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Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
You don't have a six speed tranny in that car, do you?
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Some more Maytag love. Knocked off a few more nits that have been annoying me...
First, sent compressor off to Jay Stratton...
Next, fixed the fact the interior lights would not come on when door was opened. The fix was to swap out the "interior door timer relay" found near the accessory connector in the driver's footwell.
I'll measure parasitic drain later, but the fact that this puppy was warm means it was contributing.
I broke open the bad one and it's pretty clear where it failed (bad on top, see trace break on top right):
I have 4 spares, but figured it couldn't hurt see if I could fix the bad one. Plus soldiering is fun.
The remote lock unit I put in Maytag ages ago failed right after I installed it. I had goofed with wiring it as well. Given these things are $19, I decided to just do it over. I bought this one this time:
FICBOX Universal Car Door Lock Vehicle Keyless Entry System Auto Remote Central Kit with Control Box
The instructions suck. Use "Feature C" which is mis-lableled (it says it is positive trigger, but it is actually negative trigger which our cars need). Red goes to 12V. Black, yellow, and yellow/black go to ground. White/black goes to GR/BK (lock), and white goes to Y/BK (open).
I should not have ordered this unit as it has trunk unlock. Instead, i should have gotten the same unit I got for Minerva which does not have the unneeded trunk unlock and is a whopping $4 less expensive.
12V Universal Car Remote Central Kit,KKmoon Door Lock Locking Vehicle Keyless Entry System, with 2 Remote Control
The good news is I can now tell the keys apart.
Man, cars have grown...
First, sent compressor off to Jay Stratton...
Next, fixed the fact the interior lights would not come on when door was opened. The fix was to swap out the "interior door timer relay" found near the accessory connector in the driver's footwell.
I'll measure parasitic drain later, but the fact that this puppy was warm means it was contributing.
I broke open the bad one and it's pretty clear where it failed (bad on top, see trace break on top right):
I have 4 spares, but figured it couldn't hurt see if I could fix the bad one. Plus soldiering is fun.
The remote lock unit I put in Maytag ages ago failed right after I installed it. I had goofed with wiring it as well. Given these things are $19, I decided to just do it over. I bought this one this time:
FICBOX Universal Car Door Lock Vehicle Keyless Entry System Auto Remote Central Kit with Control Box
The instructions suck. Use "Feature C" which is mis-lableled (it says it is positive trigger, but it is actually negative trigger which our cars need). Red goes to 12V. Black, yellow, and yellow/black go to ground. White/black goes to GR/BK (lock), and white goes to Y/BK (open).
I should not have ordered this unit as it has trunk unlock. Instead, i should have gotten the same unit I got for Minerva which does not have the unneeded trunk unlock and is a whopping $4 less expensive.
12V Universal Car Remote Central Kit,KKmoon Door Lock Locking Vehicle Keyless Entry System, with 2 Remote Control
The good news is I can now tell the keys apart.
Man, cars have grown...
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
6 speed nob... I feel like a nob not getting that one...
Another valuable write up, thank you Charlie!
Another valuable write up, thank you Charlie!
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
I looked at that a bunch, but wasn't sure it didn't have a 6 speed, so didn't guess that. Drat!
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
I now have everything to do it. Someday...
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Drool...
Where did you source those if you don’t mind me asking?
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Any performance advantages to the euro headlights, or is mostly just the aesthetic of the swap that takes folks down that path?
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
They are well known to add at least 5hp.Zengineer wrote: Sep 06, 2020 11:46 PM Any performance advantages to the euro headlights, or is mostly just the aesthetic of the swap that takes folks down that path?
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Definitely more like a 10hp bump. 
There is a lot of write-up on how the H4/H1 lights are way better than the pathetic US sealed beams.
Start with Daniel Stern (http://www.danielsternlighting.com/) and work out from there. I did his 12ga & relay upgrade to my stock EU lighting and with 100w H4 bulbs it's a pretty impressive upgrade. I will say that converting from US lighting to EU lighting is a bit of work on the wiring side especially if you want to get all the features and lighting configurations the EU switching gives you.
There is a lot of write-up on how the H4/H1 lights are way better than the pathetic US sealed beams.
