All Activity
This stream auto-updates
- Today
-
Welcome, Arata! e39 and e46? Wow, you got the big love 😊 great cars both.
-
Car came with them fitted, but they were stainless downpipes, not gutted stock ones.
-
Catless downpipes for 335i
jamesmcd replied to jamesmcd's topic in Forced Induction & Performance Tuning
Who did your DPs? Did you gut the stock pipes or get real catless ones? -
Hiya, Having done the VANOS myself I would say that the most complex/fiddly part of the whole exercise is getting the position/timing right when re-attaching the VANOS unit. I point that out, because if you purchase a whole replacement unit from Dr VANOS or similar and plan to install it yourself it's worth pointing out that the installation isn't a complete walk in the park (I'd argue that reinstalling the unit is more complex than the disassembly and rebuild of the unit). Good luck with figuring out the best option 🙂
-
I knew I wouldn't be the only one. Next time get 5l of IPA Olaf. You might need it doing the rear end.
-
.thumb.JPG.232d93eb73da9f04c476170ae22b70e2.JPG)
modz changed their profile photo
-
Vanos Another item that seemed silly not to do off the car, was the Vanos unit rebuild. Ordered the Besian Systems set (which feels ridiculously expensive for a set of o-rings they list as $5 on the parcel...) Pretty straight forward, again 50s Kid video comes to the rescue : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eUVF6OLFFg First thing I did was clean the hideous mess that was the vanos unit. Bit of brake cleaner, a rag etc and it was sorted. Cut out the old seals with a scalpel, then repeat on the thicker seals underneath - these were a PITA but got there in the end. Total job took under 1 hour
-
Style 66's Wheel choice seemed to be defaulted to Style 32's, so in the name of doing something different, I bought a set of Style 66's. Just quietly excited to see what these really look like under the car. I'll be going from a mighty 14x6" bottlecap to 17x8 and 17x9. By comparison, these things are massive. Note Style 66s are the same size and offset as style 32's.
-
5 Stud conversion Using E36 318ti rear (complete arms, hubs, brakes) and E36 328i front hubs with E30 arms plus SRS / GreshM offset solid bushes. I have most of these parts, but I'm sure you've all seen what hubs look like. More on this post once I have started the actual work...
-
Pedals After having no luck finding a manual pedal box here for under $300 (yep, seriously) I bought some from the UK for $30 plus shipping. A little tidy up and replacement seal on the back to do against the fire wall and it's mint. I also have left over clutch fluid hose from the E46 conversion so will use that. Just need to locate a clutch fluid reserviour and bracket. <Pics to come>
-
Gearbox Detents There's a stack of info online for this. Particularly 50s kid (again) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRHjnROfRxU I bought the punch set from ebay and the detents from FCP. This isn't a hard job, but there are some tricks to doing it well, as I've learnt now doing 5 of these boxes.... In short: Start with 5th and Reverse pins (big pins) These used to have different pin size oil holes, now they don't. But the springs are different, and the detents need to be installed facing each other. Move on to 2,3,4 (small) detents Punch out the welsh plugs remove spring remove detent insert sleeve (use punch to not damage the lining!) Insert new detent insert new spring insert new welsh plug I now offer Detent replacement as a service to BMW owners - $500 drop in / pickup with a 1 week turn around. This includes me supplying the detents. While I had the box on the bench I also pressed in new front and rear seals. What a prick of a job.
-
Intake Idle Control Valve These things are almost always seized with gunk from years of driving. Generally this means rough idle (funnily enough, given the name...) A trick to check is to shake it side to side in a twisting motion and see if it rattles. If it does, its free of gunk and can be actuated by the controller inside. Mine was gunked up, but soaking the open / valve end overnight in a small container of thinners and a quick knock on the bench it was good as new.
-
Intake Manifold Man these things get FILTHY with age. I digress. Having done a full PCV removal and replacement on my old 330ci, I figured this was a much easier time to do it. Parts arrived from FCP, I also took the opportunity to replace the air-injection seal o-rings. Like most things in a car of this age, they were brittle as, so a scalpel was used to remove the old ones.
