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Hi all, After a while of being relatively quiet on here I am back with my latest! It all began a few years ago after I had sold my last E30 (black 325i vert) and was feeling like something was missing. I flew to Auckland and purchased this coupe from a forum member. It was a great car and I picked it up for a price unheard of in todays E30 market. At the time I didn't have too many plans for it, just maintain it and drive it on the weekend. I changed the cambelt with the intention of keeping the M20 in it. At least it was reliable! I couldnt help myself and installed a set of XYZ coilovers and Sportmaxx 16x8 wheels. I also had the rear guards rolled and pumped out along with painted bumpers and respraying the guards. This lasted for summer until I decided to misbehave while driving for a wedding for Jamie (Black E30 in the pic). The gearbox lost reverse while trying ever so hard (M20B20 remember) to get it to do a celebratory burnout. So I gave the 4hp22 one last farewell and got onto thinking about what I was going to do next. I decided I wanted a repower. I considered this a huge challenge and something I had never attempted before, so I was anxious. I set about stripping the old M20 out and began to think about what was going to take its place. I contemplated M5x, RB25, 1JZ, V8s.. even a 13b turbo. Then this turned up... It was all on! A 13b turbo from a series 5 Mazda RX7. I always wanted an RX7, the rotary engine was something that I just had to have. So what better than a rotary E30 to satisfy my cravings. The rotary also ticked many other boxes that the bigger inline 6 options didnt: engine bay space, brake booster clearance, power to weight. With the engine finally stripped and sitting in the bay it was becoming apparent that it was a relatively straight forward swap. Custom sump and oil pickup were to be made. While a conversion to manual steering was going to give me more room under the engine and around the exhaust/turbo and also satisfy my need for a clean engine bay. Power steering isnt a necessity in a car this light with an engine that weighs as much as a weetbix box. Custom engine and gearbox mounts were fabbed up and the engine yanked back out again to go back home. Once the mounts were completed I dropped the engine back in to check everything was correct. Once I was happy that it was all going to fit I worked out where the intercooler and radiator were going to fit and mocked up some intake piping. Then it was time to pull it all back out again and prepare for paint. This was exciting, I've always craved a smoothed over E30 engine bay! The paint was laid down and I was stoked! Engine back in again for the final time to start piecing it together. Now the fiddly stuff, nothing heavy, plenty of cursing and swearing to come! As the car was originally auto I fitted a manual pedal box early on in the piece with anticipation of what was to come. All along I wanted to intercooler to remain hidden, but still receive good airflow so the piping was tricky. Because I am using a stock turbo and boost levels I have been able to keep the piping nice and small which was helpful in keeping it all hidden. Once I was happy it was off to get alloy welded and have the BOV mount welded in place. Then black paint was applied before reassembly as well as mounting radiator, RX7 oil cooler (in factory location) and making hoses and lines to suit. I also removed as much of the front body loom as I could and hid the remaining wires between the radiator and oil cooler. I also made a throttle cable and clutch line etc while i was mucking around in the engine bay. Finally starting to take shape.. I had decided to go standalone with the engine management. An old Microtech LTX-8 ECU was purchased and I undertook my very first attempt at wiring anything more than a headunit. I also fitted and wired in boost/vac, water temp and oil pressure gauges. With the wiring completed and ready for first start up. Fluids were poured in, fuel was mixed and she fired into life! Took a bit of turning over to clear, but it started after a few goes! I was a pretty happy lad that night, it was finally starting to seem real. Also, a rotary engine is incredibly loud in the shed with just a turbo and no exhaust... Happy neighbours were not found in my area that night! The next morning I discovered a small pool of oil under the car so the sump was removed and a small pinhole welded up. I was frustrated because I had checked the sump for holes.. obviously not well enough! Next on the list was exhaust so the car was taken back out to my mates place where he has a hoist and the necessary skills to fab up some pipes/flanges. The exhaust consisted of a 2.5" short downpipe, 3" to centre resonator, 3" to rear muffler. This provides plenty of flow, a reasonable amount of noise reduction and next to no ground clearance at the height I had it. Ive since lifted the suspension 20mm at the front and 10mm at the rear just to give a bit of freedom underneath. I had my tuner come round and check the car out to see if it was dyno ready - he checked things like voltage drop to the coils and fuel pump. Interferance on any