1984-1990 BMW 3 Series E30 (318i, 325, 325e, 325es, 325i, 325is, 325 Convertiable) Service Repair Manual ( Perfect for the DIY p

Bentley Publishers, a division of Robert Bentley, Inc. t 734 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, MA 02138 USA Information that makes 800·423-4595/617·547·4170 the difference ® BentleyPublish! WARNING-important safety notice Technical contact information We welcome your feedback. Please submit corrections and additions to our BMW technical discussion forum at: http://w.BentleyPublishers.com Errata information We will evaluate submissions and post appropriate editorial changes online as text errata or tech discussion. Appropriate errata will be incorporated with the book text in future printings. Read errata information for this book before beginning work on your vehicle. See the following web address for additional information: http://w.BentleyPublishers.com/errata/ Do not use this manual unless you are familiar with basic automotive repair procedures and safe workshop practices. This manual illustrates the workshop procedures required for most seice work. It is not a substitute for full and up-to-date information from the vehicle manufacturer or for proper training as an automotive technician. Note that it is not possible for us to anticipate all of the ways or conditions under which vehicles may be serviced or to provide cautions as to all of the possible hazards that may result. The vehicle manufacturer will continue to issue service information updates and pas retrofits after the editorial closing of this manual. Some of these updates and retrofits will apply to procedures and specifications in this manual. We regret that we cannot supply updates to purchasers of this manual. We have endeavored to ensure the accuracy of the information in this manual. Please note, however, that considering the vast quantity and the complexity of the service information involved, we cannot warrant the accuracy or completeness of the information contained in this manual. FOR THESE REASONS, NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR THE AUTHOR MAKES ANY WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, THAT THE INFORMION IN THIS BOOK IS FREE OF ERRORS OR OMISSIONS, AND WE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM THE IMPLIED RRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, EVEN IF THE P UBLISHER OR AUTHOR HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF A PARTICULAR P URPOSE, AND EVEN IF A PARTICULAR PURPOSE IS INDICATED IN THE MANUAL. THE PUBLISHER AND AUTHOR ALSO DISCLAIM ALL LIABILITY FOR DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES THAT RESULT FROM ANY USE OF THE EXAMPLES, INSTRUCTIONS OR OTHER INFORMATION IN THIS BOOK. IN NO EVENT SHALL OUR LIABILITY WHETHER IN TORT, CONTRACT OR OTHERWISE EXCEED THE COST OF THIS MANUAL. Your common sense and good judgment are crucial to safe and successful service work. Read procedures through before staing them. Think about whether the condition of your car, your level of mechanical skill, or your level of reading comprehension might result in or contribute in some way to an occurrence which might cause you injury, damage your car, or result in an unsafe repair. If you have doubts for these or other reasons about your ability to peorm safe repair work on your car, have the work done at an authorized BMW dealer or other qualified shop. Pa numbers listed in this manual are for identification purposes only, not for ordering. Always check with your authorized BMW dealer to verify pa numbers and availability before beginning service work that may require new parts. Before attempting any work on your BMW, read the WARNINGS and CAUTIONS on pages ix and x and any WARNING or CAUTION that accompanies a procedure in the seice manual. Review the WARNINGS and CAUTiONS each time you prepare to work on your BMW. Special tools required to peorm certain seice operations are identified in the manual and are recommended for use. Use of tools other than those recommended in this manual may be detrimental to the car's safe operation as well as the safety of the person seicing the car. Copies of this manual may be purchased from most automotive accessories and parts dealers specializing in BMW automobiles, from selected booksellers, or directly from the publisher. The publisher encourages comments from the reader of this manual. These