Since I last published this rant, I added a bunch more various items. These chapters weren't intended for publication, and as such are more of a diary and a set of chronological references for my own benefit. There isn't a great deal of deathless, vital technical information, but as long as it served to keep me from forgetting stuff, that was OK. Along in here there were a number of pics taken which went into the build book. At some point I plan to get them uploaded. Don't hold your breath.
Lucifer’s Hammer, Part 13
The continuing upgrade and progress (?) saga on The Iron Whore.
Since I left you worthies in the summer of 2006, the qar has received attention to a number of assorted details. None of these are apparent to casual inspection, but were loose ends that didn’t get done by the spring of 2006 when I published the first pass on That Thing.
Simply to keep things straight, I’ll deal with them in more or less chronological order. The remarks are extracts from the Red Book (the build journal on the project). What follows is a summary of what got done on the various items.
Late April-early May, ‘06
A/C has been out. A/C problem may stem from a non-functioning relay affecting A/C compressor engagement. Relay replaced but the problem is still there.
After a long and very frustrating search., the A/C problem has been traced to pinched wiring behind the center console control panel causing an intermittent ground; probably an installation-related issue when EB replaced the center console w/ the added gauges. Main A/C control relay failure may have been due to the shorting.
The “Ck Engine Oil” warning light has been coming on @ startup. The issue may be with the sender itself being faulty; it is the original one on the car, so may have gotten tired after 18-19 yrs. They are known to get funky; oil intake orifice is very small and can become clogged.
Sender replaced; no sign of “Engine Oil” light coming on since.
Note: the oil level light coming on was the initial push towards reworking the motor, that and the leakdown numbers seen at the Inspection 2. This in October of 2002.
In the 200 miles or so since car has come out of Mile High Performance, I have been noting significant pull to right on braking. My initial thought is this might be due to my workmanship on the caliper rebuild. Temperature analysis on calipers/rotors showed things are OK there. Teardown of RF strut revealed the shock piston was not engaged in the shock body, and had very low resistance to compression. . . probable gas pressurization loss. Lack of engagement possibly traceable to strut teardown and improper reassembly by EB. In any case, both front shocks being replaced w/ new Bilstein HDs p/n P36-0243. These s/b the same as the present ones which were part of the Dinan Stage 4 package. Not too surprised that shocks are tired; they have ~100K miles on them.
New shocks in place; alignment set to previous (22 Aug 05) values.
ABS light on dash coming on when car begins forward motion (NOT at startup w/ car at rest). Possibility that one or both front ABS sensors got damaged with removal of struts. The sensors are known to be somewhat fragile. These are the original units and the plastic may have become brittle after 18-19 years. ABS sensors swapped out. Erratic resistance on LF unit; both units replaced; problem appears to be resolved.
6/09/06
Battery flat. Second time in a week. Voltage checked as 12.78 to11.17. Jumped but very slow to take sufficient charge to turn over. Pulled battery. MultiMeter said 10.78 V, so battery replaced.
W/ new battery, checked circuits for draw. Significant “leak” found; eventually located to connections in instrument cluster.
9/30/06
Tendency to run warm/overheat in traffic.
H2O temps creep up to ~200-220 F. in freeway traffic. With car idling, expansion tank is overflowing, spraying coolant out of port. Oil temp up to ~200-210. Oil press noted as 45-60 psi.. Once home, H2O temp down to ~195 or so. With things shut off and allowed to cool to ambient temp (75 F), coolant level in expansion tank ~ 1-1½ “ below “full” bar. Brought up to mark w/ distilled water.
I need to check the condition of the expansion tank cap. I don’t recall if this was a replacement or if this is the original, so some question as to its pressure release level (1 bar?) and ability to hold pressure due to age. In any case, it needs to be checked for pressure/resistance.
Replacement 1.4 bar (20#) radiator cap for coolant tank installed.
Item to consider: The present radiator is original to the car–or about 20 yrs old. Given its age, there is a very good chance that the plastic end caps are getting brittle and prone to splitting. It’s probably appropriate to look into getting a replacement all-aluminum radiator from Ron Davis Radiators in Phoenix. I ran this idea past both Justin and Dave and they concur.
