I Thought I Fixed It… Getting My BMW E30 To PASS Smog!
If this is the first youre seeing of this car, check out my playlist I have on it, I have several videos showcasing all of the repairs up until now!
• 1984 BMW E30 318i
So far ive replaced the battery, brake hoses, rear wheel cylinders, rear shoes, rear drums, engine oil + flush, coolant flush, trans flush, P/S flush w/ new reservoir, rear diff service, brake fluid flush, starter, ICV elbow and hose, distributor cap, rotor, distributor O ring, spark plugs, plug wires, valve cover gasket, oil pan gasket, thermostat, fuel filter, valve adjustment, wiper relay, vacuum advance, Ignition Control Module, and air filter.
Well folks, heres the update. Were slowly makin some progress. In this episode im chasing down why I failed my smog check soooo bad. I found the source of the clicking noise, its coming from the Ignition control module. After over a week of delays, I finally got a used unit installed, It ran amazing for a few minutes! Then the issue came back... The distributor is making noise so I know thats where I need to go next, but I want to get the car on the market officially, only for my youtube viewers! This car will NOT be posted locally. I want to find out if any of you out there are interested and want to shoot me an offer.
If you are interested, email me at DayOffDIY@gmail.com
Like I said in the video, if theres some interest in the car im down to sell it very soon!
If not, ill keep tinkering on it.
If youd like to support the channel, consider becoming a member!
/ @dayoffdiy
Or if Patreon is more your speed, we have one of those too!
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I hope you enjoy :)
Ah man, how satisfying would it be to get it completely done?! As a BMW-KZheadr myself, I really enjoy these videos. Keep 'em coming!
100% Hunter! I’d love to , but to grow my channel and accomplish what I have in mind by the end of the year, I gotta get moving. Don’t have the funds to jump into the body work side of things on this one either…
But I assure you, you will enjoy what I have in store !
I don’t blame you for looking to move on from this project. The e30 is an awesome car in general, but so hard to get things for the lil m10. Everything is geared towards the 6 cyl cars. You’re completely right about the E46/E90 being an easier quick flip. Tons of support for them and a lot of people still find them desirable. The nice ones are even starting to bring some decent money too. I’m a bit torn on my own e30. I’m at the crossroads of either going hog wild and do a long term build or just buttoning it up and letting it go. For now I still have some projects to keep me going on other vehicles. Keep up the awesome content!
Hey Rob! You know better than anyone right now lol Ive seen your channel, you are swimming in E30 work! The fine tuning part has been a challenge for me but its still been a great learning experience! Ended up biting the bullet on the re manufactured distributor so hopefully installing it will clean things up. I sure hope so. Yeah as far as keeping quality content coming out on the channel, id like to move into the more modern BMWs, and play around with some newer engines too. You got your hands full my friend! Keep it coming, your views are climbing and the videos are getting better and better! Cheers!
Man this one was finicky, but great job as always man. Looking forward to what you have in store
yeah still finicky... there is no guarantee that the distributor will fix it but i think its the next best move according to the noise and from peoples recommendations on the last video. This is the perfect car for someone out there, just hoping I can find that person! cant wait to share it with you guys, I think itll surprise everyone in the best way
Is great to watch your videos again. Been busy paying the mechanic to fix and preventive maintenance on the for me new 911 1998 Porsche 996, that has turn out into a money pit. Great progress on the BMW!! has come a long way since I last seeing it. Is a good thing to always change and go different directions. Will be behind you, as always great instructive and entreating content! Julio
Thanks Julio! I appreciate the support big time. What type of work is your mechanic getting into on your porsche? congrats on the car! I think you will be pleasantly surprised to see what I have in store. Cant wait to execute and make it happen
@@DayOffDIY Basically all preventive basic stuff that I wish I had the mechanical ability to do myself. Coils, spark plugs, belts and pulleys , thermostat, water pump etc. Also I found out due to lack of research about the IMS failures even for my model year. That alone is a lot of $. Kind of regretting selling the 2002 bmw 330ci with such low mileage. At least I got some good profit.. Anyway, looking forward to seeing your new projects.
