How's it going R3V? I must say it feels amazing finally own an E30
. I've been on the hunt for one for far too long and I finally made the plunge. Everyone I want you to meet Jane:
Every single tool is rusty
Pretty good interior
Crack-free dash SCORE
Practically mint rear seats with head and arm rests ;D
She's a little rough around the edges 1987 325i, but she won't be for too long. So I'm a super noob into the whole fixing up cars scene but I want to change that. I've been reading and searching for what to do with newly acquired E30s and I've come up with a priority list of sorts.
1. Change the timing belt
2. Finding and fix an oil leek
3. Changing fluids
4. Get the car to pass smog
If there is anything that isn't on the priority list that should be any advice would be gladly appreciated.
The PO said the breaks were done recently, which I could believe after driving the car. Its an autotragic but with only 126k on the chassis and a decent price I couldn't pass it up, plus it gives my GF a chance to drive an E30 and see how she likes it. Every time I come to a stop it slows down but always has a rough little stop but if I come/roll to a stop in neutral I can get her to stop smoothly. Will this stop in time or is there anything I could do to fix it?
1.The PO also said that the PPO before him was a mechanic and changed the timing belt at upper 80k but I figured to be on the safe side and go ahead an change it again. I know the timing belt, water pump, and tensioner should all get changed at the same time. If I recall correctly, I also read that its good to change the distributor rotor at this time as well since I'll already have access to it :?:
2. So the PO said that the oil leak should becoming from a bad valve cover gasket, I've taken the valve cover off but I couldn't see any clear signs that it was bad, but I didn't fully remove and examine the gasket because it looked like there was some type of sealant around it and I didn't want to make the leak worse or ruin the seal if it wasn't because of the gasket. I bought a Craftsman 2ton aluminum floor jack from Sears and also bought a set of ACDelco 3ton floor jacks, should these be good enough to do most things with the E30? So I finally lifted Jane up and got under her, she's really dirty and is dripping oil from multiple spots. There's all of this gunk and build-up which I assume is a combination of oil and dirt? What would be the best method to get rid of and clean all this stuff?
3. I know when I'm doing the timing belt that I should go ahead and change the coolant since I have to drain it anyways. And I think coolant from BMW is the best choice if I'm not mistaken. Should I go ahead and change all the fluids (transmission, PS, differential, break, any others? Did I list some my car doesn't need?) For oil I was either thinking of going Mobile 1 Or Castrol GTX full synthetic 20w-50. Is full synthetic the best choice or would it be better to get a different type (conventional, synthetic-bled) and weight?
4. PO said that the cat is going bad if not already bad and that is the main culprit causing it not to pass smog. I've researched it and I've read that factory E30 cats should last the life of the car (if not a really long time), I was thinking of changing the other things that could be the problem (maybe its a bad 02 sensor or coolant temp sensor or something else?) and trying to see if that could fix my problem. And if not would it be better to get an entire new exhaust system for better performance and better sound? or Just get the magnaflow CA Legal universal cat?
Is it best to get all these parts OEM or are there aftermarket parts that are just as good if not better and cheaper or better worth the money? (timing belt, 02 sensor, water pump, tensioner, valve cover gasket, etc.) Sorry for bombarding you guys with questions, but I figured I should go ahead and get my main questions out of the way for now and ask the others as they come up. I'm really stoked to finally be apart of the R3V community and any experienced or inexperienced people out there who'd want to lend a hand or just come help out that live in the SF Bay Area would be great and more than welcomed. R3V On
. I've been on the hunt for one for far too long and I finally made the plunge. Everyone I want you to meet Jane:
Every single tool is rusty
Pretty good interior
Crack-free dash SCORE
Practically mint rear seats with head and arm rests ;D
She's a little rough around the edges 1987 325i, but she won't be for too long. So I'm a super noob into the whole fixing up cars scene but I want to change that. I've been reading and searching for what to do with newly acquired E30s and I've come up with a priority list of sorts.
1. Change the timing belt
2. Finding and fix an oil leek
3. Changing fluids
4. Get the car to pass smog
If there is anything that isn't on the priority list that should be any advice would be gladly appreciated.
The PO said the breaks were done recently, which I could believe after driving the car. Its an autotragic but with only 126k on the chassis and a decent price I couldn't pass it up, plus it gives my GF a chance to drive an E30 and see how she likes it. Every time I come to a stop it slows down but always has a rough little stop but if I come/roll to a stop in neutral I can get her to stop smoothly. Will this stop in time or is there anything I could do to fix it?
1.The PO also said that the PPO before him was a mechanic and changed the timing belt at upper 80k but I figured to be on the safe side and go ahead an change it again. I know the timing belt, water pump, and tensioner should all get changed at the same time. If I recall correctly, I also read that its good to change the distributor rotor at this time as well since I'll already have access to it :?:
2. So the PO said that the oil leak should becoming from a bad valve cover gasket, I've taken the valve cover off but I couldn't see any clear signs that it was bad, but I didn't fully remove and examine the gasket because it looked like there was some type of sealant around it and I didn't want to make the leak worse or ruin the seal if it wasn't because of the gasket. I bought a Craftsman 2ton aluminum floor jack from Sears and also bought a set of ACDelco 3ton floor jacks, should these be good enough to do most things with the E30? So I finally lifted Jane up and got under her, she's really dirty and is dripping oil from multiple spots. There's all of this gunk and build-up which I assume is a combination of oil and dirt? What would be the best method to get rid of and clean all this stuff?
3. I know when I'm doing the timing belt that I should go ahead and change the coolant since I have to drain it anyways. And I think coolant from BMW is the best choice if I'm not mistaken. Should I go ahead and change all the fluids (transmission, PS, differential, break, any others? Did I list some my car doesn't need?) For oil I was either thinking of going Mobile 1 Or Castrol GTX full synthetic 20w-50. Is full synthetic the best choice or would it be better to get a different type (conventional, synthetic-bled) and weight?
4. PO said that the cat is going bad if not already bad and that is the main culprit causing it not to pass smog. I've researched it and I've read that factory E30 cats should last the life of the car (if not a really long time), I was thinking of changing the other things that could be the problem (maybe its a bad 02 sensor or coolant temp sensor or something else?) and trying to see if that could fix my problem. And if not would it be better to get an entire new exhaust system for better performance and better sound? or Just get the magnaflow CA Legal universal cat?
Is it best to get all these parts OEM or are there aftermarket parts that are just as good if not better and cheaper or better worth the money? (timing belt, 02 sensor, water pump, tensioner, valve cover gasket, etc.) Sorry for bombarding you guys with questions, but I figured I should go ahead and get my main questions out of the way for now and ask the others as they come up. I'm really stoked to finally be apart of the R3V community and any experienced or inexperienced people out there who'd want to lend a hand or just come help out that live in the SF Bay Area would be great and more than welcomed. R3V On
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