Greydog

Morning Stu Going back over note's there were a stack of problems in the early E53's with Magneti Marelli starter motors being the culprit try the clamp meter on the starter cable. Also worth checking the Voltage regulator as they can give issues as well Also worth checking that the loom in your boot lid hasn't had a dodgy repair Dave She will misbehave until you get rid of the Porker 🤣

Morning James Google the Register of BMW Dismantlers (Quarry Motors have always been useful). For my E53 4.6is I used a local Carpet Fitter he made up a full set for me all edges trimmed and including non slip velcro patches. He used the OEM mats as patterns and off cuts from a Dark Grey High Quality Wilton carpet he had fitted, cost was less than half OEM gave the car a new smell for ages. Dave

Morning Yvonne Welcome to the Forum Built into the brake pad is a small carbon contact at the point where the Manufacturer of the pads believes they are close to the end of their service life. When it makes contact with the brake disc it triggers the light, which is a warning to change the pads, while your brakes still work in a short time uneven wear can occur which will cause damage to the disc. New pads are around 12mm thick as yours have been measured at 3mm there isn't much left see the chart. It isn't BMW or a Garage trying to squeeze money out of you The MOT I would guess shows the brake pad thickness as an "advisory" all that means they were working on the day of the Test? It doesn't mean they are OK or Safe just that they were OK then. The only things between us and a wall or ditch are Brakes and Tyres for me it is a false economy to ignore the warning, Pads are much cheaper than a new set of Discs and Pads an complete set of Brembo (Top make) pads for your car I would think is around £40 may be a little more plus fitting which should be around 2 hrs max if you can't DIY Dave

Morning Trishul What was it like ? Good turnout ? Dave

Morning Vin Welcome to the Forum As your system is CiC and modular you need a Diagnostic scan to provide us more information Dave

Morning Mike Welcome to the Forum The Post is 3 years old and I am not sure if the original poster even still has the car? As said you can check pressure at the Low Pressure side after 15/20mins running anything below 30 psi points to low /no Gas. Most systems loose a little every year particularly if the system is shut down during the winter months as many folks do, the seals dry out and leaks start it's better to use the Climate Control and leave it running. If your topping it up yourself make sure the kit has the correct compressor oil as low compressor oil levels can give issues. If the water control valves are OK and working, the Climate Control unit is functioning correctly, then I would use someone like Kwik Fit to service the AC the systems they use are automatic and pre-programmed it will vac out the system, providing the system holds the vacuum for a measured time (no leaks) it will introduce the correct oil and re-gas the system. I expect to get mine done every 3 to 5 years depending on the car and AC performance Dave Note your car should be Type R134A you can't mix gasses

Morning Steven Welcome to the Forum If you have the original pump and module I would send it to ECU Testing (Derby/Nottingham area) if it is repairable it won't need coding when it goes back on. Brake bleeding is a straight forward procedure I always start at the nearside rear (furthest from the master cylinder) I use a vacuum pump bleeding kit (mine is old but they are about £20 or so) to pull fluid through. Make sure the Master cylinder is above Min at all times, once clear no bubbles or murky fluid lock it off and move to the offside rear and repeat. Then nearside front and finally offside front make sure you are using the correct brake fluid and as said never let the master cylinder drop below the Min mark. Now the only tricky bit is you will need the help of someone who has a BMW capable Diagnostic tool if you don't have your own to activate the ABS unit, job done. If the original can't be repaired the next point to check is "the unit that is fitted is it the correct one for your car" is/was it New or purchased second hand? check the part number of both the Pump and Controller carefully if they are the same as the OEM part then it should have been plug and play. If the unit was (a) Second hand is it faulty? (b) If it is an incorrect part then you will struggle to get it to work. However if it does need coding then again you will need the help of someone who has a Diagnostic program that is capable of doing it Hope this Helps Dave

Hi Muriel Welcome to the Forum We have seen this here before, BMW say it is caused by condensation in the exhaust at initial start vapour is caused when the exhaust is hot no issue? One guy in Ireland spent a fortune trying to fix it check out the posts if you haven't already Hope this helps Dave

Morning Roger Looks like you need a Torx Socket possibly T10 difficult to say from the picture. Sets are not that expensive and freely available Just BMW expanding your tool kit 🤣 Dave

Morning Jay Welcome to the Forum I have read that Hybrids have very restricted towing capacity so my first thought is I doubt that it will fit. You really need to talk to a Specialist supplier or your Dealer (though the Dealer may not be much help if your planning DIY) From memory BMW OEM suppliers were/are Oris and Westfalia Good Luck Dave

Morning Jefferey Welcome to the Forum There are no lowering side steps that I am aware of for any of the X models Maybe one of the companies who adapt cars for the disabled may have something but I doubt it will be an easy fix Dave

Morning Aaron Welcome to the Forum You say you changed the bulb for the "Correct one" so you brought it from a BMW Dealer ? If not then it is possible that you have the correct type of bulb but if it is LED it may not have a ballast resistor fitted. If the bulb is correct then check carefully the wiring in particular the Earth Good Luck Dave

