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    The Laguna Green e30

    Hey whats up guys! Long time no post, nor e30. I'm hoping some of you guys will still remember me, I sold a good amount of parts on here over the years and such so I'm sure a few will.

    Anyways, I picked this Laguna Green Vert up I'd like to say about 2 weeks ago? It was posted on Craigslist for only a few hours at such a cheap price I had to take a look at it. I've debating on making a build thread for it for weeks now, here it is.

    I bought it off a older lady in her late 60's I'd say, she'd owned it since 2005 and WOW she trashed this thing. Interesting fact, her husband belonged to the Hells Angles in his younger years. After looking at it for about 10min I actually decided it wasn't for me, and told her thanks for showing it to me (all because the interior was much worse then described in the ad.) I mean for god's sake this thing came with a comfort seat on the drivers side, from a 4 door so you couldn't even fold the seat forward to let passengers get in the back.

    We kept talking and what do you know, I bought it. This is by far the worst condition e30 I've ever bought. Her plan was to sell it to a local junkyard/ California's "cash for clunkers" program, which would have also smashed the car, but decided to post it on Craigslist to see what would happen. It has 200k+ miles, smokers car for 10 years strait, and obviously never detailed under her ownership. The only good thing's going for this car is it's probably a 2 owner car, it still has the original key, and I have records of all the service it received. Well I guess you could also say the paint's fairly decent besides the trunk lid which I'll probably be getting painted, plus it has a clean title.

    Did I mention how bad this thing smelt? I drove it home with the top down SUFFERING! Cigarette ash's where flying in my eyes the entire drive down the freeway.

    Now of course with that all said, I've made a ton of progress in the short 2 weeks I've owned this thing, it's actually a really nice car now. I'll be doing the timing belt, water pump, ect. this up coming weekend since there's no records of it ever being done plus when I peaked in at it under the front timing cover, there where crack's showing. If I had to take a guess I'd say the belt is about 15 years old.


















    Last edited by KIRIEIW; 06-26-2017, 11:45 PM.


    1992 M tech 2 Convertible - S50 Swap
    1992 e34 Touring- S50 Swap
    1992 325i-S50 Swap (SOLD)

    1995 e36 M3 Mugello Red - S50 (SOLD)
    1991 325i Convertible Laguna Green (SOLD)
    1987 325i (SOLD);1992 M tech 2 Convertible (SOLD)
    1988 325i Convertible Alpine White (SOLD)
    1991
    Brilliantrot Convertible 80k Miles (SOLD)
    1992 325i Convertible Schwarz (SOLD)
    1992 318i Convertible Project-Finished (SOLD)

    #2
    So the first order of business was giving the paint a quick polish, I was shocked but it came out pretty darn well.. Still has some shine left! I used a brand called "Klasse".

















    Last edited by KIRIEIW; 06-26-2017, 10:41 PM.


    1992 M tech 2 Convertible - S50 Swap
    1992 e34 Touring- S50 Swap
    1992 325i-S50 Swap (SOLD)

    1995 e36 M3 Mugello Red - S50 (SOLD)
    1991 325i Convertible Laguna Green (SOLD)
    1987 325i (SOLD);1992 M tech 2 Convertible (SOLD)
    1988 325i Convertible Alpine White (SOLD)
    1991
    Brilliantrot Convertible 80k Miles (SOLD)
    1992 325i Convertible Schwarz (SOLD)
    1992 318i Convertible Project-Finished (SOLD)

    Comment


      #3
      And then some luck came my way. There was a crashed e30 convertible on Craigslist for quite some time now and to my surprise nobody bought the interior OR convertible top! Funny enough I got to the location and I knew the guy selling the parts so he cut me a somewhat decent deal. I say somewhat because the parts cost nearly as much as the car cost me. Cost me $575.

      A small list of what I got:
      -Carpets
      -Door Panels
      -Front Seats
      -Rear seats
      -Center Console
      -Rear Trunk Mat
      -Front Ellipsoid Headlight and grill
      -Drivers side visor
      -Convertible Top
      -All parts necessary to convert the cars electric top to a manual top
      -The list continues but lets leave it at that..


