my cousin just bought this car, 2.5 straight 6, unsure of the mileage, he wants me to change the oil and also the thermostat tomorrow. I have never put a wrench to a German car in my life. I'm assuming it has a few plastic panels that need to come off to access the drain plug? My cousin insists on using Royal Purple HPS 10W40, when I told him many times he could buy Castrol 0W40 or M1 0W40 at Wal Mart for much cheaper. I bought a Hengst oil filter at Napa for 8 bucks, OEM and much cheaper than a Napa Gold, it also appears to come with a drain plug washer. The thermostat looks difficult to change, correct me if I'm wrong but does the thermostat/housing come in one piece? From what I read the oil filter cap torque is 18 ft lbs, the drain plug is 18 or 19 ft lbs, and could anyone give me the specs for the thermostat housing bolts? He asked me to service the transmission but I told him to bring it to a Euro shop about an hour away. Thanks for any helpful tips, I figured Trav may be able to chime in with some knowledge also.
1999 BMW 323i
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Yup, t stat is the housing, easy enough, just be nice to the plastic pos EVERYTHING. I ended up changing some hoses and the radiator because I was too rough with the plastic pieces. 18 ft lb sounds right, it's plastic.
As far as oil goes, point out the LL01, and explain what it takes to get that certification. HPS only requires purple dye
As far as oil goes, point out the LL01, and explain what it takes to get that certification. HPS only requires purple dye
Originally Posted by mobilaltima
my cousin just bought this car, 2.5 straight 6, unsure of the mileage, he wants me to change the oil and also the thermostat tomorrow. I have never put a wrench to a German car in my life. I'm assuming it has a few plastic panels that need to come off to access the drain plug?
99% chance it is gone on 19 year old car.
Originally Posted by mobilaltima
The thermostat looks difficult to change, correct me if I'm wrong but does the thermostat/housing come in one piece? From what I read the oil filter cap torque is 18 ft lbs, the drain plug is 18 or 19 ft lbs, and could anyone give me the specs for the thermostat housing bolts? He asked me to service the transmission but I told him to bring it to a Euro shop about an hour away. Thanks for any helpful tips, I figured Trav may be able to chime in with some knowledge also.
YouTube! I put Maxlife in my Jetta and I would think the BMW can probably take the same. Just make sure the fluids are the same temp and measure them. Don't take a 20 year old car to the shop for basic maintenance because of it's Teutonic origins.
You can do it!
my cousin just bought this car, 2.5 straight 6, unsure of the mileage, he wants me to change the oil and also the thermostat tomorrow. I have never put a wrench to a German car in my life. I'm assuming it has a few plastic panels that need to come off to access the drain plug?
99% chance it is gone on 19 year old car.
Originally Posted by mobilaltima
The thermostat looks difficult to change, correct me if I'm wrong but does the thermostat/housing come in one piece? From what I read the oil filter cap torque is 18 ft lbs, the drain plug is 18 or 19 ft lbs, and could anyone give me the specs for the thermostat housing bolts? He asked me to service the transmission but I told him to bring it to a Euro shop about an hour away. Thanks for any helpful tips, I figured Trav may be able to chime in with some knowledge also.
YouTube! I put Maxlife in my Jetta and I would think the BMW can probably take the same. Just make sure the fluids are the same temp and measure them. Don't take a 20 year old car to the shop for basic maintenance because of it's Teutonic origins.
You can do it!
Getting the fan off can be a PITA, its left hand thread and tend to get stuck, removing the hoses isn't a problem, after releasing the clips spray some WD-40 around it, let sit a few min and twist lightly back and forth while wiggling them.
I use a long 32mm wrench and give it a good sharp rap clockwise with a dead blow, remove and install the fan and shroud together, be careful not to hit the radiator fins with the fan.
The 10mm head thermostat bolts are 10Nm and the 13mm head 15Nm, just snug and a hair will do it with no problem. Make sure all the metal bushings are in the holes and didn't fall out of the new plastic housing, these are there to prevent cracking.
Clean the aluminum well with a razor blade being careful not to dig in just scrape it, I strongly recommend using a thin coat of Hylomar M on the engine, the new housing will come with the seal already mounted do not use any on it.
Use an OE or Wahler T stat and smear a thin coat of Hylomar in the hose connections, its insures a good seal and makes them easier to get back on. This should be the housing check it against the OE part#
https://www.amazon.com/Coolant-Thermostat-Housing-Wahler-4326-97D-x/dp/B00BSFC6YE
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Hylomar-M-61324-Non-Setting-Gasketing-and-Jointing-Compound-80-Gr-2-7-Oz-Tube/182550715886?epid=21017022178&hash=item2a80deddee:g:ODYAAOSwrhBZA6g3:rk:3
f:0
Use Mobil 1 0w40 or Castrol 0w40, both work well in these engines, no need to go boutique.
