Ok, newbie question. About to put my summer wheels back on..

[greg.epps]

I'm about to think about putting the summer wheels back on and I want to go ahead and inspect things while I have the wheels off. My thrust/control arms are new in the front (less than 3k miles on them), so I know I'm good there. I figure I should take a look at the brake pads to get an idea of where I am there. What else should I look at to plan/budget future projects on anything in the wheel areas? How do I inspect other susupension parts? Should I/how do I inspect the steering linkage? I've got a Bentley, so all the answers are probably in there, but I wanted to know what you guys think I should be looking for...

[shifty]

I would also give the exhaust system a good look. See if there are any holes or if there's any major corrosion on it anywhere. While you're in there, you COULD just replace the exhaust gaskets, hardware, and hangers. None of that stuff is expensive, and it'll make it exponentially easier to remove the exhaust if you ever need to remove it for something.

Also, if you haven't changed the tranny fluid or the diff fluid in a couple of years, it's time to do that.

Check your dogbones and subframe bushings to see if you're going to need to replace them soon.

There's plenty more, but a lot of this stuff, the Bentley says to check it every Inspection I.

[greg.epps]

Thanks for the tips Lieutenant. I think the exhaust hardware is all new, or at least recent. I know that the PO (Rob Johnson) had the exhaust on the floor for a while, so it should be good to go. And I know the diff fluid is good for a while, b/c he put the 3.73 LSD in just a little over a year ago (the old 3.25 is in the trunk for extra weight). Would the tranny fluid have been changed with either the diff swap or Z3 shifter install?

[Rich in Tupelo]

Greg,

Just curious but did you buy Rob's Royal Blau 535is? As for the diff swap, I would hope that it would have had new fluid when changed but you do not have to do the fluid in the tranny for the Z3 shifter rebuild.

Rich

[greg.epps]

Is that what this color is? I have neglected to actually trace down the paint code on it. I thought it was closer to one of the silver/gray colors.
It's the only one he ever had that ran. I've still got to pay him, it's technically on loan right now--he's my brother-in-law. AFAIK he's still got an M5 in the garage in California that doesn't run... I pointed him to this thread, since he hasn't been on the board since the baby was born...


[Edit by greg.epps on [TIME]1110217879[/TIME]]

[Rich in Tupelo]

my bad. I was thinking of another Rob. Not the same one.

[shifty]

[QUOTE="greg.epps"]Is that what this color is? I have neglected to actually trace down the paint code on it. I thought it was closer to one of the silver/gray colors.[/QUOTE]

Greg,

If the passenger's side fender under the hood doesn't have the sticker with the name of the paint color on it, then the only way we'd be able to know exactly what color it is is for you to post a pic!

If it's blue with a slight purplish hue, it's Royal Blue. If it's blue-gray, more blue than gray, it's Cirrus Blue. If it's silver, it's Lachsilber. If it's a darker gray, it's Delphin Gray.

That's pretty much all there was in '87 for blues and grays.

Here are some pics of each color:

Royal Blue (Icehaus Dave's 535iS):


Cirrus Blue (My old 528e):


Lachsilber (Dave's son's 535iS):


Delphin Gray (Jeff in Louisiana's 535i):

[greg.epps]

the Lachsilber and Delphin Grey are so close, it's hard for me to tell. I'll make sure and look for the label when I put my good wheels back on. And I'll take some pics so I can post...

[Jon in Richmond]

Greg,

Your car is lachsillber metallic with peeling clear coat. That thing will look great with a respray. Is Rob still coming out here this year? We are planning a wrench fest up in C'ville again this Spring. You will have to clear your schedule and come up there with us. Justin's father is a auto shop teacher at a High School up there and lets us use the epuip. there. He has three lifts and lots of other great stuff. I'll let you know when if you are interested.

Jon

[greg.epps]

Oh I'm DEFINITELY interested. I've been been dying to turn a wrench, but this weather and my schedule haven't allowed it. Let me know as far in advance as you can, I've got to clear it with my scheduler (the wife) way ahead of time.

As far as I know, Rob's still planning on moving out here. He just got a contract job out in CA, so the timetable may not be this summer as last planned...