Here you go. I'll post the story so far.... (If it's in the wrong place or mods want to move it that's cool.)
I thought I would just post a couple of photos of my new project car. It's a genuine
TWR 335i and one of three cars that was produced back in 1982. The specification includes 3.5 m30 engine, Alpina gearbox casing and LSD with extended cooling fin cover. There are also Alpina spoilers and a Recaro interior. I still have work to do before it will be back on the road but it should be a bit of a beast with 240bhp and loads of torque.
The boot floor, rear turrets & beneath the rear screen are all spotless with no rust or rot.
The head has been removed to allow the bores to be inspected and there is no wear to speak of. There certainly no ridge at the top of the bores and the bores themselves are in great condition.
Before I fit the new front panel etc, I am going to take the chance to paint and detail the engine bay. The is a brand new custom rad all ready to slot in. There is a brand new head which I plan to have flowed before I fit the Schrick cam to compliment the bigger valves already fitted. It's being built up to 240bhp specification.
You can see just how little room is left between the block and the bulkhead. I'm going to fit a tubular manifold and exhaust system. Hopefully, I will be able to get
http://www.christullettexhausts.com to fabricate it as they did a great job on MIB. I have plenty to do before I need to worry about that though.
Obviously there are staggered Alpina rims which will also be refurbished at some point. I'm not going to stress too much about cosmetics though. I'm more concerned with getting it mechanically sorted. The pretty stuff can wait.
I've decided to keep all the period ICE and fit it here rather than in MIB. I think it'll make a nice final touch to the mint Recaro interior.
The next job is bringing it home and putting it in my garage. As luck would have it, I've finally found one just around the corner! Once it's here I can start writing a massive ''to do'' list.
The interior is Recaro but they've trimmed the seats to match the doorcards etc. I was unsure about the authenticity of the steering wheel however, it seems it is the one supplied by TWR.
With regard to the period ICE, I have managed to get the final missing components and now have the amp and pre-amp to match. I just need to decide which speakers to go with although that's a way off yet.
Well I was able to get over to M-tech this morning and Dave got the TWR up on his ramp so that we could go over it with a fine tooth comb. Apologies for the picture quality and poor light and an i phone camera are a bad mix.
Anyway, the whole shell is 100% rust free. In fact, it has to be one of the most solid E21's I have come across personally. The fact that a previous owner has laboriously
removed all the underseal with a scraper means that there are no hidden surprises.
This is the only blemish along with a rear corner of the bonnet that has a little ding that's happened whilst in storage. Certainly nothing to worry about.
The metal around the diff remains rust free and the cover and fins should clean up nicely. Obviously the LSD with get fresh oil.
The suspension all seems to be in good order and looks to have been fully refurbished in recent years. The springs are progressive rate.
The brakes look awesome too. I'm guessing the fronts were taken from the 635 that donated its engine. The hoses with be replaced with braided items along with new fluid & pads.
The gearbox will obviously get fresh oil too. The internals are a combination of 6 and 7 series ratios combined with the standard 3.45 diff.
The bootlid has been replaced for some reason but this is also mint so just needs painting. Apart from this and some localized repairs, that should be about the only paintwork needed. The gutter trims, rear windows etc all need to be replaced and / or re-fitted.
All the wheel arches are spotless as are the doors. In fact, the doors look factory fresh inside and out.
The boot currently contains a load of parts. There's a brand new head, polished rocker cover, polished inlet manifold and assorted other bits and pieces.
There a brand new cam and the original Alpina strut brace remains too.
There are certain bits I am still in need of but that's mainly interior trim. Dave @ E21 Revival has supplied me with a decent carpet ( thanks Dave ) and I have an early Alpina steering wheel as was originally fitted.
The staggered Alpina wheels will get new rubber once the wheels themselves have been refurbished.
Rather than just fit the engine I got from Jason, we have decided to rebuild the original, blueprinted TWR engine instead. If, further down the line, it looks as if it's too far gone we can always revert to the original plan. It just makes sense to get the original engine up and running again. As soon as the cars running we can get the front end on and think about the first M.O.T in 21 years!
