The BMW UUC Digest Volume 3 : Issue 457 : "text" Format Messages in this Issue: Re: carfax Re: carfax Re: Carfax Re: carfax Re: carfax Re: carfax Re: carfax Need M42 head Re: Need M42 head Re: Need M42 head Re: Need M42 head E34 - Diagnosing front end issues? Re: E34 - Diagnosing front end issues? [E34} wiper woes 36 wipers
---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2007 19:10:21 -0500 From: "Alex Cagann" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "'John Bunda'" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, <[email protected]> Subject: Re: carfax Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> John, good points. Really good points. In fact, this type of information should be free, or, at least, very inexpensive. It's called a title history (search), and this information is already stored by the BMV. You can go to a license branch and get it, but it takes time and [a little] money. I think the individual BMV's, utilizing national information already stored, should setup a web based server that lets you do a title search on a car. If they charged five bucks for it, I think they'd be surprised how much revenue it would create. People could spend a few bucks and minutes(online) checking on their car's title (ownership/location) history, and then use their two eyes (and common sense) to fill in the rest of the picture. Again...to hell with carfax. Alex > However, I will say this - while a clean carfax (or > autocheck) doesn't necessarily mean anything, it is good to see where a > car spent its life, how many owners, and so on, and a bad > one (flood, salvage, repo, fleet) can be used to disqualify bad deals and > at least give a true picture of potential deals <rest snipped> ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 03:09:34 +0000 From: "Evan A" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Cc: [email protected] Subject: Re: carfax Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> I think that Carfax is at least useful as an "pre-screener", helping to avoid salvaged vehicles. I agree that it is inconsistent and incomplete, and would never rely solely on it for a purchase. Evan ----Original Message Follows---- From: "Alex Cagann" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "'Evan A'" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, <[email protected]> Subject: RE: [UUC] carfax Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2007 17:06:47 -0500 Personally, I think carfax is a bunch of $%^S*%$. I've bought cars with perfectly clean histories and zero paint or bodywork and they come up with some little crap where someone at the license branch typed in a wrong odometer number (it happens ALL the time) or some such. On the flip side, and...more important for buyers, I've ran carfaxes on trade-ins or cars I see at auction that have obviously been near or at the 'total' definition, and they have clean carfaxes. I sell 20 or so cars a month and, believe me, carfax sucks and is of NO indication that your car is what they say it is. If you know a friend that bought a subscription, USE IT. Don't buy one. If it is illegal, then come sue me, I welcome it. If you think it is not 'fair' to carfax, then tell that to someone who bought a previously wrecked car based on a clean carfax report...I have personally seen over 50 cars with tons of paintwork and bodywork on them with clean carfax records. I think carfax should be banned and a very large class action suit should be started and put those [EMAIL PROTECTED] out of their misery. A car is usually a person's second largest investment (next to their house). Look at the car and judge with your eyes...don't trust carfax. Alex Cagann > I've been informed by several hall monitors that getting or giving carfax > reports is, at the least, unethical, and probably illegal. I will now go > directly to carfax.com (without passing Go or collecting $200) and > purchase > my own subscription. > > mea culpa, > Evan _________________________________________________________________ Don't just search. Find. Check out the new MSN Search! http://search.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200636ave/direct/01/ ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2007 20:26:12 EDT From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [email protected] Subject: Re: Carfax Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Well said Alex! I think it's a racket as well, from personal experience. I have proof in my garage! John Weese ************************************** See what's free at http://www.aol.com. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2007 19:57:34 -0500 From: "Dennis Wynne" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Alex Cagann" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, [email protected] Subject: Re: carfax Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> You assume everyone uses Carfax (or AutoCheck) like you do - we don't. Or you assume we would buy a car just because it has a clean lookup - we would not. If I am shopping for a used car and I pull up cars online, with an unlimited Carfax/AutoCheck account I can instantly eliminate any cars from my search that have junk titles and even SOME that have been in wrecks if I want to. See something in the local paper that looks good? Call and get the VIN and check it before driving over to look at it. Once I thin the list down, I can get more serious about the ones that past this first quick and simple test. You can also see if the story the seller is telling rings true. They did buy this 2 years ago and have hardly driven it - or they used it to commute to school for the last year and racked up 20k miles in 12 months. They tell you this, if you are lucky the online lookup will have mileage entries to confirm where and when it was purchased and the miles at that time - and maybe even more mileage datapoints from yearly inspections or service work. Sure, you are going to want to have an inspection done before you