Dasfrogger's daily driver - 1991 318is

[Dasfrogger]

Hello! I've been around 2002's (have a 73 and a 67) for a long time and finally decided to pick up a e30 to DD. I've been thru a few 325's as parts cars/flips/one that i almost became a daily driver. If you're interested you can see my 1600-2 adventures here ->http://www.bmw2002faq.com/topic/1364...mbly-required/.

This thread's purpose will be to keep track of the work I do to the 318is and the adventures it gets me into. I plan to keep the car mostly stock - with 'tasteful' mods focused on making the car a great DD. My goal is to make the car as reliable and comfortable as possible.

I picked up my 318is from the famous Mike Self. A lot of e30's in my area are pretty rusted out, and when Mike says there is no rust - there is no rust! Mike had a stack of receipts from the previous owner and with the car being enthusiast owned it's entire life it seemed like the safest bet I could find at the time. For a 23 year old car it runs and drives great! There are a few small projects around the car, but otherwise I think it'll be a good DD.

The Good:
Completely stock
NO RUST
Recent Clutch Job
Recent tires
AC system converted to R-134a with all new components!
Recent Steering rack replacement

The Bad:
Some various dents in unfortunate places (hood, roof, fender)
Interior is starting to age (cracked dash, funky carpet in the front, drivers seat is beginning to crack)
Central locking is a bit wonky.
Even though the mess under the intake was replaced, the hoses are already cracking again.

The car made the 3 hour trip home with no incidents and returned over 30MPG. Not too shabby!

Here's some photos of when I picked it up:
Me with my new purchase on the right and Mike with it's twin on the left.

[Dasfrogger]

Based on the service records it seems that this car has typically had conventional oil and I didn't want to upset the balance with synthetic now. Changed the oil with castrol 10w30 -I wanted 15w40, but I could only find it in synthetic. If anyone out there has opinion on oil weight let me know. I still need to do more research on the topic.

I seriously loved how easy it was to perform the oil/filter change compared to my 02 and jeep xj. lovely.

while I was waiting for the oil to drain I noticed a fresh film of oil covering the passenger side of the block all the way back to the transmission. I went ahead and wiped everything down to see if i can pinpoint the seepage point. The profile gasket has been replaced and I'm hoping it's not that. Seems like it could be the valve cover gasket. I'll order one with my next big order of parts and swap it out.

I had noticed a bit of a rough idle - kind of like a big cam'd V8. Idle speed wasn't searching a lot, but enough to cause concern. Mike McCarthy's shop had replaced almost all the rubber under the intake less than two years ago and I was hoping it was something simple like a dirty AFM. Cleaned the AFM, Throttle body and ICV, and in the process discovered that the hoses that hadn't been replaced really needed to be now. Then much to my chagrin I found that all the NEW rubber (that I could see, didn't remove the intake yet) that was installed is splitting at the junction points.

Mega. Bummer.

I'm going to go ahead and order everything brand new from BLUNT in the next few days and take the weekend to get everything patched up right. Considering deleting the TB heater plate and associated hoses per Simon's writeup (http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=225616). It does get below freezing in Kentucky and I will drive the car year round. Should I be concerned at all about condensation freezing my throttle open? I don't think it would be much of a problem on trips long enough to get the motor up to full operating temp, but could be an issue on very short trips?

[Dasfrogger]

Took the 318is out for about an hour of spirited back road driving last night. Even though i've had the car for a couple of weeks now, I've really only had the opportunity to get it on the back roads a few times, and this was the first time I could take it out solo. Being alone last night allowed me to focus on the car a bit more and think about how it's doing. Some things I noticed, Good and bad:

(1) I love revving this thing all the way out. The feels are amazing.
(2) I need a Limited slip. Considering changing ratio to 3.73 to accommodate highway driving (this is a commuter after all).
(3) Some time at a drivers school would go a long way.
(4) Transmission grinds gears, especially in 1,2 if i don't have the clutch to the metal. Perhaps I need to adjust the clutch stop?
(5) The steering/handling from the front end are seriously lacking and I'm nervous thru the twisties at higher speeds.

The last item is the most concerning to me. I drive these roads a lot in my 73 2002, and even with it's WELL worn suspension it handles the road much better at speed. My 318is feels like it's got a lot of body roll / play in the steering / that it's not planted to the road.

I know the steering rack has been replaced and doubt there's any issues there. From what I can tell all the bushings are in good shape too. I have a new set of Billy sports that came with the car - perhaps the old inserts are just that tired and a new set would firm things up? Is this just how the car acts on stock swaybar and springs?


