handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 5, 2014 Hi All, Probably have met a bunch of you on the euro cruise a few weeks back, but thought I should post in here with some photos and specs and what not. Never intended on purchasing a BMW, I was planning to buy a 'new' car in two years time when I hit a certain age milestone .. it was probably going to be an Mitsubishi Evo X. Been driving modified turbocharged Japanese cars since I got my license. 89 Mitsi Cyborg Turbo 1.6L 4wd 95 Nissan S14 96 Mitsi Lancer GSR 91 Nissan Skyline Coupe (still have this as my race car .. 220kw at the wheels, half cage, suspension, harnessed, brakes, etc) But an opportunity came up out of the blue to purchase an M3 for a good price. High kms so I was apprehensive, but thought I would have a look anyway. When I showed up, I would not have placed it at 280kms. 1997 E36 Sedan Evo S50B32 - 236kw interior reupholstered exterior resprayed - ($5000 spent by prev owner and 6 months in the shop) Carjam listed the car as 95km/day by the longest owner .. BMW dealership in Hamilton confirmed that the car was owned by someone who did a lot of open road driving/commuting. Full service history from purchase, all through Jerry Clayton, Team McMillan and Coombes Johnston. Factory standard apart from some different rims. Recent maintenance I've seen so far: Koni shocks in the front New Munroe shocks in the rear New genuine rear brake discs Bunch of suspension bushings around Brand new Bridgestone RE0002s all round, 225 fronts, 245 rears. And here are some photos. purchased condition: Factory First Aid Kit (probably wouldnt trust the original content after 17 years!) Found out my spare was the original Contour M3 rims, and preferred the aesthetics, so picked up a set to make it more standard! Will add more photos (decent ones from my DSLR soon .. phone camera isnt the best! Everything is factory standard .. everything. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 5, 2014 Oh I'm a mechanical engineer and a forced induction junkie, so I'll most likely be posting in the FI section .. ! Don't worry though .. no plans to add a turbo to the M3 and ruin it's N/A heritage. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Michael. 2312 Report post Posted April 5, 2014 Very nice example, I approve!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hybrid 1039 Report post Posted April 6, 2014 Good to meet you the other week. Look to bin those munroes when you can, they wont do you any favours in the handling department. But its something you can look at later on. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 6, 2014 Hi Josh Any suggestions on what shocks to put in the rear? considering that I will most likely leave the suspension standard with regards to springs and rideheight etc .. ? Cheers Ken Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BM WORLD 1258 Report post Posted April 6, 2014 stock shocks are the sport boge m3 type , can get new ones if you want Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 6, 2014 Well if I were to replace the Munroes, an upgrade would make sense .. are the stock shocks the best? I've seen some positive reviews, but usually aftermarket options (Koni, Bilstein etc) would perform better? (I suppose it depends by what your definition of 'better' is!). I would consider better to be to maintain/increase traction and grip for the least compromise in ride comfort. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil-540i 166 Report post Posted April 6, 2014 (edited) Yummy - that looks sweeeeet!!!! Nice unit............ Edit - speeling mizsteak Edited April 6, 2014 by Blue-540i Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
m325i 704 Report post Posted April 6, 2014 Nice car. Cool it's an Evo. I would be looking to sort that wood as a #1 priority if it were mine. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 6, 2014 Nice car. Cool it's an Evo. I would be looking to sort that wood as a #1 priority if it were mine. What's wrong with the wood? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 7, 2014 haha yeah no worries man, it is a little odd - the wood trim doesn't really suit the whole performance M3 thing, however being a sedan, it is a little bit more excusable. Its proper walnut burl and good condition, probably worth something. I do like the alcantara suede finish though, wouldnt mind replacing those panels with that, and a nice alcantara steering wheel!! but then, all the interior is leather .. its been reupholstered too. I suppose at the end of the day, being a sedan, and how quiet it is (stock exhaust, everything) the wood suits it as a daily .. if I was going to modify it the way I've worked my other car, or go for a more sports sedan then it would be replaced, however im enjoying a nice handling car with power when needed, lots of low down torque and comfy suspension after daily driving the race car for 4 months! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
m325i 704 Report post Posted April 7, 2014 Yeah just personal preference. I'm sure you have plans to maintain or modify, so was just saying that would be high on my list as the rest of the car looks fantastic! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 7, 2014 Yeah just personal preference. I'm sure you have plans to maintain or modify, so was just saying that would be high on my list as the rest of the car looks fantastic! Thanks! I really have no idea what the plan is for this car. I've returned it to fully stock standard (with the switch back to factory rims) .. I think I will work on some maintenance items - get the quiet VANOS ticking sorted out before it ruins anything .. maybe a compression test/leakdown test/dyno pull, although part of me doesn't want to know what condition the engine is in after that many kms... it runs fine, plenty of power and torque .. sometimes not knowing is nicer. especially when I know a good condition s50b32 (joshs car) puts down 205kw. At the moment I'm trying to figure out how to get a bluetooth connection into the factory stereo system without replacing the headunit .. the Dice mediabridge is the best option so far - but I wouldn't be able to control the track selection from the factory headunit (unlike the e46 versions). Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hybrid 1039 Report post Posted April 7, 2014 If you're looking at after market, Koni or Bilstien will see you right. I prefer Koni as a personal preference, but the choice is entirely up to you and your budget. Springs also very important, getting a nice progressive set of matched front and rear spring with a tuned front and rear rate is key to these vehicles geometery working for you instead of against you. Lots of people buy cheap and while they get what they were after the longevity isnt there in the shocks. Bushes are another area to look at, Personally I think 99% of people would be more than happy with new OEM bushes. People think they want to go for hard materials however for a road car that sort of stuff belongs on the track and not a road car. Just going new will make it feel brand new Sway bars are a good upgrade but only after you get your springs and shocks sorted. They can really help level out body roll. I have adjustible ones which I needed to tune in the minor weight differences for my engine conversion. I still wouldnt mind making my rears a tad software to help with rear lateral grip. Anyways, lots of opinions on the subject. There are some great kits the likes of UUC or bimmerworld etc do. Skys the limit. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 8, 2014 If you're looking at after market, Koni or Bilstien will see you right. I prefer Koni as a personal preference, but the choice is entirely up to you and your budget. Springs also very important, getting a nice progressive set of matched front and rear spring with a tuned front and rear rate is key to these vehicles geometery working for you instead of against you. Lots of people buy cheap and while they get what they were after the longevity isnt there in the shocks. Bushes are another area to look at, Personally I think 99% of people would be more than happy with new OEM bushes. People think they want to go for hard materials however for a road car that sort of stuff belongs on the track and not a road car. Just going new will make it feel brand new Sway bars are a good upgrade but only after you get your springs and shocks sorted. They can really help level out body roll. I have adjustible ones which I needed to tune in the minor weight differences for my engine conversion. I still wouldnt mind making my rears a tad software to help with rear lateral grip. Anyways, lots of opinions on the subject. There are some great kits the likes of UUC or bimmerworld etc do. Skys the limit. thanks Josh! I think I will replace the rears with Koni's to match the fronts. I don't want to mess with the factory suspension too much, it rides well under hard cornering (when we were driving through the twisties, I was amazed how well it held itself), and the ride height is fine .. too many people just slam their cars thinking, lower COG means better handling, but they dont factor in the change in suspension geometry etc. My skyline rides fairly high compared to most modified skylines, but I chose the right amount to make sure that the geometry isnt too affected by the slight drop in height with my adjustables. Also they were HSD platform adjustables, so I was able to keep the spring pre-tension the amount I wanted and adjust height separately. I don't think I will be doing too much to the M3 suspension. The factory set up is solid, and when I had the car up on a hoist prior to purchase, we went through all the bushings which had been replaced sometime recently due to their condition. Back to new for a car like a M3 which is already 'tuned' to hit the track from showroom and drive home is something worth keeping I think. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jjs 60 Report post Posted April 8, 2014 Nice, I love the understated look. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 8, 2014 Nice, I love the understated look. haha too understated for my liking at the moment, but I'm used to daily driving a car which everyone and his dog wants to race. so I will give it time to adjust. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 9, 2014 haha, massive pumped guards? maybe a little further than I want to go. maybe a front grille m badge .. an aftermarket muffler and intake, and then just maintenance mods while keeping the body panels perfectly waxed and maybe put the wheels through a recondition to take out all the scuffs and return to pristine condition .. maybe hardwire a radard detector in .. work with the factory headunit/cd changer to enable bluetooth control .. otherwise i'd love to keep it standard. check all suspension bushings and replace as necessary to new. shocks upgraded to koni or similar, brake discs to vented and drilled. VANOS maintenance .. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 10, 2014 does anyone have any ideas about how to improve the aggressiveness of a sedan evo without being wanky? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 10, 2014 Just thought if anyone had anymore suggestions. Thanks for all the replies so far .. The m3 GtR is a bit much! Haha Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 10, 2014 had a look, not too bad. did any of the motorsport series come with the m badge on the front grille? I thought I might go to blacked out kidneys and an m badge in the grille? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 10, 2014 No e36 was released with an ///M badge on the grill from the factory. right. so wankyness assessment needed. 0-10 scale. 10 being legit, 0 being absolutely no. opinions? heheh Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 10, 2014 Somewhere near 4 IMHO. haha cheers dave, thanks for the input! will take it into consideration. right now, just looking at angel eyes and maybe HIDs. tbh, maybe if I give it a while I will accept that the e36 m3 will always be understated. meanwhile I will spend any funds on maintenance .. even preventative maintenance .. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
handgrenade 189 Report post Posted April 10, 2014 Smart. Have VANOS tools for hire. my VANOS is ticking a bit ... i'll take this to PM yeah? check your messages dave pls Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
