3 comments about BMW 1602 and 2002, 1959-77 (Haynes Manuals).

1. I'm comparing this book to other BMW factory manuals and the Bentley 5-series manual, neither of which is available, (as far as I know) for the 1600-2002. In this comparison, the Haynes manual falls a little short in terms of the quality of the photographs and diagrams (especially the wiring diagrams), but is still very useful.

   The book is well organized and easy to read, and contains good detail on just about every rebuild, including transmissions, engine, rear end, brakes, etc. As the cover says: "...Based on a complete teardown and rebuild."

   I'm about to embark on a complete teardown and rebuild of a '71 2002, and bought this book to make sure I would have all the information necessary to complete this project. All of the stock BMW carburetion systems are covered, but my car has dual Weber 40 DCOEs (a common aftermarket addition). The excellent "Weber Carburettors Owners Workshop Manual" from Haynes covers them.

   After reviewing it, I'm satisified that everything I will need is there, equivalent in content to the BMW and Bentley manuals. I'd give it five stars if the quality of the reproductions were better.




2. This book, as in all Haynes Manuals are a good value but be aware that it is lacking in some year to year specific information. It also costs much, much less than the factory docs too!



3. This book is very clear with great and detailed breakdowns. I recommend also getting the BMW '02 Restoration Guide (Restoration Guides) by R.M. Clarke so you get a very technical book that can help you take apart and reassemble an engine, and a book with great tips and guides!

5 comments about BMW Buyer's Guide.

1. This is a good book for those that are new to purchasing BMW's. Having owned three getting this book, I found it to have some interesting information that made it a good coffee table read as well as a begining reference when car shopping.
   
   Those that own previously owned BMW's either love our mechanics because the car purchased was in good condition or they love us but we purchased a bad egg and will be spending big $$$ at the shop.
   
   No, this isn't the BMW Bible. Join the BMWCCA for that book, but it does contain a large amount of good information and nice photos of the various models up to the 2001 X5 which makes it a good buy for a non-BMWCCA member wishing to learn about the various models.
   
   It does what the author said it would do, provide a "guide" for the buyer.
   
   Get it and enjoy.



2. If you have never owned a BMW, this book is required reading. Pros: (1) Contains an overview of the more common problems with BMWs (a godsend). (2) Author provides a step-by-step primer of how to inspect a used BMW, which is more thorough than anything else, including the Consumer Reports Used Car Buying Guide. (3) The book's primary focus involves highlighting problems on a model-by-model basis with pictures of the different models, organized according to E number (i.e., the automotive platform), and includes cost replacement charts, detailed specs charts, and owners' insights. Cons: (1) Just about all of the owners offering remarks are from California. I live near DC and would like to read comments from owners that have to contend with east cost drivers, hazards, and road conditions as well as ALL four seasons. (2) Balance. In contrast to all of the negatives pointed out for each model, the book doesn't highlight the positives. For example, if traction control is standard on the E46 323i and 328i, it should be highlighted somewhere on those two pages, perhaps with a different color border indicating a positive. The few positive comments are buried in the one-page introductory remarks for each E type. (Gushing hype lifted from Motortrend or Car and Driver doesn't offer insight into owning a car.) (3) Each section offers ratings charts for the different models, which are ambiguous at best.
   
   THAT BEING SAID, the book was an invaluable resource when I purchased my used BMW. It really helps to have the devil's advocate sitting on your shoulder (or tucked under your arm) when laying out this kind of money. But my mechanic's reassurance convinced me that my BMW choice was reliable and worth the investment. (He bought the same model for his wife and she's never had a problem.) If anyone's decision to buy a used BMW was based solely on reading this book, few would ever buy one. But having read the book, I can't imagine buying one without it.



3. Having owned 3 BMW's (82 320i, 83 528e, 95 318ic), I have found this book to be a wealth of knowledge. Especially for my 528e... since I bought that car after the other two and after buying the book. It has definately helped me pinpoint problems I have had with the car, very accurately I must say. Its a great book to start learning BMW lineage from 67 on up. Overall with the picture guides and pricing tables for parts and the valuable text... I'd say anyone looking for a used BMW shouldn't go without it... or even mechanics for that matter!



4. For those who have no clue about BMW's but would like to buy one it is a very good option.
   It focusses on elements that a layman would not think of.
   
   Highly recommended.



5. Informative text. Before buying a used BMW, buy this book. Especially useful in talking to sellers over the phone. Use the information on each model to get the seller talking about what repairs and maintenence have been performed. It will put you in the driver's seat during negotiations.

4 comments about BMW.

1. The picture are great, some are very rarely seen indeed. A must for BMW fans!



2. This is one of the best books I have seen on BMWs and is a steal for the price. Pictures range from the first BMW made forward to 1999. Very professional and gorgeous scenery. A must have for BMR enthusiasts.



3. BMW is simply a classy tribute to the art and science of automotive design. The photographs (contemporary and archival) are beyond compare; any photographer could learn about lighting and design by studying the photos that "make" this book. The historical narrative is engaging and extremely well organized. The book itself is of solid construction and well bound; the dust jacket is magificently simplistic in rich blue with the distinctive roundel as the focal point. Paper quality is top grade, heavy-weight with gloss finish. A perfect gift for any car enthusiast!



4. This is a great book with many stunning photographs. There are lots of rare and old BMWs featured, and each one is represented with multiple photographs, including large photos spanning two pages. A really great book for the price. Informative text in three languages.

No comments about BMW GS (Essential Buyer's Guide).

4 comments about BMW X5 Service Manual: 2000-2006: 3.0i, 4.4i, 4.6is, 4.8is.

