speedyg

E30 M3 (ex Pirro)

A couple of pics

Loaded up and looking a little low at the rear. Still not quite convinced by the new suspension kit I put in, front feels and looks fine but the rear is a little low and feels harsh on bumpy roads. I may put the rear mtech springs back in.

That's why I noticed the mount as the fan had just kissed the radiator Thanks for the info, I think I might go for std ones. $149+ for 2 bits of rubber replacement ones are 7 quid each in the UK! (europarts) But I need it fixed now and don't real want to drive it and stuff the radiator. Thanks

Nice car, hopefully someone on here buys it. Very hard to find a F/L, 4 door, e30 325i, manual esp. with mtech! Good luck with the sale. What's the next project?

Just noticed that one of my engine mounts has partially split. I guess it is a good idea to replaced both of these at the same time? I got a price of $149+ for both mounts from BMW, does this sound about right or is there a cheaper place? Also I presume that you undo the mounts, lift the engine slightly and slide the old ones out and the new ones in. Is it that simple? Or do you need to disconnect anything else to lift the engine? I see Gus has urethane mounts does anyone else have these and what do they cost? Any help appreciated.

There is a couple of articles on the E28 in the latest "Retro cars" magazine if anyone is interested. Quite a good magazine really.

Hi, That's my old car!! The red E30. I sold it a few years back to a chap who worked at beaurepair on Blenheim Rd. It was stock std and fairly tidy except the faded paint. i'm sure I saw it a few weeks ago parked at Riccarton mall. Hardly reckonise it now except I saw the old rego etched on the window MT2009. Has it been written off now? Are you selling any bits off it as I am after a few bits and bobs? Mainly interior bits. Let me know. Gareth Ph 9818220

Remove your glovebox and pull back the carpet to check for rust on the firewall. I did this the other day and found a couple of small holes. One is up under the dash near where the wires go through to the fusebox. Pig of a place to repair!

Took this photo after removing the front plastic wheel arch cover. Took a ice cream container of crud out of there, thankfully no rust! I suggest you check your car.

Rear new stuff

New stuff

After, sorry a bit dark when I finished...

Before

After

Fitted the bilstein streetline kit thanks to some advice off this forum. Here are the before and after piccys. Not alot of difference about 7mm at the back and 10mm at the front. Before

They have the code PNE-3050 on them, the old shocks are a little tired, hence the change.

Also as the shocks are so different the original dust cover doesn't fit either and the new shocks don't come with any?

The inserts are yellow bilsteins. I don't want the car lower or much lower than the mtech height. The kit is suppose to lower the std height 325 by 40mm so in theory it should lower the mtech by 10mm?

The distance from the bottom of the strut to the perch weld is 300mm (as per pic), could someone with std 325 strut measure theirs?

The shock rods close up.

I am fitting a bilstein streetline suspension kit to my car. The kit is suppose to lower a std 325i by 40mm. My car has the mtech suspension. I went fit the front shocks and springs and noticed that the new springs are 40mm shorter than the mtech ones(uncompressed) and also the diameter of the shock rod (the chrome bit) is smaller than the mtech one. My questions are: Are the mtech struts different to the std 325 ones, ie is the lower perch in a different place? Also are the shock rods a different diameter between mtech and std 325? I've got a photo here if this helps The new shock fits in the strut housing and the black part of the shock is the right length and diameter but when I put the new spring on I don't even need to compress the spring to get the top nut on. I await your expert advice!

I tried the socket/spanner method and split two 8mm sockets! Last night I took the struts around to a mates place who has a air impact gun and had them apart in no time! So I should have it all back together tonight. Thanks for the tip.

Done the rear end and having some trouble with the front (see maintanance) the rear now sits 7mm lower than the mtech suspension. :thumb: About what I was after!

Hi, I'm halfway through a suspension change (see post under performance) and have a couple of questions. I have the front struts out and have compressed the springs, but how do you get the nut off the top of the shock to get the springs off? I realise that there is a bmw special tool for this but is there another way? Also I pulled back the dust cover on the existing shocks and noticed that the thickness of the shock (chrome bit) is thicker than the new shocks I have to put in. Does this matter as the new shocks come with a new collar to thread back into the shock housing. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks