91 318is Field Rat

[zwill23]

Oh man, all of this is way too familiar... your field rat would get along quite nicely with my trailer park queen I think :rofl:

I broke that god damn ignition switch and had to zip tie mine as well, how did you access the switch after you installed the dash? From what I can tell, I believe steering column needs to be dropped?

[captain awesome]

With the cold weather showing up it was time to get my heater in good working order. A local board member sold me a used blower motor for a reasonable price otherwise it's $$$ for these. Install started off great, but then the metal strap that holds the motor in place broke. If you haven't ever priced one out, go ahead. It's silly. So I made a new one from some thin sheet metal I had laying around. So far so good.

So much crap stuffed in there by rodents and some foliage that grew into the box when parked in the field.







Home brew blower strap. Tin snips and a pair of pliers got the job done.



Installed. It's so nice having a good working heater. My e24 sucked balls, but it appears the e30 is a much better design.



Then I went to the last points event for the local SCCA autocross Sunday. Luckily my magnetic numbers showed up before heading out saving me time taping. I got them off Etsy for a super reasonable price from AutoRallyMotorsports.



On grid. It rained all morning before I pulled up, so it was fairly wet out in the first heat.



My time improvement from the first run was about 6 seconds. Honestly there are a few spots that I could have carried a considerable amount of speed and dipped into the 58-59 range. I'm still getting to know the car and learning to avoid throttle lift oversteer. The more I drive it, the less I want to put a turbo on it. I'm heavily considering a 4.44lsd, 15x8s with some Federal 595s, and a SSSquid chip. Selling off the turbo/manifold and wideband could help a ton, so it may be up for grabs soon and the Euroweaves could cover the rest. I'll post up a FS post before too long.



4.10 vs 4.44 gearing math for mental masturbation. If I hate the 4.44 I can always swap ring/pinion with the 4.10 I have already and do a full refresh.

[captain awesome]

Sunday was another local autocross meet. Nice and sunny weather, so I was able to actually see what kind of tweaks were needed for driving skills or otherwise without blaming it on rain.

Immediately it's obvious I have way too much oversteer on the first run. I adjust tire pressure a bit, and again it's just not wanting to stick for the second run.

It's been mentioned before that a considerable amount of people prefer no rear sway, so I figured it was worth a shot to see what happens. NIGHT and DAY with it disconnected. I start to feel in control with throttle and brake inputs and start to clip a little time out the next 4 runs. No cones or DNF to be seen.

I got last in class, which was out of 3 entrants. First was an FRS with a cage, full exhaust, e85 tune, 200tw tires, etc. Second was some Subaru wagon with full suspension, good tires, LSD front/rear, and some other stuff. I was closer in time to the Subaru, but I think my tires are holding me back quite a bit at this point. Honestly it's probably driver skill as well. I still had a blast though, and the new dash made the drive to and from the event awesome. Rattle free. For now. Also the new steering wheel is SOOOO much better. The other would flex with aggressive input and this one is solid.

What good is a thread without pics?

On grid with the FRS right behind me. Super nice guy.





My times for the day.



And some action shots.

[captain awesome]

Euro dashes DO NOT have a VIN tag. We also don't have a VIN number anywhere but the stamped cowl on the windshield and the compliance plates. No stickers with the VIN on parts.

That makes sense. I'll probably leave mine off. I assume it's not illegal to run without one?

[captain awesome]

Nice! I need to do this soon as well. Where did you get the duct foam? Is there a part number?

Honestly I didn't plan ahead. I went to Lowe's and got some foam sealant roll that looked a similar size and cut pieces to fit. I think it was like $4, but from what I removed it looks like you may be able to buy one that is ready to go. I don't see one listed at realoem from a quick glance though.

[mila325]

Euro dashes DO NOT have a VIN tag. We also don't have a VIN number anywhere but the stamped cowl on the windshield and the compliance plates. No stickers with the VIN on parts.

[mike.bmw]

Nice! I need to do this soon as well. Where did you get the duct foam? Is there a part number?

[captain awesome]

So I had an early day off Friday and nothing planned. I decided to try and get the dash I bought months ago swapped as well as drill out the steering column bolts just in case I decide to try some sort of column drop. It took some effort to take my time and do it right. Taping the A pillar trim up helped, replacing the duct work foam was noticeable, and best of all the rattles are gone. Unfortunately I broke my ignition switch putting the new dash in, but a local hero came through with a spare as well as a good used HVAC blower motor. I also realized I forgot to transfer my VIN tag, but from what I can tell the new dash I bought from Latvia never had one. I assume it's a Euro thing?





This is the only bracket I had to transfer to the driver's side to the new dash.



Mid cleanse.



Broken switch. I was able to zip tie it back together temporarily, but it has since been swapped out for a good used unit. Thanks Gerry!



All back together and looking setsee.

[econti]

Rock the DIY spirit

[captain awesome]

Looks like a Massive dead pedal is the way to go. However, since I have sheet metal laying around and no spare dollar bills, I made a quick and dirty version. I don't think the angle is ideal, but I'll put some miles on this thing and see if it's worth keeping around. Also I'll have to trim the kick panel if this works, with paint and some form of grip to follow.

