sammaw 0 Report post Posted December 17, 2006 Hi i have started to pull the m3 engine apart as the head gasket has gone. Does anyone know of a workshop manual for this as it is starting to look a little complicated. I am about to take the cams out now but it would help now before i take the cam chain off to work out if i need to mark the timing etc. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
318isCoupe 0 Report post Posted December 17, 2006 If in doubt.. especially with an E30 M3!! PAY A PRO!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sammaw 0 Report post Posted December 17, 2006 yeah i know what u saying but how am i ment to learn if i dont do. I have a bmw mechanic on standby if i get in a real mess. did a m20 head gasket and it was fairly straightforward but i did have a manual. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
318isCoupe 0 Report post Posted December 17, 2006 yeah i know what u saying but how am i ment to learn if i dont do. I have a bmw mechanic on standby if i get in a real mess. did a m20 head gasket and it was fairly straightforward but i did have a manual. I'd imagine the manual for an M20 is going to be a lot more easier to come across than one for an S14. On a car this rare it may be a good idea to get it done by a pro.. Because replacement S14's are hard to find and probably fairly heavy on the wallet! If not.. can anyone point out anything with S14's that would make a headgasket replacement any less straight-forward than any other 4-cylinder engine? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gus 5 Report post Posted December 17, 2006 dude chill..its just another car..its his cost if anything goes wrong! sorry cant be of much help..try s14.net forums for any help they can offer...dont imagine its hugely different (although their site dont seem to be working at the mo) although TDC is easy to find on block, and since you may as well rebuild head while ya their it doesnt really matter as you will put it back together at TDC Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
will 169 Report post Posted December 17, 2006 Probably the first thing is to determine how the timing chain tensioner works before you loosten the chain so you don't end up with bits in the sump. I don't know the motor so can't help much. The rest should be relatively straight foward. I have done the chain on a M5 motor and, apart from needing a couple of special tools, was quite simple. As Gus implies, it is just another motor. I have never been scared of diving into the unknown without manuals. If it were a much later motor with all the fancy EVT etc I might hesitate a bit but this is still a basic (but potent) little motor. So go for it !! My 5c worth anyway.... Will Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sammaw 0 Report post Posted December 17, 2006 thanks guys. i will finsh pulling it apart today. when BMW made this engine they really went to town on fastners. I have never seen a engine with as many nuts on the rocker cover to undo. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hybrid 1039 Report post Posted December 17, 2006 What version is it ? 2.3 or 2.5 (just interested) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Spargo Report post Posted December 17, 2006 599/15000 chance its a 2.5 Josh - and does it even matter Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
318isCoupe 0 Report post Posted December 17, 2006 Still think He needs to take some pics and stop teasing us haha. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sammaw 0 Report post Posted December 17, 2006 its a black 2.3 1986 left hook. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hybrid 1039 Report post Posted December 18, 2006 nice good luck with the rebuild .... would be nice to have a write up on it if possible .. also, yea . grab some pics And s14.net for info. Between s14.net site and BMW parts NZ I have found out some _very_ interesting things about the e30 m3 and confirmed a busted a few myths floating around too. Also went to check out for myself on the ex-jerry claytons non evo e30 m3. It is possible (engine aside) to take a 325 and for about 30k turn it into an m3. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew 30 Report post Posted December 18, 2006 It is possible (engine aside) to take a 325 and for about 30k turn it into an m3. It really isnt! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gus 5 Report post Posted December 18, 2006 30K? why not just buy an m3? also the thing about having no common body panels but the boot may get to ya Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Spargo Report post Posted December 18, 2006 Soooo what do you do to the unibody? An M3 unibody has differing rear quarter panels / a differing design for the weld-in rear screen / the front suspension turrets have a differing angle to the normal e30 turrets. Gus, the only common panels are the doors and the bonnet - the bootlid is a plastic affair with a raised portion to match the rear screen. After its all done and dusted, the E30 M3 is not in the same family as the E30. It may as well be an E30/2 - It shares common parts like lights and trim etc, but when its a completely different shell - It ain't the same car. