F10 530d: Front Shock Strut / Spring / Top-mount Replacement [GUIDE]

*Rear Strut-assembly Replacement Guide here - https://www.beemerlab.org/2020/12/f10-rear-shock-absorber-strut-spring.html*

My front shocks were certainly past their prime up front and over the last few months have really started to bottom out on certain speed bumps. I was also told one of the front top-mounts was starting to go on the last MOT and would probably be an issue next time round, so it was time to give the F10 a mini front-suspension overhaul.

I got hold of a pair of complete front struts taken from a 45k-mile car (I am told, but they are very clean) for just £240. All the parts new and spurious (including my through-work discount) would have been nigh on £400 and lots more from BMW. The used items are of course genuine, so quite a lot of money saved and the struts have turned out to be pretty good so it was a chance worth taking.


The guide I used is by hamanncheese on 5post.com and is pretty spot on, so props to him - I will reference his photos and try to elaborate a little on his instructions. [Original guide here: http://f10.5post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=628336].


REMOVE / REPLACE STRUT:

1. Lift the car and remove the corresponding wheel.

2. Remove the nut holding the top of the anti-roll bar link to the shock-strut using an 18mm wrench. [The nut should come off without twisting the ball-joint, but you may need to insert a T40-Torx socket into the end of the stop it turning with the nut.] [If the stud is difficult to remove from the shock-strut, then using a second jack to lift the hub and prying the anti-roll bar downwards will certainly help.]

Pic courtesy: hamanncheese

3. Remove the lower strut bolt using an 18mm (bolt-head) and 21mm (nut) wrench.

Pic courtesy: hamanncheese

4. Remove the 3 bolts holding the top-mount to the shock-turret using a 13mm wrench.

Pic courtesy: hamanncheese

5. Push the hub down and lift the shock-strut until it clears the bottom-arm and can be removed. [Lift it over the bottom-arm towards the rear of the car. There is plenty of room to manoeuvre it out of the wheel well.] [As hamanncheese says, this step is easier with a helping hand, but can be done solo without much difficulty.]

6. Insert the new strut using the same technique as Step 5.

7. Refit the lower strut bolt first and screw the nut on a few turns. [A screwdriver or other long tool may be necessary to align the strut to the lower-arm.]

8. Refit the 3 top-mount bolts and tighten.

9. Fully tighten the lower strut-bolt.

10. Refit the anti-roll bar link to the strut.


ALIGN TOP MOUNTS:

If the top-mount holes do not line up with the shock-turret, [i.e. if they have been removed / replaced and not fitted in the correct alignment], then they will need rotating to the correct position. Spring-compressors are required.

1. Place the strut on its side with the ring-bracket resting on the floor [as in pic]. This is so it can be lined up against the one it is replacing.

2. Compress the spring on both sides, being careful to mount the spring-compressors so they do not foul the strut resting on the ring-bracket [as in below pic].

3. Loosen off the top mount nut using a deep 18mm socket, leaving it on a few threads.

4. Rotate the lower spring-pan by tapping it round using the notches [in pic]. A hammer and blunt chisel or large flat-head screwdriver will do nicely.

5. Re-tighten the top mount nut and de-compress the spring.


REPLACE SPRING / TOP-MOUNT:

1. Compress the spring on both sides using spring-compressors.

2. Remove the top-mount nut using a deep 18mm socket. [Stand to the side when the nut is fully removed as, even with the springs compressed, the top-mount may still come off with some force.]

*If you are only replacing the top-mount then skip Step 3.*

3. If you are replacing the spring, remove the old one from the strut and remove the spring compressors. Compress the new spring, place it over the strut and seat it in the lower spring-pan.

4. Fit the new top-mount, ensuring the spring is located in the upper spring-pan, replace the 18mm top-nut and fully tighten.

5. Remove the spring-compressors.

E60: Engine Rebuild 4 - Replacing Pistons, the easiest way.

