E30 superlite

[D4BOX]

Looks like a nice build love those back windows!? How do I get one lol

[Jarno]

D4BOX, you mean the popout windows on that black car? I found mine from Ebay. They were a common item on American E30's I believe.

[Jarno]

-Last night I finished with the last rust spots that reiquired sandblasting. My strategy was to first blast the visible rust, then wipe the surface with Annitrol:

-which is a phosphoric acid. It protects bare metal from rust til I paint over, and the acid reacts with tiny rust residue that remains in metal pores anyway. Just before painting I clean the surface with a wire brush.

..removing the sand, getting it ALL out of the shell is a real pain in the ass. BTW, hauling the shell in & out of the garage made me realize how light it really is. I guess I'll have to weigh the thing before assembly . After I'm done with the rocker panel, it's just finishing work before paint shop. Although, we talked about more or less test-assembling the car (then taking it apart) before painting. Why? Because I think the car is missing a "few" mounting points & brackets & what have you. I don't want to be fabricating and welding them on AFTER paint work.

[kangman]

PM'd

[Jarno]

kangman, if you don't mind I might as well reply here also.. No, I don't have the louvers anymore, nor do I know where to get them. I've had about a million people approach me about them .

Fixing the inside of the rocker panel..





No.. I am your father.


More low quality pics:

Massive weight save, parking brake pipes replaced with aluminium pipes..






Sandblasted places under primer paint:





..more random pics:









Started repairs on a little accident damage that occurred while taking the shell out for sand blasting:

You make do with what tools you have .

Making (trying to) an end to an 8mm pipe, that's what I'm making fuel lines of


Powerflex rear beam bushes, shore 95 A. Unsurprisingly they feel pretty damn stiff.


New OE side bearings for differential:

[Jarno]

I actually got around to putting on the rocker panel. Only a few welds here and there, rest of it done with panel adhesive.




Collection of random steering wheels. I'll probably use that big black one, and have it upholstered.

[Jarno]

...and we had this small mishap a while ago, dropped the chassis of the rotisserie, bending the front frame.

Tack a piece there and start pulling..


As a result of dropping it, front chassis rails (or what are they called?) we're bent inwards by 6mm?

Work in progress.


Bit more beating and fixing & stuff, it'll be good enough.

[Jarno]

Although nobody's reading ...

Mountings for second fuel pump and filter. Pump draws from scavenging tank bottom that's above it to the right. From filter there's a return line to the same tank. So it's a returnless fuel system. None flows back from fuel rail.

[Neilios]

Plenty of ready and watching going on, just been working outside on mine and these projects keep everyone going.

[faissalo]

[dirtee-herbert]

I've had a read and I'm very impressed.

Keep it up man!
Can't wait to see it finished in that maclaren yellow.

[Jarno]

I've had a read and I'm very impressed.

Keep it up man!
Can't wait to see it finished in that maclaren yellow.

Thanks. Getting the shell painted will be delayed somewhat
I work on cars monday to friday and have to meet deadlines. I've decided that since this is my hobby, I can do it as slow as I want to . Way back, my original "deadline" for getting it on the road was summer of 2013.

Started work on fuel pipe.






A lot of fuel hose going back and forth

Plugging up the fuel return/pressure regulator hole from fuel rail:



..test to see whether it leaks or not: http://petrolhead.kuvat.fi/kuvat/1984BM ... k+test.AVI

Not the nicest flare.. but it does the job.

Next up probably the brake lines. Seeing the brake boster in place reminded me how small it really is

[jimbom30cab]

Keep the pics coming, this is the most interesting thread on here

[Jarno]

Keep the pics coming, this is the most interesting thread on here

Sure thing .


Some sort of spacer needed here. Center hole of the front strut towers is SMALL, no room to move the adjustments about. Or some other solution? I'm open to suggestions. Cutting the strut tower is my last option, I'd rather not do that. It may lose some stiffness if cut the center hole bigger and lose that "lip".



I ordered a pair of short Koni sports from Ebay to the rear axle.
..and E46 rear shock mounts:


..which seem to fit OK:

-I read somewhere that E46 items are supposed to be stiffer/ more durable. Uniball joints would be ideal for damping control but I have no budget for them at the moment.

[Jarno]

Almost exactly 6 years after I started on it, the project stands on it's wheels again




I hope the rest of it will be done in less time..

Ordered a fuel tank. Have to get one now, can't fabricate tank mounting points without one.

This makes work a whole lot easier:


Test fitting a few parts here and there, VIDEO<-click!

[Jarno]

Started work on the windscreen frame. When it's all welded, I'll beat it to the right shape and seal the seam with panel bonding adhesive.






Fuel tank arrived. Modify it, mount it.

4,2 kg saved, left/right weight distribution improved.

Vacuum line for filter's pressure regulator:


Leak tested and underside painted with epoxy:


E36 air filter box looks like it was meant to be there:

[Jarno]

A weekend's worth of work... Painting the underside. First, primer (white):


Right rear wheel well.. Had to remove all previous paint, it was chipping away. That's what happens with 1 component paints. Just say no to them.



