SoCal General Chat

[Chilezen]

Alright, my supervisor came in with me early in the morning and we put the trans in. Took 2 hours. I bought long (100mm) bolts for the subframe, so we could lower the engine but still keep it "in place". It worked; with the car on the lift on the lowest lock, and an engine hoist holding the engine tilted up, there was enough room to reach and torque all the bolts. I remembered to fill the trans before installing it this time, lol. I left the steering linkage installed, because I didn't want to fuck with lining it up again. The engine might have gone lower if I disconnected that, but this worked, so, yay.

At the moment, I don't know if the thing is lined up like it should be. I'll see later.
So with that hurdle out of the way, I feel more comfortable towing it home and finishing as much as I can on jackstands. I think I can get away with calling AAA claiming my car doesn't start and needs a flatbed. *shrugs*
The next biggest hurdle will be building the exhaust. I planned to cut and TIG a stainless setup from scratch, but because of how long that will take, I can't fathom only working on it for 2 hours every morning; that timeframe includes pushing it into and out of the shop every morning. No, I cannot work on it on the weekends, not without one of my bosses there. Only early morning is an option.
More manageable tasks that I could use help with at home are bleeding the brakes & clutch. Then all that's left is installing the driveshaft, wiring, the freakin' external FPR and the charcoal canister, cooling system, adding a fan, and whatever else. Thanks for the offer Ed, I'll let you know as things develop.
Once I figure out the exhaust, I think it'll be smooth sailing.

[2mAn]

The joys of a swap ... hang in there bud you’ll get there. Super dick move from the shop owner, if you can’t stay late at night can you at least go in on a weekend just to get it to a point that you can move it elsewhere?

[IRON-E]

At the moment, I only have bad news, and no progress.
The car's been sitting all this time. I haven't had a chance to bring it back in the shop.

In fact, my boss recently began enforcing a "no personal projects" rule, due to the new insurance he has for the shop. I can't even stay late like I used to, when I needed to finish actual work. It's such a dick move to enact this policy knowing I am in the middle of this fuu ken project.
So yeah, my car is sitting, with the engine just balancing on the two mounts. I'm afraid to even tow it without first getting the trans back in.
All because "the new insurance says so" and "he can't do anything about it."

So if there are any race shops around that are hiring a killer fabricator, let me know!

What a bitch move on his part, if you need to move the car, you'll be just fine with the mounts and strapped down on the chassis while towing. I would suggest you attach the transmission to the engine while out of the bay, because you will hate yourself when trying to reach those top bolts. Hopefully you're allowed to finish your swap while still working there dude. I should be free in the next few weekends, so let me know if I can lend a pair of hands and a little muscle to help you get finished.

[Chilezen]

At the moment, I only have bad news, and no progress.
The car's been sitting all this time. I haven't had a chance to bring it back in the shop.

In fact, my boss recently began enforcing a "no personal projects" rule, due to the new insurance he has for the shop. I can't even stay late like I used to, when I needed to finish actual work. It's such a dick move to enact this policy knowing I am in the middle of this fuu ken project.
So yeah, my car is sitting, with the engine just balancing on the two mounts. I'm afraid to even tow it without first getting the trans back in.
All because "the new insurance says so" and "he can't do anything about it."

So if there are any race shops around that are hiring a killer fabricator, let me know!

[IRON-E]

Kevan, we need some updates dude.

[Chilezen]

Oh absolutely, I've read your thread at least 3-4 times. After all, most of what I've done is modeled after yours. And in the end, you got it to work, so that's what I'm focusing on.

[2mAn]

Chilezen it could be worse... https://www.r3vlimited.com/board/for...h-dyno-numbers

[IRON-E]

That's how it goes Kevan, you'll be a happy camper once it's back on it's wheels.

It's rewarding when you get more power from your old POS.

[Chilezen]

Bogus. I had to drop the trans out because the tab that holds the shift carrier snapped. So I had to weld that back together. Now I'm waiting to use the shop space again to put the trans back in.
I had/have an issue with the trans sitting too close to the passenger side tunnel, which I think I've fixed, but I'll see once I put it back in.
The X3 booster is a hair too big, the widest part digging into the corner of the m52 manifold. I had to space up the arm with a washer to lift it away.
Apparently my '87 is the only year with a proportioning valve held by a bracket underneath the master cylinder. I asked around if anyone's seen it before, nobody could confirm, just guess what it was. I couldn't decide whether to keep it when routing the brake lines to the new master.. I kept it. But routing/bending the hard lines was cumbersome.
There's a few "early model" nuances that I'm dealing with, like creating brackets to hold the newer radiator, and changing out the CSB from a late to early version.

I thought this would take two weeks, and it almost did, up until the need to drop the trans. Now it's looking like 5-6 weeks cuz I have to work out the time to use work space. Building the exhaust will take a couple days alone.

[IRON-E]

What's the story on the swap Kevan?

[glnr13]

good luck kev. i'm sure with all the planning you've been doing it should go smooth and hopefully with a short down time.

[Chilezen]

I am excited to begin my M52 swap this weekend! Wish me luck!

[E30SPDFRK]

If anyone needs parts - OEM or aftermarket - let me know. Obviously it will be hard for me to beat the big online wholesalers in price, but I'll try to at least match the best deals you can find online.

Example prices:
H&R race - $350
H&R sport - $230
Bilstein B8 - $165 F, $116 R
Koni Yellow - $172 F, $130 R
Sparco Hub - $80
Magnaflow 14815 - $275 (can do a bit better, but can't advertise a lower price)


I have access to a lot of big-brand aftermarket companies, and it doesn't need to be for an e30. Get pretty good dealer pricing too. Hit me up and I'll try to source it for you.

[Tom_T]

Anybody in San Diego have any recommendations for tint shops? Also curious as to what percent people around here have on their cars.

I'm just looking to reduce the cabin temperature because of how hot it gets, so I was thinking 50 or 35 would be good and wouldn't have me getting pulled over. Let me know your guys's suggestions though! I'd like to retain the fishbowl look but my old tint is horrid and I just can't stand this heat.

Rudy -

Don't know SD area shops anymore.

But if you go dark as possible on the rear & back-side windows 75-90%, & lighter on the front side driver & passenger windows <35-50% - then it will look more like you have no tint on the latter - which is all that Chips/Cops care about by law.

Also always use a windshield sunscreen whenever you're parked - both to keep it cool inside & to save your dash top from cracking.

Mine was good until the kids starting driving my 325e & weren't good about the sunscreen * now I need to replace it.

Cheers!
Tom
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[rudy]

Anybody in San Diego have any recommendations for tint shops? Also curious as to what percent people around here have on their cars.

I'm just looking to reduce the cabin temperature because of how hot it gets, so I was thinking 50 or 35 would be good and wouldn't have me getting pulled over. Let me know your guys's suggestions though! I'd like to retain the fishbowl look but my old tint is horrid and I just can't stand this heat.