time to freshen up my ’95 e34 528 touring (I had a '02 528 engine installed back in '13, so I call it a 528iT) …110k on the engine ... 160k on the chassis … auto … I drive it a few times a week …solid car ... it’s been sitting outside for the last 22 years since the cabrio always gets the garage … though I wipe it down daily, it was looking a little tired when you get up too close … so I made a list of things that have been bugging me … & that I have been avoiding doing anything about … so here they are >>>
* rear glass shocks shot (can’t use it if I need 2 hands to load something)
* rear hatch shocks shot (holding it up with a trim piece of wood gets old fast, especially during home depot runs)
* left rear window motor shot (gotta keep rear windows locked to avoid someone trying to use it; goes down but won’t go back up)
* service the double sunroof cartridge … it functions correctly … however … it’s moving way too slow when it closes … barely makes it without cheering it on
* front driver comfort seat twist … who hasn’t suffered this fate
* minor damage on driver’s front fender/cracked front bumper from neighbor’s daughter
* various small dents that only I know exist
* repair front driver’s door stay … been babying it for years … it’s ready to rip free from the door shell
* repair leaking roof rails … I’ve been experiencing rust seeping from under the roof rails … & they are the motivational force to get some work done on my touring
repaired the glass & hatch shocks 1st … then window motor … simple ... decided to replace the twisted comfort seats … so I hunted down a pair of sport seats from a ’95 m sport … with seat heaters … upholsterer is finishing up the new headliner … also wrapping the rear seats & the newly purchased front sport seats with parchment leather ... threw in a bluetooth converted business cd (wagon’s always parked outside so I don’t want to deal with stereo theft … no one steals business cd’s anymore it seems, even in sf) ... just ordered new checkers cocomats for the footwells & the rear loading area … black & tan … I’ve always liked the checkers design … always wanted a set of them ...also grabbed a newly refurbished mtech steering wheel with perforated grips
by the time I turned my attention to the exterior, I already had the fever … so I decided to remove every imperfection on the body … & I’m following it up with a total respray in alpine white III … I’m really happy … didn’t know what to expect once all the trim was off … however … to my surprise … we found absolutely no rust on the wagon except for where the roof rail’s holes are … I really thought the rust seeping out from under the roof rails was a harbinger of what else might be wrong with the integrity of the body … I was wondering if I was fixing up a rust bucket … I was concerned once the trim & bumpers were off, I’d see rust everywhere … original owner from texas … then the wagon migrated to caifornia … lucky there wasn’t any rust … especially since it’s always parked outside, rain or shine, for 22 years in the wet fog
i’ve gone a little deeper than just body work & paint ...
grabbed a new mtech front bumper … like it so much that I bought a rear mtech bumper, too … had to have them match, naturally :-) ... got all new trim on the front of the car >>> new hella smiley w/city lights, clear turn signals, new fog lenses, new kidney grills/chrome surrounds, grills, bumper rub strips, emblem … everything ... i even got a new license plate because the old run was pitted to death … every piece of trim on the front is new … can’t wait to see it all put together ... i’m glad i grabbed the new rear mtech bumper, too … impulsive purchase … while I was back there, I snagged new rear quarter panel lights & sail panel lights … hard to get new anymore … also got new rub strips for the rear bumper …. finishing it all off with new emblem … only puzzle left is dealing with the 3rd brake light (screws are frozen real tight)
on the side of the wagon, I’m replacing all rub strips, side marker lights, & door handles/gaskets … the only thing I am not replacing at this time is all the trim around the side windows … too many pieces to keep track of … my experience has shown that the more parts that go to the paint shop, the more parts somehow get lost … I can redo the window trim pieces myself
talking about loosing parts, I was going to strip the car myself … to make it easier for the shop … & get a better job … but they insisted on r&r themselves so no clips go missing, etc … so the only thing I did was get a 4’ x 7’ piece of cardboard … I then divided it in half vertically with a marking pen … I then taped & wired (floral) each piece of trim onto the cardboard (see pic) … starting with the front of the car at the top of the cardboard … & the rear of the car at the bottom of the cardboard … that way no piece gets lost … & they would know exactly where each new piece should go … the guys thought it was a pretty good idea because everything was fastened to the board & couldn’t be misplaced … my final tweak has to do with wheels … have a lead on a set of my all-time favorites … will share later in pics as they will be the final touch of the project