EDITED August 2015:

** I never completed this job as I ended up replacing the entire engine, but did get pretty involved in it and thought I'd somewhat finish the guide anyway. **

If you're only replacing one or two pistons then the engine does not need to come out and the crank can stay on, but this is still a hardcore task. Still, I was determined to replace two of mine this way until a crack in the timing-case and other issues made me swap the engine, which was a lot more work and cost. Pistons are about £250 each new, but with 2nd-hand ones and new rings you could probably replace two for about £300, including gaskets and fluids. 

The biggest problem with accessing the bottom-end of the E60 engine is that the sump is an all-cast-alloy design that sits very snugly into the power-steering rack and front subframe. It also bolts completely to the gearbox bell-housing at one end. You will need an engine-crane to lift and support the engine an inch, then a bit of guts to unbolt and lower the subframe with the engine hanging precariously above you, so if this is beyond what you think you can do then it's time to bung the car over to someone with ramps, as you cannot get the sump off without doing it.

This thread on Bimmer-Forums [http://www.bimmerforums.co.uk/forum/f15/2003-e60-530d-whats-secret-getting-sump-off-please-t109192/] puts the process of trying to get the sump off without all the effort, then realising it is essential, quite succinctly and was a huge help for me.

You will need:

• Ramps
• Engine crane
• 1 or 2 Trolley jacks
• 1 or 2 spare Axle stands

You will need to remove:

• Cylinder head etc. [See this post].
• Engine under-trays and metal reinforcer-plate.
• Prop-shaft at gearbox end.
• Exhaust from back of turbo.
• Turbo hosing.
• Engine-mount top nuts.
• Front anti roll-bar centre-mounts.

Basic Process:

• Suspend the engine so the front is raised about one inch.
• Remove all the screws holding the sump to the block and the gearbox-housing.
• Unbolt the front subframe, the one the engine mounts sit on. The rear two bolts may not need fully removing.
• Have someone pry down the subframe and work the sump out from the rear of the engine.
• Bolt the sub-frame back up.
• Lower the engine back onto the mounts.
• Remove the bottom-end guard.
• Remove the big-end from the affected piston.
• Use a wooden drift to knock the piston(s) out of the top of the block.
• Fit the new piston(s) and repeat the process to refit the sump.

** As I say, I did not complete this job. I lifted the engine and lowered the subframe a bit, but could not get the sump out first try. A second try never came before I decided to engine swap, though I'm sure it would have come out. Refer to the thread linked above for far better instruction. **

E60 is dead. Swirl flap!! Why?! Why didn't I remove them?!

Yes, it's happened. Owning an E60 wouldn't be complete without it... No. 4 swirl flap has broken and been sucked headlong into the engine!

This is the start of a big thread I can tell...

I pulled away in 2nd on my way home and the engine let out an almighty clunk and then started to sound very dead. I managed to get home on 3 of the 6 cylinders [duh duh duh, duh duh duh :)], but the lump is finished. Spent Thursday and Friday nights ripping the cylinder-head off it and the result is not good. The inlet valves on cyl-4 are stuck and the swirl-flap has been sucked so far into the head that I can't reach it unless I drop the valves out. That sounds like a job for someone else... As for the block, cylinders 5 and 6 are full, literally FULL of neat diesel. Ooh dear.

I started this thread on BMW Land - E60 530d sudden rough running / misfire? - with the verdict of swirl-flap or injector, but now I've thrown some pics up of the cylinders peeps have gone a bit quiet. I will have to do an engine post-mortem.

It is now I should mention I have recently got hold of a 51-plate E46 318ci, which I will detail a bit in another post as it really in bad shape. This thing was going to the crusher and I saved it saying I could use parts off it, the wheels alone are 17" MV2 copies and they're worth at least a ton. The owner just gave me the car for free and said I'd done him a favour. Once I got it home I found it to be running fine! The running gear and suspension is also in good shape, it just had seized brakes. I started re-conning the callipers, fitted 4 new discs and bought a second-hand master-cylinder as the old one was just pumping air and air alone. With this little lot on there is brake-pressure, but now I can't bleed them as the nipples are well seized!

