phenryiv1's 1989 325iC Project - SETA 2.7i Swap Complete and Running!

[bradnic]

exactly - find someone else with a top and study it. obviously anything acting as a pivot point must be replaced or you won't be able to put the top down. it's also important to be installed before the top is fitted to ensure it's stretched properly.

sounds like you know what to do..

[Bmwb]

she looks amazing looks like we have twins although i got into a little accident and bashed my front end all you need is a fat turbo!

[phenryiv1]

So I had a little uh-oh moment today when picking up the car after getting the top installed. I'll explain more from my computer but I now have some unplanned repairs in my future.

[phenryiv1]

Post-top replacement pictures:









So all that said, there was a bit of a mishap with the situation. I was happy because the work seemed to be good, the price was accurate, and the job was done on time. So far so good.

But the loading process to take the car away went south in a hurry. Back when I got the car the driver's seat recline function had a mind of its own, leading me to believe that I needed new cables in the seat. Since I was not going to be driving it any time soon I back-burnered the cable replacement and got the seat to stay in the proper position for me to move it around or to take short trips in my development to keep the battery charged.

Yesterday when I went to pick it up I noticed that the seat was reclined (probably to give room for the top install) and I thought nothing of it. I inclined the seat and after messing with the handle I thought that I had it locked in place. I aligned the car with the dolly and drove up the loading ramps. As I went to apply the brakes and depress the clutch the seat mechanism gave way and I fell straight back- resulting in the clutch coming back out and the loss of braking. The car shot over the "wedge" that helps tilt the ramps into the towing position and came to rest with the oil cooler resting on the tongue of the dolly.

To make matters worse I somehow busted a fuel line in the process so when the car is running it spills fuel pretty much everywhere AND since the car was forward more than I am used to I accidentally opened the door too far (normally the doors are behind the fenders/light assembly when the dolly is loaded) and scratched the brand new paint on the light housing.

It took 40 minutes in the dark in 25* weather to get the car jacked up far enough to block the tires from below to get the front tires back over the humps at the front of the ramps. Fortunately the guys at the shop were helpful and resourceful or I'd have been screwed.

I still have not had a chance to assess the extent of the damage but at least the car is now home and safe. I wanted to replace the fuel lines before putting it on the road but I was going to wait until spring. It looks like that timeline might have to be accelerated a bit.

Parking Lot:

From: http://www.e30tech.com/forum/showthread.php?t=19733

Fuel hoses info

The fuel supply system, from tank to fuel rail, is pressurized to 2.5bar (eta) or 3.0bar/42psi (i engine) in normal operation. If there is a
clog the pressure can go as high as 150psi, even in the normally low pressure fuel return system.

This pressure requires heavily reinforced fuel line. Most of the bulk hose that you find at auto parts stores is only lightly reinforced and
is intended for gravity feed or low pressure fuel system (3-6psi). That type of hose will quickly balloon and fail.

8mm (or 5/16", 7.94mm) ID high pressure hose, 13mm OD
You'll need 9 ft/ 3 meters total for most models, 11ft with fuel cooler
2 pcs 4ft engine comparment supply and return
2 pcs 6" fuel filter inlet and outlet
13-31-1-469-781 Fuel hose, bulk 1 meter
You'll find a wide price range: $10/meter Pelican
$1.75/inch at some dealers, $6.49/meter at EAP
07-12-9-952-104 L12-15 hose clamp, $0.70
Use rounded edge hose clamps. BMW prices are very reasonable.

Molded hose sections
16 12 1 180 398, fuel filter hose (inlet), sugg US retail $5.17
16 12 1 180 399, fuel filter hose (outlet), sugg US retail $8.00

13 31 1 722 565, fuel rail inlet [fuel hose 561-920 mm], sugg US retail $26.68
16-12-1-180-237, fuel filter hose clamps, sugg US retail $0.33
Superceded by 07-12-9-952-104

[DJNikonn]

Were you ever able to get these struts replaced?

[phenryiv1]

Were you ever able to get these struts replaced?

The ones in the top?

[DJNikonn]

The ones in the top?

The ones that make closing the top easier.

[Mr. Tasty]

where did you source your top from?

[BruceJ]

sorry about the mishap

[phenryiv1]

The ones that make closing the top easier.

No, not yet.

[phenryiv1]

where did you source your top from?

autotops direct. It is an EZ-On top.

I did a custom order with the tinted rear window.

[phenryiv1]

Bored-today-so-I-am-posting update...

Took a daylight picture this weekend. Wheel gap up front looks huge because the right rear tire is flat (why?!?) but I really like the color in daylight, plus the top looks good. I still need to get those small parts replaced for full top articulation and I need to adjust the driver's side front window but looking better than a month ago.



I also need to get on some mechanical stuff if/when time allows. The steering rack and pump is leaking like a sieve but I have a reman pump and a very clean e36 rack, plus the Dungeon Motorsport conversion kit...I just don't have the time to replace it., plus I am hesitant to move it with the fuel leak. Maybe I will get a warm day to replace those lines. It probably needed a new fuel filter anyway, plus (potentially) 25 year-old lines are best replaced.

Next up, this:



New tire rack installed to hold my summer wheels. The rack on the right has been up for a few years but the one on the left just joined it this weekend. I needed a place to hold the TRM C1s that I bought last year and still never used. Rack has a 300 lb. capacity and is a HyLoft folding rack. Highly recommended...about $40-45 on Lowes, Home Depot, Amazon, etc.

I got the first one several years ago and it holds (4) 17" Subaru wheels & tires in the "off" season, plus a full-sized 235/45/17 spare from my last set. There are multiple solid brands but the reviews on the HyLoft were good so I got one. I bought it through this Lowes affiliate and got an additional 10% off. http://www.atgstores.com/.../hyloft-01031-folding-tire... My ONLY improvement to them is to use fender washers on the (6) lag bolts that are used to attach it to the wall. Without them the hex head seemed to put too much stress on the square tubing. By using fender washers the pressure spans the full width of the square tube and is picked up my the sides of the tube- not just the face. ECS Tuning has a nice one as well ( http://www.ecstuning.com/.../Schwabe...nted_Wheel.../ ) but I liked the fully square tubing of the HyLoft over the "L" frame of the Schwaben.

[95maxrider]

I just noticed something interesting in your fuel line parking lot thingy:
"You'll need 9 ft/ 3 meters total for most models, 11ft with fuel cooler"

I've heard of aftermarket fuel coolers, but never anything OEM. Does anyone know anything about such a device?

[phenryiv1]

I just noticed something interesting in your fuel line parking lot thingy:
"You'll need 9 ft/ 3 meters total for most models, 11ft with fuel cooler"

I've heard of aftermarket fuel coolers, but never anything OEM. Does anyone know anything about such a device?

I saw that as well but have never seen one in action.

[phenryiv1]

So I did not need this but my boss was parting out a car and this was in it and the price was good.



Momo Monte Carlo, if I am not mistaken. IN good shape. Came with a VW hub (which is listed on VW Vortex at the moment) but I might run this in place of my MTech wheel.