Mike's Alpine White 1991 318is

[mike.bmw]

Happy Father's Day -- Skyline Drive

Despite living in Virginia my whole life, I've never been to Skyline Drive. Skyline Drive is a 105 mile road that runs along the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia's Shenandoah National Park. The road is well paved and has lots of twists and turns. The speed limit is 35 mph so it's a great road for cruising and seeing sights.

My wife and kids asked what I wanted to do for Father's Day so I suggested we take the E30 out to Skyline Drive for the morning. We left around 8:30AM and got back home around 1PM. It was about 180 miles round trip and the E30 performed wonderfully. We encountered some rain on the way there and the first half of our ~32 mile drive on Skyline Drive was extremely cloudy, but the second half was fairly clear and we had fun stopping at overlooks regardless of the weather and visibility.

We plan to go back again on a clearer today to enjoy more views at the overlooks.

An approximation of the route:

FathersDaySkylineDrive by mike.bevels, on Flickr

An overlook in the clouds:

DSC_0818 copy by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Visibility starting to get a bit better (another overlook): DSC_0889 copy by mike.bevels, on Flickr

~3400 ft elevation. We're finally able to see some breaks in the clouds:

DSC_0914 copy by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Towards the end we had great visibility:

DSC_0915 copy by mike.bevels, on Flickr

E30 + F31 Detailing

I spent a couple of nights detailing the cars recently. I polished the lips on the BBS RS001s and hand waxed the E30's body. Normally I'd use my orbital, but the paint was still feeling smooth from last year so I figured a couple coats of wax by hand would be sufficient until the fall. I also took the opportunity to show some love to the F31 and gave it a thorough cleaning and coat of wax.

20200615_190500 by mike.bevels, on Flickr


More Photos at the CIT Building

I took more photos at the CIT Building, but this time I took the F31. It's such a cool location for photos, I just wish I had better photography skills to take advantage of it. It's a fun hobby and I'll continue to learn.

DSC_0864 copy by mike.bevels, on Flickr

National Capital Chapter BMW CCA Magazine - der Bayerische

I've been having fun as the co-editor of my BMW CCA chapter's magazine, der Bayerische. It has afforded me the opportunity to interview a number of NCC sponsor shops which includes meeting and interviewing the owners, touring their facilities, photographing their facilities, and writing articles. The magazine takes a lot more time than I anticipated, but it has been a great experience so far and I look forward to new challenges. Check out the archive of der Bayerische issues here: https://www.nccbmwcca.org/db/

[roguetoaster]

All of the strut mounts changed to the larger upper ID (at least RWD ones), not sure exactly why, maybe to change to another bearing, or make tool access easier. IIRC, it's the same size cap as E36s.

Glad you got the booster line sorted! Threads like this motivate me to get to car/garage related projects, so keep it going for you and for us!

[mike.bmw]

This is a small update, but updating this thread motivates me to keep working on the car, so here we go...

Brake booster check valve, grommet, and vacuum hose replacement

Big thanks to roguetoaster for pointing out I needed to replace my brake booster grommet and then giving me the part numbers for some of the NLA items that I ordered. I ordered new booster vacuum hose, a new grommet, and a new check valve. I already have plenty of BMW hose clamps, so I didn't need any more of those. The check valve is NLA, but the E36 version works well (part # 34331156579).

It's a good thing I replaced everything as the hose was hard and brittle and actually had cracks on the back side. The connections were all rather loose too. It probably wasn't causing a massive vacuum leak, but after replacing these parts the small "dip" in idle I used to see when coasting to a stop has now gone away completely.

Old and new:

20200531_123906 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Installed:

20200531_125048 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Strut mount caps

Apparently these come in different sizes. My old caps were too small for my new strut mounts. BMW sells a 32mm version that fits the strut mounts with larger openings.

20200531_162128 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Garage lighting and cleanup

I hung up 2 additional lighting fixtures in the garage. One over the tool chests and desk, another in front of the shelving. These things are BRIGHT. I also did a better job of tidying up the wiring and securing it to the ceiling. In addition, I spent a few hours cleaning out the garage attic and I can now use that for organized storage. Now I just need to get to cleaning and organizing everything on the shelves, and paint the ceiling, and do something with the garage floor...