1. The best investment I made! I wouldn't own a car without a service manual. This is great!!



2. MY HUSBAND HIGHLY RECOMMENDS THIS REPAIR MANUAL TO ANYONE WHO
   HAS A BMW "X5". HE FOUND IT IS EXTREMELY INFORMATIVE AND
   HELPFUL. FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO WANT TO DO SOME REPAIR WORK ON YOUR
   OWN, THIS IS THE MANUAL FOR YOU! X5 MANUALS HAVE BEEN IMPOSSIBLE
   TO PURCHASE....UNTIL NOW.....YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED!
   THE AUTHOR IS A PRO AND PUT THIS BOOK TOGETHER WITH GREAT
   DETAIL.



3. Ok, it's not the real 'Good Book' but not bad considering mortals have written it. Good clear pics, nice paper and pretty comprehensive. I'm not a 'car guy' but it does help me find where things are in my car, and I guess I could do some repairs if I wanted to... this would help me do so.



4. this manual is thick as always as a bentley. detailed graphs and instructions. bulky as it is, this is still a better way to flip through beside my car than trying to navigate on their eBahn CD.

5 comments about BMW Z3 (E36/7)(E36/8) Service Manual: 1996-2002.

1. This is one of the best service manuals in my auto repair library, great text and lots of illustrations make this manual easy to use, even for the mechanically challenged. If you want to service and repair your Z3, this is the one to buy.



2. The manual answers my need of knowledge of how to do simple maintenance of my car. I am very satisfied with the detailed photos and descriptions of various operations in



3. I purchased my Z3 used. It had no handbook. This volume has the answers to some of the secrets of the BMW Z3. Worth the investment.



4. A must for any car enthusiast that wants to learn mechanics and be better informed. You can either try to make repairs on your car on your own or you can check it to see if the labor they recommend on your car matches what is in the book or if the mechanic/dealer's trying to rip you off.



5. When I needed to replace the brakes on my 2001 BMW Z3 I was distressed to find that the only manual available for the 2001 BMW Z3 was a $75.00+ Bentley Shop Manual. I ordered the manual [[ASIN:B000AP64PK BMW Z3 Service Manual: 1996-2002] and went it arrived I turned to the section on brakes. The pictures were great but the descriptions left more than a little to be desired. While you could see a picture of it, the manual did not tell you you needed a 7mm allen wrench to remove the brake calipers. To add insult to injury when I laid the book flat, the binding was so cheap that the page that I was looking at just came loose! Not the sort of quality you might wish for in a $75.00 book!

5 comments about BMW 5 Series (E34) Service Manual: 1989-1995 (BMW).

1. I always buy the shop manual for the cars that i have. this one is very good and at a good price



2. Bentley has a solution to every problem your car could ever have, and then it tells you step by step how to solve it.



3. l found the book to be very helpful in matters that are difficult to find otherwise!!



4. The Bentley manual is a must for doit yourselfers. I reviewed multiple manuals after my recent BMW purchase and none compare with ease of use, and detailed information of the Bentley. This manual is well worth its' higher price as its' explicit instructions walk you through each task.
   I have already used the manual as I completed a brake job and repair of the fog light system in my car. I have saved hundreds of dollars and time.
   I highly recommend this manual.



5. It's the usual quality of a book from Bentley Publishers.
   In my opinion the only problem of this book, is that don't cover the diesel engine, as it is written on the front, and also don't have the doble-panel sun-roof that come with the Touring car, just have the single-panel sun-roof.

No comments about BMW Racing Cars: 328 to Racing V12 (Ludvigsen Library Series).

4 comments about Bmw R50/5 Through R100Gs Pd: 1970-1996 (Clymer Motorcycle Repair) (Clymer Motorcycle Repair).

1. I needed a good book to detail the pieces of the R100GS fairing and control cluster, so I could re-assemble a bike that had been badly "customized" This manual had the diagrams, the pictures, and the wiring information I needed. Good history on the different BMW models in the preface as well.



2. A friend of mine that helped me fix up my old BMW has one of these, and we used it extensively as a reference, so I had to buy one. He has a couple of airheads himself and knows much about the general ideas behind the engine, but he does not have the same model as mine so we used this book for some of the specifications. I tend to like this book more than the Haynes manual, which my friend has as well. NOTE: I have read on some of the discussion forums that both the Clymer's and Haynes have a few errors/type-o's in them, and it is good to check multiple sources for any major job you have to do.



3. If youre in the USA (the Haynes manual is prefered if you're in the UK) and need a thorough well diagrammed and photographed repair and maintance manual, this is it. It tells you all of the tools you'll need for each project and goes over maintance procedures and fault diagnosis step by step. An invaluable resource.



4. Pretty comprehensive manual considering the range of models and years it covers. I recommend putting index tabs throughout the sections you're about ready to use that are applicable to you model. Good schematics, breakdowns and fairly clear photos.

5 comments about The Complete Book of BMW: Every Model In the World Since 1950.

1. The book is almost four hundred pages long, but most of that is pictures
   and the type is pretty big. So, you can probably finish the book in a
   couple of sittings.
   
   I'm pretty familiar with the BMW story, and I did not find many inaccuracies. The book is written from a European perspective. So, torque is given in N m instead of in lb ft. And money is listed in
   DM, pound sterling or in Euros, but most books on BMW are written from
   European point of view.
   
   I will say that the copy editor probably was not very interested in the
   subject matter or familiar with BMW. So, there are a few mistakes
   in the text, but all in all the book was thorough and comprehensive.



2. My son the BMW Guru has just about memorized the book



3. It's a big glossy book all right....but spends about 75% of its space on specs.



4. An excellent, well-written book with superb illustrations. This book contains a wealth of information about all models BMW has manufactured around the world since 1950, together with production figures.



5. High quality the inside as well as the outside. Exactly what I was looking for.