Ocell's 318is

[pbsun]

Damn that looks fun, "need to do a track day" is on my todo list.

[animal]

dang you are killing it!

[Ocell]

Thanks guys!


Quite a bit to update on...


This past weekend I had another track day at Harris Hill Road with Racing4Charity. We were scheduled for 5 sessions. Things were wet and slick, so we got slowed down by having to pull a few people out of the mud.





I ran my first session without issue (no video because it was basically warm-up) and then we broke for lunch. I took my car to get food/gas. As I rolled back into the track grounds I noticed a strange sound. I looked under the car and saw a steady trickle of coolant hitting the ground. I popped the hood and was pretty sure my water pump was losing it from around the pulley shaft.

I parked the car for the rest of the day after getting only one 20 minute session. My friend was very generous and let me take his WRX out for a session (I'd never driven anything but the E30 on track, so this was a great learning opportunity) and I instructed a guy in a WRX for two sessions, so the day wasn't a complete loss. I called a flat bad at the end of the day and got the car back to my house.


I found a water pump in stock at a local parts store and got to work swapping it out Sunday. I was already planning to do the e-fan conversion so this was a good time to knock that out too. I had ordered a 16" Spal puller fan sometime last year, and it's been sitting around waiting for me to get to it.




Here's a nice trick I read in a thread somewhere for holding the water pump pulley still while you're trying to break the fan nut loose (fan nut is reverse-thread).




I got the water pump swapped out and moved on to the fan. I got these awesome crimp connectors from bmwman91 here on the forums. You crimp them on like a standard crimp connector, but then you hit it with heat and the ends heat-shrink seal while the middle has solder that liquifies to create a solid electrical connection. They are a dream to use. Thanks for the hookup William!




Instead of running my own relays and switches for the fan I just stole the harness and resistor from the AUX fan. I cut everything from the AUX fan before the motor (two leads, power and ground) and wired that end up to the power and ground on the Spal fan. I used the newer temp switch from the E36 so the fan will come on at lower temps. I zip tied the resistor block to the edge of the fan (I'm going to reinforce with more zip-ties) and ran the wiring to behind the headlight to plug in to the connector the AUX fan used before. This seems extremely simple and only took a couple minutes to do.







The fan comes on when I turn on the A/C (as it should) but I haven't caught it coming on at temp yet. The car won't get warm enough at idle. I've driven it to work twice now, and my temps have never gone over halfway on the dash. I want to get an LED somewhere in the cabin so I can see when the fan's running. That's on the list.

I know this is a common modification and everyone knows the benefits, but I still have to say, I love all the room it opens up in the engine bay. I feel like I can keep a better eye on the front of the block for leaks (like water pumps). Things also sound so much nicer.

[Ocell]

I was able to get in on the 2015 group-buy for the Stromung 318is cat-back exhaust system. http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=350673

The system on the car right now is falling apart and full of leaks, so I'm pretty anxious to get the new system on. It's also all welded up as one piece from the header to the exhaust tip, so while Stromung is taking care of the cat-back, I need to get a new mid-section.

Today I went to a local exhaust shop that has a great reputation for being fairly priced and high quality. They gave me a guesstimate (without seeing the cat-back system and looking under the car) of $300-400 in parts and labor. I trust them here, but I was hoping for something lower.

I wanted the mid section to be as close to stock as possible so I wasn't completely sold on a custom setup anyway. Knowing the price helped me decide to pull the trigger on a pre-fabbed Magnaflow cat unit since I knew I wasn't going to save a ton going custom. This way I can also bolt it all up at home and don't have to mess with leaving my car at a shop for a day. Time is an issue since Texas World Speedway is only three weekends away.



I think the source of my transmission leak is the vent up on top. Another project I have ahead of me is rigging up a breather tube to give the gear oil enough room to expand without letting it pill out the top of the transmission.

[Ocell]

The Magnaflow cat section came in today. Once the Stromung system comes in I'll be bolting it up as soon as I can.

[Ocell]

I've figured out that my electric fan isn't kicking on with temp. It DOES turn on with the A/C button. I'm using this temp sensor: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I found that the fuse for the high-temp fan relay was removed. I put one in and it's still not switching on. The connector that plugs into the temp sensor is falling apart and the wires are extremely stiff and brittle... maybe they've broken apart inside the insulation.


I got my 4Runner back on the road last night (new upper control arms and torsion bar adjuster bolts finally done) so the car is about to go up on jack stands for a couple weeks. I've got a little more than two weeks before TWS. Fingers crossed...

[Codym42]

I've figured out that my electric fan isn't kicking on with temp. It DOES turn on with the A/C button. I'm using this temp sensor: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I found that the fuse for the high-temp fan relay was removed. I put one in and it's still not switching on. The connector that plugs into the temp sensor is falling apart and the wires are extremely stiff and brittle... maybe they've broken apart inside the insulation.

Last year I did sort of the same thing with the fan. I bought a 14" fan from IE and installed it in place of the aux fan (as a pusher with the a/c condenser still in place), the same URO parts e36 switch, and removed my mechanical fan. It always turned on way past the half mark on the temp gauge. It was always more like 3/4. I got tired of it and finally just put my mechanical fan back in. I often wonder if its just that cheap URO switch not working correctly and maybe a BMW one would work better?

Anyway, hope you figure out how to fix it. Does your a/c still work? I'm curious as to how well the a/c does with just a single puller fan.

Also, those crimp connectors are awesome. I need to get some!

[Ocell]

Thanks for the feedback Cody. I think I was at 3/4 temp after I put the fuse in, but maybe I still wasn't high enough to trigger it. I'd rather have it come on at a lower temp. I think my first course of action is to check the resistance values on the temp sensor. Then I'll check the relays, and then maybe try to get a new plug for the temp sensor.

I figure if I run out of time I'll just wire up a manual switch and status light in the cab for the short-term. (Which, we all know, will just be long-term.)

I do still have working A/C. I haven't really put it to the test yet. This weekend the weather just got hot for the first time this year. I'll try to remember to post an update on whether it's still cold. (It wasn't ice cold to start with, but is functional.)

[ForcedFirebird]

What e36 sensor did you use? If it's a 3 pole, it will have 2 temps.

[Ocell]

Hey John,

It's an 80/88 degree sensor. Product page says: "Production date range for BMW 1997 318i *to 02-28-1997*"

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0066TMKTI/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It has three connections on it, and plugs directly into the plug that was attached to the stock sensor without modification.

I'm assuming putting it in place of the sensor my car came with would trigger the AUX fan circuit to run low speed (through the fan's resistor) at 80 degrees and high speed (non-resistor circuit) at 88 degrees.

[Ocell]

To be clear, this is the sensor that plugs into the passenger side of the radiator. Not the sensor that goes below the intake for the cluster or ECU.

[e30s50dan]

Car looks awesome..looks like things are coming together Good luck

[Ocell]

Thanks Dan!

[ForcedFirebird]

That switch has a 176* switch and a 190* switch in the same sensor. Perhaps it's wired opposite in the late models?

[Ocell]

If I can find the resistance specs for the two switches I can check whether that's the case. I can pull the plug apart and swap wires if needed. (And I pull the plug apart, I mean I already opened it once and everything fell apart.)