318i refresh + s52 build

[grandeswag]

Now that I've got the kswap build more or less finished, it's time to turn my attention to my neglected e30. This one has more or less been my daily for the past 5 years, I found it on craigslist up in Vermont. 4 door wasn't my first choice, but it was S50 swapped and cheap. We all know how the story goes with a daily hooptee.. things are pretty much only fixed as needed. Not a lot of preventative maintenance done - most projects limited to having the car down for just a weekend. That being said I have put a decent amount of work into this car, but now I can really get it dialed in.

THE LIST:
- Engine - burns oil, has always leaked oil, runs rough when cold, overall seems tired. Just picked up a local s52 for rebuild.
- Trans - need to replace detents. Will replace clutch as well.
- Suspension - all bushings to be replaced. Maybe put it on coils as well - GC or KW.
- Brakes - rotors, pads, etc.
- Exhaust - would like this redone
- Exterior - it photographs well, but there are dents in dings in every panel. We'll see where this leads after getting straightened out, maybe a wrap? I don't know.

Anyway, onto the history..


Day 1 in VT. 6 hours to get home

[grandeswag]

Drove around as is for a bit. Wasn't into the wheels at all. So I got some arc 8s. Lot of people don't like 17s on e30s which I tend to agree with, but I think they work better on a 4dr. Also after installing skirts and paint matching the front lip I think it filled out well.






I also picked up this rep m3 style spoiler which I thought would kind of even out the whole look between the skirts and big wheels.




Got some semi-janky exhaust work done. Does the job but I want it to be much cleaner. It sounds great though. Some mystery headers up front, vibrant ultra quiet resonator and muffler at the back. 2.5" piping and the tips I think are 3".



I wanted to clean up the bay. The PO had a mishimoto expansion tank that was just held in with zip ties, so I opted to go with the oem late model expansion tank. There was also a crummy autozone intake setup, which I swapped with a KAmotors kit. Lastly I added m3 firewall covers and removed a bunch of extra, unneeded wiring. This harness was from an automatic e36 so there was a whole section for the trans computer. I remember being super intimidated to do this.. it was my first "big project" on the car, lol. I've come a long way.

[grandeswag]

Picked up this 8" lukebox from a forum member for free. Great grab. Sorted out the rest of the audio setup.. bmw-radios reverse RDS, some JL tweeters and infinity REF-5032 speakers which fit into all the original stuff.

Then I picked up this crimson red (1991) interior, which I thought was pretty cool and would make the car unique, plus it matched the year and everything. Replaced crusty vapor barriers and put kilmat everywhere.

[grandeswag]

Dailying an E30 means you get caught out in the dark, in the rain. Old lighting just wasn't cutting it, so I installed the esgprints HID adapter kit. Huge difference.



I was featured on Wheels of NYC, which was pretty cool!

https://www.wheelsof.com/latest/thomas-1991-e30-318i

[grandeswag]

Pretty much caught up here, just gonna add some random photos.

[grandeswag]

All right! With that out of the way, we are caught up to present day. Yesterday I picked up this S52.



Plan is as follows..
- Bore to 87mm (or less depending on what the machine shop says)
- CP pistons 11:1
- Rod bearings
- Main bearings
- Timing chains, rails, tensioners
- All new gaskets
- Oil pump nut
- Vanos rebuild
- Shrick 264/256 cams
- Supertech valves + springs

Keep in mind I have never built a motor before. Open to any and all advice. Probably gonna need some special tools.

Oh and I'm likely going to go standalone, most likely Link.

[iXguido]

White on red is my favorite color combo! Used to have full cardinal in my 89 white ix 4door. Sub'd!

[2mAn]

This should turn out pretty nice. Excited to see where it goes