communications have been and will be carefully considered in the preparation of this and other manuals. Please contact Robe Bentley, Inc., Publishers at the address listed on the top of this page. This manual was published by Robe Bentley, Inc., Publishers. BMW has not reviewed and does not vouch for the accuracy of the technical specifications and procedures described in this manual. Li brary of Congress Catalog Card No. 90-84736 ISBN 0-8376-0325-0 Bentley Stock No. B390 Editorial closing 08/1990 10 09 08 07 06 05 16 15 14 13 The paper used in this publication is acid free and meets the requirements of the National Standard for Information Sciences- Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials. @ © 1991 Robert Bentley, Inc. All rights reserved. All information contained in this manual is based on the information available to the publisher at the time of editorial closing. The right is reserved to make changes at any time without notice. No pa of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written consent of the publisher. This includes text, figures, and tables. All rights reserved under Beme and Pan-American Copyright conventions. Manufactured in the United States of America

Contents: Fundamentals Lubrication and Maintenance Engine Management-Driveability Engine Ignition Fuel System Cooling System Exhaust System and Emission Controls Manual ansmission and Clutch Automatic Transmission a Driveshaft and Final Drive  B ra kes a Suspension a nd Steering  Body and Interior  Elerical System  Ihdexte

Foreword and Disclaimer For the BMW owner with basic mechanical skills and for independent auto service professionals, this manual includes many of the specifications and procedures that were available in an authorized BMW dealer service depament as this manual went to press. The BMW owner with no intention of working on his or her car will find that owning and referring to this manual will make it possible to be better informed and to more knowledgeably discuss repairs with a professional automotive technician. The BMW owner intending to do maintenance and repair should have screwdrivers, a set of metric wrenches and sockets, and metric Allen and To wrenches, since these basic hand tools are needed for most of the work described in this manual. Many procedures will also require a torque wrench to ensure that fasteners are tightened properly and in accordance with specifications. Additional information on basic tools and other tips can be found in 1 Fundamentals. In some cases, the text refers to special tools that are recommended or required to accomplish adjustments or repairs. These tools are usually identified by their BMW special tool number and illustrated. Disclaimer We have endeavored to ensure the accuracy of the information in this manual. When the vast array of data presented in the manual is taken into account, however, no claim to infallibility can be made. We therefore cannot be responsible for the result of any errors that may have crept into the text. Please also read the Important Safety Notice on the copyright page at the beginning of this book. A thorough pre-reading of each procedure, and WARNINGS and CAUTIONS at the front of the book and those that accompany the procedure is essential. Reading a procedure before beginning work will help you determine in advance the need for specific skills, identify hazards, prepare for appropriate capture and handling of hazardous materials, and the need for particular tools and replacement parts such as gaskets. Bentley Publishers encourages comments from the readers of this manual with regard to errors, and/or suggestions for improvement of our product. These communications have been and will be carefully considered in the preparation of this and other manuals. If you identify inconsistencies in the manual, you may have found an error. Please contact the publisher and we will endeavor to post applicable corrections on our website. Posted corrections (errata) should be reviewed before beginning work. Please see the following web address: http://w.BentleyPublishers.com/errata/ BMW offers extensive warranties, especially on components of the fuel delivery and emission control systems. Therefore, before deciding to repair a BMW that may be covered wholly or in part by any warranties issued by BMW of North America, LLC, consult your authorized BMW dealer. You may find that the dealer can make the repair either free or at minimum cost. Regardless of its age, or whether it is under warranty, your BMW is both an easy car to service and an easy car to get serviced. So if at any time a repair is needed that you feel is too difficult to do yourself, a trained BMW technician is ready to do the job for you. Bentley Publishers vii