10/7/06
Noted in previous drives: A/F meter indicating running rich @ idle, low RPM. Also when beginning to increase engine load. Discussed w/ Paul. He thinks we may need to revisit BIN file, lean settings out somewhat.
Not a problem to bring in to MileHigh Perf. and have a look at the datalogs, BIN file settings. Adjustment can be done on the road w/ laptop w/o needing dyno time.
Justin sez ELM has written some new firmware which significantly helps things. Plan will be to update present TEC-3r firmware now in the car this coming spring.
10/12/06
Spoke w/ Bill Williamson at Ron Davis Radiators in Phoenix. 623-877-5000. I outlined the fact motor has been stroked to 4 liters and is turbocharged, as well as the current radiator being ~20 yrs old. They make a replacement drop-in radiator for E28 M5s, so they have drawings and patterns. Their p/n 1-13-M58788. At present, they are running 6-7 weeks delivery due to order levels. Bill thinks cooling capacity should be sufficient in their direct replacement unit. He concurs that replacement is probably appropriate, given its improved efficiency. His thinking is the overheating problem may be more a function of insufficient airflow over the radiator, rather than capacity per se. I outlined what we have in terms of the 7" mini aux. fan and limitations imposed by the IC and stock sheet metal. Idea is to have RDR work on fabrication beginning sometime in February.
11/2/06
Getting ready to put the car away for the winter. I’m NOT going to drive this thing with the roads frozen . . .
Other “Spring” items to consider:
–valve adjustment.
--Have a look at wastegate controlling plumbing regarding the pressure drop after max. boost is reached. Spring followup: Things are OK. Pressure drop is related to the size (capacity) on the T66. Compressor is undersize for flow requirements @ 15 psi. The T66 will move around 84# of air; the math indicates a requirement of ~ 102-106# at redline and full boost. Ideally, the engine needs a GT-45R along with a number of upgrades in size to IC, feed tubing and so on. In other words, not-a-gonna-happen.
--Replace 3" exhaust band clamps on the exit end of the headers. One of these had some damage on the threads.
--Detailed once-over on the entire front suspension. A lot of the parts are original to the car, and after 133,000 miles or so may well be due for refreshment.
--Replacement of the LCAs. Seems EB had used the pickle fork trick when the arms were pulled to get the struts got powdercoated, and the boots were destroyed. To make matters worse, the ball joint nuts were secured with red loctite. Faaaack.
--Evaluation of UCAs and bushings. NOTE: The bushings were replaced before the car went to EB in 2003. With minimal mileage on them they should be fine.
11/7/06
Samouce is going to be @ Ft. Leavenworth KS starting in the July-Aug 07 timeframe. Operating on the assumption of making a jaunt back there to see PB, Duke and possibly Shifty in midsummer, this increases the emphasis on getting the radiator issue worked through and functioning w/o any problems. I do NOT want to try a trip thru KS in midsummer with a radiator that is in any way questionable.
2/20/07
Replacement radiator ordered from Ron Davis Radiators, Phoenix. Delivery in about 3-4 weeks. Replacement unit sized to match the stock M5 item. RDR construction is all-aluminum, w/ welded end tanks, seamless tubing hose fittings, bar-and-plate construction. While physical size is to be identical, the construction should yield increased cooling capacity.
5/06/07
Car taken out for spring exercise. Started readily. Cool weather (53deg. F). Coolant temps staying ~170 deg. F, oil @ ~185-210 with normal driving on secondary roads. No indication of any coolant overflow, so the replacement of the radiator cap may have addressed the purging issue noted last September.
Oil appears quite clean, some darkening due to suspended carbon(?), but the body of the oil is still amber in color. Level on dipstick appears down, tho’ how much is not definite.
Response to rolling onto boost is steady, but not sudden, but exhibits 1-2 sec of lag if I’m below ~3000 rpm before things kick in. Bursts kept to ~5-6 psi and no more than a few seconds in consideration of traffic.
Handling is crisp, precise; but then I’m conditioned by the SUVs over the past six months or so. Initial thought was “why do I need to visit a steering linkage rebuild?,” but will go thru the process anyway when the car goes up to BimmerHaus this coming Friday 5/11 for oil change, radiator swap, etc.
5/17/07
Oil & filter changed. 7.5 qts. Kendall D-3 15W-50. Dirty, but looks normal.
