Eagle

Minor shimmys and resonance\humming are the only real issue ive ever had with BMW's. The ones that were smooth were ones that hadn't been touched from the factory. They may get a final balance as a complete assembly. TIS usually states for various BMW's that the driveshaft ends should be marked in relation to transmission and diff flanges due to this, obviously you cant do that with used parts though. Worn driveshaft center sleeve can cause vibrations, i usually replace it the same time as the flex disc. Assume you checked the CV joint. Also had crappy CSB's cause issues too.

Compared to places like UK etc i dont you really need to go that deep. The underside isnt that exposed really either and if kept clean and not used in harsh condition should last ages even with cheap paint. I used 2k primer, 1k base e-coat colour and the same 3M sealer. Reddish recommend applying cavity wax after painting because when you weld its burns up the factory stuff in the internal cavities. I used 3M and some applicator wands, expensive but good as most 3M products are

300,000km is nothing these days. Someone just hurt because they bought the arguably the worst\cheapest BMW you can buy then found out after the fact.

Every brand has made problematic engines. Problem is 90% of people who buy these cars have no clue about them and whats required to run them, they just see a cheap BMW. Rarely do any research or ask workshops for advice or even get PPI done before buying. They certainly cry about BMW's being unreliable and expensive when they fail though, which is fine by me because limits these fools ruining the better ones.

Yeah all the M4X and M5X engines are in that regard.

No worries. They are about as close to a typical 4 cyl Japanese engine as you can get for a BMW, pretty basic and fairly reliable. Bonus having the PCV + hose done. Im assuming you are running 95+ octane. Engine mounts are another good item that usually help with inherent engine idle vibration. Like many cars a throttle body clean\polish and MAF clean is never a bad idea. If you are not aware there is a small plastic coolant flange at the back of the head which can break leading to quick overheat (only real weakness on these engines). It may of been done with the PCV hoe or another time but its hard to know sometimes unless you replace it. There is another one under the manifold which can fail too but much less likely. Item 9 - http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/E36-Compact/Europe/318ti-M44/R-M/1997/browse/engine/cylinder_head_attached_parts/ If you want to free up engine bay space you can use the bottom section of the earlier M42 engine airbox and snorkel (or custom make something) which doesnt have the big air duct pipe running across the front.

Fair enough. Smoke test and\or fuel trim values will tell you if you have any vacuum leaks, rarely notice them otherwise unless they are major ones. The small DISA valve diaphram (get them off ebay) are always split and you will gain back some low end <3000rpm power. Good idea to replace O2 sensor also, always old and slow and dull throttle response on these engines ive found.

Would take a lot of work so unlikely many have done it especially for 4 cylinder. Have you had the transmission serviced and had adaptions reset? I think they change well enough for a 90s car in sport mode, just rob power compared to manual. Most M44 on the road aren't operating at 100%, most have failed DISA valves, vac leaks etc etc

Yeah you are right, no description on mdecoder so i missed it. Yeah M44 would be a bit of work but so more solid than N4X engine. The extra 100+kg might make it too slow though. I imagine you just drop the whole engine\loom and ecu in from the 330i and away you go after coding. No doubt a few cables and lines to sort out.

Is the rear sway bar the same profile as a regular E46?. Looking at part numbers they list the same diameter for sport and non sport bars with different numbers. Has your car been lowered, looks like it to me?. According to the build sheet you dont have any sport suspension options, seem common to have these with sport seats but nothing else. I see Eibach make compact specific springs and you'd always change dampers. Not sure how common manual ones are but id put a M44 in one if i could get it cheap enough

Subframe floor next?

Spareto and Schmedimann are what id recommend these days. Locally Euroitalian may have something. Id go genuine for the vent valve at least, more reliable and not much more $ than aftermarket stuff. Some aftermarket brands have hoses with inaccurate angles also.

Just discovered ive got E.R.T ones from Spareto in my parts pile. All the ones listed on Spareto look like they would be made in the same place.

Seen at least a couple for sale this year around 12-15k mark iirc. I think they are kept more than sold theses days so maybe harder to find tidy ones.

Think id rather pony up some more and get an tidier iS model for a base. Cosmetic stuff and 'AC regas' wont be that cheap to fix whereas mechanicals are especially if you DIY'ing Good compared to an E30 but what isnt at this point.

Certainly logic in the 'if it aint broke dont fix it' mentality. The way i figure is the original OE parts with the car are likely have the highest quality\quality control. Im on 300,000+ brake seals and wheel bearings with no sign of them failing anything soon. Driveshaft hanger bearings are another item im not so keen on doing these days, aftermarket stuff is average at best and even OE doesnt appear to be what it used it.

Interested to see how the speed bleeders hold up. Surprised you dont have a pressure bleeder?

Yeah if doing to proper B30 conversion then its not quite as appealing. I reckon it would go well enough as is and not worth the expense of doing it.

Much better buy than 330ti though. Throw a few k at it and it should be a decent car.

If it had suspension refresh and had all the common preventative engine stuff etc done then 15k isnt unreasonable to me You don't see them around that much compared to the E36 compacts. Not sold for very long i suppose and the N42\N46 + E46 expenses\issues probably didnt help keep them on the road. The E36 compacts are the polar opposite and why ive kept mine for 3 years and counting.

Yeah assuming Brent sold it for 8k asking it does seem overpriced at 15k. He doesn't appear to have done any substantial work himself based on description (apart from getting a cert)

Built by @BM WORLD Looks fine to me. Hatchbacks can only go so far in the looks dept.

Prices have gone up quite a bit over the years due to E36's becoming more popular and all the parts along with it. If you SC the 4 then it makes a bit more sense to start with that and add whats needed. If you got a complete wreck for cheap enough you could better off , but bigger engined Z3s arent a dime a dozen. Always a gamble buying used parts like engines and transmissions so id rather start with a working car i know is a good base.

Not F30 specific but H&R springs are generally considered to be one of the more firmer\lower options and require uprated dampers. Eibachs would of been the better choice and work ok with B4's or OE replacements. New OE, B4's, Koni SRT, or maybe TRW option if available are about all you can really use for a cheap options. Anything is likely to ride and handle better than your likely worn ones you are riding on at the moment, but looks aside would be probably be downgrade from a fresh OE setup.

Yeah they are fairly plentiful. M50 2.5, M52 2.8 and M54 3.0L engines range from approx $800-$2000. All M4X and M5X engines share the same bellhousing so all gearboxes, flywheel\clutch, starter motor etc can be interchanged\bolted up. Driveshafts usually have to match the specific vehicle type and transmission used, auto and manual have different length front sections. Transmissions are Getrag 220\250 used in ~1.8L-2.5L cars or stronger ZF 320 box used in 2.8L-M3 cars, both use their own cross member, shifter linkages and driveshaft. Diff output flanges can be swapped out to match axles. The Z3 uses a E36 front and E30\318ti rear setup. A lot can be mixed and matched. Dont know of any specific threads myself but Google and http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/Z3/ using part numbers will help you cross reference so you can see what interchanges with what. IMO if you going to a 6 cylinder then its probably way less hassle and cheaper in the long run to buy a 2.8 or 3.0L (especially if you keeping the auto), they arent that expensive and you get the everything along with stronger drivetrain, correct diff, brakes etc etc.