T-Erz remote mount turbo e30 revival thread
i recently picked up a 1990 Delphin gray 325i with sts remote mount turbo kit and i wanted to make this thread to document how far the car will come and to get advice from people who probably know better than me. the goal is 400ish whp, sharp handling, and clean body.
heres a little background on me:
before i bought this car i was daily driving a FBO+meth 2008 135i, i still have the car but might sell it come spring. for now the e30 is going to be my driver for the winter and the 1er can stay under the car port. before the 135i i had an e36 m3, and before that a e46 m3. my dad has been driving and selling bmws since the late 90's so i kind of just picked up my love for the german straight 6 from him.
bakground on car:
i was browsing the for sale section in my local newspapers website and while looking at 3 series 89-91 i saw this gray 325i. the pictures sucked and the description was very brief only stating it was boosted with an sts turbo kit. i texted the number in the add with no reply and ended up calling the next day to get a time to go look at it.
i went and looked at the car on a sunday night while it was dark as hell. owner knew nothing about cars and had no idea what was on it other than it was boosted.
the inside of the car was almost mint, only has a rip in the driver seat. exterior was pretty beat with surface rust here and there along will peeling clear.
when i drove the car it idled a little high but drove fine. trans had a grinding/hissing sound in 2nd and the heater didnt work were the main issues. i ended up offering the guy for it and he said he would get back to me within the next few days. he texted me monday at lunch and said come get it:)
tracked down the person who built it in 2011 and setup on car is as follows:
sts turbo kit, tcd stage 1 clutch, tcd turbo chip, vortech FMU aka rrfpr, walbro fuel pump, ls1 24# injectors, sts BOV and WG (5 pound spring), sts turbo which is small as hell
mechanical issues:
could hear/ feel grinding in 2nd gear or when shifter was moved side to side. fixed this last night, looks like when they did the mounts or trans they didnt bolt the back of the shifter arm into the body. the arm was rubbing on the driveshaft, put it back into place and bolted it on= no more grind or noise
heater doesn't blow any hot or cold air no matter the blower setting, you can feel the hot air if you touch the vent it just wont blow.
i ordered a blower motor resistor off ebay to try first, if not then im assuming blower motor is toast.
autometer boost gauge non functional
plastic 1/8'' line was hanging loose in engine bay with ripped rubber adapter boot and vaccum t was just venting to atmosphere.
went to ace's hardware and rigged up a bunch of brass fittings to fit the line, boost and vac now work and idle is alot better!
laggy turbo response
im thinking boost leaks or clogged WG. car hits 5 psi by 4000 rpm which seems slow for such a small turbo. could just be the nature of remote mount turbo but the original builder said when he had the car it hit hard and spooled fast. will investigate.
body damage:
clear coat peel on driver fender, hood, decklid and one quarter panel. suraface rust on bottom of fender and hood, dent on other quarter right by tail light, and rock chips on front end. all panels still have vin stickers
i work as a paint apprentice so the plan is to have the dent on the back quarter pulled and fixed by body guy at work and i will do a full respay and fix and small dent/rock chips. dont know if i wanna just keep it the original color or go with a more intresting color
interior:
one super small crack on dash, driver seat ass is destroyed, shitty purple tint. tint will be getting redone asap and ill be on the lookout for black driver seat in good shape.
suspension & chassis:
feels ok for now, plan was to redo all bushings but when i had it on the lift last night they were all near new. new plan is to just lower it and get wheels, oh and LSD
car isnt slow by any means but needs more boost. did some pulls with my friends s50 e36 m3 and we were even from 20-80 but i smoked him 60-100. i want to get a 10lb spring and see how that feels. anyone think that is too much for stock rebuilt motor? i saw Kamotors doesnt recommend more than 12psi on stock motor and head gasket but the turbo he runs is bigger than mine.
onto the pics!
heres a little background on me:
before i bought this car i was daily driving a FBO+meth 2008 135i, i still have the car but might sell it come spring. for now the e30 is going to be my driver for the winter and the 1er can stay under the car port. before the 135i i had an e36 m3, and before that a e46 m3. my dad has been driving and selling bmws since the late 90's so i kind of just picked up my love for the german straight 6 from him.
bakground on car:
i was browsing the for sale section in my local newspapers website and while looking at 3 series 89-91 i saw this gray 325i. the pictures sucked and the description was very brief only stating it was boosted with an sts turbo kit. i texted the number in the add with no reply and ended up calling the next day to get a time to go look at it.
i went and looked at the car on a sunday night while it was dark as hell. owner knew nothing about cars and had no idea what was on it other than it was boosted.
the inside of the car was almost mint, only has a rip in the driver seat. exterior was pretty beat with surface rust here and there along will peeling clear.
when i drove the car it idled a little high but drove fine. trans had a grinding/hissing sound in 2nd and the heater didnt work were the main issues. i ended up offering the guy for it and he said he would get back to me within the next few days. he texted me monday at lunch and said come get it:)
tracked down the person who built it in 2011 and setup on car is as follows:
sts turbo kit, tcd stage 1 clutch, tcd turbo chip, vortech FMU aka rrfpr, walbro fuel pump, ls1 24# injectors, sts BOV and WG (5 pound spring), sts turbo which is small as hell
mechanical issues:
could hear/ feel grinding in 2nd gear or when shifter was moved side to side. fixed this last night, looks like when they did the mounts or trans they didnt bolt the back of the shifter arm into the body. the arm was rubbing on the driveshaft, put it back into place and bolted it on= no more grind or noise
heater doesn't blow any hot or cold air no matter the blower setting, you can feel the hot air if you touch the vent it just wont blow.
i ordered a blower motor resistor off ebay to try first, if not then im assuming blower motor is toast.
autometer boost gauge non functional
plastic 1/8'' line was hanging loose in engine bay with ripped rubber adapter boot and vaccum t was just venting to atmosphere.
went to ace's hardware and rigged up a bunch of brass fittings to fit the line, boost and vac now work and idle is alot better!
laggy turbo response
im thinking boost leaks or clogged WG. car hits 5 psi by 4000 rpm which seems slow for such a small turbo. could just be the nature of remote mount turbo but the original builder said when he had the car it hit hard and spooled fast. will investigate.
body damage:
clear coat peel on driver fender, hood, decklid and one quarter panel. suraface rust on bottom of fender and hood, dent on other quarter right by tail light, and rock chips on front end. all panels still have vin stickers
i work as a paint apprentice so the plan is to have the dent on the back quarter pulled and fixed by body guy at work and i will do a full respay and fix and small dent/rock chips. dont know if i wanna just keep it the original color or go with a more intresting color
interior:
one super small crack on dash, driver seat ass is destroyed, shitty purple tint. tint will be getting redone asap and ill be on the lookout for black driver seat in good shape.
suspension & chassis:
feels ok for now, plan was to redo all bushings but when i had it on the lift last night they were all near new. new plan is to just lower it and get wheels, oh and LSD
car isnt slow by any means but needs more boost. did some pulls with my friends s50 e36 m3 and we were even from 20-80 but i smoked him 60-100. i want to get a 10lb spring and see how that feels. anyone think that is too much for stock rebuilt motor? i saw Kamotors doesnt recommend more than 12psi on stock motor and head gasket but the turbo he runs is bigger than mine.
onto the pics!
Attached Files
Comment