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Big Al's Revenge: an OEM+, MTech1 325e restoration

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    I then got the radiator, new temperature switches, all new hoses, and a new thermostat installed:

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    I then refilled the system with the good BMW coolant and went to start the car. Cranked and cranked, but wouldn't turn over. Bummed. I figured maybe my battery had been drained a bit and didn't have enough juice to get it going so I decided to charge it up. While waiting I started poking around, and realized that I had clipped my crank position sensor in the wrong groove when I did the timing belt. This effectively had the sensor about 1" from the harmonic balancer rather than right up against it, as it should be. I figured that HAD to be it. So I put the fully charged battery back in, crank crank crank and no start. Now I was getting a bit nervous. I decided to check the C104 plug by the DME because I couldn't remember if I plugged it back in or not, I had. While I was in there I played around with the big DME plug and it fell off, turns out I hadn't clipped it all the way in. I pushed it on all the way, turned the key...

    SUCCESS!

    The car idled better than it ever has after warming up. I then bled the coolant with the heater on full blast and the front of the car raised up a bit. After all the air was out, it was time to take it for a spin. It ran PERFECTLY, I was giggling like school girl the whole time shifting through the gears, everything was nice and smooth and the car was a BLAST to drive. After about 10-20 miles or so I felt comfortable that everything was working properly so I decided to get my Conforti chip installed:

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    Remove the 4 phillips head screws on the back plate of the DME, followed by 2 phillips and 2 flat head screws that hold the circuit board in place. Flip the circuit board out:

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    The chip you'll be replacing is the one with the white paper label in the lower left corner.
    Last edited by Albie325; 08-18-2019, 03:07 PM.
    '86 325e Zinnoberrot /// '02 325ci Schwarz II /// '18 M4 Azurite Black Metallic ///

    Albie325 Build Thread | Albie325 COTM Jan 2021

    Comment


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      Take note of where that little notch is located on the left side of the chip, you'll have to align the new chip the same way:

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      Put it back in and took it for a spin, it idled slightly higher and definitely seemed to have a bit more pep and faster throttle response. I've been driving the car around now for the last two days and I have to say, WOW. It's so much more fun to drive. I still wouldn't classify the car as fast per se, however it's a very noticeable improvement and I feel like it rivals my e46 325ci in the speed/acceleration category for sure. The car finally feels complete. With all the suspension/drivetrain work I did, you couldn't really feel it with the auto trans in place because I always felt the acceleration was bogged down. Now, the car feels super tight, and the exhaust sounds phenomenal, very throaty with some nice burbles on downshifts.

      I cleaned up the engine bay and put in a new hood hydraulic piston as well as a new fuse box cover, my old one's tabs were broken:

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      Gave her a wash and wax, and went out for a well-deserved, ice cold beer. And I remembered to bring my sunshade, now that I have a crack-free dash I'd like to keep it that way:

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      Also, the interior is completely done except for my refurbed cluster and floor mats. I got an email yesterday that the mats will be arriving tomorrow, so I'll post up some interior pics once I get them in. I don't want to stretch it, but I'm actually ALMOST excited to go to work tomorrow just so I can drive the car some more...
      Last edited by Albie325; 08-19-2019, 07:06 PM.
      '86 325e Zinnoberrot /// '02 325ci Schwarz II /// '18 M4 Azurite Black Metallic ///

      Albie325 Build Thread | Albie325 COTM Jan 2021

      Comment


        Congrats! This has been a great project.
        1991 318iC
        1989 325i Field Rescue

        Comment


          Awesome job!

          What kind of beer was it? :-)

          Comment


            Originally posted by Poorhouse
            Congrats! This has been a great project
            Thanks! Now finally starting to seem well worth it.

            Originally posted by mike.bmw
            What kind of beer was it?
            I went with an Ayinger heffebrauweisse (or 3), one of my favs on a hot day.

            A while ago I purchased a nice mahogany shift knob, however after driving the f82 with a weighted shift knob the wood felt a little unsubstantial (that's what she said). I decided to drill it out and add some tungsten powder, it's denser than lead and readily available from most golf shops:

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            I sealed it with some wood glue:

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            I estimate I got about 3oz worth of powder in there, definitely gave the knob a nice heft.

            Got a special delivery today:

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            First of all, these things are AWESOME quality. For a set of front and rear mats, the package weighed 10-15lbs easily. I ended up having to choose a little lighter color than I initially anticipated because the one I was looking at was backordered until October. Thankfully for me, because these ended up being the PERFECT color:

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            Last edited by Albie325; 11-11-2019, 09:15 PM.
            '86 325e Zinnoberrot /// '02 325ci Schwarz II /// '18 M4 Azurite Black Metallic ///

            Albie325 Build Thread | Albie325 COTM Jan 2021

            Comment


              I also decided on a steering wheel:

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              I knew I wanted a Nardi for awhile, but had a hard time deciding which one. I loved the wood wheels but felt like the metal spokes were just a little TOO retro for me. Once I saw someone post up a Woodline for the first time, I thought it was the perfect balance of retro with the wood, but a bit more modern with the leather spokes. It took awhile, but I ended up finding a used but essentially brand new one on Ebay with the hub included for a very reasonable price.

              I have to say, the mats really bring the interior together:

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              In keeping with the red-trimmed theme, I found some leather shifter and ebrake boots from the UK for about $20. Then, I found someone I had bought some other parts from in Germany selling leather-wrapped E-brake handles and he too offered a red-stitched example, and I feel like they go together really well. The cupholder is from a seller on R3V:

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              Last edited by Albie325; 08-22-2019, 06:48 PM.
              '86 325e Zinnoberrot /// '02 325ci Schwarz II /// '18 M4 Azurite Black Metallic ///

              Albie325 Build Thread | Albie325 COTM Jan 2021

              Comment


                Some more shots:

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                The mats contrast with the houndstooth door cards really nicely.