Pro tools for mixing paint, thinner and hardener


-actually took it with approval from my mrs.

Next up, outer layer:








After paint, 3M 08800. It's a two part sprayable seam sealer.
The control arm lollipops are in place while doing that, on purpose. Plus a few other bolts & screws to cover the threads.




-I'll have to buy a few more bags of that stuff..

edit.. sprayed yellow cavity wax inside all chassis members and bolted axles back on.
edit 2: These arrived, yay.

I had straps instead of rear shocks to stop the springs from falling off.



Where do you write down notes when at the garage?


This got finally repaired. Vacuum adjustment/sync srew for cyl #2 throttle. It broke the O-ring (that's under the bronze screw) every time.

My buddy used a TIG welder & black magic on it, works now. yay.

Window frame modding, work (still) in progress. Tried on the windscreen to see if I'm doing this right

[Jarno]

Lend me your wisdom & bright ideas on how to attach the roof lining front edge? Originally the roof cloth edge goes to the window frame, tucked/folded under windscreen rubber seal. Obviously not possible with a bonded windshield. I'm open to suggestions, although putting on an OBC panel is not an option.


Made my friend do all the dirty work, grinding down stuff.


Fit the windscreen, see how everything sits. Take it off, cut/shape the frame a bit. -repeat a million times

[Jarno]

Simplest possible solution to make a ground point for battery:


Hood lock and opening mechanism v 1.0:

-nylon strap will hang out of the front grill or vacant headlight (high beam) hole.

[H35-24]

Awesome project, do you have any more pictures of the black E30 with the sunblind on the rear windscreen, only ever seen a picture one other E30 with that on, awesome 1970/early 1980 styling?

[Jarno]

Awesome project

I don't know about awesome but thanks

.. do you have any more pictures of the black E30 with the sunblind on the rear windscreen, only ever seen a picture one other E30 with that on, awesome 1970/early 1980 styling?

http://petrolhead.kuvat.fi/kuvat/Suntio/

-note the three subfolders also.

[Jarno]

Spare tyre bracket done. The tyre will change to a 145/80R14.


Front right corner of the hood will be held by a hood pin or what are they called. Accessible through vacant high beam hole. I just don't like the look of pins sticking out of the hood.

-Spent some time drilling holes to the hood reincorcements. That's bit over half a kilo off. yay . There's still some material I can slice away, before it becomes too wobbly.
Well, one day my bugdet will stretch to a carbon fiber part.
Modding hood rear brackets, work in progress:

Hood rear mounting points will look something like this. Real tight in right side corner with the washer fluid fill-up pipe and battery being there too:



Water outlet finally welded to the ITB adapter plate. Not much space between cyl 1 inlet and water outlet..



Fuel rail or TPS don't seem to collide with anything..


..But these want to occupy the same space as the adapter plate lower edge:
:?

[Jarno]

Lately, we've been building a "second floor" for storage space etc.

-----------EDIT.. the pic links don't seem to work for some reason

No progress on the car. Probably, next up comes finishing up the M43 swap E30 I mentioned earlier.

[DanThe]

Just a few things I noticed, how much weight are you putting back in with that 3M spray sealer?

And with a thread called "E30 Superlite" why are you even thinking about a headliner!

Would the battery not be better placed behind the drivers seat?

[Jarno]

Just a few things I noticed, how much weight are you putting back in with that 3M spray sealer?

And with a thread called "E30 Superlite" why are you even thinking about a headliner!

Would the battery not be better placed behind the drivers seat?

It will be a road car, there fore all inside upholstery will go back on. It'll be noisy enough with all sound deadening removed.
Headliner means roof lining? The cloth and few sticks that hold it really don't weigh much. I did however remove the insulation whatever that's above the lining.
Sealer on undercarriage is neccessary. Coating wil be thinner than what they used at the factory.

Battery now.. I've gone back and forth about its placement. Many have suggested placing it where it is on a 325i for example, but that would mean many kilos worth of cable. Original place is most weight efficient. I always put weight before weight distribution if I have to choose. That's a subject for a lengthy debate .
Many of these things are just choices, good arguments can be made for either solution. Luckily, I can always take it apart and change

Good points.

Edit.. Picture of junk storage:

[Jarno]

I did a little something.. Painting the interior / inside of trunk/ car bottom is pretty much done. Not pretty but nobody's going to see them




Let's see how this looks, a before/after picture:




I ordered parts for the diff: an extra clutch/dogplate-pair, all seals and the last bearing I lacked. So, I should soon be putting it together.

And I bought a steering wheel. Pretty neutral looking, OK quality and CHEAP

[Jarno]

Differential build, part 1.

-Take one sand blasted and painted typ 188 diff cover and throw it in the parts washer.
-Press out the pinion bearing races, save the pinion shim that drops out too. Realize that there's still bits of sand in the oilways.

Wash it a again with a pressure washer , finish off with brake cleaner, blow air through everything.

Go through all threads just because you can


Pry off the speed sensor plate, trying not to bend it. Pull out the old bearings.


