Minor project and problems with my car

[ZeeZoo]

After a drive today on wet pavement, I took some pics of my car's problems and want to finally fix/replace/repair them. These are the problems off the top of my head but I made a list last year that I can't find ATM .

First off, this piece in my FRONT bumper has been missing since I bought it:


Do I have to buy a new bumper or can I order the part somewhere? It is the factory bumper that originally came with the car.

The dashboard has some lights:


I looked around the internets and people said the open trunk sensor is common and usually due to a cut wire somewhere:


The thermostat sensor is gone completely, here are some pics from a previous thread of mine:




I also need to change the thermostat itself because the check engine sign comes and goes due to a jammed tstat:



Some other minor fixes need to be taken care of.

The front right trim is bulging out, probably from bumping a wall or another car or something:



Missing front tow hook cover:


Dent from a mailbox on the rear driver quarter panel
Trying to find someone to get it pulled


Not fixes but extra pics I took:




Things I'm looking at:

Clear corners
http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/E4...ts-Sedan-99-01

Projectors
http://www.khoalty.com/bmw-e46/light...eadlights.html

LED Clear Taillights
http://www.ddmtuning.com/product.php?II=114

You've made it this far so why not read a couple more sentences . I will be buying a thermostat sensor and zip tie it to the body somewhere. If I get clear corners, I will also get the side parking lights in clear as well, don't jump on that. The power steering hose has been leaking so I put a new murry clamp on it to make a new tighter seal to the reservoir. The 12" Visonic subs are decent but need to be changed with something stronger. The angel eyes are very white but my halogens are yellow, bad combo at night. I don't care too much of the tow cap but the dealer wants $20 for a new one and the ones on ebay come primered, not black. I will post a video about a probelm starting my car and the strangest noise it makes on a cold start. I know these are baby fixes but before I go out and look for replacements in junkyards or the dealer, I'm always open for suggestions and opinions on what you guys would do. Whew

[WoLF]

I'm always open for suggestions and opinions on what you guys would do.

Fix your problems before you waste money on modifications.

[CakePie]

www.realoem.com to find part numbers for things like bumper trim etc.

[328ci906]

It looks like your gonna need a new driver's side wheel well. You also seem to be missing the big plastic tray underneath the engine bay. RealOEM is your friend. It looks like you need to order some parts.

[jhkm12345]

it's the little things that get us on these cars... here's links to all the basic items you need to do the projects listed.

if I can do anything to help you find anything further, pm me and i'll do what i can!

john

http://parts.bmwofsouthatlanta.com/p...718193811.html

http://parts.bmwofsouthatlanta.com/p...718242567.html

http://parts.bmwofsouthatlanta.com/p...118209925.html

http://parts.bmwofsouthatlanta.com/p...816905133.html

http://parts.bmwofsouthatlanta.com/p...537509227.html

http://parts.bmwofsouthatlanta.com/p...118213685.html

[danewilson77]

Lemme know if you need any more help tracking down part numbers for various, aforementioned repairs that need to be made.

[TexFinn]

Fix your problems before you waste money on modifications.

So friggin' true!

[90turbo1]

yup from what I can tell is you have a broken wire in the trunk wiring harness, thats an easy fix, pull the rubber out of both sides trunk and body, then gently tug on each wire one by one, the broken one will pull out then you simply find the matching one on the other side and run a new section of wire through the rubber (dont put the repair in the wire loom or it will break again. tuck the repaired sections into the body and trunk lid. reassemble rubber boot (yours looks torn) and check it out.

air bag lamp is on, youll wana get that checked out.

you say the thermostat on the cluster, its the outside temp sensor that is f'ed up not a thermostat. if you look under the right front (pass front of the front bumper) you should see a fender liner there with a temp sensor sticking in the center of it, pointed towards the ground. I can bet you anything its missing and along with it being missing the wiring is probably just dangling under the fender some where. -40 indicates an open circuit I think +250 is a short together of the wires.

