Messages

1

Suspension / IE sway bars

« on: December 07, 2007, 12:40:39 AM »

I guess I would say it was just "stiff".  I am not quite sure what you mean by "wheel hop" but in my opinion, if your dampers are in decent condition it should be fine.  I think the control arm rubbing is cosmetic, but also probably enough to decrease the value of the bar if you ever want to sell it again in the future.  

One definite tip I have for you though - be sure to periodically check that your link bolts are snug after driving for a bit, and if you hear/feel any unusual clunking then definitely check it right away.  I ended up letting mine get loose and it just went downhill from there, eventually tearing off the tab a few months later: http://vcmc.ca/forum/showpost.php?p=49323&postcount=12

There is also a big difference between the stiffest and softest settings, feel free to try them both - it will be a compromise between reduced lean and ride comfort/compliance over bumps.

My car (on race-compound tires) still had a lot of body lean in autocross conditions, and would constantly lift the front inside tire - it was a real crowd pleaser :-)  I had no oversteer whatsoever.  I only had a stock rear bar though, so I can't speak to how it will be with the 19mm.  I would suggest driving a g-circle in an open lot and just find out how the car handles at the limit.  If you get oversteer on pretty much any application of the throttle or even worse - at steady state - I think that's a pretty dangerous setup for street driving.

I only ran with 4 lug - also limited by autocross classing rules.  I ran the V710 225/50R14 on the stock 14x6.5 BBS rim with a 5mm spacer (and conversion to longer studs) and had a few mm of clearance on the strut.

2

Suspension / IE sway bars

« on: December 05, 2007, 11:32:34 PM »

I autocrossed my 318is for two years, and was running the IE 25mm hollow bar on a suspension that was fully stock aside from Koni dampers.  For street driving the bar made cornering really flat but yes, it made the ride somewhat more harsh over any kind of bumps.  For autocross, it was a huge improvement.

I did get some major rubbing from the control arms when either side was at full droop, as you can see in this photo.  I don't think there is any major harm in this, but it's not ideal.  The other rubbing is from using 225 wide V710 tires with stock rims.

I don't know about any welding - I guess it could help, but doesn't really look necessary to me.

3

General Topics / Congrats, Arthur!

« on: August 20, 2007, 03:39:18 PM »

Thanks Iain!  I did a little write-up near the bottom of this page:  http://vcmc.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=7600&page=3

I was actually leading by 0.5s after first day, but my huge power disadvantage on the uphills, combined with an error on my part judging the course made for a tough day 2.

Now everyone get out there and autocross!  The M42 E30 can keep up with MINI!

4

General Topics / HELP In G Stock

« on: August 01, 2007, 09:35:18 AM »

The Phantom was sold back in 2002.  Its replacement has been under construction ever since then, with MANY ups and downs.  However, it looks like it no longer falls apart after 2 runs (yay!) and it should make an appearance at Packwood and Topeka this year.  The most impressive statistic I've heard is that it accelerates from 50-70MPH at over 1G!  :eek:

5

General Topics / HELP In G Stock

« on: August 01, 2007, 01:48:08 AM »

Here is the advice that Bob gave to me two years ago:

The propensity for an E30 318is to roll over is something to be aware of, but nothing to be feared.

Most of the rollovers were caused by a combination of driver error and inadequate shock damping.  The only time I've seen one roll when equipped with good Konis was when a slalom was laid out along the crest of a slight rise in the pavement, the driver got a little behind in the slalom and tried to maintain his speed even though the car was oversteering more and more with each slalom cone.  Eventually the car whipped around to make the last cone and, as it crested the hill along the cone line, he lost it.

We've all overcooked a maneuver and when we tried to save it the car whipped around the other direction.  Where you'll get into trouble in this car is not with that maneuver, it's if you fight to save it and the car whips around a *2nd* time -- that's when it will have built up enough momentum to roll.

So I guess my advice is this:

1. Make sure your shocks (esp. fronts) are always in excellent condition.

2. Enter slaloms under control and increase speed only while under complete control.

3. If you ever find yourself getting behind, give it up.  Trying to save the unsaveable is what will get you into trouble.

Having said all that... don't be to worried about it.  TC Kline and I made hundreds of runs in those great cars -- and not always under complete control -- and never got close to rolling one.  Like I said earlier... be aware of the potential for a problem, but don't fear it.

Umm... two wheels?  Here you go!

A couple of exceptional circumstances:

1.  It's my co-driver and he tends to drive a lot rougher than I do.

2.  I believe the car was already sliding a bit, and the pavement transitioned from asphalt to rough runway concrete.

...but yes, I have had a lot of fun in this car.  I just realized this past weekend that it has a really large sweet spot.  In a sense, the car is almost too easy to drive.  Coming from autocrossing an Audi A4, I was hoping for more of a RWD experience.  As it turns out, the car is pretty tolerant and I only really have to pay attention under wet conditions.  I have never even come close to spinning.

No, I don't think I'll ever take this car to Nationals - I am way at one corner of your country, and I'd rather find a competitive co-drive.  However, I am hoping that our club's new AM car, the Vancouver Special, will be making the trip to Topeka this year to reset everyone's PAX index!  

6

General Topics / HELP In G Stock

« on: July 31, 2007, 09:05:13 PM »

Disclaimer - NOT suggesting you're cheating, Arthur!  I just don't know if those are legal in class; we tossed a competitor at Nationals a few years ago for putting the correct strut mounts in backwards(resulted in more caster on that car).

Heh heh - that didn't happen to be an ES MR2, did it?  One of our locals was there in their own MR2.

Thanks for the heads up.  I am quite certain that they are legal since Bob Tunnell advised me about them - he campaigned a 318is back in 1992.  They also show up in this parts catalog.  And no, they are not cheap - you can get camber plates for the same price!

