B3 3.2 Touring its suddenly getting old

[DanThe]

£350 sounds like quite a sensible way progress for now, but if you are hoping this car is going to become a sought after classic you will be best keeping your eyes peeled for an original Alpina head.

Keeping your eyes peeled for another B3 3.2 head? Are you serious? He would have more chance of winning the lottery!

[Rodderz]

£350 sounds like quite a sensible way progress for now, but if you are hoping this car is going to become a sought after classic you will be best keeping your eyes peeled for an original Alpina head.

Keeping your eyes peeled for another B3 3.2 head? Are you serious? He would have more chance of winning the lottery!

Yes, B3's will reach a time when some are not worth saving and will be broken! Fact.

[bss325i]

Happy days! £350 is far more realistic than an £800 head or sensible than a complete 2.8 engine.

[DanThe]

£350 sounds like quite a sensible way progress for now, but if you are hoping this car is going to become a sought after classic you will be best keeping your eyes peeled for an original Alpina head.

Keeping your eyes peeled for another B3 3.2 head? Are you serious? He would have more chance of winning the lottery!

Yes, B3's will reach a time when some are not worth saving and will be broken! Fact.

Of course they will and do get broken, but how likely do you think it will be that a good working head will be sold separate from the rest of the engine?

[Simon13]

zero chance, if your fickle enough not to buy an alpina because of what i've done head wise then..................well theres no pleasing some. We all want the previous owners to buy all their parts/service their cars from the main dealer but when the milege,years and owners rack up this doesn't happen.

[Rodderz]

Fickle? My point exactly, that is the classic car market! I'm not having a go, it is rock solid advice.

[Demlotcrew]

Si, from day one ive been telling you to repair the Alpina head and run that, I still think its not the best idea of using a head thats been reworked, but its your decision and for you its the best one.

[leeparkes]

Id rather have a reworked head to the standard of Alpina's spec (if not better) than a head thats seen the welder more than once you would be constantly paranoid about it going pop again.
If matching numbers and originality are a problem just keep the pina head on the shelf ready if you ever want to sell.

Good choice.

[DanThe]

Matching numbers are for gays

[bss325i]

A set of stamps and no one would know the difference.

[leeparkes]

Borrow Trevs stamping kit....

Edit:too slow.

[Demlotcrew]

Trev has the correct font stamps, ike can copy and improve on a Alpina head for £350, now I've heard it all

[Rodderz]

For £350 you are doing the right thing for now. As for the Alpina head, it may have been welded before, but by who? Did they know what they were doing?

What's the cost of getting it redone? £100? £200 tops? Personally, I would give it a go!

[universal]

why stamp the new head at all? if your not worried about matching numbers or it being a genuine head!

[B7]

why stamp the new head at all? if your not worried about matching numbers or it being a genuine head!

It's the detailing that counts.

Can't see the issue here.

I've seen Ikes work and by the time he's finished with it, it will be as per when the original came out of Buchloe. Look at the comparisons of the new head to the old. Exactly the same part numbers and casting. Yes I have stamps of a similar font (although I wouldn't recommend stamping that close to the face).

if it wasn't all over here no one (and I mean no one) would know the difference.

Take that scenario over re welding an already failed welded head, it's a no brainer to me. Says to me the owner wanted the job done properly. I'd buy it.

[Kedge]

What's the cost of getting it redone? £100? £200 tops? Personally, I would give it a go!

Easy to say when it's not your own time and money and you won't be using the car daily.

Take that scenario over re welding an already failed welded head, it's a no brainer to me. Says to me the owner wanted the job done properly. I'd buy it.

Plus as a buyer wouldn't you prefer to know that what you're buying has an undamaged head that's been reworked rather than a cracked head repaired, you'd have the same worries as Simon would using it as a dailly.......will it go again!?!?! Just stick the original in the loft and if you come to sell the car it's there to be sold with it.

[Demlotcrew]

Come on guys, ive had heads welded on much more powerful engines that are still going strong today, I dont buy it for one second that a repaired head is worse than a worn one.

Simon still doesnt know if the seats or guides of the 'good' head are any good, where as the Alpina head had all of that done.

Trev, when Simons 'replica Alpina' head came back, the guides were not checked and were badly worn (i would never run that, and if you remember rightly i pointed that out when the head was at Ace Cafe), the head ports looked similar yes, but its not enough to simply look at the ports and say they are exactly the same or better as the human eye is not a valid measure, you should know that better than most!

"if it wasn't all over here no one (and I mean no one) would know the difference. "

That applies to a welded head also

So as a prospective buyer, the future sale of this car is tarnished either way, why not limit the damage and keep the original head on the car.

[pacerpete]

Come on guys, ive had heads welded on much more powerful engines that are still going strong today, I dont buy it for one second that a repaired head is worse than a worn one.

Simon still doesnt know if the seats or guides of the 'good' head are any good, where as the Alpina head had all of that done.

Trev, when Simons 'replica Alpina' head came back, the guides were not checked and were badly worn (i would never run that, and if you remember rightly i pointed that out when the head was at Ace Cafe), the head ports looked similar yes, but its not enough to simply look at the ports and say they are exactly the same or better as the human eye is not a valid measure, you should know that better than most!

"if it wasn't all over here no one (and I mean no one) would know the difference. "

That applies to a welded head also

So as a prospective buyer, the future sale of this car is tarnished either way, why not limit the damage and keep the original head on the car.

Come on Andrew, it's not a Sport Evo !

[Demlotcrew]

Peter, it's no 316 four door either.

[gooner1]

why stamp the new head at all? if your not worried about matching numbers or it being a genuine head!

It's the detailing that counts.

Can't see the issue here.

