M30 NA power

[xatlas0]

What show?

The Georgia Tech auto show. For Alums and student's cars only. Anybody can come, though.

http://www.gatechautoshow.com/

[xatlas0]

Well guys, it is over. After two years of hard work, sweat, and a lot of blood, the car is "finished", meaning it is back to fully driveable, fully useable condition. There are, of course, things that need to be fixed, but they are mostly annoyances at this point. I got the car to the GaTech auto show, with the help of my Dad, where it was quite popular, always with a crowd of people around it. The car is, as usual with these things, an ongoing project, but for now, it is done. To somewhat close a chapter in this now very long thread, I present a set of pictures, showing the progress from the start to now.

Start:

With a good bit of rust, a very dirty interior, and a blown engine, the resto begins.

This was the first day we worked on the car. Many, many more days were to follow.

As with all projects of this nature, hilarity ensues, such as seen in this picture.

This is the final result. This is the car at the Tech show.

Here is the "finished" interior. I will place the microphone somewhere, as well as fix the under steering panels, but for the rest of things, it is pretty finished.

And here is how it finished, the same way it started, with a handshake.

[Ol'6erGuy]

You have a very beautiful car. It shows the hard work and love you have put in to it. Good job. As far as this thread being over---what about the 'little things' you need or plan to do??? hummmm??
I just hope mine will look half as good when I get a chance to get it done.

[jbd5015]

Great to see that youve been able to share this progress that has come to something you can drive and appreciate daily! This thread is really an inspiration to all.

-Jeff

[xatlas0]

You have a very beautiful car. It shows the hard work and love you have put in to it. Good job. As far as this thread being over---what about the 'little things' you need or plan to do??? hummmm??
I just hope mine will look half as good when I get a chance to get it done.

Hm, little things..

1. fix under steering interior section
2. fix alternator issue (probably voltage regulator)
3. fix radiator leak
4. re-align windows and make car watertight with new gaskets
5. Fix blower motor
6. put in front speakers (ergo, new door panels too)
7. install Raamat that I already have
8. install good carpet
9. re-align CSL steering wheel
10. install MAF I already have
11. sway bars. It really, really needs them. if I take a turn, it feels like I am on a bike.
12. springs- perhaps, perhaps not. On the one hand, it is very soft now. On the other hand, it is nice to go over speed bumps at more than 5 mph.
13. exhaust- right now it has a pretty lame exhaust. Time for a custom SuperSprint system.
14. Limited Slip Diff. For the safety and fun factor.

After that, it is performance upgrades, but I figure this will take me a while.

[alpinacsi]

16" Alpina's look really trick on the old coupes with 205/55 on front and 225/50 on the rear.

Really looking good!!!

[xatlas0]

16" Alpina's look really trick on the old coupes with 205/55 on front and 225/50 on the rear.

Really looking good!!!

...and cost an arm, a leg, and your firstborn if you have bad credit. I would love to have a set of 16" staggered Alpinas, but right now, it just isn't in the cards. Heck, I'd buy a beat up set for ~500$ and fix them up, but I can't afford a 2k set of wheels. 2k is a lot of other parts.

Thanks for the compliment, though.

[Matt]

Awesome!

Wish I could've been at the show to see it.

[xatlas0]

Got a bit of a suprise for the coupe from my girlfriend; she bought me a UUC SSK. Specifically, a USSE5. I hope this will fit, given it is supposed to go on the trans from an E28 528, and uses the older "cowling-style" shifter linkage, rather than the later "bar-style" type.

And a big thanks to CDM5GO, thank you for helping her. She did find it pretty amusing that you knew exactly who it was for the instant she described the car.

[atl530i]

Just read the thread. Very cool car and nice work.

[xatlas0]

Just read the thread. Very cool car and nice work.

Thanks for the kind words. Once I get the thing really "done" (meaning I won't have to drive it on a wing and a prayer) I plan to bring it to the local meets and such.

Now, if I could just get this dang alternator issue resolved...

[xatlas0]

Fixed my alternator issue, only to find I broke my coil in a moment of stupidity. So, I have to get a new coil, as right now, the car bucks wildly and backfires at more than 30% throttle.

As far as the alt goes, I ended up getting a refurbished 65A alt (stock was 55A) from an E12 off of ebay. It "mostly" was a stock fit, although the wiring was a bit more tricky since it has an internal voltage regulator, whereas the original had an external. So, I had to jerry-rig a bypass for the external and make a connector to link the alt with the original harness, as the alt plug was different from the socket in the new alt.

Always something...

[xatlas0]

Well, it was a good day tonight, I snagged a 3.45 sideloader LSD for a killer price off ebay. The seller didn't mention older vehicle fitments, which is why the horde of other LSD-craving E9 guys probably didn't see it. So, that is another upgrade to add to the "put on" list. On the plus side, now I won't have to change my spedo gearing to compensate for a new diff.

1. Miller MAF
2. UUC SSK
3. 3.45 LSD

[xatlas0]

Replaced the coil with a new straight-up Bosch unit from KO performance. Worked like a champ, the car is much more responsive, doesn't backfire, and seems to have much better power. Now, just to fix everything else...