      I got lucky getting so many parts for only one reason, the guy with the parts car was dumping the car the following day. I bought the seats and top off him and he basically gave me permission to take anything else I saw on the parts car for "free". You might be asking, "why would you need used carpets and door panels in the same color when you already have them in the car". Well one thing I've learned in this journey to say the least is that cigarette smell is nearly impossible to remove, not to mention the burn marks from dropping lit ones on the ground. I can happy say I've successfully removed the smell by replacing nearly the whole interior, and vacuuming everything. Technically its a smoke free car now, right? I'd absolutely never buy a smokers car again in my entire life.

      It's been a interesting two day project to install all this crap, actually I still don't have the interior complete but its a good 95% done.






































      Last edited by KIRIEIW; 06-26-2017, 11:27 PM.


      1992 M tech 2 Convertible - S50 Swap
      1992 e34 Touring- S50 Swap
      1992 325i-S50 Swap (SOLD)

      1995 e36 M3 Mugello Red - S50 (SOLD)
      1991 325i Convertible Laguna Green (SOLD)
      1987 325i (SOLD);1992 M tech 2 Convertible (SOLD)
      1988 325i Convertible Alpine White (SOLD)
      1991
      Brilliantrot Convertible 80k Miles (SOLD)
      1992 325i Convertible Schwarz (SOLD)
      1992 318i Convertible Project-Finished (SOLD)

      Comment


        #4
        And then what I didn't expect the car would need, re wiring. The shop that installed the head unit did a somewhat half ass job and ran aftermarket wires from the head unit to the front speakers only, used the factory wires for the rear speakers. I removed the aftermarket wires and re connected/ used the original wires. Secondly, there was a aftermarket alarm installed in the car which didn't work. That was the real hack job. I removed all that crap, re crimped a few factory wires back together, and all was good. After that was all done I continued installing the new interior, converted the top from auto to manual using all the factory parts/ mounting points, and installed the new top.





































        And that's where I'm at currently, finished up for the night a few hours ago. Everything you see I did in one weekend (excluding the "detail"). As you can see the new interior's in fairly decent shape excluding the drivers seat. All the leathers extremely soft/ supple including that drivers seat. The carpets are in good shape with no major stains, front door panels are nearly perfect. All in all it's coming along fairly nicely all it needs now is the cooling system overhaul, timing belt, and a few other mechanical parts (all preventative maintenance). Everything's already ordered so it'll be road worthy for some California drop top sun real soon!
        Last edited by KIRIEIW; 06-26-2017, 11:50 PM.


        1992 M tech 2 Convertible - S50 Swap
        1992 e34 Touring- S50 Swap
        1992 325i-S50 Swap (SOLD)

        1995 e36 M3 Mugello Red - S50 (SOLD)
        1991 325i Convertible Laguna Green (SOLD)
        1987 325i (SOLD);1992 M tech 2 Convertible (SOLD)
        1988 325i Convertible Alpine White (SOLD)
        1991
        Brilliantrot Convertible 80k Miles (SOLD)
        1992 325i Convertible Schwarz (SOLD)
        1992 318i Convertible Project-Finished (SOLD)

        Comment


          #5
          Wow... Judging from your sig you're a big convertible kinda guy?

          Looking forward to this project!

          Comment


            #6
            And for the quick comparison shot;





            1992 M tech 2 Convertible - S50 Swap
            1992 e34 Touring- S50 Swap
            1992 325i-S50 Swap (SOLD)

            1995 e36 M3 Mugello Red - S50 (SOLD)
            1991 325i Convertible Laguna Green (SOLD)
            1987 325i (SOLD);1992 M tech 2 Convertible (SOLD)
            1988 325i Convertible Alpine White (SOLD)
            1991
            Brilliantrot Convertible 80k Miles (SOLD)
            1992 325i Convertible Schwarz (SOLD)
            1992 318i Convertible Project-Finished (SOLD)

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by cspec View Post
              Wow... Judging from your sig you're a big convertible kinda guy?

              Looking forward to this project!
              I've had my fair share :D. I've always had a heart for convertibles, plus they tend to be highly optioned from the factory with sport seats and such.