20200530_142448 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

[e30mclow]

This is the car that comes to mind while I sit looking at mine, wondering if it'll ever be clean.

[mike.bmw]

Nice job Mike! I remember doing this with everything out of the car and figured it'd be a pretty tight fit but looks like you had great access with the center console removed

Thanks! Access wasn't ideal, but it wasn't terrible. This would have been much easier when I had the dash out (swap) a couple years ago. You might be pleased to know that I've continued to make use of the foam you sent me! Was that last year? I've completely lost track of time... Anyway, thanks again for that! You rock.

I drove around for a few days without the knee pad or lower cover in place to check for leaks. Plumbing of any kind (house, vehicle, etc) always makes me paranoid. Yesterday after a long drive with the kids, Avery buttoned up the rest of the dash almost entirely by herself.

20200524_152331 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

And then we washed the car. I drive the car a lot, but usually not in the rain, so it generally stays clean. It had been over a month since the last wash, so we thoroughly cleaned inside and out, to include the engine bay.

20200523_135654 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

20200523_143811 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

And this morning I got out before sunrise for some photos. Taking early morning photos is quite calming and enjoyable. It's so early that no one else is out!

DSC_0768 copy by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0739 copy by mike.bevels, on Flickr

DSC_0723 copy by mike.bevels, on Flickr

[Albie325]

Nice job Mike! I remember doing this with everything out of the car and figured it'd be a pretty tight fit but looks like you had great access with the center console removed

[mike.bmw]

Nice job and thanks for the clear posts, Mike! Saved this in case I ever need to do the same.

Thanks. I found this post (and the 15 pages of comments following it) very helpful: https://www.r3vlimited.com/board/for...core-and-valve

Nice work Mike. Does yours have AC? I've been told on non AC cars the steering column is in the way making it a fair bit harder to replace the heater core.

Thanks! D.Martijn , my car does have AC. As Ed China would say, "it was a bit fiddly", but fairly straight forward. I'm not sure my left shoulder was meant to bend in the directions it bent yesterday. I believe the steering column rivets need to be drilled out for cars without AC as the components are different and oriented differently, making removal and replacement much more difficult.

[D.Martijn]

Nice work Mike. Does yours have AC? I've been told on non AC cars the steering column is in the way making it a fair bit harder to replace the heater core.

[Nate37]

Nice job and thanks for the clear posts, Mike! Saved this in case I ever need to do the same.

[mike.bmw]

Looks great! However, it also looks like it might be time for a new brake booster grommet and maybe even a new valve if you feel like replacing the original. Parts are something like $50 if you already have some good hose clamps around.

Thanks and keen eye! I also noticed this. It's on my list of things to replace. It's not currently causing any vacuum leaks (that I can detect), but it's always good to be proactive. :-)

[roguetoaster]

Looks great! However, it also looks like it might be time for a new brake booster grommet and maybe even a new valve if you feel like replacing the original. Parts are something like $50 if you already have some good hose clamps around.

[mike.bmw]

A couple of updates!

Cracked Console Repair

Since I bought this car over 4 years ago the center console has been rattling and squeaky. Despite having the center console out many times (to include swapping the dash), I've never bothered to fix it. A couple of weeks ago I was driving to work early in the morning and I finally had enough. I ordered some JB Weld Plastic Bonder, used some junk in my tool box, and now it's solid as a rock.

The cracked mounting tab didn't allow the parking brake console to seat, causing many rattles and squeaks.

20200513_144809 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

I used a cable holder as a filler piece.

20200513_145003 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

And then I bonded it in. The JB Weld Plastic Bonder works great. It's a bit ugly underneath, but you can't see it from the top and it's VERY solid.

20200515_145108 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Heater Valve, Heater Core Replacement

While I was repairing the center console, I noticed the joint between the heater core and heater valve was weeping. Not dripping. There was barely any liquid on the joint, but it was there nonetheless. Originally I thought about just replacing the o-rings, but my heat has always been a little odd. To get hot air I'd have to turn the dial to full hot. It was either full cold or full hot, not much of a transition between the two. So I decided to replace the valve and heater core while I was in there.