I've seen Ikes work and by the time he's finished with it, it will be as per when the original came out of Buchloe. Look at the comparisons of the new head to the old. Exactly the same part numbers and casting. Yes I have stamps of a similar font (although I wouldn't recommend stamping that close to the face).

if it wasn't all over here no one (and I mean no one) would know the difference.

Take that scenario over re welding an already failed welded head, it's a no brainer to me. Says to me the owner wanted the job done properly. I'd buy it.

Sorry Trev, have to agree with "universal"] here.

Stamping the Head would be verging into ataesgue behaviour.
I fully accept that that is not the intention, and the motive behind it is totally different but the fact remains that the reworked Head would in essence become a "fake" if it were to be stamped.
At least, that could be the perception.
I just don't see the point.

[Demlotcrew]

Personally, i would throw £350 at welder than at someone who will rough up the ports.

Its not only £350, i think this will cost Simon close to £700 just to get the engine running.

[HairyScreech]

if anyone wants a true acid test of either head im happy to flow bench both of them.

[Andyboy]

The head needs to go to an expert - and that's Corry's. If they say the head can't be successfully repaired then it's scrap. It all depends how deep the crack goes - just welding up the visible bit is a waste of time if the crack is too deep for the weld to fully penetrate.

The next buyer of this car won't give a monkeys. There are plenty of Alpina saddos to discuss it on forums ad infinitum but I bet the Guy getting the coins out won't be too bothered. With the miles the car has done, genuine - v - replica head = who gives a toss? Yes it's rare, but it's not particularly valuable.
As a nice daily tram, £500 is better spent on petrol and tax discs.

[bss325i]

With the miles the car has done, genuine - v - replica head = who gives a toss? Yes it's rare, but it's not particularly valuable.
As a nice daily tram, £500 is better spent on petrol and tax discs.

This is the point i have been trying to make all along.

[B7]

With the miles the car has done, genuine - v - replica head = who gives a toss? Yes it's rare, but it's not particularly valuable.
As a nice daily tram, £500 is better spent on petrol and tax discs.

This is the point i have been trying to make all along.

And a very valid one.

If it was a 50k miles car i may think differently but with the mileage it has done, we don't know what the bottom ends like either? or the drive train, or the suspension. it may turn out to be the bargain of the century. It may turn out to be a money pit. And to throw 800 sheets at a potential money pit IMO would be madness.

And Simon should have a pretty good idea what the replacement head is like as I believe (Si correct me if I'm wrong) it came from a nicosil issue car which had been known / in the family for years with a damn sight lower miles that the welded head on this car has done.

Thing people are forgetting is that the original casting is not going in the bin. It will no doubt go on the racking and be stored flat. If Si gets a twinge in his pants at a later date about putting the original head back on, he can. I somehow think though he'll have better things to spend his 800 quid on. When the sale of the car comes up, he can supply the original head with it just in case the buyer wants to do the resto back to original.

Point is, we'll never agree so time to put it back on track I feel

[B7]

why stamp the new head at all? if your not worried about matching numbers or it being a genuine head!

It's the detailing that counts.

Can't see the issue here.

I've seen Ikes work and by the time he's finished with it, it will be as per when the original came out of Buchloe. Look at the comparisons of the new head to the old. Exactly the same part numbers and casting. Yes I have stamps of a similar font (although I wouldn't recommend stamping that close to the face).

if it wasn't all over here no one (and I mean no one) would know the difference.

Take that scenario over re welding an already failed welded head, it's a no brainer to me. Says to me the owner wanted the job done properly. I'd buy it.

Sorry Trev, have to agree with "universal"] here.

Stamping the Head would be verging into ataesgue behaviour.
I fully accept that that is not the intention, and the motive behind it is totally different but the fact remains that the reworked Head would in essence become a "fake" if it were to be stamped.
At least, that could be the perception.
I just don't see the point.

No ones trying to hide anything here. it's not ringing, it's not even changing the engine number. Its a detail.

It will always be a replica head (I don't like the word fake) as the man in the brown coat in Buchloe never fettled it.

[bss325i]

When we fit brand new replacement engines at work they have the original engine number stamped into them.

[Dezzy]

When we fit brand new replacement engines at work they have the original engine number stamped into them.

Thats because they are brand new though surely?

[bss325i]

When we fit brand new replacement engines at work they have the original engine number stamped into them.

Thats because they are brand new though surely?

Yes that it right but its still a different engine.

[Dezzy]

Yes a brand new engine. Not a x amount of miles re machined head.


I have no problem with whatever Si does, his car , his decision.

I get why he'd stamp it. More for the look than to lift anyones leg.

You can't compare a brand fire new donk, to stamping a rework second hand head in your garage!!

[bss325i]

So if Simon bought a brand new Alpina head that would be ok to stamp it with the same number as the old head?

[Dezzy]

So if Simon bought a brand new Alpina head that would be ok to stamp it with the same number as the old head?

Yeh i'd say so.

Its brand new, and Alpina.

I dont have a problem with stamping the re worked head personally. I just see where others who have are coming from

[HairyScreech]

just to add something here, there are many engines i have worked on that have revisions during there life time, now this means that an engine fitted "new" at a later date with the correct engine numbers may well have significant internal differences.

lets take a 325 sport tech 1, if that had had a "new" bmw engine in 88 or 89 then that would have been a low comp donk surely?
should that have the same engine numbers?

[bss325i]

Nope, it would have and still would get the correct 256E1 engine. Different part numbers listed.

[HairyScreech]

ok, was 50/50 if that would have been the case, but still my point stands, bmw may be good enough to fit the correct model engine but there are many dealers and manufacturers that would just take the first one in stock or the only one they currently produce.