Easier to remove the bearing on the other end if you remove the LSD unit cap first. Those ring gear bolts are tight plus with Loctite. No problem if you have a 1/2" impact wrench.


No pictures of the next step. Cap off, empty the LSD core, making note which order all plates 'n stuff were there. Then, I shoved a plastic bag full of snow inside the LSD to cool it, while heating the old 3,64 ring gear with a blow torch. Once hot, placed a 150mm diameter tube on top of loosened bolts. Hammering the tube and not bolt ends individually, I hopefully pressed it out evenly and nicely, not bending anything.

Leave the LSD unit outside (it was 0 celsius, lovely) filled with snow again to cool.


Repeat the procedure with 3,46 open diff, the ring gear/pinion I'll be using, video: http://petrolhead.kuvat.fi/kuvat/1984BM ... 161351.mp4

Make sure mating surcfaces are really really clean. Go thru the ring gear threads to remove old Loctite remnants. Makes assembly quicker and you want to be quick with cold/hot parts..
This is what I came up with to pull/guide them quickly back together and line up bolt holes:

Before heating again, I had new bolts ready with a half a drop of Loctite on each, and a power ratchet.

New/unused 3,46 tightened to 100Nm. After temperatures had evened out, re-check tightening torque, then additional 90 degrees. That's pretty damn tight, wouldn't want to try with stretched bolts/dirty threads

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..then, I went out and bought an extra friction plate/dog plate pair, and a MY 2014 VW Polo :O

Before pressing in side bearings to where you can't read the markings, make note of the manufacturer (FAG).

-I made paint markings to side bearing caps and correspondingly to diff case, not to mix up bearing/bearing race-pairs.

Speed sender wheel was still straight, yay. Heat it up, it drops into place.

[Jarno]

Differential build, part 2

Side bearings pressed to differential. I bolted on the side bearing caps first with as thick shims as I had available and with new output flange seals. I made a rotating tool from a random puller:


Friction torque wrench:

It's scale is in kp-cm so multiply that by 9,81 and you get Newton-centimeters that the repair manual refers to.

Desired friction torque for side bearings is 110-240 Ncm if they're FAG, plus 20 Ncm per replaced flange seal. Value I was aiming at was 150-280 Ncm or 15,3-28.5 kpcm.

VIDEO: http://petrolhead.kuvat.fi/kuvat/1984BM ... 151617.mp4

Take it apart, change the shim thickness until you reach:

Now that the total thickness of shims is found it must not be changed as it determines the bearing preload. When adjusting tooth contact pattern, if the ring gear needs to be moved by changing shims, the same amount must be removed/added to other side shim.

Then onto tooth contact pattern adjustment.. I pressed in pinion bearing races with a shim under the rear bearing race, WITHOUT crush sleeve or input flange seal. Front bearing is pressed on until rotating torque is 250Ncm, video: http://petrolhead.kuvat.fi/kuvat/1984BM ... 160508.mp4

-after contact pattern adjustments, pinion preload is set to a value depending on bearing make (SKF/Timken/Koyo/FAG), plus additional 20Ncm is input flange seal was replaced.

It took me three different pinion shims before I found the height I was happy with, contact pattern was acceptable and backlash about in the ballpark. I don't have pics of the final contact pattern. Bad news is changing the pinion shim means taking apart everything and pressing out/in the rear bearing race, a lot of work.

After I decided the adjustment was as good as I was going to get it, I took everything apart one more time, put in the crush sleeve and new input flange seal. Then tighten the flange nut until friction torque was 150-326Ncm (value for FAG) plus 20Ncm. Tightening required a LOT of force but it must be done in really small increments because the while tightening the bearing load raises real quick. Before you know it it's too tight, and backing out the nut doesn't help.

[Jarno]

Final contact pattern was something like this, on the "acceleration"(?) side:


-coast side:


-Not the best pic nor the clearest contact marks I know

Final backlash, on the tight side but oh what the hell.. video: http://petrolhead.kuvat.fi/kuvat/1984BM ... 165958.mp4

[Jarno]

Some of the stuff that got replaced


Slip torque is now ~140Nm whereas it something like 40-50Nm on a stock 25% LSD.

-that note says "NO OIL! FILL UP THE OIL!"

[Jarno]

After some creative pause, I started work on the rear axle carrier..

Set it up level:


..check if the mounting points are where they're supposed to be



-straighten as neccessary or atleast try

Attempted reinforcement welds where the factory welds looked insufficient:


..I used the angle gauge to also check the adjustment bits whatdoyoucallthem would be welded on in correct position:


Nut interferes with the bushing top hat. But not if you flip the bolt the other way around, I learned. Ofcourse then the trailing arm can't be removed without dropping the whole axle carrier but who does that anyway


Quick and careless sandblasting, then give it some wire brush & angle grinder, then a coat of epoxy primer:





..edit: Tight fit with a flipped bolt, but no need to cut the bush top hat:


-Jarno

[Jarno]

Good stuff, keep it coming!!

Next episode, the trailing arms.

[Jona1971]

Brill, keep up the good work.