BMW DIY advice, and the occasional critique of the company
Last Friday I received my official BMW air bag recall letter for my E46 M3. Both the driver and passenger air bags are subject to the massive Takata air bag recall, which has been going on for almost two years. Over 60 million air bags have been found defective and need to be replaced. It’s […]
I’ve been a BMW enthusiast for 15 years, but I had never joined the BMW Car Club of America (BMWCCA). The main reason was I did not associate BMWCCA membership with DIY work. A fellow owner who works out at my gym recently showed me otherwise. He told me DIY educations was the main reason […]
2016 BMW sales are out for April, and it’s been a tough start to the year for BMW in North America. Overall new sales are down 9.4 percent, with passenger cars down 15.4 percent. An article from The Truth About Cars reports swollen inventories at U.S. BMW dealerships. As usual, looking at BMW’s high volume […]
This weekend my wife Gabriele and I picked up a new 2015 Jeep Cherokee. She had been leasing an Infiniti FX37, but decided she sacrificed too much interior space for the sportiness. We had bought a Toyota Highlander back in 2011, which had lots of interior space but wasn’t much fun to drive. As the […]
Final 2015 BMW sales are out, and the company has retained the number one spot for U.S. luxury car sales with 346,023 vehicles sold (not including the Mini brand). BMW had a horrible December with sales down 16.6%, and that almost allowed Lexus and Mercedes-Benz to snatch the crown. Only a few thousand vehicles separated […]
Recently my 2006 E46 M3 started throwing a code signifying a problem with one of the oxygen sensors in front of the catalytic converter (pre-cat). The S54 engine in the E46 M3 has four oxygen sensors, two in front of the catalytic converter and two behind. Initially I thought this was a chance for a […]
Recently I completed a relatively minor but satisfying DIY on my 2006 BMW E46 M3. This one was a cosmetic repair rather than mechanical. I replaced the C-Pillar trim pieces on both sides, the interior trim between the side rear glass and the rear windshield. It’s a known issue on the E46 model 3-Series BMWs, […]
This Labor Day weekend I devoted some time to my 2002 E39 M5. I changed the oil, the cabin air filters and I gave the car a general checkup. I’m fortunate to have access to a lift, and took advantage of that to inspect the suspension and other areas under the car. Bavarian Auto has […]
My neighbor Martin just bought a new BMW. He did his research, knew exactly what he wanted, and walked away from an initial poor BMW dealership experience. He went with a custom order, and will be having the aftermarket boost the conservative tune of his stock BMW turbocharged engine. How he went about it […]
BMW has released sales numbers through June of this year. BMW brand sales (not including Mini) are up 7.1 percent over the first six months of 2014. That’s a healthy increase, but a bit off the 9.8 percent growth BMW accomplished in 2014. BMW and Mercedes are again wheel to wheel in the race to […]
This past week I took care of some needed items on my 2006 E46 M3. Since I purchased the car late last year, I’ve looked forward to getting the front bumper repainted and a few other cosmetic issues attended to. The front bumper needed to be repainted because it had rock chip pitting, clear coat […]
Late last year I purchased a 2006 E46 M3. It was maintained extremely well, but there were a few things I looked forward to doing on the car. Now that the long winter season is over, it’s time to get to work. This weekend I changed the oil, swapped the tires side to side, checked […]