Butler's E34 M5 Restoration Thread

[struka]

I can add that a Sig P938 won't fit either. This is one of Sig's micro pistols. Not sure what else could be smaller. It's the primary reason my driver's side glove box project is on the back burner. My M5 driving gloves fit with plenty of room for a pack of gum. This is the smallest damned glove box I've seen.

Exactly what I thought.

I can fit my S&W Bodyguard but its not pretty or perfect. Has to be leaned up to shut the door.

[Butler]

Butler, if you don't find any takers for your Dove M5 shift surround I'd try priming and painting it the color of your choice using SEM or Dupli-color vinyl/fabric paint. I've had pretty good results in my touring with both.

Thats a good suggestion but since the vinyl is delaminating so much already I might just have it recovered.

[TGreene]

Ran into the same problem when I swapped in a glovebox with trim into mine. You need to swap out the latch. it's #8 in this diagram:

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/show...diagId=51_1056

[Butler]

Latest update: Alcantara rear shelf


Before

Alcantara Rear Shelf-1 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Pull the rear seat

Alcantara Rear Shelf-2 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Alcantara Rear Shelf-3 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

UGHHH so nasty. Fuck lol

Alcantara Rear Shelf-5 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Peel off the old fabric

Alcantara Rear Shelf-6 by Nick Butler, on Flickr


Lay down your piece of alcantara

Alcantara Rear Shelf-8 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Alcantara Rear Shelf-9 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Trim the edges and speaker grills

Alcantara Rear Shelf-10 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Alcantara Rear Shelf-11 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Alcantara Rear Shelf-12 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Careful with the speaker grills. I broke several tabs on both sides reinstalling.

Alcantara Rear Shelf-14 by Nick Butler, on Flickr


Let it dry and get it back in the car!

Alcantara Rear Shelf-16 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Alcantara Rear Shelf-18 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Alcantara Rear Shelf-19 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

Alcantara Rear Shelf-20 by Nick Butler, on Flickr


I'm obviously happy with the change :P The old fabric was garbage and this was a great prep session before I tackle the headliner!

Cheers boys

[precisionmike1]

Looks great!
A few questions if you don't mind-
-Was that Alcantera brand, or another?
-How was it working with the contours?
-Did you use a steamer?
-What glue did you use?
-Is there a foam backing, if so, thickness?

I am also looking to redo my rear deck, head liner, A,B and C pillars. I found this stuff locally, but it has almost no stretch.

https://keystonbros.com/auto/auto-fa...eet-suede.html

[GregT53]

Just wanted to add my experience as I had the headliner, pillars, and package shelf done with Alcantara. First, be careful about the choice of material. There are lots of ultra suede type products, but in my research I found that Alcantara brand is the best regarding fade resistance and is substantially more robust. Second, Alcantara comes without foam backing which is fine for everything except the headliner. You can cover the headliner with a high quality foam-backed headliner material first and then apply the Alcantara. You can try applying directly to the headliner shell but you have to make sure there are no surface imperfections otherwise they will show through, plus getting nice fitment where the headliner meets the pillars might show some gaps. Third, Alcantara does not stretch so getting it around contours requires steam. Fourth, Weldwood Landau Top Adhesive is good because it has heat resistance. I had an experienced interior guy install mine. Labor cost was about $700. Alcantara is about $110/yard from Gulf Fabrics in Florida. You'll need 4-5 yards. Hope this helps.

[precisionmike1]

Just wanted to add my experience as I had the headliner, pillars, and package shelf done with Alcantara. First, be careful about the choice of material. There are lots of ultra suede type products, but in my research I found that Alcantara brand is the best regarding fade resistance and is substantially more robust. Second, Alcantara comes without foam backing which is fine for everything except the headliner. You can cover the headliner with a high quality foam-backed headliner material first and then apply the Alcantara. You can try applying directly to the headliner shell but you have to make sure there are no surface imperfections otherwise they will show through, plus getting nice fitment where the headliner meets the pillars might show some gaps. Third, Alcantara does not stretch so getting it around contours requires steam. Fourth, Weldwood Landau Top Adhesive is good because it has heat resistance. I had an experienced interior guy install mine. Labor cost was about $700. Alcantara is about $110/yard from Gulf Fabrics in Florida. You'll need 4-5 yards. Hope this helps.

This is very helpful, thanks!

[Butler]

Figured you guys would get a kick out of seeing exactly how far my baby has come.

Thoughts on this before / after? Slight upgrade, yea?


OriginalInterior-3 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

OriginalInterior-2 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

OriginalInterior-4 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

OriginalInterior-1 by Nick Butler, on Flickr






Update: Black interior trim pieces.

...I've been collecting interior bits New pieces include:

Black leather shift boot
Black leather e brake boot
Black kick panels
Black triangle piece in-between glove box and door
Black lower seat belt cover
Late model glove box latching bracket
Black glove box
And lastly, I recovered the OEM M5 shift surround with black alcantara.







Here are the finished pics. I'm really happy now that the interior truly feels "black". Its come a long way!

