charles28

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=252995230 Claims to have $1000 of bilstein race suspension

Yeah, one thing I should of mentioned is that I will be putting the 2.7 Engine in it in the next 2-3months (just gota change headgasket and put in some new rings). Its only got the 731 Head on it, but still a good upgrade for the 320i. I already have a spare 325i ECU chip, Intake Manifold with Fuel rail etc, all I need to buy is a 325i thottlebody. In a way both cars are projects, its the only way to prevent me getting bored with my cars and suddenly I have the urge to save up for an original M635CSI (M6) from the early 80's, these damn cars are an obsession for me now. I should be able to complete the lowering next week, I need some 51mm Front strut housings, as I have new shocks for it but i needed the 45mm size, so I have decided to upg to 51mm struts so that I don't have to re-sell the shock inserts and re-purchase. I agree with the wheels, might look at some of those new 15" weaves for the white car and put my factory 15" weaves that are on the white car on this one. My missus works for a BMW approved repairer, so I should be able to get an IS lip at cost and get a good deal on some paint work

Cool, where do I get an IS lip from? would prefer a new one in some ways, does anyone on here sell these? I'm not sure what you mean by all red tails, this is what it has now, I guess it means that the Indicator Lens is Red or something? When you say colour coded bumpers, do you mean getting mine painted, or replacing them with another style? my white BMW on here has colour coded bumpers, but they are just re-painted original ones. Spring Lowering kit, no worries there, loads of places sell the,.

My Daily driver is looking a bit average, I want it to look a bit more presentable etc, I am welcoming suggestions, the budget for this car is limited, however I don't mind spending say $1000-$1500. It already has good Sounds, interiors mint, but exterior wise its let down

hehe the Aerials a bit stuffed, or maybe its not a power one like on my other E30. Its an X-Force Muffler, its actually pretty quiet, as quiet as stock 320i exhaust on my other car, sounds good at high RPM. I think thats mostly the headers. they are strange design,makes it sound good hehe. The car has a pretty large silencer under the car in the middle approx, Twin in Twin out, I think that helps keep the noise down. When I get time I'll find somewhere nice to take some better pics, its taken me 3 weeks to get time to clean it.. A better camera would help though, rather than my el-cheapo Canon happy snapper

Sorry for starting a new Topic, I couldn't work out how to edit the name of the other one, i've had the car a while now so the title doesn't really suit etc. As you can now see, the Dumpy is gone, the stock steering wheel is gone, but has been replaced with a MTECH item. A Headunit has been installed, just a cheap USB/MP3 Panasonic one, but its better than no sound at all. Dashmat is to protect the dash for those who think its a bit "Ginger Beer" I'm not doing much more to this car at this stage, I have a Strut brace on order, but thats about it, I might be tempted to get some new rims for it, ie those 16inch Deep dish ones that a trader on here is getting in soon, however these factory 15" motorsport wheels will end up on my other E30 before anyone asks how much i want for them, they look like 14" thanks to having the wrong profile tyres.

theres one model corolla that goes well, but its over 10k, 6speed manual 1800cc thing that has 180hp..think its got ALLEX in the name of it. I can vouch for the accord/torneo SIR-T, i used to have one, but they have this annoying EPS steering system that seems to be prone to failure, rather than the traditional hydralic power steering, this can also make the car lack road "feel". That said mine did Ruapuna in 1:47, not bad for a standard 200hp FWD car. They are a car that needs to be revved, they don't have much low down torque.

yeah i know what thats like, i used to have an E36 Sedan 320i, I remember taking me and 3 others to Nelson (from CHCH) wasn't the quickest up the hills, being automatic really killed it. You could try an E36 328i Sedan, they are alot better than a 320i Ahh i see, you don't want a BMW. I have driven most cars, you will find the Primera gutless aswell, non turbo wise the best bet is a Honda Accord SIR Sedan, power/value wise. Nissan Pulsar VZR sedan, 1600cc, but packs 175ps of punch. Holden V6, they are ok, I don't like them, but they have a bit of power. If I was buying a non BMW sedan i'd go with something like http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/C...n-251502903.htm but with way less K's etc. these can be chipped easily to make 200hp approx, makes for a fun daily

Try a Subaru Impreza 20k Wagon, its 2litre Turbo 250hp, I had one as a daily driver, was great. probably easy to find something at turners or trademe etc. I now use a E30 320i Auto as my daily driver, its painfully slow, but it doesn't matter in rush hour traffic going to work and back, the fastest I get to go is 60km lol.

Thanks Guys! mmmm I'm 31 now.. but i'm not going to grow up just yet hehe, was 28 when I joined Bimmersport forum.