                '86 325e Zinnoberrot /// '02 325ci Schwarz II /// '18 M4 Azurite Black Metallic ///

                Albie325 Build Thread | Albie325 COTM Jan 2021

                Comment


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                  Tough to get a great shot of the rear deck:

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                  I'm extremely happy with how the interior came out. I was a little iffy on the red stitching/seat belts but it really makes the interior pop and looks really sharp. I was also worried that the houndstooth would be a bit busy but it works really well and will actually be correct for the MTech1 once I get it installed. Only thing I need now is the new cluster which will finish off the look.

                  As for mechanicals, I still need to get the A/C working. I rebuilt my compressor last week and will post up a little DIY on how I did that. I'm waiting (actually been waiting for over a month) on one of the new replacement hoses and then I can get everything hooked back up, vac'd, and refilled. I NEED some A/C down here in the durty durty. After that, essentially everything I've wanted to overhaul from a mechanical standpoint will be complete. Then It'll be on to the cosmetics: MTech kit repair, repaint, euro bumper conversion, and a few other nice and functional euro upgrades for the car.
                  Last edited by Albie325; 08-19-2019, 07:11 PM.
                  '86 325e Zinnoberrot /// '02 325ci Schwarz II /// '18 M4 Azurite Black Metallic ///

                  Albie325 Build Thread | Albie325 COTM Jan 2021

                  Comment


                    Awesome result.
                    Have been following this for a while and it's really satisfying to see it come together.
                    E30 320i vert
                    But daily drive is Volvo V60 Polestar

                    Comment


                      Originally posted by Tzantushka
                      Awesome result.
                      Have been following this for a while and it's really satisfying to see it come together.
                      Thanks man, very happy with how the interior turned out.

                      So after a day or two of driving normally, I've run into an issue with overheating. My first few drives I saw the engine temp creep up to the 3/4 mark, then work its way back down to 1/2 and stay there. The other day when driving home from work, however, it kept going up to the red. I pulled off the road and let the car cool down immediately, then once cool limped it home. I re-bled the system with the front end of the car jacked up a bunch of times, and no dice. After some diagnostics, I've narrowed it down to either a faulty thermostat, or a clog in the new radiator. All coolant hoses including the upper radiator hoses feel hot once the car comes to temperature, however the radiator itself as well as the lower radiator hose remains cool to the touch. This leads me to believe that there is no circulation of coolant through the radiator i.e thermostat or a clog. I highly doubt the new water pump is bad, and essentially all components of the cooling system (sensors, hoses, radiator, heater core, etc) are brand new. The only thing I didn't change was the fan clutch, I had a new one lying around and swapped it in. Definitely seems like more air flow, but this just slows the overheating a bit. I've read on a few different threads about the OEM Wahler Tstats being faulty out of the box and so I've ordered a new BMW one, should be here by the end of the week. I have no reason to believe that the head gasket is the issue as it was fine prior to the manual swap, my coolant remains clean as does the oil, and I have no white smoke coming form the exhaust. The car is running great aside from the overheating.

                      While dealing with the above, I decided to touch up the bumper shrouds and IS spoiler as they got a bit dinged up from all the work I did under the car. With the IS spoiler off I decided to test fit the MTech1 spoiler as a bit of a pick-me-up, looks pretty good aside from being a different color (brilliantrot or perhaps hennarot):

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                      Can't wait to have it repainted and installed along with the rest of the kit!

                      Also, I had been waiting on a new A/C hose only to find out it's backordered. It'll be essentially winter by the time it's available again so I've decided to just clean out the old one and reuse it. Once I get the overheating sorted I'll get the A/C system put back together and post up the compressor rebuild I did.
                      '86 325e Zinnoberrot /// '02 325ci Schwarz II /// '18 M4 Azurite Black Metallic ///

                      Albie325 Build Thread | Albie325 COTM Jan 2021

                      Comment


                        We were surprised to learn that our local chain parts store had correctly shaped AC hoses for pretty cheap. It's been blowing cold for over two years since.

                        Comment


                          Having the same overheating issue with mine after replacing the entire cooling system.
                          I think the only thing keeping mine from going into the red on a short drive is the hole I drilled in the thermostat.
                          Lower rad hose and rad are not getting hot. Leading me to think its the thermostat.
                          New one on order.
                          1991 318iC
                          1989 325i Field Rescue

                          Comment


                            Originally posted by LateFan
                            We were surprised to learn that our local chain parts store had correctly shaped AC hoses for pretty cheap. It's been blowing cold for over two years since.
                            Hmm interesting, I'll have to look into that. Thanks for the suggestion.

                            Poorhouse hoping that that's all it ends up being for both of us
                            '86 325e Zinnoberrot /// '02 325ci Schwarz II /// '18 M4 Azurite Black Metallic ///

                            Albie325 Build Thread | Albie325 COTM Jan 2021

                            Comment


                              Your interior came out fantastic! Lots of nice accents without being overdone.

                              I may have missed it, but are you planning on keeping R12 or converting to R134 for the A/C?

                              Comment


                                connorb850 I've retrofitted the system so that it's essentially compatible with both refrigerants (O-rings, parallel flow condenser, R134 expansion valve which supposedly will work fine with R12, and will be using PAO oil), but will be filling the system with R12. Don't tell the EPA. In the event that the refrigerant leaks out again and R12 is even harder to find/more expensive by that point, I'll just switch over to R134.
                                '86 325e Zinnoberrot /// '02 325ci Schwarz II /// '18 M4 Azurite Black Metallic ///

                                Albie325 Build Thread | Albie325 COTM Jan 2021

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