Leakdown: 98%+ across all 6.
Plugs darkish gray; could be lighter, but Dave thinks darkness due to simply moving the car around in the shop, i.e., no chance to get to operating temp. #4 looked a bit sooty. Some tan discoloration on external porcelain insulators, probably due to leakby from cylinder pressures. Not an issue, but will check @ next oil change. Plugs should be good for another 6K or so.
Valves, as measured:
F R F R
1. In: .010, .010 Ex: .012, .011
2. In: .011, .011 Ex: .014, .014
3. In: .011, .013 Ex: .013, .014
4. In: .012, .014 Ex: .013, .014
5. In: .013, .013 Ex: .014, .014
6. In: .011, .012 Ex: .014, .013
Adjusted to In .011, Ex .014
New radiator fitted, looks fine, hoses are good. Noted some seepage (very little) at the bottom of lower right tank on the old radiator; so a good probability that it was on its way out.
Replacement of torn boots on Lower Control Arms. LCA ball joints had been red loctited in by EB.
This meant destroying the LCAs in their removal to replace the grease boots. The PG urethane bushings cannot be swapped into new LCAs, as the bushing outer sleeve was swaged down as part of the installation process. The new Lemforder LCAs have the stock bushing in place. Consensus is that the urethane bushings are (a) good for my ego and eye candy, and (b) might show some improvement in turn-in in very aggressive autocross or DEs. Stock bushings should be just fine. Called Haygood regarding availability of the PG LCA bushings and was told he didn’t carry, due to low demand. So if I really want a set, it is contact Paul Gray in Australia, with indeterminate delivery and the need to pull the LCAs for replacement.
Control arm boot (or what’s left of it)
Sorry about the image size; I've got some work to do with the uploader and source files.
Front brake rotors at minimum thickness, so replaced.
Replaced both windshield washer nozzles. LH side of tee blocked; Tee blown out and cleaned. Original nozzles were heated, replaced w/ non-heated type. This done since (a) car is not driven in the winter, and (b) significant cost difference–$7 ea vs. $35. Heated type can be reinstalled at a future date if required.
6/7/07
Into Mile High. Justin upgraded the TEC-3r firmware to Release 3.5.5. This, plus the changes to BIN file bmw#141 took out some starting enrichment and leaned out the A/F ratio in the midrange of Manifold Air Pressure (MAP). This seems to have smoothed out the starting process and response at lower RPM seems better, at least subjectively. The MHP dyno had a couple of cars in queue so not validated on the rollers. Some over-the-road testing done on C-470. Traffic heavy, so nothing really aggressive was done. Several short datalogs run; files are on the main system at home. Only item of note on the datalogs is the Knock Sensor tracking shows the engine is “noisy,” but I’m not picking up any detonation sounds while running–this was with boost limited to 7.5 psi (indicated 140 Kpa on the datalogs).
7/10/07
Replaced clutch pedal bracket with a reinforced one; gusset welded in @ metal crease where fracture is known to occur. Current (old) unit was in good shape. This was done purely as a preventive maintenance measure.
Clutch pedal is going to the floor when clutch is depressed. Will come back up when lifted by hand or toe under the pedal, but the “fall-down” will not let one change gears or go into neutral. This began several days ago and hasn’t gotten any better. I attached a length of clothesline to the clutch pedal as a “recovery” mechanism, but have no idea if the clutch will, at some point, simply fail.
Inspection turned up a very small seep of brake fluid at the mounting joint where the slave cylinder bolts onto the bellhousing. Pulled slave (this is the one Justin bored out to 1.00 in). Some indications of uneven scuffing on the aluminum piston, implying the piston may be slightly cocked in the bore. Fluid drained out of the slave was quite dark; not burned, but contained ultra fine aluminum particles in suspension.
Worth noting is there isn’t any way the fluid in the slave can return to the reservoir or circulate thru the clutch hydraulic system. Replaced the 1.00 in slave with a stock unit, knowing this would increase pedal effort level somewhat. Suspicion is that brake fluid is leaking past the seal in the slave, allowing
air into the system creating the pedal collapse. Slave bled. Problem hasn’t gone away.
