Ugh... I hate writing new posts from scratch. So much to share... And I'm sure I'll miss things. First, RIP my last car, but now we cannibalize it and KEEP MOVING FORWARD. (cue ending seen of Meet the Robinsons and I start to tear up). Second, this will be my motto to not let this project stall. I know it is going to be a long haul.
Ok… sooooooo, I bought this rolling shell the weekend before Thanksgiving 2025. There are basically no specs to it, but I'll list it below for funsies:
• 89' 325i Coupe
• Manual
• Delphin Metallic
• Open 3.73 Diff (coming out)
• Came with driveshaft and G260 off the car
Things missing:
1. Engine (luckily I got one >:))
2. Exhaust
3. Radiator, a/c condenser and lines
4. Passenger seat
5. A bunch more I'm forgetting
Goal: Take most stuff from S52 car, and put it in this bad boy. With a few items of maintenance and tweaks along the way.
Things I have bought so far that needed to be replaced:
1. Rear Main Seal
2. VANOS line
3. Radiator
4. Oil cooler
5. Fuel injector rebuild kit
6. Header to mid pipe gaskets/nuts
Things I bought as a “while I’m there”:
1. Valve cover gasket
2. Oil pan gasket
3. Oil filter housing gasket
4. Clutch kit
Things I bought that I want to change for my new build:
1. New AKG motor mounts, Rubber trans mounts, and poly 80A bushings in the rear
2. Front 51 mm struts, Bilstein B8s, and H&R sport springs (reverting to 4-lug)
Things I still need to buy:
1. Any other 4x100 wheel besides these damn bottle caps. They need tires, and I want to avoid buying them if I know I am going to switch them out immediately anyway.
Ok so here she is with all her glory when I trailered her home. First time renting one of those U-haul two wheel dolleys. Was pretty easy. 5 Minutes after loading, I did notice the driver side rear wheel was wobbling (LIKE A LOT). Pulled over into a gas station, tightened up the lug nuts and studs that were coming loose. Then had no other issues really on the 2 hour drive home. Had to park the car at the top of my narrow Philly street. Got a push start, jumped in, and slammed this thing up the driveway using some 2x4s as smaller ramps, and ripped the parking brake. Then got my element to pull it the rest of the way up to my garage. One 13-point turn later, and there she sits.
The wrecked car in the beginning stages of teardown, and the shell next to it in the garage while I came up with a plan.
Installed some cheap LEDs, and ran extension cord to the house the week before I picked up the shell.
Took a Sawzall to the front end of the car to cut away damaged core support, and fender. I was now able to open the doors fully again. Exhaust removed up to the mid-pipe / header connection. The rest stayed on until I got to the engine. Also, removed the damaged radiator and oil cooler at same time obviously.
Sold my damaged hood and fenders. An E30 hood fits in a honda element with tons of room to spare as an FYI.
Engine ran fine before and after accident, but did a compression test anyway as I was pondering selling everything off initially. Cylinder 6 is a little low, but overall pretty healthy.
Then I began disconnecting the chassis harness from the engine. When I got to the ECU, it was coming apart, so I had to slowly pry it off so I didn’t break anything. Eventually got it after leaving it for the night, and coming back with more patience.
Got the shell jacked up to inspect the underside. I got videos before I bought it, but this was first thorough look at the condition. Overall, very solid late model shell for being in the North East (bought it out of northern NJ). The rear floor pans on both sides are a little bent up for some reason. Guessing the car either was high centered in a ditch or was lifted by fork lift at some point. I’ll just heat that up and bang it back down with some wood or something when I feel like it. Besides that, some batter pinch welds, and the known rust under the battery tray, the car is pretty straight underneath. The body work is another story, but that’s a down-the-line issue. I don’t plan for this to be a full restoration. No bodywork or paint is on my radar. Just want a good driver’s car that I don’t care about getting dinged or scratched even more.
