The shark bit me

[pofo]

Yes that may be true as the rear brakes only does about ruffly 20% of the braking, but they look much better and that is worth it 100% to me

[pofo]

I am going to order a refresh kit for the front end today like the Ball joints and tie rods. While is have everything apart what other bushings/components should be replaced/added to improve the handling of the car.

[Tom D]

just abut everything, how many miles on the car?

front:
tie rods, ball joints, sway bar bushings (4), upper shock mounts, new dampers (not chinese coilovers) and a rack overhaul.

rear:
trailing arm bushings, upper shock mounts, dampers, subframe bushings

overall:
high quality lowering springs and no more then 1.5"!!!!
quality tires and a good balance

[pofo]

I will worry about the coils for the spring but for the winter just want to make sure the wheels will stay strait haha. But I am unsure of the miles as the OD say 10k and I cant tell you that is not right. As for the trailing arms bushings should I get the camber kit from BAVauto or just keep stock specs?

[Tom D]

it all depends on what you intend to do with the car and I'm a bit confused. from past conversations it appears, if i recall correctly, that you're more about looks and looking good then you are about handling and bling over performance.

if that is the case then lowering the car more then 1.5" will give you way more camber then can be corrected with a camber kit. but if its not the case and you truly want to enjoy the handling capabilities of these great little platforms then you need to give up the notion of hella low and flashy parts.

- - - Updated - - -

pofo, i was just thinking, lyme rock is really close to you and a sweet track. why don't you join the bmwcca and sign up for a track day with them. this will afford you the opportunity to push the car to your limits and then give you a better idea of the direction you want to take. personally i enjoy looking at shiny, but will always take going good over looking good.

www.bmwcca.org

[pofo]

I dont want to put the car on the ground never did nor do I want the car to high. But I guess with the trends you my assume that is what I was thinking. I dont want to have to avoid man hole covers anymore. But because I need new parts I want to upgrade and improve what is there, but I dont see the big deal of lowering the car more than 1.5" for daily use and when I go to the track raise it back up an 1" or so to bring the geometry back inline for aggressive driving. To each there own I say but I rather buy performance parts when I can

[pofo]

Car is running strong for sitting for 6 year, very happy with the it. Next I want to buy new bushings for the whole car, what's everyone using? At the moment the rear end feels looser than it should because the bushings are toast, the front are not as bad but are on there way.

[Tom D]

id suggest you stick with OEM rubber with exception to the rack mount, use polyurethane there. you can get some of the rubber stuff in extra hard from the factory.

[ButteDorFrank]

id suggest you stick with OEM rubber with exception to the rack mount, use polyurethane there. you can get some of the rubber stuff in extra hard from the factory.

I'd suggest you completely ignore this post ^^^ and you buy full polyurethane bushing from Jester (Jesse) at www.eurometric.com ... you will not regret the stiffness that it brings to the e21, well worth every penny

[Tom D]

...... buy full polyurethane bushing well worth every penny......

and why is that, because the come in pretty colors?

[pofo]

I always here bad things on poly and how fast they fall apart. I was looking into the camber and toe bushing but not 100% yet sold on them. But I only want to do the job once

[pofo]

Well I have been hording parts for the past several months and this past week I decided it was time. I will be swapping in a S52 out of a 98 M3, but first I need to repaint the engine bay. I picked up a sand blaster from harbor freight and went to work. I am using glass media as it's not to abrasive but work grate on surface rust. I still have some more stripping I need to fish but hope to have it complete soon.











Some of the parts I have gathered up


still debating on wrapping the exhaust.

[benjaminfrankln]

this is a great post!

[pofo]

I have some free time this week to get some more work done.





Base Coat



and clear coat.
The lighting is very poor, hopefully I can push it out side tomorrow and get a better image.

[pofo]

Put some more work in last night with the help from a friend and got the motor in. I have good clearance every where so far except the exhaust is extremely close to the steering rack and will melt the boot, still thinking of a solution to this as the stock heat shield might not fit back in. I need to also measure for the driveshaft and exhaust options. But I am happy with the progress so far.

[NoNothing]

This is good. I like this.

[pofo]

It's been a while from the last update.

I have all the wiring complete, installed the radiator and had the driveshaft cut down.

I still need to finish up the cooling system and exhaust (I still have no clue how I want to run it and what size piping I should use)

[Somjuan]

That's nice and shoehorned in there! Looking good, what are the specs on that radiator? Looks twice as thick as the stock one

[pofo]

That's nice and shoehorned in there! Looking good, what are the specs on that radiator? Looks twice as thick as the stock one

It is a tight fit but fits well. The radiator is a 18" x 19" x 3" and fit perfect when the stock mounts are removed. I still need to get a cap with no spring so I can route in an expatiation tank.