Installed a 10 x 1.5 x 50 mm bolt in the clutch buffer fitting to limit pedal travel on the chance that this would prevent any overtravel of the clutch pedal, and slave cylinder piston–these affecting the movement of the clutch diaphragm fingers.
The problem seems to have lessened, but is still there. Next step will be to replace the clutch master cylinder, as I think that there may be some seepage past the seals in that unit. This possibly as a result of pedal overtravel (?). If this doesn’t address the problem, we may be looking at pulling the trans and having a look at the clutch components. Ugh.
7/13/07
Clutch master cylinder replaced; no evidence of internal damage or leakage. Replacement seems to have solved the problem, but will watch the situation.
Keeping the pedal stop in place to prevent the overtravel condition.
While driving home from BH, fuel pumps stopped working. This at normal cruising speeds & RPM (70 mph, 2600 rpm). Warm day, ~80 deg. F but nothing unusual, e.g., heavy stop & go traffic, severe grades, etc. Coolant temp around 190 deg. F or so. After sitting w/ engine shut off for 5 min or so fuel pumps began making the usual growl. Car restarted OK and finished the trip, roughly 30 miles. Question is, what’s the cause, and why the voluntary restart? My initial suspicion has to do with heat and a circuit breaker opening. The pump shutdown has occurred once before, in August 2005 when I had taken the car up I-70 and the east side of Loveland. After stop @ summit of Loveland, the car would not start the pumps. Pumps came on when I came back down Loveland via gravity w/ ignition on. In retrospect, this was probably after something had had time to cool. Since then, in roughly 3000 miles there have been no pump function issues.
(Later, at home.) When ignition is turned to Position 1, pumps come on with the usual noise but the sound is much quieter, more of a soft buzz rather than the usual loud growl. Starting is normal. I suspect we may have had a failure in one of the pumps or something has gone amiss in a pump controller or the power circuitry.
Worth noting is fuel pressure per the gauge at the regulator was 42 psi at idle.
7/18/07
Discussed problem w/ Justin (who took it to the tech people @ Aeromotive). The problem is seen as a case of vapor locking in the pumps. There is no temperature-sensitive breaker built into the pump controllers, and the existing circuit breaker installed by Justin is load-sensitive only.
Analysis follows.
Pumps are located where they do not receive any cooling from moving air.
Pumps absorb heat from being in proximity to (a) exhausts and (b) differential.
This heat, plus the heat of operation of the pumps gets transferred to the fuel.
Under relatively low fuel demand conditions, e.g., low rpm cruising in traffic (hot ambient air) the fuel in the lines and rails picks up heat. This heat remains in the fuel that is returned to the fuel tank.
The now heated fuel is picked up and goes thru the pumps (which adds further heat).
This problem is compounded if the fuel level is relatively low–the remaining volume in the tank is an insufficient heat sink to deal with the BTUs now in the returned fuel volume.
Aeromotive’s people think the craptane fuel we have with a low vaporization point exacerbates the situation.
At a certain point the fuel vaporizes in the lines or in the pump and the pump shuts down until the fuel condenses back into a liquid.
Justin thinks the loss of noise is due to the fact that the pump isn’t moving any liquid–the pump may still be operating, but no liquid = no sound transmitted.
Solutions.
Replace the circuit breaker out of an excess of caution. Cheap and easy to get to.
Done; circuit breakers in parallel; 1 for each pump, 30 amps ea..
Rework the code in the TEC-3r software to activate the secondary rail pump to function when MAP is above a given value, e.g. 45kPa, this at a level just below where the secondary rail would see demand.
Running thru GPO#4 on the TEC. This means running a separate wire from the TEC to the #2 pump and reworking the BIN file bmw#141. Done
Done. Printed out bmw#142 BIN file to see specs.
I would think we still want to set this up to allow the #2 pump to be able to function in the case of a failure on pump #1–giving us a limp-home mode.
In the interests of readability, I decided to give everyone a break here. LH, Part 14 continues the following week . . .
Good stuff Ken. IMHO this clearly shows an example of why my HS english teacher pushed us so hard in keeping a journal of sorts. In troubleshooting issues later down the road, I'm sure this helps immensely in being able to backtrack through the timeline of previous events. This of course would be in addition to serving as paper brain cells to help recall everything you've done. Keeping tuned for the next episode of As the Hammer turns! 