E24 6 series - educate me

[si-]

ok been looking at these for a long time now, and i have a couple of ideas for one, id just like to know more about them in terms of mechanicals and more specifically drivetrain/suspension/brakes/subframes/mounts/wiring etc

engine and gearbox im not to worried about as it may well be coming out anyway

do they share lots/some/anything with any other models?? this sort of info will help me with my parts search

body is easy i can do that bit, and also know the costs of panels parts etc (£500 odd for a new wing for example )

any info would be awesome

cheers

Si.

[Dezzy]

ok been looking at these for a long time now, and i have a couple of ideas for one, id just like to know more about them in terms of mechanicals and more specifically drivetrain/suspension/brakes/subframes/mounts/wiring etc

engine and gearbox im not to worried about as it may well be coming out anyway

do they share lots/some/anything with any other models?? this sort of info will help me with my parts search

body is easy i can do that bit, and also know the costs of panels parts etc (£500 odd for a new wing for example )

any info would be awesome

cheers

Si.

Tells us more, what are your plans for the power plant?

[si-]

something that was meant for my e30, but i like the 6'er more and think that this particular engine is what bmw shouldve put in it...........

[leeparkes]

V8?

[Kos]

what exactly do you want to know?

steering boxes are e24 specific and a PITA if they play up and depending on what engine you have in mind it could cause clearance issues with the exhaust

they share some common parts with the e28 if your e24 is based on the e28's floor pan. an e12 based e24 will be much harder to find parts for

[si-]

V8 would be the one, i have a lovely e34 540 with 85k on it, mint car but i did buy it for the engine, i have a manual 5spd box aswell, basically most of the bits to fit it in the e30, but i just like the big 6 more

id like to know pretty much the sort of stuff you've mentioned, what sort of parts would an e24 car share with the e28? id already guessed that an earlier e12 car would cause more headaches

i didnt realise they were used a steering box set up, would it be possible to retro fit a rack?

are e28's steering box aswell? if not would parts be interchangable?

[leeparkes]

Not sure if id be inclined to keep it auto.

[bss325i]

E28's are also steering box

[si-]

Not sure if id be inclined to keep it auto.

hence the 5spd manual

hmmm guna see if i can figure out if a rack conversion is possible

any more concrete info on what the 6 might share with the e28 would be awesome

[pacerpete]

Everything mechanical INCLUDING the steering box is compatible between the E24 and E28 .
The mechanicals are the least of your problems when searching for a six

[si-]

yup ive found this out today, the floorpans are identical, as are all the bits that fit to it, which makes my life lots easier

the 6 was decribed to me as an e28 in a frock lol

i also got told that the later cars/highlines were built better and had stronger chassis

and rot is the biggest issue by a long way, ideally i need a car with a knackered engine/box and a good body so its a bit cheaper

[Dezzy]

yup ive found this out today, the floorpans are identical, as are all the bits that fit to it, which makes my life lots easier

the 6 was decribed to me as an e28 in a frock lol

i also got told that the later cars/highlines were built better and had stronger chassis

and rot is the biggest issue by a long way, ideally i need a car with a knackered engine/box and a good body so its a bit cheaper

Ha ha ha. Ideally I won the euro millions tonight and pulled Holly Willoughby on the way to collect my winnings.
In reality im sat on the zone, making my beer belly worse, while watching the TV.


Isnt reality a b1tch!

[si-]

you mock but i may have found something

im going to have a look on monday

i said 'good' body, i am a realist, there was recently one on the bay that pretty much fitted the bill and it was a very cool greeny coloured 633

[Dezzy]

you mock but i may have found something

im going to have a look on monday

i said 'good' body, i am a realist, there was recently one on the bay that pretty much fitted the bill and it was a very cool greeny coloured 633

Mock?

Not me my friend. I await a detailed report after you've inspected said turd

[si-]

lol ill keep you updated chuckles

[Kos]

i didnt realise they were used a steering box set up, would it be possible to retro fit a rack?

hi

the rack conversion has been done, once on a race car. a friend has looked into it, and while it may improve the drive of the car, its hard to make it work. the geometry is a PITA

[si-]

yeh ive been looking into it, i think im going to leave that alone for now at least and concentrate on getting the engine in and running

anyone know of a good suspension set up for the 6, there doesnt seem to be a whole lot out there, ideally im after a coilover set up

[Blitz]

What are you using it for?