Vehicle Identification and VIN Decoder Vehicle Identification Number (VIN), decoding Some of the information in this manual applies only to cars of a particular model year or range of years. For example, 1984 refers to the 1984 model year but does not necessarily match the calendar year in which the car was manufactured or sold. To be sure of the model year of a particular car, check the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) on the car. The VIN is a unique sequence of 17 characters assigned by BMW to identify each individual car. When decoded, the VIN tells the country and year of manufacture; make, model and serial number; assembly plant and even some equipment specifications. The BMW VIN is on a plate mounted on the top of the dashboard, on the driver's side where the number can be seen through the windshield. The 10th character is the model year code. The letters I, 0, Q and U are not used for model year designation for US cars. Examples: E for 1984, F for 1985, G for 1986, H for 1987, etc. The table below explains some of the codes in the VIN for E30 cars. Sample VIN: VIN Descript ion Decoding informat ion position 1 Country of W Germany Manufacture 2 Manufacturer B BMWAG 3 Manufacturing A BMW division S BMWMotorspo 4-7 Series, model AK74 318i, 4-cylinder 1.8 liter (M10) AK84 318iA, 4-cylinder 1.8 liter (M10) AJ93 318i, 4-cylinder 1.8 liter (M42) AF93 318is, 4-cylinder 1.8 liter (M42) BA73 318i, Convertible, 4-cylinder (M42) AA13 325i, 6-cylinder 2.5 liter (M20) AA23 325iA, 6-cylinder 2.5 liter (M20) AD13 325is, 6-cylinder 2.5 liter (M20) AD23 325isA, 6-cylinder 2.5 liter (M20) AB54 325ele5, 6-cylinder 2.7 liter (M20) AB64 325eNesA, 6-cylinder 2.7 liter (M20) AE54 325, 6-cylinder 2.7 liter (M20) AE64 325A, 6-cylinder 2.7 liter (M20) BB13 325i Convertible, 6-cylinder 2.5 liter (M20) BB23 325iA Conveible, 6-cylinder 2.5 liter (M20) AK03 M3, 4-cylinder 2.3 liter (S14) AB93 325ix, 6-cylinder 2.5 liter (M20) AB03 325ixA, 6-cylinder 2.5 liter (M20) AE93 325ix 4-door, 6-cylinder 2.5 liter (M20) AE03 325ixA 4-door, 6-cylinder 2.5 liter (M20) 8 Restraint system 0 Manual belts 1 Manual belts with supplemental restraint 2 Manual belts with dual SRS airbags 9 Check digit o - 9 or X, calculated by NHTSA 10 Model year E 1984 F 1985 G 1986 H 1987 J 1988 K 1989 L 1990 0 European model 11 Assembly plant A, F,G, K Munich, Germany B,C,D Dingolfing, Germany E,J Regensburg, Germany 12-17 Serial number Sequential production number for specific vehicle

Please read these warn i ngs and caut i ons before proceed i ng w i th ma i ntenance and repa i r work. WARNINGS- See also CAUONS on next page. • Read the important safety notice on the copyright page at the beginning of the book. • Some repairs may be beyond your capability . skills, tools and equipment, or a suitable workplace for any procedure described in this manual, we suggest you leave such repairs to an authorized BMW dealer service department or other qualified shop. e A thorough pre-reading of each procedure, and the WARNINGS and CAUTIONS that accompany the procedure is essential. Posted corrections (errata) should also be reviewed before beginning work. Please see w.BentleyPlishers.com/errata/  BMW is constantly improving its cars. Sometimes these changes, both in parts and specifications, are made applicable to earlier models. Therefore, before starting any major jobs or repairs to components on which passenger safety may depend, consult your authorized BMW dealer about Technical Bulletins that may have been issued. • Do not re-use any fasteners that are worn or deformed in normal use. Many fasteners are designed to be used only once and become unreliable and may fail when used a second time. This includes, but is not limited to, nuts, bolts, washers, self-locking nuts or bolts, circlips and cotter pins. Always replace these fasteners with new parts. e Never work under a lifted car unless it is solidly supported on stands deSigned for the purpose. Do not support a car on cinder blocks, hollow tiles or other props that may crumble under contin- uous load. Never work under a car that is supported solely by a jack. Never work under the car while the engine is running. o If you are going to work under a car on the ground, make sure that the ground is level. Block the wheels to keep the car from roil- ing. Disconnect the battery negative (-) terminal (ground strap) to prevent others from starting the car while you are under it.  