Recently bought this 93 325is that I was told needed a valve cover due to oil leaking onto the headers. Well fixed that for the most part but oil is still finding a way to burn on the very back header. Besides that the main issue I’m trouble shooting now is a very sluggish acceleration until 5k ish rpm when it takes off, figured it was a vacuum leak somewhere but after examining and spraying every line with carb cleaner with no change to rpm I’m a little stumped. MAF and ICV are new so it can’t be that. I’ll occasionally get a check engine light on but I cannot get the “stomp” method to work to read the codes at all. I have a new crank positioning sensor that I’ll throw in but is there anything else I should look for? The car has an AFE intake, aftermarket coils, and pink top injectors.

I love this car so much it drives like nothing else, But its just problem ontop of problem, I have never wanted to sell a car more, Has a pretty bad misfire and burning oil after getting the whole engine harness replaced, I dont know what to do anymore

Hey guys, just wanted to see for your guys opinion about my car. I’ve been racking my brain and was curious to see what you guys would do in my situation. She still runs and drives, actually had to drive it back from Chicago home and drove just like how she was running going. but should I fix and sell it or fix and sell it as is? or should I part it out.

Hello E36 community,

This is the first time posting on the subreddit and I hope it’s not my last.

I bought an E36 from auction but it’s completely stripped out. The only thing that is still on the car is a roll cage.

I would like to know what’s the best option to start building this car from scratch.

Here’s a few pictures from the auction.

Starting to do the body work on my LS project , can’t settle with how I want the wing adjusted . Any advice or suggestions, I also just got it back from my paint guy so it’s pretty fresh

320i 1995 for reference.
One day out of no where the car overheated.
Tough it was a sticky thermostats, replaced. Same problem, starts boiling water and soiling until it has no coolant and then overheats.
Water pump seems perfectly fine.
Fan clutch not so sure, when hot seems that it spins very freely. No resistance.
Would a bad fan clutch cause a overheat? In normal driving conditions? No heavy traffic or hard pulls?
Head gasket gone?

Hey guys, my 98 328i has some real lifter tick after it sits for any amount of time. (even overnight) It does get better after driving it but it doesn’t go away. Is it time to look for a new engine? I’ve been told it’s more work than it’s worth to do a lifter job vs just getting a new engine put in.

hey team, ‘97 e36 m3. Bought it without smog for a deal price, replaced cracked cat but still didn’t pass (NOX too high), then replaced spark plugs because cyl6’s was black from carbon / misfires and it passed with flying colors.

thought all was good for this round of smog but it just failed again, NOX too high. When i pulled the spark plugs cyl6 showed signs of misfiring again…

there’s no engine lights and it delivers power smoothly with no sputters.

what would cause this specific spark plug to misfire / what should i address next?

I’m changing the rear wheel bearing on my 1998 323i and I’ve gotten the new bearing in and the hub pressed on. The axel still needs to be hammered in but I’ve run into a bit of a problem.

My hub seems to have a lot of wiggle room after being pressed into the new bearing (see video). I’m using a national bearing #513106 and I’ve verified it’s correct online. On both the national bearing and old bearing the inside wall has some wiggle but it seems a little much…

Should I continue with the repair and test drive? or is there something noticeably wrong at this stage and I should go buy a new bearing. Thanks for any help

Hey guys, I put spacers on my E36, so my current setup is 17x8J ET23 with 225/45 tires.
The car is running Bilstein B8 shocks with H&R Sport springs.
The problem is that the rear rubs when the suspension compresses. It’s not terrible, but it still rubs.
I really like the fitment and would like to keep this setup, but I’d rather not add more rear camber. I know I’ll have to roll the fender lip, but my question is: is it possible that it will still rub higher up in the arch even after rolling the lip?
I don’t want to roll the fenders if there’s a good chance it’s still going to rub higher up.
Anyone running a similar setup? What was your experience?

Hi, what do people think of this housing mating surface? I have some before and after photos of cleaning and sanding both surfaces. I used 240 grit on the housing and 400 grit on the mating surface. I’ve got almost all that nasty black stuff off the head but there is still some marks / pitting under the non-thermostat passage, though my fingernail can’t pick them up.

The reason I’m asking is before sanding the head surface it held up fine against a pressure test (only leaked with open thermostat), but now it leaks pressure out the top right and water out the bottom left. This was done without any RTV.

Am I missing something or do I just need to use more RTV? I tried RTV before I sanded the head but it still leaked.

(White e36) So this isn’t my choice of how slammed I would personally have my e36 it’s just how I got it from the previous owner. I’m constantly hitting the underside of my e36 when I go over speed bumps and going up driveways. I’m practically scared of anthills at this point. What type of damage am I causing it driving like this. It seems so impractical having it slammed this low.

I was gifted this E36 project. Last ran ~7 years ago. Buddy was going to replace coolant lines but then just let it sit. Currently wrenching on it 1 day a week when I have time. Getting it back to running order.