purchase. Sure you want to even lay eyes and hands on the car yourself before you purchase. But armed with the VIN and an online account I can eliminate any suspect cars from the mix and waste zero time, gas, plane tickets, inspection charges, and energy on them. To me, that is well worth the $24.95 asking price - for sure with AutoCheck when you get 60 days unlimited lookups for that price. Dennis On 4/24/07, Alex Cagann <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Personally, I think carfax is a bunch of $%^S*%$. I've bought cars with > perfectly clean histories and zero paint or bodywork and they come up with > some little crap where someone at the license branch typed in a wrong > odometer number (it happens ALL the time) or some such. On the flip side, > and...more important for buyers, I've ran carfaxes on trade-ins or cars I > see at auction that have obviously been near or at the 'total' definition, > and they have clean carfaxes. I sell 20 or so cars a month and, believe me, > carfax sucks and is of NO indication that your car is what they say it is. > If you know a friend that bought a subscription, USE IT. Don't buy one. If > it is illegal, then come sue me, I welcome it. If you think it is not 'fair' > to carfax, then tell that to someone who bought a previously wrecked car > based on a clean carfax report...I have personally seen over 50 cars with > tons of paintwork and bodywork on them with clean carfax records. I think > carfax should be banned and a very large class action suit should be started > and put those [EMAIL PROTECTED] out of their misery. A car is usually a > person's > second largest investment (next to their house). Look at the car and judge > with your eyes...don't trust carfax. > > Alex Cagann > > > I've been informed by several hall monitors that getting or giving carfax > > reports is, at the least, unethical, and probably illegal. I will now go > > directly to carfax.com (without passing Go or collecting $200) and > > purchase > > my own subscription. > > > > mea culpa, > > Evan > > > > Search the ARCHIVES:http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] > > > __________________________________________________________________________ > In memory of Michel Potheau - friend, enthusiast, founder of the BMW CCA. > > UUC Motorwerks - BMW Performance Fine-tuning and home of the Ultimate > Short Shifter - accept no substitutes! > 908-874-9092 . http://www.uucmotorwerks.com > ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2007 21:10:44 -0500 From: "Alex Cagann" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "'Dennis Wynne'" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, <[email protected]> Subject: Re: carfax Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Unfortunately, many cars that should NOT have a clean carfax, do. That is my point. In those cases, your $24.95 is not only a waste of money, but completely misleading. You will expend time and energy in these cars, only to find that they slipped through. Alex > Sure, you are going to want to have an inspection done before you > purchase. Sure you want to even lay eyes and hands on the car yourself > before you purchase. But armed with the VIN and an online account I > can eliminate any suspect cars from the mix and waste zero time, gas, > plane tickets, inspection charges, and energy on them. To me, that is > well worth the $24.95 asking price - for sure with AutoCheck when you > get 60 days unlimited lookups for that price. > > Dennis ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2007 23:02:15 -0400 From: "Matt Bader" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Subject: Re: carfax Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> I have to admit that I did not use CarFax when I purchased my M3. My decision to purchase was based on three things: the condition of the car (pretty obviously well cared for), a complete inspection by the local dealer, and my gut feeling about the current owner of the car. Although he was unknown to me prior to the negotiation phase of transaction, I was able to find out what kind of job he had, the kind of money he made, and something about his lifestyle, family situation and personality. My assessment was that he was someone who had the money to care for the car, was someone who was very particular about the things he owned, and someone who likely did his due diligence when he acquired the vehicle (previously owned) in the first place. So, in a private sale at least, trying to get a handle on the kind of person the current owner is, that counted for a lot in my case. I wasn't disappointed with the end result. Matt Bader 98 M3/4 -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Dennis Wynne Sent: Tuesday, April 24, 2007 8:58 PM To: Alex Cagann; [email protected] Subject: Re: [UUC] carfax You assume everyone uses Carfax (or AutoCheck) like you do - we don't. Or you assume we would buy a car just because it has a clean lookup - we would not. If I am shopping for a used car and I pull up cars online, with an unlimited Carfax/AutoCheck account I can instantly eliminate any cars from my search that have junk titles and even SOME that have been in wrecks if I want to. See something in the local paper that looks good? Call and get the VIN and check it before driving over to look at it. Once I thin the list down, I can get more serious about the ones that past this first quick and simple test. You can also see if the story the seller is telling rings true. They did buy this 2 years ago and have hardly driven it - or they used it to commute to school for the last year and racked up 20k miles in 12 months. They tell you this, if you are lucky the online lookup will have mileage entries to confirm where and when it was purchased and the miles at that time - and maybe even more mileage datapoints from yearly inspections or service work. Sure, you are going to want to have an inspection done before you purchase. Sure you want to even lay eyes and hands