Never run the engine unless the work area is well ventilated. Carbon monoxide kills.  Finger rings, bracelets and other jewelry should be removed so that they cannot cause electrical shorts, get caught in running machinery, or be crushed by heavy parts. � Tie long hair behind your head. Do not wear a necktie, a scarf, loose clothing, or a necklace when you work near machine tools or running engines. If your hair, clothing, or jewelry were to get caught in the machinery, severe injury could result. • Do not attempt to work on your car if you do not feel well. You increase the danger of injury to yourself and others if you are tired, upset or have taken medication or any other substance that may keep you from being fully alert. • Illuminate your work area adequately but safely. Use a portable safety light for working inside or under the car. Make sure the bulb is enclosed by a wire cage. The hot filament of an accidentally bro- ken bulb can ignite spilled fuel, vapors or oil. • Catch draining fuel, oil, or brake fluid in suitable containers. Do not use food orheverage containers that might mislead someone into drinking from them. Store flammable fluids away from fire hazards. Wipe up spills at once, but do not store the oily rags, which can ignite and burn spontaneously. • Always observe good workshop practices. Wear goggles when you operate machine tools or work with battery acid. Gloves or other protective clothing should be worn whenever the job requires working with harmful substances. ® Greases, lubricants and other automotive chemicals contain toxic substances, many of which are absorbed directly through the skin. Read the manufacturer's instructions and warnings carefully. Use hand and eye protection. Avoid direct skin contact. • Disconnect the battery negative (-) terminal (ground strap) whenever you work on the fuel system or the electrical system. Do not smoke or work near heaters or other fire hazards. Keep an approved fire extinguisher handy. • Friction materials (such as brake pads or shoes or clutch discs) contain asbestos fibers or other friction materials. Do not create dust by grinding, sanding, or by cleaning with compressed air. Avoid breathing dust. Breathing any friction material dust can lead to serious diseases and may result in death. @ Batteries give off explosive hydrogen gas during charging. Keep sparks, lighted matches and open flame away from the top of the battery. If hydrogen gas escaping from the cap vents is ignited, it will ignite gas trapped in the cells and cause the battery to explode. • Battery acid (electrolyte) can cause severe burns. Flush contact area with water, seek medical attention. • Connect and disconnect battery cables, jumper cables or a battery charger only with the ignition switched off. Do not disconnect the battery while the engine is running. s Do not quick-charge the battery (for boost starting) for longer than one minute. Wait at least one minute before boosting the battery a second time. $ Do not allow battery charging voltage to exceed 16.5 volts. If the battery begins producing gas or boiling violently, reduce the charging rate. Boosting a sulfated battery at a high rate can cause an explosion. • The air conditioning system is filled with chemical refrigerant, which is hazardous. The C system should be serviced only by trained technicians using approved refrigerant recovery/recycling equipment, trained in related safety precautions, and familiar with regulations governing the discharging and disposal of automotive chemical refrigerants. continued on next page -ix

