New owner, BMW 325iX Touring

[D.Martijn]

I'm doing more and more "improvements of life" on the E30 it seems. The occasional squeaking of the dashboard and interior trim pieces was driving me a little nuts last time I drove the E30. Especially over rough roads, which is pretty common in Belgium unfortunately..
I decided to add some felt between the vinyl and or plastic pieces underneath the dashboard I got some 3mm thick self adhesive felt on a roll and sheets of 1mm thick without adhesive so I used some double sided tape to attach those.
In the end I ended up sticking some more felt between the center console and the dash. I noticed some extra vinyl sticking out in some places on the underside of the dash that slightly touched the center console and were the cause of some squeaking which I removed as well
I will swap out the a different center console some time soon-ish when I convert to electric windows. but in the meantime it should be OK


The two little taps on the hand brake trim piece got some felt around them too (not pictured there) it fit's snuggly in the slots of the center console and no longer squeaks as well.


While I was at the passenger side of the E30, I noticed the glovebox hanging a little crooked, it's always been like that from when I removed the dash to repair rust and replace some gaskets on the air ducts.
However, the previous owner seemed to have lost the rectangular nuts (they are NLA as well..) that sit in the big slots and the back of the glove box. which makes adjusting and tightening the bolts for the glove box a nightmare.
I decided to remove it completely and make some 3D printed inserts that hold the washers and nuts in it's place. So it's possible to tighten the bolts while the glove box is shut and adjusted properly.


Printed these in ABS, should be plenty good for then it's warm


Next up was fitting everything back into it's place.
I put some felt on the side of the plastic trim panel that is visible when you open the glove box




When refitting it back and pulling / pushing it around to listen if there were still squeaks, the rubber sleeve for the ECU harness was rubbing on the back corner so I applied some felt there as well.


Next up was the B pillars as this was driving me crazy as well, the major squeaking seems to be coming from the vinyl of the B pillar that's rubbing against the rubber door seals. Mainly the top section is the culprit here but it's kinda touching over the whole length of the B pillar trim




That seems to have solved most of the squeaking, I also added some felt between the rubber door seal and side of the dashboard as it's also vinyl against rubber there.
Lastly I wanted to also cancel out some noise coming from the trunk. I already played with the adjustment of the latch but it's still rattily, I for now tried to add some heat shrink tube on the catch portion; we'll see it that might solve it.
On my mk1 golf the door catches also have this plastic (the BMW 2002 touring as a plastic kernel also the removed the metal on metal contact)

Finally, when I sit down on the rear trim piece of the car and make the car bounce, there was some squeaking coming from the suspension as well. Having a pit and a second person would have been quite handy now.
However I removed both wheels and compressed the suspension against and quickly released the jack but that didn't make the sound I was hearing.
For good measure I sprayed some white sticky grease on the bushing of the anti roll bar and it's linkages, put the wheels back on the car and bounced it some more.
After a while the squeaking went quiet. I guess I'll have to remove the anti roll bar once more and add new grease to the bushings (the bushings and linkages for replaced 2-3 years ago now? I also added silicon grease back then)
Maybe it got dried up..

[D.Martijn]

While I switched out the speakers, I remembered as well that the right side panel in the trunk had one of the locks missing since a piece had broken off.
I decided to repair it with the help of a 3D printed part.


As it's an iX model, the right panel is different and hard to find unlike the normal E30 Touring cover panel, I decided to model a piece to repair the panel.
You can use this piece on both outer sides of the panel, by mirroring the model.
If yours is broken off at the inside sections of the lock, you will need to slightly modify the model.
https://www.printables.com/model/507...el-lock-repair

Measured the panel and the remaining section and 3D modelled a new piece and send the file to the 3D printer, only took 10min!


I removed the remaining pieces that were still there so everything was flush up against the edge where the lock ends (see picture). The new piece is glued on with some high strength super glue.




If the original slide piece and it's spring is missing on your panels like on mine, it's still available to order from BMW (51471947370 and 32341156343) and pretty cheap too!

[D.Martijn]

Just a small update on the touring.
The headliner samples I received still aren't quite the same color as the original fabric. I think I'll just settle and pick the fabric that's the closest in color and pattern.

Meanwhile I got some new speakers for the Touring, together with some new screws and clips as I remembered the previous owner once changed the speakers and used the incorrect screws.
One of the local parts store sell these little sets, saves me some money on shipping as well and the price of the clips and screws is very good too!






