I only got the car (1988 320i, post-facelift) for £200, but it's a runner, and I've already done 10k in it so far.
Here's a quick list of what I've done:
New brake pads and drums (rear)
New brake calipers and discs (front)
Rear diff (from a 318, so slightly less top speed)
Rear wheel bearing done by mechanic cos I didn't have a puller.
New SI board bat
New wing mirror
New wheels (old ones buckled)
So I'm alright at the simple stuff. It's just the motronic stuff I'm not great at, and ongoing problems with the dash and clutch that I need help with.
Motronic problems:
Car's a post-facelift (reg'd 09/11/8, so I think it's motronic?
It seems to have the wrong ICV on it, as it has the one that is meant to be T-shaped, but it's actually an L-shaped one - however this only changed in 06/88, so maybe the car just took a long time to be registered. So I don't really know what the car should be CO'd at, as it has some components that seem to be pre-facelift (L-shaped ICV), and most are post-facelit.
Basically when I rev the engine and then let the revs fall, the engine almost stalls every time, and when it's cold it can actually stall on me. It just doesn't feel right, and it feels like it's revving too low. Any ideas? Should I just get it re-CO'd?
Dash:
Just a quick one really. I replaced the SI board batteries, and that got my Rev counter, MPG, and temp gauge back. The fuel gauge still wandered around everywhere, so I'm assuming that might be a problem with the sender. But in the 2 weeks since I did it, the MPG started malfunctioning again - would swing only between 11 and 50mpg, and then stopped working at all. The temp still works, but occasionally flickers, and about 3 days after I got the service indicator lights reset, they came on again straight onto Red and saying oil service, even though I've just done one. Do you reckon the whole SI board's knackered and I need a new one?
Clutch:
Judders when I've been driving the car a long time at speed - seems heat related. Also only has a small amount of the range of the pedal (when you've got the pedal quite high up) where it's actually biting - makes it very easy to stall. Could it be the pressure plate? I got a new 325i touring one off Widge before he went to the Bahamas, but I wasn't sure if it would fit a 320i transmission and flywheel, as it is a different part no. Any ideas? Wasn't sure whether it's:
a. pressure plate worn down
b. pressure plate buckled
c. oil on pressure plate, but the car uses no oil - haven't had to top it up once outside of oil changes
d. clutch master cylinder - I've checked fluid levels (obviously), but I didn't think it would give those heat-related problems, or why it would cause juddering and a more vicious biting point.
Now I know that's a hell of a lot of detail and questions, but I'd really appreciate everyone's help, as BMW technicians don't seem familiar with E30s anymore and aren't interested, and normal garages don't know the detail of E30s.