As it's raing and I'm stuck at my desk I thought I would do a bit more research on the cars history and it's previous owners.
I'm having the head pressure tested prior to having it flowed this week. I'm leaning towards having e34 inlet valves fitted but as I know very little about M30 engines I am having to rely on other people.
This was the bill given when the car was returned as a C1. The conversion to 335 was another £8K.
TWR's factory back in the day. Spot the C1 in the background. It looks like an early car going by the chrome door mirror?
ALPINA
The Motorsport Centre Limited / 18th June 1982
Dear Sir,
Further to our meeting last week I have set out the terms and conditions agreed.
BMW323I - Reg. No. JUY 464 X.
To remove: Alpina engine and gearbox
Alpina alloy wheels
Pirelli P6 tyres
To install: TWR 240 BHP 3.5 BMW Engine
Alpina gearbox
Rebuild suspension and exhaust
Large capacity radiator
Engine oil cooler
Supplementary cooling fan
Front strut brace
Alpina 15'' wheels fitted with,
6'' x 15 195-50 VR15 to front and spare,
7'' x 15 205-50 VR15 fitted to rear.
323i S badge on rear
Total Cost £8,000-00
We will start work on Tuesday 22nd June and have it ready by the 5th or 6th July. Please telephone regarding the final delivery arrangements.
Assuring you of our best attention at all times.
Yours sincerely, Ken Hosken
Sales Manager
When you consider a brand new 323i was about £9,000.00 it was a pretty expensive conversion. I have spoken with Ken, the sales manager, and the guy that bought the car new. As I have said, it started life as a German built C1 but once he'd driven the TWR demonstrator 174bhp just wasn't enough!
Thanks to Ken I have just spoken with someone who bought all of TWR's stock when they'd finished with the E21's. This includes all the County Championship spares. Watch this space.
Gradually pulling all the parts I need together. Schrick wanted to take too long so opted for an identical spec cam from Cat instead. Added bonus was that it was considerably cheaper too.
Just need to go pick up the new windscreen and that's pretty much it parts wise.
Well things are progressing - slowly but I've done pretty much all I can myself now and am currently ground to a halt while I wait for parts etc. The manifold - despite the stupidly expensive price tag - seems to be taking ages and won't be ready till the 1st November! I almost went with their exhaust system too but as it wouldn't clear the Alpina diff cover etc, there seemed no point. Dave @ M-tech will be getting a bespoke system built instead so there shouldn't be any issues with clearance etc. As the manifold is done in 50mm pipe, I think I'm going to stick with that for the whole system and retain twin silencers 323 style. I know it's more weight but as it came from TWR that way it makes sense to keep it original looking. If not, I would quite fancy side exit like the County Cars in some of those photos. It would sound awesome!
The original head is long gone so I'm looking into getting the replacement flowed etc. This is all a learning curve for me as a) I'm no mechanic b) I only have a basic understanding of what goes where and does what and c) my budget / savings are all but gone. Were I just looking to get the car restored to sell at some vastly inflated price it wouldn't matter as I'd know the money would be coming back again soon. However, it's a keeper and if I'm going to do it, I want to do it right. So, with the head, I am looking to maximise it's efficiency without throwing bundles of cash at it. I'm thinking mild porting & polishing, new camshaft and re-build with new rockers, dual oil spray bar etc. I know I could go balls out for big power etc and maybe fit a later head & pistons etc, but I want to retain the feel of the original car that TWR built. The bottom end seems in good order but it makes sense to give the bores a freshen up and I also have an e34 M5 clutch & flywheel to go on. The flywheel is considerably lighter too! I'm fortunate enough to have a choice of camshafts and it depends which I use as to which injection I run? Ideally, I will go with the later Motronic set-up which will still look period while giving better performance & reliability. As long as I can get the same sort of power as TWR did, which was about 240bhp, I'll be happy. 250 and I'll be happier still!
