I’ve been lurking on this site for a while.
I find it to be a nice community with a very non-confrontational style and lots of sharing of ideas, methods, and information….. thanks for that! So, here’s my little e30 – M42:
I picked up the ever popular (‘specially on this site!) 1991 BMW 318is in Brillantrot as a daily driver and I’ve been slowly bringing it back since 2007. I’ve been going for a basically stock platform with a few “sensible” upgrades to looks and function. Cheap entry fee, good gas mileage, nice looks and excellent handling!
- universal joint, drive shaft, gaskets and timing chain, power steering hoses, water pump, shocks, steering wheel bearings, and fuel pump: Stock – replaced new/replaced by previous owner
- Brakes & Rotors:
Stock – replaced new/replaced 2007
- Steering:
Stock – replaced new rack 2008
- Engine:
Stock – original or as indicated above
Replaced all those stupid, rotten hoses under the intake
Replaced the ingnition spaghetti with Coil-over-Plug ignition (thanks rob_e30 from M42 Club), 2009
Replaced clutch (OEM - dual mass) & bearings & machined flywheel, 2009
- Exhaust:
Stock – w/ new Chrome tip 2009
- ECU:
Mark-D chip 2009………..very nice upgrade! (thanks 1988E30M3 from
M42 Club)
- Body:
New roundels, 2009
Replaced rear bumper (ebay), 2009
New front lip-spoiler (Bav'Auto), 2009
Lip splitter (thanks thereisnoyun from R3V Limited),. 2009
Replaced rear bumper pistons, 2009
I had visions of full paint…..(note: the car looked “pinkish-orange” before restoration), and I was missing the front “is” lip, and the rear bumper was damaged from a fender bender with my neighbors Crown Victoria….the “Vicky” won without a scratch!....its a physics thing.
Anyway…I wasn’t happy with the exterior. I had my friends at Peak Auto, Apex, NC [
http://www.peakautomotive.com/ ] checked it out and we opted for a wet-sand and power buffing to thoroughly remove the oxidation. Darren explained that these single-stage German paints are really robust and would be fine underneath all of that surface oxidation. Wow what a difference….it’s “RED” again!....and no need to spend all that time & money on paint. We did end up shooting a little bit of new paint on the mirrors, bumpers, front valence & lip-spoiler, and trunk & spoiler…those areas where color was not as recoverable. I sorta wish I had opted to shoot the hood as well because there are a few defects/dents from a hail storm…..(updated late summer 2009 fixed the hood also!!) These guys at Peak Auto are very detail oriented and run a full restoration shop as well as being one of the better independent mechanical garages in the area…….and they appreciate old sports cars! Checkout the full frame-off restoration in progress of a 1972 BMW 3.0…..[
http://www.peakautomotive.com/Restoration/RestoWorkinProgress/tabid/107/Default.aspx ]......this will be awesome when complete.
- Shoes: Konig Remember 16x7 +20mm offset w/ stock BMW roundels modified-to-fit. The stock 14” basket weaves are in good shape, but tire selection isn’t very good, so I upsized and am now running 205/50R-16 Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Spec on the Konigs. Can you say: “stick like glue”. I’ll prolly keep the stock ‘weaves for cold weather and run BFGoodrich all-seasons or something.
- Lights: Installed used OEM ellipsoid Fog lights w/ new lenses from [
http://www.bmwlight.com/bmw_e30.htm ]
Installed new Bav’Auto Ellipsoid headlights w/ angel-eye (repackaged Depo) & brow (duh….I like the way it looks!!)
- Interior:
Contrasting black door handles and pockets on beige door cards
Driver-side cup holder (modified Bav’Auto door pocket holder)
Wood grain, BMW badged, Momo steering wheel (thanks ejnight from R3V Limited)
Wood grain shift & brake knobs
New Odometer gears (
http://www.odometergears.com)
New dash lights
Future projects may include:
• Fix or replace tranny – 4th gear pops-out ocasionally during shifting
• Drop & firm the suspension - not too low......I like my oil pan!
• Leather seat re-upholster
• Clutch fan delete – swap to electric fan
• Muffler – not sure which yet.
• Would enjoy some sorta forced induction, but it would need to be in kit form, off the shelf and very robust for a DD….too bad about the availability of DASC
Anyway……What a fun little car! And a good DD.
Topic: beta14ok (Read 5947 times)