You could get a big resonator put in the middle of the exhaust system somewhere perhaps, but it still won't be as quiet as a stock muffler would enable. That said, I put an xforce muffler on mine yesterday (dual outlet) and its actually pretty quiet, especially compared with the stupid dumpy muffler the car came with

its worth having a go, these E30's are really a DIY kinda car, if you pay someone else to do everything on your car it will soon owe you a small fortune, i'm speaking from experience here too. hehe

After driving the car as my daily driver for a week now i've come to the conclusion that it has the following problems: Runs rough when cold, have to give it some revs when taking off otherwise it wants to stall.. (mostly when engine cold). still does it from time to time when warmed up. Blows smoke when not fully warmed up if you take off quick ish (not hardout, i don't do that to a car thats not warmed up), leaves alot of blue smoke at that stage, workmate commented on it, but once cars fully warmed up I can't see it and it seems to clear, revved it a few times at the car park at work today after it was fully warmed up and noticed slight blue/black smoke. Could oil be getting somewhere its not meant to be ?(other than worn rings) I don't want it to be that lol. I used the intake manifold that came with the replacement engine installed recently, could there be something on this causing the issue? the old engine ran fine when cold etc. Cheers guys.

The good news is, you can use the 320i's ECU, all you need is another chip for it to run the bigger engine properly. I would suggest not using the 731 Head, my 2.7 had this, it didn't like revving much over 5500rpm with a 323i Cam. This was port matched to the 325i Intake manifold also, so that wasn't an issue, my car now has a factory 325i engine back in it and its nicer to drive and revs out alot better, the 885 head is a much better option, thinking about it, I wouldn't bother with the 2.7 anymore, all these ETA blocks are 22-25 years old +, most will need a good rebuild, better off getting a good 325i engine and getting a 2.8 Crank from a M52B28 engine, you can use your 320i rods with 325i pistons and 2.8 crank. with a good cam you could see 210-220hp with this. , get the radiator checked when the cars apart, alot of them test as being quite blocked even when they look in good condition.

Car $3000 Flight to Pickup Car $120 Replacement Engine $650 Shipping for engine $148 Parts and Labour to install replacement engine (cambelt, waterpump, oil seals, tensioner, manifold gasket set for intake, new bigger size radiator, new radiator hoses etc) $2280 Muffer $90 Wheel Alignment $85 (with balancing) Muffler Install $60 Headunit $200 ECU Chip $60 MTECH Steering Wheel $80 Dashmat $100 So yeah, sadly no actual mods as such

Finally got the Rice Canon removed, in place a slightly less Rice Muffler The main thing is its a heck of alot quieter now, which is GOOD. I have some BMW badges coming too.. I don't like having ricey alpina badges on a stock 325i Car already owes me 7k now lol.. mmm purchase price is meaningless

Since you have to get one with automatic, be careful of the japan import models with the JATCO box. If you search for Jatco on here you will most likely find out about the issues.

http://www.imcdb.org/vehicles.php?make=BMW...27d2c26b6f2a3c7

An old BMW is only cheap as far as the purchase price, I know from experience, I seem to be fixing both my cars every few weeks lol. but I don't mind, i'm a car nutter, I wouldn't recommend these cars for something thats not into cars really..

I've noticed that after going for a good drive, that coming up to a set of lights and idling results in a smell of fuel from the exhaust, so thought it might be running a bit rich, the car no longer has the original engine, but has the original ecu etc. so I can't see that being a problem. If you blip the throttle from idle it hesitates a bit, I'll make a video clip to show it. **EDIT ** no longer hesitates at all, I put some 98 octane fuel in it before, interesting.. looks like i'm sticking to 98.. Still smells like its running rich though.

The reason I ask is that it appears that it doesn't have one, I can't see any wiring for one either, the car has headers and I can't see anywhere an o2 sensor can attach to. The car is a UK Import one, inside the fuel filler it says leaded or unleaded fuel, is it possible this model just doesn't come with one as standard?

I'd suggest buying an entire factory exhaust from a wrecked E30 325i, the rear muffler flows better than the 320i's one. I purchased one in good condition for my 320i. Buying a full new exhaust and headers will cost a good $1000 I reckon. You could talk to Mr Muffler on Garlands road though, but the headers you might need to supply yourself, not many exhaust shops will carry E30 headers.

hi all, tomorrow I will remove the pump and confirm what model etc that it is, it should be a Bosch one, but sometimes they came with alternative ones, the outside part I have taken the Picture of looks the same on them also I think. I can buy a brand new Bosch Pump for $185USD + $60USD shipping, sounds expensive, but BMW want $805 for the same pump. Landed Price $336 all up. I'm wondering if buying an old one is a false economy, since it will probably be as old or older than mine, my car is a 1990 with 163,000ks on it. then again its probably done alot more, being a Jap import one. EDIT: *** HAVE JUST PURCHASED ONE, Cheers to those who made offers. ***

My fuel pumps almost stuffed, had to do the hammer trick while cranking engine today to get the car to start. Hopefully this Pic helps. If anyones got one for a good price let me know Cheers Charles

Hey Guys, Is there anyway I can tell (easily) which strut inserts are correct for my car? realoem shows both sizes for that car using the chassis number, but is there any physical indications on the struts to look for? I have already purchased 51mm ones, but its probably 50/50 that its correct. doh.