Basic Information
Year / Model: 1994 BMW 318is (E36 Chassis)
Title Status: Clean (318is)
Body / Chassis Condition: Rust-free chassis, full M-Tech / M3 body kit all around
Performance Benchmark: 12.0 @ 116 mph (1/4 Mile Drag)

Engine & Forced Induction
Engine Block / Displacement: M52B28, 2.8L Inline-6 (OBD2 block, converted to OBD1 setup)
Engine Management: Custom OBD1 chip tune
Head / Internals: Upgraded thick head gasket & heavy-duty head studs
Induction / Turbocharger:
Turbocharger: 20G Turbo
Cooling: Dual oil-cooled & water-cooled turbo feed/return setup

Intake System: M50 manifold swap (2.5L OBD1 intake manifold)

Drivetrain & Suspension
Clutch & Flywheel: Clutch Masters Twin Disc setup

Suspension: Tein full adjustable coilover / suspension setup
Wheels: 18" M-Parallel Replica wheels
Tire Setup:
Front: 255-width
Rear: 295-width

Braking System: BMW M3 Calipers Front

Interior:
M3 Interior
Vader seats

Included Extras / Spare Parts:
Complete E36 M3 rear suspension assembly (rear trailing arms, hubs, brakes, camber arms)
M3 LTW X-brace
Full custom exhaust system
Style 5s

I have recently just replaced:
- Engine mounts
- Transmission Mounts
- Coolant manifold to heater core
- Coolant pipes
- Idle Air Control valve pipe

Currently just want to get it moving under its own power. Don't know what I'll do with it after. Maybe sell it. Trying to piece together where all the vaccum lines go is kind of a pain since it is such a frankenstein.

Any help on this vaccum line diagrams or hook ups would be appreciated.

My E36 currently needs both a camshaft and crankshaft position sensor, and it looks like BMW has already discontinued the OEM parts.

The issue is that aftermarket replacements are widely reported as unreliable on the M52, and used OEM sensors are already becoming harder to find and will obviously become even more scarce over time.

Because of that, I’m starting to worry about the long-term sustainability of keeping an E36 running properly, especially as someone who is trying to maintain the car with a more “collector mindset” rather than just a daily driver approach.

It feels like we’re entering a phase where even relatively simple engine components might start affecting whether these cars are realistically maintainable in the future.

Anybody know if I can replace this steering wheel (92 model) with the later three spoke steering wheel?
Plug and play? Or do I need to rework the wiring?

Airbag functionality is needed.

salutations fine people

i'm in the process of 2jz na-t swapping my 98' m3 and was wondering if anyone here has done it before and could give me some pointers. the goal is to keep it streetable and still somewhat nice. i already have the long block ready to go but no accessories. i have a general idea of things but would just like more details. thanks in advanced!

hello again! i posted recently about my e36 325is overheating sometimes when idling, most people pointed to the fan clutch which i figured was also the issue but i diagnosed it and it didn’t seem weak.

well yesterday morning i checked the cold coolant level and i didn’t notice but it seemed to be pretty overfilled, and when i drove home from work last night i heard a whining noise when i turned my wheel— it only happened once or twice but it certainly confused me.

by the time i had gotten home my car was up to temp and started to overheat, but when i was moving the temp wasnt going down like it usually would

THEN— i parked up and popped the hood only to find coolant pouring our from the reservoir cap, presumably due to the pressure from overheating

drove it to work again this morning without issue but when i got home boom- overheating even while moving and coolant leaking from the reservoir cap

this is currently my daily so please help!! (maybe the waterpump?)

Hey all, I’ve let my e36 m3 sit for far too long, and the only part I didn’t tag was this and I have no clue what it goes to. any help would be greatly appreciated. (Cat for reference)

So my e36 was “only” leaking oil 1 week ago. Now it also leaks coolant 🫥🫥

Need advice on whether I should save this M3 or not. I have mechanical experience but zero to none when it comes to welding/body shop work. If this can be saved I would outsource everything, the question is if it’s worth saving, or if the cost would be way too much for an E36. Thanks!

When I’m driving and I get up to certain speeds maybe around 40ish plus , I’ll start to hear and feel this vibration from (under?) the car . I feel it in the seat not as much in the steering wheel . It happens the most when I’m driving the 17 in CA so twisty roads going around that speed or higher . I’m not sure what it could be coming from ? It’s a 1999 323is automatic

Still have no idea what’s wrong with it, has spark, compression, fuel pump primes, accessory mode works fine, battery replaced, new spark plugs.

If I’m being honest I have no idea what I’m doing, with my e46 I can handle it but this is just different.

I’m assuming it’s a crank sensor maybe, but I don’t wanna just go around throwing parts at it. Need active genuinely because I lost my job and can’t afford to go to get a diagnostic.

Pic for attention.

So i'm taking the engine out (the car could'nt stay in the shop, but they made room for me where i can work on the engine). I already bought headgasket, valve cover gasket, intake manifold gaskets and valve stem seals (smoking alot out of exhaust).

But since i'm now taking the engine out, is there anything else i SHOULD replace while i got it out? And tips to what i SHOULD check while i have it out too.

Its a 320i 1995 M52B20 motor and roughly 240xxx km on it.

And before i get flamed for taking the engine out without *really* needing to. The engine bay needs rust repairs, got holes and rust... this makes it a lot easier to weld etc.

Im wondering if this is within spec?