I’ve just checked, It’s an E12 for the crank bolts And yes it’s a 32 for the water pump, if you don’t have an adjustable spanner that goes up to 32mm this is about the cheapest I could find https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/252502895043?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=Y-D8QI12SRu...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/363772624896?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=vtcggjiwqiu&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=BgTnikydTua&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY That’s the E torx socket set you’ll need to turn the crank pulley, pretty sure it’s an E14 But just ch...

That’s the Laser viscous coupling spanner I used, pretty sure that it was a standard 32mm spanner for the water pump pulley also, I’ll go out to the workshop later this afternoon to check for you and I’ll also check the size of the socket required to turn the crank pulley and provide a link, you’ll ...

Tyres last an infinite period, if they had signs of wear on the last MOT, they’re unlikely to get better on the next MOT, just replace them, basic common sense,

I’d replace the tyres
What price do you put on safety ?

Here’s a couple of pics of my belts and pulleys for orientation

Thought I’d update this just in case someone has a similar problem. Firstly a removed the bumper, front fan then air con radiator, that’s when I realised that the power steering cooler has to be removed from the engine side not the bumper side, unless you know it’s not obvious!! So you only have to ...

I can advise you on this one as I’ve just done mine recently Firstly I had all of the front end stripped off so I had good access, by that I mean radiator, fan, air con rad and front bumper. You don’t have that luxury, I’d suggest that you remove the fan and fan housing, you’ll need 2 spanners, I th...

Hi, yes, it looks like bumper off, electric fan off in order to expose the passenger side plastic clip which holds the rad to the condenser, possibly intercooler removal, difficult to tell until it’s exposed. I would have thought with the age of these cars that it would have been a common problem bu...

Western Power Steering in Bristol do a fast turn around service, send your rack to them and they’ll rebuild it and send it back.
Have you got it off the car yet?

Hi folks, as above it looks like my power steering cooler has a bad leak, I’ve lots of fluid dripping from below the radiator. I can’t find a write up or you tube video in how to do this job, and was wondering if any of you guys had done yours. I can’t see how to get to it without possibly pulling t...

Luckily the tyres are all the same size unlike my X5, so I’ll rotate them front to rear every 5000 miles or so to keep them wearing evenly. And yes our local alignment centre has a Hunter machine so it’ll be getting a full alignment, I got it done to my 1 series last year and it did make a good impr...

Hi, just to update the car is now fixed, Pirelli was on the rear and Dunlop on the front, the dealer fitted new Pirelli on the front and now it’s ok so it seems that these cars are indeed very susceptible to differences in rolling circumference. It’s going to get the transfer box and main gearbox fl...

Hi folks, My son came down today with his latest purchase, a 2012 X3 35D, I took it for a test drive (goes like stink!) however there is a possible problem with the transfer case ? I wouldn’t describe it as a judder like what you feel when the disks are warped or the control arm bushes knackered, it...

Replacing the thrust/control arms is not a difficult DIY job, I replaced all on my e53 and used Meyle parts which are very good quality ... Replacing the balljoint which is pressed into the hub carrier (if this needs done) is a bitch of a job as more often than not they're seized in place though you...