sensors etc. He also set up the fuel maps at idle so that I could at least run through a few heat cycles and bleed the cooling system before putting it on the dyno for a tune. Then it was dyno day! The tune went well until 3500rpm where we found a misfire which turned out to be a malfunction in the ECU. We also found that the spark wasnt as strong as it could be so it was decided that I would replace the old coils before the next dyno day just to be safe. It was back to the drawing board and a little bit more wiring to be done. While I was waiting for more dyno time I installed a handy little voltage gauge so I could keep an eye on the battery. I got it off trademe for a few bucks and hooked into the wiring that goes to the check panel. It reads about 0.4V lower than at the battery but at least it gives me some idea of whats going on. Back on the dyno again after a few weeks The tune was going good until 4500rpm where the turbo started to make some boost and the internal wastegate couldnt keep up. The ECU was cutting fuel at 13psi so we had to pull the pin. Back to the drawing board. I found that the wastegate was hitting the back of the turbo and not opening fully, and also put some of the issue down to the fact that the exhaust was so much bigger than the factory downpipe and the turbo was flowing much faster and free'er than normal. I solved this by taking a scallop out of the backplate of the turbo and adding a 3mm restrictor plate straight after the turbo with a 2" hole (the size of the factory downpipe) While playing around the exhaust I decided to delete the old steering guibo and heatshield to give me some more clearance and eliminate the chance of the extreme heat deteriorating the rubber. I also decided to ditch the viscous fan as it needed a shroud to actually make it work and it was too hard to make a shroud. I replaced it with an electric fan and had a plate made up to shroud the fan and enable it to pull air across the entire surface of the radiator. I wired the fan so that I can either turn it on with a switch in the car or the ECU can turn it on at a set temperature. I also added a heat shield around the turbo and downpipe after seeing it glowing red on the dyno. It was almost dyno time again and after a few hard road tests to check the boost levels I encountered another problem. Small case diffs. I quickly sourced a medium case 3.73:1 open diff from Ray @ Hellbm and installed that with some fresh Redline oil. Back on the dyno and fingers crossed for the third time lucky! The tune went well but we discovered the restrictor plate is choking the turbo a bit and the boost level starts to drop at around 6000rpm. This will be fixed one way or another in the future with either a boost controller or opening the turbo up again and adding an external wastegate. Power wasnt huge at 155kw at the wheels on a low-reading roller dyno. Once the boost issue is sorted out I should see close to 200rwkw. After driving the car home in the wet I decided 155rwkw is plenty for a street car for now and I will focus on getting the car legal/certed so that I can begin to enjoy it. The day after dyno I had to see what it was like in the dry.. Turns out it goes ok! I had to give it a bit of victory burnout love on the driveway which was great - Unfortunately the right hand side engine mount didnt think so and started to bend (8mm plate!!) So out it comes to have some strength added to it.. Two 5mmx15mm gussets at the weak point. It aint pretty but it works, the second victory burnout proved it! (on closed roads of course) This weekend I managed to put the engine mount back in and also paint the inside of the fuse box cover. I'm crazy on clean engine bays and the transparent blue lid with yellow underneath just didnt cut it! I understand the rotary E30 isnt going to be accepted by everyone here, and I also understand it isnt a first, but I'm always a fan of doing what you believe is right for you. After a bit of deliberation I decided on posting this so people that are interested can see what I've been doing and share their thoughts. After all, I built it for me! It wont get old driving down the road seeing peoples reactions to this car! Its been a long time coming but this diary brings me up to date on my build thus far. Its been a huge challenge, but something I have enjoyed immensely! I've learnt more than I could ever imagine and become much less hesitant to take on big jobs. Next on the list is learn to weld, then I'll be unstoppable!! While this isnt a comprehensive list of everything I've done and products I've used etc I feel I've covered the main points. Feel free to ask any questions you may have, or even offer criticism on things you think I could improve. I have acheived my goal of keeping the car low-key in appearance. From the outside the only give away is the exhaust, which could just be another E30 with a fart-can.. Until you hear it! My goal was to keep this tasteful and not your typical "brap brap brap Rota BeMa G" Now that I have finally posted this project I will continue to update this thread as I make progress. Happy building and thanks for taking the time to read this thread!! Jason Edit: heres a flame pic!

