Kepes

Seems like a good approach, as for the fish oil, doesn't it leave a residue, somewhat sticky too? My brother has his Land Cruiser fish oiled (I think) and it is like a hard goo is on the metal. I think the reason is like nick says, to the sunroof is actually 2 pieces and water get trapped in there and causes the corrosion. The drains themselves do occasionally get blocked. I didn't actually realise it was two pieces until I looked just now. I think I'll take the same route as you, Nick. How do you get the 2 panels apart? Always grateful for your inputs!

Evening, It seems like every E30 sunroof rusts at some stage in it's life. Mine is no different, now severely rusted to the point where water leaks through it. I have here a nice rust-free panel, even the same colour. How can I ensure that it stays this way? Unfortunately my car does not live in a garage. There are products like Por 15 etc which people use on the body itself, would this be suitable? The reason I ask is it just seems like the factory seal/paint doesn't protect it well enough from corrosion long term. Appreciate the help! Toby

Howdy, I'm new to all of this and have done a fair bit of research but before I go splicing wires I need a wee bit of guidance and someone to say "Yup looks good" or "Wrong, x needs to go to y" etc. If I'm way off it'll be going to a pro, but why not give it a crack myself first. I'm using a Link G4 Storm and the stock Motronic 1.3 harness. Plan is to just remove the 55pin connector, strip the wires, crimp to wires on the Link harness and heat shrink. M20B27 block, M20B25 head, add a turbo. A few things I'm unsure of: On the pinout guide I'm using for the Motronic, pin 8 is labelled as "Cylinder ID Sensor," as is pin 31. Which of these is for the crank position sensor, and which is the cam sensor/wire on the spark plug wires? Pin 36 "Main relay output," does this connect to a digital input on the link side? Pin 37 "Switched power from main relay," does this connect to an Auxiliary output on the link? Throttle position sensor - can the stock M20 one be used? Lastly, the are two "engine speed inputs" on the motronic, pin 47 & 48, do these both connect to the link digital inputs? Appreciate any input. I've attached images of what I plan on doing so far in terms of what's getting connected to what. For the most part it's pretty straightforward, but I have put a "?" in the left column of the things I'm unsure of Thanks team! EDIT: This diagram/table is very wrong, please don't use it! I am almost finished with a new table which is (somewhat) correct. I will post it here soon so people can use it if need be.

I've definitely got some research to do re the garage and firewalls etc.. Who knows, maybe I'll get bored on the next rainy day and put it together. Haven't spoken to a cert guy yet, but have read through what I can find on the lvvta website and from what I gather a refreshed oem braking system will be fine for cert.

Olaf! I'm glad you're chiming in and you make some very good "questions/suggestions/comments," thank you Aiming for 350bhp. Won't be pushing it over 15psi as it won't handle it but this turbo is very common with E30 guys in the states and they make good power. Eventually, yes. Will get a front and rear sway bar to start with and eventually be upgrading the bushings throughout, but that will come after a cert probably Not really upgrading at this stage, however the rotors are currently at the end of their lives so slotted rotors up front and new rotors rear. High quality pads all round and stainless steel lines. Point taken! Never thought of that. I put it in a box on the ground As for the garage, I'm really bummed on the whole thing, hopefully the engineers report shows it to be in a slightly different location, ha. We'll see what happens. Thanks for the insight though, I'll mention that. And originally it was supposed to be 6m wide (double) but the garage guy reckons we'll need a firewall if it's on the boundary at a cost of $120 per square meter. The alternative he gave us is make it just 4.5m wide but 10m long, that way 2 cars still fit in but it can be a metre from the boundary and a firewall is not required. There is already a concrete retaining wall, I thought a firewall wouldn't also be needed, but he's the expert! I'll keep my eye on the parts! I'm more concerned about the rust on my E30 for now... Speaking of sitting parts, should I reassemble the block yet or should I be waiting until I'm ready to actually start working with it? That way I don't have to keep rotating it etc. Not sure

Not much of an update but New turbo arrived yesterday. Not hugely different, Holset HX35 (right) with a 16cm exhaust housing and 7 blade inducer (hx40 had 8). Noticeably smaller and lighter, should see full boost a few hundred rpm sooner than the hx40. The hx40 has already sold for the same price I got the hx35 for, nice Garage guy came around, sadly from when you say "go" to the building being ready is about 3 months minimum (I hope to be busy with the airforce by then). Oh, and it looks like there's a water main running directly under where we would like the garage to be, which is a problem... Still waiting on an engineers report. In other news, rest of the rod bearings arrived so this engine can begin to be put together. Still dreading wiring this ECU...

Is that the blue one? If so I've seen it a wee bit, looks really nice imo

Cheers man, yeah you're right about the o-rings. I rang another shop today and they too said I'd be better off without. Do you know what his business name is? I might try giving them a call, otherwise will send him a pm. Are you running a hx40?

