'98 E36 Sport

[billyh]

looking @ a black/black '96 ti sport - auto. 71K DARN clean
haven't driven it yet, but started it. Excessive intake noise (didn't seem to be mechanical sound) for the first 30 seconds or so, then just plain motor...which sounded fine. Any idea what that might be? Anything to look for?
Has heated seats...does this mean it has LSD?
I'm new to this series...my wife has a '03 530Ia - awesome car.
$10K seems steep...too much - what's reality?
just joined the page guys...gimme a little help if possible-I'd like to own it and be a daily reader / contributor to this forum

Thanks,

Bill

[m3outtanowhere]

pics? Vin? Seats dont mean anything.


based off your info. 7500

[cooljess76]

Originally Posted by billyh

looking @ a black/black '96 ti sport - auto. 71K DARN clean haven't driven it yet, but started it. Excessive intake noise (didn't seem to be mechanical sound) for the first 30 seconds or so, then just plain motor...which sounded fine. Any idea what that might be? Anything to look for?
Thanks,
Bill

Secondary Air Pump. Underneath the MAF and air intake duct, there's a grey pancake shaped pump with a hose going from the top to the airbox and another hose going to a checkvalve on the passengerside of the engine bay between the radiator fan and the engine. This pump is held together by 6 aluminum rivets which will break causing the pump to leak and make noise for about 30 seconds upon startup. When you first start the car and hear this noise, move your hand around this pump and around the top of the intake. If you feel air blowing, you have a leak. Its an easy fix. You could simply remove the pump and replace the rivets with bolts/nuts. Be sure to disconnect the electrical connector on the bottom first. It pulls out from the back/underside of the pump. There's also a rubber bungee with some type of sensor wires hooked to the front of the pump. This must be removed also, simply pull up and wiggle the rubber bungee until it frees itself from the pump. The pump itself is held on by two nuts foward of the strut tower. The long hose going to that check valve that I mentioned has a unique clamp. Simply squeeze the two ribbed sections together and pull. You will also have to remove the MAF, the rubber flex boot and the ASC valve. You dont have to remove the ASC Valve completely, just pull it out of the rubber boot so that you can move it out of the way slightly when you remove the Secondary Air Pump. The whole thing will take you about 45 minutes. BTW in case you didn't know, the Secondary Air Pump supplies air to the Catalytic Converter for a perscribed interval(about 30 sec) upon start-up since your car runs slightly rich at first due to fuel vapor purging. Between the MAF and the ASC valve, there's a rubber flex boot (ribbed for her pleasure) which is probably dry and has splits in it. If so you should replace it or temporarly repair it with RTV or Epoxy. It only costs 25 bucks at the dealer I'm told, I just repaired mine. Hope this helps, Best of luck and if you have any other questions just ask.

[cooljess76]

BTW Billyh, Welcome to the forum!!!!
Here's a picture and a link to your problem:
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...59&hg=11&fg=50

Keep in mind that this is a $400 part, so you should be able to use this to bring the price down, and then just fix it yourself.

P.S. I know it sounds like a lot of work, but it's not. It will save you a ton of money(more than Geico) and most importantly it will save the Catalytic Converter. It's very easy!!!

[cooljess76]

Where Are you located Bill, I can fix it for you for free if you live in California.

[1996 328ti]

Doubtful it has a LSD. If you have ASC or ASC-T, it probably wasn't even an option.

[billyh]

Cool,
These forums are such the BOMB because of guys like you. THANK YOU. BUT, the car sold 2 hours after I saw it. BUMMER, it was a beauty. So I move on. I found a '98 Sport in Denver - Colorado Auto Finders. 2 owners - both in MidWest. Lowered. Dlr says 'no rust'. He says it's 'mint'. (sound like a dealer?) Maybe you could hit the site and offer a few suggestions that I look for. I'm very likely going to fly to Denver on Friday morning and look...buy? What to look for. Are there traditional rust 'nests' on the E36's? Been warned about headliners. Anything under the hood or underneath the chassis to check out? I'll have them put it on the rack and show me. I've got 1200 miles to drive it back to Portland, Oregon and don't want rude surprises on my long overdue 'roadtrip'. THANK YOU again for you reply on the black beautie, man I hope you see this before Friday. Bill @ 971 506-8961

[billyh]

Vancouver, Wa.

hope you got my other reply

Billyh

[cooljess76]

