Dumb Question Thread - No Flaming Allowed

[bagger]

The pics on the right are from the suspect caliper, right? They look a bit glazed. Could just be the lighting.

Thanks and good eye. It is the lighting (flash went on) but those are the front right ones and they are indeed a bit glazed compared to the rest. Pretty sure that caliper is a sticky one.

But just wondering if I somehow jacked up my brand new pads since they look so chewed up on the ends. Maybe I didn't do a good enough job cleaning up those parts of the caliper with a wire brush or something.

There is a white ring on the inner part of all four rotors where the pads are all making (the most?) contact. The pads on all four corners seems to "touch" there more on the inner ring of the rotors - it doesn't look like the entire pad is "flush" against the rotor when the car is at rest.

[PSUEng]

I'm chasing down a "pulls to the right issue". I had an alignment done last year, it's not the slant of the road, and I just changed my FCABs (not the entire control arm -- yet). I still have the issue, especially under harder braking.

Flame suit on here, but I encountered the same problem on my brake job until I pulled the pins, threw some Toyota lithium soap grease on them and put them back in. I know I know...TIS says "no grease", but the guide pin "servicing" which I believe also includes replacement of the rubber pin bushings is recommended every 4yrs from what I read. So, that was how I fixed it on my totally stock setup with new ATE guide bushings. FWIW, the owner of a local bmw shop in my town also "lubed" them, with what, I don't know, but he didn't put them in dry. Some guys run them dry, no problem. Anyway, maybe give that shot.

[bagger]

Flame suit on here, but I encountered the same problem on my brake job until I pulled the pins, threw some Toyota lithium soap grease on them and put them back in. I know I know...TIS says "no grease", but the guide pin "servicing" which I believe also includes replacement of the rubber pin bushings is recommended every 4yrs from what I read. So, that was how I fixed it on my totally stock setup with new ATE guide bushings. FWIW, the owner of a local bmw shop in my town also "lubed" them, with what, I don't know, but he didn't put them in dry. Some guys run them dry, no problem. Anyway, maybe give that shot.

Thanks. I did put some grease on the pins as well. The rubber looks fine but it's who knows how old those are. Replacement calipers coming tomorrow hopefully. My main concern was mainly "do these pads look normal after 50-100 miles" -- or did I somehow toast them and have to get new ones.

I'll probably just throw them back on with the fresh calipers and see how they look in a couple months before my car goes into hibernation in the Midwest.

[George Hill]

Flame suit on here, but I encountered the same problem on my brake job until I pulled the pins, threw some Toyota lithium soap grease on them and put them back in.

I think the concern here is if the grease reacts with the rubber guide it can swell it and then cause the caliper to stick. I see that all the time with AWD cars when the outer CV boots leak and toss grease onto the calipers.

[jayjaya29]

Oddball question, does anybody's exhaust smell like ammonia? Car runs great, but everytime loading something into trunk while car is idling I get a huge whiff of ammonia smell. Stock tune/header/cats. Active Auto muffler

[IamFODI]

I think the concern here is if the grease reacts with the rubber guide it can swell it and then cause the caliper to stick.

I've heard the same and experienced it on my own car (not the M3). That was with the normal style of dark brake grease, though. I've heard other greases like Sil-glyde can be fine. Not sure about lithium soap grease.

I'm under the impression that the stock rubber caliper pin bushings work the same way as all rubber bushings do: by gripping and flexing, not by allowing sliding. Can't imagine it'd hurt to grease these as long as the grease is right, but it's not part of the design. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

[Darbshaw]

Oddball question, does anybody's exhaust smell like ammonia? Car runs great, but everytime loading something into trunk while car is idling I get a huge whiff of ammonia smell. Stock tune/header/cats. Active Auto muffler

Honestly I thought this was because I have no cats. 100% same smell from my car


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[jayjaya29]

Honestly I thought this was because I have no cats. 100% same smell from my car


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After doing a quick google its more common then I thought. Been in the car game for a long time and have never smelled ammonia before.

[Will]

Oddball question, does anybody's exhaust smell like ammonia? Car runs great, but everytime loading something into trunk while car is idling I get a huge whiff of ammonia smell. Stock tune/header/cats. Active Auto muffler

I get this smell, too. Not sure what, if anything, is wrong. It's been like this for 10+ yrs.
Just like yours, if the car is idling it smells like ammonia around it.

[PSUEng]

I've heard the same and experienced it on my own car (not the M3). That was with the normal style of dark brake grease, though. I've heard other greases like Sil-glyde can be fine. Not sure about lithium soap grease.

I'm under the impression that the stock rubber caliper pin bushings work the same way as all rubber bushings do: by gripping and flexing, not by allowing sliding. Can't imagine it'd hurt to grease these as long as the grease is right, but it's not part of the design. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

Lithium soap grease is OK since yes, you don't want to swell the rubber. And I'm talking about a very thin layer to the pins is what I've done without issue. Inherently, the caliper is "sliding" by design as it is "floating", just ever so slightly so I"m not sure I follow your point about "gripping and flexing, not by allowing sliding".

[IamFODI]

Inherently, the caliper is "sliding" by design as it is "floating", just ever so slightly so I"m not sure I follow your point about "gripping and flexing, not by allowing sliding".

I meant the movement in the caliper is mainly from the bushings flexing, not the pins sliding within the bushings.

Obviously there’s supposed to be a little bit of slide over time as the pads wear, but that’s not the dominant effect as you get on and off the brakes.

Happy to be corrected if I’m wrong about this.

[E46m3zcp]

Where is the checksum in the DME binary file extracted by BMWFlash? What kind of checksum is it? (I could calculate it and find it with my hex editor if I knew)

I'm trying to apply some modifications to the file and wonder how to correct and verify the checksum.

[PSUEng]

Need to do wheel bearings--which brand are we buying?

[Slideways]

Need to do wheel bearings--which brand are we buying?

FAG

[Tbonem3]

Whoa bro he's just asking an innocent question chill out

*I think someone found out the f.a.g. hubs are being made in asia now