thought id drop in, say whats up and gather useful info from you knowledgeable bunch when the time comes. which is kinda now...
for the rear calipers and parking brake cables on a 318, any differences between all the years? or can i just bolt what i find on ebay kleinanzeigen and call it a day?
Last edited by DadBoughtIt; 09-08-2018 at 02:18 PM.
If you're not familiar with it, realoem.com can help out. It's a bit tedious but you can look up parts for different years/models and compare the part numbers. If the part numbers are the same then you'e good to go. When part numbers are different, they may still be compatible but will take more checking out to make sure.
https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/select
I for one always enjoy a good build thread!
This is all you get for now. I really just tore it down yesterday. Might put things on the tube of you’s for personal documentation LOL
This is a few pics of the car itself, Incase y’all ain’t classic Opel fans. I know y’all are classic Deutsch fans tho!
https://imgur.com/gallery/hAhrKYP
I’m in Germany for another year or so. Any small parts I’m willing to hunt for and find. Pro tip, send links of eBay-k (google translate people!); it’s the German craigslist.
Last edited by DadBoughtIt; 09-12-2018 at 03:12 AM.
so.... how did you land on an e30 rear end for this thing? Is it like the old American hot rods using Mustang II front ends all the time, standard rear end replacement for Opel Asconas?
Originally I was hunting for an Opel “big” live axle, however the guys who had them were asking way too much coin that what they’re worth; to me anyways.
I ended up looking into a plethora of rear ends. Here vans are kinda like pickups so I looked into a bunch of van rear ends, Volvo rear ends etc etc. I didn’t like the fact that none of them were 4x100 because I wanted the same wheels all around and no bafoonery of trying to make the front end 5x108 or what have you.
Then I googled 4x100 cars and saw that e30s fit that description as well as miatas. I looked at both rear ends and decided it would be much easier to sacrifice an e30 rear end than a Miata rear end to fit my needs. Both rear ends should handle 200+hp which is what I’d go for if I ever hopped up the Miata motor. Beyond that and this car would be a tad crazy lol (as if this project isn’t)
As far as I’m aware I think the only other person to stuff a e30 rear end into their car is a guy in an Opel GT. That car and mine can share parts but are not the same, besides he’s keeping an Opel power plant. Guys have stuffed other custom rear ends into mostly Opel GTs.
I can say with 99% certainty no ones ever stuffed an e30 into an Ascona/Manta/Kadett model (these cars have a lot more in common). Pioneering in a way I guess, by the way I made a little progress yesterday!
Motor mount plates all cut, drilled and shaped!
Making a YouTube for this as well. Mostly for self reference, but you’re welcome to watch! Keep in mind this is the most ambitious I’ve ever gotten, I really don’t know what I’m doing! Ha, why do I do this stuff?
https://youtu.be/8m4m4e6Z1CY
That is a cool car. I would totally drive that if they were here. I have never even seen an opal like that
No e30s again.
Oh and I ordered a set of rear calipers off rock auto. Used, iirc, 87 325i rear discs. My brakes are 258mm and rock auto had the same diameter discs available on the site.
small update, for the fuel system i ordered a crown vic assembly out of a 98-00 car. ill just use standard high pressure fuel hose to get there an back, challenge will be getting the fuel assembly to mount to the car. thinking riv-nuts, a 2x4 and hammer will be the answer to that.
throttle cable will be out of a stock NA miata, think itll work no problem without modification. if it doesnt, im in a but of trouble... not sure how to link the two otherwise, jb weld? ideas are helpful if youve got any lol
found a couple decent wiring diagrams for the euro motor, hopefully soon i can have it all chopped and lightened up.
still no e30 rear end updates, need a friend to help with that. i also gotta get a trans mount fabbed as well and would like a friend for that one.
clutch plan hasnt been figured out yet and neither have the gauges, maybe soon lol
you should be able to make the trans mount out of scrap steel laying around. like angle iron or something similar. that's what I used when I made the trans mount for my jeep wrangler when I put a ford v8 in it. also, you should be able to get a universal throttle cable that can be cut to fit from any parts place. if not, you can use bicycle brake cable with some air cooled vw throttle cable clamps
No e30s again.
i got some square tubing laying around to accomplish the job, the dang trans is a little heavy and would like some help getting the dang thing in the car. It would also require me to cut the hole in my trans tunnel for the new shifter. its all stuff i can do on my own, but having a friend near by to help position and lift the thing would be a massive help. I have a buddy who can and will help out but his folks are visiting him and id rather just wait for him to free up vs all on my own.
lol im sure id be able to get a universal throttle cable from about anywhere in the states, but here in germany either stuff like that is hard to come by or i dont know where to look (its a 50/50 split). however, your VW throttle cable clamps are a GENIUS idea! youre a real american hero today haha
in the mean time, ill just chop up all the useless things off of that harness and whatnot
Still waiting on a friend to do major fabrication. I’m getting restless with it, might try a thing or two myself. my trip to Vienna did break up some monotony as well as soak up a few days of time, totally fun traveling!
I have the wiring harness all but complete as far as labeling, deciding what to keep will be a bit of a process.
Standard required stuff and I’m thinking the auto fan circuit are the only two I’ll want.
My e30 calipers I bought online came in while I was gone! Anyone know the thread/bolt size? I’ll need to order some of those as well since mine didn’t come with them. Bought new off of rock auto because it was cheap and a sure fit.
Crown Vic fuel pump should be in today! Can finally try to bench start the miata motor and modify the fuel tank to accept it.
High pressure fuel pumps for the win!
Miata throttle cable also showed up yesterday, fits pedal no modification required. Motor is not currently in the car but the length should be more than fine as well. Only thing I’ll need to do is make a retaining clip to hold the sheathing in place.
I’ll try and get pics soon.
cool. realoem.com or bmwfans.info for bolt sizes
No e30s again.
Small update on the car, progress is slow but most of the major fabrication is done.
Things like pedals, brakes, cooling, wiring, fuel, driveshaft and gauges are yet to be figured out but those should be more straight forward
As of now im trying to figure out the best way to reinforce the frame for this car, iirc there is sheet metal wrapping around the 'more structural' part of the frame. Pretty sure im gonna cut that away to weld to the thicker metal, unless there is a good reason I shouldn't.
After that I'll just drop a bolt through everything and call it Gucci
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