My 325i

[onthames]

Just going to post progress on the car here. Done a lot already but some left to go.

Since I'm pretty new to car restoration I'd appreciate feedback and advice on my processes. I'm bound to make many mistakes so if you see anything in this thread that makes you cringe then don't hesitate to point it out! I won't be offended

[onthames]

Yesterday replaced the torn SE boot lid liner in a darker leather effect vinyl and sprayed the tool tray in black after priming with grey primer
I'm currently doing a few small surface rust repairs and one area of penetrating rust on one of the jacking points. I'm removing the rust, going back to bare metal in the area and feathering the underseal around. Them priming with epoxy primer, using seam sealant where necessary and then using dinitrol underseal - going slightly over the surrounding underseal to create a good patch. Between doing that I'm working on replacing the suspension to a bilstein b12 kit, replacing all rubber bushings, rebuilding the shifter (new bushes etc), repainting the subframes, struts, replacing the discs, rebuilding the differential, replacing the main gearbox seals and replacing the oil sump gasket. Oh and removing the engine so I can tidy up the engine bay! Lots to he getting on with.

[onthames]

A bit of progress on the diff. Starting to get back to bare metal although it was caked in rust so taking a while. Wire wheel not working particularly well to remove the paint so tomorrow I'm going to use starchem paint stripper on it (serious stuff). I thought about blasting it to remove the paint but the risk of getting sand inside is too high.

[onthames]

The subframe was very stuck but this trick I read on some forum post saved the day.

]

[tha881]

Nice work, the SE boot liner and tool kit looks fantastic

[Tzantushka]

I like this!
Subscribed!

[ah]

PXL_20210929_194259070.jpg

A bit of progress on the diff. Starting to get back to bare metal although it was caked in rust so taking a while. Wire wheel not working particularly well to remove the paint so tomorrow I'm going to use starchem paint stripper on it (serious stuff). I thought about blasting it to remove the paint but the risk of getting sand inside is too high.

Out of interest how did you get away with this, my wife would of had a sh1t fit if that was my diff in our house.

[onthames]

PXL_20210929_194259070.jpg

A bit of progress on the diff. Starting to get back to bare metal although it was caked in rust so taking a while. Wire wheel not working particularly well to remove the paint so tomorrow I'm going to use starchem paint stripper on it (serious stuff). I thought about blasting it to remove the paint but the risk of getting sand inside is too high.

Out of interest how did you get away with this, my wife would of had a sh1t fit if that was my diff in our house.

Luckily my parents are quite easy going and as long as stuff isn't in the house permantly then they're okay with it. I just had it infront of the radiator for a few hours to dry after I had been degreasing it in the parts washer.


New compressor arrived today. Got it hooked up to the sandblaster and works a treat! Now time to start sandblasting all the parts and prep for painting.

[aimlessrock]

best means to de-rust the diff is hydolosis, - check it out on youtube.

ive done a couple over the years.

[martauto]

Nice work, the SE boot liner and tool kit looks fantastic

The OEM police wont go for this but it`s your car and you can do what the hell you like to it !!!!
For what it`s worth , I think they look "Shit Hot" !!!

Mart.

[onthames]

Started prepping some parts today for painting
For the control arms I'm etching, spraying por 15 and then spraying por 15 top coat. After etching the control arms I washed off the solution using water and dried with a heat gun however some small amounts of surface rust formed. This isn't an issue though.

[onthames]

I got this off of Amazon for £70. Should make a good spray painting area. Set up the garden as I'll start spraying later this week. Planning to do most of it in one go and then bring the "booth" down again until I need to spray again.

[onthames]

Definitely gonna spray in bigger batches from now on. Paint went on well but was a proper faff. For a first try tho not bad.

[martauto]

Great idea and if and when it gets very messy .....who cares ??????
Wish to hell you lived near to me lol.

Mart.

[onthames]

I started rear subframe disassembly yesterday and had some real difficulty with the bearings. The inner races came out leaving the outer which meant I couldn't get any purchase with a pressing tool due to the lip on the trailing arm itself. In the end I welded a ring on the outer race which contracted the bearing allowing me to hammer it out.

[onthames]

Had great difficulty removing the rear wheel bearings today. Had to get the grinder out and left a small 0.5mm deep cut on the hub. Does anyone know if this will pose a problem?

[martauto]

Does the inner track fit over this, as in you have to press it on over the shaft and if so should not be an issue.

Mart.

[onthames]

Dash out and AC and cruise control going in soon... Just need to tidy the wiring and redo lots of seals. Switch over to new dryer, new pressure switches and a new parallel flow condenser and electric fan.

[fixedwheelnut]

Had great difficulty removing the rear wheel bearings today. Had to get the grinder out and left a small 0.5mm deep cut on the hub. Does anyone know if this will pose a problem?

Screenshot_20211008-205247.png

Top tip for the future, clamp the flange in a vice, use a pry bar, bang it in with a hammer to start a small gap, then with a second person using a second pry bar both lever the inner race off together, sometimes you need a thick spanner to pad it out to get the last bit of movement.

