89 325ix questions

[bigice2]

Hello All.
I just recently received a 1989 325ix 4door for my first car/birthday present. We payed 2800 for the car, it has 205000 miles but the transmission was rebuilt about 1000 miles ago. the car runs great and the interior is all origional black lether and it is in grade A PLUS working condition. So we took it to the shop and supposedly there is a hole in the gas tank about 2/3 up and it emits a profound gas smell when full but under the 2/3 mark it goes away. the mechanic didnt check everything i had asked so we just left knowing the gas tank prolly could be replaced for like 250.
There are a few components on the car i have questions about. 1. The steering seems to be a little sticky at lower speeds and i was thinking it could be the power steering. 2. the heated seats do not seem to work. is there any simple solution? 3. i believe the speakers in the car are the origional haha and they work but it takes a couple mins of tinkering with the volume knob to get sound in every speaker. is there any special way of replacing the speakers and or the tape player? and 4. the back left window works very occasionally. what can be done to fix this. is this normal for this car this age? thanks:p

[ChaseN]

1. The steering seems to be a little sticky at lower speeds and i was thinking it could be the power steering.

How is it sticky? As in not returning to center on its own, or hard/annoying to turn at certain spots? If its not returning to center on its own, it could be something as simple as an alignment, or bad strut bearings. If it is sticky at different parts throughout it's range of travel, it could be a bad rack or tie rod ends (or even a bad/cavitating pump, but you'd likely hear it whine).

2. the heated seats do not seem to work. is there any simple solution?

From reading up about my own heated seats, it seems the elements in these go bad fairly often. You might try taking the e-brake console off (where the switches for the heated seats are) and using a test light to poke around and see where power is going. If the elements are getting power and not heating up, they're probably toast. You might also be so lucky to find the switches simply weren't plugged in (mine weren't, dunno why not). Google search for a 325iX etm and it should help you out on this a bit.

3. i believe the speakers in the car are the origional haha and they work but it takes a couple mins of tinkering with the volume knob to get sound in every speaker. is there any special way of replacing the speakers and or the tape player?

Yes, the e30 has a common ground system as stock and will ruin a new aftermarket deck if not tackled correctly. Basically you have to run all new speaker wire. I wont get into it any more here as there is a TON of information already written on this website by people who know more about it than me. A quick look around in the ICE section should get you going.

and 4. the back left window works very occasionally. what can be done to fix this. is this normal for this car this age?

Do you hear "whirring" and no movement, or no noise and no no movement? If you hear noise , it might be a bad regulator. If you hear no noise - the electrical contacts in the motors can often corrode and conduct electricity poorly...often times banging the offending door closed while someone holds down the switch can clear things up :D obviously I've spent a bit of time in the used car business...

thanks:p

BTW, a "hole" in the gas tank sounds quite odd, to say the least. A hole 2/3 of the way up the tank should *leak* gas pretty quickly (not just fumes). Could also be a problem with the gaskets sealing the level sender(s)/pump. Or, even a problem with the evap system (think charcoal canister) can cause a strong odor of gas (should trigger a CEL, but nothing is certain with these old things. Not quite OBD-II levels of fault monitoring...). Both could be linked to the level of fuel in there as well, I suppose. Of course weirder things have happened and maybe there is a hole in your tank?

[325ix]

I wired in a new headunit without running new wire. You just have to do it right. I can't remeber how I did it but, if you search the ice section or maybe pm Luke you can figure it out pretty easy.

[williamtii]

I played the hole in tank game, 3/4 up is the seam that rusts out.
I picked up a beautiful used SoCal tank for about 130 shipped. The job is pretty straightforward but a bitch nonetheless. Once I had it down the real damage was evident. Quarter size holes in the grooves where the hard lines sit.
The cause is the fabric covered evap hose under the black metal cover in the passenger side wheel well. My cover was so far gone you couldnt tell it was a separate piece.
Anywho water, mud, salt, sand etc. get forced under the cover, drip down the hose and hang out on top of the tank rusting everything to hell.
1.) Replace your covers!
2.)Replace the cloth hose with rubber!
3.) Slap some titties!

The heating elements in your seats are probably shot. Solution: wool underwear.

Rear window problem is prolly the switch, pick one up here for $5

Get a new deck and find some good used premium speakers, great cheap bang for your buck sound. The factory speakers sound damn good with a decent deck.

Add power steering fluid.

Welcome! post some pics