I thought I’d take this opportunity to share my experience here because there aren’t many e34 tourings floating around anymore … they were scarce to begin with … & if my experience can help some touring owner figure something out on his wagon, then so much the better … I’m taking a lot of pics with all the trim off … taking a lot of pics & angles of the touring’s ceiling with the headliner down … happy to share pics with any touring owners out there … my journey right now is basically on appearance … engine stays stock … no manual conversion on the horizon
I’m taking a calculated risk … I want to slick up my wagon a bit … but not a lot … i don’t want to attract unwanted attention by getting too eye-catching … hard to maintain a nice balance … since I’m working the absolute WORST potholed streets in the state (have to stick to 16” wheels or lose ‘em) … fending off car thieves … catalytic converter pirates … & vandals looking for their next target … I don’t want it to look so good that I wake up one morning & find it gone … already air tagged it … & properly armed … great to have law enforcement neighbors living on both sides of me … & another one across the street :) … but, still … I just don’t want to have too much of an 'attractive nuisance’ parked curbside
the second reason that I’m writing such a post is because I found my myself at a loss to find a good auto body shop here in the bay area … & I wanted to provide anyone looking for an auto body in san francisco with a good, solid lead … when I took my touring to my regular upholsterer (who’s only been sewing for 48 yrs), I asked him for a lead to a good body shop … he said … not anymore … claims that a lot of older body shops closed during the pandemic … & the old owners never reopened … told me that nowadays in sf, body shops only want to do insurance work … they don’t have to hassle over getting the money from some ornery owners like at the privately owned shops … rather prefer to deal with insurance companies … that hurt to hear that
I then took my touring to my mechanic (since ’97) … told him to go through it with a fine tooth comb … anything seriously lurking that would make me stop from wanting to fix it up for the duration … I just wanted to know for sure before throwing more dinero at it … touring passed with flying colors … asked him about where to go for bodywork & paint … told me the same thing that my upholsterer said … that most body shops in the bay area only want to do insurance work … he had no lead either
so I jumped on every forum that I could … looking for a lead for a body shop … after much digging … I found a post from awhile back … I think it was here on r3v, of course … someone mentioned Tiger’s Auto Body on Industrial Way in Brisbane … 15 minutes from my house … drove over there last labor day weekend … showed them my spreadsheet of what I wanted done … & they said no prob … Uciel gave me a very fair estimate … so fair that I sought out no other estimate … & his attention to detail was keen … took my spreadsheet & went through every single item & how he would address it ... my biggest concern were the rusted roof rail holes … & the driver’s door stay that was 80% ripped out from door shell … common e34 prob … when Uciel told me that he would be removing the door from the car … & all door stuff like glass & guts … & then weld a metal plate from inside to the door to beef up the door stay … well … from someone who had done arc welding for 10 years, I was sold at that precise moment … I had found 'the guy"
another impressive thing about Tiger’s is this … most shops don’t want customers past their roll-up doors … we all know that ... they consider us pests which, granted, we can be :-) … however … Uciel told me that I can come in anytime I want to check progress, which I have done … I go in on tuesdays & thursdays … bring the crew some pastries … take all the pics I want … i have total run of shop … friendly … no barriers … always stops & chats me up … I am always respectful of his time because he’ll talk to you as long as you want to talk … he runs the shop with his brother carlos … personally … I’m pretty good at entering a shop & picking up on the vibe … the vibe of Tiger’s is a good one … a very positive experience … you can tell that they like each other by the way they work as a team … I think there’s about 5-6 guys total … Uciel & Carlos have been in business since ’88 ... a real find to remember
I’m attaching some pics … I have more … so if you’re a touring owner & if you need a certain angle pic of your touring while it’s apart, let me know & I’ll snap one for you … will update with more pics as I get them … almost time for the spray