Start with Daniel Stern (http://www.danielsternlighting.com/) and work out from there. I did his 12ga & relay upgrade to my stock EU lighting and with 100w H4 bulbs it's a pretty impressive upgrade. I will say that converting from US lighting to EU lighting is a bit of work on the wiring side especially if you want to get all the features and lighting configurations the EU switching gives you.
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
I installed that very same Ficbox unit for my keyless remote system. And yes, the first one went out right away; but the control units are interchangeable as the wiring harnesses are all the same so replacing it was pretty painless. I added a longer antenna wire to mine and wrapped it all around the tail panel. I also fitted the brake lights and City lights to flash when activated (there already was a wire running to the front from the previous Viper alarm installation).
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Pfft, I've got a K&N sticker that adds 50hp, easy.
Last edited by Zengineer on Sep 09, 2020 5:48 PM, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Great link, thanks for that. I've been down this road in part before on old cars - adding low/high beam relays rather than direct wiring through the switch. Big increase from that alone. His page is a good resource, and agree that the Euro laws regarding lighting seem a lot more functional and comprehensive. Lots of work for sure!vinceg101 wrote: Sep 07, 2020 11:43 AM There is a lot of write-up on how the H4/H1 lights are way better than the pathetic US sealed beams.
Start with Daniel Stern (http://www.danielsternlighting.com/) and work out from there. I did his 12ga & relay upgrade to my stock EU lighting and with 100w H4 bulbs it's a pretty impressive upgrade. I will say that converting from US lighting to EU lighting is a bit of work on the wiring side especially if you want to get all the features and lighting configurations the EU switching gives you.
Looking forward to seeing the upgrade documented in Cek's usual way, with lots of high quality photos and zero dirt anywhere.
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Ramping up to rip out the Spax springs and put these puppies in.
Here's where she sits now with the Spax and Billy sports (). I'm going to add another perch on the rears to raise the rear up even more than the H&Rs will because rake.
Front Left: 560mm
Front Right: 567mm
Rear Left: 523mm
Rear Right: 533mm
Last time I measured (Jan 2015 with the BC Racing Coil Overs) she was:
Front Left: 568mm
Front Right: 565mm
Rear Left : 545mm
Rear Right: 538mm
I hate how low the rear looks now. I'm shooting for
Front: 570mm
Rear: 550mm
Here's where she sits now with the Spax and Billy sports (). I'm going to add another perch on the rears to raise the rear up even more than the H&Rs will because rake.
Front Left: 560mm
Front Right: 567mm
Rear Left: 523mm
Rear Right: 533mm
Last time I measured (Jan 2015 with the BC Racing Coil Overs) she was:
Front Left: 568mm
Front Right: 565mm
Rear Left : 545mm
Rear Right: 538mm
I hate how low the rear looks now. I'm shooting for
Front: 570mm
Rear: 550mm
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Was following along with your trials and tribulations of the suspension on Maytag. I never did come across why the coilovers were yanked out in this case, seems that they would be the best overall option for you to control your ride height and spring rate and really dial it in?
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Because the BC Racing coilovers sucked and I hated the way the car drove with them.Zengineer wrote: Sep 08, 2020 2:59 PM Was following along with your trials and tribulations of the suspension on Maytag. I never did come across why the coilovers were yanked out in this case, seems that they would be the best overall option for you to control your ride height and spring rate and really dial it in?
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Lots going on with Maytag. Many things fixed...
The reverse light has been flakey since I did the 5-speed swap. In fact, right after the swap I bought a brand new switch. Then it stopped working again and I've ignored it. I dug in again last weekend and after much sleuthing, including determining the ONLY thing that could be wrong is the transmission, I figured out the culprit: When I put the backup switch in I used a copper washer (thinking you always put washers on plugs in transmissions, duh).
It turns out no washer is required (RealOEM proves this out) and, in fact, a washer moves the engagement point of the switch just enough that the switch won't engage.
But the real job of the past weeks has been fixing the AC and the weird noises that I had in the center console. To wit:
- AC failed on way back from 5erWest last year. Assumed it was the compressor. Verified R12 was still in system.
- Heater fan was noisy. I obviously picked a poor specimen when I put the interior together last year.
