Genuine Bushes Vs Powerflex Bushes?

[N00b]

want an upgraded diff bush, buy a ZM one, it fits on to all e30 diffs be it a small or medium case

Thanks for that.
I'll take your advice when mine is in to be replaced.

[Kos]

Thanks,Kos,I am pleased that you agree that you were wrong to say the poly diff bush came in only two pieces!

I am not offering' advise',or even advice,just passing on years of practical car maintainance experience,it is up to my readers to decide just what they fit to their property.

loving the sarcasm

but, your readers?

i thik you mean forum members

Leave any personal insults out please.

where/what ? dulux paint

The only ones to get from the dealer are the M3 front eccentrics, (about half the price of powerflex)
For rear beam mounts and diff use Febi or Lemforder from eBay, ECP or GSF etc. Superflex for the trailing arms as they are better and a lot cheaper than Powerflex and BMW.

this is now exactly what i have except all the rubber bits came from bmw, i have fitted the same set up to a customers car recently and it came in at around £200 for all the bits.

sense and very good advise from 2 respected forum members

N00b,

you're welcome

to the OP , Jim

i cant see any reason to fit any polly bushes. as a few people have said that there is no gain to be had from then especially on a road car. if anything they are detrimental to the way the car drives. the only ones which have minimal impact in terms of discomfort are ARB bushes and TCA/wishbone ones but the latter are a crap design which are know to fail ( not perish with age but physically fail and cause an accident) so i'd say you are better of with the M3 ones, which are cheaper at the dealers.

hope this healthy debate has helped

[nathyb]

fair play kos i will do what dulux paint tho??

[Morat]

[Kos]

fair play kos i will do what dulux paint tho??

daimlerman used some on his car

It's not pretty...


...but it should be strong!

I have welded steel plate over the rust holes,then seam sealed,primed with a zinc rich primer, followed by a top coat of Dulux 'forrest green'....from the wheel housing side,seamsealed,painted and waxoiled....mucky offwhite furry thing in the foreground of the second piccie is an old towel used to protect the fresh paintwork....

[Jim320i]

Thanks for the info Kos... You say M3 upgrades from the dealer?Is that for every bush or is that for specific ones?

And dulux paint is cheap & does the job. Seals the deal so to speak.

[Kos]

jim , the front wishbone/TCA ones from the M3. you'll need the eccentric ones, as for the ARB bushes, what you need will depend on what size ARS's you have, again superflex have them in varying sizes

the rest should be OEM.

also, another thing worth considering is changing your gearbox and engine mounts. they often get over looked, same with prop doughnuts. they all help give the car a tighter feel

[daimlerman]

Interesting short video here,Jim,take a look!

http://www.e30zone.net/modules.php?name ... c&t=185428

[Jim320i]

Cheers Daimler.


Right, I think I shall hold off on these for a while yet as now i'm after a full 325i motor for a donor... Needs to be rotten as hell so it doesnt cost much... Then gonna go from there.


Need to do some research into rebuilding the engine & gearbox etc etc... DanThe mentioned the 2.8 crank in which is something I need to look at...


Aswell as anything else that will be rebuilt as I want it like new.

[Gortour]

Another thought is a 525e. Often giveaway prices, already 2.7 cranked. 325 cam and head, quick remap and you're away.

[Jim320i]

Hmmm... I think I still need more advise then.


Ideally, I want to buy a donor car as a whole and use pretty much everything I need from that rather than trying to buy everything indivually... The cheaper the better! I just put a wanted add up for a 325i, but you say the 525 goes for cheap...


So...


I want the car to remain an auto...


I want to have everything I need from one car, apart from things like suspension and a few bits like that as I want to spend a bit of cash on upgrading them to something more flashy and better performance.


So, what is my best way to go? I want it to be a start,drop into the chromie too without any welding new mounts or modding too much. Thats why the 325 is ideal....


If anyone can advise me anything from my 'needs' it would be very helpful. As now is the best timefor me to try and get a full motor as they will go stupidly cheap just before xmas, plus I can frag the rest and hopefully make my cash back.

[Gortour]

Really depends what you need from the donor.
If just engine, gearbox, back axel etc, no probs. If you want body parts, trim bits, interior bits, maybe fragging an E30 is the way to go.
Not much value in fragged 5 parts I believe...

