Running the vin on the site given to me by v50m66 this info came back on the engine, is this typical for a 99? I figured they all had ear and air pumps at that time. w/o EGR, w/o air pump, w/OBDII, w/variable valve timing, Bosch ME 7.0, w/RuLo, w/ORVR Transmission: V70 R That’s all correct. ‘99 was...

The timing tension isn’t critical onthe mechanical tensioner. Put the gauge in the middle of the range on a cold engine and tighten. Read the procedure carefully, you tension it past the set point, then return to the set point. It’s aldo important to do the full two revs of the belt before tensioning

Both the 1999 and 2000 use ME7 control system - I dont know why a 2000 would be easier

I believe the list of things VIN locked are..

ECM
CEM or DIM (display module)

Possibly 2/76 lock control module
Possibly immobilizer module

TCM does not seem to be VIN locked

Normally I don't remove the housing unless it is either cracked (by a dumbass breaking it trying to remove the thermostat screws), or I can't get the screws loose as they are corroded in or I've stripped the heads out. I remove the 2 Torx screws and just replace the thermostat with it's rubber ring ...

Whole car looks like new! Were you able to find the R specific rear calipers? They went NLA 10+ years ago!

Great work and must be getting close to what I have spent on my R over the last 13+ years while managing a whole 15k miles!

Neil.

You are going to enjoy driving that

It just gets better and better. Awesome!

Neil.