BMW E36 Blog

EBay Illuminated Shift Knob … Very nice

25th November 2008

EBay Illuminated Shift Knob … Very nice

 

I’ve found some pictures of an illuminated BMW E36 M3 shift knob. The shift knob is a little bit different from the OEM style, but it looks very decent and it’s very cheap. Costs just $30 (without shipping) which is a killer price when compared to the OEM one. You can find it on ebay here.  I just want you to notice how fabulous it looks with a short shift kit (well, it looks like one). By the way, I’m not a fan of the yellowish illumination color. It would be better if it was amber. Anyway, take a look, I think even with this flaw, it still looks good. Besides, I think you may be able to open it and somehow get it to illuminate amber instead. I know, I tried this with the OEM one and it worked like charm.





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posted in Electrical, Interior, Tips & Tricks, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

23rd November 2008

One Touch Open/Close Sunroof . . . DIY!

 

This DIY (Do It Yourself) is a contribution by spoonerDee from Bimmerforums. In this DIY, you can convert your sunroof to become a one-touch open/close sunroof. Isn’t that awesome? Take a look ,the procedure is very very simple.

Disclaimer: Use this info at your own risk!! The author is not responsible if this didn’t work for you :-).

To start this is a very easy mod, will cost about $25 plus shipping from this link.

Here are the basic tools you will need: your hands, a wire cutter/stripper/crimper and one butt connector. I thought I might need a screw driver but I did not.

First either close the door as you work, or turn off your interior lights as you work. Now pull the panel off where the switch is, its barely held in so you can do this by hand with little to no force.

Next, you need to locate the harness from which you will tap your power from. You will see a bunch of small wires wrapped in a red sleeve that goes towards the left, to remove it you will have to push it to the left to get it off of its holder then maneuver it around the motor and the roof liner out so you can work with it.

Here is the harness pulled out.

Disconnect the harness and locate the power wire, it is the Red wire with the White stripe.

Next, take your crimper/cutter/striper and cut the wire, be sure to leave enough room on both sides to work with. Once cut, strip both ends of the wire.

Next take the part you ordered and cut the worthless tip off the power wire (the red wire) then strip the end of it. Next connect one end of the harness to the power wire of the module by twisting them together as shown

Then take your butt connector and crimp them into one end, then take the other end of the power wire and crimp it in the other side like so

Now the module has power, next you need to disconnect the wires going into the switch in your panel, take that wire and plug it into the module. you will notice there is a yellow sleeve on the plug, that insures that it will only plug in, in one direction. PAY ATTENTION YOU WHICH WAY YOUR PLUG IS PUT ON IN THE BUTTON IN THE PANEL, look at the plug in the switch, from the side, you will notice that underneath that sleeve the plug indents on one side. make a note of that.

Now that you have plugged the wire from the switch into the module, plug the matching wire from the module into the switch being sure to face it the right way

Now with everything together turn the car on all the way so to get full power and not put any strain on the battery or the sunroof motor.

Once on push and hold the switch until the sunroof opens all the way, once it is open, push and hold the switch until the sunroof closes all the way. This will set the memory in the module which times how long you hold it in each direction. from then on when you push the button either way it will always open for that amount of time, so be sure you hold it the whole time so it opens and closes completely.

Once you have done this, do your first test run, push and release to open, then push and release to close, sit back and enjoy your one touch roof.

Once you are set, tuck all the wires back into the roof, and replace the panel and your done, CONGRATULATIONS!

Here is a video link to the mod in action. Hard to see the tilt in action but you get the idea.

If you are nervous about working with wires, don’t be, this is simple, easy and a great way to learn how to do minor electrical work on a car.

Note: If you have a pre 97 model, you need to get a 97 plus model plus this part to do the same.

 

Are you looking for more do it yourself procedures (DIY) ? I recommend the Bentley BMW 3 series service manual for you. I got it and I think it’s a gold mine for us -BMW E36 Owners-. If you didn’t grab your copy yet, get it right now! I’m sure you’ll find this book worth every penny you’ve paid for. Get the Bentley BMW 3 series service manual

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posted in Do It Yourself, Uncategorized | 5 Comments

19th November 2008

Miss November 2008 . . . Great!

 

Hello guys,

It’s time for a new model for the month of November 2008. I believe today’s choice is very good and I’m sure you are going to like it. Usually, I prefer many colors over the white, but from time to time, you just see a car and can’t help but say wow!. Take a look… What do you think?


   



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posted in Models, Photos, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

18th November 2008

BMW E30 1.8 Turbo vs BMW E36 M3

 

Today, I got a little bit confused about the results of a video that I saw on YouTube.com. At first, I saw this drag race between BMW E30 1.8is Turbo and a BMW E36 M3. Guess who’s won? right, the E36 M3 did.



I was just preparing to write a post about this when I found another part of that race (that is part 2), in which, the E30 wins? :woot: I’m now a little bit confused …



Have you ever seen a race with such setup? What was the result?

 

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posted in Uncategorized, Videos | 1 Comment

15th November 2008

Fascinating BMW E36 M3 Touring

 

Can you believe this guy? Oh god, I need to learn how to do this magic…

Take a look, it’s stunning




 

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posted in E36 M3, fun, Uncategorized, Videos | 3 Comments