- You'll recall all the hoopla here about the heater fan resistor pack. The symptom way back then was the fan would race to a high speed even if off or on #1. The brand new resistor pack I put in last year did not fix this.
- Some weird buzzing from center console after car was shut off.
- A horrible whistle from the heater box area at speed.
- I didn't actually get the bulbs behind the HVAC controls in right, so only half the controls lit up and I had a nice backlit effect behind the grills.
I pulled the heater fan (PITA on cars with the fuel coolers!) and while it was quiet on the bench, I found another in my collection (maybe from the car I just parted?) that not only looks better but was silky smooth. I cleaned the cages nicely before putting back in.
I swapped in a different HVAC control unit and this has fixed the racing fan issue. So it wasn't the resistor pack afterall.
While the fan was out and the center console completely disassembled I began hunting down the whistle. While driving around at speed (I needed to be 60+ mph) I could reach in the heater vent and push on things (like the vent that opens with the middle slider) and get the pitch of the whistle to change.
Originally I thought it was those vanes, so I pulled out the heater box and redid them again. Of course I spilled coolant everywhere doing this.
Before:
After:
I was convinced this was it. Convinced. So I put everything back together enough to test drive again. Nope. NO change.
I was still pretty convinced it was the heater box but decided I needed to rule anything else out (like something in the cowl). So I did this:
I also taped around where the coolant hoses enter the car. No change with either of these attempts.
It must be the heater box! So, I get to spill coolant everywhere again. But this time I was smart and put rags down under the car. Except I didn't put them in the right place and coolant still went everywhere. Sigh.
This time I went after the vanes controlled by the top and bottom sliders. I redid them and again was confident I'd solved the problem.
But this time I was REALLY smart and used this old fren that I had lying around from the last time I was fighting with heater control valves.
I'm glad I did that because test drives proved I hadn't fixed shit.
Stymied I gave up. And had a beer. Or something. Anyhow, some time later I got the idea to open up another heater box I had to see if I could see anything different. This is the one I pulled from Minerva's parts car. Isn't THAT special?
Poking around, comparing things I did notice something: All the old heater cores in my collection have some amount of insulation completely around the end with the pipes. The new one I put in last year only got insulation on half (no pic):
The source of the whistle then became obvious. That insulation is needed! If you replace your heater core with a new one, PUT new insulation around that end!
After putting things back together (again), test drives proved I had finally fixed the whistle (well, THAT whistle; my sunroof seals need replacing too).
Got the compressor back from Jay Stratton. He sure makes them look nice.
I got the blower fan/evaporator setup well enough, and hooked up the 'like new' compressor (after filling it with oil per spec). My R12 guy came out and tested to ensure no leaks and then gave me a dose of R12. We started it up and it blew cold and seemed to be working great.
Then a test drive... Nice and cool. Quiet fan! However, I noticed every time the compressor would engage it sounded like a 1940s ford tractor up there. I stopped and took a little video. After about 10 seconds you'll see the clutch engage and you'll hear what I mean:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yCwpIFElKA
Jay now has the compressor back at his shop (he's covering shipping) and seeing what went wrong. I had to have my R12 guy come out and evacuate the system again which is a bummer.
I set about putting the console back together. I won't recount all the details, but trust me when I tell you that it all does get easier after you've done it about 15 times (5 or 6 of those times was this time because of all the 'oh shit, I forgot THAT' or 'frak, that damn bulb fell out again').
This is a re-enactment. I'm sharing it so you can learn. When you do this, stuff something in that vent that goes down to the floor boards. Or have a long magnet thingy available and pray you have good dexterity.
I took this before testing everything. Then I discovered neither the top or bottom sliders would work properly.
Turns out I had messed up the little turny things on the cable ends that adjust travel when I was futzing with the box. So apart it came again.
Then I got it all back together only to notice the insulation sitting on the garage floor by the rear wheel. Apart it came agian.
This is where I gave up on Friday night and said fuck it I'm taking the Porsche for a nice Italian dinner by my lonesome (Julie was out of town).
On Saturday I got it all back together. No leftover screws either. Getting the glove box back on was much harder than I remember, but shockingly the driver's kick panel went on with no fuss. Yay.