on the drivers side you need a new front lower fender liner and engine undercovers, they are not that much from dealership and on drivers side depending on what options you have there will be another temp sensor, this one shaped like a disk it is the temp sensor for your heated washer sprayers (if you have them).

the front grill is available seperatly, just go to dealership and have the parts guy look at car and give you a price, it just snaps in.

the t-stat is easy, I suggest a complete cooling system flush while you are at it. and check the water pump for play and leaking. inspect belts while you are at it.

the airbag lamp can be almost anything from a bad buckle switch to a bad connection at the air bag. or somone was in the door and turned the key on or a seat was removed with key on. that one should go to a dealership for a diagnosis at the very least.

have fun with your car.

also looks like you have a bit of an oil leak on the oil filter housing or something there.

[ZeeZoo]

Fix your problems before you waste money on modifications.

Duly noted. Still, these fixes are minor and only 2 of them affect the car performance wise but don't get me wrong. I'll waste money when I actually have extra money to waste

Lemme know if you need any more help tracking down part numbers for various, aforementioned repairs that need to be made.

Thanks. I can't seem to find the oil drip cover/pan that goes under the engine. This is as far as I got on realoem.com.
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...74&hg=51&fg=70

And the missing piece for my bumper is also a tricky one. I'll inspect my bumper when I get a chance to get an exact understanding of which piece is missing
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...60&hg=51&fg=15

yup from what I can tell is you have a broken wire in the trunk wiring harness, thats an easy fix, pull the rubber out of both sides trunk and body, then gently tug on each wire one by one, the broken one will pull out then you simply find the matching one on the other side and run a new section of wire through the rubber (dont put the repair in the wire loom or it will break again. tuck the repaired sections into the body and trunk lid. reassemble rubber boot (yours looks torn) and check it out.

air bag lamp is on, youll wana get that checked out.

you say the thermostat on the cluster, its the outside temp sensor that is f'ed up not a thermostat. if you look under the right front (pass front of the front bumper) you should see a fender liner there with a temp sensor sticking in the center of it, pointed towards the ground. I can bet you anything its missing and along with it being missing the wiring is probably just dangling under the fender some where. -40 indicates an open circuit I think +250 is a short together of the wires.

on the drivers side you need a new front lower fender liner and engine undercovers, they are not that much from dealership and on drivers side depending on what options you have there will be another temp sensor, this one shaped like a disk it is the temp sensor for your heated washer sprayers (if you have them).

the front grill is available seperatly, just go to dealership and have the parts guy look at car and give you a price, it just snaps in.

the t-stat is easy, I suggest a complete cooling system flush while you are at it. and check the water pump for play and leaking. inspect belts while you are at it.

the airbag lamp can be almost anything from a bad buckle switch to a bad connection at the air bag. or somone was in the door and turned the key on or a seat was removed with key on. that one should go to a dealership for a diagnosis at the very least.

have fun with your car.

also looks like you have a bit of an oil leak on the oil filter housing or something there.

I'll look inside the rubber hose for the cut trunk wire. I'll stop by the dealer when I remember to about the airbag sensor.

You said under the RIGHT front side of the bumper is where the temperature sensor is housed? Posts from the other thread made me believe it is the driver's side that has the temp sensor. It's also the side that is missing the wheel housing but I couldn't find any hanging wires there either.. Again I'll further inspect both sides.

I'll ask the dealer about the belly pan? or the engine drip pan? I couldn't pin point it in realoem.com diagrams. Look above for link.

The leak on the engine oil filter is from a tiny engine oil spill over. My brother didn't tighten the cap enough and some escaped. My bad I didn't clean it. Sometimes the oil filter comes with this rubber ring that goes around the teeth of the cap. Am I supposed to or not supposed to use it? When I use it, oil sometimes spills out and doesn't create a good seal. If I tighten it too much, it bulges out and makes it worse. My mechanic said don't use it but then again I'm afraid it will crush the filter inside if I tighten it all the way.

