M3 Touring conversion number 2 - UPDATED 02/08

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Demlotcrew
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Tue Jun 12, 2007 10:31 pm

Colin i dont see why you cant use stock pipes with your compressor as its almost identical to any other E30 one.

Unless you got some aftermarket poo

Nice work :)
old_skool
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Mon Jun 18, 2007 8:42 pm

Ok time for a little update,

The brake mechanicals are now finished, as are loads of other jobs - too many to list!

A few pics and descriptions,

The battery relocation to the boot is not as easy as I had first hoped. The battery tray from the coupe works perfectly but unfortunately the boot/cubby doors will not close. So I removed the support metalwork in the floor and made some new supports about 60mm lower down. I also took the opportunity to clean up the well and reseal and paint it.

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There is no earth tab in the boot so I welded a stud into a metal plate and then Mig welded it into place. The boot locker now works perfectly :D

I had to remove all of the supports for the E30 coolant tank and ABS, then weld in new for the relocation of the ABS servo and E36 air box. By the time this was done It needed a coat of paint:

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Coolant tank in the same position as a LHD E36 M3, thanks Ian for the tip. I used a LHD M3 coolant transfer pipe with a little modification. Putting the coolant tank here allowed me to use the M3 airbox and retain the ABS inside the engine bay.

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Pipework:

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Newly assembled M3 clocks with oil temp gauge :D

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A few random pics:

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I had a few problems with the EWS that resulted in having to find another full EWS setup today but now all is well. Everything powers up (nearly) as it should and well…

A few jobs left to do yet but it runs!



:cool:
old_skool
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Mon Jun 18, 2007 9:40 pm




:clin: No manifolds!!

Cheers Paul for posting the video 8)
maxfield
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Mon Jun 18, 2007 9:43 pm

Hero !!
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Brianmoooore
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Mon Jun 18, 2007 9:44 pm

Fantastic work as ever, Dameon!!
Particularly interested in the mods to get the battery in the boot, as I have to do that in my current project. My touring definitely has the earth point for the battery negative already there though.
That lower bracket for the ABS pump looks suspiciously like a recycyled support from the fuel tank to the rearmost part of the prop cover/exhaust shield!
tbmw
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Mon Jun 18, 2007 9:55 pm

sounding good dameon

whats the running totals now if you dont mind me asking?
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Jhonno
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Mon Jun 18, 2007 10:33 pm

If you want another to do, come help me finish mine :D

Excellent work as ever dude! :cool:
Got cable ties? Get diffin..

Arch roller for hire.

www.zeroexhausts.co.uk

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jaistanley
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Tue Jun 19, 2007 9:44 am

Oooooh... Cool.

Might just have to start cracking on with mine soon.. Bastard. I managed to wash the car down at the weekend. One step at a time! :mad:

When these manifolds turn up I want to get the sump sorted and bolt the engine in. What jobs do you reccomend I do before that Dameon? I'm thinkning: relocate the servo, move the ABS, fit the E36 rack.

I'll look forward to watching that youtube video as soon as I get home tonight (wont work here at work). To be honest it'll probably make me cry a little. :cry:

Good work old boy......
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ricey46
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Tue Jun 19, 2007 11:11 am

Nice!!! :cool: I'm likin the video, Sounds superb!! winkeye

Excuse the muppet here but whats the EWS?? :o:

Looking good Damion!! :D
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Brianmoooore
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Tue Jun 19, 2007 7:47 pm

ricey46 wrote: Excuse the muppet here but whats the EWS??
BMW's anti theft system, introduced around '96.
Transponder in the key identifies a valid key to the EWS control unit, which than sends a coded signal to switch on the engine ECU.
Very sophisticated! Can even be reprogrammed to exclude one particular key if you have several keys and just lose one.
d6dph
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Tue Jun 19, 2007 8:21 pm

Superb work Dameon. Bit handy with the spanners aint ya! :wink:
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josh-hocking
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Tue Jun 19, 2007 8:58 pm

WOW i wish i could do something like this one day!
good work! :D
im thinking of starting a refurb on my 318i 2 door coupe but need a bit more experience yet!
good luck
josh
ricey46
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Wed Jun 20, 2007 1:10 am

Brianmoooore wrote:
ricey46 wrote: Excuse the muppet here but whats the EWS??
BMW's anti theft system, introduced around '96.
Transponder in the key identifies a valid key to the EWS control unit, which than sends a coded signal to switch on the engine ECU.
Very sophisticated! Can even be reprogrammed to exclude one particular key if you have several keys and just lose one.
Ah ha!! Cheers..... :cool:
Paul.
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jimbob350
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Wed Jun 20, 2007 10:43 am

good work my friend, glad i could be of service....
see i told you it would be worth it in the end, i think that the 200 hrs you have done on it so far are well worth it dude.......
Andy335Touring
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Wed Jun 20, 2007 7:36 pm

very nice :cool:

Puts a bit of a damper on my battery relocation though, no MIG :(
DanThe
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Wed Jun 20, 2007 11:21 pm

Just use the bumper strut stud for the earth lead.
Thats what I did with mine, rub the paint off then bolt the lead on with a load of grease or vaseline 8)
Demlotcrew
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Thu Jun 21, 2007 9:38 am

I welded the right bracket in :eek:

As the early cars/M3s have a double earth point.
Morat
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Thu Jun 21, 2007 10:16 am

So, when are you and ANT setting up in partnership for "The Ultimate Tuning House?"
E30 Touring 0.35 cD - more slippery than prison soap :)

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DanThe
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Thu Jun 21, 2007 7:32 pm

Demlotcrew wrote:I welded the right bracket in :eek:

Sorry Andrew, I didnt mean to offend :)
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DieselMeister
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Wed Jun 27, 2007 10:42 pm

Dameon - please finish the Blue 3.2 quickly so that you can sell me this one. I'm only half joking by the way.