Then I rolled the shell back outside, put it under a tarp, and swiveled the wrecked shell so I could get to work stripping more of it down.
Borrowed my friend’s engine hoist and stand. The jack on the hoist was non-operable. Tried bleeding, didn’t work. Then just bought a new replacement jack for the hoist from harbor freight for like $50. Worked like a charm. Also, the engine hoist was missing 3 out of the 4 bolts holding the base to the crane! I only caught it while I was moving it around and was wondering why the whole thing was so wobbly. After I found the bolts were missing, I told my friend, and his words were “It would have been fine with all the weight from the engine weighing it down”. He's a smart guy, but this one made me question it that day. To be fair, he hadn’t used this hoist in over 7 years, so I can’t fault him for it being in the shape it was. I also was borrowing it for free lol. Replaced those bolts and we were in business. I pulled the M50 manifold so I could undo the final bits of wiring harness, and reach the engine hoist location in the rear of the block.
Came out pretty easy once I got the rest of the exhaust off. Going to be interesting getting this back in the shell. I think I’m going to do same in reverse, but also loosen the subframe a little bit, so I don’t have to do that dance again with the exhaust bolts.
Next was to strip off the starter, trans, clutch and flywheel so I could put the engine on the stand.
[
Also dealing with the cold and multiple snow storms up here in Philly.
My fucked up oil cooler.
My garage has been hard to keep clean while pulling everything. So much spilled fluid lol. Also, my non-OSHA approved single electrical source I have hanging from the ceiling. The light fixtures not being used are due to a faulty short somewhere in that circuit. However, I bought the house like this, and the conduit they ran to the garage is not up to code anyway. So that is a project I am deciding if I want to handle myself or pay someone else to do it. Also, multiple leaks and rotten joists in the garage roof, so that is of higher priority this summer.
Front and rear subframes then got dropped. And organized a little bit.
The parts are piling up on my single shelf lol.
Took apart the interior a little bit as well. And brought some inside to my office. Also, some of the parts I ordered came in.
I’ll leave it there for now. Not fully up to date… but pretty close. Need to get more photos from my phone uploaded onto my computer.
Ok… sooooooo, I bought this rolling shell the weekend before Thanksgiving 2025. There are basically no specs to it, but I'll list it below for funsies:
• 89' 325i Coupe
• Manual
• Delphin Metallic
• Open 3.73 Diff (coming out)
• Came with driveshaft and G260 off the car
Things missing:
1. Engine (luckily I got one >:))
2. Exhaust
3. Radiator, a/c condenser and lines
4. Passenger seat
5. A bunch more I'm forgetting
Goal: Take most stuff from S52 car, and put it in this bad boy. With a few items of maintenance and tweaks along the way.
Things I have bought so far that needed to be replaced:
1. Rear Main Seal
2. VANOS line
3. Radiator
4. Oil cooler
5. Fuel injector rebuild kit
6. Header to mid pipe gaskets/nuts
Things I bought as a “while I’m there”:
1. Valve cover gasket
2. Oil pan gasket
3. Oil filter housing gasket
4. Clutch kit
Things I bought that I want to change for my new build:
1. New AKG motor mounts, Rubber trans mounts, and poly 80A bushings in the rear
2. Front 51 mm struts, Bilstein B8s, and H&R sport springs (reverting to 4-lug)
Things I still need to buy:
1. Any other 4x100 wheel besides these damn bottle caps. They need tires, and I want to avoid buying them if I know I am going to switch them out immediately anyway.
Ok so here she is with all her glory when I trailered her home. First time renting one of those U-haul two wheel dolleys. Was pretty easy. 5 Minutes after loading, I did notice the driver side rear wheel was wobbling (LIKE A LOT). Pulled over into a gas station, tightened up the lug nuts and studs that were coming loose. Then had no other issues really on the 2 hour drive home. Had to park the car at the top of my narrow Philly street. Got a push start, jumped in, and slammed this thing up the driveway using some 2x4s as smaller ramps, and ripped the parking brake. Then got my element to pull it the rest of the way up to my garage. One 13-point turn later, and there she sits.
