Bought an old BMW M3, filled with regret...

I know this is the M3 thread, but seems to be the only thread talking about modding E46s.

I did this last night:

208DB00F-BF0A-4316-976A-F086FF257F14_zpsxxxi6bl9.jpg


to

AD866C0D-A81C-4118-8BB3-1392497260BE_zpstwacdu7d.jpg
 
Nice little improvement!

With the amount of known data available on the K-Bus etc, I'm surprised no one has done a proper glass cockpit style of MFD for BMWs.. some of the later 3 series look really dated now due to the old school looking clocks..
 
There's something timeless about the analogue needles though really. What I would like to do if it were possible is code in a startup sequence like some newer cars have where the needles dart to maximum then to rest when the key is turned to position 1 or 2.

That silver bezel and red needle "Sharpie" mod was one of the first things I did on the old E46 :D Unless you apply enamel paint to the needles, then you will need to re-apply the Sharpie a couple times a year as it does fade from the sunlight.
 
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I'd honestly rather have analogue dials, though a nice new computer with flashy stuff in the middle of the dash would be great. Love the idea of the needles rocketing up, though!

I may well get some enamel paint and do that as it doesn't look wonderful close up. In fact...£2.49 from eBay, why not.
 
Paint only the face of the needle of course, the sides are translucent so the amber lighting can shine through :cool:
 
Update on that G Tecniq (or whatever it was called I forgot the name! It comes in a tiny glass bottle) black restorer I applied to the cabin filter cover that I think Raymond said might not last 6 months and become faded again.

Well here it is, still not faded :p

rps20160707_191624_2.jpg
 
No, that doesn't come in a tiny glass bottle either :p This stuff was G something, G3?
 
^ That looks impressive to have kept it's colour!, Can you go and check the bottle? I could do with trying some on my scuttle panel, although I suspect I should just change it, it's been on their 12 years and starting to fade..

I sorted my reverse cam out fully last night, good support from Navall, although constructive criticism where due, if they had a detailed installation guide including accessories I wouldn't have needed to contact them. The wire from the CANbus decoder to the headunit for 'reverse' needs to be cut and wired to the reverse lights (or similar) so that drives the headunit instead.

This shows the low light (22:00 last night) performance.. it's not bad, certainly keeps more colour than my CX-5's reverse cam, but inevitably it's lost a lot of detail, however, more than enough to do the job.. Hopefully the other camera module will arrive today, so I can do a bit of a side by side..

The LED reverse lights I got off a guy on M3Cutters really are 'bright'.. you can see how well they illuminate things!
iY2kQW1.jpg


I also have a few pics of how to install it in the boot lid, etc which I'll post up later..
 
Seems to work well by the looks of it. Do the PDC sensors go into continuous beep at the red marker?
 
mrk said:
Seems to work well by the looks of it. Do the PDC sensors go into continuous beep at the red marker?
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A good point! I will suss that out tonight! As I said, the other camera module should arrive today, that has switchable 'lines' so I can just have a plain camera view if need be, and being adjustable, I should be able to get the exact angle I want..

Couple of other thoughts on headunit installs:

I figured out why I've struggled with the dash cam / head unit to get 64 and 128Gb SD cards to work, it turns out you need to format them as FAT32 not exFAT, something that is quite tricky in windows (until you find the right app), so now I have my 64Gb card with my entire music collection in the car! Should keep me going for a while!

I was going to order a 3G or 4G USB dongle (although finding one guaranteed to work is tricky), but decided I might as well get a MiFi box.. These are generally USB powered and have a couple of advantages
- Everyone in the car can connect via WiFi without having to keep switching on mobile hotspot on the headunit.
- I can easily just remove it and put it in another car or hotel room if I need mobile internet
- It's guaranteed to be compatible with anything with WiFi..



[edit] Whilst installing the headunit I found what looks to be a tracker or similar fitted behind the glovebox. It's got a hefty power supply and a control unit. I will try to disconnect them as they take up loads of room and I've no intention of subscribing to a tracking service.
 
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The Android unit = tracking system as it is :) I found my 128GB and 64GB SD cards did not work whatever the format, but USB sticks are fine.

Think my AC compressor is on the way out, it's making a squeaking noise when activated, not loud but very faint. Can be when car is idle. AC works fine, but sounds like the bearings on it are going from the outside. Pepsilol recommended this for cheap on eBay, so I am holding him ultimately responsible for recommending me a lemon :mad:


:p
 
Bit of a dilema...

So I fitted the other camera.. the problem being I can now see the bumper but with the camera offset you have to angle it inwards a bit to see the other end of the bumper..

And the new camera is 'cleaner' but blurrier image, the original camera looks posterised and digital plus takes 5 seconds to 'warm' up..

1. Original Camera
ed4yaie.jpg


2. New Camera not angled in (so same as other camera's orientation, although its reversed which is just a wiring option to change)
APrBT3V.jpg


3. Angled in to see the entire bumper, can just detect objects within 15cm of the rear bumper:
sqV7Hia.jpg


As you can see,technically you need to angle in the camera's.. the new camera does allow you to see the bumper, so you can get reliably within 5cm of an object, but I am not a fan of the 'angled' look.. maybe my OCD..

The new camera you can reverse (which I've now done) and switch on grid lines which just overlay on the bumper so would be useless..


mrk said:
The Android unit = tracking system as it is :) I found my 128GB and 64GB SD cards did not work whatever the format, but USB sticks are fine.

Think my AC compressor is on the way out, it's making a squeaking noise when activated, not loud but very faint. Can be when car is idle. AC works fine, but sounds like the bearings on it are going from the outside. Pepsilol recommended this for cheap on eBay, so I am holding him ultimately responsible for recommending me a lemon :mad:


:p
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Yeah, AC compressors can be a pain like that, mines quiet for now, but most cars I've had when I've piled the miles on, they do tend to get a squeaky or rumbley...
 
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I'll wait until ECP have a deal on (always :p) and order a new compressor. Can't be dealing with used components that have an uncertain future.


Freefaller said:
That G Techniq C4 is amazing stuff - if it's the same stuff I use, it does last and last.
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That's the stuff! Not cheap but I can see why now it costs what it does.

I got bantered today :(

 
That's what jealous people say fox dumb stuff like that.

Mrk hoping yout could help. Do you know which double din can be used with the standard HK system in the e46? I have tried everywhere but cannot seem to find an answer?
 
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