              1992 M tech 2 Convertible - S50 Swap
              1992 e34 Touring- S50 Swap
              1992 325i-S50 Swap (SOLD)

              1995 e36 M3 Mugello Red - S50 (SOLD)
              1991 325i Convertible Laguna Green (SOLD)
              1987 325i (SOLD);1992 M tech 2 Convertible (SOLD)
              1988 325i Convertible Alpine White (SOLD)
              1991
              Brilliantrot Convertible 80k Miles (SOLD)
              1992 325i Convertible Schwarz (SOLD)
              1992 318i Convertible Project-Finished (SOLD)

              Comment


                #8
                PM'd!


                Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

                Comment


                  #9
                  Huge transformation in such a short time! I'm looking forward to following your progress.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Wow, great progress! Laguna Green is my favorite color on verts - I nearly bought a '92 several years back but decided to pass due to too much rust.

                    What a transformation already! That old interior was beyond disgusting. Even if you are a smoker, how do you even sit in that thing?
                    1988 325 Lachs Sedan SOLD

                    1989 325i Bronzit Beige 2 Door
                    SOLD

                    2018 Volkswagen Alltrack SE DSG
                    Past:1988 325iS Lachs 5 Speed

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Great work! You are well ahead of the game as far as cost/value. The few things that you have done have made a huge difference. What type of build are you going for?

                      Bryon
                      Fellow Laguna vert owner



                      Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
                      Wheelwell

                      Shadowline Motorsport: LED & 3D Printed Accessories - 10% off for new customers!
                      LED Bulb Thread
                      R6 LED Review

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Excellent stuff. Bringing it back to its formal glory very very quickly!
                        My previous build (currently E30-less)
                        http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=170390

                        A 2016 Toyota Tacoma TRD 4x4 Offroad in Inferno is my newest obsession

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Of Course I remember you man! Still rocking your Euro Clock Adapter to this day! Glad to see your back in the game. I must say that has to be one of the filthiest E30 interiors I have ever seen. I know you will bring this thing back to life man. Love the color to!
                          Bmw CCA # 490080

                          1995 525iA RIP
                          1987 325e Cirrusblau-Metallic/Pacific Blue (Daily)

                          DSC_1725 by Matthew Johnson, on Flickr

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Thanks guys! I'm pretty shocked myself on how much I've gotten done in the little time I've owned this thing, actually I did the math I've had it for under 2 weeks :D. It was all total luck, that local part out saved the day and couldn't have happened at a better time.

                            I'm not quite sure what the plans are yet djmossm42, as for now I want to get the new timing belt in and just drive it around/ enjoy it. I've had a brand new set of eibach springs/ KYB shocks in the back room for close to a year now so I'm considering tossing that on, we'll see what happens.

                            Matt- Glad to see your still around here! You where actually one of the few on here I was thinking of when I mentioned if anyone still remembered me haha, hope all is well with you!


                            Alright so today some more goodies arrived. Actually yesterday I picked up a pair of brand new e82 front floor mats at work (closest fit for e30 since e30 mats are NLA). I was considering ordering tan mats but decided to just go with the all weather ones. I do have a set of OEM e30 mats in the back room (actually 3 sets..) but don't really want to wear them out so got these.

                            Few pics of the parts that arrived plus I found the pic of when I peaked in to see the timing belt's condition (pictures don't do it justice), and the first day I picked up the car with the owner literally cleaning her cigarette ash tray (sad part is that's not a joke). As you can see the trunk lid really needs some fresh paint, and since the rest of the body has clean paint I'll be getting it re painted in the near future.










                            Crappy ass old top:







                            Fun fact, a lot of the Rein hose's are actually OEM BMW hoses, they just sharpie out "BMW".

                            Last edited by KIRIEIW; 06-28-2017, 09:55 PM.


                            1992 M tech 2 Convertible - S50 Swap
                            1992 e34 Touring- S50 Swap
                            1992 325i-S50 Swap (SOLD)

                            1995 e36 M3 Mugello Red - S50 (SOLD)
                            1991 325i Convertible Laguna Green (SOLD)
                            1987 325i (SOLD);1992 M tech 2 Convertible (SOLD)
                            1988 325i Convertible Alpine White (SOLD)
                            1991
                            Brilliantrot Convertible 80k Miles (SOLD)
                            1992 325i Convertible Schwarz (SOLD)
                            1992 318i Convertible Project-Finished (SOLD)

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Good work!

                              Just be glad you don't have rust to deal with, like many other owners on this board.
                              If it's got tits or tires, it's gonna cost ya!

                              Comment

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