Yes, I am entered in Packwood.  Last year, as expected, I was eaten up by a swarm of MINIs and a huge 5s behind the class winner after two days.  I PAXed "okay" though, finishing 112 out of 247 competitors.  This year seems quite lean for MINIs so I actually have a chance at a trophy (oddly, 3/4 of us currently registered in GS are Canadians).

In any case, I have been fortunate to be doing well locally this year (top 3 PAX unless weather screws me over), and it's always a good idea to go play with the Big Boys and Girls to really get a gauge on how well you're really doing.

I will be retiring the car after this year - maybe I'll write a story about the ups (class wins and top PAX results) and downs (my co-driver taking the car through a fence) of my car's autocrossing adventure...

Art.

7

General Topics / HELP In G Stock

« on: May 13, 2007, 08:01:47 PM »

Nice to see another GS 318is!  I'm on Kumho V710 so my setup probably won't apply to you, but here's what I run:

225 V710 on 14x6.5 basketweave
1/4" spacers in front
4.10 LSD
BMW 0.5 degree offset strut mounts
Ireland Engineering 25mm hollow front bar, full stiff
Ground Control Koni SA yellows (diff valving from standard SAs), top adjustable rears
1/16" toe out
SS brake lines (not really worth the $$$ in my opinion)
Hawk HPS pads
Magnecor 7mm plug wires
ITG air filter

...basically fully stock prepped except for perhaps super-light custom exhaust and custom-built wheels (since nobody actually makes a 14x6.5).

I always run full rebound all the way around and generally 39lb front and 37lb rear.  My car pretty much handles like a pussycat and can be man-handled quite a bit.  I haven't found that the rear comes around much at all.

I think the front bar makes a huge difference, and maybe that's a big part of why I don't have rear grip issues.  The imbalanced roll resistance also lets you do cool things, like this:  http://www.carsonau.com/photos/displayimage.php?album=53&pos=669

I agree with most of the other advice - look to soften the back a bit and try to be smooth on throttle application on corner exit.  

I've been campaigning this car for 1.5 years now and having a lot of fun.  Depending on the depth of talent in your region, you should be able to run with the best in GS and near the top on PAX with this car.

Let us know how it goes!

8

Engine + Driveline / Engine Noise - normal or not

« on: April 06, 2007, 12:37:33 PM »

Funny - I was just wondering exactly the same thing the past few days.  Intake makes sense, except it does seem to come from around the firewall and I can only hear it with the windows up.

I replaced my chain tensioner a year ago (the old one was the orginal design completely seized not doing much tensioning at all) and it reduce the clacking noise by quite a bit.  

I did read the accounts on a forum (can't remember where) about broken guides/sprockets.  The theory was that running the engine with no tensioner, before revving up to release the new tensioner, caused a large amount of damage.  I did the install by the book and I haven't had any problems (yet), but the suggestion was to install the tensioner in its released state instead of compressed state.  It won't be easy, but could be worth a try.

9

Engine + Driveline / Coolant alternatives/upgrades to save $$$

« on: March 31, 2007, 03:49:16 PM »

Can anyone point out exactly where to drain on the block?

Right-rear of the block, below the exhaust manifold.  I *think* it's bolt 5 in this digram http://realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=AF93&mospid=47305&btnr=11_1154&hg=11&fg=10

10

Engine + Driveline / Magnecor wires - good experience

« on: August 18, 2006, 03:06:57 PM »

Yep, that would be me!

I autocross in SCCA G-stock class, where I'm fairly competitive except for when a fleet of well-driven/well-prepped MINI Cooper S come out and kick my ass.  I really wanted to campaign in GS class so I'm not really able to do any of the fun and common E30 mods:

• Koni single-adjustable shocks from Ground Control (with top adjusters at rear)
• 0.5 degree offset strut mounts
• IE 25mm hollow front antisway bar
• Stainless steel brake lines (legal due to 1991 model year)
• Smaller Momo steering wheel (legal due to no airbag in Canadian cars)
• Kumho V710 in 225/50R14 on basketweaves
• 1/8" toe out

The car has that 4x4 look but is a lot of fun to drive on the street.  Autocross has been fun, as this setup picks up the front inside wheel all the time:  

11

Engine + Driveline / Magnecor wires - good experience

« on: August 18, 2006, 01:25:31 AM »

Just wanted to report on the results of replacing my OEM wires (of unknown age) with Magnecor 7mm wires.  I opted for 7mm because I wanted the wires to still fit inside the wiring guides - if that doesn't matter to you, you may as well go with the 8.5mm for a nominal higher cost.  

I bought the wire set from Apex Performance (apexperformance.net) for $90 shipped.  In fact, the wire set is actually drop-shipped from Magnecor directly.

Before the change, the car actually ran reasonably well - the only real problem I noticed was a short stumbling when blipping the throttle from idle.  I mainly wanted to change the wires after seeing the results in Grassroots Motorsports.  I regularly campaign the car in autocross where every tenth of a second counts (yes, I have won/lost a class by as few as 1/10th on multiple occaisions) so I didn't want to be asking myself if there was some performance to be had.

Immediately after the change, nothing really seemed to change.  The car still stumbled on throttle blip.  However, about 200 miles later the car felt like it idled and ran smoother.  The stumbling got much better.  Pick-up seemed noticably better as well, however I also went to slightly undersized tires (195/60R14 which is 0.8" shorter than stock) so it's hard to say.

One negative (or positive?) thing - the cables are too short for the cable guides.  Running from the plugs, the cables end up needing to take a shortcut from about halfway up the block and beeline to the coils.

Overall, I'm pretty happy with the investment.