Hey Bill, I flew to Ann Arbor, Michigan to pick up my '97 ti Sport. I bought it from the Original Owner, Non Smoker, Dealer Maintained, Clean Carfax and had a new motor with only 23k. It has 130k on the clock, so the motor was swapped at 107k. Not too shabby, with a few small cosmetic imperfections. My headliner sags a little in the back, but it don't really bother me. There was a couple small rust spots on mine below the tail lights which needs attention some time in the near future, but nothing major. There was also a little staining on the lower part of the doors from the side molding brackets, where apparently they had rust and dripped down onto the paint causing a discoloration. All in all it's a great little car with big plans ahead. You sound pretty serious about buying a ti which is a good thing. Things you could probably expect to find on a car that's roughly 10 years old: Plastic coolant lines deteriorating and cracking causing serious coolant leaks(there's only two that are notorious, one costs $17 and the other $7, both of which I have posted pictures and part#s for in previous threads), Splits in the rubber intake ducting between the MAF and the throttlebody causing misfire codes($25 at the dealer), Possibly bad catalytic converter? Some get clogged and some rattle obnoxiously at mid to high RPMs(10 year old car, expensive part at the dealer. if you buy a 1998, they extended the warranty to 10yrs unlimited miles), Bent window regulator arms, causing windows to constantly fall off of tracks(The grease used on the plastic sliders turns into glue after 10 years and combined with windows frozen shut = bent regulator arms and crunching sound when your window drops down into the door), Worn hood & hatch shocks(mine won't hold the hatch open in really cold weather, but they work fine when it warms up outside), Key spins freely in the ignition(sometimes the tabs break off inside of the ingnition housing, allowing it to slip when you try to turn your key), Check to see that the heater blows really hot, if not it could be one of two things: 1) The cooling system is low on coolant and has air in it. This means it needs to be burped. Easy to do, open vent next to radiator fill cap using a coin, turn heater on full blast, check to see if coolant level drops if so, add coolant/water until a solid stream of coolant flows out of the vent with no air bubbles. 2) there's a cable that goes from the climate control panel on the dash to the heater core on the passengers footwell on the firewall. Sometimes this cable slips out of it's detent or breaks causing the heater to not open all the way. I think they had a recall for this problem and it should have been fixed by the dealer. When you test drive the vehicle, make sure that the temperature gauge goes to the 12 o'clock position and stays there. If the thermostat is bad it will drop to the cool side at higher speeds. Check the fuses, hoses and belts for cracking, battery for leakage/corrosion, If it's raining there or recently rained, check the interior for dampness/moisture, especially in the cargo area. Look under the car and make sure there's a thin wire going to the brake calipers on the driver's front and passenger's rear. This is a brake pad wear sensor. They cause a light to illuminate on the dash when the pads wear out. They need to be replaced along with the pads if the light comes on. They cost $20 each at the dealer. sometimes people just twist the wires together to get the light to go out. Nothing wrong with that, but you should request that they replace them if they're just tied up somewhere in the wheel well spliced together. When you first start the car, make sure all of the warning lights illuminate and then go out within 10 or 15 seconds, especially the check engine light and the airbag light. Some people have been known to remove or disable certain lights to hide problems from buyers. If you can have them remove a front and rear wheel so you could check the amount of brake life left, you do have a long drive ahead of you. Check all of the fluids, especially the oil and brake fluid! Check the tire wear, make sure they're wearing evenly, if the car is lowered they'll wear more on the inside nothing you can do except fork out $500 for adjustable camber plates and trailing arm bushings or constantly rotate your tires. Listen to the motor for knocks taps and squeaks, when driving the vehicle listen for the same from the suspension, also check allignment on a straight level road, see if you notice any vibrations, make sure it shifts smoothly. Those are the main things I'd check along with all of the interior features(every knob, button and switch) I know it's alot to remember, but these are all the things I'd check. If you could get the VIN number before flying out there, purchase a carfax vehicle history report!!! It's only like $7 and it's worth it. You may want to print this page out and take it with you. The first few things were 318ti specific problems. None are serious and most cost less than your lunch for three days. The 318ti is a perfect economical car for the DIY'er. Almost everything can be repaired and/or replaced in your driveway. We have an excellent "For Sale" section with every part you'll ever need. People are constantly parting out their wrecked BMW's on here and just about everyone in here is willing to provide help and knowledge. I wish you the best of luck on your purchase and I advise you to wait until you find exactly what you want as far as options go. If you want a manual, don't settle for an automatic, If you want a Sport model, don't settle for the base model etc. Check Autotrader, Ebay, Craigs List, Bimmerforums.com, but most importantly CHECK 318ti.org!!!! This is by far the best forum EVER. We're a really tight community and we all share the same passion for driving the coolest bimmer ever made.

[cooljess76]

Almost forgot, the rear shock mounts tend to go on our vehicles if they're driven hard. Fortunately it's another part that is inexspensive and readily available. The front strut towers can also develop distortions as with all cars that have upgraded suspension, but not as common as the rear shock mounts. Also, use a flashlight and check the coolant for traces of oil and the oil for traces of coolant. A rusty dipstick, milky foam under the valve cover seen through the oil fill cap area and/or oil floating in the coolant resevoir are our worst enemy. If any one of these symptoms are present ask them to reduce the price by $2000 and call a tow truck because you're looking at a blown headgasket. Anyway, I know that was an earfull but I just wanted to share knowledge with you and other potential buyers. If anyone else in here can contribute, please do so.