Original equipment:

20200520_151506 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

20200520_151137 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Disconnect firewall hoses:

20200521_101836 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Remove heater core and drain any additional coolant in the lines. I had a plastic tarp underneath to catch any coolant that I missed, but I got lucky and not a drop hit the tarp.

20200521_103933 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Old and new pieces. Notice the different design of the heater valve.

20200521_123643 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

The heater valve top actually rotates so you can fit it correctly (it's larger). Then you hand tighten the nut to lock it down per the single page of instructions:

20200521_123632 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

New foam around the new heater core:

20200521_125713 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

New heater valve in place. O-rings lubed. I removed the piece of yellow tape before putting it together (it was a sticker from the original coolant pipe).

20200521_130053 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

I took the time to vacuum all the crap out of the heater core's home:

20200521_130457 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

Mostly back together:

20200521_135811 by mike.bevels, on Flickr

I left it all apart and went for a drive to check for leaks. No leaks in the interior, but there was some weeping from one of the hoses in the engine bay. I tightened it and may replace it later. The heat works great now. I get a nice gradual transition from cold to hot.

Big thanks to my kids for being on flashlight duty as I knocked this out!

[D.Martijn]

I think I saw your question in freeride53 's thread. I didn't see a response though. I'd love to know as well!

I fit in the E30 reasonably well. Almost better than my F31. I just wish the steering wheel telescoped as my seat is nearly all the way back, but arms are extended more than I'd like reaching for the steering wheel. I'm sure you have it worse than me with the extra height.

Regardless, these cars are just so fun to drive the "fitment issues" don't bother me much.

dmanb2b , if your horn doesn't work, you'll need to extend the telescoping rod. I have very little fabrication skills, but you might be able to swap out the existing rod for a longer one so it makes contact with the horn ring on the back of the steering wheel.

Yeah, just had a look. I've sent him a pm before but that didn't result in a reply either.
My parents have an F31 as well, I have no problems with fitting inside that one. Although it's like I'm driving a sofa (seating position and feel) compared to the mk7 GTI/E30 hahaha.
Yeah, I feel like I need to sit closer to the wheel to have a decent reach for my arms but then my knees sit way up and are hitting the steering wheel making it almost impossible to turn the wheel.

[mike.bmw]

I know there is a build thread where someone mentioned spacing the steering wheel away from the dash but unfortunately they didn't respond to my question..
I'm 2m04 or 6'8" so I'm having the same problem..

I think I saw your question in freeride53 's thread. I didn't see a response though. I'd love to know as well!

I fit in the E30 reasonably well. Almost better than my F31. I just wish the steering wheel telescoped as my seat is nearly all the way back, but arms are extended more than I'd like reaching for the steering wheel. I'm sure you have it worse than me with the extra height.

Regardless, these cars are just so fun to drive the "fitment issues" don't bother me much.

dmanb2b , if your horn doesn't work, you'll need to extend the telescoping rod. I have very little fabrication skills, but you might be able to swap out the existing rod for a longer one so it makes contact with the horn ring on the back of the steering wheel.

[D.Martijn]

Hey! Hope all is well with you too.

The Sport Wheel sits the same distance away from the stalks as the 385mm MT2. The center of the Sport Wheel looks a bit more concave than an MT2 wheel, but the spacing and distance from the stalks are the same. The Sport Wheel measure 385mm across.

I haven't bent my stalks. It's a tad close, but doesn't really bother me. For reference, I'm 6'5" and can easily palm a basketball, so it's not like I have tiny hands. If I were to wear gloves at a track day, I'd likely hit the stalks every time as there isn't much clearance now. Also, if this was a 370mm wheel I'd likely have issues with my knuckles hitting the stalks, but I don't have that issue with the 385m wheel.

If someone comes up with a cool spacer solution to extend the wheel towards the driver, I'd be all for it as that would be a more comfortable driving position for me.

I have a few updates coming, but I figured I'd stack them up as opposed to posting lots of smaller updates.

I know there is a build thread where someone mentioned spacing the steering wheel away from the dash but unfortunately they didn't respond to my question..
I'm 2m04 or 6'8" so I'm having the same problem..