fidelity101 wrote: In reply to irish44j: Sway bars? Rallyx? Pfffffffttttttttt
we run on a mostly hard-packed surface, so a lot of people run sways. That said, the stock 318i sway bars are about as thick as a pencil, lol. I kept them since the H&Rs are pretty soft. With the new suspension using a higher rate, I will likely remove them.
hrm that's true. I should keep a set handy just incase I run with you clowns again. I do want to make it out to as many national challenges as I can this year for 2015. I'm hoping for a busy season of shennanigans
Yeah, depending on where the other ones are I'm going to try to hit a few. Looks like GLDiv is way up in Michigan this year so that's probably out. Hoping Dixie won't be too far into the deep south this year. Might go up to NEDivs depending on how far north it is.
All of this dependent on where the car build is in terms of getting a cage in (for rallysprint), and how the local season is going. And time/finances availability (which goes without saying for all of us, lol).
btw, Nick was "nice" enough (lol) to capture some photos of my SNAFU while loading after just losing the season. Since I've got to own the stupid E36 M3 as well as the good stuff, here is the photo evidence.
At least I'm wearing my GRM shirt...
Yeah i really want to make it dixie myself and then one out your way
Ah, what the heck. How about a Christmas Eve project, because I've seen It's a Wonderful Life enough times :)
I was just doing some engine bay cleaning, but then decided to have a bit of fun...
For some reason I really want to do Martini livery on this car now, lol
Just some measurements for posterity/future use after I change the suspension. This is with the H&R sports (with 1" spacer in front and 1/2" spacer in rear), M3 offset CABs up front, and M3 offset top hats in the front)
Current measurements (with winter wheels/tires on the car) on flat/level surface:
Height from hub center to wheel arch
LF: 14 1/8"
RF: 14 3/8"
LR: 13 3/8"
RR: 13 1/4"
Static camber
LF: -1 3/4
RF: -2
LR: -2 1/8
RR: -2 1/8
Static caster
LF: +8
RF: +8 1/4
So.....watching Nick's thread, he's definitely doing some upgrades (I see some talk of lightweight flywheels and even M30s), and today I found out that Josh S. just picked up an M52 to replace his turbo ETA setup. So I guess an arms race is on.
Since I plan to keep the M42 until it blows up, not much I can do in terms of linear power (not interested in turbo, and a DASC is unobtanium these days at a reasonable price). So will have to continue to focus on everything else.
Suspension will be ordered this week Rear subframe and diff will get Condor Speed Shop bushings.
In the interim, time to lose some more weight. Today I cut out the inner skin of the back doors, as well as the door bars. Only about 6-7lbs per side, but it's something.
Also on-tap cheap project will be removing the heavy hood hinge bar (probably 10-15lbs total, right in the front of the car). Will replace this with hood pins (and retain the factory latch as a third safety point). I'll carry a broomsick as a hood prop, lol.
So, that's maybe 25-30lbs right there. yippee.
Also planning a gauge cluster re-do this winter. The stock cluster is only there because it has a working fuel gauge and a semi-working water temp gauge. For fuel I found an Autometer Cobalt digital programmable gauge (similar to what we use on the Chumpcar) that will replace the stock one. Still need to get a water temp gauge and figure out if I can just wire it to the stock sender, or if I'll need to do it another way (anyone know offhand?).
So the plan will be to mount all these on an aluminum plate where the stock cluster is. More on that once I get everything figured out. Should also allow me to get the tach off the dash and center-mount it in the gauge cluster.
gonna be an interesting year 
What is DASC?
Downing Atlanta SuperCharger
Sexy little blower, but unfortunately not enough of a market to keep them in production for more than a few years.
I don't honestly know if a DASC is really worth it anyhow for rallycross. ONce you add the weight of all the SC stuff, you're not far off the weight of a 6cyl anyhow, and really don't have much more power than a 6cyl. It's an idea, but not one I would only do if I found a setup for a really good price I think.
As the end-goal is to get this car on the stages, I will probably stay away from FI regardless, so as not to have an adverse effect on reliability. I'd probably do an M50/52 swap before boosting.
little night project.
For a while now the only fully-functional gauge in my stock cluster is the fuel gauge (the water temp works, but you have to tap it occasionally because it sticks in random positions). The tach and speedo have long been broken.
I also don't like the standalone tach up on the dash since it's kind of distracting and just generally annoying. So the plan has always been to get all aftermarket gauges, and remove the stock cluster altogether.
The plan is to center-mount a large tach where the gauge cluster used to be, as well as a holder for my phone (which has a GPS speedo for when I'm driving to/from events). So I don't have to bother making a full cluster panel where the old one used to be, I decided to just mount all of my auxiliary gauges in the center stack. I already have oil pres, oil temp, and volts up on the dashtop pod. To that I'll add the VDO water temp gauge that I've had sitting around for a while (once I get the correct sender to plug into the head port where the stock temp gauge sender currently is).
