'88 325i build - plaid and an ITB 2.9L

[sert57]

Alright next stuff!
I installed a little volt-meter in my check panel. It reads battery voltage and is wired to only turn on with the backlight of the check panel, so it comes on when I hit the check button. I am very pleased with how it turned out.



In late 2015, the e32 my family has got some new wheels, 16" style 5's.


Since the 7 series looked so much better with +1 basketweaves, i decided to follow suit. I was able to pick up these 15x6 BBS RAs off of craigslist for a pretty good deal.


Anyways, with these new wheels (which have MUCH better tire selection than my 14's) I decided i no longer wanted to eat through my back tires. I picked up an extra rear subframe and have begun refreshing it and installing the garagistic camber and toe kits.


This is still a work in progress but I hope to have it in the car by mid 2016.

I then got my new wheels mounted on my car, with 205/50 R 15 Direzza Dz102s ( Whoop Whoop!)





Visually I am very pleased with the new wheels and tires. In my opinion they look better in real life than in the pictures, maybe this is because of the convex design? Ride wise I have been pleased with the Direzzas. I can certainly feel a lot more of the little pebbles in the road. Grip in the wet seems to be comparable to my falken all seasons, maybe a little worse. I have yet to be able to really push them in the dry but it seems promising so far.

As far as the stroker goes, that is more of a long term project, I'm expecting it to be in the car in 3-5 years. I want to make sure that it is done correctly and am taking my time with it.

Thats all for now folks!

[jdance30]

I thought I heard you mention a stroker build back at the autocross. I love seeing your car in the parking lot. If you're going to sell your b25, you may have a close-by buyer ;) Can't wait to see the results! Good luck! BTW the new wheels are sexy

[sert57]

Well since things have happened with the car i suppose it is finally time to update the thread! Oh man where to start....





Yes that is exactly what it looks like, my trunk was actually able to close as well! I still dont get all the hype about 24v e30's though, it just seemed to slow mine down. I will remember this as hte time i had the 5.0L 12 cylinder E30. fun times. Anyways, what are my plans with such a large thing you may ask? Here's a hint!



Current plans with the motor are to build it to a mild 2.8. I have not built an engine before so I am excited for all i will learn. I am thankful that my father has done this before in his 66' mercedes, so its not just one idiot going at it. Basic plan: Balance and blueprint it, hone it, refresh everything, use a 27X cam ( still deciding exactly which one) and potentially some I.E. headers.

Why am I doing this over a swap? Well my reasons could be different from yours, after all everything in a car is a massive comprimise, wo here is where I have made mine:
1) Looks oem, designed to be worked on in the engine bay, realoem still works
2) No weird tranny / driveshaft issues to work with, i dont have to "re-engineer" as much
3) I want to learn to build an engine
4) I appreciate the rawness and relative simplicity that is my OHC M20

point being I thought this out a little bit and for what I'm doing it seemed like the best option. Next post with more info soon to come (today?)!

[sert57]

UPDATE TIME!
SO this summer I was able to take advantage of Koni's sale, and I was also able to pick up some h&r sport 29664 springs from another r3v member. Installed new control arms and bushings as well. needless to say the car sits a little lower now but rides so much better. I am seriously happy with this spring and shock combo. It is stiff but not uncomfortable by any means, you feel the bumps and the cracks but they do not hurt at all, its just an incredibly communicative setup. anyway, onto pics!


I also got around to painting my valve cover and intake manifold! I used VHT wrinkle black engine paint, then sanded down the lines and logos and clear coted the bare aluminum. Also painted my black window trim seen above ( duplicolor trim paint), as it was just time to refresh it.
Before (Sadly the only before pic I have):

After :



I am extremely pleased with the results, and was sure to replace the needed gaskets and o-rings when removing my intake manifold. It has been neat for me to look back to a year ago at the car when I got it and see hte transformation.
1 year ago:


So next on the car? I'm not entirely sure, been contemplating many things. Thinking about getting an adjustable rear subframe to fix camber and toe, as well as some IE camber plates for the front ( they make a kind that works with OE strut mounts I am interested in) I'm Curious if anyone has experience with chips for the b25? I'm looking into sssquid, markd, and turner. I have heard a lot of mixed things and also whether or not it is really worth it. I believe thats it for this update.

[HennaE30]

OP, you WILL need a spring compressor to pull of the OEM springs, don't misinterpret his ^ statement. If you do not that spring will shoot the spring hat 15 feet away and it won't be pretty. I used a compressor and it still sprang a bit and tossed the hat off the table.