-
Purple tag I purchased an E46 330ci purple tag rack to go in the car. Sold the E30 rack which then paid for the E36 tie rod ends I needed - score. Very simple job to whip the old tie rods off, and install new ones. Actually took longer to clean the rack so I wasn't dealing with or installing dirty parts
-
E34 Oil Sump and Pump Wiring
-
Oil Pickup detail: Square style pickup is E34, rounded is M54. Neither work. After mocking up where the oil pan sat with a bent section of flat bar, I cut and mig'd the M54 pickup to get in location. I used playdough to check the depth to the base of the sump, and a torch through the oil level sensor hole. However I still wasn't comfortable with how it sat. And at the end of the day this one piece could fudge my whole engine, so - pay the man and get the thing! Correct oil pickup pic added and link below. https://greshmperformance.com.au/collections/bmw-swap-parts/products/m52tu-m54-into-e30-oil-pickup-tube-pre-01-2000-motors
-
Firstly, full disclaimer: Ordinarily Time-Sert installs would be done by a machine shop and would also be done on a bare block. BUT I had neither of these options. This thread is purely to assist others, and probably humour the rest of you. Best source of reference is my old mate 50's Kid on youtube, who has a great vid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOfxg_Dto-U For those who are interested, I did perform this myself and with success. Took my time, machined up guides to ensure straight drilling, used multiple drill bits etc Scary? Yes. But completely do-able, and without a drill-press IF you are careful. Would I use time-serts again? Yep absolutely. To the point I'd not put headbolts back into an alumium block without doing it. So much stronger. All up this took about 2 hours end to end. And 3 whiskeys. What you need: 10.3mm drill (sharp) 12.3mm drill (sharp) M12 x 1.5 pitch tap 14x Timeserts on their own these are around $80 delivered from https://www.alleuroparts.co.nz/parts in Silverdale. Great team to deal with. A range of drill bits up to 10.3mm and up to 12.3mm A torch An old vacuum or air compressor Cotton buds Good lighting Patience Whiskey Preparation Remove the head mount guides (2x) from the block with needle nose pliers. Don’t bend them as they’ll be reused! Tape over all of the block Drop the head gasket back on and trace around the bolt holes Cut out areas where the holes are (sharp razor blade or scalpel) Drilling out the threads Start with an 8.5mm drill bit drilling out the threads, move up in 0.3mm-0.5mm increments. The depth of each hole is 46mm. Mark this on each drill bit (masking tape and a sharpie work) so you don’t over or under drill. Take your time, start each hole slowly. The drill will naturally straighten in the hole – this is why using small incremental drills is essential. Vacuum away debris whenever possible – aluminium shards go everywhere! Have a whiskey. Drilling the tapered collar Time Serts have a tapered collar to stop them going deeper than necessary into the block. This collar is 12.3 mm Once each hole is drilled out to 10.3, drill out the upper sections of each bolt hole to 12.3 mm. Note: You ONLY want to drill 6mm deep. Again, mark your drill bits (or even better, use a drill bit stopper) and take your time. Start with an 11mm bit and work your way up. This will be tricky! Have a whiskey. Tap the threads Get some oil or cutting oil, and also pack the edges of the Tap with grease to help pick up any threads. A 2 handed tap handle is best as this will keep your tap straighter. Even better, is a Tap guide, which is about $8 USD. Take your time. Every 3 turns or so, turn the tap handle anti-clockwise to break the threads free. This keeps the tap clean to continue to tap. Bottom the tap out in the hole. Wind the tap completely out of the hole and repeat until all are done. Clean up Aluminum is non-magnetic, so magnets in the hole will be useless for debris. A vacuum doesn’t really work as there is no cylindrical force to lift the debris up. A compressor will a little (and spray metal debris everywhere), but by far the best I found was buying 200 cotton buds and using about 10 in each hole until I could see the bottom of the hole clearly with a torch TIP: Put a dab of grease on the end and it’ll sponge up the particles Re-tap Once the holes are clean, run the tap right down and back up in each hole to check for binding and to clear any debris from the threads. Repeat the clean up with cotton buds Guide reinstalls Reinstall the guides in the block for the head. They will fit back into their original location. Time Sert install Take an old head stud and put the Time Sert on the end (even better, get 3-4 and do a production line of them). Apply a few drops of Loctite High Strength (226 from memory). Wind the Time Serts into the 10.3mm / M10x1.5 holes until they bind. Turn a further ½- ¾ turn to spread the lower threads on the Time Sert, which will ‘grab’ into the block. Tip: Use a cordless impact driver to wind the bolts in and out, but a ratchet to tighten the Time Sert into the block 24 hours Wait 24 hours (or more) for the Loctite to work, before attempting any head reinstallation. Re installation Remove all tape from the block, vacuum / clean the area with alcoholic solution. Reinstall the head gasket and head Check hole alignment. Oil new head bolts Wind into the block Perform torque sequence (40ft/lb) followed by 2 rounds of 90 deg tightening Have a final whiskey Once I work out how to embed the image links from dropbox I'll put them alongside the detail above
-
Pretty sure that isnt stock? My decatted E91 wouldnt pop and bang without turning it up in MHD. Standard exhaust other than decats.
-
Jeepers... Thirsty work, is it?
-
I found stage 3 in my E91 was far too aggressive and harsh when shifting in anything but D mode. Sure, it was damn quick, but it got tiring after a bit. I went down to stage 2 and liked it much better, and didnt lose that much shift speed.
-
Dave-38 joined the community
-
http://bimmersport.co.nz/profile/3323-promo/ is your man
-
I’m in Tauranga. But I do travel to Auckland and I never use my indicators anyhow....
-
What area ??
-
Thank you M3AN. Yeah at the moment I've got no choice lol but will be moving house very shortly so I'll have a proper garage space to do full work on them without getting interrupted by dodgy people or some random asian tourists... I hated it but already used to it now.
-
Welcome Arata, loving the DIY on the side of the road!
-
Anyone here have the skills or know who i can take it to?
.thumb.jpg.7eac60dafe8e68a41ebc27e5bb171a7e.jpg)
