Mike's Alpine White 1991 318is

[mike.bmw]

should've tried a burnout to see if it was an LSD or not :devil:

Yeah. This is still boggling my mind. I keep asking myself how I could miss something so obvious and here's what I've come up with...

Shortly after buying the car 3 years ago I remember getting under the car to inspect the diff. It was very hard to read the tag and the bottom of the diff didn't appear to have the "S" stamp. What I thought was black paint on the diff housing turned out to be a tar-like substance. Also, I think I remember spinning one wheel and seeing the other spin the opposite direction. So between the wheels spinning opposite directions and the car not being optioned with LSD from the factory, I just assumed it was the more common small case open 4.10.

The fact the car already has LSD better explains why I never spun an inside wheel at any of the track events. I was just assuming (there I go assuming again) the 318 didn't have enough power to do so. ;) This also better explains the behavior on a wet skidpad.

I'm not one for burnouts, but I may give that a try later today to test the lock up.

[Jokester]

should've tried a burnout to see if it was an LSD or not :devil:

[mike.bmw]

LSD Install



So I considered not even posting about this because I'm quite embarrassed and I feel like an idiot. However, this is a thread about my experiences with the car, no matter how dumb, so I'm posting this to close the loop on the LSD saga.

Today I started to install my newly acquired small case S4.10. My plan of attack was to break each bolt loose before actually removing anything. I got the car up on stands. I was through the drive shaft bolts, the diff bushing bolt, and 10 of 12 of the axel bolts. To get to the axel bolts loose I needed to rotate the rear wheels. On the second to last bolt I noticed the wheels were turning the same direction. Hmmmm, that's odd.

You may already see where this is going. I will preface this next part with the fact I have decoded my VIN multiple times on multiple sites. This car was NOT originally optioned with an LSD.

So I started furiously cleaning the diff tag. The first letter looks like an "S".



So I started furiously cleaning the bottom of the diff. This took a while, but after about 5 minutes I started seeing the outline of an "S" stamping. I spent another 5 minutes and saw this:



So, yeah, ... The car already has a small case 4.10 LSD in it. Yep, I've been looking for one for over 2 years and I already had one. Yep, I never bothered to read the diff tag. Yep, I never bothered cleaning the bottom of the diff to look for the large "S" stamping. Yep, I'm embarrassed as hell (but that didn't stop me from calling Zeemz and telling him the story).

So I loctite'd and torqued everything back to spec and left that diff in the car. I'll keep the "new" one as a spare.

On a positive note, during my search and acquisition, I have met some cool folks and was able to take a really fun and memorable road trip with my daughter. I'll chalk this up to a learning experience and move on.

Stromung exhaust update
My Stromung exhaust will be arriving in a couple weeks. Scott @ Stromung has been great and gave me a few options for tips. Looking forward to installing this soon. And, yes, I have verified I don't already have a Stromung exhaust installed on the car.

[mike.bmw]

I need to make it back up to Katie's soon. The 318is is looking minty!, Mike.

Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk

Thanks, it'll be good to start meeting up there again!

[connorb850]

I went with Redline 75W90 and new crush washers.

Good choice. I reinstalled my diff today and man, that stud kit would have made things easier.

[fresh_TD]

I need to make it back up to Katie's soon. The 318is is looking minty!, Mike.

Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk

[mike.bmw]

LSD Progress
Not installed yet, but I did change the oil. So easy to change the oil when the diff is out of the car. You can even tilt it forward to make sure most of the old oil drains! I plan to install this thing soon-ish.

I went with Redline 75W90 and new crush washers.



Oil draining:



Old oil was very clean:



Katie's Cars and Coffee
Other than that, I drove out to Katie's Cars and Coffee for the first time in a while. Decent turnout for sub freezing temps.

[mike.bmw]

Interesting, as I've had a ticking sound since I purchased this second 318i. My ticking noise can be continuous/intermittent at times, but it does also correlate with the RPMs. I still have it after overhauling the entire timing system, so could very well be the coil packs (stock / original to my knowledge). Think I'll have a look as I don't think I've ever replaced these.

It may also be lifter tap. That can sometimes be remedied with a different weight oil. I'm running Mobil 1 15W-50 and after a couple oil changes it happens far less than it used to.

thats great news on the Sunroof. Always nice to have spares on random, rare parts

Yep! About to pull the trigger on a NOS sunroof motor. Ebay can be a wonderful thing.

[2mAn]

thats great news on the Sunroof. Always nice to have spares on random, rare parts

[freeride53]

Coil Packs
I've been hearing a tick from my engine bay for the last 6 weeks. At first it was intermittent. Then it was consistent and correlated to the RPM. It wasn't easy to pinpoint with the hood popped, but was very audible inside the cabin. I spent nearly an hour with a screw driver (cheap stethoscope) trying to find out where it was coming from under the hood. I was about 10 minutes from pulling the oil pan when I realized it was the coil packs. One of the "new" Bremi coil pack bases had come apart. I believe the tick was the coil pack arcing. I wish I had taken of a photo of this as it's quite unbelievable.

If we're keeping score that's 3 of 4 coil Bremi pack failures. I sent them all back for a refund and I'm running the stock coil packs (again) and the engine is tick free. At some point I'll just order the Bosch coil packs.