[KIRIEIW]

Wow that paint cleaned up! A lot of people do go with GC's to remove wheel gap, and of course the adjustability factor. Your probably right about them not being for you if you like a higher ride height.

If you where going to replace your shocks yourself, I'd highly suggest installing lowering springs (such as the H&R's you brought up) not just for better handling, but the spring is shorter and makes it a TON easier installing new shocks. Most likely wont need a spring compressor (at least I haven't on the last 3 e30's I've done) which means its a lot safer, and generally easier.

[HennaE30]

Billy and H&R sports are the best combo for a DD if you don't want very low or a hard ride. The reason people get coilovers is mainly for the adjustability factor, and the fact of how low they'll let you go. I would also look at Vogtland, Tokico, and LowTec (there's more, I just don't remember off the top of my head)

[sert57]

Thanks! Its fun to look back where it was and where it is now. Not that I'm going to get to it anytime soon, but Ive been doing some research on springs and shocks for the car. I want to maintain the ride height as close to stock as possible .I'm weird, I know. I've been studying suspension stuff in general and have realized how much you change things when you lower a car, also I enjoy being able to crawl up under it when needed. I am also looking to modernize it in general and to make it slightly stiffer for autocrosses, as it currently is a bit barge like, however maintain a good spring rate for a daily driver since that is what the car is . Does anyone have suggestions? I have looked at Bilstien HD shocks and H&r OE springs ( highest ride height, only drops it 1", however mixed reviews in general from r3v it seems in regards to increased stiffness) , Bilstien sport and H&R sports ( general consensus for a decent spring and shock combo, but looks like 1.25" drop which is a little low, but doable if the other qualifications are met), and I also have considered GC coilovers and maxing out the height ( it seems everyone loves these, but maybe not for the reasons I'm looking for). These are the 3 main options that I have narrowed down to. Thoughts and any other suggestions are welcome. I wont be replacing this for anytime in the foreseeable future, but am curious what you think and also what your personal experience has shown with the options.
Thanks!

[evil-diesel]

this is coming along very nicely... good job! keep it up!!!

[iXguido]

Very nice job. Looks like you're taking very good care of the car, keep at it!

[sert57]

I finally got my plastic bumpers installed and painted and installed some other doors! I used the boiled linseed oil trick I found here to restore some of the used trim that came with them. I am very pleased with how they came out, the fresh bumpers make the car look about 5 years newer or so. I also finally had the chance to finish polishing and waxing it., got it nice and shiny! That 27 year old paint cleans up Very well. Anyways, now for the pics!

[sert57]

Well after a few months I suppose it is time for an update!
I finally got an IS lip installed and also all the exterior trim!

I finally got the doors and fender on to replace those big nasty crunches on the driver side from the parking lot accident, did the bodywork and prepwork myself and my father helped me do the painting and priming. Getting them installed was a small adventure, ended up rebuilding my lock cylinder as well.
Then just for fun we put on an orange pinstripe, because it is my school's main color. I figure if I don't like it i can always take it off. I think it is fun and adds character.

Then we replaced the lollipops with oem bushings which really helped clean up the slop in the front end. also you may have seen in the first picture some plastic bumpers. I have them painted and have 95% of the hardware, just waiting on 3 parts to arrive and then I will try to do the swap over MLK weekend.

[HennaE30]

Yeah I'm leaning toward the plastic bumpers. They are bolt on for my car, as well as significantly less expensive than the euro bumpers. MT1/2 would be really neat, but I run into the same issue as the euro bumpers, they are harder to find and more Expensive. Essentially I'm looking to make the late model 4 door IS that BMW never built.

3.73LSD, iS spoiler, iS valence, sports seats. I think that's pretty much everything. I don't remember if they have thicker sway bars or not. If you decide to go with an MTech kit, go with MTech 2, MTech 1 looks better on early models, and MTech 2 looks better on late models.


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[sert57]

Yeah I'm leaning toward the plastic bumpers. They are bolt on for my car, as well as significantly less expensive than the euro bumpers. MT1/2 would be really neat, but I run into the same issue as the euro bumpers, they are harder to find and more Expensive. Essentially I'm looking to make the late model 4 door IS that BMW never built.

[rturbo 930]

I really like that E32! Have you considered euro bumpers as an option? If I had and a early e30, these would be my choice. And if you are wait long enough and have some coin, you might even find some MT1 bits for a body kit.

He has a late model, '88s came with diving boards, but plastic bumpers swap right on.