Please read these warnings and .cautions before proceeding with maintenance and repair work. WARNINGS- (continued) ® Do not expose any part of the C system to high temperatures such as open flame. Excessive heat will increase system pressure and may cause the system to burst. , Some aerosol tire inflators are highly flammable. Be extremely cautious when repairing atire that may have been inflated using an aerosol tire inflator. Keep sparks, open flame or other sources of ignition away from the tire repair area. Inflate and deflate the tire at least four times before breaking the bead from the rim. Completely remove the tire from the rim before aempting any repair. @ Connect and disconnect a battery charger only with the battery charger switched off. ® Sealed or "maintenance free" batteries should be slow-charged only, at an amperage rate that is approximately 10% of the battery's ampere-hour (Ah) rating. CAUTIONS- See also WARNGS on previous page. @ If you lack the skills, tools and equipment, or a suitable workshop for any procedure described in this manual, we suggest you leave such repairs to an authorized BMW dealer or other qualified shop. e BMW is constantly improving its cars and sometimes these changes, both in parts and specifications, are made applicable to earlier models. Therefore, part numbers listed in this manual are for reference only. Always check with your authorized BMW dealer parts department for the latest information. e Before starting a job, make certain that you have all the necessary tools and parts on hand. Read all the instructions thoroughly, and do not attempt shortcuts. Use tools appropriate to the work and use only replacement parts meeting BMW specifications. Makeshift tools, parts and procedures will not make good repairs e Use pneumatic and electric tools only to loosen threaded parts and fasteners. Never use these tools to tighten fasteners, especially on light alloy parts. Always use a torque wrench to tighten fasteners to the tightening torque specification listed. ® Be mindful of the environment and ecology. Before you drain the crankcase, find out the proper way to dispose of the oil. Do not pour oil onto the ground, down a drain, or into a stream, pond or lake. Dis- pose of in accordance with Federal, State and Local laws. @ The control module for the anti-lock brake system (ABS) cannot withstand temperatures from a paint-drying booth or a heat lamp in excess of 203°F (95°C) and should not be subjected to temperatures in excess of 185°F (85°C) for more than two hours.  Do not allow baery charging voltage to exceed 16.5 volts. If the battery begins producing gas or bOiling violently, reduce the charging rate. Boosting a sulfated battery at a high charging rate can cause an explosion. • The ignition system produces high voltages that can be fatal. Avoid contact with exposed terminals and use extreme care when working on a car with the engine running or the ignition switched on. e Place jack stands only at locations specified by manufacturer. The vehicle liﬅing jack supplied with the vehicle is intended for tire changes only. A heavy duty floor jack should be used to liﬅ vehicle before installing jack stands. See 2 lubrication and Maintenance. @ Aerosol cleaners and solvents may contain hazardous or deadly vapors and are highly flammable. Use only in a well ventilated area. Do not use on hot surfaces (engines, brakes, etc.). o Do not remove coolant reservoir or radiator cap with the engine hot. Danger of burns and engine damage. ® Before doing any electrical welding on cars equipped with ABS, disconnect the battery negative (-) terminal (ground strap) and the ABS control module connector.  Always make sure ignition is off before disconnecting battery.  Label battery cables before disconnecting. On some models, battery cables are not color coded. e Disconnecting the battery may erase fault code(s) stored in control module memory. Using special BMW diagnostic equipment, check for fault codes prior to disconnecting the battery cables. e If a normal or rapid charger is used to charge battery, the battery must be disconnected and removed from the vehicle in order to avoid damaging paint and upholstery. ® Do not quick-charge the battery (for boost starting) for longer than one minute. Wait at least one minute before boosting the battery a second time. @ Connect and disconnect a battery charger only with the battery charger switched off. e Sealed or "maintenance free" batteries should be slow-charged only, at an amperage rate that is approximately 10% of the battery's ampere-hour (Ah) rating. e Do not allow battery charging voltage to exceed 16.5 volts. If the battery begins producing gas or bOiling violently, reduce the charging rate. Boosting a sulfated battery at a high charging rate can cause an explosion.

