I thought I was done with M3 news after the last DIY event. But the car had other ideas. My alternator died last week while I was driving through Old Town Alexandria, taking the battery with it. After I got that settled I decided to buy a Bluebus Bluetooth device for the car, like I did for my M5 last year.
The M3 had never left me stranded before. I was driving along and suddenly several warning lights flashed on the dash. I was able to pull off onto a side street, but then could not restart the car. I hoped it was only the battery, which was seven years old and didn’t owe me anything. But I suspected it was more serious than that and the alternator was involved.
My wife picked me up and I went with a Diehard AGM battery from a nearby Advanced Auto. The same model has served me well in the M5 since late 2020. We drove back to my car and I installed the new battery. The car started right up but as I feared the alternator was not charging the battery. By unlocking the cluster in the E46 you can choose test #9 which shows you the volts being put out by the battery. With the engine running it should read about 14 – mine showed only 12.1.
The replacement battery got me home, but too much driving would kill it just like the old one. Without a DIY to attend I decided to bring the job to the Alexandria location of Craftsman Automotive. They’ve worked on my E46 M3 before and they are a strong supporter of the National Capital chapter. While they were “in there” I asked them to replace all the pulleys, tensioners and belts. I purchased that kit and a brand new Valeo M3 alternator for the car which cost $300 less than a remanufactured Bosch version.
The bill reminded me why I like to DIY as much as I can. That said, I’m fortunate I can purchase my own parts with Craftsman and I know the job will be done well. It was also done quickly – I dropped the car off early and had it back before lunch. Hopefully, my M3 alternator and battery will be set for years.
I’ve spoken previously about the cottage industries that crop up around enthusiast BMW ownership. One of the coolest is the Bluebus, a Bluetooth device invented by a software developer named Ted in his spare time. It connects directly to the older car’s wiring and allows for streaming music from your phone, truly integrated hands free calling, and fun extras like auto lock/unlock and one-touch multiflash turn signals. I found myself driving the M5 more because it had the Bluebus in it, so clearly I needed to give Ted more business.
Connecting the Bluebus had been straightforward in the M5. But when I pulled back the trunk carpeting in the M3 I saw something quite different. A previous owner has installed some kind of factory Bluetooth solution, which supposedly never worked very well. At some point a DICE unit was also added. I did know that the guy I bought the car from had installed an amplifier which he removed before I bought the car.
I first removed the factory piece on the top, which in the front had the phone connector I needed for the Bluebus harness. Neither of the two plugs going into it fit in the Bluebus. I found the power and CD plugs, leaving several other wires disconnected. At first, I could not get the Bluetooth to connect with my phone but eventually it did. Now my almost 20-year-old car has modern phone and music functionality.
Now I think I’m done with the M3 for a while. But you never know for sure with these BMW classics from the early aughts.