[Jim320i]

Dont need anything for interior wise to be honest, its just the engine and gearbox I think... What ever is in the engine and under the car that would need to be changed. Never done owt like this before and while the chromie is off the road, I just want to go all out on her.

[Gortour]

all etas are auto... Some switchable if yours isn't.

[daimlerman]

Stroker,either 2.7 or 2.8,built with torque in mind would suit your need to retain the auto 'box...stock 525e short motor with your 320 sump,your 320 head with a 325 cam,2.7 chip to suit this spec from Ant and you will have a deceptively quick car!
Not much more bhp than a 325 at perhaps 175/180ish,but a shed load more torque just where you want it,between 1500-4000rpm....

[Jim320i]

See... That sounds appealing. What kind of cost am I looking at for all of that above Daimler? Rock bottom price too as I will just hold out until the bits come up cheap enough. (Scrooge, is like santa compaired to me)


I really would prefer to have everything in one go, but if its easier to go that direct then I will consider it...


I do keep getting this voice inside my head saying 'Just rebuild the M20B20', I say little voice, I mean Ollie_Bwoii via pm, but I think he's right at the same time. Just a plain out mint 320i is still cool.

[Gortour]

If you're going to rebuild it, why not make it more torquey and more economical...?

[Jim320i]

I'm very interested in the torque side of it and not so much on top speeds as I dont really go over the spped limit at all... Motor way I sometimes go to 90 but rarely...


Now getting to them speeds is what I am interested in, so how would I go about doing that Gortour?


& sorry for the extremely noobish questions. I would just prefer to know all my options and make the right one to start with.


I know there isnt much I can do with the standard m20b20 so i guess that would rule that out.


But I do like the idea of keeping it oem almost so an engine from a e30 would be more appealing than an e36 or what ever is available.

[Brianmoooore]

The 2.7 M20 can look absolutely identical to the 2.0 M20 from the outside, although it would benefit from using the 2.5 inlet manifold, etc., which looks slightly different.
Wouldn't recommend keeping the small case diff. though.

[Jim320i]

I have a 25 manifold at hand. So thats one bit down...

So, where do I find a 2.7 m20 these days?

And with an auto box, what diff would I need? Diff are something I know absolutely nothign about and how they work...

[Dan320is]

Just to add my 2 penith. The two-piece Powerflex front control arm bushes are rubbish and I've had experience of them coming apart while driving!!!

BMW designed the front control arm bushes to be pressed into the bracket and then pressed onto the arm itself, that's the way they should stay.

The only reason Powerflex made these bushes a two piece design is for easier DIY fitment.

[Kos]

you've had a brown trouser moment then ? doesn't surprise me. i knew some one would come along and confirm what i've said

what diff bush are you running? you had any experience with the powerflex ones failing as well?

[Dan320is]

you've had a brown trouser moment then ? doesn't surprise me. i knew some one would come along and confirm what i've said

what diff bush are you running? you had any experience with the powerflex ones failing as well?

I'm now running a Z3M diff' bush, the previous owner had installed a powerflex item and it fell apart.

[daimlerman]

See... That sounds appealing. What kind of cost am I looking at for all of that above Daimler? Rock bottom price too as I will just hold out until the bits come up cheap enough. (Scrooge, is like santa compaired to me)


I really would prefer to have everything in one go, but if its easier to go that direct then I will consider it...


I do keep getting this voice inside my head saying 'Just rebuild the M20B20', I say little voice, I mean Ollie_Bwoii via pm, but I think he's right at the same time. Just a plain out mint 320i is still cool.

My build cost about £1500 4+ years back,I have found a 3.64 diff to be just about perfect,a trial with a small case 3.46 was less than successfull!
No idea what to suggest to suit an auto,though.

Regarding Powerflex TCA bushes,how long did yours last,Dan?
I've been running them with no issues for 3+ years,now,they outlasted their first car and are now in their second home!

[Gortour]

Jim, if you're looking for economy, then you need the 525 eta, otherwise just get a 325 block, or bore yours out, and use eta, 324 diesel or M50/M52 2.8 crank and 325 cam..

