[custm42435]

Got in car yesterday and headed down to gulf coast to pick up a hard top(SORRY KEN), and noticed my clock was no longer working... nothing on display(that i could see)... obc still worked fine though... guess internal bulb went out.. Now to figure how this thing comes out to replace it..

 

[hornhospital]

No problem! You needed to say what tire troubles you had that kept you from meeting up with me. Not your fault! That and getting the "Let's go home NOW" stink-eye from the wife! :rofl:

For the OBC bulb change...reach in the sunglasses pocket and feel up above it, under the OBC. There's a hole there to allow you to hook a finger behind the OBC and just pull it out. Carefully undo the connections ( same fragile-type locking connectors as what's on the instrument cluster) and you can then access the bulbs.

PS, we need pictures of the car with the top installed. Like nao.

 

[custm42435]

ok, ill make pics in a sec of the top on it, besides the fact that a rear tire was becoming bald and needed replacing, im not sure exactly what was causing me to have to correct steering all the time but seems to be coming from front end.. the rain we hit after montgomery was enough to cause me to turn the radio off and become alarmed at the rate i was having to correct the steering.. replaced lower control arm bushings within last year and a half and unless i need to replace something else at this mileage then it might be due to a screw up alignment i had done 3 days ago.. but at 70 mph its like all wobbly like the two front tires arent agreeing with eachother as to which way they want to go.. also steering wheel isnt straight to go straight lol..

 

[custm42435]

 

[custm42435]

there is the new top installed, what do u think? i was amazed as to how it changed the acoustics of the subwoofer and speakers listening to music over the soft top..

 

[hornhospital]

I like! Half the people here are going to say paint it Avus, but the silver does look OK with the blue. :thumbup:

E36 verts with the hardtop look sexy, regardless of color.

 

[custm42435]

i thought the silver did look good with the blue, and it got a LOT of looks on the way home.. but the car will eventually get new paint as the clear on the trunk is over halfway gone.. but a hardtop is only something that is on the car less than half of the year, and it came with stand and a cover so was a good deal and hard to pass up lol.

 

[hornhospital]

I'd get the alignment checked again, and look at the tie rod ends while it's there.

You didn't happen to use URO or no-name brand bushings, did you?

 

[custm42435]

not that i know of.. ill try to find the link to them again and show you sometime.. it was a place that only sold bmw and mini stuff..

 

[custm42435]

i kinda like the hard top looking like something EXTRA.. like it doesnt normally belong there... if it was the same color then it might look like it came like that... and would miss as even being convertible..

 

[hornhospital]

i kinda like the hard top looking like something EXTRA.. like it doesnt normally belong there... if it was the same color then it might look like it came like that... and would miss as even being convertible..

Agreed!

And the suspension parts I got the first time were from FCPGroton, but were no-name or URO parts. They were falling apart before they even got dirty. Particularly the LCA bushings. I got Lemforder replacements but still have the no-name control arms and ball joints. Now those are rattling. :tsk: FCPGroton no longer sells those brand parts. Wonder why? :tsk: :rofl:

 

[custm42435]

and to top it all off, i was told one of my rear wheel bearings was bad (noisy)... guess which? only one i have ever replaced, a year and a half ago.. was 70 bucks for the bearing and bought through a dealership.. and now looks like ill be replacing again soon.. took a sledgehammer and a blowtorch to replace it last time... few will know what we who have owned these cars for a while have gone through.. lol

 

[custm42435]

i almost wonder ken, and with my year model i have to, if the alignment was done under 99 model e46 specs and not 99 model e36 specs because of the chengeover confusion..

 

[hornhospital]

:dunno: They aren't really any different. Not enough to matter, anyway.


Ugh, rear wheel bearings...one of a hundred things I need to change on the 325is....and the center drive shaft bearing, and the guibo. I have all the parts, just need to do it.