There was an error with an order I made for the bearings. They sent me enough, if I had a 4cyl motor. Wellington had a couple of nice days over the weekend (rare!) so I thought I'd paint the block while I wait for more bearings. Any reason? Nope At first I didn't like it, but it's growing on me. For $20, why not. Next steps are obviously assembling the block, deciding what I'll do about a clutch and wiring the Link ECU to the 1.3 harness I have. The last part is a bit daunting, I've never been very confident working with electronics, but I'll figure it out, red to red, black to black, right? Someone is coming out to assess the land for a garage in the next week so hopefully the whole process won't take too long. Once that's done the B25 is coming out and I'll build the motor on a stand before dropping it (and the trans) in. Oh yeah, car is manual. forgot to mention that. I'll probably add to this over the next few days as I remember things and do stuff. Progress will probably be a bit slow to start with, but once the garage is built it will be a full time project

Righto, told myself I'd start a thread when I got my engine block back from the shop. 4 months after leaving it there, finally got a call saying it was ready. Acid dipped, everything checked (crank, block, pistons, etc) and it was all in good order, to my surprise! The goal is ~260kw (350hp) on 1bar boost through a M20B25 with B27 block, daily driveable, maybe I'm dreaming. My current (B25) block is cracked so going with the B27 was a no brainer. The block was cheap but must have been left outside for awhile as the cylinders were somewhat corroded. After a re-hone all but cylinder 3 are perfectly smooth, engine guy reckons it will be sweet I would have liked to o-ring the block, and I still might but the guy who I took the motor to talked me out of it, said it can cause more harm than good - any insight here?? I've been collecting parts in my bedroom for the past year, the first bit being the turbo which I purchased while visiting family in Sydney. It was cheap and for only $55 extra I could put it in another suitcase and check it onto the plane, I did some funny looks from customs. Parts -B25 head, B27 block -ARP head studs -All new bearings, gaskets, rings -+0.3mm headgasket (lower compression, head has been previously skimmed) Everything in the block will be reused apart from bearings, gaskets, and head bolts. -Link G4 Storm -Holset HX40, 17cm exhaust housing, 8 blade inducer (big, lazy, silly, I know) - sold -Holset HX35, 16cm exhaust housing, 7 blade inducer -Ebay (cx racing) exhaust manifold, looks surprisingly solid considering it cost just $250 landed -Ebay intercooler (600x180) -Delphi 42lb injectors, high impedance -Bosch 044 external fuel pump (yet to purchase), factory puller/in-tank pump -HKS SSQV BOV -Tial 38mm external wastegate -APSX wideband o2 sensor and gauge -APSX boost gauge -Coilovers (yet to purchase, likely D2 or K-sport) Probably forgotten a bunch of stuff, everything's in boxes Still need to purchase a clutch, still very unsure what route to go down with this, was looking at a spec stage 3 from the US but it would cost north of $750 landed. I know Troy got his resprung and it worked great, may look for a place here in Wellington who can do that for me. Purpose of the thread? Help me keep track of progress, and hopefully provide useful info to people who want to go down this route. I'm confident that I'll do a good job, despite my experience extending only to a headgasket replacement and basic maintenance I am in no way an expert and those of you who are will probably see things that I may be doing wrong, or may not work well together etc and I welcome criticism. Picked up the motor from Levin, about 90min from home. Oh if you visit Levin, do yourself a favor and buy a punnet of strawberries, they're really good. Sits nicely in my bedroom Still waiting for the garage to be built... Nice cross-hatching marks The manifold, I chose this one over the other cheapies because the turbo has a bit of support as you can see. Whether or not it will stop it from cracking, who knows. Welds look decent to my novice eye

Replaced the window wiper linkage which decided to break on the motorway in very heavy rain What a chore!! Hope to never do it again. Used the linkage from an E30 at pickapart, only something like 180kms on it and $19 :~) Oh and discovered some more rust behind the firewall while I was there. Fantastic. 2 steps forward one step back. At least I no longer have to poke my head out the window when it rains, which is annoyingly common this summer

Hmm... maybe for the block but you'll probably have more luck selling it all together. I'll give my setup a try, but I've got an Hx40 which is huge so will probably look at getting a new turbo soon... Actually the Hx40 would be good on an M30.. Swaps? haha

Sick man, didn't know you had a project thread here! Rest assured those old turbo bits are going to good use, albeit not quite as impressive as what you had planned. M30 will be really nice and more reliable than a boosted M20 I imagine. I thought about it (M30), but the sound of a turbo spooling just does it for me. Good work, looking forward to updates! Edit: What are your plans for that M20.....

Thanks for your help mate, really appreciate it. I went with the G4 Storm because the price was right (from trade me). Now to learn how to wire it to the motronic harness, a lot of learning to do!

Didn't know the new ones had 8 ign and inj drives. Was referring to the blue G4+. Obviously I have a lot more research to do. You say wasted spark 2coils x 3channels. Wasted spark is something I am looking to do in the future, do you mean 3 coils x 3 channels? Would like the extra aux outputs to give me some room to add things in the future. I think this G4 Storm is a goer.