Oh right, the E34 guys are crazy on that. I called out about 30 dudes for saying they had taken thier M20 and M50 E34s to 270km/h. Got real stuck into one guy that was insistent he had taken his 540i 6 speed with a 3.9 diff (really low ratio) to the same speed, untill i prooved the mathematics that his gear ratios simply wouldnt alow that. got quite butt hurt lol. Definately better here than most of the US ones. Though the E30 site R3v is second to none

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=964057404 Quite tidy, looks like it's been owned by an enthusiast too. Fairly well priced I'd say.

Awesome Jason congrates. Must be a farking hoot to drive. How long till it gets pulled for porting ya reckon?

In an unexpected turn of events, on Friday I was offered a car that I have loved for the past 2+ years. The first time I ever met its owner I asked him to sell it to me. Regrettably, I put this car up for sale immediately after being offered the other car. The estoril coupe sold this afternoon. It was a wonderful car, and I had grown very attached to it. However...

Tease

Didnt know you owned a Honda Civic!

drove my e28 for the 1st time in a while , with its new shoes feels nice to drive again , I could use all the power without it wheel spinning. clock just ticked over 528528km while out fun car to drive , weighs about the same as a 3.2L E36 M3 and less than E46 M3 but with about the same amount of power or more , but makes it it at about 1500-2000rpm lower in the RPM range than the 3.2L engines make there's and still revs out to 7000rpm

A second hand replacement handgrenade would be your cheapest option... then trade it in on a Honda real quick or purchase a better BMW

Great work Martin. If you are considering a change in vocation.....

More progress. Bank 1 and 2 Upper timing cases off and on, then off and on again to seat them properly. Not before the bank 2 Vanos diaphragm springs arrived though. Bank 2 vanos unit dismantled, cleaned and new orings installed. Vanos units installed, cam timing checked, bank 1 exhaust cam slightly off. Adjusted and then cam timing re-checked, checked again, checked once more, then checked another one time for good luck. Timing now perfect. Vanos solenoids installed New cam bearing oiling rail for bank 2 intake. Old one was munted, most likeley someone leaning on it while working on the engine in the past. Radiator and other bits installed. Cam covers, new spark plugs, earth straps, coils installed. Coolant added and a once over for any loose nuts/bolts and she's ready for firing up. The engine started first pop, although very rattly, and lumpy. This lasted about 30 seconds and then it came right. Ran a vanos test on Bank 1. Success! Let the engine warm up so the air bleeds from the cooling system, then on to installing the rest of the bits Cleared all the fault codes in relation to the air mass sensors being unplugged and took it for a spin around the block. Need to check for leaks over the next few kms. This job took me ages. Going slowly, at least 50 hours. Saved a sh1t tonne in labour however and learned a great deal about how the vanos system works in the S62, which is something I've always been keen on.

Man we've got it good here. Mod's who don't mind using a bleeped out profanity every now and then. I just received a warning from the mods of an American based forum I'm on. I got asked to edit thread where I said "oh my god". Apparently, not only did I take the name in vain I also used it as a profanity. The warning came when I edited the post as they requested to "oh my Allah". Now I'm being inflammatory they say and deleted my entire thread..lol Some people have no sense of humor. To the Mod's and Admin here. You guys are friggin awesome.

Tech1 owns Tech2 by such a huge margin. Nice work

Finally got it back on the road after three months in pieces. Time to take it to a couple track days to see what needs to be improved before it's off to get a cage later in the year.

The time has finally come to part with my precious, will go on trademe in the next few days... 1999 NZ new e39 540i touring, M62b44tu, 6 speed conversion approx 2 years ago, motor has had new timing chain and guides / tensioners, rear subframe bushes have been done as have both rear air springs. new monroe shocks all round.new radiator. Not a motorsport but has a m/sport steering wheel, front bumper and M5 rep mirrors. 18 inch alloys with good falken tyres, no spare.towbar, xenon lights. Have just done brand new dual mass flywheel, clutch, pressure plate and release bearing. bonnet has just been painted, will have new grilles when sold, will be sold with wof and rego 305XXX km black leather, steel sun roof, tints by tint a car, just had oil and filter change, aftermarket sony cd stereo with pioneer sub (hidden) and jbl speakers, bluetooth, usb aux in, steering wheel controls. $12,000 o.n.o.

Closing this for obvious reasons

Excellent build diary and tidy clean install. Don't be worried about 'Haters' .. doing what YOU like is what custom cars are all about

German Kollision Haus Ask for Dave Ph: (09)5212283

Looks good. The oil filter location on these engine always made me laugh though, what a f**k up! Definitely remove that restrictor though and go with the external.

