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Old 09-19-2017, 12:35 PM   #341
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That's the first time I ever saw rear control arms in that orientation. Is that common on BMWs? The design actually seems to make alot of sense.
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Old 09-19-2017, 09:41 PM   #342
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That's the first time I ever saw rear control arms in that orientation. Is that common on BMWs? The design actually seems to make alot of sense.
Yep! That's the infamous BMW trailing arm/subframe design, found on a ton of stuff in variation over the years. Folks have been experimenting lately by reinforcing the hell out of the rear shock towers and ditching their rear coil springs to utilize a full rear coilover that bolt in place of the shock.


I bought Metric Mechanics 272/258 Rally Cams today!

Going to send the throttle body out to Riot Racing this week to have it bored and also delete the ASC with the proper intake elbow to get as smooth an intake tract as possible.

I'll be selling the M54b30 rotating assembly and using the M52b28 bottom end I have. This will allow me to focus on the top end/bolt ons and get the car functioning OBD2 24V so I can later build a high compression S52 in a few years and just swap everything over. I already have an M50 manifold, and need to get underdrive pullies, bigger MAF, and injectors to complete the "bolt on" list.

Got the rest of the rear end buttoned up. I realized today that I never purchased the correct rear swaybar endlinks or upper shock mounts so I left the endlinks off and put my old rear shocks on for now to get the car on the ground!

I now have on order the "tall" Ground Control upper shock mounts, as well as Ground Control adjustable rear endlinks set up for the eibach swaybar. Once that stuff comes I can put on the fresh Konis I have waiting for the setup.

Onto the pictures!

Ebrakes assembled with all fresh components.

Upon assembling the rear brakes, I remembered that the person who stole my 3.73LSD at the old garage also stole my fresh calipers with Hawk HPS pads (both were next to the garage entrance and accessible for a quick grab), so I just tossed on these good spare calipers I had lying around with some random fresh pads on them, with fresh rotors I pulled off of the parts car I purchased last year. It'll do for now.




Threw my rear strut brace on for kicks and giggles with the old struts to ensure proper fitment.




On the ground.







And I finally felt comfortable moving onto the front suspension.

I have all sorts of goodies waiting to go on: Koni struts, Ground Control coils, M3 offset CABs, Lemförder CAs, Eibach front sway, fresh endlinks, Lemförder inner/outer TRs, OE Z3 2.7 turn linear steering rack, urethane steering coupler, etc.

I'm going to send the front subframe out to Garagistic as well to get it reinforced before it all goes back together.

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Old 09-20-2017, 07:34 AM   #343
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Yep! That's the infamous BMW trailing arm/subframe design, found on a ton of stuff in variation over the years. Folks have been experimenting lately by reinforcing the hell out of the rear shock towers and ditching their rear coil springs to utilize a full rear coilover that bolt in place of the shock.
Good stuff. With all the suspension work your doing this car is going to handle like its on rails.
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Old 09-20-2017, 05:32 PM   #344
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Good stuff. With all the suspension work your doing this car is going to handle like its on rails.
I am so excited to start hitting autocross events with it. It's my first car I've done from the chassis up, which I think will really pay off in the long run.
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Old 09-22-2017, 02:54 PM   #345
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I am so excited to start hitting autocross events with it. It's my first car I've done from the chassis up, which I think will really pay off in the long run.
My miata is the first car I've focused on the chassis first and I'm glad I did. The thing is next level handling. You will definitely be happy. I used to be the guy that made fun of people with cars that made no power.
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Old 09-30-2017, 08:33 PM   #346
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My miata is the first car I've focused on the chassis first and I'm glad I did. The thing is next level handling. You will definitely be happy. I used to be the guy that made fun of people with cars that made no power.
I sure hope so man. Even though I'm salty about all of the work now, I think that it's all going to pay off when it's done.



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My plans for it, are to just enjoy a damn car for once. I never have still to this day. I want to drive it.

I am going to do a top end towards the end of the month of July (2016).

I'll be replacing every bushing and suspension component on the car, slowly cleaning it up, cleaning up the bay, doing a slight functional drop (not wasting $2500 and a month of my life building coilovers again, probably spec e30-esque H&R Race and Billy Sports), 16x8 ESM RS reps with a 225/45, slight roll on the fenders, RX7 front brake upgrade, and be done with it. Minus the wheels my excel spreadsheet with parts is only around $2K, with added things like trim, roundels, plastic pieces, interior bits, etc.

Just for affect, I thought I'd quote my first post in this thread, just to show how fast and horribly things can spiral out of control.

This is a rough list of things I need to buy to get the car rolling ($5500+ if I do AC and a few light modifications). I don't have anything close to that kind of coin, so I am trying to find a way to get this car on the road, which likely means no AC for now and few modifications to the 24V.




I finally had a day off and spent the day in the garage. Got my ground control order in to button up the rear of the car, and naturally, the tall shock mounts hit the metal dust shields on the Koni struts. Currently trying to figure out what to do without spending more money (again).






