Great looking car!
I dunno mang, I actually dig the stripes.
Great looking car!
I dunno mang, I actually dig the stripes.
...which reminds me I need to fab up another hold-down for my GT6 since it didn't come with one... nor did my g/f's Spitfire... nor my past Spit6... so this will be the 3rd one... what's with Spitfire owners and losing the battery hold down hardware?
Looks nice... I suppose the one thing I would have done differently would be to use a pass-through terminal instead of a grommet and cable.
Ian F wrote: ...which reminds me I need to fab up another hold-down for my GT6 since it didn't come with one... nor did my g/f's Spitfire... nor my past Spit6... so this will be the 3rd one... what's with Spitfire owners and losing the battery hold down hardware? Looks nice... I suppose the one thing I would have done differently would be to use a pass-through terminal instead of a grommet and cable.
truth....my original hold-down ont he GT6 was missing as well, as was the one on the Mk3 I picked up for parts.
I would have used a pass-through, but since the cable already had a nice OEM grommet on it and there was already a punch-out, decided to keep it simple stupid :)
minor thing today, but wanted to try it.
After going through everything in the engine to make sure things like the AFM, IACV, etc work and that there were no vac leaks, I was still idling around 2000 rpms with the timing set to factory spec. Very annoying.
So the last-ditch effort before I take the TB apart: try my spare idle control module. Getting the old one out was easy except I made the mistake of taking the black "cap" off the plug. Which of course allowed each of the 12 individual wires to pop out of their slots....grr.
Had to dig up a wiring diagram and find which plug they each went back to to get it all back together. Especially annoying since 2 of the wires were not the colors shown in either my FSM or the wedophones online wiring guide (which is for an '84, not an '85). By the length and curvature of the wires I took a guess at which the last two went to, and turned out correct. Phew.
Anyhow, hooked it all up, set my idle to 2k rpm and checked the timing again. Timing is dead-on, and with the new idle control module my idle is now chilling nicely around 900rpms. MUCH BETTER!
So, one more basic thing fixed, pretty happy about that since this seems to be a common problem with e30s, and especially M10/Jetronic cars.
afterwards, my daughter wanted me to put on the big SCCA Rallycross banner that I've had sitting around for a few years (given to me by a friend). I didn't really want to put it on yet (since it seems pretty poserish on a car that has never rallycrossed yet), but 4-year-olds are convincing.
So, it's on. On the rear window since Virginia doesn't allow front banners. I may put one there eventually anyhow, lol.
In any case, this car better do ok (and my driving better be decent) since it now has more than enough stickers and I don't want to look like a total poseur :)
and yes, it's a tiny bit crooked....dammit.
My SCCA Solo banner has passed VA inspection for many years on the front windshield on the miata.
In reply to moxnix:
Yeah, I'm gunshy since years ago I had to take off a 6" sticker from the top of the windshield on another car. Then again with this being vintage-registered, I don't have to get inspection anyhow, duh......
I'm kinda also trying to keep the white stickers on the back window, and black stuff up front. I wish I could get a black or gray GRM banner for the front!
You're allowed to have stickers on a vintage registered car? From what I've heard thus far, its a big no no in pa and one of my reasons for keeping my car as stock-looking as possible.
Yeah, I've heard PA is ridiculously hardcore about this stuff. But I'm pretty sure people put stickers on their cars back in the 1970s and 1980s. In fact, I'm quite certain of it, hah...
There are no regulations in virginia about how a vintage-registered car has to look physically or cosmetically, as long as it has all required parts to safely drive on public roads. It can be a rusty 1981 civic with a giant hood scoop, or a fully-restored MG, or a rat rod, or whatever.
The requirements for vintage tags in Virginia are: 1. car is not a daily driver (you have to prove you have another car registered non-vintage and used as a daily driver) 2. car can be used for "car club activities" (yay, SCCA is a car club and rallycross is a club activity), driven for repair, shows, etc, and "occasional pleasure driving within 250 miles of registered address" 3. car must be able to be safely operated on the roads. You don't have to get an inspection, but you have to "self-certify" and if you are caught with an unsafe car they can revoke your tags.
There is absolutely zero requirement for the car to "look stock" or "look pretty" or "be show quality," as long as it is safe to drive and not driven for everyday purposes.
Either way, my car could pass inspection/emissions if needed. I just do the vintage tags so I don't have to pay for new registration every 2 years....vintage tags are permanent/forever registered. I don't drive the e30 or GT6 much. The GT6 just on an occasional nice spring day in the country roads, and the e30 mostly just will be to and from rallycross and autocross events. Both uses fall within Virginia's usage regulations.
besides, the sticker thing is pretty silly even in Pa. Classic car collectors put club stickers and badges on them all the time - just go to any show.
and really, say you have a 240z with an SCCA banner on the windshield. It could very well have had an SCCA banner there in 1975 for all anyone knows.......or a big number on the door......or louvers on the hatchback glass. Or what if your vintage car is a vintage racer? Say, a Group 44 Triumph GT6 in original livery.......