Interesting, as I've had a ticking sound since I purchased this second 318i. My ticking noise can be continuous/intermittent at times, but it does also correlate with the RPMs. I still have it after overhauling the entire timing system, so could very well be the coil packs (stock / original to my knowledge). Think I'll have a look as I don't think I've ever replaced these.

[mike.bmw]

That's really neat about the sunroof!

Yeah, the lack of sunroof parts had been causing me a bit of stress. There is ZERO information on the internet correlating the Webasto unit to the Ford/Lincoln units. Over the past couple years I've even called Webasto a few times to get more information, which resulted in nothing. It's a bit of a relief to know these parts can be found fairly easily. I'll probably pick up a spare motor, sun shade, and track assembly just to have on hand. The glass and seal were the biggest concerns and now i have spares for those.

[Andrew325is]

That's really neat about the sunroof!

[mike.bmw]

Some updates...

Coil Packs
I've been hearing a tick from my engine bay for the last 6 weeks. At first it was intermittent. Then it was consistent and correlated to the RPM. It wasn't easy to pinpoint with the hood popped, but was very audible inside the cabin. I spent nearly an hour with a screw driver (cheap stethoscope) trying to find out where it was coming from under the hood. I was about 10 minutes from pulling the oil pan when I realized it was the coil packs. One of the "new" Bremi coil pack bases had come apart. I believe the tick was the coil pack arcing. I wish I had taken of a photo of this as it's quite unbelievable.

If we're keeping score that's 3 of 4 coil Bremi pack failures. I sent them all back for a refund and I'm running the stock coil packs (again) and the engine is tick free. At some point I'll just order the Bosch coil packs.

Sunroof Spare Parts
As I've said in the past, the dealer installed a Webasto Starlite 4 sunroof in my car back in '91 to sell it. These aren't made anymore. Parts are hard to find as I've been casually searching for years.

The last few weeks I've stepped up my search for spare sunroof parts. Nothing is broken at the moment, but I'd like to have spares on hand to include the motor, seals, glass, frame, etc. After a few days of calling wrecking yards I stumbled across The Sunroof Doctor. I chatted with Rick, presumably the owner, on the phone about the Webasto Starlite 4. The Sunroof Doctor stocks seals for these, purchased from Webasto many years ago. Excellent.

Here's the crazy part (to me). While I'm on the phone with Rick, he tells me that Webasto provided OEM sunroofs to Ford/Lincoln in the 80s and 90s. The Webasto Starlite 4 sunroof glass, frame, seals, track, etc are interchangeable with the:
- 1987-88 Ford Thunderbird/Mercury Cougar
- 1988-1994 Lincoln Continental

Holy smokes! So I've been searching for years for Webasto Starlite spares when I could've been searching for Thunderbird, Cougar, and Continental parts cars. Sure enough, 20 miles form my house a guy was parting a 1988 Thunderbird and had the sunroof assembly. I took the trip and chatted with the guy for 30 minutes about his collection of Thunderbirds/Cougars. Nice fella. The sunroof spares he was selling were rusty so I passed. I was able to inspect them and confirm they are the same parts in my sunroof.

Enter ebay. I found the spare moonroof glass/frame on ebay. $100 shipped to my door. It's nice to have a spare on hand. The seal is even in better shape than mine. The only difference is the chrome trim ring around the glass, which I can remove and/or scuff and shoot black if I ever need it.



Sunroof seal
The existing sunroof seal needed to be replaced. I ordered a replacement from The Sunroof Doctor. The seal on the spare glass/frame I ordered was in excellent shape, so instead of installing the new seal I just swapped the glass/frame. I'll keep the extra, new seal as a spare.



Stromung Exhaust Group Buy
The Group Buy was a success. I'm not sure on the final numbers because some people placed orders outside the forum, but I believe we were close to 30 commitments for exhausts. We achieved the full discount. I'm excited to get mine installed!

Small Case S4.10
I ordered a stud kit from Condor Speed Shop. I'm in the process of researching gear oil. I'll order some new washers for the drain and fill plugs. Hoping to install this in the next month! In the meantime, I installed the stud kit (took less than 2 minutes).

[mike.bmw]

Interesting! I always thought the 318is came with LSD standard but I guess I was wrong. Good to know that the original buyer of mine spec'd it with the LSD from new.

Ya I though the same as well, learn something new every day. Looking good on the Ronals!

Thanks! Yep, LSD was an option on the 318is. If you have one consider yourself lucky as it took me a while to find one!

That's so cool you took your daughter with you dude. She'll remember that for the rest of her life. You're a good dad.

I'm hoping she doesn't lose interest in "car stuff". Don't get me wrong, we have plenty of kid specific activities, but it's nice that we can have fun with one of my hobbies.

been a year or so since I've had the thought of purchasing an E30 and this thread is the exact replica of what I have envisioned in my head. I've read through the whole thread and wished it didn't end! I haven't pulled the trigger or made up my mind on the 318 or 325. Your build has changed my perception and has made me feel that either choice is a win/win in my book because these machines are beautiful either way! great build!

Good luck with your search and thanks!

#1 key to success, good and loving parents that can show you the ropes in life. Nothing will set you up better!

Hope so!

[Jokester]

That's so cool you took your daughter with you dude. She'll remember that for the rest of her life. You're a good dad.

#1 key to success, good and loving parents that can show you the ropes in life. Nothing will set you up better!