Crashed it !!!

[parkin10]

So after 11 years of ownership I just didn't bother to look twice while making a right turn at the top of my street and bumped into a passing car
My bad
Just glad it wasn't a biker the other guy was a decent sort and I have good insurance

I reasoned that my insurance would write off my e30 and they weren't going to let me have the salvage so I had to do a repair myself
Here's some pictures

Trying to line up some panels


Coming together now

And back on the road


It's had,
Front wing
Front valance
Bumper complete
Grill corner
Fog lamp
Radiator
Radiator fan
Water pump
Cam belt
Cam belt tensioner
4 brake discs and pads
Hand brake shoes and fittings
2 Tires
Wheels refurbished
I managed to repair the bonnet and headlamp
I'm fairly pleased with the repair till next week when I'll crash it again

[mineralblue]

nice one

[magpie]

good work

[martauto]

Nice one mate, how long were you making repairs?

Mart.

[bss325i]

Well done for saving it.

[parkin10]

It's hard to say how long
Made a start just to see how it would come
The chassis legs were pushed over to the driver's side
Once it paneled up something reasonable I had to save up for all those while your there parts and the wheel refurb
Bumped it on may 11th been driving it a week now

Thanks for the comments

[Nolly]

Great repair! You would never even know

[parkin10]

Great repair! You would never even know

That depends on who you are
Basically its now got two non genuine wings on it so as the first bloke I ever worked for use to say "thats got Ford gaps"
It has only ever been a tidy car ,got interstellar mileage and seen every winter it's ever been registered that's a lot of use
Only a bmw could see that kind of thing and sill pull like a train

[Cloggy Saint]

That looks like a cracking job, especially saving the bonnet! Does it still drive true after the chassis leg tweaking?

[Speedtouch]

Nice work, but a new front number plate would add the finishing touch.

[parkin10]

It looked to me that it was damaged after were the engine cross member bolts up
The only way to be sure is of course to measure the car on a jig
But to answer cloggy's question drives just like it did before,so I already hooning around in it
Only a matter of time
A buddy of mine loaned me a merc 300d w210 with a bad gearbox (no first gear) to use while i made repairs so you can imagine just how zippy the e30 is after that

[parkin10]

Nice work, but a new front number plate would add the finishing touch.

I've had some real sh-t from every one over the front and rear plates there both poor
But I have my reasons for leaving them on
My neighbour is a retired traffic cop when I told him why I leave em on he laughed at me
Don't see way I need to make it easier for the gatso's to see my plates!
I suppose I'm just sentimental and superstitious I've managed to hold on to a clean licence in the last 11 years of hooning around in it

[shedrool83]

Cracking job well done . The bonnet repair is brilliant i would have thought that was toast and binned it

[rix313]

I have a similar task on with a project I bought. It's currently in the 'on stands looking sorry for itself' phase. Your completion pics have inspired me

[parkin10]

Thanks rix313 keep at it
As my e30 stands right now
Of course it rewarded me buy throwing a propshaft uj joint a week after the repair
Just put on a new dizzy cap and changed the oil and filter
But I still need to find some where to balance the prop

[rix313]

I'll be honest I've had a couple of prop shafts apart and once or twice my 'alignment' marks have come off. Despite this I haven't had any issues with it causing problems.

[parkin10]

The last uj joint that bolts up to the diff went notchy
So when you put your foot down it would vibrate under load
I had a new joint put in but the (specialist) didn't have the correct bracket to balance it with, didn't tell me that when I payed for it though
So now I need to either find a good used one or find someone who can balance it

[rix313]

Sent you a PM. I have a spare prop kicking around the workshop.

[parkin10]

I don't think it's any good to me
My car is a 2.5
I think the gearbox is different so the prop may be the wrong length
Thanks for the offer

[rix313]

OK, I was under the impression that from the centre bearing to the diff is the same on all E30s.

[parkin10]

That's a good point
Considering that my prop is already out of balance there's probably nothing to lose mixing and matching them
Could it be any worse?