Basic Maintenance

[allen1]

OK, so paying for oil changes and inspection level services in my area has gotten tiring, and I'm looking to do basic maintenance myself. I am a newbie when it comes to anything besides changing my oil, filling my tires and having a decent general concept of how various automotive systems work.

Let me preface by saying I'm not disinclined to do this stuff myself (i.e. I can hit a baseball, change my own oil, and I'm a pretty good carpenter). So I'm assuming I won't hit my forehead with an ice-cream cone when I try to eat it...

I have a 1995 325i, and here are the things I want to do. I have the Bentley manual but it is packed up in storage, as I'm in the middle of a move. If anyone can point me to a site that explains, great. Or, personal advice would be welcome:

1. Change my spark plugs. Here, I think that all I need is a 16mm socket, a torque wrench and new plugs (2-point). Sound right? I've read the tech article here at Pelican, and it seems pretty straightforward.

2. Inspect and change belts. Any articles anyone knows of here, of advice on the steps required?

3. Top-side oil changers... ...any problems with these?

4. Brakes - just take a wheel off and measure the thickness of the pads? (I had the rotors replaced with my last set of pads.)

5. Any other suggestions for basic maintenance, other than to watch the fluids?

[Wayne 962]

You might want to flush your coolant, and check your tranny fluid. I have a lot of these tech articles coming very, very soon (the book is due very soon - YIKES), so keep watching. Everything on these cars is pretty straight-forward, if you have a decent set of tools (no made in far east Asia please)...

-Wayne

[Dave at Pelican Parts]

Flush your brake fluid every other year. That is, use new fluid to push out all of the old fluid. If it sits in the system for too long, the water it pulls out of the air will start to affect the brake system parts. You definitely don't want rust on the inside of your brake calipers, or the ABS pump...

--DD

[turbo23dog]

Try http://logun.org/e36_info.htm for tips on routine basic maintenance.

[allen1]

Excellent site, turbodog - and pretty funny too. Appreciate it.