same time, so I ordered a pipercross panel filter to replace the stock filter. I've used these many times and have been happy with the outcome, as they are dry and won't cover the air mass sensor with oil like other filters do. The throttle seems to be a little smoother and between 2000-4000 revs you get a little induction noise when you put your foot down which sounds quite nice. The airbox remains standard with no other modifications to it. Took the car for a drive to Weston supermare this week with the kids for a half term break. Still not sorted the central locking but is on the list. Thanks for looking Edited February 17, 2016 by gaz-777 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted February 17, 2016 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2016 (edited) Here is a list of all mods to date. E-maps Re-map Pipercross Panel Air Filter Resonator Exhaust Delete Butterfly valve mod Audi A4 Twin Tail pipes Weitec Hicon GT coilovers Shorter drop links Yellow painted brake calipers Matte Black Kidney grilles Yellow tinted front fog lamps Pressed private Number plates De-badged Jack Royal re-trimmed Leather steering wheel Club sport weighted gear knob Complete interior LED lighting overhaul Carbon Fibre effect Alloy Pedals Clutch Pedal stop mod Pioneer Bluetooth head unit Harmon Kardon speaker system 12" fli active sub Ski hatch removed Edited February 17, 2016 by gaz-777 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R11CH Posted February 17, 2016 Report Share Posted February 17, 2016 Always the simplest of jobs that turn in to a nightmare. You was lucky it came out relatively easy. So is this really a common thing ? not heard of it before but then i haven't been looking for it either. gaz-777 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted February 17, 2016 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2016 When I found the snapped bolt head in the bottom of the oil drain tray, my heart just sank. I thought the thread was in the sump pan somewhere, then I had a look with a torch and a mirror at the hole. The rest of the bolt thread was sitting just inside. When I googled it, I was surprised to see just how many people had done exactly the same. Some American guy had put a how to on YouTube and came to my rescue. R11CH and Ashley1995 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melv1958 Posted February 19, 2016 Report Share Posted February 19, 2016 Mine did the same on my old 325 mate was well annoying as I didn't have a spare sump plug at the time gaz-777 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted May 12, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 12, 2016 Just an update on my faulty central locking. I have finally found an Auto electrician locally who can replace the faulty relays in my GM5 Module. They have a good reputation and do a lot of work for main dealerships. They quoted me £50 for the repair. I had previously sent the module off to another company who returned it to me un-repaired. Apparently in the later models of the E46 they have more than just 2 relays and are hard to come by. So I'm hopefully going to visit this local company early next week with my fingers crossed that they can fix it. It's been about 7 months now without central locking 🙁 I'm also going to have my last 2 tyres fitted next week on my new summer wheels, so i will get some pictures up once they are on the car. Ruesta 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruesta Posted May 13, 2016 Report Share Posted May 13, 2016 Looking forward to the new wheel pics ;-) gaz-777 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted May 28, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 28, 2016 (edited) Last week I got round to spraying some spare oem kidney grilles I had in the garage. Basically I wasn't keen on the after market design of my Matt black grilles, so i sold them. After prepping them for paint, I gave them 4 coats of primer, 4 coats of halfords gloss black paint and then 3 coats of lacquer. I used a hair dryer in between coats to help speed things up. Then I left them in the house for the lacquer to harden. Not fitted them yet but I've got a Few pics of the progress, [ The other guy I went to see about the faulty central locking relays also couldn't help me, so I'm back to square one with that! And as for fitting the wheels, well let's just say they have been put on hold for now. Edited May 28, 2016 by gaz-777 Ruesta and tungmeister 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
318max Posted May 30, 2016 Report Share Posted May 30, 2016 Great thread love the wheels. I need some in my life. Keep up the good progress did you remove both resonators ? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted May 31, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2016 12 hours ago, 318max said: Great thread love the wheels. I need some in my life. Keep up the good progress did you remove both resonators ? Thanks Thanks mate, the wheels were actually sold back in February although I did love them and just fancied a change. I'm currently waiting to fit my new wheels any minute now. I removed just the middle resonator which just amplifies the 6 pot a little more. However I do want an eisenmann or super sprint rear box to complete the sound I want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
318max Posted May 31, 2016 Report Share Posted May 31, 2016 Ah ok great thanks where is the best play to buy alloys like the cades tyrus ? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TERKIN Posted May 31, 2016 Report Share Posted May 31, 2016 52 minutes ago, 318max said: Ah ok great thanks where is the best play to buy alloys like the cades tyrus ? Thanks http://www.rimstyle.com/alloywheels/detail/?car_model_id=1528&s=DBw3vSVw nearly bought them myself 318max 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruesta Posted May 31, 2016 Report Share Posted May 31, 2016 CM wheels is another good place. I got my Ispiri's from him, the service was excellent and very competitively priced. He always had a great selection of bmw style / fit wheels too. 318max, TERKIN and gaz-777 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted May 31, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2016 I also purchased my new wheels from CM Wheels, great guys to deal with. 318max and Ruesta 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted June 10, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2016 Booked the car in for MOT next Monday with BMW Leicester. This week I also got my new wheels sorted, basically one of them had a faulty paint finish to it, but thanks to Chris at CM wheels be sorted me out and I had it re-painted at my local wheel refurb place (Trim Technique). They've done a top job and now I have 4 matching coloured wheels. polished and waxed them yesterday but I have a busy weekend being my daughters birthday, so they won't go on the car untill Monday now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted June 10, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2016 Wheel specs are 19x8.5 et33 with 5mm spacer front and 19x9.5 et35 rear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted June 14, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2016 Good news! It passed the MOT yesterday. All they mentioned was that the battery is a bit low, but I know this as the car stands on the driveway all week. I managed to fit the wheels aswell yesterday and then it rained so I couldn't get any photos. I played around with the spacers I had and in the end fitted a 12mm spacer on the front to bring that to et26 and a 5mm spacer on the rear to make it et30. I also fitted the oem grilles I sprayed gloss black and I think they look really nice. I had been thinking of replacing my cades wheels with something different this year, and after owning the car for a while now I wanted to put on a set that I had chosen. So after looking long and hard through Google pictures of e46's, I had opted to purchase some bbs rs reps in the same staggered fitment. But....after seeing that Damo on here had brought some satin gunmetal CSL style reps with a nice concave on the rear, I was inspired by these and a day later the cades were sold. I was originally going to order a set up of front et38 and rear et40, but they were out of stock, so James at cmwheels offered me another set with a rear offset of et35. (Still within the E46 fitment) A deal was done with James and 9.00am the next day they were delivered. I have opted to go with 225/35/19 tyres up front and 235/35/19 on the rear. I purchased Nankang NS2 tyres just to keep costs down a bit and I've used them before so I know what I'm buying. I also ordered new centre caps and M badges for the wheels aswell. The concave on the rear looks awesome in person, pictures don't do them justice really but here you go! Thanks for looking guys. R11CH and The Laird 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad smith Posted June 14, 2016 Report Share Posted June 14, 2016 Looks really nice mate !! I really like your colour, the darker grey. CSLs look so much better but I would say that gaz-777 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted June 14, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2016 3 minutes ago, Brad smith said: Looks really nice mate !! I really like your colour, the darker grey. CSLs look so much better but I would say that Thanks Brad, I found it hard to find another set of wheels that looked oem. I know CSL's are very common but there is a reason for that, they suit the E46 so well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebel Posted June 14, 2016 Report Share Posted June 14, 2016 Approved gaz-777 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz-777 Posted June 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2016 11 hours ago, Rebel said: Approved Lol, I was waiting for your approval Tony 😂 Rebel 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