BlackInteriorTrim-3 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

BlackInteriorTrim-2 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

BlackInteriorTrim-10 by Nick Butler, on Flickr


My view

BlackInteriorTrim-5 by Nick Butler, on Flickr


4 seater FTW

BlackInteriorTrim-9 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

BlackInteriorTrim-8 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

BlackInteriorTrim-7 by Nick Butler, on Flickr


Yum, new leather

BlackInteriorTrim-12 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

BlackInteriorTrim-11 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

BlackInteriorTrim-6 by Nick Butler, on Flickr


I'm considering wrapping the wood trim with alcantara as well, not 100% sure what to do there yet. I bought a new wood insert set in a lighter finish but it didn't fit... I wasn't under the impression that there was any difference in the euro vs north america dash pieces. Anyone want to comment on that?


Alrighty!
The final two pieces I need are upper rear seat belt covers. Easy, since I can still buy them new.

[BleedsBlue]

Yup, the rear seat belt covers are cheap and available (weird, right??).

Sir Butler, you are quite literally an inspiration. That interior originally was actually worse than my M5, which I thought impossible, and it looks amazing. I have big plans for mine and will be using your thread to keep me going during the eventual, massive, expensive swap.

I'm sure you plan on a headliner re-wrap; thoughts on the carpet? I don't think grey looks bad at all, and wouldn't advise dying the carpet (ask me how I know).

[Butler]

Yup, the rear seat belt covers are cheap and available (weird, right??).

Sir Butler, you are quite literally an inspiration. That interior originally was actually worse than my M5, which I thought impossible, and it looks amazing. I have big plans for mine and will be using your thread to keep me going during the eventual, massive, expensive swap.

I'm sure you plan on a headliner re-wrap; thoughts on the carpet? I don't think grey looks bad at all, and wouldn't advise dying the carpet (ask me how I know).

Thanks my dude You're too kind. Its been a lot of work and yes - there is still a little more to do, and I can tackle it when time allows. The hardest parts are done and I'm SO happy with the 180* its done! Not sure about the carpet. I'd like to get a set of new black floor mats but its not really on the horizon yet.

[Tre0Tre34]

Interior is looking fantastic!

Good luck finding black factory mats. I gave up and went with silver... And have since not treated them very well

I will have to find an aftermarket brand I like and install the factory anchors myself.

[Sewciu]

Damn! The shift boot and steering wheel leather is 100% awesome!

[jbeinhor]

Where did you get the shift boot?!?

[Butler]

Thanks for the nice words guys.

Where did you get the shift boot?!?

Find JF Customs on eBay. I highly recommend his products!

[Eero]

Rear storage box is missing.

Its much nicer now than it was, well done!

[Kingpin025]

I'm not sure about the alcantara for the wood trim, though I have seen it done. Maybe some 3M darker wood color or carbon fiber?

[BleedsBlue]

I'm not sure about the alcantara for the wood trim, though I have seen it done. Maybe some 3M darker wood color or carbon fiber?

Tommy, I'm assuming he would match the Alcantara to the shift surround; I think with that tie-in, it would work well. That or just hold out for trimless center console pieces...like I am, haha.

[Butler]

That ^
The under dash interior pieces I have are all from a euro E34. The new wood pieces I bought were from a US spec car and they didn't fit. The wood piece left of the steering wheel was too short and the smaller piece right side of the steering wheel didn't have the correct curve.

Is there an early vs late style wood for the dash pieces? Help me guys! My plan is to recover the wood thats installed at the moment and have a back up set in a lighter shade.

[Tre0Tre34]

I believe the only difference in wood trim is due to the driver side glovebox since it requires different under dash panels. Should be the same trim between us and euro, just different if you have the driver glovebox.

[BleedsBlue]

^My understanding as well.

[Butler]

Updates: removed inner turbine fins and steering bits

Next step remove inner turbine fins, looks wider and more lip.

Thanks for the tip. Looks good in person, just a little more aggressive. Here is a comparison shot. I only did the rears to see if it looked like a staggered setup.

Untitled by Nick Butler, on Flickr


Back at it!

SteeringBits-1 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

SteeringBits-2 by Nick Butler, on Flickr

[BleedsBlue]

Inner Turbine fan delete is all the rage!!! Looks good, Mr. B.

I loved replacing all of the steering links, that was the last part in my full suspension refresh (round 1 at least). Keep an eye on that center link from Lemforder. Last thing I'm trying to do is jinx you, but mine only lasted about 2k miles before the joints were useless (just out of warranty, unfortunately). I replaced with another Lemf anyway

[Butler]

Inner Turbine fan delete is all the rage!!! Looks good, Mr. B.

I loved replacing all of the steering links, that was the last part in my full suspension refresh (round 1 at least). Keep an eye on that center link from Lemforder. Last thing I'm trying to do is jinx you, but mine only lasted about 2k miles before the joints were useless (just out of warranty, unfortunately). I replaced with another Lemf anyway

She feels AMAZING!!!!! !! ! ! ! Oh wow, I'm so happy with how tight the steering is. This car is go kart tight and needs to be flogged on some more back roads asap! I should take the back roads all the way to Colorado just to show you this car.

All good news peeps! I'll admit that I had my doubts about the handling from the E34 chassis -I've been corrected. I know I might be asking for a fight but .. Why would anyone want an E30 M3 when these cars are 1/4 the price?

[Smith Jason]

You steering wheel is making me drool......where is it from ? I have a non airbag car but that would be great to go with the new shifter knob I bought last year. I also have the solution to this inner turbine fan removal.......get 9's I really never noticed until I saw your picture today but there is a difference front to back. Nice work as always

[Eero]

Why would anyone want an E30 M3 when these cars are 1/4 the price?

Crazy rich people do crazy things... E34 if way much better car than E30.