I use a long 32mm wrench and give it a good sharp rap clockwise with a dead blow, remove and install the fan and shroud together, be careful not to hit the radiator fins with the fan.
The 10mm head thermostat bolts are 10Nm and the 13mm head 15Nm, just snug and a hair will do it with no problem. Make sure all the metal bushings are in the holes and didn't fall out of the new plastic housing, these are there to prevent cracking.
Clean the aluminum well with a razor blade being careful not to dig in just scrape it, I strongly recommend using a thin coat of Hylomar M on the engine, the new housing will come with the seal already mounted do not use any on it.
Use an OE or Wahler T stat and smear a thin coat of Hylomar in the hose connections, its insures a good seal and makes them easier to get back on. This should be the housing check it against the OE part#
https://www.amazon.com/Coolant-Thermostat-Housing-Wahler-4326-97D-x/dp/B00BSFC6YE
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Hylomar-M-61324-Non-Setting-Gasketing-and-Jointing-Compound-80-Gr-2-7-Oz-Tube/182550715886?epid=21017022178&hash=item2a80deddee:g:ODYAAOSwrhBZA6g3:rk:3
f:0Use Mobil 1 0w40 or Castrol 0w40, both work well in these engines, no need to go boutique.
If you are going to change the thermostat, you might as well change the water pump too and maybe a host of other cooling system parts. That car is an early model E46 and it's Achilles heal is it's plastic cooling system. Also because the rest of the engine is mostly aluminum, if the cooling system has an issue it might ruin it completely. Good luck.
Run before you marry that POS
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I own this exact car and it's really very simple to work on. I've had mine since new and never had any real problems with it. I have changed the radiator and coolant tank once and I changed the electric thermostat many years ago. There was a recall on the thermostat but I just changed mine myself to save me the hassle of dealing with the crummy BMW dealership. Maybe you can see if the recall is still open and try to get it changed for free.
Crankcase ventilation hose campaign 02E-A01 to replace the crankcase vent tube that cracks (free repair)
Engine coolant thermostat campaign 01E-A02 to replace faulty electric thermostat (free repair)
Transmission fluid is super easy to change too. The car has a French made GM 5L-40E transmission and you can simply use Dexron-VI fluid. Mine is nearly 20 years old and works fine.
Good luck with the car. 1999 was the first year for the E46 and they did have some build variations from the later models so pay attention when buying chassis parts. BMW also sold a E36 chassis 3 series 318 in 1999 so be certain that you always buy parts for the E46.
Crankcase ventilation hose campaign 02E-A01 to replace the crankcase vent tube that cracks (free repair)
Engine coolant thermostat campaign 01E-A02 to replace faulty electric thermostat (free repair)
Transmission fluid is super easy to change too. The car has a French made GM 5L-40E transmission and you can simply use Dexron-VI fluid. Mine is nearly 20 years old and works fine.
Good luck with the car. 1999 was the first year for the E46 and they did have some build variations from the later models so pay attention when buying chassis parts. BMW also sold a E36 chassis 3 series 318 in 1999 so be certain that you always buy parts for the E46.
My advice? Go to ECS Tuning and have him buy service kits. Have him buy the cooling system kit (with expansion tank, radiator, and hoses) and an oil change kit WITH oil filter housing gasket and valve cover gasket. Trust me, it all. Tell him you won't do the work otherwise, all or nothing.
The transmission is a French-made GM. Drain plug on the bottom, fill hole on the side. Use Maxlife.
The transmission is a French-made GM. Drain plug on the bottom, fill hole on the side. Use Maxlife.
These are great cars and are easy to work on. Dont waste your money on Royal Purple ever, its just a gimmick. As others have said do the whole cooling system, the OEM pump has a plastic impeller that can cause radnom overheats, and it doesnt take too much overheating to warp the head and crack it, I bough an X3 with the M54 that needed a head bc of this.
The fan shroud routes some of the cooling lines on the some of the early cars, so pay attention if the shroud is stuck in there or having trouble coming out. Also get the Lisle fan clutch tool for your air hammer, it makes quick work of the reverse threaded fan, otherwise smacking a 32 with a hammer can take some time. Watch a bunch of videos before you take anything on, but like I said these were great to work on and relatively easy to take apart. I had a 99 come through with 296k the other day!
The fan shroud routes some of the cooling lines on the some of the early cars, so pay attention if the shroud is stuck in there or having trouble coming out. Also get the Lisle fan clutch tool for your air hammer, it makes quick work of the reverse threaded fan, otherwise smacking a 32 with a hammer can take some time. Watch a bunch of videos before you take anything on, but like I said these were great to work on and relatively easy to take apart. I had a 99 come through with 296k the other day!
+1 about the transmission being easy to service but I would not use Dex VI or Maxlife. That transmission was built with Dex III in mind so it works best if a similar viscosity fluid is used. Pennzoil Platinum High Mileage ATF works the best.
Thanks Trav and everyone for the info, it is much helpful and appreciated.
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