Got my Metric Mechanics cams in, they look great. I did also find out that I need to run supertech springs with these, which is yet another $650 expense.





Since I couldn't finish the rear suspension I started tearing apart the M52.

Someone cut off the engine mount bolts flush with the frame.




Got all of the exhaust manifold studs out without any breakage.



Removed everything on this side to get the harness off of the motor.



Found out the harness from a 528 is pretty different from that of the 328 which is going to make it much more difficult to modify.




Removed accessories and valve cover. Everything looks pretty good. Tried to get the crank bolt out and failed. My impact didn't do the trick, and because the motor doesn't have a flywheel on it, it makes it quite difficult to keep the crank from moving with a breaker bar on it.






Then I realized I forgot to order a Vanos timing tool so I moved onto other things that needed to get done. I disassembled the front subframe assembly that I pulled out as one piece. My goal was to prep the front subframe for reinforcement welding and the coilovers for their plates.



Front housing prep.








Inspected the Z3 rack I purchased. Someone couldn't get the knuckle off of the shaft so they just cut it. I tried everything minus heat (because seals) and couldn't get it to budge.





Then I had some extra time and decided to shave down some of the brackets I won't be using with the M52. I'm not going to "shave" the bay, but I'm going to remove a few things I won't be using to clean it up.






I didn't have the proper tools for the next step on that so I disassembled my spare cluster to inspect the SI board and to see what I could salvage. The M3 cluster is at bavrestoration right now and the SI board is bad. They want and exuberant amount of money for one, so I am trying to find a good one for that cluster.





And that's about all. Once I get the vanos tool I'll finish disassembling the M52 and get the head off to the machine shop, clean up the block, etc.

I need to make a decision on a clutch (using M20 size with the RHD flywheel) so I can start to get the drivetrain in order. Also need to find out which 944 booster p/n to buy, since I don't want to "relocate" the stocker. Among other things, this car is absolutely draining my wallet and I want it to be done so I can drive it, but it's looking like it won't be done until after winter.
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Old 10-02-2017, 03:23 PM   #347
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holy crap, $5500?!
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Old 10-02-2017, 06:37 PM   #348
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Coilovers are looking good!

Is the M3 cluster different for the SI board? I know almost nothing about old BMWs, forgive my ignorance

Oh, and for the stuck steering u-joint... Cut the thing down the side carefully and hit it with a cold chisel to crack it loose?
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Old 10-02-2017, 09:02 PM   #349
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holy crap, $5500?!
Yeah, it blew me away when I added up my parts list! I went into this thinking "m20 is bad, lets swap in an m52 for cheap" and now that I am too far down the 24v road I am seeing what things are going to cost to get it going after factoring in the odds and ends.

I'm going to wait to do AC because that is $800+ to do it right (parallel flow condenser, r134 expansion valve+pressure switch+drier, r134 compressor). I was originally going to upgrade to a 3.5" HFM and intake setup but to keep my stock 3" HFM and intake it saves me $400.

Oil pan baffle $160, M50 (long runner) intake manifold adapter $200, etc- every piece after you get the cheap "foundational" swap components is quite expensive. Just to flash the EWS and secondary air system off of the ECU and put a base tune on it is $400.

I think the car will be worth it in the end, it is just going to take me a bit longer (and a few more partouts) to finish funding it.

I'm really hoping this car and the M3 will be my "keepers", so I'm not terribly mad about the added cost other than the fact that I would like to see this project come to completion sooner rather than later.

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Coilovers are looking good!

Is the M3 cluster different for the SI board? I know almost nothing about old BMWs, forgive my ignorance

Oh, and for the stuck steering u-joint... Cut the thing down the side carefully and hit it with a cold chisel to crack it loose?
Thanks, man! Finally having the coilovers done will be nice. I spoke with ground control today about the compatibility of my RSMs and they're working with me on it which is nice (probably because I have almost everything they offer for an E30).

BMW had two different 'suppliers' for E30 clusters- Motometer and VDO. However, internally they exchanged parts every now and then, so my spare VDO cluster actually had a good Motometer SI board that will work in the M3 cluster!

The refurbished SI boards are now $800, so I have been buying spare clusters to keep around for when I need to scavenge them for parts. A good M3 cluster just sold a few months back to the tune of $2200

You can still find busted E30 clusters here and there for cheap, though, which is nice.

I spent ~45mins with a cold chisel in the existing 'flex section' the other night to no avail, but I think you are right about cutting it fully down the side on the opposing side to relieve the remaining pressure keeping it stuck on there.
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Old 10-02-2017, 11:13 PM   #350
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$2200, holy crap. I thought it was silly to pay $200 for the rare GLI cluster I was using...
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Old 10-03-2017, 09:15 PM   #351
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$2200, holy crap. I thought it was silly to pay $200 for the rare GLI cluster I was using...
I know, right? The problem is this: the 'collector' value of the car has gone through the roof over the past few years (duh), and it created a huge demand for parts for restorations and flips. Recovered M3 seats sell for $3500 now and they're the same thing as vert seats just with the folding handle moved up a few inches.