[Phill172]

Love the six series, id love to have 35d out of a e60/90 in one for daily hack

Have you looked into clutches for the 4.0 with 5 speed box?

[Kos]

suspension wise, it depends on how you are going ti use the car.

coilovers are available in the UK from GAZ and i believe spax may do them if you ask nicely. for a road set up, you need to choose carefully what you go for.

by going too firm, you may find you'll spoil the car. it is big cruiser so what works on an e30 like yellow bilsteins may be too firm for it.

personally, i've gone down the route of sachs Advantage gas shocks with H&R springs. it will be lower than an M635 and slightly firmer but retain its comfort while when pressing on will be tight enough as say a more modern bmw equipped with M tech/sport suspension

[Phill172]

Have a chat with fritz bitz they used to run a black 6 series racer, they really know there stuff and also have a m5 powered one iirc

[si-]

Phil - ive been on the blower to them already, they also have a 6 in atm and they are putting in the 4.4 .........with twin super chargers...... 700+hp is the aim i think they have been very very helpful and it was the phonecall to them that set this idea in concrete for me

clutches is something im dealing with atm, you got any good idea's/lead that you'd like to share??
ive fired an e-mail off to Ireland Engineering in the US as Fritz Bitz said that they do a solid flywheel for this conversion

the car is eventually going to be a track/drift car, cage, fixed bucket, hydro the lot, if im honest ive not had good experiences with GAZ i find them WAY to crashy and stiff, this car will be used on the road and last time i had GAZ shocks on the E30 i nearly threw up - seriously!!back in the day i had them on my turbo'd CRX i had them they were a horrible ride, sold them cheap and bought Tein's, so im not to enthusiastic about spending £800 on them again

that daily hack idea sounds good, but ill just have to stick with my 330d and get the v8 done

[Phill172]

Si - shall pm you

[Kos]

if you are not happy with gaz, maybe have a word with spax. while i have given them a lot of negative comments in the past, dips346 has a set of their coilvers made up for his e38 and its pretty decent. not at all crashy imo

[si-]

have they got to be special order from spax then? how do i go about that?

[Andyboy]

A good rot free E24 wants leaving standard. No need to modify it past a good set of Bilsteins and M535i springs.

[si-]

true, for someone thats going subtle on a nice 6.......... im not lol, its going to be tracked/drifted so suspension is a major concern which is going to need more than just some new shocks and springs

thing is i know the purists are not going to like this car to much, but i have a theory, for every 6 thats well kept, polished, wrapped in cotton wool, there are 5 others rotting into the ground, so i figure is better to build one thats different to the norm than letting it go to the scrapyard in the sky

[Kos]

have they got to be special order from spax then? how do i go about that?

They will need a pair of struts to do the job, id give them a call and if they are going to play ball and can do a set first and at what cost.

[Andyboy]

Get a pair of struts with rotten spring cups for free, cut the spring cups off, sandblast them end weld on the Rally Design threaded coil over sleeves which are about 50-60 quid iirc. Then use Bilstein B6 or B8 inserts and suitable poundage coils - I'd say around 350-400 lbs. End result is a proper pair of coil overs with quality shocks.

[Kos]

Get a pair of struts with rotten spring cups for free, cut the spring cups off, sandblast them end weld on the Rally Design threaded coil over sleeves which are about 50-60 quid iirc. Then use Bilstein B6 or B8 inserts and suitable poundage coils - I'd say around 350-400 lbs. End result is a proper pair of coil overs with quality shocks.

not a bad idea, i'd do the same for an e30

[si-]

now that sounds like a plan

how about the rears as they're not the same strut set up

[si-]

Update

after much searching, looking, visits, missing out on ive managed to purchase this little beauty




89 csi auto, some history, 143k, dry stored for the past 6 yrs, theres some rot in the front wings but tbh i expected it for my budget i can get it sorted (properly) she goes well, slight bubbles on the rear arches but aside from that solid as a rock, well pleased been driving her about a bit just need to change the horrid wheels. i reckon i got a bargin and probably paid about 6-700 quid less than its worth

the 540 is being broken up and im collecting the parts to get the conversion under way.

[spook]

Nice Sharknose

[leeparkes]

Cool chariot, keep us updated on your progress.

[spook]

A nice set of wheels will set that car off nicely. Is it Black or Macau Blue, my eyes are going.

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