You'll need to keep the eta cam and rear diff too for economy, as the cam makes it rev low and the diff is very high geared. The eta runs at about 1800rpm at 70mph.

Daimlerman has built his with the 2.5 cam for a quicker engine with not much fuel economy improvement. (no offence Malc but Jim has said he's not worried about speed... )

[Jim320i]

I do want a bit of speed, as in getting to the speed, so quick on pull off, not bothered about the top speed though as I will never take it to that kinda speed unless on a track, which is something I havent ever done or going to be starting.


@Daimler - £1500 isnt a bad price at all... I'm gonna be doing it gradually so can probably afford £50-£200 a week depending on what I need to purchase or can just save up for partsthat are more expensive etc...

But like I said, im in no rush and money isnt an issue as i'll be doing it bit by bit so its not like im having to fork it all out in one go.

[daimlerman]

You really need to find out which diff the 325e was supplied with in auto spec,the things went to the USA and Australia for starters.

Eta engine produces about 140bhp as stock,just doing the head/inlet swap puts this up to 175/180bhp,with no significant loss of torque low down,the choice of cam will determine just where in the rev range the power will be.Eta head(200 casting)has narrow ports to suit the eta cam,so is not suitable,without work,for a different cam.Other point to bear in mind with the 200 head is that the cam runs in only 4 bearings,although the bearing are present in the head,the oilways are not!

Seem to remember that 'Monosport' ran a 2.7 with an autobox,his car was sold on by a zoner on behalf of his widow,anyone remember the spec he used?

[Jim320i]

I think I may be a bit out of my depth on this at the minute Malc. I think if someone can link the 2.7 you last mentioned, it would help as it would give me some idea of what everyone is talking about. Aha...

[Kos]

Regarding Powerflex TCA bushes,how long did yours last,Dan?
I've been running them with no issues for 3+ years,now,they outlasted their first car and are now in their second home!

you used USED bushes?

for the sake of £20, would it not seem far wiser to buy a new set ? anyway i dont think you understand what dan said, when they failed it was NOT down to wear and tear, if that happened that would have be his own fault due to lack of maintenance and neglect of the car which is not like dan. they (the shite powerflex bushes) failed because of the design. that's what i've been going on about but you don't seem to understand.............?!

[Kos]

Seem to remember that 'Monosport' ran a 2.7 with an autobox,his car was sold on by a zoner on behalf of his widow,anyone remember the spec he used?

Iain may have some info, but it was built by bexley. it had head work and was rated at over 200bhp. being an auto it was always difficult to run it on the rollers

[Jim320i]

Thanks Kos.

I dont mind the work that will need to go into the project if I go that route, but I do need a 'guide' almost, just so I know where i'm going next...


Just keep thinking about rebuilding the 2 litre though. Just dont know! I would love a bit more power from her though.

[Kos]

NP jim

there have been lots of 2.7 builds on here

the ones that spring to mind are oguz327, jimbobs, simon 13 has lots of info on the the alpina spec 2.7's as he's re building his one. player6 has a highly spec'd 2.8 iirc. pacerpete has built many 2.7's and so has ant. BSS325i will have lots of info on them but he's unable to post for a few more days.
H27iain will have info on Hartge 2.7

spend a bit of time searching and you'll find lots of info

[Gortour]

Spook currently has the Monsport engine in his Hartge copy.
He'll probably know a bit about the spec.

[penton08]

Regarding Powerflex TCA bushes,how long did yours last,Dan?
I've been running them with no issues for 3+ years,now,they outlasted their first car and are now in their second home!

they (the shite powerflex bushes) failed because of the design. that's what i've been going on about but you don't seem to understand.............?!

i think what kos and dan are trying to say is that the two piece design of the front TCA bush is shite, the inner (purple bit) actually pops out of the outer (black bit). leading to brown trousers and possibly a crash. the PBMW boys will vouch for this happening

the 5 piece diff bush is also toilet, as the metal washers eat the bush itself until your left with a couple of loose washers rattling around. this took one month in my case!! the z3m bush has lasted 8 months and looks to be doing fine.

[Simon13]

thing is why use powerflex on the TCA when the M3 items are £20 the pair they're rubber and will outlast the car?

It really is have your cake and eat it. They're even upto track work for most peoples needs