Frankenstien e36 project

[jalopi]

why? they're a bit on the soft side, but they're not that much softer than the 750#ers that i got from ground control, they seem to git-r-dun pretty well

it is weird that he got the same spring rate for the front/rear axle though. FYI OP the adjusted spring rate is something in the ballpark of 360#s for the rear, that's why most dudes rock a vastly stiffer spring in the rear of their bmws

[trev dogg]

it is weird that he got the same spring rate for the front/rear axle though. FYI OP the adjusted spring rate is something in the ballpark of 360#s for the rear, that's why most dudes rock a vastly stiffer spring in the rear of their bmws

this is why ^

ive read that e36/e46(not sure about e90) with the trailing arm rear suspension needs rear springs a certain amount stiffer than the front. something about the placement of the spring being in front of the rear wheel is different than others. this does not apply to ti's, z3's or e30's, they are usually running softer spring raters in the rear, like the OP's 600/600

OP - the car will probably feel okay, this is just something to keep in mind if the set up does not end up working out for you. you could always try stiff rear sway bar and run stiff shocks to offset the softer spring before actually changing the springs

[JesterMX6]

I run 400# front, 750# rear and feel like my fronts could stand to be a bit stiffer but the rears feel great.

[jakeE36325]

This setup it just to get me started. I wanted something I can replace parts in semi cheaply. I can always change the spring rates later.

[jakeE36325]

Update!

About 3 weeks ago my car got towed and it ended up costing $400 to get it out. About a half mile down the road after picking it up the engine started sounding really weird and the whole car was vibrating. The top end was making a ton of noise. Ended up pulling the engine the next day.
image.jpeg
4.5 hours and 10 beers later it was out. Pulled the cams yesterday and found one of the main chain guides was completely missing.
image.jpg
S54 oil pan and pump going on along with arp main studs
image.jpg
Spent way too much time polishing the timing cover while waiting for parts
image.jpg
Installed the head, CES cutring headgasket, arp head studs and a Stewart water pump

[jakeE36325]

image.jpg
Will do the second pass torque today. Will be waiting on a chain guide, gaskets and gauges and senders before I can do much more. Excited to install my bimmer world oil distribution block.

I scored a bunch of m3 suspension and brake parts last weekend. All calipers, pads, rotors, trailing arms, subframe, front knuckles, all hubs, camber arms, control arms struts with eibach springs. I'm working on selling some of it off and should only be out $200.

[Novablue454]

oohhh that's pretty

[jakeE36325]

Got some gauges mocked up using some left over CF skin. WI'll start wiring them tomorrow while I wait for stuff in the mail.
image.jpg
image.jpg

[jakeE36325]

Made a gauge harness between redoing some flooring in the house and moving a fish tank. Parts coming tomorrow so maybe a little more progress will be made. This reminded me how much I like wiring things. A good change from pulling wire in a 50' boat for my stern thruster install.

Still have to add the wideband and fuse's but it's close
image.jpg

Finally got half my tube and gear mounted after laying up 26 layers of glass
image.jpg
Inside motor mounting
image.jpg

[jakeE36325]

Best temp sensor mounting location without spending much?
image.jpg
image.jpg

[protomor]

You can thread and tap the housing up top on the high hose. But some people just get a bolt on sensor plug where you cut the hose mid way down and "T" into it.

[jakeE36325]

I have seen those but I didn't want to cut up my new silicone hoses. I also think the extra hose clamps don't look very good.

[jalopi]

what's wrong with the stock temp sensor location?

though to stay on point, yep i bet tapping the tstat housing will work fine

[jakeE36325]

Your right about the stock location but I want to keep that gauge working. I also have a good hook up on VDO stuff so I went that route. Just under $200 for that setup. Hopefully I don't go too broke with this so I can get the drift knuckle kit.

[jakeE36325]

