Henna Red M3 Restoration, almost done !

[kieran325]

Sheffield

[beardymat]

Based in sheffield.

Thanks to everyone who posts compliments, its really appreciated.

[Cypriotgeeza]

cheers guys, will be in touch!

[kman82]

that repair looks amazing! how many hours has it taken you to do that wing? It looks like weeks of work

[e30topless]

Awesome Matt,
nice new stamped Jacking pads they look great !!
I knew leaving that decision with you would end up being the right choice.. you just can't steer away from making it as BMW intended can you ?

when things aren't as hectic as they are at the minute, I will nip down for a nosy

[beardymat]

Its difficult to say really, Id love to be able to spend all day on these as i really enjoy it but its not possible due to the flow of work but i reckon there is three solid days work there assuming an eight hour day with no distractions. Dont forget im now 35 years old and have been beating cars since leaving school so have a little experience.

[billgatese30]

Dont forget im now 35 years old and have been beating cars since leaving school so have a little experience.

You old b*stard you...

Fact of the day, I'm officially 11 years younger than you


Back on topic though, good work as always Matt.

[capri_rob]

Epic work matt

[HartgeH27]

Simply awesome work Matt, fantastic !

[RM2186]

That is just stunning Matt, remember when you, Steve and I discussed a bit of welding on my Tech 1 down at Steve's unit

Just holler when you have the time mate, cos I am well impressed with the work you are doing on the Henna beastie.

[fozzymandeus]

This work is amazing!

I always wondered about RHD converted cars and all that poking about in the bulkhead required but I had no idea such devilry could occur, however your repair panel fab and your welding is just fantastic!

[Dezzy]

As always Matt, fooking top draw.

[Duke137]

[Kos]

Good work

But i can't help but think it may have been easier to use new inner front wings as i did on my shit heap

[beardymat]

It certainly would have been easier Kos but less fun and a lot more costly, They have jumped in price since you bought yours i suspect also and we had to stop spending somewhere or else there wouldnt be anything left for labour.

Jacking points for sale Matt? They look really good I'd be interested in at least a couple and possibly 4

Could be, Dont really know at what cost though. Whats your bid?

[pacerpete]

Amazing work as always Matt. I am looking forward to seeing you getting your hammer and grinder
to Steves 333i !

Great to see 'jacking' pads being replaced. Whenever I see a car without them, no matter how tidy the repair is, it screams cheapskate bodge.

[Ziggy]

Mad skillz!

Have you got any more 'during' pics of any of the patches before grinding the welds back?

[Dezzy]

Great to see 'jacking' pads being replaced. Whenever I see a car without them, no matter how tidy the repair is, it screams cheapskate bodge.

I half agree with this pete. If Matts doing it then you know it will be done right. I just dont like the idea of the water trap being put back on after all that graft

[DanThe]

Epic work yet again, utter heroics on that inner wing!

I would have lost interest after opening the bonnet with that one

[beardymat]

Thanks again for the compliments guys. I must admit its a little bit of a show off job this one to let people know that anything is possible. There was talk of reshelling the car in the early stages but where do you find a rust free M3 shell for sensible money??

Got the bulkhead doner dropped off today and although that will still need therapy round the jacking pads its nowhere near as bad as the existing bodge up and its always more pleasant a task if youre the first one in there.

Have you got any more 'during' pics of any of the patches before grinding the welds back?

I dont tend to keep taking pics as its just a case of tack welding and then cooling until you join the gaps, you kind of get a rythem going so dont stop. Ill try and take a pic on the next one i do, just have to make sure the welding is neat

[Rav335uk]

Is it done yet??

[Cloggy Saint]

It's very encouraging to see the quality of Matt's work, especially as I'm shipping my touring over to him next week for similar repairs

[bss325i]

Great to see 'jacking' pads being replaced. Whenever I see a car without them, no matter how tidy the repair is, it screams cheapskate bodge.

I half agree with this pete. If Matts doing it then you know it will be done right. I just dont like the idea of the water trap being put back on after all that graft

Its not a water trap as such, more a mud trap but if its clean and waxoiled then it wont rust.

Mine are like new.

[Dezzy]

Mine are ok too mate.
Not many people take care of there cars to that extent though do they?

[Duke137]

It certainly would have been easier Kos but less fun and a lot more costly, They have jumped in price since you bought yours i suspect also and we had to stop spending somewhere or else there wouldnt be anything left for labour.

Jacking points for sale Matt? They look really good I'd be interested in at least a couple and possibly 4

Could be, Dont really know at what cost though. Whats your bid?

I haven't a perrywinkle blue! how much did they cost you? thats my bid plus post

What else can they do?

[Simon13]

i think what were missing here is this an area that is constantly blasted with road sh!t EVERY time you drive the car from the front wheel. Add 10 owners and 20 years before you get your hands on the car and thats why they are all like they are now!

[e30topless]

i think what were missing here is this an area that is constantly blasted with road sh!t EVERY time you drive the car from the front wheel. Add 10 owners and 20 years before you get your hands on the car and thats why they are all like they are now!

^^ this !

not to forget the flap of steel in front of the jacking pad is where the inner wheel arch plastics bolt on to, without them it would be flapping about !

they may be rust/moisture traps but this car won't have rust problems again, not for a long time, I doubt it will get used much and it certainly won't see rain or winter !

[bss325i]

Epic body work by the way Matt.

If and when i need a rusty shitter of an E30 welding up its coming your way.

[Simon13]

best get it booked in now then Barry

TBH the steel on the jacking pad is really quite thick but the floor pan its spot welded to is very thin. They rust the floor pan out first. By the time the the hole is there the hole area is fooked and the pad is hanging off

[Ziggy]

Have you got any more 'during' pics of any of the patches before grinding the welds back?

I dont tend to keep taking pics as its just a case of tack welding and then cooling until you join the gaps, you kind of get a rythem going so dont stop. Ill try and take a pic on the next one i do, just have to make sure the welding is neat

Cheers! Hopefully not too neat - I want to feel like it's achievable rather than totally out of reach compared to my efforts!

[scott180gtb]

Welding porn right there. Pass me the Kleenex!

[Dezzy]

Welding porn right there. Pass me the Kleenex!

Scott its going to get a hole lot more messy before this one is finish

[appletree]

Top work there Matt, if i hadn't have gone into engineering i would have loved to trained as a panel beater, one of them jobs were when its done right its awasome

Have you measured them seat brackets yet ?

[e30topless]

bit of an update,
sadly with Matts workload ect, this turd may not see the road this year, poss may catch the back end of summer ?

anyway I stole the USB stick from his laptop, after I heard a rumour he was keeping pics to himself,

Bulkhead, is rotten to the core

so as it was always a RHD conversion from a few months old and it is to stay this way (bring on the Haterzz )





it was decided to fit the RHD bulkhead associated parts from a donor touring, and do away with the previous Hartge bodgery, that way it will all bolt up nicely Look proper and make my life a bit easier when I stick the control bits back in !:D
to try and make it look as factory as possible

comparison to the donor one...



new one grafted in, major improvement,



just the other side to do now

so onto the floor area,

Matt has really pulled this off, going for the " factory look "
this turd has tested his metal skills, and the end result is looking very good,

rot cut out..

the offending piece...


new inner sill part grafted in..


again the donor comes to the rescue,




and finished,


very few E30 owners have a piece of metal that looks like this !


and here is the finished Jacking pad area, replicated nicely

[Dezzy]

There is no doubt about it, Matt is the best E30 panel beater out there.

Totally unbelievable skill level. Amazing work!