Eagle

Fair enough re engine. Guess if cost and time are no object then its not an issue. If no other failures on the top side then good undersides plates and reinforcing a few weak areas i guess is the compromise. Doing it all when everything is out was the best option for my coupe. The top side welding isnt very much compared to the bottom but involved more prep\cutting. Im not sure how the touring boot floor is different compared to the others. Never never of anyone needed certs for this type of work, you aren't really modifying just reinforcing. From what i understand the there is no need to have that movement in the subframe which stock rubber bushings do esp when they are older. Softer grade poly bushings (Reddish recommend Powerflex yellow) in that area don't give any real noticeable negative effects, its obviously not a cure for poor design though. Poly rear rubber diff\subframe bushings appears to cause more NVH though over the rubber versions.

If it were me id get the car running and driving first before pulling the head. Lots of work and extra tools required for maybe minimal gain unless you know the engine is burning oil etc. Subframe floor reinforcement is massive and exhausting job if you do it properly ie top and bottom plates. You need to be a decent welder or know someone who is and can do it on jackstands\hoist unless you want to pay someone massive labour rates - RMS say its a 30-60 hour job, lost count how many hours ive put in so far. Never heard of anyone needed a cert. You can make blend the repair in quite well if wanted. Id just inspect the underside and internal cavities when the frame is out and go from there (see Reddish Motorsport videos and CMP write up on it). If you don't see anything then i wouldn't bother in your case. I replaced my bushings with Lemforder\Meyle ones because im re-enforcing and they are much cheaper than poly(and look better). Poly is suppose to be better for limiting frame movement hence reducing stress on floor\welds. See my thread later on today for an idea, mine had 2 extremely minor failures but i wanted to do it anyway for piece of mind.

The bushings dont truly fail, just the floor. Likely something in the drivetrain in that case. dont think ive driven any E46 that doesn't have at least in a dull thud under certain conditions. Yeah looks like you are going to swapping and replacing a lot of parts so not an issue.

It uses the same SMG system as earlier non M cars so don't see why not. As above HellBM may know more.

Yes but id imagine trying to source manual parts for a car like that would be hard. At the min you'd need manual box, shifter linkages\parts, pedals, hydraulic lines and parts and recoding.

Slight end play on the PS pump is normal. Clunking could drive train, diff or worn trailing arm bushings. Does it only do it when cold?

Man that sucks esp the transmission part. Reading through your thread it doesn't strike me as a car that had any love for along time. Like any forum there is trash masquerading as legitimate enthusiasts sadly.

Freight cost wouldn't be worth it. Drivers looks pretty worn anyway.

Ive got various new pulleys floating around if you figure it out the noise

Nice. Most 3 gen Legacy's you see around these days are just rolling scrape.

Only value in it is the engine really so would be <$1000. You probably couldn't give away the rest of the parts. Id just low reserve it on trademe or maybe BMW facebook groups if you use it.

Im not expert but it doesnt look like a real ACS to me. Looks like a partial rep kit with front bumper, spoiler and badges. Missing a lot of genuine bits.

Yeah i should of said you can sit and the end of the rev range.

Kinda the point with BMW N\A 6's and one of the reason why ive never owned a turbo version. You actually can use the full rev range without getting too illegal.

Penrite ATF FS. Far superior to that Castrol.

My mate has a 318is coupe and he prefers driving my compact. The 4 cylinder feels more at home and performs better with the lighter body and basic rear end. Still think a well sorted 318is manual would provide some entertainment on a twisty road. Least you can use the full rev range without getting into too much trouble.

Having installed the same Akebono pads myself i can't say i like them due to the lack of bite (compared to OE stuff) but they do appear to have next to no dust though. I can see why you don't want to drive it in the rain after getting it to this level of cleanliness. Hopefully doesn't turn into too much of a garage queen.

Plenty of room for a birds to hop inside modern wheel designs and let the owners know what they think

Well it least it still looks exactly how i remember it with the RS's

I dont know if thats Fedex causing the delays though or NZ customs\covid. I think the latter.

Probably need at least a few k spent on it like most but you'd get it back over time.

Sounds great in those clips. To me the non cat E34 M60's engines were always quite raw for a luxury car.

Yeah is what it is but im glad i discovered it before it got worse. I think they would come to the same conclusion as me. As you know the system has no filters to prevent this but it should be fairly clean now. I can repair the cylinder locally much cheaper than overseas now that i know the required seal. Haha thanks. Mechanical wise it's certainly up there. Cosmetically it wont be winning any awards but its tidy enough for my standards. Maybe a possible front end respray in the future, who knows.

Both have their positives and negatives but prefer the older style myself purely from ease of working on\access point of view. I wouldn't think you could use the newer setup without fiddling around with the wiring\plugs and coolant lines given the M52TU\M54 is different from your M52

Probably get near that in scrap or maybe more if you can sell the o2 sensors.