January 6, 2007 - I put my new liftpads on today. I got them from Northwest BMW in Owings MIlls for about $11 each. Now I can take the car to my indy and get the GUIBO replaced because the car shakes between 30 and 70 MPH. I already have the GUIBO I just have to take it to get put in. I hope this solves the problem.
January 13, 2007 - I put my air intake in (enclosed system) today. This upgrade will increase horsepower and fuel/engine efficiency. The previous owner had an open air set-up with a dirty K&N filter. I think this was slowing the car down. That setup looked like it was sucking in hot air. This system will pull in cold air from the front of the car instead of hot air from the engine bay. I bought the air filter box from ebay for $50 and I bought the air filter from Nothwest BMW for $16.75 with a 15% BMWCCA discount. Labor was about 1 hour.
January 18, 2007 - Today the GUIBO was finally replaced. My indy mechanic said it was pretty "chewed up". The car rides much much better now but still vibrates at higher speeds (45+ MPH). He charged me $387 for labor because they had to take the entire exhaust out to get to the drivetrain. The GUIBO was $50 on EBAY. He also uncovered some other issues with the car that would prevent if from passing inspection (muffler, and a/c belt). I'm keeping my fingers crossed those will be resonably priced repairs.
February 13, 2007 - I ordered my front brake pads and rotors from brakeworld today. I went with the Brembo drilled and slotted rotors and the Rotex (low-dust) pads. These will look real nice and improve braking. I have to wait for the weather to break before I can get my new best friend Jon Nelson to put them on for me. I bought the brake sensor seperately from Northwest BMW for around $20.
March 14, 2007 - I took the 8 in for an OIL SERVICE. The A/C belt was replaced as was suggested by my indy. The oil service and A/C belt were $250. He also found the tires are "feathered" on the inside which is causing the major shaking. New tires on the front should do the trick. This will run me approximately $300. I still need the right rear muffler, rear ball joint replaced, and rear struts/strut mounts to pass inspection.
March 21, 2007 - THE SHAKING IS GONE!! I took the 8 to Wheel Deal Racing in Reisterstown, MD. They balanced all 4 wheels and put hubcentric rings on all 4 wheels which virtually eliminated all the shaking. A special thanks to TX Greg from roadfly for helping me troubleshoot this problem. The rings were $40 and the balancing was $40. I got A+ service there and strongly recommend them if you're in the market for new wheels.
March 29, 2007 - The 8 made its first trip to the dealer (under my ownership) this week. My dealer of choice is Northwest BMW in Owings Mills, MD. I got new rear struts/mounts, brake fluid flush (soft pedal), brake air duct, . Al of this will run ~$1,800. They also ordered my wheel well covers and put on my missing brake duct. The car is running VERY GOOD right now. I am VERY happy.
May 10, 2007 - Took the 8 in today to have the front brakes done and get the wheel well covers put on. The total on this was ~$1000 (parts and labor). I took it to Northwest BMW where the service is excellent. I have Brembo slotted and cross-drilled rotors (awesome looking) and Rotex low-brake dust pads. I'm good to go on brakes now and am happy.
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My 8-Series
My BMW History