upcoming convertible project

[theroundcow]

howdy

my ol faithful e30 has been through alot and needs, among other things, : frame straightening, welding, and threadserts on frame rails. its going to be a serious project. in the mean time, im going to be buying an e30 convertible and swapping my m20+tranny into it, possibly interior too (i hear the rear seats wont fit). what kinds of things am i overlooking? the convertible car has been sitting for a few years but in my mind if i supply an interior and motor + tranny, it should be pretty solid at that point. what do yall recommend i do to the m20 + tranny while its out of the car? i was interested in that gates racing timing belt, its blue so it must be better...

id love to hear any and all comments.

[ThomHart]

Have an '88 325i convertible that I bought for $500 and overpaid, have rebuilt or replaced everything; if my wife knew what I spent she would divorce me. So, know a bit about E30 verts and have a few random thoughts. The interior is model specific to convertible; carpet, door cards, rear side panels, rear seats, and generally the front sport seats need to come from a convertible although generic comfort seats will fit. The seat covers are likely shot, would need to get new ones if you are looking to ride in style. Not that hard a job, one of the things I learned was upholstery replacement; could do front seats with my eyes closed now. Drive trains are mostly (completely?) interchangeable, if you need a trans or diff rebuild best to do it now. Diff rebuild is straightforward, trans not so much, bitch to get it out but doable. The Getrag 260 is bulletproof so would be surprised if it need rebuild, might be cheaper/easier to just get a used unit if it does. Is it a manual? If not, great time to swap. As for the overall drive train would consider a drive shaft rebuild, clutch (obviously, if manual), timing belt (use BMW parts here, too critical), clean fuel injectors, replace vacuum and water hoses, new water pump, reseal engine front and rear, have MFM checked, and new belts. While you are this far in check all the suspension rubber, mine was mostly shot and I changed everything. Keep us informed on how it is going. BTW, that's a sweet looking coupe.

[theroundcow]

appreciate your response! that image of my coupe is over a decade old...its been wrecked since then unfortunately and is now the source of most of my income as i try to restore it to its former glory. its looking like im going to buy an interior set for the cab, get it rolling, then continue fixing my coupe. do you have any experience with aftermarket vs. OEM timing belts and/or headgaskets? i wanted to install performance minded parts but your comment about OEM timing belts got me thinking....

[msservices]

Convertible=Pandora’s box. Fix the coupe

[goinstrong]

Our '88 convertible has been one of the most reliable cars we have ever owned. I would not hesitate to get another one. While there are differences, the basics are the same. Plan on having to re-cover the seats, especially the upper rear portion. When we needed a new top, I sourced one still on its frame and swapped that one in. (there is some trial and error with the rear shims to get it in place perfectly!). but that is a LOT less work than trying to put a new top on your frame unless you pay someone else to do it. Nothing better than driving down the road in the summer with the top down! We use the A/C to keep our feet cool. Good luck with your projects!

[theroundcow]

thanks for the responses everyone, keeps me motivated to push forward. i started a new thread here https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...9#post30438449

put a battery in the convertible and didnt get much of a reaction from it. hoping its not too big of a deal.