What a difference 7 days can make! Now I'm stuck with a road-legal, but completely dead 5-series and a running 3-series with no tax. If I can get the nipples off this E46 then I will throw 6-months tax on and start using it, but really, this was not the Beemer switch I had in mind!

E39: Replacing the Propshaft Coupling (Donut)

This isn't too easy a job, but it's doable and with the part alone costing £119 from BMW, the savings on labour are worthwhile. Getting to the propshaft is the most involved part of the task as it's right up above the exhaust, which needs be taken off too, so if you're working at home make sure you've got ramps with at least 10" of clearance, axle-stands just won't cut it - there's a lot of work under there.

The old one, left, doesn't look too bad, but the metal rings have all separated from the rubber and have a lot of play in them.

PROCESS:

Lift the front of the car on ramps.

Removing the Exhaust:

1. Unscrew the four bolts on the two joint-brackets, located just behind the steel-braided flexible sections beneath the driver's seat, using a 13mm wrench. [Mine seized after a few turns, but I was able to get a hacksaw blade into the gap and had to cut them off and find new ones.]

2. Gently slide the flexible section of each front-pipe back about an inch until they are clear of the exhaust.

3. On the exhaust centre-bracket, remove the 2 nuts from the inner-centre of the plate using a 13mm wrench.

4. Remove the 4 bolts from the corners of the centre-bracket plate using a 13mm wrench and gently work it down until it is free of the studs on the exhaust-hangers.

5. Remove the 2 nuts from the front exhaust-bracket [with the round rubber-bushes] using a 10mm wrench, then tilt the exhaust until both the upward and downward facing studs are free of their brackets and gently lower the exhaust so it is resting on the rear hangers.

6. Lift the rear-silencer up into its recess and remove the two rubber exhaust-hangers from their hooks. [The benefit to removing these last is that the exhaust can be manipulated best to loosen the rubber-hangers, as they are mighty tough to get off.]

7. Lower the complete exhaust to the ground and gently slide it out from the rear of the car.

Removing the Heat-Shielding:

8. Remove the 2 screws holding the o/s of the large centre heat-shield and 1 nut on the n/s, using a 10mm wrench. The heat-shield should drop down easily.

9. There is a smaller heat-shield [in the pic below] to the o/s front of the transmission-tunnel that also needs removing, as it partially covers the bolts for the gearbox-suspension. There is a small 10mm nut at the rear-edge and another hidden where the shield curves down at the front. The third, larger nut at the front is connected through a solid bracket, which is a lot of work to remove and unnecessary - it's best to just bend the heat-shield out of the way or force it from underneath the bracket and make a gap in the ring so it slides back under easily.

Lowering the Propshaft and Removing the Donut:

TIS or the Workshop Manual say to remove the complete propshaft to get at the donut, but this is not necessary - the propshaft can be lowered with the diff end still attached enough to get the donut off without causing any damage so don't worry, there's no need to remove the rear UV-joint or mark any positions.

10. Remove the cross-member bracket, just to the rear of the gearbox-suspension, by unscrewing the 4 bolts with a 13mm wrench.

11. Unscrew the two large counterweight nuts from the gearbox-suspension using a 13mm wrench. The heavy cylindrical one is n/s, the shaped one o/s.

12. Support the gearbox on a jack and lift it slightly so weight is off the dampers.

13. Remove the 4 bolts from the gearbox-suspension mount using a 13mm wrench and work it free of the two studs on the rubber-dampers.

14. Remove the bracket holding the dampers by undoing the 2 nuts on the upper side of the bracket using a 13mm wrench. The nuts only need undoing a few turns and the bracket should slide off its mounts on the gearbox.

15. Remove the 6 nuts and bolts from the front end of the propshaft that connect it to the gearbox, using an 18mm wrench and spanner. [There is a chuck on the end of the propshaft that extends through the donut so there's no need to leave one bolt in to hold it up.]

16. Support the weight of the propshaft and remove the two nuts holding the centre-bearing bracket in place using a 13mm wrench and gently lower the centre of the propshaft, sliding the front end clear of the gearbox as you do so. Once the front end is free, lower the front of the propshaft to the ground so only the rear UV-joint is attached, or suspend the prop from some metal-wire if you're using full-height ramps.