Not sure how the Pa. vintage car laws read verbatim, but I'd check out the actual verbiage. I've read the Virginia laws a dozen times so I know exactly what I can and can't do with my cars :D
here's a good description of Va. laws, in case you're interested - written by someone who knows them inside and out.
http://www.corvetteclubofrichmond.com/wordpress/archives/1511
I would guess someone in Pa. has done something similar - I would look around.
So....I was tightening my "oh E36 M3"handle on the passenger side, and the screwdriver slipped and put a hole in the headliner. I think it was my subliminal mind that did it on purpose.
And seriously, I cannot drive a BMW with a ripped headliner. That just won't do!
So.
Goodbye headliner. It was dusty and gross anyhow. Good riddance. Also pulled out all the orange padding/insulation as well. There's 10lbs out of the top of the car. That said, I of course still have the heavy sunroof frame in there. But I like having a sunroof, so that's some weight that I'm willing to keep.
Was digging around in some attic stuff and came upon an old-school Independent Truck Co. sticker. Yes, that is DEFINITELY going on the car. Old-school skate stuff = win.
And got some used sunroof track parts from some local guys, so I can get this damn thing back on after the ordeal with me breaking things...grr.
So, finally got the sunroof back on with the parts from Stuart/Spencer. To get the old broken retractor piece off the crank cable, had to figure out how to take the grommet off the end. This appears to have a press crimp in it, and I couldn't get it off. So I took a cutting wheel/dremel and cut a longitudinal slot in it, allowing me to get it off. I then re-used it on the new cable, crimping it closed more and adding some solder. Hopefully it will hold, else I'll have to track down a high-strength crimp like this with a small enough profile to fit in the track.
But it's working so far. nice to have a roof back on the car.
That's it for today. Wednesday I have an ebay front strut bar coming in that I picked up for cheap, so that will be a good addition to stiffen up the front end, since I've heard e30s flex alot up there, especially when being beaten on.
Today received my ebay strut tower brace. It's stainless steel and looks really beefy. And it was cheap. About 1/3 the price of strut bars that the major e30 retailers sell, with free shipping.
But, here's the problem with cheap stuff sometimes: It doesn't fit well.
First of all, the holes don't line up. I had to slot the holes on one side significantly (like 1" over), and just to bolt it up it's pretty sloppy. Second of all, it rubs against the spark plug wires on the dizzy. The FSTB was probably templated on a non-M10 car with the dizzy elsewhere.
Both of these are problems, but not dealing with shipping it back, etc. So maybe next week I'll cut the one off-fitting end off and take it to get welded back on in a better position to line up and clear the plug wires. Not a big deal, but still a bit annoying. In the end, it'll still cost alot less for this bar and to get it fixed than it would for even most used bars on the forums....
If anyhing, I'm taking the car in to get the muffler welded on so maybe those guys can do it at the same time.
the bar on the car:
driver's side is a good fit:
passenger side fit is terrible. Temporarily improv'd
way too close to the dizzy for comfort
Might want to make the ends into full circles that go around the entire top of the strut towers. I don't personally trust those silly 1/3 coverage things, and neither should you. 
that's the plan. Though I've had the 2/3 bolt ones on previous cars and never had a problem.
My daughter informed me that she can take care of the problem.....
I went to my great-uncle's farmhouse today and dug around in his giant building full of random junk/scrap metal/old rusty cars/etc. This is the kind of place that would be a dream trove for Grassroots Motorsports types.
Was looking for some 1/8" steel plate to make a skidplate with, but almost all of his sheet steel was 1/4", and that's way too heavy for my purposes.
In the end, I managed to get some 14 gauge stainless sheet. Obviously this is not sufficiently stiff to make for a good skidplate, but it will do decent temporary duty as a general splash/flying rock/mud guard for the underside fo the engine bay and tranny, and it doesn't weigh too much. I'll probably make it in the form of a real skid - it is thick enough that it won't deflect statically, though it will be limited protection on any hard hit. Luckily, this car sits really high (about 6-7" clearance under the oil pan) so I don't expect to take any hard hits at Summit, really. Since it's about 4" wider than the size I want, I'm going to turn up the outside edges about 2", so that should add a good bit of rigidity to it as well
I also will go get some 2" steel bar from Home Depot to use as stiffeners and reduce deflection. Will either weld them onto the sheet, or perhaps just bolt them on initially.
