Mike's Cosmos Black 1998 M3 Sedan (M3/4/5) - Project Concord

[mike.bmw]

That garage looks like a wonderful place to turn a wrench. Project Concord is cleaning up fast

After many years of wrenching in an apartment garage, and having to lug tools up and down 2 flights of stairs anytime I wanted to work on my car, I truly appreciate having garage space of my own. It's not the best garage, but it's mine and I make the most of it.

Yes, this E36 M3 was pretty clean to begin with, but I am enjoying dialing it in even further. I broke out the wet sanding supplies today to address some large scratches. More on that in a future post!

[zwill23]

That garage looks like a wonderful place to turn a wrench. Project Concord is cleaning up fast

[mike.bmw]

All I can say is, if I'm buying a used BMW I want mike.bmw to have been the previous owner!

Haha, thanks! That means a lot. :-)

[IronJoe]

All I can say is, if I'm buying a used BMW I want mike.bmw to have been the previous owner!

[mike.bmw]

Have you observed this failure personally? Just curious if it's a big concern.

Yes, I've seen it on a few friends' cars.

[Panici]

The thin sheet metal surrounding the E36 trunk latch is a common failure point. Cracks will develop around the T30 latch mounting screws, eventually allowing the screws to rip through the metal.

Have you observed this failure personally? Just curious if it's a big concern.

[mike.bmw]

The thin sheet metal surrounding the E36 trunk latch is a common failure point. Cracks will develop around the T30 latch mounting screws, eventually allowing the screws to rip through the metal.

Even if you don't currently have any signs of cracking, a cheap stainless reinforcement plate will save your trunk sheet metal and prevent failure. I ordered this one up on Amazon. Two days later, it arrived at my door.

Installation is a breeze. Remove the two T30 latch screws, put the reinforcement plate in place, reinstall the screws through the reinforcement plate. Success.

PXL_20240425_215431424~2 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

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[mike.bmw]

When project threads overlap...

20240417-DSC_7249 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

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[mike.bmw]

A box from FCP Euro, what could it be?

The E36 alternator cooling pipes are back in stock! These had been on backorder for a while, so I was making due with Gorilla tape. For only $16, the Uro brand is a steal as it fits and looks just like the original.

The engine bay looks good for 251,000 miles, right?

20240403-DSC_4390 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

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[mike.bmw]

As I've said on the social medias - I love this car! Great work so far and incredibly photography.

Thank you!

Mike,
your photos are amazing. This is just another reason I really enjoy our Forum & not the watered down crap on Facebook.
CAPP

Thanks! I don't post as much as I used to (see my 318is thread), but I'm trying to be more active on the forum again.

[Cptcarisma]

Mike,
your photos are amazing. This is just another reason I really enjoy our Forum & not the watered down crap on Facebook.
CAPP

[IronJoe]

As I've said on the social medias - I love this car! Great work so far and incredibly photography.

[mike.bmw]

I took my wife and kids to check out the cherry blossom trees in Washington D.C. yesterday. Peak bloom wasn't predicted until later this week, but we lucked out as last night the news outlets declared peak bloom to be yesterday. We got there at sunrise (7am) and left a couple hours later. It wasn't too crowded and the weather was great.

20240317-DSC_2267 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

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[mike.bmw]

I finally painted the door on my E36 M3. There was a section of clear coat failure, which was a dull spot on an otherwise presentable car. Since purchasing the M3 in November of 2022, I've been meaning to get around to doing this. I've even had the supplies for the last six months! Honestly, I've been quite anxious about attempting it, but last Sunday I finally built up enough courage to do it.

PXL_20240303_151555182 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

I'll preface this next part with the fact I know where I've made mistakes and I will have to repaint the door again at some point—when I build up enough courage and patience to tackle it. (And a couple of 70-degree days would be nice, too.)

After masking, I sanded (dry) with 800 grit. Where the clear coat stopped flaking off, it feathered into the existing base layer nicely. I then used a tack cloth and panel wipe to clean the sanded areas. Next, I further masked the passenger side of the car to prevent overspray hitting the paint.

PXL_20240303_152901151 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

PXL_20240303_154013610 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

PXL_20240303_160607322 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

PXL_20240303_160856574 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Then it was painting time! With the panel above 70 degrees, I applied four coats of base, with 10 minutes between each coat. 30 minutes after the last coat of base, I applied 5 coats of clear at 10-minute intervals, with the later coats being wetter/heavier.

PXL_20240303_171028711 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

PXL_20240303_173841019 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

After 24 hours (today), I wet sanded the panel. I started with 1500 grit, then 2000, then 3000. Lastly, I used my orbital and rubbing compound to bring back the shine.

PXL_20240304_165024886 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

PXL_20240304_170108275 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Does it look better than before? Yes, much better. The finish is mirror-like with no orange peel and no dust or contaminants that I can see. Not bad for painting in my garage!

PXL_20240304_175654578 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Did I do a good job of blending the panel? Absolutely not. You can see faint vertical lines where I masked. If I had painted it panel's edge to panel's edge, this would look great and I'd call it a day. But I didn't do that, so I'll need to repaint the door a second time. Live and learn!

PXL_20240304_174712571 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

20240304-DSC_0209 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

That's one of the things I love (and sometimes hate) about project cars: I'm always learning something new, but it can become frustrating when having to redo things two (or three!) times.

[mike.bmw]

Brake fluid flush

I bled the brakes on my '98 M3. With a power bleeder it was pretty straightforward. There was one hiccup with a clogged bleeder valve, which I took off and cleaned. Other than that, the most time consuming part was getting it on jack stands. 😂

I used Motul 5.1 fluid. The previous owner had replaced the brake lines during his ownership and they still looked good. 250,678 on the clock!

20240228-PXL_20240228_184139114 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

20240228-PXL_20240228_184948364 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

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20240228-PXL_20240228_203504113 by mike.bevels, on Flickr