The wrecked car in the beginning stages of teardown, and the shell next to it in the garage while I came up with a plan.
Installed some cheap LEDs, and ran extension cord to the house the week before I picked up the shell.
Took a Sawzall to the front end of the car to cut away damaged core support, and fender. I was now able to open the doors fully again. Exhaust removed up to the mid-pipe / header connection. The rest stayed on until I got to the engine. Also, removed the damaged radiator and oil cooler at same time obviously.
Sold my damaged hood and fenders. An E30 hood fits in a honda element with tons of room to spare as an FYI.
Engine ran fine before and after accident, but did a compression test anyway as I was pondering selling everything off initially. Cylinder 6 is a little low, but overall pretty healthy.
Then I began disconnecting the chassis harness from the engine. When I got to the ECU, it was coming apart, so I had to slowly pry it off so I didn’t break anything. Eventually got it after leaving it for the night, and coming back with more patience.
Got the shell jacked up to inspect the underside. I got videos before I bought it, but this was first thorough look at the condition. Overall, very solid late model shell for being in the North East (bought it out of northern NJ). The rear floor pans on both sides are a little bent up for some reason. Guessing the car either was high centered in a ditch or was lifted by fork lift at some point. I’ll just heat that up and bang it back down with some wood or something when I feel like it. Besides that, some batter pinch welds, and the known rust under the battery tray, the car is pretty straight underneath. The body work is another story, but that’s a down-the-line issue. I don’t plan for this to be a full restoration. No bodywork or paint is on my radar. Just want a good driver’s car that I don’t care about getting dinged or scratched even more.
Then I rolled the shell back outside, put it under a tarp, and swiveled the wrecked shell so I could get to work stripping more of it down.
Borrowed my friend’s engine hoist and stand. The jack on the hoist was non-operable. Tried bleeding, didn’t work. Then just bought a new replacement jack for the hoist from harbor freight for like $50. Worked like a charm. Also, the engine hoist was missing 3 out of the 4 bolts holding the base to the crane! I only caught it while I was moving it around and was wondering why the whole thing was so wobbly. After I found the bolts were missing, I told my friend, and his words were “It would have been fine with all the weight from the engine weighing it down”. He's a smart guy, but this one made me question it that day. To be fair, he hadn’t used this hoist in over 7 years, so I can’t fault him for it being in the shape it was. I also was borrowing it for free lol. Replaced those bolts and we were in business. I pulled the M50 manifold so I could undo the final bits of wiring harness, and reach the engine hoist location in the rear of the block.
Came out pretty easy once I got the rest of the exhaust off. Going to be interesting getting this back in the shell. I think I’m going to do same in reverse, but also loosen the subframe a little bit, so I don’t have to do that dance again with the exhaust bolts.
Next was to strip off the starter, trans, clutch and flywheel so I could put the engine on the stand.
[
Also dealing with the cold and multiple snow storms up here in Philly.
My fucked up oil cooler.
My garage has been hard to keep clean while pulling everything. So much spilled fluid lol. Also, my non-OSHA approved single electrical source I have hanging from the ceiling. The light fixtures not being used are due to a faulty short somewhere in that circuit. However, I bought the house like this, and the conduit they ran to the garage is not up to code anyway. So that is a project I am deciding if I want to handle myself or pay someone else to do it. Also, multiple leaks and rotten joists in the garage roof, so that is of higher priority this summer.
Front and rear subframes then got dropped. And organized a little bit.
The parts are piling up on my single shelf lol.
Took apart the interior a little bit as well. And brought some inside to my office. Also, some of the parts I ordered came in.
I’ll leave it there for now. Not fully up to date… but pretty close. Need to get more photos from my phone uploaded onto my computer.
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