on the car yourself before you purchase. But armed with the VIN and an online account I can eliminate any suspect cars from the mix and waste zero time, gas, plane tickets, inspection charges, and energy on them. To me, that is well worth the $24.95 asking price - for sure with AutoCheck when you get 60 days unlimited lookups for that price. Dennis On 4/24/07, Alex Cagann <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Personally, I think carfax is a bunch of $%^S*%$. I've bought cars with > perfectly clean histories and zero paint or bodywork and they come up with > some little crap where someone at the license branch typed in a wrong > odometer number (it happens ALL the time) or some such. On the flip side, > and...more important for buyers, I've ran carfaxes on trade-ins or cars I > see at auction that have obviously been near or at the 'total' definition, > and they have clean carfaxes. I sell 20 or so cars a month and, believe me, > carfax sucks and is of NO indication that your car is what they say it is. > If you know a friend that bought a subscription, USE IT. Don't buy one. If > it is illegal, then come sue me, I welcome it. If you think it is not 'fair' > to carfax, then tell that to someone who bought a previously wrecked car > based on a clean carfax report...I have personally seen over 50 cars with > tons of paintwork and bodywork on them with clean carfax records. I think > carfax should be banned and a very large class action suit should be started > and put those [EMAIL PROTECTED] out of their misery. A car is usually a > person's > second largest investment (next to their house). Look at the car and judge > with your eyes...don't trust carfax. > > Alex Cagann > > > I've been informed by several hall monitors that getting or giving carfax > > reports is, at the least, unethical, and probably illegal. I will now go > > directly to carfax.com (without passing Go or collecting $200) and > > purchase > > my own subscription. > > > > mea culpa, > > Evan > > > > Search the ARCHIVES:http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] > > > __________________________________________________________________________ > In memory of Michel Potheau - friend, enthusiast, founder of the BMW CCA. > > UUC Motorwerks - BMW Performance Fine-tuning and home of the Ultimate > Short Shifter - accept no substitutes! > 908-874-9092 . http://www.uucmotorwerks.com > Search the ARCHIVES:http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] __________________________________________________________________________ In memory of Michel Potheau - friend, enthusiast, founder of the BMW CCA. UUC Motorwerks - BMW Performance Fine-tuning and home of the Ultimate Short Shifter - accept no substitutes! 908-874-9092 . http://www.uucmotorwerks.com ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 11:22:26 -0400 From: Bill Weismann - MSR <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: [email protected] Subject: Re: carfax Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> If you guys ARE going to use one of these title check services, I would STRONGLY suggest using AutoCheck. AutoCheck will catch a lot of things that Carfax won't, namely if the car was run at auction with a frame damage announcement. Now, I had a Volvo C70 that I ran at Manheim successfully arbitrated for Frame once because some transporter cranked down too hard on a tow hook under the car and bent it, but it also can mean that the car played ping-pong off the barriers on the Jersey Turnpike. I had a Volvo S80 that I leased.. car got SLAMMED by an oncoming SUV when it was 6 months old.. $28,000 insurance claim later it was fixed. Car had a squeaky clean carfax when I turned it in. Bill ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 12:42:19 -0400 From: johngrills <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [email protected] Subject: Need M42 head Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Gruppe, Turns out I cracked the head in my '91 318is...so...does anyone happen to have an M42 head lying around? I believe M44 will work as well with minor mods...my cams look good... I'd be entertain a whole engine as well if you know the history on it. Damn fragile little suckers. cheers! John Grills NCC-BMWCCA ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 13:01:30 -0400 From: "Fuerst Chris" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Subject: Re: Need M42 head Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Oh, come on. There is a story there somewhere..... 1st -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of johngrills Turns out I cracked the head in my '91 318is. Damn fragile little suckers. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 13:25:13 -0400 From: johngrills <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: Fuerst Chris <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: [email protected] Subject: Re: Need M42 head Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> well, of course there is....the saga has gone almost a year now. I'd have to publish a book... perhaps it's time to ruin the car with an M50 conversion. r/jpg Fuerst Chris wrote: > Oh, come on. There is a story there somewhere..... > > 1st > > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of johngrills > > Turns out I cracked the head in my '91 318is. > > Damn fragile little suckers. > > Search the ARCHIVES:http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] > > > __________________________________________________________________________ > In memory of Michel Potheau - friend, enthusiast, founder of the BMW CCA. > > UUC Motorwerks - BMW Performance Fine-tuning and home of the Ultimate > Short Shifter - accept no substitutes! > 908-874-9092 . http://www.uucmotorwerks.com > > > ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 10:39:12 -0700 From: Mark Gold <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: johngrills <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: bmwuucdigest