Here we go again.... M3 this time...

[Split_S]

Not exactly a "minor resto" like the iS was but slowly getting started
on the M3!

Finally decided to completely remove the AC as it was all rusted and
the compressor and fan were both shot. Honestly about 25kg of crap
removed! Not too hard to do but removing the electric fan and radiator was
tricky.. you can see the fan dangling in some of the pics...

Bonnet removed, going to sand and repaint it...


Easier access..


Cam lobes are in great shape..


Where all the AC stuff was removed...


This is what came out...along with a mouse' nest between the radiators.
I sh*t you not!


Front end out too and front bumper.
Totally different removal process from a regular e30.. (easier!)
This will be sanded and repainted... I cant wait.. (sarcasm implied!)


Dangling fan.. completely seized... Also note wheels off..Going to
swap the original springs back in to soften the ride a wee bit..


Will remove the alternator and get it rebuilt... I hate rust.


Valve cover...getting it looking new again will be fun...


Right now getting started on a valve job (shim gap check), plug change
and renewal of the valve cover.
I will also drain the coolant and change a few hoses and the reservoir.
I will also change the power steering components and the oil cooler hoses.
I will also rebuild the transmission linkages to tighten up the stick feel.

All in all a bit of a half-assed effort but I cant spare the M3 for the 2 years
it will take to do everything I want to.

Not yet anyway!

[E30spud]

Subscribed

[Tedswagon]

Hopefully you do this justice, not like that half assed effort you did on the 318is

Only messin - subscribed!

[BMG]

Come one, pull that M3 apart ...
Rebuilding the alternator is an easy job and I've got great results using VHT black wrinkle paint on my valve cover. Looking forward to seeing the results.

[Kryptonite]

I'm in for the long haul.

[mineralblue]

marvellous

[M42]

Great work.
Was it difficult taking the air con out? I'm thinking of doing the same to mine. Iv heard people having problems with heating after removal.

[M42]

Great work.
Was it difficult taking the air con out? I'm thinking of doing the same to mine. Iv heard people having problems with heating after removal.

[Split_S]

No, it was very straightforward. Trickiest part was removing the radiator in the front grill. Had to remove the fan first and then shimmy the rad out.
Not sure why there would be issues with heating as they are two separate systems. Not an issue for me as it's a summer car only and it has heated seats for those early fall mornings...

I did complete the valve clearance check and lucky me EVERY SINGLE F'ing shim is out of spec. And not too thin from wear - nope, someone put in shims that are too thick! My guess is it was done in hopes of quieting the engine. Insanity I know! So, as the shims I have are all too thick to ever achieve spec clearance of .28-.33mm I have to buy 16 new ones. There's a few hundred $$ not going to my kids college fund...

Good times...

[Split_S]

Come one, pull that M3 apart ...
Rebuilding the alternator is an easy job and I've got great results using VHT black wrinkle paint on my valve cover. Looking forward to seeing the results.

My plan exactly!

[Jesus325iTouring]

More resto insanity

[Cook318IS]

Looks pretty tidy! I always imagined Canadian E30s to be rustier than ours! Where abouts in Canada are you?

[Split_S]

She is. I think Canadian M3s are in better shape than their UK siblings as ours are stored away for 5 months of the year thru fall and winter. They'd all be long gone if they had been winter driven.

Having said that, she does need a proper strip down and going over but as I stated in the original post: not yet!

[Speedtouch]

I did complete the valve clearance check and lucky me EVERY SINGLE F'ing shim is out of spec. And not too thin from wear - nope, someone put in shims that are too thick! My guess is it was done in hopes of quieting the engine. Insanity I know! So, as the shims I have are all too thick to ever achieve spec clearance of .28-.33mm I have to buy 16 new ones. There's a few hundred $$ not going to my kids college fund...

Good times...

Can't your existing thick ones be milled down to the correct size?

[Split_S]

Maybe - but I doubt it would cheaper. When it comes to the S14, Ive accepted that things will get expensive. This is not hugely expensive, just an unexpected expense. Thats why Im only doing a few odds and ends - I dont want things spiraling out of control... again... hehe...

[Kedge]

Can someone make this a Sticky?

[Split_S]

Definitely a bit early for that! Once I start tearing her apart for real then it would be cool having two stickies to my credit! This thread will only be a few odds and ends.

M3 lite porn for all...

[DanThe]

I did complete the valve clearance check and lucky me EVERY SINGLE F'ing shim is out of spec. And not too thin from wear - nope, someone put in shims that are too thick! My guess is it was done in hopes of quieting the engine. Insanity I know! So, as the shims I have are all too thick to ever achieve spec clearance of .28-.33mm I have to buy 16 new ones. There's a few hundred $$ not going to my kids college fund...

Good times...

Can't your existing thick ones be milled down to the correct size?

There are valve shims the same diameter available for a couple of £ each, no need to bend over the BMW counter

[Split_S]

Too late... I've bent over that counter so many times I've worn grooves into it...

The parts guy was actually laughing at how expensive everything was. He thought I was quite daft to be spending that amount of money...

Sadly I realize it s quite expensive to keep you lot entertained!!

You'd think I could get some zone stickers sent to me or something...

Btw,
Parts won't arrive for another 2 weeks so it may take a bit of time to get some updates in...

[DanThe]

How much?

[Split_S]

Too much...of course...

For example: bought three replacement coolant hoses. First was 40$, next was 60$ and the smallest was 170$. No logic to it and no choice either as they are specific to the m3. Three little hoses, 270$ or about
165£.

Like I said: Too much!

[Split_S]

Very busy with work but took a short break today and worked on the beast.

Managed to get the airbox off.. not so straight-forward as I thought but slow and steady got her free..



She is in quite good shape but I will have her bead blasted and will repaint her along with the valve cover.