The interior is the job I can do myself. Well most of it anyway. The seats were recovered when the car was just a 4 months old. Why? I have no idea. The only Alpina C1 parts that were deleted were the side decal set and rear spoiler although the spoiler was eventually retro fitted. I don't know if Alpina cloth was part of Recaro / C1 specification? Anyway, they are still in BMW cloth and are mint. The carpet was gone so I have bought a nice replacement which I plan to dye black. I don't know what colour it was supplied with but I like black and it's one detail that will hardly detract from the overall look. I have an early Alpina steering wheel & gear knob ready to go on and replace the early e30 item. I also have Alpina clocks. Sadly there were no extra gauges for oil pressure, temp' etc so I may fit the same sort as are in my daily. They can easily be fitted without having to cut or drill holes anywhere and I like the security of knowing things are ok. The headlining was removed although I have got a perfect replacement that is still nice and white. I'm going to get a professional trimmer to fit it though as it looks like a bitch of a job and not one I want to attempt.
The first job though, is to get the car on a spit and turn it on it's side prior to treating and protecting the underside. There is a particular chemical ( I don't know the name? ) that acts like an etch primer. You spray it on with a schultz gun and it changes colour as it cures, from green to a satin black. It's an almost rubberized finish that protects from stone chips etc too. The shell has survived really well for the past 30 years and I want to be sure it stays that way. While the cars on it's side we can also replace fuel & brake lines as well as poly bushes throughout. There is also a whole front end to be fitted and painted but it makes sense to fit the engine first. It also means the chassis rails have their ends exposed and can easily be rust proofed. Then there's new hoses, rad etc. The list goes on.... Final job will be to re-fit the bonnet, wings & bootlid and paint where required before getting the rims refurb'd and fitted with decent rubber. The LSD will be up for checking and an oil change too.
If I'm honest, I don't think I really understood just how much work was going to be needed in getting this car back as it should be or just how much it was likely to end up costing either. Mind you, if it was just about cost I don't think I would have bothered anyway. I would have just bought something already done! I can't wait to be able to drive this car though. I feel like a kid in the weeks before Christmas!
Finally got the steering wheel I was after.
It even has the TWR embossed centre pad although I prefer the look without it.
Decided to do a bit of mix'n'match with steering wheels and boss' this weekend. At first glance the drillings to mount the wheels with the allen bolts look identical. When I actually undid them all there was actually about 1 or 1.5mm difference. Not much, but enough to stop the allen bolts winding in straight. In the end I used a jewelers file and ''adjusted'' things slightly. With the Alpina wheel and the TWR wheel side by side, you can also see the slight differences between the two.
Once I had got all 6 bolts started in their thread, as here, I just took the time to wind them in a half turn each in turn, so they went in evenly.
All I need to do now is clean it all up and repaint the bolt heads. I know it might not be 100% original but its far closer than the early e30 Alpina wheel, that the car came with, and the TWR engraving is a nice touch. The leather is mint too.
Well the fan arrived today.
Kenlowe supplied it at a really good price too.
There is a manual adjuster which is far easier to use than the alternative which meant fiddling around with an electrical screwdriver.
This months wages have gone to have the head flowed and e34 inlet valves fitted. New valves, rockers and the camshaft is all ready to be fitted. The manifold arrived yesterday so we are on schedule to have the engine back in one piece before the car goes to the exhaust fabricators the middle of November. Have decided to go with no centre resonator box and just two free flow silencers which will cost between £400 and £500. Fingers crossed that should be the final major expense. I'm not sure if I mentioned it before but we are replacing all the bushes throughout with Superflex items too.
Well the exhaust is done although the manifold needs to be sent for ceramic coating in an effort to reduce the amount of heat under the bonnet. Dave @ M-tech will be cracking on with things as the goal is to have the car MOT'd in time for the BMW day at the Ace Cafe in May 2011.
So, that's about it so far. I'll try and find any other old TWR photos I have.
I wondered what became of these.
for the link rav i'll be reading that later 
