5 STUD CONVERSION!?!?!?!

[WerkdE30]

ok first of all good to see the site back up.

now i have been thinkin alot about converting my 320i from the normal 4 stud to 5 stud pattern. this is cause its very hard to find any decent wheels in australia for the 4 stud hubs.

anyway i have worked out how to do the rear end no worries but the front i cant find any cheap option for.

so anyone who has done this or knows what i need please drop me some clues as to what i need to change the front to 5 stud.

any info muchly appreciated thanks for your time.

[bigpimpin]

E30 M3 struts and hubs or E36 ones can be used I think some people on here have used the E36 ones.

[WerkdE30]

ive heard this can be done but there are differences in the suspension set up from the e36 to the e30. does anyone know what if any modifications if any are required to fit e36 struts?

m3 struts here will cost thousands im workin on a tight bidget.

[massive]

just use 5 stud converter spacers

[WerkdE30]

hell no im not putting that crap in my car. if i wanted to have the incorrect offset id just buy some cheap shitty FWD style wheels that seem to be so popular at the moment.

if i do it i want a proper conversion.

thanks anyway

[Stickle]

E30 M3 struts and hubs or E36 ones can be used I think some people on here have used the E36 ones.

How much do these cost, M3 and E36 ones?

[muzz]

as a fellow ausie i understand your dilema i had the same and no wheel shop wanted to help because it was too damm hard so bugger them i fount a set of wheels brand new from b.k racing wheels in the uk with the right ofset and imported them straight to my door the uk boys even threw in a set of locknuts and 2 sets of hub locating rings sure it cost a bit but its worth it good luck mario/brisbane

[WerkdE30]

ill check em out but i think i like the idea of changin the whole strut then i can have the bigger brakes to match the bigger wheels.

does anyone know if i need the struts out of a specific model e36? as i understand it you can put the whole trailing arms from a e36 compact but the front are different i think.

[Aico]

You can also just get E30 M3 front hubs. Price is around 120 pounds.

[jmc330i]

does anyone know if i need the struts out of a specific model e36?

I think any E36 strut will fit, but most go for the E36 M3 becasue it gives you 315mm brakes. There is some issue with wheel alignment in the arch, but this can be sorted with offset thingies - I cant remember exactly what

You can also just get E30 M3 front hubs.

The E30 M3 front hubs will not fit Non-M3 struts, which is why the whole front strut needs replacing. The E30 M3 rear hubs will fit the non-M3 rears, but will leave you having to re-drill the standard disc to fit.

[Aico]

It fits, but you need to make a small bushing. Nothing big.

[jmc330i]

It fits, but you need to make a small bushing. Nothing big.

Any more info - pics???

This could be of great interest

[Aico]

I have it on my car. I haven't removed the hub so I don't know the specs of the bushing. Maybe I can have more made if multiple people are interested.

[WerkdE30]

where does this bush need to go? and does the strut simple bolt up to the steering rack ends and the caster bar?

i dont think id be using e36 m3 as that will cost too much. i imagine the 328 would have the biggest brakes out of the rest apart from m3.

this is starting to look very promising.

anymore info on this bush would be greatly appreciated


thanks

[Andy325i]

where does this bush need to go? and does the strut simple bolt up to the steering rack ends and the caster bar?

i imagine the 328 would have the biggest brakes out of the rest apart from m3.

this is starting to look very promising.

anymore info on this bush would be greatly appreciated


thanks

Do you mean front or rear 328i brakes

AFAIK All E36 (apart from 316 and maybe 318i) have the same vented front brakes (318is, 320i, 323i, 325i and 328i)

and for the rears the 328i has vented discs and the rest had solid rear discs if they were lucky

Andy

[DanThe]

E46 330i front discs and calipers will bolt onto E36 hubs and are 325mm

[Andy325i]

E46 330i front discs and calipers will bolt onto E36 hubs and are 325mm

I heard the 330D brakes are pretty good too for E36 peeps

Andy

[DanThe]

The E30 M3 front hubs will not fit Non-M3 struts, which is why the whole front strut needs replacing.

So to use E30 M3 front hubs you would also need M3 dampers.
What about springs? And are E36 discs and calipers any good?

[jmc330i]

The E30 M3 front hubs will not fit Non-M3 struts, which is why the whole front strut needs replacing.

So to use E30 M3 front hubs you would also need M3 dampers.
What about springs? And are E36 discs and calipers any good?

Well, I think Aico is saying you can use E30 M3 hubs on standard E30 struts with some sort of bush, but I dont see how that would work. Hopefully he will put up some pics of his setup with a little more information.

The way Im planning, is to use full E30 M3 suspension and brakes (I need the larger 280mm), so yes the shocks and springs.

I dont know of anybody thats used the E36 non-M3 stuff, but that would give you 286mm front discs. The E36 M3 has 315mm discs, but you will need 17"s.