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sammaw 0 Report post Posted December 18, 2006 ok I have it all apart. was not to hard. charging the camera now. Yeah i ve seen a few replica m3 based on a 325. at the end of the day they are quite close. The engine parts of the s14 are so light. its really nice to work on no heavy lifting. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gus 5 Report post Posted December 18, 2006 by boot, i mean bonnet didnt know about doors Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew 30 Report post Posted December 18, 2006 they are a wee bit shorter also Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hybrid 1039 Report post Posted December 18, 2006 *sigh* Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hybrid 1039 Report post Posted December 18, 2006 The parts I think you are all refering to are the rear window frame, this is not part of the unibody, its a 'bolt on' panel part you can buy from BMW, you can even buy the rivets that allow you to attach it to the body. It sits over the rear roof pillars and comes down to the boot with that little sqaure section that meets with the higher boot / boot line. That and the interior is lengthend to fit. Body panels bolt straight up. Suspension isnt too hard to change out, and the front strut towers can be purchased from BMW and welded in. But the only reason you would want to do this is A) to keep as close to e30 m3 as possible and B ) to change the self-center properties of the steering, this is only very slight. (positive castor). The part that confuses every one is called the "REAR WINDOW FRAME" the rear wind screen is then fitted to this. part number 41 32 1 945 822. You can also get just the pillar by itself and the cover section. It is just rivited in. I asked _exactly_ the same questions to BMW NZ and I got a whole bunch of information on this as Brendon and I have looked into what its going to take on this project of ours. We estimated that it would be about 30k to do this. Looking into m3's around that are actually for sale. seem to be in very bad shape (rust lots of restoration work) so even if you got one for 15k you'd easy spend that again restoring and repainting. Im just saying it is actually another option people (I understand completely why) have over looked. anyways ... this is an engine thread. /end hijack Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
m325i 705 Report post Posted December 18, 2006 The boot is the ugliest bit of m3s IMO. I hate Left hook too. Interior is the same, a conversion wouldnt be that extreme would it? $2-3k? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sammaw 0 Report post Posted December 18, 2006 steering would cost the most. i priced it up at around 9k. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hybrid 1039 Report post Posted December 19, 2006 The boot is the ugliest bit of m3s IMO. I hate Left hook too. Interior is the same, a conversion wouldnt be that extreme would it? $2-3k? The rear quater panels cost about 800 each the fronts about 500 bumpers about 2k each that roof panel "rear window frame" 1.6k, boot about another 1.6k spoilers 500 odd strut towers ("front wheel house") around 800 each panel prep and paint 7-9k depending on what quality job you want / if you do the prep yourself. Suspension etc etc about 8k 2k for the interior conversion ... if it was a race car you would strip this anyways so wouldnt care. It all adds up. But is doable non the less. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
318isCoupe 0 Report post Posted December 19, 2006 (edited) How far from bolt-on are the likes of the front and rear quarter panels? (obviously the rear quarters would have to be cut and moulded into the roof panel by a bodyshop) because I'm surprised there aren't more "wide-body" E30's around.. Edited December 19, 2006 by 318isCoupe Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hybrid 1039 Report post Posted December 19, 2006 How far from bolt-on are the likes of the front and rear quarter panels? (obviously the rear quarters would have to be cut and moulded into the roof panel by a bodyshop) because I'm surprised there aren't more "wide-body" E30's around.. the box gaurds are just that gaurds ... part of the roof im refering too is "rear window frame" is this No. Description Supplement Qty From Up To Part Number 01 REAR WINDOW FRAME 1 41321945822 02 REAR WINDOW FRAME LEFT 1 41321959595 02 REAR WINDOW FRAME RIGHT 1 41321959596 03 COVER 1 51711942252 04 CLAMP 8 51711937638 05 RIVET 2 51211916976 As we see here it is not part of the box gaurds / "unibody" so ... the roof line is just a "add-on" too the standard e30 body and roof. It doesnt show it in that photo but there is a "cover" that just sits on the roof. The rest of the panels bolt straight up.. I hope this has made it clearer for everyone.. and yeah, its proabably because no one has really thought about it too seriously in NZ. On this project we hope to do just this ... minus the window frame and boot as we aint trying to be totally m3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
