Project KEEP MOVING FORWARD

[Panici]

Oh, don't worry. There is still a ton of stuff I need to pull off of there. I just got to a point where I had everything I needed off of it to start the shell swap. I was also losing some steam only working on the wrecked car. So I'm going to start with the new shell, and keep pulling parts from the wrecked car as I go. At least, thats my plan for now until I'm forced to get rid of the shell due to space restrictions or whatever.

Yeah that makes sense.
End up with a car that's closer to complete instead of a pile of parts.

[MrBurgundy]

Is that a honda element

[lukem23]

Jason, i picked up the suspension and 5 lug swap from you. Very nice to meet you and good luck with the project.

[JasonWilson48]

Jason, i picked up the suspension and 5 lug swap from you. Very nice to meet you and good luck with the project.

Small World! It was great meeting you man. Maybe when I get this car up and going, I'll have to drive out to you and check out the M3.

[JasonWilson48]

Is that a honda element

I beat the shit out of this thing. The K24 just keeps on going. Basically my work truck and daily.

[JasonWilson48]

Update #3

Cleaned up and organized a little bit... Took inventory of everything I have and everything I still needed. Placed hopefully my last order for parts today. I also reconciled my car spending excel sheet I keep. This tracks all my "fun" cars I've had over the past few years. Try to keep a running tally of how much I lost or made on each car I own. It is not fun looking at how many parts I ordered for everything, but is good to keep me on track and keep me focused on only buying things right now that are essential to getting the car running. All extra fluff accessories can wait until later.

[JasonWilson48]

Update #4

Little progress was made since last post. I've been busy. I got ahead of myself and put the Koseis on for some quick shots. I know they've been put on E30s plenty before, but this is the first set I've owned... and they look SICK.





Only real progress I've made is on the front suspension. I removed the old rack, control arms, sway bar, and coilovers. And I got my E46 purple tag swapped in with new inner and outer tie rods. I need to figure out the connection to the steering column as my wrecked E30 looks like it had an extended shaft of sorts. I might just swap over the whole steering column, but that seems like I a lot of extra work. Trying to avoid that for now if I can make this one work.

My engine is sitting there staring at me while I work. I want to get that thing in so bad. Giving me motivation to keep chugging along.

[2mAn]

I also reconciled my car spending excel sheet I keep. This tracks all my "fun" cars I've had over the past few years. Try to keep a running tally of how much I lost or made on each car I own. It is not fun looking at how many parts I ordered for everything, but is good to keep me on track and keep me focused on only buying things right now that are essential to getting the car running.

I have one of these also... Its titled "DONT LOOK" for obvious reasons.

[Northern]

I tracked my M52 swap and it wasn't pretty.
When I bought my R56, I tracked all the maintenance/mods for the first year and it was so bad that I stopped and I'm never doing it again.

[2mAn]

I track them all to ensure all my car-guy math adds up when I inevitably sell the car haha

If I actually have a 'keeper' I wouldnt track it, but so far no vehicle has won me over like that

[McGyver]

I've been keeping track of my 2.7i engine build and turbo parts. I'm happy to work on the project, but seeing the numbers feels "not great". My wife says she doesn't want to know, so i just leave it at that.

[JasonWilson48]

I had other cars come up that I want to buy recently, but then every time I look at my fun car expense sheet, I have to remind myself to just finish the E30 before I buy anything else. It's killing me not having a fun car for the past 4-5 months. I keep trying to justify buying another car just for the meantime while I'm completing the chassis swap. However, there are too many other financial responsibilities on my plate right now. Even if it is a "good deal", I can't justify buying another car while I still have the wrecked shell taking up space in my driveway lol.

Also, not having a fun car is changing my mindset on the chassis swap order of operations. For example, I need to refresh the rear subframe bushings and swap in my LSD... but I'm ignoring that for now, and just doing essentials to get the car running. I'm realizing if I have a running car again, I will be happier and more motivated to tackle the eventual projects down the road.

[JasonWilson48]

Update #5

Alright, FUCK mice/rodents/etc. I knew this car had been sitting for awhile, and I saw traces of droppings when I purchased it, but the previous owner did a good job of cleaning what was visible. Found nests under the rear bench seat and under the center console. Also, a bunch of crap above the fuel tank. Some also in the glove box, and under steering column. Never a pleasant time vacuuming and disinfecting rodent poop. Also, just throws a wrench in things while you are trying to get other stuff done. I've been leaving the doors and trunk open to help air it out. I also have been wearing an N-95 mask while working inside of it until I know I got it all.










Anyway, while I have been dealing with rodents I also made some good progress. I replaced the shell fuel tank with the tank out of the donor car. I did it without dropping the rear subframe... since I don't feel like doing the rear bushings right now before I get the car running and driving. That will be a future project. It was a little tight, but got it all replaced, including the rubber fuel lines, fuel pump/level sender/ and and got a new fuel filter. I then focused on the suspension...

Got the coil overs disassembled and ready to sell eventually.



Rear suspension is done.



Front suspension is in(struts, shocks, sway bar), but still need to pull the steering rack back off to shave down the steering column so it fits with my newly modified steering coupler.









Got the brake booster, master cylinder, slave cylinder, and throttle cable switched over from donor car. I was going too fast and broke one of the brass adapters off into the master cylinder. So that is also on my fixing list. Hopefully a small drill bit and extractor set I have can get it out.





Snow melted finally



Got some tires for the Koseis. 205/55/15 Advan Fleva v701s



Also, pulled off the front end and mocked up the fan situation. The previous owner of my wrecked car had the fan just attached to the a/c condenser as a push fan. I was thinking of removing and putting it directly on the new radiator I got... but this bolts up simple enough. Also, with the oil cooler, I never had issues with overheating. Even when sitting in traffic on 95+ degree days last summer. So I'm leaving the setup for now, and going to wire it the same way. The fan was wired for only high speeds coming on at the lower temp from the radiator temp switch. I want to run it the same for now while I get the car running, and then clean it up later down the road.



Next Steps:
-Grind down steering column shaft so it doesn't bind with new coupler. And then refit steering rack.
-Drill out broken master cylinder brake line fitting
-Swap out heater core since I know the the donor car has a good one. The one on the shell has been exposed to the elements for a long time, so I don't want to risk it exploding and my footwell being full of coolant.
-Brake lines, calipers, pads, and rotors, and put on wheels, and drop it on the ground
-Engine goes in!

[2mAn]

Nice progress, so cool to see two revivals happening at the same time.

[max.rodriguezzz]

Looking good man! its getting me anxious LOL. What steering rack do you using?