Spent the long weekend in the garage. Saturday consisted of finishing up the sensors, ltw flywheel and 6 puck clutch, bolting the trains on. I dropped in the engine that evening and stayed up til 3am wiring up the gauges and connecting the engine.
image.jpgimage.jpgimage.jpg
Sunday morning was rough but managed to get back at it around 10am. Went out and got the remaining parts and oil I needed. Finished hooking up the electrical and started on the cooling system. By about 3pm I was "ready" for the first start. Loaded the s50 tune on the war chip, primed the oil pump, and she fired right up. Fuel injector #1 soaked the engine bay along with the vanos oil feed. The s54 oil pump puts out some crazy pressure at idle with cold oil. Got everything cleaned up and was onto the long list of CEL s that were thrown. A code for every coil pack and secondary ignition module. Hacked a 240 ohm resistor off an old wiring harness and grounded it straight to the chassis. Still lots of codes so I swapped to my old bav auto coils. Codes went away but then another appeared. 02 sensor this time. Realized that I got the wrong exhaust manifold gaskets for the obd2 headers and it was leaking badly. Pretty sure that code will go away with new gaskets.
image.jpgimage.jpg
Found a bunch more small oil leaks around sensors and the valve cover. I think most of them are fixed as of yesterday when I parked the car. I ended up driving it about 60 miles yesterday. It has good power so far but haven't taken it above 4k RPMS. The clutch is rediculously stiff and grabs hard. Coupled with the poly trans mounts there is some crazy noises. The leak at the headers made it not as noticeable though. Surprisingly there I haven't noticed any visible smoke from the exhaust and have the Ccv dumping into a water bottle with only a few drops of oil in it.

Pretty happy with with everthing so far as this is the first time I've put an engine in a car and one that I assembled none the less. New exhaust gaskets are in the mail. It's going to be hard not to drive it until I put them on but there is still a lot of little things to be done.

[jakeE36325]

image.jpg

[rstaylor25]

Subbed, looking good bro love the progress


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jakeE36325]

Got the header gaskets swaped out and retorqued the head. The cars throwing an o2 sensor code. Was replaced about a year ago. Never fixed the code. The fuel milage needle moves around while cruising at part throttle. The AFR's bounce around from 14.7-15.5 while cruising. I think the fuel pump is weak? I don't have a pressure tester and am to broke at this point to buy one. Anyone have suggestions on a fuel pump. Walboro 255?

Just got done installing an understeer short shifter. Feels much better then the sloppy old one I pulled out.

[jakeE36325]

Made a little progress today. Not quite the outcome I was hoping. I bolted up my m3 knuckles, coil overs, and mikeE36's old angle kit. I thought this would be a quick and easy install.
image.jpg

The he passenger side went fairly well after I got that damn tie rod end off. Took adjusting the camber plates a few times to get the wheel inside the fender. Then I had an issue with it being to far forward. Put a few turns on the adjustable control arm mount to get it more centered. The I maxed the coil over to max ride hight in hopes I would clear the fender while turning...


I started on the drivers side and I swear ever nut and bolt took a torch and pb blaster. Ended up thinking that cutting a groove in the tie rod end would get it off easier. Well it spun great for 3 turns then demolished all the threads. Frustrated, I slapped that side together so I could get it on the ground and close the garage.

With the the car on the ground it became apparent that I will be cutting a good portion of fender off so that I can steer and dial of some camber. The way it sits there -8.5* camber.

image.jpgimage.jpg

With it it off the ground its clear that this is going to give me a ton more angle and will require some spacers to keep it off the frame rails.

[protomor]

Welcome to mad angle town. Where the functionality is great, but everything else is you going "but... no... ok now... wait... now that doesn't fit".

[JesterMX6]

Welcome to mad angle town. Where the functionality is great, but everything else is you going "but... no... ok now... wait... now that doesn't fit".

seriously.

[jakeE36325]

Welcome to mad angle town. Where the functionality is great, but everything else is you going "but... no... ok now... wait... now that doesn't fit".

Ya I can tell this will be a bit of a battle! I know it's going to be worth the work. I have to decide how much to butcher my fenders now. I'm also considering taller springs because the cars much lower in the front then I would like. I know I would have issues driving around town.

[Novablue454]

That's an SLR kit right? Pretty sure you're going to have to flare it. I know I sure did. Im running a 17x8 et20 wheel with a 35mm spacer (so essentially -15 offset final) and I still poke outside my Hard Motorsport flares. Mines the ultra kit, so it may be slightly more severe though.

[jakeE36325]

Ya it's a V1 kit with V4 blocks. Yeah I don't think I have a choice. I still think I need taller springs as well. It's to low for me. I wish there was a less expensive option for flares then the Hard Motorsports. If I don't get taller springs I'm looking at like $400 for flares spacers and studs just for the front :/.

Anyone have suggestions on a reasonably priced way to get this done?

[Novablue454]

There's a build thread on here somewhere, I think the poster's name was sidewaysfab or something, he found some ebay flares for cheaper and they seem to have worked. Have you checked your lock to lock yet? I have to think you'll be hitting frame and sway bar hard without spacers.