My 325i Vert Thread

[csifan99]

Looking nice man. Reminds me I need to check under my carpet as well.

Thanks, I should have checked it years ago when I noticed water under the rear mat.

[csifan99]

Got the interior kit from Katzkin and got the seats done. The kit was really easy to install. Deansbimmer over on E30tech made an awesome tutorial with alot of pictures.


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Black wrapped with a red insert.

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So many pieces.

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Front seats done.

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Rear seat done.

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Rear seat in car.

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Full interior done.

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Interior is 100% done now. Exterior only needs to have the rocker trim pieces put on. Then comes the mechanical work, which includes replacing the clutch, changing the valve cover, and replacing the fuel injectors.

[braddammit]

Damn. Nice work man! Looking forward to seeing an extensive photo set.

[csifan99]

Damn. Nice work man! Looking forward to seeing an extensive photo set.

There will be a very extensive photo set to come within the next month or two. Every square inch of the car will be covered. No detail left out.

[Luciano36]

There will be a very extensive photo set to come within the next month or two. Every square inch of the car will be covered. No detail left out.

Awesome!!

[csifan99]

I got around to swapping the stock injectors with M50 injectors, changed the valve cover to my painted one, and reinstalled the strut brace.

Nice addition of color to the engine bay.

DSCF0167 by E30Bass, on Flickr

Decided I needed a photo to frame on my wall.

DSCF0164 by E30Bass, on Flickr

If anyone is interested, I will paint the old valve cover to sell. I also will have the old wheels and tires, and the full metal bumper setup.

[e30nub1]

FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU.. such a nice build man.. good lord.. my vert aspires to be like that..lol i am doing things in the opposite order of you i believe..all my engine and suspension work will be 1st..and then the paint job will be next winter/spring i just cant figure what color i want to paint it..lol

I do have a question on the prep work for your paint job.. what products did you use and was it all by yourself or did you have help?..also the color sanding.. how did that go? (specifics..) the only reason i ask if the fact that i have seen a ton of people say the paint job is all in the prep work..

[csifan99]

FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU.. such a nice build man.. good lord.. my vert aspires to be like that..lol i am doing things in the opposite order of you i believe..all my engine and suspension work will be 1st..and then the paint job will be next winter/spring i just cant figure what color i want to paint it..lol

I do have a question on the prep work for your paint job.. what products did you use and was it all by yourself or did you have help?..also the color sanding.. how did that go? (specifics..) the only reason i ask if the fact that i have seen a ton of people say the paint job is all in the prep work..

The prep work is the most important part of any paint job. The surface has to near perfect for the paint to adhere properly. All that I needed to do since I was respraying the car the same color, was to take the clear coat off. For the areas that required filler, I had to go down to bare metal and then feather the filler so it was perfectly smooth. All I used was a DA sander with 80 grit to take the clear off, then 220 to smooth it down before primer. after the final coat of primer I used 400 to get it ready for color. My dad did the color sanding, I will get him to explain what his steps were.

[csifan99]

Long time since an update. Today I replaced the selector shaft seal and installed the z3 shifter. The old seal was simple to take out and the new one went in without a hitch. The shifter was simple to swap out. The only issue came with the selector rod. Had to put a slight bend in it to clear the vibration dampener. Works like a champ and no clearance issues.

Old seal out

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Old vs. New

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New seal in

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Old sponge vs. New sponge

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Figured I would take a picture of my exhaust system. All one piece.

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Everything else gets put back together tomorrow.

[Nihilator]

Just came across this thread. My 'vert aspires to be as well-cared for as yours. Awesome work!

--Chris

[csifan99]

Finished it up today. Test drive went awesome, smooth shifting. This is the best upgrade I have done so far. Anyone thinking about it, it is worth it.

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[rjohs]

Refreshed trunk carpet ready to go. Decided to dye it black instead of the gray it was.

2013-03-27_09-20-35_227 by E30Bass, on Flickr

Can you expand on what you did to dye the carpet? I was thinking of doing this as mine has faded unevenly, and the mats, while in good shape are several shades off what they should be...

Your project is awesome!

Rich

[csifan99]

Can you expand on what you did to dye the carpet? I was thinking of doing this as mine has faded unevenly, and the mats, while in good shape are several shades off what they should be...

Your project is awesome!

Rich

I actually used duplicolor fabric and vinyl paint. Just be sure the carpet is clean and dry. It was easy and there is no rub off to other things that I put in the trunk.

[newman995]

Beautiful job. just went through the whole thread. How much was it for the entire paint job, all materials included? Just curious because mine needs it bad (abusive PO with too many rustoleum cans)

[csifan99]

Beautiful job. just went through the whole thread. How much was it for the entire paint job, all materials included? Just curious because mine needs it bad (abusive PO with too many rustoleum cans)

Just the paint cost me about $1200 for the base and clear. It was $500 for the shop to spray it. All they had to do was spray the base and clear, no other labor for them. As far as other materials those totaled about $300-400. The bodywork took the most amount of time to do. A shop will kill on the labor cost do the bodywork. It was alot of work, but I really enjoyed doing it. I would love to do it again, not on my car though.

[newman995]

Just the paint cost me about $1200 for the base and clear. It was $500 for the shop to spray it. All they had to do was spray the base and clear, no other labor for them. As far as other materials those totaled about $300-400. The bodywork took the most amount of time to do. A shop will kill on the labor cost do the bodywork. It was alot of work, but I really enjoyed doing it. I would love to do it again, not on my car though.

I would do all of the body work myself also. It seems like a lot of work, but i guess it will save a lot of money. Thanks for the reply mate. Beautiful car!

[Smrzy]

Wow, incredible job. This thread intrigued me!

[csifan99]

Time to start my clutch job. Its gonna apart for a couple weeks so it is the perfect time to clean up the engine bay.

DSCF0390 by E30Bass, on Flickr

Took the front end off for easier access.

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Bag and tag

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Sad look but it has to get done.

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[csifan99]

Started bright and early this morning removing all necessary components.


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So much room!

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Not as much as I thought it would be.

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Hopefully will pull the motor/trans tonight. If anyone is thinking of doing this all I have to say is label, label, label.

- - - Updated - - -

Finally got it out. Simple and easy to do. The next step is to clean everything thoroughly.


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Time for cleaning and completely resealing the motor. Gaskets will be here tomorrow.

[xolomom]

Can you please tell me what brand/type of paint you used on the valve cover? Does it need heat resistant paint? Thanks.

[csifan99]

xolomom: Duplicolor high temp paint with clear.

Motor is torn down and head is 90% disassembled.


DSCF0416 by E30Bass, on Flickr


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Block and head will be going to the machine shop in a few weeks for cleaning and honing.

[csifan99]

Been making some good progress. The motor is staring to take shape again.

Back from the machine shop and painted

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Cylinders rehoned.

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Crank reinstalled with new bearings.

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Intermediate shaft reinstalled.

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Pistons are in with new rings.

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More work to be done tomorrow. Still waiting on parts from the dealership which should be there Thursday.

[csifan99]

Alot of progress today. The head is fully assembled and the block is taking shape.

Clear coated the oil pan just because I love the look of aluminum.

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A little valve lapping action going on.

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It only about a minute of lapping to get it perfect.

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Intake valves done.

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Exhaust valves done.

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New valve stem seals in. 11mm socket was a perfect fit.

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All valve springs in.

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Camshaft, rockers, and rocker arms in. Head is done.

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Front crank and intermediate shaft seals on.

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Getting the rest of my parts from the dealer tomorrow. Then full steam ahead. The motor should be complete this weekend. One step closer to getting it back in the car.

[braddammit]

Looking super nice. Great job. That is going to even more incredible when you get done with it.

Keep posting the progress!

[oomz1975]

Nice work, I love the way you go about your business...