Jackrabb1t's '77 320i "Restomod"

[jackrabb1t]

Hey everybody. About two months ago I bought my first BMW, a 1977 320i. The car is in incredibly original condition - the only negatives being a couple small dings and paint blemishes, and ripped and tattered seat covers with disintegrating cushions. Being a California/Nevada car for the majority of its life there is virtually no rust at all.

I drove the car around for a couple weeks to get the feel for it, until the ever increasing coolant leak got to be a little alarming. I decided at that point to start a minor refresh of the engine bay, starting with cleaning the buildup off the coolant fittings, along with new hoses and gaskets.

With all the intake system off and the front of the car up on jack stands, I could see that a bit more work was needed. The bottom of the engine and transmission is a slimy mess of oil and grease. The motor mounts are shot. At the very least new seals, gaskets, and bushings are needed across the board.

So, I let the car sit for a few weeks while I stewed on what to do with it.

And now I've decided to do a sort of "restomod". The goal I have in mind is a car that is comfortable as a fair weather driver, but sporty enough for the occasional canyon run. I also want to preserve a lot of the cars originality. Here's what I plan to do:

• Euro bumper conversion. (the front for sure, haven't decided on the rear yet).
• Engine rebuild, transmission refresh.
• Smog equipment removal.
• Stahl 1-3/8" header, stainless exhaust.
• New mounts and bushings.
• General mechanical refresh of the car (inspection of all parts and replacement of worn out items).
• Recaro front seats, vinyl rear seat conversion.
• E30 15" 4x100 steel wheels.

All the original parts I remove are going into boxes to be kept with the car.

Suggestions are certainly welcome, as I'm new to the BMW world and I've been doing lots of research and forum browsing.

/----------------------------------/

Mod List (Updated)

Engine

• Ireland Engineering Windage Tray
• Ireland Engineering Alternator Bushings
• Solid driver's side engine damper with poly bushings
• AFE Pro 5R Air Filter

Exhaust

• Stahl Header
• Ansa Sport Muffler

Suspension/Steering

• Bilstein B8 Shocks
• H&R Sport Lowering Springs
• Eurometric Poly Control Arm Bushings
• Stiff rear subframe mounts
• Eurometric Poly Steering Rack Bushings
• Ireland Engineering Poly Steering Linkage Flex Disc
• Poly stabilizer bar bushings

Brakes

• ECS Tuning Stainless Steel brake lines

Exterior

• Front and rear Euro-spec bumpers

/----------------------------------/

So far I have removed the battering ram:



Removed the smog equipment:



Okay so I lied, there is a little bit of rust...



One of the wheels:

[Tom D]

asides from the fact that I would never own a red car, it looks pretty good. 77's are special all on their own, while 78 and 79 are both considered pre-facelifted cars the 77 has things that the other two don't.

[HipMF]

Sounds like a good plan. Car looks really nice. What color is that exactly? Korrall? Slicktop (no sunroof)?

With all the intake system off and the front of the car up on jack stands, I could see that a bit more work was needed.

Hah! I'm having this problem with my e30 right now. The more stuff I take apart, the more things I find that need to be done. It can be hard to know when to stop, but it's taking up space that I need to work on the e21, so some things will have to wait for another day...

- - - Updated - - -

Ah, just read your other thread. I guess that answers my question about the color! It's a rare one I think. I like it.

[epmedia]

where did the original post go?

[jackrabb1t]

where did the original post go?

I edited so it went into the moderation queue...

Here's a few more pictures of the car:

[shauer]

Nice example of a stock '77. No sunroof and no A/C.

Glad to see another '77 being taken care of.

- Steve

[jackrabb1t]

It was a gorgeous 65 degrees here today so I took advantage of the nice weather to rearrange the car in the garage.



Nice shot of the engine bay in the sunlight:



Up on jacks. She won't be moving again for awhile.



Removed the entire exhaust system. Only one bolt sheared off on me.



Pulled the radiator, fan, fan shroud, and alternator.



I guess I can add a radiator to the list of things I need to buy.



- - - Updated - - -

Speaking of radiators and fans...I did a little research and people seemed to recommend ditching the motor and aux fan and going with an electric fan in a pull setup. Any comments/suggestions? Would I need to upgrade the alternator? I see that Ron Davis makes an aluminum radiator for the 2002...would that work? The inlet/outlet pipes look to be in approximately the same location, not sure about pipe diameter.

[ButteDorFrank]

that's a clean car ! ... get a hold of Jester for eurometric bushings, a good upgrade.
as for the kidney grill, try to wash off the paint with some solvant of some sort, might work out ok.

[e21Terry]

I would recommend Citristrip to take the paint off of the grille. The plastic under the bright parts is sensitive to solvents.

[OLD MAN]

Great looking car - as shauer said really nice to see it being saved and cleaned up!

[jackrabb1t]

I would recommend Citristrip to take the paint off of the grille. The plastic under the bright parts is sensitive to solvents.