E30 M10 has a idle control module in the glove box That can mess up idle. I had an issue with idle with my m10 with timing was off. Based on ignition module brand ( Bosch or telefunken, you need to time at 4k rpm or 2.5k rpm. ( if remember correctly) Sound from distributor May be the dust cap inside is rattling. Just take it out and run and see.
great idea. Ill pull the dust cap today and see what happens. i did order a replacement distributor so we will see if i can fix it next week. After getting this new dizzy in i will go through timing it again.
been enjoying the series, very beautiful car, hope it goes to a good home
thank you! I hope it goes to a good home too. I think if it goes to a viewer it will be a mission accomplished
love the teaser man, cant wait to see what you have got planned
cant wait to share it with you! I think itll catch everyone by surprise
Nice work homie. Great motivation!
thanks viper, not the greatest video but its an update, new distributor is on the way!
@@DayOffDIY hey man this is just what I need to get motivated. Thank you!
Sad to see the car go, but always excited to see a new project in the future! Keep it up bud:)
Me too, but itll be worth it for what I have in store, i promise!
Alec, I might’ve said this already, but I went to Beverly Hills High School and every rich girl drove a BMW 320i in the mid 1970’s when I was there. Your car is a little newer and from Beverly Hills BMW, so maybe it was purchased for a high school girl!
I remember! too funny! I dont think modern day high school girls are interested in E30s... the most common E30 fans I see are the modern day younger male gearheads that enjoy the german vehicles... but hey! who knows! I totally bet this car was purchased for a gal in high school in Beverly hills lol
@@DayOffDIY I wish that I knew those E designations because I never heard of them until recently. Mercedes has them as well. High School girls only get new cars. I remember when 2002’s disappeared and 320i’s appeared. Only the guys might have a classic 2002tii.
excited for the future of your channel dude. C:
You and me both! appreciate it friend!
As a young guy starting out with my own E30 318i I find your videos incredibly useful and they make me want to work on my own car even more. Keep doing good work!
Thank you friend! I’m still getting this car figured out and learning a lot, had no idea what I was looking at at first!
Hey man, I hope you manage to shift her soon, this idle issue seems like a real pain in the neck! I cant wait to see more E46 content, I am limited by funds atm too so mine is on hold for now. Need to save up for the body shop 😅
Hey Ross! Appreciate it! Yeah this idle issue is a pain, but I just ordered up a new distributor so hopefully that will clean things up a bit. I feel you, project cars are no joke on the bank account LOL More E46 content coming very soon! which I am super excited about. Great to see ya as always!
I am looking forward to the direction you take the channel. I won an E30 and an E46. The E30 is a great car, but it has a long list of little things that need to be fixed. Not many people want to tune in to see me sort out the door lock actuators or why some of the speakers dont work. I love my E46 and it is very satisfying to fix things on it. ShopLifeTV and 50s Kid have done quite a few videos on the E46. It is a popular platform. My son has an E90 and that car is a hoot drive. 335xi with N55 engine. Those cars are getting to be good affordable used cars, but they also have their issues that need to be addressed. If you can roll through different cars you can keep viewers interested. I wouldn't mind if each car, when you get about 80% done, you start offering it up for sale to viewers. They can see what you have done and then finish it themselves and save a little money. I would also avoid bodywork. It takes a a lot of skill and time to do a good job.
hey mike! i agree, im also a big fan of the E46 and E90 platform, i think more so than the E30. Ive always wanted one, but the satisfaction from fixing the E46s and E90s is hard to beat. plus its what im good at, its my bread and butter and im very familiar with those chassis and engines. I will definitely try to keep the variety coming and not just focus on one specific thing. Getting this E30 to 80% was my initial goal, and I think we can still make some more progress before selling it, but the body work is not something I want to jump into at the moment. I totally agree. Appreciate the comment and feedback mike! cheers
Glad to hear that you rather focus on newer cars. It's simply personal taste, something I'd rather buy, so there's more of a match in there. If people find out I bought a E30 here in Germany, the climate activists will come to my house lol.
your comment put a smile on my face my friend! Im glad you understand. I totally agree, it does come down to taste, and time and energy that you have to put into said project. I cant believe thats how Germany sees the E30! Youd think the general population would cherish them as classics! Although, according to my smog results, it looks like they are PIGS when it comes to pollutants.
Well, they're there of course, but there aren't many of them. None as daily drivers at least. Most of them were most likely exported. I was actually joking towards the activists we lately have, that glue themselves to the streets and block roads.
Have you checked the charging system it could be sporadically over charging causing the electronics to go crazy
good point...I have, its at 13.9V last time i checked so not over, but I ought to check it again.
Somebody in a less restrictive smog testing state please buy this! Wish I had a license to get into SEMA!
Hopefully someone will be interested! Yeah I was going to sign up as media but Autoline Pro hit me up and asked me if Id like to work for them! so Ill be working their booth, im excited! :) DAY OFF DIY IS GOING TO VEGAS!