Section 1 FUNDAMENTALS Contents Introduon . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . .. . ... 3 1. General Description. . .... . ...... . . .. . ....... 4 1.1 Body. . . . . . . . . . . .... . . . . ... . . . .... . . . 4 1 .2 Engine ................... .. . . . . . . . . . . 4 Engi ne Systems . ..... . . . . . ... . . . ..... . 5 Fuel System . ..... . . . . . . ......... . . . .. 5 Cooling System.. . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . .. . . .. . 6 Lubrition System . .. . . . . . ... . .. . . . . . . . 6 Exhaust System. . ... . ...... . .. . . . . . . . .. 6 1 .3 Drivetrain ..................... ... . . ... 7 Clutch or Torque Converter. . ... . . . . ... . .. 7 Transmission. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Driveshaft and Final Drive . . . .... . . . . . .. . . 8 Drive Axles . . . . . . . .... . .. . . . . . ... . . . . . 8 1 .4 Suspension and Steering . . . . .. . . . . ..... . 8 1 .5 Brakes.......... . .. . ................. 9 Anti-lock Bring System SS) ... . . .. ..... 10 1 .6 Elerical System.. . ... . . . . ...... . . . .... 10 Bae .. . .. . . . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... . 10 Alternator. . . . . . . ... . . . . . . . . . .... . ... . . 1 0 Wiring Harness and Ci rcuits . . .. . .. . .. . . .. 10 2. How Te Use This MSSi . . . . • . . . . . • . . . . . • . .. 11 2.1 Fundamentals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. 1 1 2.2 Lubrit ion and Maintenance . ... . . . ... . .. 11 2.3 Engine Management-Driveability .. . .. . .... 11 2.4 Repair Seions. ... . .. . . .. . .. . .... . . . . . 1 1 General Description.. . . ..... . . . . . . . .. . .. 1 1 Maintenance .... . . . .. . . . . .. . . . ........ 11 Troubleshooting ..... . ..... . ... . ..... . . . 11 2.5 I ndex........................... 2.6 Notes, Cautions, and Warnings .. . . . . . . . . . . 12 3. Geing Started .. . .. . . . ...... .. . . . . ..... . .. . 12 3. 1 Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Liﬅing The Car.. . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 13 3.2 General Advice For The Begi n ner. . . . . . . . .. 14 Planning Ahead. . . .. . . . . . . . .......... . . 14 Cleanliness . . . . . . ... .. . . . ........ . .... 14 Tightening Bolts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Bolt Torque . . . . . .. . '.' . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Gaskets.... . . ................... . . .. . 14 Seals .. . ... . . . . ..... . .. . . .. . . ... . .. . . 15 Wire Repai rs . . . . . ... . . . .. . . . . . . . . . .... 15 Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Electrical Testing . . ... . . . . . ... . . . . . . . . . . 15 Making An LED Test Light.. .. . . ..... . . . .. 17 Disconneing Wir ing Harness Conneors. .. 1 7 3.3 Buying Parts . . . ... . ..... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Genuine BMW Parts . . . .... . . . .. . ... . .. . 17 Non-returnable Parts . .. . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Information You Need To Know. . .... . . . . . . 18 4. Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Basic Tool Requirements.. . . .. . .. . . .. . .. . 21 Jack Stands . . ... . . . . . . . . . ... . . . ..... . . 22 Oil Change Equipment . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 22 Torque Wrench . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Timing Light. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Tachometer . . . ... . .. . . . . ... . . . .... . ... 23 Feel er Gauges. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

2 FUNDAMENLS M icrometers . . . . . . .. ...... . .. 23 Test light. . ....... . ... . ... . .. . ... . .. 24 Volt-Ohm Meter (VOM) or Multi meter .. . .. . .. 24 Jumper Wires . . ............ . . ... 24 BMW Special Tools . . ................. . . 24 5. Troubleshooting Fundamentals. . ..... . ........ 25 5.1 Starting .. . . .. . ...................... 25 5.2 5.3 Driveability . . . . ...... 25 Driving . ... . . ... . .. . ...... . . .. . . . . .... 25 6. Emergencies . ............. . ......... . ... . . 26 6.1 Changing a Tire.. ........ . ... . ........ 26 6.2 Car Wil l Not Start ... . . ......... . ... .. . . . 26 6.3 Jump-Starting . .. .... . ...... ..... . ..... 26 6.4 Overheating... . ...... .... ....... . . . ... 28 6.5 Oil Pressure Warni ng Light . .. ........ . . 28 6.6 Brake Fluid Level Warning Li ght . ........ . . 28 6.7 Anti-Lock Brake System Warni ng I ndicator ... 28 6.8 Dim lights.. .......................... 28 6.9 Towi n g. .. ...... . . .. ........... ... 28 6.10 Spare Parts Kit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

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1984-1990 BMW 3 Series E30 (318i, 325, 325e, 325es, 325i, 325is, 325 Convertiable) Service Repair Manual ( Perfect for the DIY p

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