If you’d like to check out Uciel’s work in person, just tell him that ryan with the white e34 touring sent you … 415.467-6866 ... great prices & great work seldom go hand in hand … you might want to check them out
* rear glass shocks shot (can’t use it if I need 2 hands to load something)
* rear hatch shocks shot (holding it up with a trim piece of wood gets old fast, especially during home depot runs)
* left rear window motor shot (gotta keep rear windows locked to avoid someone trying to use it; goes down but won’t go back up)
* service the double sunroof cartridge … it functions correctly … however … it’s moving way too slow when it closes … barely makes it without cheering it on
* front driver comfort seat twist … who hasn’t suffered this fate
* minor damage on driver’s front fender/cracked front bumper from neighbor’s daughter
* various small dents that only I know exist
* repair front driver’s door stay … been babying it for years … it’s ready to rip free from the door shell
* repair leaking roof rails … I’ve been experiencing rust seeping from under the roof rails … & they are the motivational force to get some work done on my touring
repaired the glass & hatch shocks 1st … then window motor … simple ... decided to replace the twisted comfort seats … so I hunted down a pair of sport seats from a ’95 m sport … with seat heaters … upholsterer is finishing up the new headliner … also wrapping the rear seats & the newly purchased front sport seats with parchment leather ... threw in a bluetooth converted business cd (wagon’s always parked outside so I don’t want to deal with stereo theft … no one steals business cd’s anymore it seems, even in sf) ... just ordered new checkers cocomats for the footwells & the rear loading area … black & tan … I’ve always liked the checkers design … always wanted a set of them ...also grabbed a newly refurbished mtech steering wheel with perforated grips
by the time I turned my attention to the exterior, I already had the fever … so I decided to remove every imperfection on the body … & I’m following it up with a total respray in alpine white III … I’m really happy … didn’t know what to expect once all the trim was off … however … to my surprise … we found absolutely no rust on the wagon except for where the roof rail’s holes are … I really thought the rust seeping out from under the roof rails was a harbinger of what else might be wrong with the integrity of the body … I was wondering if I was fixing up a rust bucket … I was concerned once the trim & bumpers were off, I’d see rust everywhere … original owner from texas … then the wagon migrated to caifornia … lucky there wasn’t any rust … especially since it’s always parked outside, rain or shine, for 22 years in the wet fog
i’ve gone a little deeper than just body work & paint ...
grabbed a new mtech front bumper … like it so much that I bought a rear mtech bumper, too … had to have them match, naturally :-) ... got all new trim on the front of the car >>> new hella smiley w/city lights, clear turn signals, new fog lenses, new kidney grills/chrome surrounds, grills, bumper rub strips, emblem … everything ... i even got a new license plate because the old run was pitted to death … every piece of trim on the front is new … can’t wait to see it all put together ... i’m glad i grabbed the new rear mtech bumper, too … impulsive purchase … while I was back there, I snagged new rear quarter panel lights & sail panel lights … hard to get new anymore … also got new rub strips for the rear bumper …. finishing it all off with new emblem … only puzzle left is dealing with the 3rd brake light (screws are frozen real tight)
on the side of the wagon, I’m replacing all rub strips, side marker lights, & door handles/gaskets … the only thing I am not replacing at this time is all the trim around the side windows … too many pieces to keep track of … my experience has shown that the more parts that go to the paint shop, the more parts somehow get lost … I can redo the window trim pieces myself
talking about loosing parts, I was going to strip the car myself … to make it easier for the shop … & get a better job … but they insisted on r&r themselves so no clips go missing, etc … so the only thing I did was get a 4’ x 7’ piece of cardboard … I then divided it in half vertically with a marking pen … I then taped & wired (floral) each piece of trim onto the cardboard (see pic) … starting with the front of the car at the top of the cardboard … & the rear of the car at the bottom of the cardboard … that way no piece gets lost … & they would know exactly where each new piece should go … the guys thought it was a pretty good idea because everything was fastened to the board & couldn’t be misplaced … my final tweak has to do with wheels … have a lead on a set of my all-time favorites … will share later in pics as they will be the final touch of the project