All in all, it's not exactly the protection I was looking for, but it was free and it's alot better than nothing, at least as a heavy-duty splashguard.
The plan is to use two large bolts through the holes in the main subframe as rear mounts, and put a couple bolts through the lower radiator support as the front mount.
Anyhow, more on this once I do some bending, cutting, and bolting. Monday is a federal holiday, so I have all day in the garage for this :)
Real men use bucking bars and place solid rivets. 
Using bolts is easier, and doesn't require me to actually own a bucking bar (which I don't) ;)
I'm not sure how you feel about pre arranged marraiges but my son is app the same age as your daughter and I would love to have a daughter in-law that can wield an angle grinder.
tomorrow's plan is to take it on a bit of a shakedown cruise as I run some errands within 20 or 30 miles of home and hit some of the "country" roads to see how everything is running. One thing I hadn't gotten around to yet is hooking up the car audio. And I really don't want to drive around all day with no tunes, listening for every little noise and being paranoid, lol.
So, time to re-hook-up the CD player that came with the car. It's an old Blaupunkt unit. And as good as the Germans are at building cars, they suck at audio equipment, at least in this range. I hate Blaupunkt decks.....but this is what I have, so I guess I'll use it. And I'll break out the CDs since I haven't run a radio antenna wire yet and it doesn't have any hookup for my iPod :( I'll need to find some new audio before the long drives to Summit, because I don't want to carry old CDs around, lol.
And since the speakers in the back deck are no longer, had to run some wire and install them in the front kick panels (where the original wires went, no idea....)
So, it works. It sounds mediocre at best compared to the highish-end setup I have in the WRX and the 4Runner, but good enough...
today's project was cutting, bending, and test-fitting the skidplate. It's currently bolted onto the car (loosely) and the fit is good. I still need to do some detail work, including cutting some notches for extra clearance of the steering rack inner tie rod (just to be safe, probably don't need to), and setting up a couple additional mount bolts. Also will cut some holes in the upper end of the front slanted area, to let more air get to the radiator. Also may cut a small hole for the oil drain plug. BTW, this is 14 or 15 ga. stainless sheet....
Leftovers after cutting were two full-length 3" wide strips, which I'll use for longitudinal reinforcement.
made the cuts and took the grinder to smooth the edges and round the corners
setup. Don't have a brake press, so we'll do this the old way, with heat, a BFH, and my own weight.
test fit
on the car
clearance from pan (using 4 washers in the rear as spacers, which seems about right)
also cut the OEM lower valence, because it looks lousy without it, and put it back on around the skid
on the ground
ground clearance is about as good as my 4Runner, lol. Hella stance yo!
oh, and put a painted 318 badge back on. This car isn't too fast and I don't want anyone thinking its just a 325 with a tired engine, haha..
made some modifications to the skid today:
the hardware. You may recognize those spacers as coming from e30 seatbelt bolts, lol
test-fit
finished up a bit of my protection today..
First, the skidplate is now complete. Got all the right hardware (mostly stainless, but some grade 10.9) and bolted it up. A few points: 1. The rear bolts have spacers for clearance 2. The front bolts are to the back lip of the radiator support. It's not the strongest area, but I think it will be sufficient. I used some steel backing plates to distribute the load so the bolts won't pull through on small hits. Also since there is a gap where the bolts go (the plate abuts the lower radiator support beam farther up), I used some cut fuel injection hose pieces to act as large "shock absorbing" spacers. IDK if it would actually work, but what the hell, lol. 3. And of course had a bit of fun with paint, just because.
So that's one project down.
installed
front mount bolts
clearance to the pan
some lipstick
Next little project was to address something that I've been thinking about a while. The secondary fuel pump and associated equipment is just kind of "out there" just in front of the back wheel. I really would rather this stuff not get totally covered with mud and get hit with flying gravel, so a little bit of basic protection. I cut up an old cover for a rubbermaid heavy-duty storage bin. This is pretty beefy plastic with some flex to it. And with a built-in lip it worked perfectly for what I wanted to do. That area of the rocker is the one rusty plate (and has some bondo)....I'm guessing it got bend/crushed by a jack at one point and a p/o tried to fix it. I can't use it for jacking so hit it with some POR-15 and covered it up. I'll use the double-bracket rear subframe tie-in as a jacking point in the future.
Also have a line on some used Yokohama A035 rally tires (off of an actual rally car) in my size for cheap, and not too far away. So the plan will be to pick those up and use them instead of the snow tires. Peace of mind to have some beefy sidewalls.
out in tha sun..
Those stripes look great in the sun.
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