list <[email protected]> Subject: Re: Need M42 head Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> I was thinking the same thing. Here's a complete 5-speed car for sale... part it out and transplant the motor and tranny into your 318is. I'd pick up this car if I had the time and space to perform the transplant. http://sacramento.craigslist.org/car/318309265.html On Apr 25, 2007, at 10:25 AM, johngrills wrote: > well, of course there is....the saga has gone almost a year now. > I'd have to publish a book... > > perhaps it's time to ruin the car with an M50 conversion. > > r/jpg > > Fuerst Chris wrote: >> Oh, come on. There is a story there somewhere..... >> >> 1st >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of johngrills >> >> Turns out I cracked the head in my '91 318is. >> >> Damn fragile little suckers. >> >> Search the ARCHIVES:http://www.mail-archive.com/ >> [email protected] >> >> >> _____________________________________________________________________ >> _____ >> In memory of Michel Potheau - friend, enthusiast, founder of the >> BMW CCA. >> >> UUC Motorwerks - BMW Performance Fine-tuning and home of the Ultimate >> Short Shifter - accept no substitutes! >> 908-874-9092 . http://www.uucmotorwerks.com >> >> >> > > Search the ARCHIVES:http://www.mail-archive.com/ > [email protected] > > > ______________________________________________________________________ > ____ > In memory of Michel Potheau - friend, enthusiast, founder of the > BMW CCA. > > UUC Motorwerks - BMW Performance Fine-tuning and home of the Ultimate > Short Shifter - accept no substitutes! > 908-874-9092 . http://www.uucmotorwerks.com ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 07:18:37 -0400 From: "Karl Zemlin" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Subject: E34 - Diagnosing front end issues? Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> My '94 525 touring has issues - now running at 172,000 miles. I replaced upper control arms with supposedly upgraded bushings around 100,000 miles. I've had a bad shimmy under braking for some time now - not really an issue below 50MPH, but I sometimes feel pulsing at lower speeds. I also get a quiet clunk sometimes when going over bumps at low speed - I can get it sometimes when tapping the brakes. I think I have warped rotor or two contributing to the shimmy - the amplitude varies a lot - sometimes braking is fine - other times the whole car shakes and there's some good clunking coming from the front end. I need to climb around under there and look for bad parts, but my past attempts to find bad things on E28s and earlier on this car have generally been inconclusive. Is there a good primer written up somewhere on how to identify front end issues? I recently had my daughter in the car - wheels on the ground - turning the wheel from side to side while I put my hands on all the connection points looking for something with play. I couldn't feel anything. I am a mechanical engineer and machinist with a good feel for such things, so it isn't that I'm clueless in general - just about BMW suspensions. Also, how much runnout is too much on a brake rotor. I can put a dial indicator on them, but I don't know what I'm looking for. Karl Zemlin '94 525i touring (Shake it, Baby, shake it!) Indianapolis ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 08:21:27 -0400 From: johngrills <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: Karl Zemlin <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: [email protected] Subject: Re: E34 - Diagnosing front end issues? Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Karl Zemlin wrote: > I've had a bad shimmy under braking for some time now - not > really an issue below 50MPH, but I sometimes feel pulsing at lower speeds. > I also get a quiet clunk sometimes when going over bumps at low speed - I > can get it sometimes when tapping the brakes. > any heat buildup on the wheel/rotor?...could be a sticky caliper...rotors are cheap...buy new ones. I'm a 3er enthusiast, so I have little direct experience w/the 5er suspension setup, but 75k on control arms is approaching the replacement point. Does everything else up there have 175k on it? Hmmm, could be a wheel bearing too...put the car up on good jack stands and tug on the wheels. Not likely you will see any looseness under full weight load... cheers! John Grills NCC-BMWCCA ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 07:31:46 -0600 From: Clarence <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: UUC Digest <[email protected]> Subject: [E34} wiper woes Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Car is a '93 525iT. I turned the wipers on this morning and they traveled about 1/3 up and stopped. Turning switch on and off has no effect. When I pull the fuse I notice less drain on the alternator. When I reinsert the fuse the wipers twitch once but no real movement, the alternator indicates a drain, but the fuse doesn't blow. Has anybody seen this before or any suggestions on where to start? TIA Clarence West Bend, WI ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 10:33:08 -0400 From: "Fuerst Chris" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Subject: 36 wipers Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Clarence's post reminded me.... On the e36, Are the wiper arms that go more straight up and down supposed to be on the drivers side and the ones on the angle toward the passenger side supposed to be on the passenger side (middle)? On my cars the more vertical arm is in the middle and the hood catches on the wiper arm hinge area when you open it. Also, on one car the wipers go down and then up on the sweep cycle. That is a mismatch between the motor shaft and the linkage arm correct? If so I guess I have to go cowl diving this weekend. Might as well fix the rust hole at the bottom of the windshield under the panel whilst in there. Thanks, 1st ------------------------------ End of [bmwuucdigest] digest(15 messages) **********
