*I've decided to create another thread as the original one needed cleaning up and it is easier to start from fresh.
I'd like to (re)introduce project Money Pit aka Delphin.
She got that nickname because for the amount that was spend on it before it finally got into our hands, we could have picked a very nice one from the States. But the past is the past, we decided to do the smart thing.... put more money into it :loco: so we can finally get to drive it.
Rewind several years ago before my wife was even my wife, she picked up a 88is with the intention to fix it up and modify it. I'll have to fish out the "before" pictures but the car was in pretty sorry shape (rust) and needed some work. It was left in the hands of an aquaintance of hers and 8 years (and some $$$) later we got what you see below (and above).
The interesting part of the story is that we drove the car some 800km / 500miles back to where we lived. To say that it was an interesting drive is an understatement, I got the get intimate with what worked, what no longer worked and what needs to be fixed. Keep in mind that it had not been driven in the last 8 years. I had no faith in the gas gauge reading, no tach, no temp, sunroof not closing entirely, no radio (no code), only low beams, no turn signals (as in not included with car) and a very leaky steering rack (had to refill PS fluid at every stop). Incredibly enough, the car made it in one piece.
Mod wise the car now wears a new non-BMW color paint job, B+G Springs, Bilstein Sport and some Team Racing Dynamics Pro Race 1 in 17s. Other performance "improvements" include A/C removal and incomplete ABS removal.
Look wise, the e36 style from bumper and e36 M3 rear bumper are not "r3v" approved but frankly being an early 88, I consider it an improvement over rusted and corroded DB.
After getting the car home, we soon departed for my best friend wedding in Prague, so it got parked in the garage and some time went by. Eventually we started spending money on frivolous parts like emblems, shift knob and some less frivolous like air filter, oil filter, fuel filter, gaskets.
There are many things that need to be fixed but the one the concerned me the most was the lack information coming back from the cluster regarding RPM and engine temp. I had previously read about the SI board batteries and low and behold once I extracted it from the cluster it go readings of 0v and 0.8v :sad: I did attempt the DIY fix but could not find the correct batteries locally and thus parted with way too much money for a stupid PCB with 2 AA batteries. We put the cluster back and voila RPM and engine temp.
At this point we started looking at all the missing parts we would need started looking at FS here, first item on the board were turn signals as they are required to pass inspections. Luckily for us, an non-running 87 sedan showed up on Kijiji (Craigslist), so more money got exchanged and I became owner of my first e30, which I never got to drive :(
I have picture somewhere of the donor but can't seem to find it atm.
It took us way too long to gather all the parts we needed/wanted since we only worked after my son went to bed. In retrospec, there are some many parts I should have taken off but never got around to do it. Eventually we ran out of time (too cold to work outside in the fall), so some more money exchanged hands (into mines this time) and the donor was gone.
Taking that car apart was a great experience, we got to learn a lot about the e30 without being too scared to mess up anything. My best moment was when I took an angle grinder to the scuttle to extract the wiper motor and linkage.
That pretty much sums up where things are today.
The main goals are to:
1- Complete all necessary maintenance items that cannot wait (TB replacement, fluids, oil, ignition refresh - pads and soft lines have already been done)
2- Fix everything that is needed so we can attempt to pass inspection
That is it for now, hope you enjoyed the read.
I'd like to (re)introduce project Money Pit aka Delphin.
She got that nickname because for the amount that was spend on it before it finally got into our hands, we could have picked a very nice one from the States. But the past is the past, we decided to do the smart thing.... put more money into it :loco: so we can finally get to drive it.
Rewind several years ago before my wife was even my wife, she picked up a 88is with the intention to fix it up and modify it. I'll have to fish out the "before" pictures but the car was in pretty sorry shape (rust) and needed some work. It was left in the hands of an aquaintance of hers and 8 years (and some $$$) later we got what you see below (and above).
The interesting part of the story is that we drove the car some 800km / 500miles back to where we lived. To say that it was an interesting drive is an understatement, I got the get intimate with what worked, what no longer worked and what needs to be fixed. Keep in mind that it had not been driven in the last 8 years. I had no faith in the gas gauge reading, no tach, no temp, sunroof not closing entirely, no radio (no code), only low beams, no turn signals (as in not included with car) and a very leaky steering rack (had to refill PS fluid at every stop). Incredibly enough, the car made it in one piece.
Mod wise the car now wears a new non-BMW color paint job, B+G Springs, Bilstein Sport and some Team Racing Dynamics Pro Race 1 in 17s. Other performance "improvements" include A/C removal and incomplete ABS removal.
Look wise, the e36 style from bumper and e36 M3 rear bumper are not "r3v" approved but frankly being an early 88, I consider it an improvement over rusted and corroded DB.
After getting the car home, we soon departed for my best friend wedding in Prague, so it got parked in the garage and some time went by. Eventually we started spending money on frivolous parts like emblems, shift knob and some less frivolous like air filter, oil filter, fuel filter, gaskets.
There are many things that need to be fixed but the one the concerned me the most was the lack information coming back from the cluster regarding RPM and engine temp. I had previously read about the SI board batteries and low and behold once I extracted it from the cluster it go readings of 0v and 0.8v :sad: I did attempt the DIY fix but could not find the correct batteries locally and thus parted with way too much money for a stupid PCB with 2 AA batteries. We put the cluster back and voila RPM and engine temp.
At this point we started looking at all the missing parts we would need started looking at FS here, first item on the board were turn signals as they are required to pass inspections. Luckily for us, an non-running 87 sedan showed up on Kijiji (Craigslist), so more money got exchanged and I became owner of my first e30, which I never got to drive :(
I have picture somewhere of the donor but can't seem to find it atm.
It took us way too long to gather all the parts we needed/wanted since we only worked after my son went to bed. In retrospec, there are some many parts I should have taken off but never got around to do it. Eventually we ran out of time (too cold to work outside in the fall), so some more money exchanged hands (into mines this time) and the donor was gone.
Taking that car apart was a great experience, we got to learn a lot about the e30 without being too scared to mess up anything. My best moment was when I took an angle grinder to the scuttle to extract the wiper motor and linkage.
That pretty much sums up where things are today.
The main goals are to:
1- Complete all necessary maintenance items that cannot wait (TB replacement, fluids, oil, ignition refresh - pads and soft lines have already been done)
2- Fix everything that is needed so we can attempt to pass inspection
That is it for now, hope you enjoyed the read.
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