Fantastic work generously shared with the rest of us E30 addicts - :thumb:
old_skool
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Fri Jun 29, 2007 9:50 pm

Alrighty then...

Been a busy week. She is now pretty much finished apart from a few small jobs.

I can't begin to remember every single job I've done - it's been a long week! I have been over everything at least twice; Documented, photographed it, checked it's tight. You name it, I've done it.

The biggest problem I had was bleeding the brakes after the ABS servo had been sat. Bearing in mind that every brake component in the car was completely dry including the servo itself. I could not get the servo to bleed. I could bleed the master cylinder to the servo but that was it. So I did a little research and looked into various methods. The dealer was suggesting that they could put it on their scanner and put the system into bleed mode etc. Bugger that.

So, I grabbed a spare ABS servo and stripped it down to see what made it tick.

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Looking at the way it was wired over a coffee revealed a method of triggering the three servos and running the ABS motor in sequence . So I chopped another ABS plug off a spare car and set to work making a wiring loom. With a few simple modifications I was able to energise the motor and servos which did the trick. This enabled me to pressure bleed the system effectively. The dealer can stick their ABS scanner :)

Pressure bleeding the system for the first time. I re bled the system after this as I was afraid that the fluid would cavitate from the compressed air.

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A few shots of the brake system:

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I also spent a great deal of time making the EWS system work utilising the E30 key. I won't go into too much detail now as there is a whole page full of info regarding this.

Pic of E36 transponder loop fitted into E30, the micrchip/transmitter is inside the E30 key:

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The clutch is now piped and bled. I have also fitted an E36 M3 steering rack using the E36 pipes and modified steering joint ala Ian Haynes marvellous technical article. I have to thank Buster for supplying me with a stainless steel part for the joint. It is so heavy it's untrue! I think he's trying to keep my 1/4 mile times high :D

A few pics of the finished (nearly) article:

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Ride height looks to be the same as standard 325 (for now)

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^^ It's me in the reflection!!

Next job is to trailer her up and then I'm off to BTB on Monday for the trial fitting of the group buy manifolds.

More pics then!
whipsey
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Fri Jun 29, 2007 9:55 pm

i'm liking this a lot :D
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zimmerbimmer1
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Fri Jun 29, 2007 9:58 pm

Top job Copilot

:bow:
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eko
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Fri Jun 29, 2007 10:12 pm

Very nice and your attention to deatail is superb :cool:
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ian332isport
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Fri Jun 29, 2007 10:28 pm

Not bad I spose :wink:
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Fri Jun 29, 2007 10:54 pm

:cool:
Gabi_323i
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Fri Jun 29, 2007 11:20 pm

can you please detail the abs triggering method? i haivng a very hard time bleeding the brakes on a 85 ix with e23 hydraulic servo and master cilinder
DRIFTBOY
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Sat Jun 30, 2007 1:02 am

There should be a cap doffing emoticon!

Very nice indeed sir! :cool:

I can never get my new metal brake pipes that neat! :cry:

Or anything that neat come to think of it! :?
Jeremy Clarkson wrote:...but it drives the front wheels. Theee wrooong wheels!
da4x4turbo wrote:I raced a vivaro on the motorway once in a 318is.... and lost!!!
maxfield
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Sat Jun 30, 2007 1:08 am

You are my hero!
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pete1979
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Sat Jun 30, 2007 2:32 am

top mark 11 out of 10 looks like it came from bmw like that real nice :cool:
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Sat Jun 30, 2007 3:54 am

what a crackin job and good write up would love to see it up close..
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Jhonno
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Sat Jun 30, 2007 7:48 am

where'd you get the audi master cyl from? Im struggling to find the right one atm!
Got cable ties? Get diffin..

Arch roller for hire.

www.zeroexhausts.co.uk

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buster
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Sat Jun 30, 2007 6:10 pm

nice work mate :thumb:
what did the brake fluid bottle come off ?
Also,when bleeding the brakes,do you need to do what you did to the abs unit to bleed it properly ? I've never liked the idea that the pump never gets bled when doing the brakes.I also had all new pipes and mastercylinder to bleed but it seems that it bled ok.

cheers,
andy
old_skool
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Sat Jun 30, 2007 6:23 pm

Jhonno wrote:where'd you get the audi master cyl from? Im struggling to find the right one atm!
PM sent Jhonno
Buster wrote:what did the brake fluid bottle come off ?
Also,when bleeding the brakes,do you need to do what you did to the abs unit to bleed it properly ? I've never liked the idea that the pump never gets bled when doing the brakes.I also had all new pipes and mastercylinder to bleed but it seems that it bled ok.
Cheers Andy,

Reservoir was off a 1984 728i as were the plastic connections to the master cylinder. ABS unit bled ok, then again I did have it all pressurised at 2bar.

I actually drove her a few feet today. The clutch is biting right on the floor, I hope it's just a question of needing more bleeding :?

The clutch looked ok so I'm hopeful :fingerscrossed:
ian332isport
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Sat Jun 30, 2007 7:35 pm

old_skool_2002 wrote:The clutch is biting right on the floor, I hope it's just a question of needing more bleeding :?
They do tend to bite quite close to the floor. Having a braided flexi hose helps a little with this. They are also a pain to bleed properly as well. I ended up unbolting the slave and pushing the piston rod inwards to force the remaining air out. With it bolted in place, I couldn't shift it.

Ian.
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