I started at the front of the car and swapped them over. Unfortunately the previous owner once cut the cables and used "sugar cubes" as well call them in Belgium to attach new cables.
Had I know I would have removed these as well and refitted new connectors, that'll be for next time! Luckily the cable it still plenty long enough.


New clips installed


New screws


While I was at the front of the car, I remembered I needed to swap the non-airbag indicator stalk that's currently fitted over to the airbag stalk. (I did this when I swapped over the the M-Tech 2 steering wheel)
The airbag stalk bring the stalk more towards the steering wheel, since I now fitted the Alpina steering wheel with a long MOMO hub, the original non airbag stalk was a little bit too far away from the steering wheel, I also could touch the stalk with my knee..

I might also try and find an airbag SWRA wiper stalk as this is also a non airbag version currently in the car. This might turn out to be a challenge though..

For those who are interested, this is the difference between the two stalks (airbag top, non airbag lower)


In the end I also swapped the rear speakers out with the new ones I got and the sound is a lot better (only the front right one seemed to be working before)
I know it's not some crazy HiFi sound system but I don't listen to the radio as much when I'm driving the E30, it's all about hearing that straight six !

[D.Martijn]

So that new rack is way moore better, faster??

Oh yeah! It's a great upgrade for the iX. The car feels more alive in the front as well, and keeps track great.
When you're turning you can turn in even more, I don't know how to explain but it's great haha!

[litu]

So that new rack is way moore better, faster??

[D.Martijn]

So the last time I drove the E30 there was some noise coming from the rear of the car.
I decided to replace the rear upper shock mounts so I ordered those with new seals as well. On the Touring model you need to remove the rear boot trim and acces the two nuts through a couple of openings while making sure you don't drop one into the cavities :)
PXL_20230602_140013334

The old ones still looked good, I did replace them while I had everything apart. In the end I adjusted the rear tailgate catch a little more and took the car for a spin with my brother in the evening.
The squeaking noise is gone but there is still some ticking kinda noise. hard to explain and hard to replicate without driving the car..

PXL_20230602_185327425

I also send a couple of request to get samples for new headliner material. The foam on between the hard shell and fabric deteriorates and lets go of the fabric. Which causes it to sag down.
The first two samples I got at the top were too brown/beige. But I think the one on the right might be the closest to the original. I still need to compare by holding it against the original headliner.
PXL_20230605_165442640

[D.Martijn]

Looking good! E30 road trips are the best. I have a ~1,500 mile (~2,400 km) road trip coming up next week.

That's quite the distance! any special things you need to do to prepare it for such trip? :)

[mike.bmw]

Looking good! E30 road trips are the best. I have a ~1,500 mile (~2,400 km) road trip coming up next week.

[D.Martijn]

So I've been able to test the steering rack for a while now and the weird feeling I got on center if fully gone! Had I known before, I would have just used the original bushings the first time around..

Last weekend my girlfriend and I spend 4 days at the Belgian coast, I decided to go with the E30 as the weather was pretty good.
Feels great to drive it again, I should drive it more though! However I did notice some squeaking and screeching coming from the boot.
At first I thought it was the tailgate itself that was moving as I did notice previously that the plastic trim is touching the tailgate a little. I used a small cloth and put it between the two to test if that would be the cause but that didn't solve the noise.
After coming back from a drive, I shook the car at the rear and could hear the noise as well, I think it might be the rear top shock mounts? The noise it mostly only noticeable on rougher roads.

There are a few other things I need to do as well, like replacing the wiper stalk back to the airbag type one so it comes more forward as it's now a little too far away from the steering wheel.
However as for the SWRA /turn signal stalk, I might have to bend that one since the stalk also pressed in to operate the SWRA function.


Before, nice and clean...


After, not so much

[D.Martijn]

Really wish I had some kind of formal training on the lathe, my knowledge is just off trial and error and sometimes there is a lot of error

While I did have some basic turning in school it's been a long time so I'm still a newb lol.

[econti]

Really wish I had some kind of formal training on the lathe, my knowledge is just off trial and error and sometimes there is a lot of error

[D.Martijn]

The new seal for the steering rack arrived just in time on Friday at a local pickup place not far from work. So I was able to get it and start rebuilding the rack.
Previously that week, I stayed a little longer after hours to make a new tension plug for the steering rack. On the old one I stripped the hex nut when first disassembling the rack, I later made a little adapter to use the reinforcement ribs but these also started to deform so I decided it was best to start over.