Also going to add a fuel gauge since the stock one will be gone with the cluster gone. Didn't find a matching VDO one I like for a price that I want to pay, so just picked up an Autometer Cobalt programmable/digital one (I think we use the same one on our Chumpcar). Doesn't even come close to matching, but this isn't some saturday-morning parking-lot-meet car so who cares...
I also plan to keep my heater in the car (it gets cold in frosty Frostburg at winter events) and wanted to keep one vent in the dash (the side ones are already disconnected) to warm my hands on. So I took out the center vent, cut out the right side (except the front few inches, so the whole assembly will still stay in place.
Then I blocked off that side of the inner air tubing so all the air will go through the remaining vent. Hard to see but I mad a little block panel and then just attached it with some aluminum tape - the stickiest stuff on earth, lol
Then made a little template. This shows two gauges there, but I think I'm only going to put one there, and then put the other one below it where the OEM clock (or computer on nicer e30s) currently sits, since it doesn't work anyhow.
Finished all the dash gauge mounting stuff for the center stack today. Still have to do the wiring, but here's the completed locations.
Materials: some scrap Lexan, some flat black BBQ spraypaint, a dremel, and a bit of plastic epoxy.
In place of the passenger side center vent I now have a VDO water temp gauge, and a new override switch for the Spal electric fan on the radiator (I had been using the stock A/C button, which doesn't work that well).
In place of the OEM clock (325s have the "computer" there), I used the original backing bracket, dremeled out the clock assembly, and made a new faceplate with gauge. So it turned out pretty good, just screws into the dash backside just like the clock did.
Cutting lexan
gutted clock
fuel gauge mounting in old clock assembly
mostly finished product with new water temp up by the vent, and new fuel gauge right below it.
A few more things on this little project.
After thinking about it, decided to keep the stock cluster for the moment, since I don't have a diode handy to bridge the charging wire, and don't mind having the warning lights and such (which still all work), as well as signal flashers, high beams, etc.
Also, since this is a street-driven car as well, I like to have the appearance of having a speedo (even if it doesn't work), on the event that I get pulled over or something. Not sure how I would say "yes, officer.....I'm not sure if I was speeding because I have no speedo"....would probably get a second ticket for not having one, lol.
So will leave the speedo. As to the other gauges, I ditched the needles and had a bit of fun with them, since I had them opened up anyhow. why not...
The second order of business once that stuff was back in was to separate the wires for the fuel sender to use for the new gauge. My wiring diagram has two wires coming from the sender and three going into the stock fuel gauge, so will have to look up which is which.
In the meantime, also relocated my cheesy tach to a location where it's more in my line of sight when driving - and to a place that doesn't block my vision near the A-pillar.
Once I get the water temp sender in, I'll do all the power and signal wiring for the new gauges.
So I sat in gridlock for 3 hours this morning in our little snowstorm before finally calling out of work. Then went to the woodland roads to help out all the people I know were getting stuck on a few big hills there. Kind of my "good samaritan" acts for the year when it snows.
And when you have a subaru on fresh Wintersport 4Ds....you can get anywhere that other people can't in the snow and ice. Even helped get a local sheriff in his Explorer up the hill. Then vamped with him, lol
Then helped an old German lady in a vert Benz up....
Also helped hook up this Polaris with tracked wheels to a 2WD pickup that was stuck. The Polaris then dragged it backwards all the way up the hill. Pretty amazing.
I actually had a lot of fun today. Surprisingly nobody was angry or upset, everyone just had a bemused semi-bewildered attitude toward it (especially the lady in the Benz vert). Most of the people who were stuck actually helped push all the cars stuck "above" them out and all the way up the hill before trying themselves. Nobody tried to "cut the line" or anything. Besides the Polaris guy, two old pickups pulled a couple cars up the hill as well.
The guys who really deserve credit was these trashmen. Their truck was at the bottom and had about 10 cars blocking it when I got there. Those four dudes pushed on every single one of those cars up the hill (and then about a half dozen more that were behind them and stuck) and literally cleared out every stuck car in the vicinity before they (easily) cruised their trashtruck up the hill. And the one lady whose car was about 9th in line who also helped push all the cars, wearing a business suit (with some hiking boots on), chatty and friendly the whole time even though I'm sure she was freezing her ass off (it was about 20-25 degrees).
Also an interesting mix of locals (Clifton is a very $$$$ area), black trashmen, hispanic guys, a couple burly rednecks decked out in camo Carhartt gear driving a big diesel truck, a Sheriff, a county policeman, and a Filipino guy all chuckling together knowingly, telling stories, and acting like they were all friends (in between pushing cars). The kind of interaction that you never, ever see from all those groups of people together in everyday life. So that put a smile on my face as well.
Anyhow......