(Yes, I took the care to put it ALL back as it should be. Shame on YOU for leaving that flappy thing off, or not installing the plastic piece that goes over the AC lines).
(Yes, I know the carpet piece for the heater duct is missing. Heck if I know where it went; it was there when I pulled it all apart).
(Yes, I know the piece of anthracite trim that goes between the instrument cluster and steering column is missing. I've been ISO *two* of them forever since this one is missing and Minerva's is beige. If you have, I want!).
I also tried fixing the fact that my active check system regularly insists I have brake light issue. After reflowing the soldier on the best looking module I have, i thought I had victory.
Alas, after a test drive...
I dunno what to do next on this other than bridge the reeds as the PO of Vlad had done. Any other suggestions?
Some pr0n:
Next up is getting those Spax off and H&Rs on. I'll keep you posted on the AC compressor drama too...
The reverse light has been flakey since I did the 5-speed swap. In fact, right after the swap I bought a brand new switch. Then it stopped working again and I've ignored it. I dug in again last weekend and after much sleuthing, including determining the ONLY thing that could be wrong is the transmission, I figured out the culprit: When I put the backup switch in I used a copper washer (thinking you always put washers on plugs in transmissions, duh).
It turns out no washer is required (RealOEM proves this out) and, in fact, a washer moves the engagement point of the switch just enough that the switch won't engage.
But the real job of the past weeks has been fixing the AC and the weird noises that I had in the center console. To wit:
- AC failed on way back from 5erWest last year. Assumed it was the compressor. Verified R12 was still in system.
- Heater fan was noisy. I obviously picked a poor specimen when I put the interior together last year.
- You'll recall all the hoopla here about the heater fan resistor pack. The symptom way back then was the fan would race to a high speed even if off or on #1. The brand new resistor pack I put in last year did not fix this.
- Some weird buzzing from center console after car was shut off.
- A horrible whistle from the heater box area at speed.
- I didn't actually get the bulbs behind the HVAC controls in right, so only half the controls lit up and I had a nice backlit effect behind the grills.
I pulled the heater fan (PITA on cars with the fuel coolers!) and while it was quiet on the bench, I found another in my collection (maybe from the car I just parted?) that not only looks better but was silky smooth. I cleaned the cages nicely before putting back in.
I swapped in a different HVAC control unit and this has fixed the racing fan issue. So it wasn't the resistor pack afterall.
While the fan was out and the center console completely disassembled I began hunting down the whistle. While driving around at speed (I needed to be 60+ mph) I could reach in the heater vent and push on things (like the vent that opens with the middle slider) and get the pitch of the whistle to change.
Originally I thought it was those vanes, so I pulled out the heater box and redid them again. Of course I spilled coolant everywhere doing this.
Before:
After:
I was convinced this was it. Convinced. So I put everything back together enough to test drive again. Nope. NO change.
I was still pretty convinced it was the heater box but decided I needed to rule anything else out (like something in the cowl). So I did this:
I also taped around where the coolant hoses enter the car. No change with either of these attempts.
It must be the heater box! So, I get to spill coolant everywhere again. But this time I was smart and put rags down under the car. Except I didn't put them in the right place and coolant still went everywhere. Sigh.
This time I went after the vanes controlled by the top and bottom sliders. I redid them and again was confident I'd solved the problem.
But this time I was REALLY smart and used this old fren that I had lying around from the last time I was fighting with heater control valves.
I'm glad I did that because test drives proved I hadn't fixed shit.
Stymied I gave up. And had a beer. Or something. Anyhow, some time later I got the idea to open up another heater box I had to see if I could see anything different. This is the one I pulled from Minerva's parts car. Isn't THAT special?
Poking around, comparing things I did notice something: All the old heater cores in my collection have some amount of insulation completely around the end with the pipes. The new one I put in last year only got insulation on half (no pic):
The source of the whistle then became obvious. That insulation is needed! If you replace your heater core with a new one, PUT new insulation around that end!
After putting things back together (again), test drives proved I had finally fixed the whistle (well, THAT whistle; my sunroof seals need replacing too).
Got the compressor back from Jay Stratton. He sure makes them look nice.
