Vibrations when braking... And other noob stuff.

[Neohostus]

When driving at speeds of 40+m/h, any attempt at decelerating beyond a little touch causes vibrations to be sent through my car...
I know it's not a brake problem, I've looked into that already... ;]

I'm thinking something relative to my center carrier bearing...
I'm a total noob with this car, and working on cars in general; I'm only 16. =P
They've always been around... My dad tracks a 996 GT3, and I'm really looking into being able to do something with my car... Not that it'd EVER be able to compete or anything. Haha...

Also...
I've been wondering, what are the best turbochargers for the M42 when it comes to maintaining the nature of the engine?
And, what do you guys recommend, a turbocharger or a supercharger?
This car is my daily driver, and I'd like to maintain reliability when doing this...
And... A low budget.
I'd have all sorts of assistance, my dad has built cars out of boxes, and his friend owns a shop, so equipment and such would all be provided no cost.


And also, is hood insulation even necessary?
Mine's begun to flake off, it's messy... It's like slowly coating my engine... Nasty.
Any common rust spots?
My muffler's mounting clamps definitely rusted, and it looks like they sped up my muffler's rusting as well...

Is it common for the overhead display by the mirror to be blank?
I didn't even know what it was when I first got the car... I thought it was a sunglasses case option I didn't have, or something.
Any easy methods of cleaning the exterior plastics?

My car is bareee stock, with original speakers, seats, suspension, etc etc etc... My head unit is the only thing not OEM I can think of right now...
Interior is in amazing condition, and I will guess that the engine is in good condition as well, considering that the owner checked off every page in the manual, and circled important stuff, etc. There are very many visible cues of his extreme care... I mean, my interior has less tears in the leather than my mom's Cayenne...
The one thing I've noticed, is that the "liner" of my driver's side door has a strip missing from the top corner... Sorry, couldn't think of the proper term for it... But I know the primary purpose is for insulation, and that it doesn't matter... It's just one of the few things that bugs me.

I know I have lots of stuff to say...
Like I said, I'm new here.
I've always loved E30's, and I always wanted one...
Now that I have one, I want to make the best of it.

Anyone want images?
Haha...
I'll put 'em up if you want to see what I'm talking about...

[Neohostus]

I definitely said a lot of stuff that nobody cares about.
Hahaha...

[tjts1]

I would check the brakes again. Either warped rotor or sticking caliper. If its drive train related the vibration should be different or go away if you are braking in neutral vs in gear. Also check the condition of the front ball joint/control arms. If there is any play, you need new control arms and CABs. Jack up a corner off the ground and try shaking the front tire from side to side.  So got some GT3 pics

[Neohostus]

Here's a few from the past few years... =]



And the black wheels... Well, long story short, the dealership curbed the car when "test driving" after aligning it, and in order to cover up welds, he painted the spokes, and stuck his street tires on 'em.
I know the pictures aren't very good... Or of anything interesting. I'll show his cage and euro seats and such later if anyone wants... He has all the pictures... =P

And I'll advertise just a bit for the Keeneland Concours D'elegance.
http://www.keenelandconcours.com/
Just because I can, and because it's pretty awesome.
This is general... So... I'll go off topic a bit, if it's okay...
I know most people here aren't from the Ohio Valley region, but there are still amazing and awesome cars there. It's in Kentucky, but... We're not all rednecks here.
I will say it's kind of sad seeing someone put the Chrysler Crossfire up against the Ferrari F40 in the Future Classics category... But that's not really something judged like the real classes are. I still laughed at it... =P
Just saying... If you're around when this is, you might wanna come check it out.
Advertisement complete. Haha...

[Neohostus]

And thanks...
It's definitely some sort of drive train problem.

[Neohostus]

Should this car even have an overhead display?
I found an M50 thermostat installed in my car; This shouldn't a problem, should it?

[tjts1]

Wow excellent pics! Thanks for sharing. I saw a 2004 GT3 for sale on bay area CL going for $55k with a whole laundry list of modifications and what not. Owner claims he has another $20k in the car. I was cosidering selling off all my worldly possesions and moving into that car.
For the drive train vibration, the rubber guibo between the transmission output and driveshaft could be the problem. If it's worn it should be pretty obvious with visual inspection. Also check the trans mount, engine mounts an maybe the big rubber doughnut mount on the back of the differential. All of these tend to wear out and cause all sort of drivetrain noises.
The thermostat shouldnt be a problen so long as it doesnt overheat
Good luck
Justin