It has some weird thread, M40,5 x 1,5. Yes 40,5mm... I dunno what ZF was thinking lol
Anyway, I used a thread micrometer to measure the original piece and new piece so the threads were identical. As I couldn't try the threads while the piece was still on the machine. Luckily everything turned out great.
Piece on the lathe, it's been a some time since I manual threaded on the lathe, probably from the time I was still in school. The threads were a little rough as I was turning pretty slow, I should have used a little bit of oil as well..


Piece clamped in the rotary dividing head to mill the hexagon shape (17mm)


Quick fine sandblast to remove the machining marks




New seal, Corteco 15019947B if anyone is wondering


Steering rack assembled. The old 3D printed clips I used got deformed over time, if I remember correctly I printed these out of PETG.
The new ones are ABS, hopefully they last a little bit better as I couldn't print ABS at the time.


Everything torqued back and fitted into place.


While the rack was out of the car, I adjusted the hydraulic lines I got made as well, as I noticed they lightly touched the CV axle.
Looks like I do have a little bit more room now; it's still close though


While I had the printer fired up to print the clips for the hard lines, I also modelled printed a little cap for the Girling brake reservoir as I was missing mine.
(I previously used some kind of grommet that fit snuggly over the cap but this looks a little bit neater) I might print a black one as this was just a test piece - red adds +10HP right?

[D.Martijn]

I (finally) managed to remove the X3 steering rack I placing into the iX, it's been fitted for 2? years now. damn time flies..
The reason I wanted/needed to remove it yet again, I used a cheapish (it was the one kit I could find at that time) rebuild kit to reseal the rack.
I used the new guide bushings from the kit but they were a bit too tight causing the rack to have a sticky feel. Especially noticeable when driving in a straight line, I had to keep adjusting the steering wheel to keep the E30 in it's lane.

By now removing the rack, I could have a feel for the stickiness of the rack when turning the rack with a vice grip.

Oh wow, I can tell you it's sooooo much more enjoyable with everything nicely zinc plated and being fresh.


I was able to get a engine hook/bridge to keep the engine in it's place


And the rack disassembled, the plastic guide bushing is seated in the steel sleeve that still on the axle of the steering rack.
In this same sleeve there is also some kind of oil seal but with an extra nylon/PTFE ring to align the shaft better. In the end I did found the correct part number and got it ordered.
I also plan on making a new plug to adjust the tension on the rack. The first time I tried to loosen this part, I pretty much stripped the hexagon that's on this piece.

[D.Martijn]

Not a whole lot has happen since last time. I did drive the Touring to the Belgian coast with my girlfriend and had a drive over there. It felt great driving it again.

However I did do quite a bit of work on my uncles E30's.

His iX Touring came in for a service as well as replacing the timing belt as it was just passed 5 years. I changed the waterpump, thermostat and some seals as well.


Valvetrain adjustment done as well


Next up was his Baur..
This one needed quite a bit more work, he wants to drive it the the South of France this summer. I did a full service, timing belt + waterpump, all new coolant hoses + vacuum hoses, new flexible brake lines.
I stripped the nut on the both sides of the front brake lines so I had to make new ones. The exhaust was renewed too, last time he drove the car it broke at the front of the muffler. I did need to adjust the exhaust hangers quite a bit as they didn't fit all that great. There were quite a bit of electrical gremlins too, I had to replace the central locking module, replace the SI board batteries as well as fixing a couple of traces on the PCB of the cluster as they were broken by using screws that are too long which damaged these.

[D.Martijn]

Thanks! Yes, I'm 6'5" (198cm) tall. The K2006 hub is better positioned than a stock steering wheel and appears to be 3.4" (8.6cm) in length, so the L2007 would give me just over 1.3" (3.3 cm). I could install a "deep dish" wheel, but I'm not sure I like that style. There may also be an option of extending the current K2006 hub with a quick release setup, but I still need to research that.

Yeah, I'm just over 2meters (203cm). I felt like the K2006 is pretty much like the Mtech 2 wheel I had..
Not a fan of those deep dish wheels as well especially for a street car.

If you really are interested in those L2007 hubs, I could always forward the steering hub on Ebay Kleinanzeigen to you if the seller doesn't ship to the US..

Because of my height, the sport seat is all the way back (to have room for my knees/legs) but I found that I had to stretch my arms too much to reach the steering wheel. It's pretty perfect now with this hub. How is this for you?