I thought I’d take this opportunity to share my experience here because there aren’t many e34 tourings floating around anymore … they were scarce to begin with … & if my experience can help some touring owner figure something out on his wagon, then so much the better … I’m taking a lot of pics with all the trim off … taking a lot of pics & angles of the touring’s ceiling with the headliner down … happy to share pics with any touring owners out there … my journey right now is basically on appearance … engine stays stock … no manual conversion on the horizon
I’m taking a calculated risk … I want to slick up my wagon a bit … but not a lot … i don’t want to attract unwanted attention by getting too eye-catching … hard to maintain a nice balance … since I’m working the absolute WORST potholed streets in the state (have to stick to 16” wheels or lose ‘em) … fending off car thieves … catalytic converter pirates … & vandals looking for their next target … I don’t want it to look so good that I wake up one morning & find it gone … already air tagged it … & properly armed … great to have law enforcement neighbors living on both sides of me … & another one across the street :) … but, still … I just don’t want to have too much of an 'attractive nuisance’ parked curbside
the second reason that I’m writing such a post is because I found my myself at a loss to find a good auto body shop here in the bay area … & I wanted to provide anyone looking for an auto body in san francisco with a good, solid lead … when I took my touring to my regular upholsterer (who’s only been sewing for 48 yrs), I asked him for a lead to a good body shop … he said … not anymore … claims that a lot of older body shops closed during the pandemic … & the old owners never reopened … told me that nowadays in sf, body shops only want to do insurance work … they don’t have to hassle over getting the money from some ornery owners like at the privately owned shops … rather prefer to deal with insurance companies … that hurt to hear that
I then took my touring to my mechanic (since ’97) … told him to go through it with a fine tooth comb … anything seriously lurking that would make me stop from wanting to fix it up for the duration … I just wanted to know for sure before throwing more dinero at it … touring passed with flying colors … asked him about where to go for bodywork & paint … told me the same thing that my upholsterer said … that most body shops in the bay area only want to do insurance work … he had no lead either
so I jumped on every forum that I could … looking for a lead for a body shop … after much digging … I found a post from awhile back … I think it was here on r3v, of course … someone mentioned Tiger’s Auto Body on Industrial Way in Brisbane … 15 minutes from my house … drove over there last labor day weekend … showed them my spreadsheet of what I wanted done … & they said no prob … Uciel gave me a very fair estimate … so fair that I sought out no other estimate … & his attention to detail was keen … took my spreadsheet & went through every single item & how he would address it ... my biggest concern were the rusted roof rail holes … & the driver’s door stay that was 80% ripped out from door shell … common e34 prob … when Uciel told me that he would be removing the door from the car … & all door stuff like glass & guts … & then weld a metal plate from inside to the door to beef up the door stay … well … from someone who had done arc welding for 10 years, I was sold at that precise moment … I had found 'the guy"
another impressive thing about Tiger’s is this … most shops don’t want customers past their roll-up doors … we all know that ... they consider us pests which, granted, we can be :-) … however … Uciel told me that I can come in anytime I want to check progress, which I have done … I go in on tuesdays & thursdays … bring the crew some pastries … take all the pics I want … i have total run of shop … friendly … no barriers … always stops & chats me up … I am always respectful of his time because he’ll talk to you as long as you want to talk … he runs the shop with his brother carlos … personally … I’m pretty good at entering a shop & picking up on the vibe … the vibe of Tiger’s is a good one … a very positive experience … you can tell that they like each other by the way they work as a team … I think there’s about 5-6 guys total … Uciel & Carlos have been in business since ’88 ... a real find to remember
I’m attaching some pics … I have more … so if you’re a touring owner & if you need a certain angle pic of your touring while it’s apart, let me know & I’ll snap one for you … will update with more pics as I get them … almost time for the spray
If you’d like to check out Uciel’s work in person, just tell him that ryan with the white e34 touring sent you … 415.467-6866 ... great prices & great work seldom go hand in hand … you might want to check them out
Comment