And that's a good approach to take! I would like to maintain the oem look exterior wise too. Will be interested to hear what route you go down with coilovers and how you like the ones you pick. I'll probably use K-sports. Like SJ said, if you can bring in an LSD you'll likely be saving money. No build thread as of yet but I'll definitely start one once I begin the project. Anyway, good luck with the move and everything and look forward to hearing about your build once it's underway. Plenty of help here so if you've got questions just ask :~)

Hey Mark, Welcome to the forum! Good year to build an E30! I'm getting to work on my turbo build this year, what mods are you looking at doing for yours? Mind bringing me some coilovers too if it works out cheaper? In terms of prices of things... Coilovers you're looking at minimum $1200 for some K-Sports, D2 or YellowSpeed. BBS RS in the correct stud pattern and offset assuming you're not doing a 5 stud conversion probably around $2000. Widened steelies.. There are D-Window steelies which have the correct offset and stud pattern I think they're around $600 for a set. (If anyone has a better idea of prices please correct me but I think this is somewhat accurate) Keep an eye on trademe.co.nz it'll give you an idea on prices. Be wary bringing car stuff in as they may try and charge you GST (I think?) which is 15% of the items value. I think other people who are more in the know can chime in here... WOF checks whether or not your car is roadworthy. Every 6 months for an E30 and every car pre 2000 (?) or so. After 2000 it's an annual Check. Usually $30-$60 depending where you go. Things like whether your seatbelts operate, tyres have over 1.5mm tread, brakes do their job, no structural rust, safety features function (ABS, AIrbags etc), Lights are all working, Windows not cracked, bushings are not overly worn etc etc. Oh, coilovers or any adjustable suspension require your car to have a certification. I'm still learning about all this but it's a process that requires the whole car being checked over and it's quite strict and expensive (~$500). Any major power modifications (adding a turbo, engine swap etc) also require a cert. Registration must be kept up to date and the price is dependent on the vehicle. Can be renewed either at a post shop or online. My E30 costs $127 per year to be registered. My mum's 2000 Honda Accord costs $112 per year to give you an idea of the variation. That's all I can come up with atm! Where in NZ are you moving?

Cheers James, Tried to find the webinar but all of the links seem to have expired, I suppose it has been awhile since the + has been around. I'll give my tuner a call and go from there. Even if I buy the ecu and don't end up using it I'm sure I won't have a hard time selling it on.

Howdy team, As the E30 moves to forced induction I need a standalone engine management system. Being that my preferred tuner is very familiar with link ecu's that's what I'll be using. I good deal for a G4 Storm has come up. Basically, is there anything I'll be missing out on and would need that the G4 can't offer? Is spending an extra $800 for a G4+ justifiable? Car will be running M20B25 with B27 block, nothing crazy just new bearings, arp hardware etc. Not planning to have wasted spark or anything out of the ordinary. It'll pretty much just be a refreshed M20 with a turbo strapped on hopefully making around ~~350hp at ~~15psi As far as I can gather. given that this build is pretty straightforward I will be fine with the G4 Appreciate any insight!

Have heard people mention the 616(?) sachs plate, I assume that's the one you're using. Seems like a good option. I'm not too fussed on the clutch feel to be honest. I figure I'll get used to it. Really appreciate the info, and great to get a price. For $600 I could get a Spec stage 3 (good for around 400 torque) landed so might just go down that route. Reasonably good reviews, heavy but not stupid and it's proven.

Hey team, A new clutch is one of the last things I need for my turbo build and I'm really lost as to what we have available here in New Zealand which is rated to around 320 torque. Of course I could import a clutch, and if I did I'd be getting a Spec Stage 2 or 3, probably 2 for my power goals (~260kw at the wheels) Really interested to hear what you guys running turbos are using and where you got them, I currently have a dual mass flywheel but will be going single mass. M20B25 with Getrag 260 box. Thanks! Toby

pm'd

Got a second quote today. This one includes everything. The kit, concrete pad, erection of the kit, power etc. No Personal access door however, which after some consideration I decided it's worth getting, makes it a lot easier now than if I changed my mind in the future. So at 5x7m it's $18,500 incl all the things mentioned above. Very reasonable me thinks. This was with the company Kiwispan who have mixed reviews online. The kitsets themselves are reasonable quality from what I read and people say that they are very flexible with design which would be handy if anchoring the garage to the existing wall was an option. The downside is that the actual construction of the kitsets are contracted to a local builder/builders and often done to a poor standard. Paul - great idea and definitely something I want since there will be no windows. Definitely not getting a tilt door either. You're not wrong, I've already started watching welding youtube tutorials I will enquire about a topping slab, never thought of that I'm in Seatoun Heights, plenty of sun and wind up here to help keep condensation to a minimum hopefully yet far enough from salty air for it to be too much of an issue.

I have some! I'll take some photos for you because I can't confirm they are M sport and the person who sold me them told me the same story, he bought them from someone who said they were from an m325i but never fitted them. I've never fitted these, but as far as I'm aware they are m sport. They have some paint lines on them to identify them, i forget the colour but will dig them out tonight

As per title looking for the final piece to my motronic 1.3 conversion puzzle! Also need the holder Thanks!