Thanks for the CitriStrip recommendation. I had never used that stuff before, and I'm very happy with how well it worked (see below). I drilled out the rivets and separated it from the plastic anyway because there's a small dent I want to try to hammer out.



Removed the rear seats. I love working on old cars...two bolts and two screws were all that was holding the rear seats down.



Removed the front seats and vacuumed the carpet. I think with a good shampoo I'll be able to reuse the carpet.



Removed the front suspension from the car.



Everything is disconnected from the engine and transmission and they're ready to be lifted out as soon as I buy that engine hoist I've been meaning to buy.

[dups]

subscribed

[ButteDorFrank]

man I'm jealous looking at how clean this is ! ... I'm working on a 150$ car right now that had been beaten and abused by dunk kids in the woods ... it's full of mud, everything is rusted, it's a nightmare ...

[dups]

This is exactly where I've been trying to get to for a year. Every time my engine catches on fire, I swear I'm going to tear it down. Years of oil dribbling out of the reactor exhaust ports has the entire bottom of my car caked with layers of oil and stuff that sticks to old oil. I think a small animal might be permanently embedded down there. Anyway...THATS IT! You sir have inspired me, I am doing it. HOA be damned!

If you want the stock looking radiator...look on ebay for a "spectra" or search Randy's post about them. I used a late model one in a pinch and it's 15 pounds lighter, sits a wee bit to the right but, I've never got to the 1/2 mark since.

I guess I should start with the intake? Seems like it really starts to open up from there. I'm not sure I'll be able to lift my engine but, I'll be right behind you.

[Tom D]

the engine and transmission and they're ready to be lifted out

jack, a couple of things.

first off send the radiator to a shop and have it rebuilt. it's made entirely of metal and is superior to all the plastic ones on the market today.

second thing. since you have the front suspension off already then drop the engine instead of lifting it, much easier.

connect the hoist to the engine, remove the 4 bolts holding the engine crossmember and the two nuts holding the transmission crossmember, now lower the engine/trans to the ground.
connect the hoist to the core support, lift the front end of the car and slide the engine out.

[jackrabb1t]

I'm back!

Between the Chump Car/World Racing League seasons and moving I have had little time to work on the E21 project, but now that I'm settled into my new place and winter is here things are happening again.

The car in it's new (dry, heated) home:



Got the engine and transmission out:



Block stripped down, ready to go to the machine shop:



Pistons and crankshaft:



Getting ready to drop the entire rear end:



I did acquire some goodies over the past year, however.

Stahl header:



Recaro buckets:



I'm piecing together a new OEM euro bumper set. So far I have the front right and rear left pieces:

[pofo]

Looks like a sold start

[dangerwillrbnsn]

Looks like a clean car to start with. Nice work so far! Keep it up.

[jackrabb1t]

Removed the rear suspension.



Took it apart.



And the UPS man came. I now have a complete NOS front Euro bumper.

[brettkcherry]

This looks really good. Looking forward to seeing progress...

[bimram]

I noticed you changed out the 77 smog system using a Stahl header.. can you provide some more details on how you eliminated /cleaned up the other parts of the vacuum system to the EGR, etc..

[MortyCrock]

I noticed you changed out the 77 smog system using a Stahl header.. can you provide some more details on how you eliminated /cleaned up the other parts of the vacuum system to the EGR, etc..

FYI, this is a 7 month old thread. but! I hope the OP is still around and kicking! I'd love to see what he's done since December.

[SilverPuddle]

FYI, this is a 7 month old thread. but! I hope the OP is still around and kicking! I'd love to see what he's done since December.

Me too...I love to see builds. It gives me insight and excites me to do more.

[epmedia]

I noticed you changed out the 77 smog system using a Stahl header.. can you provide some more details on how you eliminated /cleaned up the other parts of the vacuum system to the EGR, etc..

I don't think NY allows that, unless race car.

[jackrabb1t]

FYI, this is a 7 month old thread. but! I hope the OP is still around and kicking! I'd love to see what he's done since December.

I am still alive.

Unfortunately this project has been moving at a glacier-like pace. Since my last post I have moved to a different house. But I am hoping the progress will start to pick up here soon, as I am moved in and have put the race car away until next year.

I noticed you changed out the 77 smog system using a Stahl header.. can you provide some more details on how you eliminated /cleaned up the other parts of the vacuum system to the EGR, etc..

I haven't gotten to that part yet, but there are some instructions in this thread (unfortunately the pictures are now dead). I don't have to worry about passing an emissions test. In South Dakota the process to register a vehicle involves bringing the title to the DMV and paying a fee.

Here's the car in my new work shop. I've removed the ugly heat shield on the passenger-side firewall.



Scored an original rear seat in amazing condition from a member of this forum. Will need to dye the vinyl to match the rest of the interior.



I have finally assembled all the main metal Euro bumper pieces. This has been quite the project. The pieces have come together from Colombia, Croatia, Germany, and Colorado. Still have to acquire the rubber bits and some miscellany hardware. If I ever get into a fender bender I'm going to cry.



Block is back from the machine shop; cleaned up and ready for paint: