good e9 mechanic SF Bay Area?

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cookbw

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I live in Berkeley, CA and have gone to at least a few BMW mechanics since I got my car. None have really impressed me all that much.

Anyone in the area have recommendations? Thanks!
 
If you can get to Mountain View you can use Harold Hurst.
Closer to Berkeley you can try Jaan who is not necessarily a BMW person but is a colorful problem solver from what I see: http://www.eddinsmoto.com/
 
Hello,

What are trying to do or get done?

Some shops just don't like working on the older models because it is out of the realm of expertise and/or just a $$ loser for them.

Try giving Carl at La Jolla a call and see he can recommend someone local. He gave Pheadrus in SF high words when I asked him once, but I have no personal experience with them.

Good luck,
-shanon
 
Try Mike at R&M Automotive in SF (854 Ellis Street -- 415-474-0600). He is very good/very knowlegable/very reasonable: He works on all of mine: 3.0CSi; 2002tii; 850CSi
 
well right now I've got a couple drivetrain issues
1) feels like driveshaft is vibrating awkwardly when at max torque - taking off hard in 1st. i'm wondering if things just aren't perfectly aligned.
2) transmission leaking oil. transmission is getrag 265 5-spd.
 
Phaedrus in SF! These guys have been working on my 2 current BMW's for the last 20 years now, in addition to another CS I used to owned. Except for these guys, I would not trust anyone else working on the older BMW's. One look inside the meticulous shop and the cars they work on is all you need to know.

Over in Berkeley, you may give H&B BMW (formerly known as Hardy&Beck) a shot. Did not have too much luck with Bavarian Professional, also in Berkeley.
 
Cookbw
Neither of those issues are of major consequence.
Both are easy to cure and cheap.
Unless you don't do any of your own wrenching. When owning a 40 year old car that can get expensive.
1. the center bearing can get old/torn and allow the drive shaft to move more than it should during acceleration. Or junctions need to be tightened and realigned. Other parts like trans mnt also.
2. 5 sp only has 7 places for it to leak other than the cases. Input shaft seal, output shaft seal, shifter seal, light switch, speedo o-ring, fill and drain spots. Only one needs the trans out for repair.

HTH
If you need further info just ask!
steve
 
Thanks to all for the tips! Just talked to Allen at H&B and indeed he does seem very knowledgeable about the e9's. Think I'll give them a try first.
 
Another option

Two words -- Don Lawrence. He lives/works in the SF area but also has a shop in Palm Springs. He just completed my powertrain swap and is installing AC and front struts for me.

Fair prices, super knowledgable, very communicative and a nice guy to boot!

He goes by SFdon on this board.

Good luck,
 
I can second that recommendation for Don Lawrence. These days he can often be found in Palm Desert (Springs) working with David eCarToys.

PM me if you need his Berkely number...

Ran
 
He is currently working with Jabberjaw in the Bay Area =). Also we have Sean Casey of Casey Motorsports in Petaluma and Dave of OTTOWORKS in SF.
 
look at your center support bearing

Forgot to mention that your issue 1) sounds a lot like what my car had after the powertrain swap. We replaced everything except the center support bearing on the driveshaft. It looked okay before the swap with the original 180 hp all these years, but the added ponies and torque began the self destruction process for this 36 year old part. We just replaced it for $55 from Bimmerdoc and will conduct the test drive soon.
 
take a test drive yet e9wayne? hopefully you and steve are right about the bearing. i was fearing much worse...the vibration is pretty disturbing.
 
Another possible driveshaft problem is that the rear u-joint may be going bad. The originals had no way to be lubricated and after 30+ years the bearings dry up. The ujoint then binds as it turns.

The fix requires sending the driveshaft to a specialist who will install a new u-joint with a grease fitting. Make sure to use someone knowledgeable about BMW driveshafts. I and others have used Drive Line Service of Portland:
www.driveshafts.com/bmw
 
atan888 said:
Don Lawrence will soon convert Jabberjaw to Motronic =)
Click to expand...
Please give him my regards, tell him my e24 loves him still, that his kind advice early on (that cost me but a hamburger and a diet coke) has served me very well indeed, in many ways...ever since!

"...what it comes down to is to bite off a chunk and buy the best finished Coupe you can afford and (my codicil) then don't complain about it...!"

Tell him I was listening!

Ran
 
Dave at OTTOWERKS owns an E9 and knows the cars very well. He's done a lot of work on my 850 (a real bear), M5 and M roadster and it has all been very high quality, explained well, and fairly priced. (My first E9 is being delivered next week and it's going to him immediately.)
 
Harold Hurst - rocks!

Someone on the board recommended Harold Hurst. Thank you! Just picked her up and she is running like a charm - almost forgot how well these cars run when they are pampered. What I thought were Zenith issues ended up being a number of other things, and I am extremely happy with Harold's work. He's very knowledgable on BMWs, know carbs inside out (he used to work for Webber), and I can only recommend him! If you need more details let me know. I am bringing my other cars to him as well.

Harold Hurst
1900 Old Middlefield Way
Mountain View, CA 94043
650-938-0900
http://www.hurstandsonsauto.com/
 
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