New addition to the fleet

[Karl Grau]

I had a bit of a milestone today. I performed a task on the e39 that was actually EASIER than on an e28 .

The third brake light bulb went out so I opened the back door to look at how it's mounted and was all, "Seriously?! You're going to make me remove the whole fucking interior to replace a goddamn bulb?".

I stepped away, drank a beer, thought about it and just for the hell of it, looked in the trunk. The e39 trunk design makes 'having a look around' much easier than in the e28 trunk. When I was doing the stereo in the M5, I almost got stuck in the trunk and by all rights, my mummified remains should have been found there several weeks later.




Underneath the black plastic cover is the twist-lock bulb socket. It took one minute to replace the bulb.

[garageboy]

Congratulations. I think you have found the one repair item on an E39 that is easier than an E28.

[wkohler]

The E28 was never designed with the third brake light in mind. In fact Euro models never had them.

[garageboy]

To be fair, it's still not particularly difficult on the E28 anyway. It's just easier on the E39.

[Karl Grau]

I checked the oil today and it doesn't seem to have used any in the last six months which I guess is good for the M54.
The new battery has solved the problem of not starting after sitting for 10 days or longer so I got that goin' for me which is nice.
I also used the cruise control for the first time today.

[wkohler]

How many miles have you put on it in the last six months. My B7 Turbo didn't use any oil sitting either.

[Karl Grau]

How many miles have you put on it in the last six months

1,018 as of today but it's actually closer to seven months.

[davintosh]

About time you updated this thread. I was starting to worry.

BTW, it would take a bit longer than "several weeks" for your remains to become mummified. That said, I for one am glad you made it out alive.

[Karl Grau]

Apparently it never occurred to the PO to maybe, every few years, scrape off some old registration stickers. I peeled of 2002 through 2015 and stuck the 2016 sticker on.




The old door seal is really only bad in one spot but I think it’s the cause of some noise.







The old seal came right out but my install of the new one isn’t going well and there’s been some colorful language used.
I'm going to wait for it to fall in the shade and then get back to it.

[Karl Grau]

So I drove the car at night for the first time a couple of weeks ago and the headlamps were ‘bouncy’. 'waynet' informed me that my adjusters were broken and that this is a CFI on the e39.
I ordered the repair kit from OdometerGears.com but upon closer inspection of the condition of the lenses, I’m thinking about just buying whole new assemblies.
When I was first checking prices I was finding $700-$850 for the right and left headlights shipped, which led me to the repair kit in the first place. Upon further research, I found a set from eEuroparts for $557.98 shipped, so I may just replace them.

[Adam W in MN]

Still enjoy reading this thread, thanks for continuing to update on the progress. Seems like every time I see an E39 around these parts, probably due to winter grit and grime, the headlights are sandblasted to hell.

[Karl Grau]

In spite of being overserved on Thanksgiving, I decided to tackle the first headlight.

It came apart easy enough with a heat gun.






What’s left of the old adjuster pieces next to the replacements.




Humpty Dumpty all back together with upgraded bulbs.

[wkohler]

Those small pieces look more effective.

[waynet1]

In spite of being overserved on Thanksgiving, I decided to tackle the first headlight.


What’s left of the old adjuster pieces next to the replacements.




Humpty Dumpty all back together with upgraded bulbs.

Nice work You're a better man than I.
I'm expecting my complete new Xenon replacement set early next week from these guys, as you know already. I'll be sure and send you the pics when I get them.

[Justin_FL]

Charles, looks like you omitted the lens that goes over the turn signal reflector/bulb?

Since the plastic covers on mine are UV degraded (not just surface yellowing you can polish away), I'm going to order some of the DJ Auto replacement lens covers and tear into mine sooner or later. Those lenses are supposed to fit onto the OE lights. I did my adjusters back in 2007, so with everything else working fine it seems worth a try rather than spending $1200+ for a new pair of OEM xenon assemblies.

[vinceg101]

Nice work, Chas. You've got more stones than I to tackle that job. You might want to install Mr. Fixit's headlamp cover film to preserve those lenses.
When I got my 530 I caved and replaced them with Depo units; wish I hadn't but with Hella's costing what they do, there weren't too many options. The Depo's aren't bad, but the light patterns are a bit more pronounced and the turn signals are pretty weak. I was admonished by Daniel Stern for it but the cost difference was just too extreme; I couldn't justify (nor afford) several thousand dollars for replacement headlights.

You appear to be lucky with yours as your build-date is older than mine. There was a cut off date sometime in 2001 where BMW/Hella switched the Xenon units to "permanently" sealed units where they used an adhesive that turns to concrete when it cures. Removing and/or replacing the lenses is not really an option.

I have been finding some new Hella units on ebay lately (some even with the Euro clear side marker reflectors) for significantly less than through BMW. So there is hope that I might be able to switch back to Hella's sometime in the future.

This reminds me I have to adjust my lamps along with winterizing it sooner than later.

[Karl Grau]

Charles, looks like you omitted the lens that goes over the turn signal reflector/bulb?

Justin, it’s there, it must be my crappy photography skills.

Vince, I can’t remember, did your car originally come with Xenons?

Nice work You're a better man than I.

Nice work, Chas. You've got more stones than I to tackle that job.

Guys, it really wasn’t that bad (now having said that, I’ll probably completely screw up the next one ).

[vinceg101]

Vince, I can’t remember, did your car originally come with Xenons?

Yes it did.
Self adjusting and with the suspension load leveling feature also (which I think is standard for all Xenons and/or with the M Sport Suspension Package(?))

[Adam W in MN]

Great pictures and handiwork.

[Karl Grau]

[waynet1]

Talk about a teaser.....
If you're not going to open the damn boxes, you may as well wrap 'em up and shove 'em.........., under the tree .

[Karl Grau]

Like a circle in a spiral, like a wheel within a wheel
Never ending or beginning on an ever-spinning reel
As the images unwind
Like the boxes that you find in the windmills of your mind

Now THESE guys know how to package!

[vinceg101]

Mmmmm...looking like new headlights to me.
What flavor?

[Karl Grau]

Yes, it’s new lights. I just got direct replacement halogens.




When I was taking them apart to replace the adjusters, the twist lock plastic thingy (circled in pic) broke into pieces when I went to remove it. The drivers side completely disintegrated. The passenger side I was able to glue back together enough that it held until I went over the first bump.
If I can get replacements for those doohickys, I’ll sell the lights or keep them as spares.












When this weather blows over, I’ll mark up a wall and aim them.

[Karl Grau]

I marked up a wall in the back yard per Daniel Stern’s instructions but it’s been freakishly cold so I still haven’t aimed the lights.
Tonight it’s supposed to be above freezing at dark time so I was getting the car into position early and decided the ground is too uneven for aiming purposes.





I moved it over to the side drive and said, fuck it, and got the laser level out …




and transferred dead center of the beam to the aiming surface the way we used to in the Apollo Program.




I have my headband flashlight from Nerd Industries® so I’m ready for sundown