Aussie 318is - now S54B32 swap

[econti]

Stroker VE headed SR? Fuck that's going to move once it's done

[AusScare]

Did a bit of maintenance on both doors.

The old inner skin, flaking and falling apart as soon as it's touched.



Pulled off to reveal the 26 year old sealant and some dodgy attempts at resealing, super messy.



Cleaned up.



Added dynamat to the door panel.



New sealant and plastic, hopefully good for another couple of years.

[AusScare]

Nice work! What rear axles are you running & where did you source them - here or did you import them?

I bought them in the CATuned group buy ages ago. I think they're the same as these: http://www.catuned.com/e30-bmw-325i3...hromolly-axles

[lukeADE335i]

Nice work! What rear axles are you running & where did you source them - here or did you import them?

[2mAn]

Ok, thanks!

[AusScare]

Is the E46 rack, the non-power steering rack?

It's a power steering rack. The shop used custom lines with the stock pump.

[2mAn]

Is the E46 rack, the non-power steering rack?

[AusScare]

Progress is slow but steady... had a few bits installed by the team at RX Automotive. They did a great job and the car is feeling solid.

Now installed:

• e46 purple tag steering rack
• New tie rods
• New M3 offset solid fcabs
• New upgraded front sway bar linkage
• Holden Astra steering knuckle - required no bending of exhaust manifold
• Clio brake booster
• New e32 brake master cylinder
• New stainless steel brake lines all round
• New CATuned upgraded rear axles
• New Revshift OEM+ poly subframe bushings
• New SuperPro caster/camber adjustable RTABs

Steering feels more modern and much quicker, while the car handles bumps and corners without jumping around like it used to on mostly original bushings.

The brake pedal is also much tighter, but not super touchy like most new cars, which is good!

The Astra steering linkage in place:



Stronger rear end:



Clio booster and e32 MC:



I still drive the car every weekend too:

[AusScare]

A few recent photos from my engine builder.

91mm stroker crank receiving ARP bolts:



And also chamfered edges of the oil feed holes:





VE oil pump taken apart and passages ported for better oil flow:





ARP 2000 bolts on the Tomei i beam conrods:

[AusScare]

New arrivals:

• Stainless steel braided brake lines by Brakes Direct
• Aluminium steering rack spacers
• Holden Vectra steering shaft

Plan with the Vectra shaft is to swap the top section with the e30 one - hopefully this will clear the M42 exhaust manifold in the meantime, before the sr20 swap.

[AusScare]

What's the point in having an e30 if you don't drive it right? While collecting parts I've managed to drive the e30 almost every week, including some more windy/hilly roads like today.

The clutch has been on its way out since I bought it, so I just have to downshift early up hills and not strain the motor in the low revs, otherwise the clutch rattles and it's not a great noise to hear when you're in the middle of nowhere!

Off the highway heading to the mountain:



Top of the mountain:



Parked for lunch:







Bit of food to keep me going:



Finally going to order a crank this week I think, so will post up when that arrives.

[AusScare]

Work on the engine has finally begun. Head is getting a port and polish, as well as a few bits widened as part of the VE conversion from fwd na to rwd turbo.

Progress pics:




Next week the block is off to the machine shop to get the sleeves installed and just a general clean up.

[chrisbmx68]

It was around $380usd for the ds from http://shaftmasters.com/ David from there was very helpful with the process. Shipping would probably kill you though :( the ds is around 56 inches end to end.

[AusScare]

Thanks for the info, that looks like a pretty solid piece of kit. Originally I was just going to get a custom DS made from the SR and BMW halves, but this could be better quality/price.

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

[chrisbmx68]

No gasket needed between the MC and the booster.

Looking good man, two more random suggestions get the small billet style m3 offset bushings they will give you more down pipe/exhaust clearance.


Also I dont know what you are doing for the DS but I found this billet flange that works with std 1310 u joints. So I just ordered a custom length nissan s13 1 piece ds and put this flange on it to retain the stock diff.

http://jagsthatrun.com/Pages/Parts_BMW_heavy-driveshaft-flange.html