The 3.2 Alpina Powered Chromie

[DanThe]

If only I could get it to run right........

ECU was moaning about a lambda this morning but then my laptop decided it had had enough and refused to load up Got the lambda changed but still no difference, the fault probably needs clearing but not until I get the puter fixed

[DanThe]

A few pics of the mount I made for the E46 gearbox, this was a bit of a pain as there is just no room, the slots right at the back which are used with an auto box is where I had to mount it. Standard alloy mount is useless here so got busy with some angle iron and the welder

Drivers side first, you can see just how tight it all is



Both painted and bolted up, had to use 2 button head bolts as the rubber mounts need to be so close to the box they would collide with standard bolts



All bolted up with the suppoting brace, this was made from steel plate bent to the shape of the trans tunnel



The E21 rubber mounts were spaced for final fit and reinforced with some alloy cups which restrict the movement (much needed)

If you hadnt noticed the E46 box sits at a different angle, this is the same angle as an M20 box would be when bolted to an M50, approx 10 degrees out, this added to the gear selector hell I had to go through and would rather not mention it as im still having nightmares

If I didnt mention it before the box is from a 320CD sport, I bought this about 4 years ago as it came up at the right price and had only been used for a few thousand miles. The ratios are near enough exactly the same as an E36 Evo box apart from 1st gear which is a little bit shorter

Heres a couple of engine pics for Dezzy

[bss325i]

Nice work Dan!

[Dezzy]

That last pic is

3.2 Alpina 24v Ftfw

[keri-WMS]

I like the brackets!

[Blitz]

I must say that engine bay does look nice.

[Leo_328i]

Mate I am new to this forum and I just read through the whole thread, this is one hell of a sweet E30. The M52 motor looks so right in the E30.

I am curious about your drivetrain setup, what clutch/flywheel are you using with the E46 6-speed gearbox? Is it just standard M52 stuff? Also, hows the length of the gearbox and what drive shaft have you ended up using?

The reason why I ask is because I just started this thread in E36Coupe and you look like you know your stuff!
http://www.bmwowner.com/forum/posting.p ... &p=1786341

Cheers mate

[DanThe]

Im using an M52B28 flywheel/clutch with a custom centre plate, the E46 box has a different input shaft spline and the shaft is also shorter which means the spigot bearing has to be brought backwards into the gearbox using a custom carrier.

The prop is also custom, as is the gearbox mount and the linkage, one thing to be aware of (I wasnt) is that the box sits at a slightly different angle.
The clutch feel could be better, but im getting used to it, I will probably look into using a different clutch at some point as it feels very light. Ive just fed it some Redline MTL fluid which has smoothed out the changes but the real test will be to see how it handles the power of the Alpina lump

Lambda faults have now been dealt with and it runs 'ok' on the 328i ECU but the idle is quite erratic.
Will be working on getting the S52 ECU fitted over the weekend possibly

Oh yeah, it pulls like fook

[irish79]

but you can make it cooler !! i've had the e30is & the 325... but my favourite one to date is the bog 316 chromie..
the long stock gear change, no electric windows, no power steering.. you just know your driving it !! class car .. chromie is cool .

[Alpina99]

Just re-read & "caught up" on updates,
Stunning as ever,

[Daf318is]

I got taken for a brief bimble in this last weekend! The pictures and write up just don't do it justice! given that it had a lambda fault and the wrong ECU it felt quite 'nippy' too

Everything is so clean you could eat your lunch off any part of the car (you might piss Dan off in the process though )

Seriously though - the car is fantastic, epic job Dan

[Cook318IS]

Dan you are a hero. It bet is still shifts even with the b28 management!

[DanThe]

Well its 'nearly' there with the S52 ECU, fault codes for lambdas are now gone, I just need to get the idle speed as smooth as it should be. Drives superb though, 7k rev limit and it doesnt take long to get the odo swinging over to the right hand side

Picked these up yesterday, what do we think?





They turned out much brighter than I expected, im considering having them shot blasted and zinc plated again to give a more textured finish

[Dezzy]

Very bling bling.

I think they look really good mate. Leave them I reckon.

7k is that a little high? I was thinking 6.5ish for mine. Will 7k be ok with my donk?

[DanThe]

Rare goodies here, brand new in the box



Ordered another 2 outer rings from BMW just now @ £20 each, I was too scared to ask for a price on the backing plate as its listed at 90 euros on realoem
Will just get my 2 original ones blasted/coated

[E30BeemerLad]

anything you need on here?

http://www.bmminiparts.com/SearchResult ... 249&Type=P

[DanThe]

Good idea Lee, I normally dont bother with them though as its a bloody chore searching through pages and pages of stuff, gotta be worth a browse

[Dezzy]

Always nice to have new goodies mate.

[Ollie_bwoii]

Filter the search then on parts auction.

They've got a headlight unit I noticed.

[E30BeemerLad]

Filter the search then on parts auction.

They've got a headlight unit I noticed.

Yeah, top right of the page, select Lighting on the drop down menu, there's a set of brand new headlights, but also relector inserts, which may be what you are on about?

[DanThe]

The headlight unit is a LH Bosch, same as I have, the inserts are Hella, mine are Bosch, bloody typical

Ive got £35 worth of fittings/adjusters ordered for front and rear lights and a couple of handbrake parts, I also got the last headlight ring, looks like BMW will be keeping one of their £20 ones

[Andyboy]

How far away from being photo - worthy?

[DanThe]

Shouldnt be long before its finished TBH, im hoping to get to a few shows next month with it completed. Looks like I will be taking a trip to Manchester though for some proper ECU mapping as ive just about had enough of faffing to get it running right

[glenn]

wow!!
just spent best part of an hour reading through this thread. i dont know why i hadn't seen it before now.
quality shell dan !,
and quality work.
the pics from after the tank removal were amazing. the engine has put down good figures too.

[DanThe]

Cheers Glenn

Cant wait to see some figures for the new engine now

[DanThe]

Just got these back from James @ Injectortune



Well impressed with the work, top job James!

Also shocked at how crap they were considering they came out of an engine with under 50k miles! The engine had been in storage for a long time and the injectors were actually stuck shut which was the main reason for me sending them off for servicing

[Dezzy]

Dan can you send me the details so I can send them off mate. I had a look but couldn't see the thing in traders

[DanThe]

http://www.e30zone.net/modules.php?name ... c&t=152878

[Dezzy]

Thanks dude

[town325i]

Bloody hell those injectors where all over the shop

[leeparkes]

Just caught up on this thread, Awesome work Dan

[DanThe]

Ive now got this running spot on with the yank ECU
Turned out there was a sly little air leak hiding away under the manifold/throttle where no amount of WD40 would get near it, loooaads of torque! Smooth as silk in 6th at 1000rpm
WOT in third is immense from 5500-7000rpm

Im well happy

[spook]

Nice one Dan, i look forward to seeing the turd in the flesh, and maybe a go in it

[Cook318IS]

Excellent news dan! When's it going to be dynoed? If i'm ever up around your neck of the woods i need to see this!

[e30topless]

sweeet some great work there Dan now how much do you want for it ?

be good to see how it does at the pod this year