[DanThe]

When you say "full" E30 M3 suspension, do you mean TCA's also?
Im wondering if the M3 hub can be used with standard E30 TCA, E36 caliper/disc. Like you say about the strut, i was also under the impresion that the M3 strut bolts to the hub unlike the standard 'tube' that the damper is inserted into

[jmc330i]

In know the whole E30 M3 front strut (the complete unit, hub, brakes etc) will bolt into the non-M3 lower arm, but I dont think you can use just the hub.

I think when you say "E30 M3 hub and E30 TCA" that we are talking about the same thing

The E36 caliper and disc can be used on the E30 M3 stuff, but a spacer of some sort is needed to space the disc out from the hub, in order to centre the disc in the caliper - you will then have the E36 offset up front.

[DanThe]

The E36 caliper and disc can be used on the E30 M3 stuff, but a spacer of some sort is needed to space the disc out from the hub, in order to centre the disc in the caliper - you will then have the E36 offset up front.

Oh yeah, remember that one now


I think when I say 'strut' as in 'damper' your thinking 'leg' as in damper/spring/top-mount/hub/brakes etc
seem to have our wires crossed
I mean Track Control Arm "wishbone",

Is the £120 for 1 side? r.e. hub

[DanThe]

OK, I must have the E36 and E30 M3 parts all muddled up somewhere
I see what you mean by 'strut' now. The E30 M3 has (like the standard E30) a tube for the damper to be inserted into that is part of the 'hub'. This is all 1 piece.
My question - can this be used with the standard E30 TCA/wishbone



Got there in the end

[jmc330i]

I think when I say 'strut' as in 'damper' your thinking 'leg' as in damper/spring/top-mount/hub/brakes etc
seem to have our wires crossed
I mean Track Control Arm "wishbone",

Wires crossed seems about right

You can use any E30 Wishbone with the M3 front leg. The later M3s ('88 on) had aluminium wishbones which would be nice to have

Is the £120 for 1 side? r.e. hub

I have no idea.

[bottlecapE30]

Is the £120 for 1 side? r.e. hub

That is per side lind of pricey to drop 4 pounds. and if your autocross it you will need to replace them more offten than the non M part[/quote]

[WerkdE30]

hey hey u hi jackers this my thread it has nothing to do wit M3 parts!!!

i am tryn to find out what it will take to bolt the whole E36 strut and hub into my e30. 286 mm vented fornt discs will be plenty. im sure i can find some tasty lookin cross drilled items too.

anyone who has done this please tell me which bush needs to be modified? can u use the e30 caster bar? i have e30 m3 bushes for the caster bar which are offset is this what your talkin about?

please dont talk about m3 stuff as there are only 14 in the country and i dont think ill be finding any cheap parts ...

if sum1 has done this or knows how can they put a full write up or send it to me as i know these things become top secret info.

oh and to settle what you guys are gettin your wires crossed i think what your tryn to say is that the whole e30 m3 suspension will bolt strait into a standard e30. but this doesnt help me.

thanks [/b]

[Aico]

Simply get the front E36 damper/strut assembly. Also an E36 hub. With the E36 the hub is a loose part that you bolt onto the strut. The controlarms are the same. You need to put a E30 top mount onto the damper. That's basicly it. You will have massive castor though which isn't good. You will need atleast a M3 eccentric front bushing to move the wheels more forward. A full adjustable uniball would be better. The wheel goes about 2cm more rearward so you need to try and recentre it 1 way or another.

The best way to do this is to convert to 5-stud with M3 hubs and adaptorplates for the calipers. I don't know if it's more expensive, but I don't think it is. For this one you would need about 120 pounds for the hubs and 2 metal plates for the calipers which shouldn't be much more than 50 pounds incl workpayment. Lets say you can have it done for 200 pounds and then you don't sacriface your handling for better brakes and lug pattern.

[WerkdE30]

ok thanks heaps thats very helpful. only thing i dont get is the m3 hubs wont go onto the e30 strut as i understand it. i have been told they have a totally different strut and the the m3 hub wont mount to it.

id rather change a bush than have adaptor plates made up and the e36 springs and shocks would also be better i think (dont know for sure).

if i need to move the offset by 2 cm i dont think the m3 bush will do as by the looks of it its only about 1mm different to the normal one. but i think i could get the housing of the bush made so that it was offset also only problem is knowing exactly what dimensions to get it made to. but if i could just get one with one big oval hole in it then i could adjust the caster by tightening it in the right position.

what do you guys think of that idea? then with some camber plates on the top of the strut id have a fully adjustable front end mmmmmm

actually that might move around under hard driving but i could find out exactly where the bush needs to be to acheive the correct caster and get some permanent ones made.

[Aico]

I don't think you understand the castor story. The E36 has the wheel about 2-3cm more at the back which means you already have massive castor. This is something you can not change. If you recenter the wheel by an M3 bushing then you move the pivot point of the strut more forward which means you get even more castor. In total this is just way to much castor.

This is ok if you don't care about handling. For a dragcar this mod is fine, because you only go in a straight line.