Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

Is the car difficult to start?

Have you got a multimeter? Check the resistance of the glow should be around 5 ohms. If they need replacing...good luck. Check if the rover diesel glow plugs are cheaper than the BMW ones. If replacing, get a decent make IE not halfords brand, Beru if you can as they are my favs.

Crossland are a Euro car parts and I wouldn't.

Starts absolutely fine, maybe a few cranks in the cold.

That doesn't sound like a glow plug or controller issue then.

Check the wiring and connectors at the control unit. Then at the glow plugs, check the resistance.

if anyone has a 6.5 dia pair of door speakers that would work good with my very average pioner cd player, cheap in south london please get in touch.

Top tip if you do one of these experience track days in a covid world is to buy a cheap set of racing gloves before you go.

Latex gets a bit sweaty.

Or

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balaclava as well if you don't have your own helmet.

Looks even more sweaty tbh

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NOW I recognise you....

Golf club thread?

Different kind of swing.

Did you check the pick up ring for corrosion and high spots, thought we talked about this before? https://burchmotorworks.co.uk/performance-and-maintenance/bmw-rear-abs-driveshaft-rings/

As for the glow plugs probably the glow plugs gone open circuit, might have done the control unit as well, it sometimes goes that way, I would check the resistance, anything above 8 Ohms change them, note this is not a job for the faint hearted they often snap and require specialist removal. You have to get the engine as hot as possible, soak them in wd 40or similar, remove the inlet manifold whilst engine is hot and remove all the glow plugs while the engine is still warm {DO NOT attempt on a cold engine] once renewed double check the relay function.

Plus gas, and apply often when the car is cold. It will smoke a little when hot so not excessively.

Note that carbon build up on the electrode might mean the electrode will stay in the head. One trick I used to hope helped was high revs low gear, to get the engine chamber hot as possible, with the exotic diesel fuel and an injector cleaner. I'd do an oil change before and after too.

Use of an induction heater is really handy, but that does mean you need access to the glow plugs and some are hiden behind the pump.

Was front left ABS, no wear (it wasn’t shiny) or crack on the ring as far as I could see. Gave it a wee inspection - as per your instructions, I didn’t forget! Lol. The original sensor had a load of filings on the end, so I wonder if just cleaning it would have been enough to keep it happy, but figured I might as well swap it as I had the new sensor right there.

Your description is enough to dissuade me from attempting the glow plugs I must admit. I’ll have a look with a multimeter.
Is there any way to check the control unit? Is it worth replacing anyway if I can get one cheap?

Thanks again for the encyclopaedic knowledge!

Youtube is quicker than explaining, two types so I found both you can check resistance of all the glow plugs from the relay wiring if it is easier also resistance should be 0.5 to 2.5 ohms on e46 :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTfV01vphaI&ab_channel=Straight_To_The_Point

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_ag_FQvSMY&ab_channel=Przemys%C5%82awWilkutowski

Well bloody hell, the gift that keeps on giving - cheers man!

It was R34s last week, this week I'm looking at big pickup trucks... I'm blaming driving the work Ford Ranger and @hillbilly and @mrs_socks new F150...

I’ve spent two weeks in Scotland going mountain biking - I think at some point I will buy a (likely VW) van/camper/thing.

Not if you need room for people and humongous MTBs inside you won't. Besides, VWs are notorious for having lots of things genuinely wrong with them for you to spend lots on. On the other hand, they accelerate like a glacier on Mogadon, so you could install one of your new Porsche engines.

Just buy the original Sky Death Star, you know you want to.

It is true that I can’t seem to find the twin turbo V8 option in the engine list.

If you had a spare 2.7 boxster engine with a 5 speed gear box what car, other than a porsche, would you fit it in?

Does a 205 come to mind?

I would fit it into my 2002 punto.

A De Havilland Dino replica

I've obviously been listening to too much smith and sniff, but slightly captivated by this Polo estate. Don't think I've ever seen one, low miles too.

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