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June 2019 Car of the Month: Melon
*** Editors Note: If you haven't seen Melons thread, you're in for a treat as the transformation of this car is superb. Even if you have, these shots that he took for his COTM feature are also superb. I love that even though this car has been completely transformed, he built it to the specs he desired and is now reaping the benefits of that. Love those action shots and topped off with a pic of Mr Melon himself in our favorite place, behind the wheel of our beloved E30s. Congrats Alan, you're our June 2019 Car of the Month!***
Factory options:
286 Lt/aly Wheels
300 Emergency Wheel
410 Window Lifts/ Electric Alt Front
530 Air Conditioning
556 Exterior Temperature Display
Color:
U92 – Fuereorange
(Originally Schwartz)
Interior color:
Original Anthracite Interior
Engine modifications:
Swapped M20b25 from 1989 (So I’m told, it was done before I bought the car)
Schrick 272 Cam
19lb. Injectors
SSSquid 93 Octane Chip
Refreshed Head
Ireland Engineering Windage Tray
Bavarian Restoration Restored AFM
Exhaust:
Top Speed headers
Custom 2.5” Exhaust
Transmission:
Clutch Masters 250 Disc and Pressure Plate
JB Racing – Lightweight Flywheel
Getrag 260
Differential:
OEM 3.73 LSD
New GKN Half-Shafts
Suspension:
H&R Sport Springs
Bilstein B8 Shocks
H&R Swaybars
5mm Rear pads
Ireland Engineering Swaybar reinforcement front & rear
Ireland Engineering strut tower brace front and rear
2.7 Lock/Lock Steering Rack
Zionsville Motorsport Steering Linkage
Wheels:
Apex ARC-8 17x8
Falken Azeni RT615K+ Tires
Exterior modifications:
European front Valance w/ Fog Lights
European Bumpers front & rear
Rear license filler plate
‘Melon’ Euro Plate (I had to)
Static rubber antenna
Painted all trim to ‘shadowline’ matte black
Interior modifications:
Corbeau GTS II Seats
Refinished Vinyl Rear Seat
Safety Restore Orange Seatbelts
Continental Bluetooth Radio
Pioneer 5-1/4 Speakers front / Pioneer 6x9 Speakers rear
Z3 Short Shifter
CA Tuned black headliner
Condor Speed Shop shift and parking brake boot
Bavarian Restoration Gauge Cluster
Story behind the car:
This car originally belonged to a friend of mine for about four years. When he initially purchased it, it was a total heap. The calipers were sticking, the interior was trashed, it leaked all over the place, the engine barely ran, but the best part is the light switch ignition and brake lights. So over his four years of ownership it was brought back into a more drivable condition. I even helped on all the major projects, replacing the gas tank, differential, and dropping the transmission. After a few years of us going back and forth, I finally agreed to buy it, and he finally agreed to a price.
I always wanted a BMW, and here I am, looking at this heap wondering ‘what the fuck did I just do?’ I did what any good BMW owner does, began throwing money at it, I bought seats and a steering wheel, replaced the clutch master and slave, things to keep it going. After about three months of ownership, there was a nasty leak on the driver’s floor, I parked it in the garage and began calling shops. The original idea was for me to strip down the car and have someone else paint it, but after getting quotes, I decided to do it myself. I lifted it on the quickjack, and the rest is covered in my build thread here.
There are some things that are not covered in my build thread however, and this is the perfect place to share them. I was raised with a father who built hot-rods. I used to spend my childhood playing at car shows, playing in the garage, and playing with tools. It’s definitely where I found a love of all things automotive, and it persists to this day. My father passed in 2011, and I wish he could have seen me finish this car, I know he would have loved it. While working on it, I still feel close to him like I did when I was a child, that’s something nothing else in the world has given me, other than my love for all things automotive.
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