Screwdriver mechanics stethoscope for the win!! Nice ...
gotta love the screwdriver trick
It’s going to be a hard sell with idle issues bite the bullet replace distributor unit and hopefully you’ll make a profit from this project. Hope you all the best
youre totally right, just purchased the dizzy and its on its way, should arrive sometime next week
If the car was just about ten years newer it would be so much easier to troubleshoot. All the folks that understand pre EFI, hell even pre HEI ignition systems are gone or few and far between. Most cars between 1975 and early/mid 1990s got junked many years ago. It’s a tough spot to be a car in this age since pre 75 was easier to work on and very simple (while smog except) and 1996+ are OBD2 and a $20 Amazon adapter will tell us what’s broken. In short I feel your pain brah, I’ve been fixing up a 1988 Chevy (since my e46 hasn’t needed much work lately).
You know it Wes! Its been a fun learning experience, I just have my sights set elsewhere and dont have the desire to sink TOO much time or energy into this one. I did order up a reman distributor today so ill update next week when it shows up and I can get it installed! Appreciate the support my friend!!!
Yeah e46 vids coming🎉🎉
and itll be a really good one!!!
Hey Man you Win some and you Lose some. Too bad about the smog emissions laws..Keep yiur chin up as I could tell you really wanted to keep this car and who wouldn't...
Thanks! I ended up ordering the distributor, so we will see if that cleans things up next week. I would love to continue tinkering on it but the money is needed elsewhere. Appreciate the support friend!
Hi i dont know if you have already tried this because I haven't watched every video of your 318i but after the BMW T?IS software says that issues with the irregular idle on M10 engine is often related to the fueling system. More precisely false fuel pressure related to the regulator, If you don't have the software, try getting it its is a tremendous help finding torque values, symptom diagnosis and repair manuals. Great content btw
I appreciate the insight my friend! I havent looked at TIS for this engine... as far as I know the fuel system seems to be okay, never struggled with fuel supply on demand, however, a viewer has convinced me to bite the bullet and buy a reman distributor so its on the way!
Is the distributor shaft bent? That happened with an old VW I had. Check it out when you swap in the new one.
its possible! new distributor is on the way so ill check it out when it comes in
Ahhhh', your e46 on jack stands is already looking promising. I might have to make another 1500mi drive from there again. . .
Daniel! I hope all is well my friend! The E46 belongs to my friend Erik, its his new daily driver for work, its going to turn out to be a great video! Im also lookin at new E46 projects as well
pfff that is hard choice te make indeed. Hope you feel the make the right choice! cheers
Ivor! Great to see you friend. Yeah ill be sad to see her go but it will go to the right person im sure... Once i can free up some cash we can move on to something really special I have in mind. No biters yet, but the new distributor is on the way! so hopefully we can fix it up next week. Hope all is well!
Sorry bro that my subscription was canceled. I will help you again in the near future
I am fine thanks, having a holiday in new York at the moment actually. Flying back in about 10 days to work on the E39. Doing the ccv and 2 hard coolant lines is the next job. Would je say taking of the manifold off is better than trying
definetely take the intake manifold off, or at least partially, you dont have to disconnect it completely but peeling it back is the way to do it. I dont think you can access without. are you referring to 6 cyl or V8?@@ivorvanwerven6210
Ivor no apology necessary! I appreciate the support and comments. Hope you have a great weekend @@ivorvanwerven6210
E46 videos soon?
Very soon! and its going to be a great one
FIX A E36 VERTT !! 🔥🔥
I’d be down! Looking for a good deal
Does it have a cold start injector?
it does... I need to do some research into it
Just buy the distributor and be done with it, you'll get a better return and then most along.
I just pulled the trigger on the distributor, should be here next week. Hopefully itll help resolve some issues. You know how project cars can be, the finish line or stopping point is where you make it. Theyre never truly finished
Just let me know what you will take to sell?
Want to shoot me an email with an offer? Just ordered a reman distributor
i can “smog” it for u i’m a smog tech if ur interested
I’d be interested! Can you email me? Dayoffdiy@gmail.com
I’m glad you’re getting rid of it. 🎉 I have not liked it from the start. It’s so boring 😂😂
HAHAHA too funny Brandi. I appreciate your willingness to speak your mind :) LOL More E46 content coming soon for ya!
@@DayOffDIYI seen it in the background! You’re gonna be a busy 🐝🤣🤣✅✅😉🖤
California does smog for 1984 vehicles?
Yup, everything 1975 and newer