A 7-series Cliffhanger

Last Friday, it was hard to tell just what the weather was going to do!  We had called the Cruise-In weather-permitting, and each time I checked the forecast, it showed a 50% chance of storms.  Reggie, Lucy, and I decided to hang out anyway just to see what would happen.  The sun actually came out!  And a few people showed up!  Not a drop of rain was felt… until a little while later, when lightning strikes flashed across the sky to the south.  We packed up and called it a night just before some rain came through.  I guess this is the nature of Spring!   And tonight’s Cruise-In will also be weather-permitting.
We’ve had the 1984 BMW 733i in the shop, waiting on parts from Germany, waiting on a newly refurbished head, waiting to get back on the road!  Well, that time has come!  Let’s take a look!

 

With a little elbow grease and some paint, Reggie made these parts look like new!  I can’t wait to see what the engine bay looks like once everything is put back together!

Reggie cleans the area before the lower timing cover is installed:

The lower timing cover itself gets a good cleaning before being installed:

 

 

Reggie removes the old seal from the timing cover:

When it was time to put in the new seal, he noticed there was a crack in the aluminum!  Not good!  We sent the timing cover to the fab shop to see if it could be welded.  In the meantime, a replacement cover was ordered.  And so the waiting begins again for this 7-series.

Fortunately, the new used lower timing cover arrived the next day, so Reggie got to work replacing the seal:

This part of the timing chain tensioner can be re-used:

A little gasket sealant gets the lower timing cover that much closer to installation:

And then the seal gets prepped for the upper timing cover:

Gaskets are put in place:

Gasket sealant is applied to the lower timing cover.  It replaces the oil pan gasket; they don’t make a gasket to fit this section.  The gasket is compromised when the bottom of the engine is taken apart.

Installing the lower timing cover:

The old water pump:

Shiny, new water pump:

 

Reggie installs the water pump:

New hoses are next:

Next week, we’ll reveal the finished engine bay!  What’s a good story without some sort of cliffhanger, right?

This 1987 BMW 535is came in for some work: remove and replace rear sub-frame bushings, diagnose wet carpet under the dash on the driver’s side, adjust hood alignment, check tires for wear, and diagnose a “clunk” at the right rear of the bimmer.  It turns out that the exhaust was making contact with the drive shaft, so the exhaust mount was lowered and a missing mounting bolt was replaced.  As for the wet carpet, a hole was found in the floor.

A malfunctioning driver’s side lock actuator, a broken antenna, and oil leaks brought this 1996 BMW 318ti to the shop:

 

We’ve had some interest in the 1989 BMW 325ix that’s for sale here at the shop.  If you are interested, please call to set up a test drive before she’s gone!

That’s all for now!  We hope the weather cooperates this evening!  We’re excited to have the Cruise-In’s back!

Have a great weekend!