So far I have compiled up these parts:
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...89&hg=65&fg=70
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...98&hg=41&fg=10
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...05&hg=54&fg=05 Part #'s 16 - 54138246027 and 17 - 54138246025

Thanks for the help btw

[amancuso]

... Am I supposed to or not supposed to use it? When I use it, oil sometimes spills out and doesn't create a good seal. If I tighten it too much, it bulges out and makes it worse. My mechanic said don't use it but then again I'm afraid it will crush the filter inside if I tighten it all the way.

You are supposed to use it. Make sure you remove the old one first. It's probably so old and squashed that you can't identify it as a gasket.

[Martin 03 325i]

This car has taken a beating..good luck putting it back to "normal"

[90turbo1]

YUP TEMP SENSOR IN LOWER RIGHT (PASS SIDE FRONT). I BET THE WIRING IS TUCKED UP BY THE AC DRYER OR SOME WHERE.

JUST TAKE IT ONE PROJECT AT A TIME AND IT WILL BE FUN AND YOU WILL HAVE SOME FEELING OF SELF WORTH THAT YOU COMPLETED A PROJECT. IF YOU TRY TO FIX IT ALL IN ONE SHOT YOU WILL MOST LIKELY GET FRUSTRATED.

WHAT IS LAST 7 OF VIN i CAN LOOK UP THE PARTS HERE ALSO

[ZeeZoo]

WHAT IS LAST 7 OF VIN i CAN LOOK UP THE PARTS HERE ALSO

It's a '99 323i m52 engine model. E46 of course.

[90turbo1]

It's a '99 323i m52 engine model. E46 of course.

I need last 7 of vin number for BMW parts catalog.

[jhyan]

YUP TEMP SENSOR IN LOWER RIGHT (PASS SIDE FRONT). I BET THE WIRING IS TUCKED UP BY THE AC DRYER OR SOME WHERE.

In my '99 323i, the ambient temperature sensor is located in the front DRIVER'S side (left side, looking forward) wheel well. Or it was located there... until it got ripped out.

[betaflame]

Airbag is often passenger occupancy sensor. That's a $20 bypass to fix.

[danewilson77]

Airbag is often passenger occupancy sensor. That's a $20 bypass to fix.

To "rig". That's not really fixing it.

Sent from my Thunderbolt using BF.com

[ZeeZoo]

Airbag is often passenger occupancy sensor. That's a $20 bypass to fix.

But what if it's a different sensor somewhere else? Only the dealer will know for sure I guess. I looked around and found this: [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjPK9FxGnIM[/ame]

I will shop around for that airbag reset tool but I won't buy anything until I get the whole thing understood.

I need last 7 of vin number for BMW parts catalog.

Check PM

[danewilson77]

But what if it's a different sensor somewhere else? Only the dealer will know for sure I guess. I looked around and found this: Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjPK9FxGnIM

I will shop around for that airbag reset tool but I won't buy anything until I get the whole thing understood.

Check PM

You need to read code first. Most likely its the seat belt tensioner, seat belt switch, or passenger occupancy mat (as mentioned)

Sent from my Thunderbolt using BF.com

[ZeeZoo]

http://www.airbagsolutions.com/peake.aspx

OUR LOW PRICE---ONLY $154.95

for a scanner? I read in one of the other sites that Autozone has this scanner and will scan for free. My car has both the SRS 20 pin in the engine bay and the OBD port under the steering wheel. But when I get a check engine light (for my thermostat, it always comes and goes), my mechanic never picks up the airbag sensor...

[danewilson77]

http://www.airbagsolutions.com/peake.aspx

OUR LOW PRICE---ONLY $154.95

for a scanner? I read in one of the other sites that Autozone has this scanner and will scan for free. My car has both the SRS 20 pin in the engine bay and the OBD port under the steering wheel. But when I get a check engine light (for my thermostat, it always comes and goes), my mechanic never picks up the airbag sensor...

Damn. I paid nearly twice that, for mine from BavAuto.