April 17, 2014
I need to carve out some time to install the front shocks and see how that improves things. I'm going to try to restrain myself and only add one thing at a time - to save my wallet and to see how each component changes the feel.

In other news i placed an order for all new rubber and gaskets to do the mess under the intake. Can't wait for stuff to start rolling in from BLUNT.

[Dasfrogger]

So i've got this parts car....


Really, it's too nice to be a parts car though, and this is the dilemma. This 325is used to be the PO's daily driver until he smashed the oil pan on some train tracks and yanked the motor/transmission/driveshaft and let it sit until i came to get it. I came upon it quite on accident, went up to buy a transmission from the guy and he made me haul this car and another one not as nice back with me. It was quite the deal and I had a place to store it so no big deal...but I didn't know what i'd do with it. It would be a great candidate for a m50/m30/v8(!!!) swap, but it's pretty rough around the edges and I have no idea what works and what doesn't electrically. With the 1600-2 project eating all my spare cash I wasn't going to start anything with this car. I've got to find a buyer for it, but then there's the problem with all the goodies it's got on it...

Now that I've got the 318is I have a reason to want some of the nice parts on this car. It's got US Ellipsoids, 16'' Borbet wheels, Premium sound (that matches my interior!), Map light rear view mirror, fancy computers, Sport steering wheel, LSD (possibly 4.10) and the very best part - Ground control coil over suspension!

So I've got to figure out what I want to pull and what I'm ok with selling. The head lights are definitely coming out - i've got a spare sealed beam set that I can put back in. I pulled the borbets and replaced them with a set of 14's that I had laying around the shop. (not sure if i'll run them or not, i really like my weaves). I want the rear view mirror and steering wheel, but I don't have anything to replace them with. Not a big deal on the mirror, but more so with the steering wheel.

The biggie is the GC suspension. It's a $1700 option. I want to pull it because I don't believe It'll add any value to this car with the rough shape it's in. I don't want to pull it because it'll be a pain in the ass, I don't have anything to replace it with, and I don't know if I want to put it on my car. I don't even know if the spring rates would be good for a 318is.

It's time to do some thinkin. I hate to take all the good stuff off this car because I need to sell it sooner rather than later and it needs to be easy to sell/ get out of my basement shop. At the same time, I'm not going to ask very much for it so I aught to pull off some of the nice parts. hmmmm....

[Dasfrogger]

4/27/14
Did the 'Mess under the intake' mod this past weekend. It took about 4 hours from start to finish and I didn't have any unexpected issues that would have held things up. This was the main circuit that got removed along with the throttle heater plate:


The multi junction hose on the left was the major culprit for vacuum leaks:



After everything got buttoned up it fired right up. Much to my dismay my idle is still rough. It's better than it was, but still not right. I'm thinking injectors, O2 sensor, AFM. A friend brought me an 02 sensor and AFM from a parts car. I got the chance to try the AFM today with no change. I'll try the O2 Sensor tomorrow and change plugs afterwards to see what happens.

I've got a set of 19# mustang injectors too. They've been sitting for over 2 years, so I need to have them sent off to be cleaned before swap. My injectors were pretty nasty when I pulled the intake, so hopefully the swap will really show a lot of benefit. The picture below was taken after i did a little cleaning.


Hopefully it'll be running well shortly. I've got some cosmetic mods to do after - maplight rearview mirror, epsilloid headlights, 2nd light in the trunk (need to find some LED's for those too.

[Dasfrogger]

Had about half an hour to work on the car today. Went to autozone and bought some NGK plugs and borrowed the O2 sensor socket set. Unfortunately the O2 sensor from the parts car didn't want to budge, and the metal siding was cracked and flared near the end anyway. It actually prevented me from getting the socket in place- had to use a hammer. I still plan to change out the sensor, or at least test my current one. The car drives great, only problem is at idle. Since it's livable i'm going to put off dropping another 150 bucks into the car since I'm still mid restoration on my 1600-2.

I did install the plugs though. Love how easy it is on this car. Old plugs were showing some age, but had uniform wear and were probably fine.



Installed new NGK's. Idle seems a tiny bet better - doesn't search as much but is still pretty lumpy. Not sure if that's the truth or just placebo effect.

