Build Log: M57 X5

[TwinTurboWagon]

End of Winter Start of Spring Update.

Truck/trailer rental? No thanks!

Passenger seat removal was key

Fighting the good fight against winter grime

Got caught in a snow squall on a snowboard trip. This was the drive up...

This was the drive back (in squall)

Aftermath, proud to say this is my best "winter coat" to date.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/p...NB4z_4DpLkBUnAh2Ug=w1239-h929-s-no?authuser=0

X5 + SNOW + MUSHROOMS=

Telluride is very nice, probably the most striking mountains I have seen so far in the Rockies.

Picked up some kayaks from the in-laws. MPG wasn't great driving from Havasu, AZ to Denver.

All 3 vehicles clean at once? Had to snap a pic

New summer wheels inbound. Switching the 5th Gen 1LE ZL1 wheels for 6th Gen. I prefer the more traditional 5 spoke look but the wheels are still chunky, concave, and relatively light. The wheels are currently at the machine shop, then straight to the powder coated for a fresh satin black finish.

I also snagged an exhaust manifold which will be ceramic coated. This is part of my hot-side refresh which will include new ex-manifold studs, hardware, and all new gaskets to hopefully, finally, resolve my annoying exhaust leak.

 

[fmorelli]

@TwinTurboWagon, have you considered barrier coating the exhaust manifold instead of cerakote? For example, Swain who has been in the business for many decades, used by NASCAR, etc. We were working with them back in the 90's and they were good, for endurance racing applications.

 

[TwinTurboWagon]

@TwinTurboWagon, have you considered barrier coating the exhaust manifold instead of cerakote? For example, Swain who has been in the business for many decades, used by NASCAR, etc. We were working with them back in the 90's and they were good, for endurance racing applications.

I haven't but I will research it, thanks for the heads up.

 

[fmorelli]

I haven't but I will research it, thanks for the heads up.

https://swaintech.com/race-coatings/race-coating-descriptions/white-lightning-exhaust-coatings/

 

[TwinTurboWagon]

Just rolled over 131,000 and since my last update in April I have averaged >26mpg over the past 5,000 miles, very respectable. Over the past 5 months the X5 has been a doing it's job facilitating work and play.

Mountain bike here

Mountain bike there

Mountain bike everywhere

Yakin' too

Finally got a strut for my cargo floor!

Got my manifold back with it's ceramic coating.

Pile-o-goodies. Oil, various filters, tie rods, and some window surrounds for the C/D pillar window. Also exhaust manifold studs, nuts, and gaskets.

New tire deflectors

New wheels mounted

Washy wahsy

Back to Work! Strapping and insulation for my garage ceiling. It will be R59!

Back to Play!

 

[TwinTurboWagon]

Driving home from a trailhead I was on a dirt road which had a lot of washboard surfaces. On the drive a small front end clunk became a front end bang-bang. When I got back onto paved roads the clunking continued so I knew something let go. When closer to home and stopped at a red light I did notice the smell of raw diesel which I thought was odd but I didn't think too much about it .....until I got home and noticed a trail of fuel in the driveway. lol

As it turns out the Phantom fuel system (which is like a small fuel filter) which was installed in-line near the OEM fuel filter had it's connection rattled loose and was leaking. For simplicity and reliability I removed the unit. This was originally installed since it is intended to "excite" the fuel and improve combustibility and therefore improve economy and performance. Hard to really extrapolate data to confirm that since there are so many variables in the mix but I figured with it now removed I can see if there are any noticeable differences.

I figured the clunking was from the Phantom fuel sysytem banging around since it was loose and was only secured with a couple zip ties. When removing the Phantom fuel system I also swapped in a fresh OEM fuel filter.

Better to have a fuel leak under the vehicle instead of the engine bay!

Phantom system which was removed

We replaced our utility sink with a dog wash for our good boi Oliver.

Dog-wash also = auto parts and wheel washer!

Going for a drive after addressing the fuel system it became very clear I did NOT resolve the clunking. Time to go back in...

rugh rough

RUGH ROUGH!!!

Found the problem! Sturt mounts had 40k on them but this damage was caused by an installation error ...by me. Turns out I didn't install the metal washer on the underside of the strut mount, therefore on the rubber was keeping the strut shaft from poking through, if the washer was installed it would bottom out on the strut mount and squish the foam rings. Whoops!!

I had some sturt mounts shipped from FCP and while I waited for them to arrive I took advantage of having the X5 in the garage and did some other maintenance.

Cabin (and recirc) filters

New passenger handle

Added some more sound deadening material (felt tape) to various locations on the dash to known creaky locations, back of Nav screen shown here.

The metal grills on my P3 vent gauge were once black but have become copper-ish from, I assume, UV. So it was refreshed with Plasti Dip.

On a side-note this style jack stand does well on the Swisstrax floor and doesn't deform or damage it.

 

[TwinTurboWagon]

Time for the long overdue leather cleaning. I previously used Leatherique on my wife's Q7 which has awesome Valcona leather and the results were awesome.

Q7 leather BEFORE

Q7 After

Shortly after coating all of the leather in Leatherique I realized I wasn't sure is Dakota was even real leather. As it turns out it's a real leather but has a coating on top which renders Leatherique not as effective. Thankfully my leather is perforated so the cleaner can penetrate there. I followed through with the procedure knowing it's unlikely the results would be as spectacular and in the end I am happy with the results but this really makes me want to track down an X5M interior with Merino leather. No doubt the Dakota is durable but I am not a fan of the way it feels, it reminds me of Crayons and plastic.

Anywho, back to pictures!

Here are BEFORE photos

Leatherique Rejuvinator applied. 2.5 coats and let it sit overnight.

Leatherique Pristine Clean applied and then leather was agitated with a horse-hair brush, wiped, and buffed. It's always a fun transformation to observe, notice how the leather has a nice matte finish.

Steering wheel stitching before

Stitching after

Wheel after. There is still some shiny-ness (dirt and grease) up top so I may reapply later but overall it's a dramatic change.

Bucket before cleaning driver seat and steering wheel

...After

Pokey pokey!

Rear seat During/After

AFTER

New strut mounts arrived. I couldn't find my OEM strut dust shields/washers and FCP/BMW wanted $35 per washer *pfft* get outta here, to the local yard I went for some recycling.

New strut mounts AND WASHERS installed, we're back in business.

Yea, that's some nice rubbing. You gotta pay the the 295/45/20 tax in order to enjoy the benefits of those cushy sidewalls.