Winter 2024 Projects: 1992 convertible interior build thread...Mostly ICE

[sna77]

E36/Z3 antenna base and the e46 sport antenna. Still functional, OEM, looks way better than the always broken automatic antenna..


I bought this one used on ebay...



...and then attached the OEM e46 sport antenna. This one I ordered new. Screws right in:



While I was replacing the antenna, I added keyless entry... It connects in the trunk, so was a good time to connect it. Can't believe how cheap this mod was. I used the Proline REC-43T. $39 on Amazon, and followed these instructions.

I also replaced the flashlight on my key. Who knew this could be replaced?! Nice touch, flashlight actually works--I didn't even realize there was one there. Part # 51218105039. $27 well spent.

[sna77]

Amp rack progress. This rack will be installed under the passenger seat. The base is made to follow the contour of the floor. The floor has been coated with Dyanmat, and the base will be attached to the floor with silicone. The top of the base will be installed on top of the carpet and will bolt into to the bottom of the base with 2 small holes cut into the carpet. No holes will be drilled into the car.

This side face down and will attach to the Dynamat on the floor:



Top of the bracket that will sandwich the base to the carpet., This will be finish paint/carpeted.



Test fitting the two Mosconi amps. These things pack a ton of punch for such little amps. I have the same setup in my e46 convertible and they're amazing.

[sna77]

Installing the front tweeters... My old stock tweeter housings where cracked, so I ordered a new pair. Unfortunately, you can't buy the brackets alone, you have to buy them with the factory speakers in them. Had to removed the glue delicately and preform some surgery to get them out. Then the new tweeters are (of course) bigger some some decisions had to be made on design. We decided to have them protrude more on the outside (as opposed to recessing them more into the door). They should sound better this way. NOTE: This is the only place where we will reuse the factory speaker wire, as it is in good shape and the molex connector passes through the door.

Tweeters are part of the Audio Development 5 1/4" component set.

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[sna77]

Subwoofer box assembled and covered. Coming together beautifully!

[sna77]

reverse camera installed. Tight fit, but there was just enough space to fit it. SIngle hole drilled through the trunk to fit it.






Test fitting the custom subwoofer enclosure.











Test fitting the e46 armrest and cupholder.

[sna77]

backside of the radio frame showing the holder for the clock:



ever-so-slightly trimmed the lip on the inside:




side view showing the headunit sitting flush with the bracket:






Here's the reverse camera mirror install:




Rydeen CM-DUO3HD camera:

[sna77]

Test fitting the Porsche Classic Headunit. The microphone will go into an empty slot above the radio. @bmwradios custom makes them. I'm going to remove the USB port. Didn't love it here.






I really like the radio, but I don't love how the headunit sticks out 1/4" of an inch from the rest of the dash.

Custom made bracket to hold the aftermarket radio:



From the backside:

[sna77]

Starting in order that things were done... First, removed the seats and the old tan carpet--we had to cut it to get it out. New black carpet installed. The new carpet matches the newer BMW floor mats. I'm going with e46 convertible floormats. You have to trim the driver's one to get it to fit--I had a local home carpet store bind the cut edges for me.

[sna77]

Hi all,
Figured I'd start a thread to track the progress on the build of my car. I'm located in Boston, so I've got a solid 6 months of the e30 being off the road to do some winter projects. All the work is being done by a friend's shop in Boston, whom I've done a number of projects with in the past. Mostly ICE work this winter, with a few other goodies thrown in there.

Winter 2024 Projects:

Headunit:

- Porsche Classic 1 DIN headunit.

Positives:
- fits in single DIN spot without overhanging
- "retro" look, sorta looks like it belongs
- screen isn't huge, but Google maps is actually sorta useful, and of course I have Spotify etc.
- supports Sirius (yes, I still use Sirius)
- reliable, stable

Negatives:
- no native wireless CarPlay. Adapter in glovebox to make it wireless. NBD
- doesn't support a reverse camera. More on that later.
- Pricey.


Speakers:

- All Audio Development with neodymium magnets to accommodate the shallow space to fit them...
- T100 tweeters
- W50 front midrange 5 1/4
- W500NEO rear 4"


Positives:
- Wanted to use stock speaker sizes; not a ton of high-end options for the fronts.
- Italian made Audio Development makes a very, very good speaker.


Subwoofer:
Illusion Audio C10 shallow subwoofer.

Positives:
- C10 works in shallow enclosures, ton of power potential (500W)


Subwoofer box:
- Custom made-footwell sub box from my friends at Sound-in-Motion in Boston. 20+ hours of custom work to make this box. Pricey, but when you want the absolute best custom work, you got to Sound-in-Motion


Amps:

Mosconi Pico 1 mono sub amp
Mosconi Pico 6|8 6 channel DSP amp:

Positives:
- Mosconi makes great amps. And they're small. The two of them will fit on a custom enclosure under the passenger seat. The 6 channel amp will individually power each speaker and the DSP will handle corssovers.


Misc other things I'm doing to make me happy:


Flush mounting the headunit.
We tried a few of the 3d printed brackets that were available on the internet, but ended up custom making a bracket. I use the Euro clock instead of the OBC, so we needed to make something custom.


Reverse camera.
Rydeen CM-DUO3HD Rock solid, reliable camera. The preferred camera of my install shop. I have the same model in my ZHP convertible.


Reverse camera mirror.
BOYO VTM43TC. Also has a compass in it. Looks very similar to new-model BMW mirrors. Biggest problem was needing to transplant the mirror stem from the original mirror to this mirror. Was a pain, but the shop worked it's magic and got it done.


Homelink Garage Door Opener.

Homelink 60-HMLKV5ALL. I really wanted a built-in garage door opener, so I bought this model on Amazon. When I installed the M-tech I 370mm steering wheel last year, the airbags came out of the car, so I replaced the (now useless) BMW tell-tale with a blank from AM Innovation. Perfect (and familiar) spot to keep the Homelink.


OEM Carpet Replacement.
Amazingly, OEM carpet is available in black still. Took a while to arrive from Germany, but it arrived. Getbmwparts.com ordered them for me. ~$1400.
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Custom e46 Armrest and Cupholder.
More on this to come later. Tons of custom work.


Seats being Reupholstered

More on this to come later. Seats are going to @bmwrestoredseats in CT. They do incredible work.


Rear antenna replacement
- Got rid of the power antenna and replaced it with an e46 sport stubby antenna. To make it work, you replace the interior base on the e30 with one from a Z3/E36. Part # 65218375159. Grabbed a used one on eBay that was in decent condition. It's an all internal part in the trunk, worked fine. Then I replaced the long z3 antenna with the e46 short sport one, part # 65202296761