My Update! (cable/dsl only)

[e30polak]

How are you tuning your vanos to work with MS?

then find 2 sets of GSXR 750 throttle bodies and blam-o

I want to do something like this, but could MS handle this kind of tuning???

[So Live]

m50 based vanos is basically a switch afaik.

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=879273&highlight=m50+megasquirt

He goes over it...

[PiercedE30]

I has no vanos.

[So Live]

hahahaha awesome

[PiercedE30]

Well, I pulled my transmission about 20 minutes ago. Took me an hour and a half (damn, I'm getting kind of fast at this shit, unfortunately). I thought that my throw out bearing had gone bad, key word thought. But in the back of my mind I had a feeling it would be the Spec pressure plate. Well, I got it off, and saw a BUNCH of metal shavings all over the inside of the bell housing. The throw out bearing looked and felt fine. Ran my hand over the straps on the pressure plate and the allen bolts to make sure they were all there. Well, sure enough one of the straps broke on the pressure plate. I've been driving it around like this for about a week or so. I know exactly when it happened too, when I went to the dyno. On the last pull that we made right at 7000 we heard a bang and some tapping. Thought I had either blown the motor or had a collapsed lifter possibly. Nope. It was the damn pressure plate. I can get a Sachs 618 through WorldPac, but it is special order and would take a little while to get. I don't know exactly how long it will take but I am going to find out tomorrow when I call and talk to Randy. Either that or possibly check with the dealer. If either of those don't work I will just have to order one from BavAutoShit. Hopefully I will be able to order it through work so I don't have to pony up any money out of my pocket, per se. I am going to have the flywheel checked out across the street by my machinist. IF it is slightly warped then see if he can shave it a little or I will have to order a new friction surface from JB Racing. I'm hoping it's not warped any. Fucking Spec.

[PiercedE30]

Oh, and I was looking over the transmission to check for any damage since there were metal shavings all over the bell housing. Well, the bell housing definitely took a beating. It's not really that bad, except for the hole the size of a #7 pencil and the long ass crack right next to it. I'm going to degrease it and take a look to make sure there are no other cracks or damage. I've got a spare tranny here at the house, and many other transmissions at work on the shelf, so if need be I can throw some new seals on another transmission and put it in. More pictures of the carnage:

[So Live]

Wow dude thats really unfortunate. Sorry to see that kinda BS in such a killer car.

Good luck getting it pieced back together.

[2002maniac]

man that sucks, good luck getting it back together in a timely manner.

[PiercedE30]

Well, everything is back together and running smoothly.
Here is a video from back in February when we had the big Lake Front meet. My friend Taylor FINALLY finished it. In the video, around 2:28-2:29, I am on the back of the golf cart, on the left side, with the brown shirt. Man, that day was a BLAST. Hopefully we will have another one. Anybody in the LA/MS area should come down for the next one. We definitely need a bigger Euro showing. Too many damn asian imports, even though some of them are fast as hell.

[e30serg]

Hey man-no way to weld up the bellhousing?

[mops]

Hey man-no way to weld up the bellhousing?

I'd like to know that too. I have an option to purchase this very cheap getrag 260 tranny with bit broken off the bell housing... the seller claims a 'pro' can fix it in 15 minutes.... but i'm a bit skeptical...

[nando]

ouch! that's a bummer - I can't believe you got the tranny out in an hour and a half from having to do it so many times. That sucks in it's own right!

sachs 618 all the way!

[PiercedE30]

Actually, I did weld up the bell housing. I ended up counting 7 cracks (the big one and a number of other small ones that were barely noticeable) and the one hole. This was my first time welding aluminum. There is a VERY fine line between having too much heat, too little heat, not enough wire speed, and too much wire speed. It's a little tricky to weld, to say the least, so my welds definitely do not look good. I did go over them with a carbide burr bit to smooth them out.

Outside of the bell housing on the big crack:


Inside the bell housing on the big crack (you can also see the inside of the hole I had to fill):


Here is a picture of three of the small cracks that I welded over:

You can see two of them underneath the vin sticker on the bottom left side. You can also see one next to the bolt hole underneath the "Getrag" embossing.

I definitely need some practice with the spool gun to actually get the hang of it. You can see the difference in the way the aluminum welds, due to the retained heat, after you put down the first pass. You also have to have the aluminum as clean as possible. There can be NO oxidation on the aluminum due to the amount of heat it takes to melt the oxidation. The oxidation melts at like 3300 degrees and the aluminum melts at like 1200. If you have oxidation where you are trying to weld, it will "blow through" real easily due to the amount of heat that is going into the metal. (enough of the welding talk)

[So Live]

Wow, thats pretty impressive dude. Im scared of mig + aluminum. Actually im scared of welding aluminum period.

So whats your clutch set up as it runs now?

[PiercedE30]

I've still got the Spec 6 puck clutch disk, haven't found anything about it being bad, just the PP. I wasn't able to get a 618 through my work, well I was, but it would have taken a long time since it would be special order, so I cheaped out and got an M3 pressure plate. I figure if some of the 2.5L S14 guys can use the stock plate, then I should give it a shot. If it breaks again, I'm going to go Southbend and get a custom clutch made to hold about 500-650 ft/lbs so that if/when I tear down this motor I will be able to throw a turbo on and not need a different clutch.