So if you need ANYTHING m3 specific now, you've gotta pay to play. Sucks for the little guys, though. Speaking of m3.....

Interior resto coming along nicely. The cluster is off at Bavrest and we are dealing with issues involving the SI board and the temp gauge. I am sending out a spare SI board in hopes to remedy that issue. We scored some fantastic, completely mint center console/interior pieces and transferred the factory M3 fabric over. Got the M3 knob/boot and leather handle. We have 3(?) head units off being restored with added aux ports as well.







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Old 10-03-2017, 10:27 PM   #352
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That already looks awesome!

M3 tax
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Old 10-04-2017, 11:16 AM   #353
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If only you had an e30 m3.... restore that!
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Not as dead as TST apparently.
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Old 10-04-2017, 03:26 PM   #354
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That already looks awesome!

M3 tax
Yes, the interior is really starting to look good! The M3 tax extends to the driveline as well. S14 motors are selling for almost 10K.

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If only you had an e30 m3.... restore that!
I'm getting my driver/fun car done first so I can take my time with the M3 while still enjoying the iS!

I'm in no rush and the parts are so much coin it's going to take me quite some time to get the M3 where it needs to be.

I keep forgetting about the poor iX too. That doesn't need much but the little things it needs are time consuming.
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Old 10-06-2017, 03:44 PM   #355
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Visited PA this weekend. These are for Shipman.


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Old 10-06-2017, 08:16 PM   #356
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Even better blown up. Love you.
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Not as dead as TST apparently.
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Old 10-13-2017, 10:05 PM   #357
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Even better blown up. Love you.
<3


I've been trying to go through some of my old parts and get this stuff sold so I can continue funding this build.

I like doing things locally, since I have so many hard working shops in my area fighting to stay in business. Instead of the $260+shipping for the garagistic front subframe mod I had a local hot rod welder do the reinforcements and a local powdercoater coat it. Cost $110 total. Same guy also welded my coilovers for me at an extremely reasonable rate and did a great job. I've also been working at getting my welder setup going so I can start doing more stuff in house.

Got the front brake ducts from Charlie, and they look great!

Also trying to work on getting the engine bay ready. I'm not going to spray the whole thing, so I am trying to figure out how to make it look decent. I've been grinding down brackets, surface rust, etc. Debating on taking out the relay and AFM bracket.

Bought another $30 working parts cluster, hopefully between the 4 I have I can get my iS cluster working perfectly.








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Old 10-14-2017, 09:56 PM   #358
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Got my GC USMs in today so I could button up the rear suspension. The upper rear mounting tabs didn't fit 100% flat with the rear brace, but I am not worried about it for now.

All that's left back there is to fill the diff, re-pin a new plug for the speed sensor (that I don't have yet), and tighten the rear TAs when the car is on the ground. GC was also kind enough to send me fresh o rings for the front strut tubes.

The GC rear endlinks are quite short. I have them three full turns from the end currently and set the swaybar up in middle position for now.

I'm waiting on my Supertech valve springs for the head. Once I get those I'm dropping the head off at the machine shop to have it gone through. I'm in need of an Achilles oil pan baffle as well. Other than that, I'm just going to clean up the block while the head is off at the machine shop, inspect the chains/guides and replace as necessary, replace f/r main seals, assemble, and toss the motor in the car as a 2.8L bottom end. I have underdrive pulleys, 24# injectors, ASC delete elbow and Riot Racing bored throttle body coming as well. I decided not to do an upgraded MAF, as I do not think it will actually benefit me any (and the intake elbow is $120 vs $25, plus the inflated price of the porsche MAF for OBD2).

Sweet3 will be doing the harness here shortly. He mentioned the harness being different from an E39 vs E36, but the DME is MS41.1 so it should work out.

For now I'm removing the AC condensor/fan and just setting it up with a pusher fan unless some of my parts sell before I get to that point. I'll be running a Nissens M42 rad w/ integrated expansion tank to clean up the bay. Speaking of bay, I have most of my brackets ground down, I just need to smooth it out and have someone spray it, which I may do myself if I find some more time.









M3 rear shelf got fresh carpet to replace the faded and rear speakers were refinished. We're currently trying to find the proper interior paint color for natur so the door pockets can get refreshed.



Last edited by blue91lx; 10-14-2017 at 10:00 PM.
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Old 10-20-2017, 09:09 PM   #359
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To add to things getting out of hand, I just bought a ported/polished S52 cylinder head with 1mm oversized Supertech intake/exhaust valves.

This lil' M52 is going to scream.

Last edited by blue91lx; 10-20-2017 at 11:36 PM.
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Old 10-20-2017, 10:59 PM   #360
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just a bit out of hand
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