17. Work the rubber-donut off from it's 3 mounting collars on the propshaft using a flathead screwdriver.

Fitting the new Donut:

18. It doesn't matter which way the donut faces, but 3 of the 6 bolt-holes on either side have extended metal collars, which fit into corresponding recesses on the propshaft and gearbox bosses, so these need lining up correctly when replacing the bolts.

19. The tightening torque for the 6 bolts is coming here, but we couldn't get an angle on our torque-wrench in the gap under the car, so we just gave them a good graunch and haven't had any vibrations.

20. Reverse steps 16 to 1.

E39 530d: Fuel Boost Pump Problems

Symptoms:

The car refuses to start.

There is a loss of power when driving, particularly common while going uphill.

The engine is losing revs and stalling.

BMW Parts-Diagram: [From RealOEM.com - http://realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=DL72&mospid=47545&btnr=16_0432&hg=16&fg=15]

No.	Description	Supplement	Qty	From	Up To	Part Number	Price	Notes
01	Rear fuel pipe		1		05/2001	16121184768
02	Rear fuel pipe		1		05/2001	16121184768
03	FRONT FUEL RETURN LINE	I	1		05/2001	16121184777
04	FRONT FUEL FEED LINE		1		05/2001	16121184774
05	FRONT FUEL RETURN LINE	II	1		05/2001	16121184780
06	DISTRIBUTION PIECE		1		05/2001	16121184632
07	Fuel hose	8X13MM	?		05/2001	13537563456	$44.77
	Rape methyl ester capability (RME)
08	Hose clamp	L12-15	?		05/2001	07129952104	$1.18
09	Diesel pump		1		05/2001	16126756157	$363.20
	For vehicles with Rape methyl ester version (RME)	S201A=Yes
09	Diesel pump		1		05/2001	16126756157	$363.20
10	BRACKET FUEL STRAINER	D=55MM	1		05/2001	13321702583	$16.33
11	Fillister head with washer	M6X25-Z1	1		05/2001	07119920161	$0.38
12	Vent pipe		1		05/2001	16111183301	$20.23
13	Fuel pipe		1		05/2001	16111183297	$19.50
14	Universal socket housing uncoded	2 POL.	1			61138373332	$2.70
	only in conjunction with
--	Socket contact ELO-Power 2,8x0,63	0,5-1,0 MM²	2			61138364832	$0.35

Items pictured but not listed are not installed on your vehicle.Notes

• Items pictured without a number are listed on another diagram.

E39 530d: New Drivers Window Switch

Re: my post last week - 'Gotta have a teething problem - Drivers Windows Switch', the problem is now resolved, thanks to a whole new switch module. Well a used one, but advertised as "perfect condition" by nerijusnerka on eBay and it lives up to the hype thankfully, seeing as the unit was a little pricey @ £25 delivered, but not bank-breaking to have my driver's window back in action.

It's a piece of cake to get the old unit out and plug in the new one and as soon I tried the switch all functionality had returned - I tested each window and the child locks, all now working fine, so I'm glad my deduction was right and it's not the computer... I also noticed a chip on the edge of the broken unit where someone has obviously had a go at fixing it before, so it's nice to give the car a blemish-free interior again - I can't spot a single other mark in there!

PROCESS:

1. Fold a cloth over the end of a flat-screwdriver and gently prize it down under the edge of the switch-panel. Lift the edge of the panel up with the screwdriver a few millimeters and continue around the panel until it is proud enough to be lifted out by hand.

2. Starting with the rear one, unplug the two slim upper clips from the panel by depressing the button in the centre until the latch can be lowered. Lowering the latch completely lifts the plug clear of its socket.

3. Slide a flat-screwdriver down the gap on the rear-face of the large lower clip and lever the base of the clip outwards about 1cm until the wiring-clip slides freely out of the socket.

4. Reverse the process to install the new switch-panel.