I got the blower fan/evaporator setup well enough, and hooked up the 'like new' compressor (after filling it with oil per spec). My R12 guy came out and tested to ensure no leaks and then gave me a dose of R12. We started it up and it blew cold and seemed to be working great.
Then a test drive... Nice and cool. Quiet fan! However, I noticed every time the compressor would engage it sounded like a 1940s ford tractor up there. I stopped and took a little video. After about 10 seconds you'll see the clutch engage and you'll hear what I mean:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yCwpIFElKA
Jay now has the compressor back at his shop (he's covering shipping) and seeing what went wrong. I had to have my R12 guy come out and evacuate the system again which is a bummer.
I set about putting the console back together. I won't recount all the details, but trust me when I tell you that it all does get easier after you've done it about 15 times (5 or 6 of those times was this time because of all the 'oh shit, I forgot THAT' or 'frak, that damn bulb fell out again').
This is a re-enactment. I'm sharing it so you can learn. When you do this, stuff something in that vent that goes down to the floor boards. Or have a long magnet thingy available and pray you have good dexterity.
I took this before testing everything. Then I discovered neither the top or bottom sliders would work properly.
Turns out I had messed up the little turny things on the cable ends that adjust travel when I was futzing with the box. So apart it came again.
Then I got it all back together only to notice the insulation sitting on the garage floor by the rear wheel. Apart it came agian.
This is where I gave up on Friday night and said fuck it I'm taking the Porsche for a nice Italian dinner by my lonesome (Julie was out of town).
On Saturday I got it all back together. No leftover screws either. Getting the glove box back on was much harder than I remember, but shockingly the driver's kick panel went on with no fuss. Yay.
(Yes, I took the care to put it ALL back as it should be. Shame on YOU for leaving that flappy thing off, or not installing the plastic piece that goes over the AC lines).
(Yes, I know the carpet piece for the heater duct is missing. Heck if I know where it went; it was there when I pulled it all apart).
(Yes, I know the piece of anthracite trim that goes between the instrument cluster and steering column is missing. I've been ISO *two* of them forever since this one is missing and Minerva's is beige. If you have, I want!).
I also tried fixing the fact that my active check system regularly insists I have brake light issue. After reflowing the soldier on the best looking module I have, i thought I had victory.
Alas, after a test drive...
I dunno what to do next on this other than bridge the reeds as the PO of Vlad had done. Any other suggestions?
Some pr0n:
Next up is getting those Spax off and H&Rs on. I'll keep you posted on the AC compressor drama too...
Last edited by tig on Sep 21, 2020 11:38 AM, edited 1 time in total.
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muleskinner
- Posts: 1339
- Joined: Sep 08, 2007 11:17 AM
- Location: John Graham ATL
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Amazeballs.Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Man....great car....what a keeper.
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Thank you so much for continuing with detailed updates. Your posts are great source of inspiration for many of us.
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Finishing up my eta 5 sp swap this week, along with rear subframe bushings, fuel and p/s hoses, M5 box and probably some other stuff. I referenced your thread some more and even saved a pic from a Vlad to see where the clutch hose bracket goes. I welded on the shifter and hose brackets tonight and should have it on the road this weekend.
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
Wow, knowing that I helped *you* somehow makes me feel good.dsmith wrote: Sep 24, 2020 11:21 PM Finishing up my eta 5 sp swap this week, along with rear subframe bushings, fuel and p/s hoses, M5 box and probably some other stuff. I referenced your thread some more and even saved a pic from a Vlad to see where the clutch hose bracket goes. I welded on the shifter and hose brackets tonight and should have it on the road this weekend.
Re: Maytag: The Alpine '87 529i
It would have taken me a while to find the clutch switch connector. And the thought to put a weld blanket under the carpet was a great tip too.
One thing that I haven’t seen anywhere is that the two side brackets from the early pedal cluster that attach to the steering column are shorter than the later ones. I had to pull everything back out and swap those from the auto pedal bracket.
One thing that I haven’t seen anywhere is that the two side brackets from the early pedal cluster that attach to the steering column are shorter than the later ones. I had to pull everything back out and swap those from the auto pedal bracket.