[captain awesome]

I made a clutch stop this evening from some random junk in my hardware bin. I tapped the end of a bolt, and fastened a rubber stopper/bumper to the end of it. So far it works like intended. I may look into making a dead pedal as well, but haven't looked into it much. If I find one inexpensive enough I'll just fork up the cash, but I'm cheap when it comes to something I can fabricate myself.

[captain awesome]

I ordered a Viilante steering wheel last week in hopes it would be here before Sunday. It of course showed up this morning. SOOOOOOO much nicer than the cheap ebay wheel I had. Much thicker spokes and absolutely no flexing. I'll probably find a roundel style horn button, but for now this should work.

Fresh out of the box.



A few minutes later it was installed.



Also check out the Clarion FZ105BT. I just wish it sunk in flush with the dash. Anyone have suggestions for a modification like this?

[captain awesome]

Recap for Sunday's autocross:

The new head unit came in Thursday, so I officially have some tunes. The factory speakers sound decent, but there's a tear on the driver side rear. I'm happy with the sound for now so it can wait.

Sometimes being a frugal parts buyer means waiting on shipping. Free economy shipping ended up screwing me. My new alternator bushings weren't going to show up until Saturday, and it was mailed to my work. Damn. I decided with a new belt and a proper tightening it should hold up long enough for my travels, so Friday I picked up a new one and got it installed. Looks lined up properly and no squeaks. Maybe I just didn't have it tightened properly all along?

Sunday morning it's time to get going. I quickly topped off oil/gas and hit the road. Midway through my drive it starts to rain. Nothing terrible, but enough that I had a few "oh shit" moments. Time for new tires. I realize it's going to rain most of the day so I make a quick stop for a poncho and run through tech. By this point I'm usually able to walk the course 3-4 times, but only got 2 laps with the most difficult course I've ever run. Not really difficult for most I'm sure, but there were a couple transitions that I wasn't prepared for. Luckily I work first heat and run in the second, so I can see where the trouble spots are. Right.

Unfortunately due to lightning they delay the first heat until after 1. On my way to grab a bite for lunch the hvac blower motor stops working. By then it's coming down hard, so I pull into a car wash for cover to check fuses. Two fuses are blown and I don't have spares. Back to the store for a big package of all different sizes and some towels to wipe the insides of the windows just in case. Voila, it's back running, but it sounds terrible. Those fuckers are expensive!

When the lightning stops, it's still coming down, but manageable. There are little rivers and huge puddles everywhere in the first few runs of the first heat, but these dudes manage really good times with very few cones hit. The spots I was worried about plagued a few drivers run after run, so I knew it was going to be interesting.

By the time the second heat rolls around only a couple spots still hold water, and it's only lightly sprinkling.

First run DNF. I miss a transition that I watched so many others do. Face palm. I'm not looking far enough ahead.

Second run DNF. I get all the way through the course up until the final slalom. I went to the wrong side of the first cones. Dammit.

Third I get a full clean run in the 62 second range, but my one competitor's time is 6-8 seconds quicker.

Fourth I click off a 57.5. Starting to get a feel for the car and the course.

Fifth I run a 57.1 but smack one cone on the last slalom. I also fudged up a 180 pretty bad which cost me a couple seconds.

All in all I had a blast. I think with some more seat time I'll get the car dialed in. I'm really tempted to pick up a set of Re71's but money is tight and I think it will mask a bunch of my mistakes. The last two autocross events were with my daily Elantra GT automatic, so it was night and day difference. The lack of LSD is probably hurting me the most. If I get one now I need a 4.10, but for the turbo I'll probably need a 3.73 so I'm on the fence. October I have two more events and I think an unofficial one planned for November. I should have a better idea what to start tweaking after those.

I snapped a few pics after tech and numbers. Shortly after these it rained a ton with a considerable amount of lightning. I don't think anyone was taking on course pics, but it would be nice if they pop up on the local feed.

[captain awesome]

My belt started chirping on start up. Just a quick chirp. Looks like my alternator bracket bushings are probably shot, so it's not lined up properly and I'm out of adjustment to tighten the belt. I've got a new belt, bushings, and water pump for a just in case.

I also ordered a Clarion FZ105BT media receiver. No tunes is starting to drive me nuts and I have a 40 minute trip of highway to the next autocross Sunday. Reading up on speakers has lead me down the rabbit hole. I'm hoping to find an 8" Lukebox at a later date, but for now am looking for a set of front/rear premiums.

[captain awesome]

Rear wheel bearings were ordered and received. I'm going to wait a week or two before messing with it since I have an autocross the 17th and I really want to get this on the books as it's first event.

I also bought these ABS center caps from an ebay BIN from Latvia. Fairly inexpensive, quick shipping, and best of all they fit. They were tight to pop on, but look good and won't hopefully fall off easily. I may get some roundel stickers to put on them, or just paint them black.







I also found some cheap seat brackets to mount my spare shitty e21 Recaro. After some Gorilla tape it doesn't look too haggard and at least all the seats match now. I think the seat belt receivers need adjustment since they bind up against the trans/driveshaft tunnel. The stock e30 ones should do the trick, I've just got to weld some new mounts in the proper location.