Yep. It's a way of life with di engines. It was one of the issues that put me off an RS4 wagon.

Gorgeous colour!

Very tidy, I have one almost exactly the same but Sterling Silver with IS Lip. They are worth quite abit since they are very well optioned.

Know how you feel, did that with one of my cars and it got a clown paint job afterwards. Had to bite my tongue at the time and just get over it as much as it hurt at the time. At the end of the day you sell a car and its someone else's to do what they want to it .. even if they're going to drive into rocks or apply questionable taste mods to it straight afterwards.

We have a Launch & an Autoland IScanII at work... but this one does so much more and identifies much more. I got the endoscope as well. Takes photos and movies. Prints and saves all data including images via customer or rego filing system. Has great search ability to check previous work and stored data. Blue tooth & WiFi. Connectivity to Google, Diagnostic help via Autel & a Forum for owners.

All Black Rugby Enough Said

There's still about 3 litres of your oil outside Kyu's cafe

^^^^^^^No sh*t - just look at their gun laws, or lack of....

Yeah boi, straight pimpin in my 318, flashing stacks of cash at Noel Leeming - interest-free whiteware deals fo' life motherf***er! http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/bmw/auction-965236396.htm

Is it Bimmerfest? I am still a moderator there, but i do not post there ever, and only jump on once in a while if i have an E34/E32 specific matter (not enough owners here). Once upon a time i was very active on the E30 and E34 pages being the resident eurospec guy. Used to send heaps of euro spec parts like lights and trim etc over there before the E30 craze really hooked on and the guys that due it full time in the UK got stuck in. I still get the odd request from the E34 guys though, the E34 is actually an enthusiest car there not just a daily driver like they tend to be here. But when you do the export thing you need to keep active on the forum so people know your name and more importantly trust you, have realised its easier not dealing with americans and not having thier money lol

Ballsy project, one of those save myself 7k if sucess or cost myself extra 7k if fail I imagine. I feel like I'm in the stone age digging sand and rust out of my E30 and M20 while you dabble in stuff that wouldn't look out of place on a space shuttle.

Having those Motherf*#@rs puling in front of us doing 85k, yep I will be pulling in the fast line in my huge truck.

Finally, a car you can do a skid in and afford to drive it home

Very convincing. The springs I got are lows not superlows so I'm hoping it's not quite that!! I like the wheels to fill the arch not vanish inside them.

I like how you managed to include the sign behind 'return your trundled here'.

How sure are you it's the stem seals? M20s vent the crank directly to the intake, sometimes it's just oily in the intake manifold and can leak down the intake boot too. Then you burn it all as you drive.

Parts arrived. Forgot to order some extra critical bits though, so an extra 2 sets of vanos spring plates ordered. Vanos unit oil pump washer and circlips replaced with revision B versions. The new circlip retains more equal preasure on the washer beneath it. Have seen these end up in the oil pan.. You can see here how the pump drive has been squashing the washer and slowly eating away at it. New o-rings for the bank 1 vanos unit. The one under the 24mm socket in this pic doesn't seat nicely.. and ends up doing this if not seated correctly prior to instalment. This is the bank 2 vanos unit freshly removed : Installed the timing cover on bank 1 and removed bank 2. Not fun. bank 1 vanos unit back on. Timing set after and came out perfect after rotating the crank around for 3 cyl # 1 ignition TDC revolutions.

Here is some research I did when looking at N54B30xx 335 tourings. * Both Turbos, Do they exhibit turbo waste gate chatter, If so is it the waste gate actuator valve and or turbo spindle. This is a large repair if it would happen and is a common fault on all N54B30 engines 60-80ks * Coils have they been replaced, when *Plugs have they been replaced, when * Injector faults * Sump leaks, gearbox and diff leaks * Electric water pump need replacing every 50-60ks * High Pressure fuel pump replacing every 50-60ks * Oil in the intake, sooty plugs and intake manifold .. needs cleaning with walnut and vaccum. Awesome engine and performance, however do come with the issues that go with it. BMW ditched the N54 in place of the N55 single turbo design from about 03/10. Lots of design changes to fixes some of the first gen issues. My experience with pre-purchase inspections hasn't been good. Most will just tick the boxes and charge you the $160-200. Something I could have done myself. BM Workshop is the source of great information and Ross @ Botany really has had the experience to I think comment on these car now. The other dealers tech departments usually leave it up to the lackies to do the PPIs which is why I think the quality of service over the last few years has dropped.