[Dasfrogger]

Took the 318is to the Rivertown Gear Busters spring run yesterday. My 2002 could have made it, but it needs a little work and I haven't had the e30 out yet. The RGB is primarily a 2002 (and 70's era BMW) group, but we had a pretty interesting mix this year since 3 guys with 02's brought different cars.

Met at FUEL! coffee in Cincinnati for cars and coffee then set off to the hills of Kentucky for a spirited drive. a few hours later we ended up at Hoffbrau house for beers and eats. It was a beautiful day and great to catch up with old friends and to give the motor a chance to sing all the way to 6k.

The 318is did great. Ran over 250 miles, a lot of which was thru the hills in 2,3,4 all at high RPM.

[TimKninja]

Back when I had my 318is had the same problems. Every Vacuum hose in the system was destroyed . Replace them all, cleared up the mess under the intake. Still Idled only marginally acceptable. Theres a plug somewhere on the firewall of these 318is's , that will literally make your car run crappy. try researching it. If its plugged in, unplug it. I think thats what solved the shitty idle on my old 318is (New owner found it)

They are great cars, I always miss mine alot!

[anthonymax007]

Theres a plug somewhere on the firewall of these 318is's , that will literally make your car run crappy. try researching it. If its plugged in, unplug it. I think thats what solved the shitty idle on my old 318is (New owner found it)

They are great cars, I always miss mine alot!

This diagram from M42club.com show's what Tim is referencing. Did it on my car and it helped out my idle issues.

[Dasfrogger]

DIY Clutch stop Install

I recently got a new job (the reason for the e30 purchase) and am now having to commute downtown and park in a parking garage. Today was my first day and I didn't enjoy it one bit. My problems are:

1) lumpy idle (not the end of the world, but it really bothers me)
2) sometimes its very difficult to select a gear, especially 1st and 2nd, especially after it's been sitting for awhile.
3) the clutch goes all the way to the metal and the only way I can get it there is by using the big toe part of my foot. My toe didn't feel great after the weekend and driving in dress shoes was the least fun today. I don't really care if that sounds like a wuss problem. It's not comfortable to operate the car and something's gotta change.

I'm hoping that bleeding the brakes and clutch slave will solve my gear selection issue and that it's not my slave cyl on it's way out. I'll plan to bleed this weekend and update.

To solve my clutch/uncomfortable foot issue I figured I'd try a DIY clutch stop mod. Did about 20 minutes worth of research and I was off to Lowes. $4.85 later and I was back home ready to start.

So here's the exploded parts. Part numbers from Left to right below the picture - everything purchased from LOWES.

+ SoftTouch Felt Pads #0053801. 1.5" round, light tan felt, adhesive back
+ Elevator Bolt 3/8-16 x 1-1/2
+ Nut, 3/8"-16 #67341
+ Lock Washer 3/8" #61816

Got out to my car and found that the carpet one of the PO's had glued in over the stock carpet obscured the view of the clutch stop.

Peeled back the nasty overlay carpet to find even nastier original carpet...and the location of the clutch stop.

I cut a hole in the overlay carpet to expose the stock clutch stop

Removed the stock clutch stop with a Phillips head screw driver. gave no resistance and came out in a few seconds

A comparison shot


I threaded the nut all the way up the Elevator bolt and then slipped the lock washer on after it. Twisted the elevator bolt in by hand till it couldn't turn any more then turned the nut down by hand till it was finger tight.


Picked myself up off the ground and started the car right up no problem. Did a quick test drive around the block and no problems using clutch. Too much traffic around my house to enjoy a testdrive so I'll go for one tonight.

Preliminarily it feels really really good. Way easier to shift and foot position is better too. I could probably back the bolt out a little more to minimize clutch travel, but for a driver this is really nice. Very happy with this mod, it yielded great results (so far), and was truly plug and play. Best $4.85 I've spent in a long time.

[Dasfrogger]

Back when I had my 318is had the same problems. Every Vacuum hose in the system was destroyed . Replace them all, cleared up the mess under the intake. Still Idled only marginally acceptable. Theres a plug somewhere on the firewall of these 318is's , that will literally make your car run crappy. try researching it. If its plugged in, unplug it. I think thats what solved the shitty idle on my old 318is (New owner found it)

They are great cars, I always miss mine alot!

This diagram from M42club.com show's what Tim is referencing. Did it on my car and it helped out my idle issues.

[ATTACH]84329[/ATTACH]

Thanks for the advice fellas! I'd heard lore of that plug and I believe that it's unplugged on my car already. It's certainly not something that someone would think about to try though. I'll have to double check though.