New to me M60 E30, no power, anywhere. ignition switch?

[StayAtHomeDad]

I come from MBZ and some Japanese car platforms. This is my first E30, and it happens to have an M60/getrag420 in it

Long story short. I picked up this E30 with an M60 swap 5 months ago. The swap was done about 10-years ago. It had sat in storage for most of the 10 years before I purchased it. The vehicle did originally run and drive when I got it, and drove great. It does need a few things, and the wiring is definitely a hack-job right now.

The interior and dash were falling apart, so I opted for a cheaper route. I bought an entire parts car, and swapped the interior, dash, carpet, seats, etc.
It didn't start originally but I found a ignition switch plug had come undone.

We were driving it for the first time since the interior swap, and it drove great for about 45m. On the way home I was having some spirited driving and launched it at a stop. Upon giving it gas the car stalled out and died.

All power to the vehicle stopped. No doorlights, dashlights, fuel pump hum, nothing.

There seems to be a 50amp fuse along with 4 relays somewhat connected to it where the battery goes in the front(however battery is relocated to the trunk). The 50-amp fuse was burnt, and the 4 relays looked burnt aswell.

I replaced the fuse and relays today, and all fusebox fuses, however it still has no power I tested the battery and it's good. I tested the battery and the front connection, and it's good.

Would an ignition switch cause this kind of failure? I'm not getting power anywhere in the vehicle. I've swapped out DME's to test, but no avail.

My ignition switch does have some nasty corrosion. In my other cars a bad ignition switch would still let the car function in one way or another. First E30, and it being swapped doesn't help much. Will update picture of my current ignition switch assembly. Safe to say it should be replaced either way.

[iansane]

Was it originally a 318 car? (IE, did the previous owner relocate the battery to the back or was it factory like the 325 cars?) I seem to remember there being a smaller gauge secondary wire with fusible link inline. Is that intact?

I think I would just start tracing down where you lose power. Start at the battery, go to the junction post on the firewall (if the batteries factory location is in the trunk). I can't see an ignition switch frying that much stuff but depending on how the car was wired for the m60, stranger things have happened.

Good luck.

[StayAtHomeDad]

Was it originally a 318 car? (IE, did the previous owner relocate the battery to the back or was it factory like the 325 cars?) I seem to remember there being a smaller gauge secondary wire with fusible link inline. Is that intact?

I think I would just start tracing down where you lose power. Start at the battery, go to the junction post on the firewall (if the batteries factory location is in the trunk). I can't see an ignition switch frying that much stuff but depending on how the car was wired for the m60, stranger things have happened.

Good luck.

It was a fusible link. That’s been replaced, now the car is stumbling on itself and misfiring. Smoking a lot out of the exhaust and it smells like gas. Once it warms up it won’t turn over when unless you give it gas for a few minutes. When it’s cold it fires right away and stumbles but stays on. Maybe an injector is stuck open or fried.. not sure

afr is between 13.6 and 14.2. Prior to this situation it was always at 14.0 at idle.

[iansane]

It sounds like you're on the right path then. It definitely seems to still have electrical issues. Injector or injector wiring is a good thing to verify as well as making sure the main sensors (MAF, o2, IAT, etc) are all getting correct voltage to them and reporting it correctly to the dme.

[StayAtHomeDad]

It sounds like you're on the right path then. It definitely seems to still have electrical issues. Injector or injector wiring is a good thing to verify as well as making sure the main sensors (MAF, o2, IAT, etc) are all getting correct voltage to them and reporting it correctly to the dme.

Yep. Will likely be replacing a lot of parts anyways due to it sitting for years and years. I’ll update if I find the issue for someone else when their car does the same thing. Thanks!

[StayAtHomeDad]

As an update, the fusible link was bad. The car, being M60 swapped, has a bunch of relays connected after the heavy positive gauge cable. I've tested them and they seem to go towards the ignition switch, fuel pump, electronics, and DME. I noticed that the relays also looked burnt out. I replaced the fusible link, and the relays, along with EVERY single fuse engine bay. I also have spares of every relay and fuse, incase something acts up again.

Since that issue happened, it seems like an injector is now stuck completely open :). I can smell gas in the oil, and it's dumping unburnt fuel and running rich. I fixed the fusible link and relays about 2 months ago, but business has been slow, and I haven't ordered any parts to fix the injector issue.

My next step is--
Oil change
Fuel filter
Fuel pump
Injectors
Spark plugs and coils
New throttle cable and throttlebody(one I currently have is sticking open at WOT)
All new sensors that are applicable to this swap.

It's unfortunate picking up on a running and driving project where someone else left off, but i can't see a 115k mileage no accident E30 get salvaged. I did purchase a parts car and I swapped a mint carpet, crack-free dash, full interior swap. The inside looks amazing now. I'll be slowly chipping away at the car and hopefully it will be road ready by this upcoming summer. It needs paint as clearcoat is fading(texas car, now in Oregon). The wiring is a bit of a hack job, and I think that's the most important issue I've run across so far. Once it's running and driving I'll be taking it to my mechanic who was an old MBZ/Euro master tech in the 80s/90s and have him sort through the loom and do what he sees fit.

I've been picking up tons of spare parts, and will likely get another parts car here soon. I've got rid of my first parts car, and half of it is sitting in my storage, along with 3 sets of basketweaves, and 3 sets of euroweaves. Looks like a long road ahead, but fun nonetheless!