Re: 4- BMW 5 Series Questions. Help is appreciated (archive)

Hello Everyone,
This is my first time posting to this site, and I thank everyone in advance for all thoughts/ideas.
1. Has anyone heard of BMW replacing the engine in 1995 540 series cars to avoid a class action law suit? I met a guy yesterday who just had this done. The engine was not compatible with the USA engine standards and burned too much sulpher resulting in poor performance etc. he said BMW was avoiding all the bad press by repacing the engine. Is this true? Does it afect 530 series of model year 1995?

2. My 1988 528e has 247k miles, and is in great shape..or so I thought... Recently it has started to lose alot of oil...small puddles. The oil plug is fine. What else could it be? I change the oil and filter regularly.

3. The same 1988 528e car has also started to act strangely when I have the heater, radio, fog lites,headlites on..The radio may suddenly turn itself off, the speedometr/odometer may freeze up, the brake lite on the on board computer may stay lit, or on 1 occasion the engine shut off taking a sharp but slow curve. I have replaced the fuses, and it has been checked by a BMW mechanic ($511)but it still malfunctions intermittantly. What could be the root cause? Since this is an older model, I am told that diagnostic tests will not work. Anyone who knows of reputable mechanics in the Newton area of Boston please forward my way.

4. When I first turn the radio on( original radio) the speaker volume crackles when I turn it up or down. The sound and tuning aspect of the radio/ music is fine. The problem only exists when I mve the volume knob. The Weatherband tuning seems to be "stuck". Do I need a new radio, new speakers or what?
Thank you!

i know there is something regarding the early 90s v-8s. theres a warranty action regarding the engine block.i dont know the particulars. as for the 528e, it sounds like normal stuff. the fuse boxes on these cars require constant maintenance. the contacts get dirty and lose their tension. the intermittent shutdown may be part of this. the fuse regarding the brakes/radio/ speedo is# 5. removing the radio and spraying contact cleaner on the volume will some times helps the crackle.im in marshfield, south of boston. my mechanic went out of business 2 yrs ago.i have fixed everything myself since then. i have 3 528es. my 88 has 246k on it. if the oil is a constant drip, it may be the oil pressure or the oil level switch, or any of a number of seals . i just read my Bentley manual and post questions here. a word in general about mechanics, is that intermittent electrical troubles can get expensive if the guy is into replacing parts until the problem goes away. i would clean up the fuse contacts and replace fuses, all of them. note any where the contacts are blackened. some guys even use tie wraps around the contacts to keep them tight. also since ive replaced 4 of the fuses with a ACO type fuse block, ive had little trouble. the dying on corners could be a dirty battery connection.

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