Also getting the bush to drop out of the recess in the bodywork, we did them one at a time, use the long end of a pry bar up inside the aluminium part of the bush and give it a good wiggle until it drops out under the weight of the subframe, use an axle stand to catch it from dropping too far

https://www.screwfix.com/p/roughneck-ro ... lsrc=aw.ds

[aimlessrock]

with the dash out chek the steel work on the bulkhead- esp round the battery box and round the drivers side.

[Tzantushka]

Dash out and AC and cruise control going in soon... Just need to tidy the wiring and redo lots of seals. Switch over to new dryer, new pressure switches and a new parallel flow condenser and electric fan.

Sweet!

Some Tesa cloth tape will come in handy for the wiring looms.
https://www.tesa.com/en-au/industry/tesa-51608.html

Probably over kill, but I ended up chiselling out the 2x lower fracture bolts for the steering column (and replacing with regular bolts) so I could drop the steering column with ease
Avoids damaging the steering column shroud on the dash re-install.
Plus allows me to replace parts on the steering column without removing the dash.

[onthames]

with the dash out chek the steel work on the bulkhead- esp round the battery box and round the drivers side.

Under the sound insulation?

[onthames]

My dad tried my homemade "spray booth" today and helped me paint some parts. Also picked up these very rare sill strips with the mtechnic design.

[onthames]

Bit the bullet today and started removing rusty bits near the front jacking point.

[Cloggy Saint]

Getting well stuck in! Aren't the sill strips still available from the dealer?

[onthames]

Getting well stuck in! Aren't the sill strips still available from the dealer?

The sill itself that I've cut out was actually intact, but there is 3 bits of metal that make up the sill at the bottom edge itself, two of which come down from the floor pan area and the piece in the middle had rusted out completely. The large bit of the outer skin of the sill I've cut out I plan to put back in once I remove the two other skin layers from it - I removed it so I can weld the repair to the inner part in from both sides.

Instead of having three bits of sheet metal making up the bottom edge, I plan to just use two as it makes the repair much easier. I'll compensate by using slightly thicker sheet

It seems most of this was caused by a blocked drainage hole for the sunroof which was filled with underseal when I removed it... I'm lucky the damage isn't worse to be honest.

[onthames]

This is my idea for the repair:

Green = 1.8mm thick patch
Red = 1.8mm thick patch
Blue = existing metal I've cut out and plan to put back in
Purple = butt welds
Yellow = plug welds (Between red and blue part)


Never done this before so any feedback would be appreciated

[Cloggy Saint]

Getting well stuck in! Aren't the sill strips still available from the dealer?

The sill itself that I've cut out was actually intact, but there is 3 bits of metal that make up the sill at the bottom edge itself, two of which come down from the floor pan area and the piece in the middle had rusted out completely. The large bit of the outer skin of the sill I've cut out I plan to put back in once I remove the two other skin layers from it - I removed it so I can weld the repair to the inner part in from both sides.

Instead of having three bits of sheet metal making up the bottom edge, I plan to just use two as it makes the repair much easier. I'll compensate by using slightly thicker sheet

It seems most of this was caused by a blocked drainage hole for the sunroof which was filled with underseal when I removed it... I'm lucky the damage isn't worse to be honest.

I meant the M-tech sill strips!

[onthames]

Getting well stuck in! Aren't the sill strips still available from the dealer?

The sill itself that I've cut out was actually intact, but there is 3 bits of metal that make up the sill at the bottom edge itself, two of which come down from the floor pan area and the piece in the middle had rusted out completely. The large bit of the outer skin of the sill I've cut out I plan to put back in once I remove the two other skin layers from it - I removed it so I can weld the repair to the inner part in from both sides.

Instead of having three bits of sheet metal making up the bottom edge, I plan to just use two as it makes the repair much easier. I'll compensate by using slightly thicker sheet

It seems most of this was caused by a blocked drainage hole for the sunroof which was filled with underseal when I removed it... I'm lucky the damage isn't worse to be honest.

I meant the M-tech sill strips!

Ah, yes they are, but are unbelievably expensive.

[aimlessrock]

with the dash out chek the steel work on the bulkhead- esp round the battery box and round the drivers side.

Under the sound insulation?

check all the pannels behind the dash - i found some holes right at the back past the battery box - with the dash out you have full access- if needed remove the wings (bolt on) and do a full check.

[onthames]

So... It's been one hell of a time. I fucked up the patches and decided to start again a few times... This resulted in me having more of a gaping hole than I started with! Lesson learnt. Got something I'm somewhat happy with now.

Will clean up the area thoroughly. Epoxy prime the area, seam seal the welds and the underside will get a coat of undercoating too.

[martauto]

Any more reports to share with us ??

Mart.

[onthames]

Any more reports to share with us ??

Mart.

Finished welding and now working on all the suspension components etc

[martauto]

Lovely to see things coming together and nice work mate

Mart.

[BenHar]

Good to see some progress.

The two welding pictures seem to show some missed bits. Will you be going back to fix them?

Ben