Hi Dave Welcome to the Forum Gear changes up or down should be really smooth the movement shown in your Video definately isn't right. It raises some issues for you as BMW don't repair anything just replace assemblies then retain the damaged item so few appear on the aftermarket If you aren't aware look at www.realoem.com put the last 7 digits of your Vin into the search box it will bring up your model. Then search the front axel assembly for the part number you need. If I recall the 8 speed transmission has 1-3.15 ratio diff but check that as I am an old bloke 🤣 Once you have the part number search onine for the best price a low milage Diff from a Dismantler may be the best cost option, I would expect a Dealer to be around £1k+ plus fitting if you can DIY then a refurbished Diff may be available I would guess £6-700 plus fluid would be my guess Most cases of Diff damage and Transfer case damage I have seen are the result of incorrect tyres or in one instance a single tyre replaced on the front (nearside new ofside around 5mm tread the difference was enough to cause damage. The E70 up to 2010 and F15 that followed were more robust in the transfer case than the E53 but the result is Diff issues Hope this helps Dave

I think the biggest problem today is everything being done at arms length email and internet BMW like many large organisations are losing contact with their customers and as said the Dealer tends to be the only "face" you see. Poor communication is not acceptable and just alienate all of us and assuming that because they have supplied a car it makes it OK they forget it wasn't/isn't what you paid for. Definatley time for a prod with a very sharp stick thereare several posts on here from owners with the same issue gather the evidence it can only strengthen your case. Good Luck Jan Dave

Morning Jan Welcome to the Forum Oh dear yet another one!! After that length of time I would be writing to the Dealer (I know he is Pig in the Middle but you have to begin somewhere) with a copy to BMW UK clearly stating the time line and using language from the Sale of Goods Act stating that as it has been so long without resolution and poor communication clearly the car is "not fit for purpose" and you want them to give a clear time line on either Replacement or a Full Re-fund I hope you can get it sorted Dave

We soooo love an optomist Stu 🤣 If the wire colours were different that is reall wierd Dave

I would double double check your crimping is there a stray wire strand thats touching something it shouldn't? According to my ex-neighbour (Now a High Up BMW man based the USA) it was late 2003 early 2004 before there were any changes in the X5 apparently the early pre facelift models were fitted with a full loom so any accessories were easy addons. After face lift you needed a loom extension and coding so what you have done really should have been straight forward (but aren't all the "simple little jobs") Dave

Hi Stu A clamp Ammeter on the live side of the battery will help then start pulling fuses in the boot as it is where the issue started. Shut yourself inside and when the car goes to sleep the ammeter should read just a few milli amps anything higher is the issue. Start pulling fuses in the rear fuse panel if one stops the draw you have the circuit that needs checking. If no joy repeat at the front fuse board Question, is the lock the original or is it one that came with the bits you replaced ? Dave

Morning Lewis The only way I can think of is to try the DVLA to see if you can contact the current owner Nostalgia for and old once owned car is great but remember the old adage "One careful owner, the other six didn't care at all" so rescueing it may cost more than it's worth Hope this helps Dave

Morning Richard I would say if it is "every now and then" it isn't normal and needs some investigation Dave

Morning Gordon Welcome to the Forum Thats a whole can of worms to open 😁 First there is the question of is your car air suspension front and rear? Rear air Front springs or has it been converted to springs all round. If it is to be a full spring conversion I would look at companies like Eibach well recognised and reliable ( Cost I would guess at around £500 to £1k ) If you want to retain the OEM rear air suspension I have read of rear adjustable links ror the ride height sensors combined with adjustable front springs ( Cost around £500 ) If it is a full air suspension I talked to a guy at Goodwood who had a BMW 3.5d X5 on a fully adjustable Airride suspension kit he could select ride height from a panel in the car or through an App on his phone very cool. He could choose 4 preset ride heights (his choice) He told me cost was £1600 2 years ago Dave

Hi Andrew If you have had a shredded belt I would check the whole system belts don't just shred Main suspect for me would be start with the Crank shaft damper pulley they can detach from the rubber insert and wobble causes the AC belt and Serpentine belt to rub on each other and fray. I would also check all Idler and Tension pulleys plus while things are loose the waterpump,Alternator and AC compressor Dave

Morning Dan Welcome to the Forum First remember that any Mods Body or Performance you need to check with your insurers don't need to have something happen and discover your not covered. If going for performance mods Suspension, Brakes and Tyres would be my starting point, having the car go where you point it and stop when you want to. Engine and Trans mission would be last on my list. Body mods take alook at pistures of cars like the M135i. All the M body panels and trims are available from either BMW or from the specialist BMW Dismantlers and you know they will fit. Remember to factor in Paint ? There is also the After market Body kits but remember these may need some work to get the fit looking right and again paint. Enjoy your Beemer Dave

Ok is it the fan in front of the Rad ? Dave

Morning Kyle Welcome to the Forum If there is vibration at such a low speed I would suspect not only the control arm but is the wheel Tyre out of balance is the fixing bolt and ball joint torqued correctly ? Also consider if changing suspension parts it is good practice to change bothsides at the same time. The job is straight forward just make sure the main bolt is Torqued up when the control arm is in the loaded postion (Weight on the suspension) or the bush will only last a very short time. Dont know where you are but in the UK most suspension parts are available from Motor Parts Factors next day at least prce I would expect to be around £25 to £30 per side. Worth considering is a complete suspension refresh as if one control arm is that bad other parts will be worn as well Only you can assess the amount of risk as non of us can see/feel how loose things are Hope this helps Dave