Sent from my Thunderbolt using BF.com

[90turbo1]

in my '99 323i, the ambient temperature sensor is located in the front driver's side (left side, looking forward) wheel well. Or it was located there... Until it got ripped out.

sorry my bad, it looks like starting in 2001 they moved them to the right side of the car and added the disk temp sensor to the left side for heated washer nozzles.

On your car it is supposed to be on the left side of the car, sorry for the confusion.

[ZeeZoo]

I haven't tried to find that cut wire in the trunk yet. It's been brutally cold and I can't feel my arms/fingers after 5 minutes in this weather so I'm waiting for it to warm up.

In the meantime I've done some homework online. The temperature sensor is definitely missing in my car and this guy on eBay is selling 'universal' BMW/mini temp sensors for under $20. He is a top rated seller and it comes with extra wiring,life warranty and stuff in case mine have been ripped out too short, still can't find those loose wires though. Also since I'm missing the wheel housing, I figured I could zip tie the sensor to the body near the wheel... What about it?

Still trying to distinguish between part numbers for the missing bumper piece and the under-the-engine pan.

Quick note, the taillights ON the trunk don't have bulbs/wiring in them, only the taillights on the body light up. Is there a way to get some bulbs wired up in there? I'm not too sure but when I opened them, couple months ago, there weren't any metal contacts for the bulbs. I couldn't find anything on this in this or other forums.

[ZeeZoo]

BUMP

So.. here's what I learned today:

The wires inside the rubber 'hose' aren't cut, I've pulled on all of them separately and none of them came loose. I followed to wires...


Inside the trunk; does anyone know where the wires connect to? I lose the wires and can't tell if they go behind the the fender wall or join with the bigger bundle. And is the yellow/green box a relay for what?


Next up, I took a closer look after lifting my car and searching for any loose wires. I found these guys hidden with the horn wire connector:


You can't really tell from the picture but from a closer look I saw the wire was cut with a scissor or something as it isn't ripped or torn off. This loose wire is 2 wires in 1 too, positive and negative I presume:



Parts I have figured out:
07 Partially open grid, left, 51118209925 $22.02 - http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...60&hg=51&fg=15

20 Flap, towing eye, primed, 51118213685 $10.36 - http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...60&hg=51&fg=15

01 Front aggregate protective plate, 51718218384 $304.02 - http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...83&hg=51&fg=80

08 Covering left,51718193811 $45.57 - http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...78&hg=51&fg=75

01 Temperature sensor, 65816905133 $47.38 - http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...89&hg=65&fg=70

Dealer vs. eBay

Bumper cover grille $33 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/BMW-e46-99-01-OEM-Front-Bumper-Side-Grille-grill-L-left-lh-driver-/270857737631?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories &fits=Make%3ABMW&vxp=mtr&hash=item3f1061159f

Covering wheel housing $40 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Splash-Shield-New-LH-Front-3-Series-Left-Driver-Side-Hand-51718193811-Car-Parts-/140585684680?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories &fits=Make%3ABMW&vxp=mtr&hash=item20bb8f4ec8

Temp. sensor $32 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/BMW-MINI-EXTERNAL-AIR-AMBIENT-TEMPERATURE-TEMP-SENSOR-SOCKET-PLUG-2-WIRES-KIT-/190598380049?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories &fits=Make%3ABMW&vxp=mtr&hash=item2c608c7a11

Front bumper tow cap from junkyard and bumper grille if they have it. Temp sensor off eBay. The rest from the dealer. Can someone confirm the parts are right?

[ZeeZoo]

Update for today:

Fixed the temp sensor, $92 from the dealer :




Checked for tire clearance:


Zip-tied it to the remaining inner wheel fender cover:



Yay


Airbag sensor under the passenger seat:


Everything seemed fine except this one plug:



I also saw this metal 'platform' sticking out. It looks like it should be connected to or holding something:


I don't have access to another E46 to compare everything together so it would be really cool if someone could sneak a look under their passenger seat and see if they have a loose plug too or where it connects to.

Still working on the trunk sensor and i will NOT being buying any parts from the dealer for a long time. Same OEM parts on eBay for 50% of their prices...