First model year blues

M

Mike W

Member
I recently bought a 2003 and I am surprised at how much is wrong after 5 years of use. So far it has needed a valve cover gasket, oil pan gasket, oil filter stand gasket, new control for the side mirrors, the radio station set does not work, there are 5 sensors that don't function, the rearview mirror dimmer does not function, the driver's seatbelt light stays on, etc. Those are just what I have found so far. The car has 90K, but these are non-mileage issues. Is this just what happens after 5 years, or did I make a bad pick.

Mike W
 
Just bad luck.

Ours is an early 03 (build date 10/02) with 62K miles on the clock..

Nothing major mechanically had gone wrong with the exception of the soft top motor. I did replace the Vano's seals which necessitated replacement of the valve cover gaskets... but I could have left the Vano's alone..

If you are good with tools, then most of what you have stated can be fixed by you.
 
Shipkiller said:
Just bad luck.

Ours is an early 03 (build date 10/02) with 62K miles on the clock..

Nothing major mechanically had gone wrong with the exception of the soft top motor. I did replace the Vano's seals which necessitated replacement of the valve cover gaskets... but I could have left the Vano's alone..

If you are good with tools, then most of what you have stated can be fixed by you.
Click to expand...
whats the Vano's seals ? Ships :?
 
I have a 03 model as well and the only thing that bothers me is the rattling when going through bad roads. I also started noticing a high pitch noise that's continuous whenever I press down on the accelerator. Gonna have that checked at the dealer next week and see what's wrong. Think I'm also do for an oil change.
 
2dogs said:
Shipkiller said:
Just bad luck.

Ours is an early 03 (build date 10/02) with 62K miles on the clock..

Nothing major mechanically had gone wrong with the exception of the soft top motor. I did replace the Vano's seals which necessitated replacement of the valve cover gaskets... but I could have left the Vano's alone..

If you are good with tools, then most of what you have stated can be fixed by you.
Click to expand...
whats the Vano's seals ? Ships :?
Click to expand...

have a read of this 2dogs... your engine should be ok though :D

how have you got to your post count without noticing this :poke:
 
2dogs said:
Shipkiller said:
Just bad luck.

Ours is an early 03 (build date 10/02) with 62K miles on the clock..

Nothing major mechanically had gone wrong with the exception of the soft top motor. I did replace the Vano's seals which necessitated replacement of the valve cover gaskets... but I could have left the Vano's alone..

If you are good with tools, then most of what you have stated can be fixed by you.
Click to expand...
whats the Vano's seals ? Ships :?
Click to expand...

I DID mention the Vanos Seals. But that repair was not required. I did it improve the performance of the Vanos, but it was not required. If you took it to BMW, they would say nothing is wrong.
 
Traxxer said:
I have a 03 model as well and the only thing that bothers me is the rattling when going through bad roads. I also started noticing a high pitch noise that's continuous whenever I press down on the accelerator. Gonna have that checked at the dealer next week and see what's wrong. Think I'm also do for an oil change.
Click to expand...


For your noise, go check for cracking in your rubber intake hose... That was where mine was. It is a common problem with ALL BMW's, and other cars as well. Rubber will dry out and crack over time...

I had a rattle too. I found it when I removed the soft top. The motor had broken free of its mounts to the top. When I replaced the motor, the noise has gone away.... :thumbsup:
 
Note:

I do not include wear and tear items as major break downs.

These are the wear and tear items I have fixed:
1. New Ceramic brake pads. No more brake dust... $50.00
2. New lower radiator hose. $25.00
3. New intake manifold pipe (hose). $ 28.00
4. New Soft Top rear compartment switch. $35.00 (It's a contact type switch and a bad design, so I include it as a wear/tear item)
5. New front upper strut mounts.

If you follow the E46 forums, a Crankshaft position sensor, water pump and water temp thermostat are also almost considered a wear/tear items.
 
2003 with 42,000 miles on it.
Bought it in 2007 from original owner and full maintenance history only mentioned 1 factory recall in 2004. Nothing has broken or been repaired on the car since new (although it's never been out in foul weather from day 1) I've replaced the pads for ceramics (brake dust) but the originals had less than 50% wear when I did. No rattles with the roof down.

How one drives and in what climate conditions certainly has some influence on it.

Welcome Mike W
Cheers
 
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