Messages

1

Exterior / Front fender size 2 door vs. 4 door?

« on: June 18, 2010, 07:15:08 PM »

On the same topic. Does any one know if there is a difference in the fenders from a metal bumper car and one with plastic bumpers? Are they inter changeable?

TIA

I currently have a front driver's side fender from a 4-door metal bumper car installed on my 2-door plastic bumper car, so I think the answer is yes, they are interchangeable.

2

Engine + Driveline / E36 Radiator into E30 318is

« on: May 29, 2010, 08:46:21 PM »

Getting ready to do this once I source a radiator, as my third M42 radiator is now leaking…I'm done with the plastic integrated expansion tanks!

I picked up the M20 mount and expansion tank, however I have a question: how are you guys mounting the expansion tank? On the M20 car I pulled it from, there is a bracket welded to the wheel well and another "nub" that a plastic mount screws onto, however, my car has neither of these, as there was never anything intended to be in that spot.

Also, probably a stupid question, but where does the smaller of the two hoses running off the cap of the expansion tank go? I can tell that one goes to the radiator, but there is a smaller one that was disconnected on all the cars I saw at the junk yard, and I'm not sure where this one will be going.

3

Exterior / Alpine White touch-up spray

« on: November 07, 2009, 11:50:59 PM »

I've heard people mention paintscratch.com before as a resource for touch-up paint. I ordered a little touch-up pen from them and it seemed to match pretty well. I have no experience with sprays, however. Might be kind of expensive for you to order from though since they are here in the US.

My car (91 E30 318is) is Alpine II, so I would guess yours would be too, although it might be different, being a Euro model. There should be a sticker under the hood that says something like "BMW-Alpinewieß II" that would confirm it.

4

Electrical / Alternator charging issues

« on: October 26, 2009, 05:36:52 PM »

The image looks like the ground strap for the alternator, which definitely should exist. If you don't remember hooking it up, perhaps that is your problem right there. I had the ground on my alternator come loose, which prevented the battery from charging. I tightened it up, and have had no problems ever since.

5

Suspension / How many of you are using the E30 M3 offset control arm bushings?

« on: March 11, 2009, 05:53:26 PM »

I'm have them installed too. Put them in when I replaced my control arms and tie rods. Using Bilstein Sports, H&R Sports & E36 steering rack. With this setup, it moves the wheels further forward in the wheel well and the tires rub when turning at full lock. Don't know if this is because of the rack, the bushings, or both.

6

Electrical / fog light lense

« on: January 08, 2009, 12:55:37 PM »

is there a company that makes a protective clear wrap or coating to put onto the fogs to protect the glass from becoming overly pitted due to road debris?

Lamin-X

7

General Topics / e36 vs e30 m42's

« on: January 06, 2009, 05:51:23 PM »

Heated seats were an option on some E30s, I don't if they were available on all M42 powered cars though. In the US, the 318 models didn't get as many gadgets as the 6 cylinder ones; I have seen heated seats on a 318ic, so I assume you could have ordered them on a 318i/is too, but I would guess it was pretty rare, if even possible (maybe available in Canada?). In any case, they can be retrofitted if you can find some heated seats off a car that had them.

8

Engine + Driveline / M42 idle problem s kind of interesting.

« on: January 06, 2009, 03:24:58 PM »

definitely check for vacuum leaks

9

General Topics / How many miles do you have? [NOW WITH POLL!]

« on: January 04, 2009, 11:49:00 PM »

Just turned over to 200k yesterday.

10

Member Profiles / bimmergirrl

« on: January 04, 2009, 11:24:17 PM »

Something tells me you must also be a member of R3V.

He was, but has been banned several times IIRC.

11

General Topics / download bently manual ?

« on: January 04, 2009, 11:20:17 PM »

As far as I know, there was not a Bentley manual produced for the 91 318i/318is. The E30 manual will cover the chassis, but not the M42. I don't think this one is floating around for download. The E36 manual does cover the M42 and is available for download. See this thread (don't know if the links in it are still active though).

12

Engine + Driveline / Darn oil filter housing is leaking! Stupid little gasket. Any tips?

« on: January 04, 2009, 09:39:01 PM »

I also replaced the o-ring as well. No stands here either.

13

Interior / '90 325is cluster

« on: January 04, 2009, 09:37:29 PM »

I was under the impression that the correct coding plug would make the tach read properly, but I have no actual experience with it.

14

Engine + Driveline / Darn oil filter housing is leaking! Stupid little gasket. Any tips?

« on: January 04, 2009, 06:59:45 PM »

I replaced mine, it was pretty straight forward. I had to remove the alternator in order to get access to all the bolts. But everything went smoothly, I just followed the instructions in the factory repair manual. Of course now that I fixed that leak, I've got another leak from somewhere else too. Figures :mad:

15

Suspension / Using E36 steering rack in E30, some user comments

« on: December 31, 2008, 04:45:51 PM »

I've had a powered, standard e36 rack installed for about 7.5k miles with no leaks. Big improvement from the old, leaking E30 rack even though it is the 3.2 one vs the 3.0 or 2.7 one.

I did put in all new low pressure lines and a used, good condition high pressure line, so there's probably more chances of leaking if all the lines are old.

I had it de-powered for a while when I was sorting out some issues with the pump belt tensioner (belt removal only, rack was not drained), and I did not mind normal driving, in fact I actually liked it. Parking and low speed maneuvering was a hassle though, and since I do lots of that, I opted to keep it powered.