'93 325i brilliantrot convertible

[e30_jatt]

The comparison of the old plugs vs the new plug shocked me. The old plugs had gaps that were all over the place and had some really worn out electrodes.




Freshly power-washer cylinder head.




Exhaust headers painted with VHT high temp paint.

[e30_jatt]

In Part 5 I finish up the engine maintenance.I replaced the fuel injectors, adjusted the valve clearances, painted the valve cover, and more. All that's left is to do the transmission work and then I can drop the engine back.

I wasn't going to do the fuel injectors originally, but I did want to replace the rubber seals. However, they were a pain to remove and more or less required destroying the old injectors. A set of new injectors wasn't that expensive and I figured would be good to replace after 30 years anyways. The new injectors have an updated look as well.

The valve clearances I bet have never been adjusted before. Some of the rockers had a crazy amount of play so I was able to bring them back into spec. After adjusting the rockers my engine definitely got a lot quieter, I had an insane amount of lifter tick before but it is greatly reduced now. I highly recommend checking the valve clearances any time you have the valve cover off, it's such an easy thing to do at home, all you need is a 10mm wrench and a feeler gauge.

For the valve cover, I went with a classic black look with the stripes and BMW logo bare metal exposed, looks so much better and still looks factory.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5xp8c5Mclk&ab_channel=ViksVehicles

[m2d2]

Great progress! Looking good!!

[e30_jatt]

In Part 6 I finish the transmission work and drop the engine back in.

The clutch was actually pretty easy to install, getting it centered so the input shaft of the transmission would line up correctly wasn't hard at all, the provided install tool with the clutch made it easy. What was difficult was actually sliding the transmission on, I needed the help of a friend to make sure the engine was square and lined up so the shaft would slide in correctly, this actually took quite a bit of muscle. The old clutch was really worn out which you can see in the video and so was the throwout bearing. The bearing was pretty much seized and I'm surprised it spun at all, the new one spun much more smoothly.

One other surprise was what a difference changing the white plastic shifter cup made in the shift quality. Changing the shifter cup probably did more to tighten up the shifter than replacing the bushings or anything else did. Another surprise was the lack of transmission oil that came out when I did the drain and refill. I'm slightly concerned that the tranny fluid was never changed, or incorrectly topped off, and there is probably some wear in there. Some new Redline MT-90 fluid should make her shift happily again.

Overall, the car fired right up. I was so nervous that something was going to go wrong, but I can say that I successfully put the engine back together and can't wait for many more miles of trouble free motoring.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNlvsgC-FL0&t=140s&ab_channel=ViksVehicles

[e30_jatt]

In Part 7 I replace my old worn out shift knob. There's so many good choices out there, but I wanted to go with a classic wooden look. The Ireland Engineering knob intrigued me but I can't find a single review out there for it, really odd since a lot of their other products are well known across the forum. I took a chance and am happy to say that I really like the knob.

It is a bit small, but the overall shape has a nice feel to it. It is also really light, there's not much weight to it but it doesn't really bother me. The center emblem is really high quality and made out of metal, I was expecting it to be plastic but the metal gives it a nice touch. The set screw is out of sight and secures the knob on pretty tight. Finally, it is cheaper than a ZHP knob as well as knobs from Condor and other brands. I'd like to try some of the brands eventually, but for now I like my classic IE wooden knob.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MG117r--6o&ab_channel=ViksVehicles

[e30_jatt]

In Part 8 I replace the 4 spoke airbag steering wheel with a Renown 130R. I know Renown gets a bad rap for having knockoff designs of other MOMO or OMP wheels, but I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the wheel. The stitching looks great and the fitment is spot on. The only con is the quality of the leather, I can't tell if it's vinyl or not, but it doesn't fully feel like real leather. Otherwise, I love the wheel. I also used the Renown hub which worked perfectly fine. Coupled with a BMW logo horn, I think it looks great. I really would have loved an M Tech wheel, but finding one in good condition for a reasonable price is becoming difficult. To install you will need to buy an extra spacer whenever replacing an airbag wheel with a non-airbag one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k77dgNevbNU&ab_channel=ViksVehicles