You really should have gotten a new radiator, that one looks battered. Great progress and love the wheels.
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Alright I went through and did the coding today to finish the manual conversion. There is lots of good information out there on doing this. I read a few different threads on it, but ultimately ended up following this one: https://www.e46fanatics.com/threads/...ations.1298214. it is very thorough and specific and also covers a few optional coding changes you can do while you are in there. I don't have much notable to add to the coding. Everything worked fine and after all was done the car scans back as a manual and the SMG related lights are gone. Reverse lights and PDC still work. Only extra I did for now was enable sport button memory. Will revisit others later on.
After that was done I cleared faults and adaptation. The only fault still present after that was for the oil level sensor. I disconnected the sensor and checked power and ground to it looked good. I also checked continuity between the dme and signal wire and all was good. I guess at this point I'll order a new sensor and change it when I do the first oil change during break in.
After that I pulled the fuel pump fuse and disconnected the coils. I then let the motor cranks for a bit in about 10 second increments until the oil pressure light went out. Then plugged things back in and cranked and the engine fired right up. It idled a little rough for a couple seconds and then settled down nice and smooth. I let it idle for just a bit. Gave it a little throttle up to 2000RPM or so for a little. Looked around in the engine bay and bit and all sounded and looked normal. Then shut it back down.
Over many years now I've probably built a dozen or so engines without any issues, but still it is a bit nerve wrecking on the first start up. Feels great that part is over and successful.
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There was rain on and off all day today, so I decided not to take the car out at all and instead moved on to another task. The rear bumper cover had some damage on the lower left side where the previous owners dog had chewed on it. Not sure how that happens, but either way I had been on the look out for a replacement cover. Last week I ended up finding a brand new bumper cover that was just freshly painted carbon black for sale not too far from me. Got it for a great price and picked it up Friday morning. Swapped it out this afternoon and that is another item off the list. I wasn't sure how well paints would match, but so far it looks great. Will see in different lights of you can tell, but so far it's good.
Removing the bumper cover is pretty straightforward. On each side there is a small panel to remove from the wheel well. Then there is a clip on each side that holds the top front edge of the bumper to tight to the body. After removing those remove the black plastic trim in the trunk and undo 3 nuts on each side and then the entire bumper cover and carrier comes off together. Swp thw carrier over and reinstall.
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You mean for the AC? It is mostly the color that doesn't look so good in that picture. Everything was cleaned out and there isn't really any damage.Originally posted by 0-60motorsports View PostComment
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Both the radiator and AC condenser. Im trying to find a good prices KOYO Radiator and someone who ships to Bahrain.Originally posted by attbimmer View PostComment
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Went for a first drive. Overall the car felt great. Just did about 15 miles around town varying engine speeds and loads while still keeping to lower RPMs and part throttle. Enough repeated load though to help the piston rings wear in properly.
It's been so long since I've driven an E46. What an awesome car. Only small issue I have with it that I remember from the past as well is the slightly high seating position. Otherwise it is just full of character and such a great experience. Even the rasp that I didn't love long ago I now enjoy.
I need to get a smog done so I can register it properly for road use and also need to get the AC recharged. Will try to get that done this week.
Then I've got a few interior things I'll likely tackle next while I wait for my F80 calipers to finish. I have have bad sound speakers that are near new I picked up locally and have an android head unit on the way. Also I need to decide on the headliner and pillars that are falling apart. I'll likely go with alcantara for them.Comment
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I also need to find a center console without the armrest. Anyone have a good source for that?Comment
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I took the car for another short drive and less than 500ft from my house I got EML light followed later by a check engine light. Looking at it with scanner there were faults for throttle self test failed. I also noticed the battery voltage was on the low end. 12.4 the first time I checked and then a bit later down to 12.1. I put the charger back on overnight and then checked in the morning and the faults were gone. When I looked at the live values for the TPS and servo voltages they looked the same and had the same min/max values each time I checked. It was only the battery voltage that was different.
The battery is a few years old and on the cheaper end, so I'll just replace it now.Comment
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I also started on some clean up of the paint. It was very dirty and felt super rough. Started with the trunk lid and hood/front fenders. Medium clay bar and then a single pass with a DA using a medium pad and Menzerna fast gloss (now renamed heavy cut). I've had great experience with it in the past. I usually don't have tons of time and what it can do in just a few minutes is impressive. I put a coat of sealer on the sections I finished and will try to get through the rest of the panels later and then do a ceramic coating. The carbon black certainly looks great cleaned up. I preferred jet black, but the carbon black is growing on me.
Before on the trunk lid:
And then after polish:
The original owner had removed the m3 trunk badge and put a black dinan badge there. I probably would have left the dinan badge if it was on the left and didn't replace the m3 badge, but didn't like to look without the m3 badge. Cleaned off the old and got a new badge installed. I may put the dinan badge back on the left side.
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I also had a redone steering wheel arrive yesterday. This wheel was from a manual car, so no paddle shifters and was redone with the proper factory leather. What a difference. A good redone steering wheel and shift knob are so important for me since those are the points you directly touch and see the most in the car. Got a lot more to do, but the car is starting to look really nice.
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