When I got home, did some more dash wiring, went to Radioshack to get some connectors, and a few other small things. And while I was doing that the UPS guy showed up through the snowy roads with a delivery for me. I think I can find some use for this thing, yeah?
Wow, that's a winter wonderland I know nothing about. Nice work, looks almost like fun.
I'll just leave this here, in anticipation of the real things arriving. Thanks to Jeremy at IE for setting me up with a good package deal and for plenty of good advice and suggestions!
I have that same welder. I have used it to attach many, many pieces of metal to my own early 318 where previously there was rust (or nothing at all).
You're gonna like it
Finished up the gauge and lighting install and ran a wire for the water temp to the engine bay tonight. Just waiting for the VDO sender to come in. For the lights, didn't bother with the plastic colored covers for bulbs, just took them out and hit them with some VHT red taillight paint. Worked out pretty well, though the camera-phone doesn't exactly capture it very well, lol.
Beats my old mismatched white and red.
Also not sure I mentioned it but I calibrated the fuel gauge by just taking the sender out of the tank (while spilling plenty of fuel) and holding it up to simulate empty signal, and upside-down to simulate full while I set the gauge. Not surprisingly it worked and the gauge appears to read pretty much correct (TBD when I fill up the tank).
Small project today. Took off all the hood hardware (hinge bar, latch, cable, pull handle, hydraulic support, etc) which cut out about 11lbs from the very front of the car. It's not much, but all this little stuff adds up in the end. I also plan to get a smaller washer reservoir and mount it in the battery tray and figure out a new way to put sprayers on since the hood now will need to be able to be taken off completely rather than just tilted up.
For the front put in a couple hood pins. Nothing too exciting that hasn't been done on a thousand other track e30s. But it's something.
No idea why the image sizes are all different, wtf....
Killing time waiting for the suspension to get here, a couple projects.
First, finished with a partial gutting of the rear doors. I left some frame because I hate how flimsy our doors on the Chumpcar are, and also want to be able to lock them, so left some frame to hold the mechanism.
All told, the two rear doors (just the inner skin and crash bars) plus the hood hardware deleted added up to about 17lbs, so that's not bad. On the downside, in the process I discovered that I've added 3lbs, so will need to remedy that as well :/
Also rigging up my new windshield washer system. Since the hood is no longer on hinges, and I still need a sprayer, I'm going the route of 80s-90s GMs (and some other cars) with the wiper-mounted sprayers. Ran the hose today (under the cowl with a T-fitting), and Josh S. is picking up some sprayers off an old GM at the junkyard this weekend so will finish it up once I get those. Even without the sprayers, it actually works fine.
Will clean up the cosmetic look a bit - right now its just rigged up as a test-fit
Various stuff today. Suspension is due here on Thursday, so I know what I'll be doing next weekend :)
Today, Nick came over with his i30 to do some work on it in my garage, and Josh S. and Jim Spoth came by as well to help out, and do a few other little projects. So we drank a few beers, ate some chili (which my wife made), and worked on cars in my 40-degree grarage., though not on any e30s.
black car meetup
doing stuff
Nick's i30 (with VQ35 swap)
Jim did some wiring on his new e92, hooking up a thing for his phone/display. During the process with the battery disconnected, he closed the trunk. Oops....no way to open it without power. So we had to steal my e30s' battery to "jump" the trunk, lol.
Meanwhile, kept working on my trailer reconfiguration/refresh.
What it looked like at the beginning
I kind of wanted stuff on the trailer to sit lower, and a better balance to it. So here's the new reversed setup. The "tire rack" part is removable in case I want to use the front half as a flatbed. The box now sits about 6" lower than the frame, hung on steel straps.
Have some more work to do still.
Josh also brought me some wiper sprayers off an Oldsmobile Alero or something. Did a quck test-fit and they'll need some adjustment, but seems that it will work out well. That's all for now :)
With the day off for the holiday, got a few of the projects done. First I finished up most of the trailer rebuild. I "seam-welded" all of the main bars to stiffen it up some from just being bolted together, painted the underside (after chipping off a lot of lousy bubbling Harbor Freight powdercoat/paint). Also finished the box mounting with a pair of turnbuckles holding in onto the trailer, cut down the third brake light mount to allow the box lid to open fully, and replaced a shattered side light lens. Overall, pretty happy with the result. Fully loaded with tires (but with nothing in the box), the tongue weight is around 50lbs, so with some stuff in the box that should be more like 35-40lbs once I add the spare tires and front "shelf" top.
Also re-packed the bearings, which I hadn't done since buying it. As expected, there wasn't much grease in there and the stuff in there was pretty thin and gunky..
Anyhow, mad tyte yo...
bottom straps for the box
turnbuckles holding it to the trailer, hooked to upside-down stainless U-bolts mounted in the handle slots of the box. Worked out almost perfectly as expected...
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