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1989 Alpine vert

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    1989 Alpine vert

    Bought a 1989 Alpinweiss II convertible from another forum member a couple weeks ago. PO is a great guy - easy transaction.

    So far I've installed a KAMotors intake (more louder) and a Garagistic x-brace. Both went in without any issues.

    This weekend I'm doing a Spec 30 suspension package (H&R Sport springs and Bilstein shocks) as well as new sway bar end links. Putting in new rear strut mounts and gaskets, front ones look fine.

    I've got a long list of other projects I want to eventually tackle, with engine/drivetrain mods waiting until, at the earliest, next winter (2020-21).

    I'll try to document the metamorphosis here.

    * * * * * *
    Potential project list:
    Intake [done]
    X-brace [done]
    Springs/shocks
    Endlinks
    is airdam
    rear valance
    z3 short shifter/dssr
    z3 1.9 2.7LTL steering rack
    Wheels/tires
    Tower strut brace
    rear trailing control arms (or at least bushings)
    refreshed/rebuild brakes
    bluetooth (maybe CarPlay) stereo
    Turbo (KAMotors budget brawler(?))

    #2
    Throw us some pics when you get a chance! I remember that car on the sales forum, you got a great deal. Looking forward to your updates. Congrats!

    Comment


      #3
      Congrats!

      You may want thicker rear spring pads if your sport springs are not vert specific.


      If you still have the OEM radio then this should be your only option for bluetooth.
      The second generation of these kits are available on my company's website:http://www.cantalouperadio.com/MDeckBA-2Installation video for the kit:https://www....
      Last edited by Mike36; 06-07-2019, 10:51 AM.
      sigpic

      Comment


        #4
        Originally posted by Mike36 View Post
        Congrats!

        You may want thicker rear spring pads if your sport springs are not vert specific.


        If you still have the OEM radio then this should be your only option for bluetooth.
        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6JSOCrqnaQ
        Thanks.

        The springs are vert-specific, so should be all set. The suspension was refreshed pretty recently, but at least one of the shocks was blown and I wanted to lower it anyway.

        I have the e36 business CD player right now, but don't really have any CDs and it doesn't have an aux input, so I'll probably sell that and get something that is digital only.

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by e30RS View Post
          Throw us some pics when you get a chance! I remember that car on the sales forum, you got a great deal. Looking forward to your updates. Congrats!
          Thanks. I'll probably snap a few pics while its on the lift this weekend.

          Comment


            #6
            I was able to get the rear springs and shocks installed, as well as the new swap bar end links. Biggest challenges were fitting the spring compressors on the old springs to get them out. I was able to to get both on, but could not find any way to get them opposite one another. I got them separated as much as possible (probably only about 90-120 degrees) and it ended up working out without making me worry about the spring flying out. Getting the endlinks on was a huge pain, but really just boiled down to a bunch of soap and brute force.

            Unfortunately, I will need to tackle the from springs/shocks next time, which effectively puts the car out of commission until I get there.:(

            Comment


              #7
              Just a tip for the rears, which may be obvious to everyone, but made me pause when doing this yesterday. Make sure the parking brake is off and the trans is in neutral. These two things, combined with the shocks being unbolted, should allow the trailing arms to droop enough to pull the springs out by hand (both stock and aftermarket).

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by mike.bmw View Post
                Just a tip for the rears, which may be obvious to everyone, but made me pause when doing this yesterday. Make sure the parking brake is off and the trans is in neutral. These two things, combined with the shocks being unbolted, should allow the trailing arms to droop enough to pull the springs out by hand (both stock and aftermarket).
                Ha - I think I had the car in gear and the parking brake on... Good tip.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by stc4life View Post
                  Ha - I think I had the car in gear and the parking brake on... Good tip.
                  Yeah, I had my parking brake on when taking the rear suspension apart yesterday. After I minute I realized, released the brake and the trailing arms dropped another few inches making removing the rear springs by hand very manageable.

                  Good luck with the fronts!

                  Comment


                    #10
                    So I finally got the fronts done last night, as well as the new sway bar end links. Ended up doing the e90 drop hats, which give a good drop in the front, but create a bit more rake than I'd like. I'm going to try removing one or both spring pads in the rear and seeing how that levels things out. Worst case, I suppose I can try to get the coupe rear springs.

                    My only concern at this point is the top nut on the struts. The nut is not all the way on the shaft, but I cannot turn it anymore without the allen key slipping (torque is not quite at the recommended amount either). I'm worried that I will totally strip the allen slot at the top of the shaft if I go any further. Is it common for the top nut not to be all the way onto the shaft? I'm taking it into a E30 shop for alignment and will have them take a look, but curious whether I'm missing something.

                    Will actually take some pics next time...

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Car is at the shop now for alignment and a once over of my work. No issues identified with my work, which is great. However, they are seeing the same issue with the top nut on the shock shaft. Spoke to bimmerworld, where is got the struts, but no resolution at this point...

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