I took the trumpets off too..it seemed to be the only way to free the airbox from the lower bracket it was bolted to.. You have no idea how much it bothers me that there's surface rust on everything... no idea...



Trumpets...





Throttle body...



Now I have a bunch of seals to buy...great...





Alternator is still in there but if you guys knew how much OTHER stuff I have to do you be wondering what the hell Im doing working on the car!



Power steering lines are in good shape..just surface oxidation I will clean up..
Lines on the left are to the oil cooler.. they will get the same treatment..



Im also going to bin this cruise control (in an e30 M3!! Insane!) - it never worked anyways.



That's it...

Quality time with my baby...

[bss325i]

I actually retro fitted cruise to my M3. For those long jaunts to the the Ring.

A/C wil also be retained in mine.

[Split_S]

Hi Barry... My car will never see the Ring unfortunately...for geographical reasons...

Since both AC and cruise weren't working in mine so it's an easy decision to remove them. They are both going in a box in the backyard shed as one never knows...

You've been doing any work on your car lately?

[bss325i]

Always keep the parts as you never know! A lesson i have learned the hard way in the past.

No real updates on mine other that buying to some upgrades for it which i have not had time to fit but it is out and being used now the weather is better.

[BMG]

Is that power steering belt on the right way ? Looks like the toothed side of the belt is outwards.

[Split_S]

No mate.. you had me wondering so I checked it out.. just the style of belt...

[StuB]

Great work, enjoying the updates. My sister lives in Canada so I know how harsh the winters are and wouldn't want to be driving a 1980s BMW over there for fear of losing it in a snow drift!

[Split_S]

Thanks mate... not much really, just a few odds and ends. Will update soon showing the good times to be had doing a shim clearance check on the mighty S14...

[Split_S]

So here is a quick rundown of a valve job on the s14. Its actually a gap check for the shims..

Said shims: These little guys are quite pricey (I know they can be had cheaper!) and come in different thicknesses, gradations of .05mm.



They sit below the cam and must be checked periodically to ensure the clearance between the lobe of the cam and the shim/bucket is within spec. 0.28mm-0.33mm COLD if you must know.

Obvioulsy you have to remove the valve cover and the spark plugs first.
Then, using a 36mm socket rotate the engine till the point of the first set of cam lobes are 90 degrees to the shims like so..



Then, using a feeler gauge note the width of the gap. Continue doing this for all 16 shims, always rotating the engine to place the lobes up prior to measuring. Remove the out of spec shims and measure them, recording their width. Then put them back in place prior to rotating the engine for the next measurement. With that done a little math must be used to figure out the required shim width (if out of spec).

Its pretty simple..
Add the measured valve gap to the measured shim thickness and subtract the desired valve gap to get the new shim thickness. For example, if a valve gap measured 0.38mm, and the shim measured 3.6mm, and the desired gap was 0.28mm (any value between .28-.33mm is okay), the new shim would measure: 0.38 + 3.6 - 0.28 = 3.70mm. Thus, the new shim would need to be 3.70mm thick. Simple no?

You can see the shims and the rings here..note the lobes are pointy end up..



A special tool is needed to remove the shims and you can see it here.. What it does is push down on the rings that hold the shim in place, allowing the shim to be removed. There are two ends to the tool. The wider one is for the intake cam. Here it is in position..



and all the way down..



Before placing the tool in position, rotate the rings so the indents are off to the side..



When you place your tool and press down the rings will rotate towards it, like so..



What you've done is made it easier to place your air nozzle in that ring gap and using compressed air blow the shim free.



Use a magnet to grab the shim (not shown)



Once you've gone thru the entire set of shims and done your math you can then order the required shims, noting that you may be able to move some around. Its very important that you actually measure the thickness of the shim and not just rely on the value printed on it.. duh...

Unfortunately for me the PO had used shims that were ALL TOO thick. I had to replace 14 of them to get everything back to spec. I think he wanted a quieter engine....

A useless post no doubt but if a dummy like me can do it....

[Gert_8]

That was a brilliant write up! thanks.

[Split_S]

M3 is still on jackstands but spring is decidedly wet this year so no worries...

With the valve cover off for the shim check I knew it was high time to refurb it..

Lots of oxidation on the lettering and old paint..


Was going to get her bead blasted by a friend but could never find the time...so I
did it old school..


Came out ok..


Airbox got the same treatment..




Again pretty good results..

[Split_S]

One thing I hate more than taxes is oil leaks.

Specifically, E30 oil leaks.

Hate 'em.

And my M3 leaks.

Having some bits of the engine off gave me a pretty good view of where ONE of my
leaks is coming from (I may have two, hard to tell).

The distributor housing. Hidden under that plastic housing where the plug wires run
into.


Here you can see it better with the cap and rotor removed..


The rotor is bolted to the exhaust cam. The housing has an o-ring and an inner
cam seal. I believe it was the outer o-ring that was allowing oil to flow out of
the cylinder head and all over my engine...


Inner rotor backplate removed..


Housing removed..you can see the oil seal in place..


Outer o-ring.. Pay attention: there is a test on this later..


Now for one of my typical "No talent" solutions I've been known to polute this forum with...more speccifically, oil seal removal without a press..




With the new seal and oring in and all cleaned up..



And for the grand finale... drum roll please....

[Speedtouch]

Very nice looking result - good work. But, is that throttle cable a bit slack, and why the odd angle it operates through, or is it supposed to be like that?

If you look at this one, the cable run is straighter:


I notice some also have what appear to be two throttle cables, though I'm guessing one is for cruise control...

[Split_S]

The cable is slack because it's disconnected...

The second cable is for cruise control - I'm removing mine as it doesn't work and I can't
Think of ever needing it in the M3!