[xatlas0]

Ordered a set of rear window rubber so the car doesn't leak. This will unfortunately require removing the interior all over again. I'd have to do that anyway, though, as I have new carpet (courtesy of Al Canuk, as he is known on this board) and sound deadening (Raamat) to install.

Another 400$ to stop the rain...

[e24mpwr]

This is one of my favorite threads ever...

[xatlas0]

This is one of my favorite threads ever...

Glad you like it!

I'm afraid it is due for a major change due to some parts I recently snagged, including an entire AC system. So, I'm working on building a "pod" to replace the dash speaker and come off the main cluster pod. This "pod" will contain the nav system and some gauges, hopefully.

Of course, at the same time, I have several major interior things to install, like carpet and Raamat.

I just need to learn some interior tricks now...

So, once more into the breach, it would seem. It was nice to have it in driveable shape for 5 months or so...

[xatlas0]

The fuel pump has been getting progressively louder for a while, so I knew it was time for a new one. The one I used originally was used anyway, so I wasn't too concerned about it. Got a new one for ~60$, got under the car to replace it, and found a very unpleasant suprise: the reason why the fuel pump failed is because the fuel filter was in line AFTER the fuel pump! The yokels that worked on some of the drivetrain bits did it wrong! That was the only thing they seemed to do right, until I got down there and actually checked it. Yeesh.

So, this weekend, I'll get some fuel line and splice it up right. Shouldn't have to do it in the first place, considering it is such a stupid thing for them to have done from the get-go. On a whim, I cleaned out (as much as I could, anyway) the old fuel pump, and it works much better now. So, I've got a spare.

[alpinacsi]

The filter should be after the pump. This would prevent any components of the pump from finding their way into the lines in case of a pump failure. The pickup in the tank should have a screen that would prevent large particulate from making it's way to the pump. You may need to check for the pick-up screen and also check the tank for sediment. The attached picture shows a typical BMW pump setup, notice the arrow indicating the flow. Many aftermarket FI pump set ups will have a 100 micron pre-filter, the pump and then a 10 micron filter before the injectors.

[alpinacsi]

Here is another style with an expansion tank:

[xatlas0]

The filter should be after the pump. This would prevent any components of the pump from finding their way into the lines in case of a pump failure. The pickup in the tank should have a screen that would prevent large particulate from making it's way to the pump. You may need to check for the pick-up screen and also check the tank for sediment. The attached picture shows a typical BMW pump setup, notice the arrow indicating the flow. Many aftermarket FI pump set ups will have a 100 micron pre-filter, the pump and then a 10 micron filter before the injectors.

There is no pre-filter, I'm afraid. There is a screen inside the fuel pump, which was pretty much covered in gunk. Looks like I should add a pre-filter, then.

[alpinacsi]

You might want to check the bottom of the pick-up to see if the screen is still in place. It is shown in this pic depending on the type of pick-up you have and if you have a pre-pump in tank. These pics are for the e24s but you should have something similiar.

[xatlas0]

You might want to check the bottom of the pick-up to see if the screen is still in place. It is shown in this pic depending on the type of pick-up you have and if you have a pre-pump in tank. These pics are for the e24s but you should have something similiar.

My pickup is just a bent steel tube with a grommet on it at the tank interface. The pickup is connected straight to the fuel pump input, such that the only filtering is done by the fuel filter after the fuel pump and by the screen in the fuel pump. There is no pre-pump. This system was cobbled together by the guys that did my driveshaft work. It seemed to work fine, so I never bothered to check it. Bad move on my part, I guess. So I need to put a pre-filter on my pickup somehow. How do I put it on there, considering the pickup is inside the tank?

The pics you are posting don't work because realoem found out bimmerforums was using the pics a lot, and they blocked it. It would probably be easiest if you posted the link to the system breakdown in realoem itself, rather than trying to get the picture alone.

[alpinacsi]

Sorry about the pics; they show for me but you can look on realoem for most of the e12/e23/e24/e28 and see what I am talking about.

Some of the older American muscle cars had a "sock" attached to the pick-up in the tank. We used to blow compressed air in the tank to blow them off because they would get clogged over time and were a pain to replace. It might be possible to attach one of these to your pickup. Another thing that might be needed is to have your tank cleaned and coated. It seems that the last tank that I had cleaned and coated was about $125 which also included a repair of the filler tube joint. I had this done at N. GA Radiator which is basically across the street (backs up on next street over) from our facility here in Cumming.

[xatlas0]

Sorry about the pics; they show for me but you can look on realoem for most of the e12/e23/e24/e28 and see what I am talking about.

Some of the older American muscle cars had a "sock" attached to the pick-up in the tank. We used to blow compressed air in the tank to blow them off because they would get clogged over time and were a pain to replace. It might be possible to attach one of these to your pickup. Another thing that might be needed is to have your tank cleaned and coated. It seems that the last tank that I had cleaned and coated was about $125 which also included a repair of the filler tube joint. I had this done at N. GA Radiator which is basically across the street (backs up on next street over) from our facility here in Cumming.

Where is this? It sounds like a good idea.