Yet another rescued E36 328i M Sport project...
Discussion
Oh my god! Panic! There's people out there!!! 
I have kept all reciepts since I bought the car - mounting-up nicely now - not that a project bleeding money from your bank account is a good thing in some people's eyes!
I have kept a good eye on what it has cost me so far.... Around £4k since buying it last year.
Will definitely think about your process.
Thanks you guys for showing interest in my thread, much appreciated indeed.
I also hope that people will find this project is of genuine interest, and may even give some people some useful info/pointers for theirs...
Andy665 said:
I use my threads on here for exactly the same reason.
I also now keep 2 spreadsheets for each car I have, one detailing expenditure (parts bought, date, cost and mileage when bought) to support the receipts / invoices I gather and the second details the work I carry out (date, what work is done, mileage when work done)
I keep every receipt / invoice, laminate them and put them in date order in a binder - come sale time its a guaranteed deal clincher - last 11 cars I have sold have all been within £50 of asking price and all to the first person to view
Great idea, what if one day this forum no-longer exists... I also now keep 2 spreadsheets for each car I have, one detailing expenditure (parts bought, date, cost and mileage when bought) to support the receipts / invoices I gather and the second details the work I carry out (date, what work is done, mileage when work done)
I keep every receipt / invoice, laminate them and put them in date order in a binder - come sale time its a guaranteed deal clincher - last 11 cars I have sold have all been within £50 of asking price and all to the first person to view
I have kept all reciepts since I bought the car - mounting-up nicely now - not that a project bleeding money from your bank account is a good thing in some people's eyes!
I have kept a good eye on what it has cost me so far.... Around £4k since buying it last year.
Will definitely think about your process.
Thanks you guys for showing interest in my thread, much appreciated indeed.
I also hope that people will find this project is of genuine interest, and may even give some people some useful info/pointers for theirs...
Edited by RickBristol on Tuesday 19th May 13:28
RickBristol said:
It's not all about performance or 'bling'. Its about rescuing a decent Beemer that may even be worth a lot of money in a few years... There won't be many originals left.
I have a '99 E36 318iS coupé with a sports pack and loads of other goodies which I've owned from about 2.5 months old. It still only has about 63,000 miles on it and I want to do exactly the same - get it back to showroom condition. The rear arches are pretty rusted now, one of them really badly, and there's a bit of the dreaded tin rot cropping up in a few other places too. I know someone who can sort it - I'm just waiting for him to tell me he's ready to make a start.2013BRM said:
yup, too many have been buggered about with so stock ones are becoming rare
Agree - mine was not standard mechanically but they were good quality upgrades - M3 servo, LSD, KW V2 suspension, 325i inlet manifold etc, the wheels and mirrors were only non original body changes and the originals went with the car when it was soldMine, when I've managed to get it sorted, will be exactly as it was when I collected it from the dealership. I've looked around for 'stock' examples and there just aren't any. They've either been chavved, turned into drift cars or are in bits being broken for parts. I want mine to be mint and totally standard, even if it takes another ten years for its value to justify the cost.
MitchT said:
I have a '99 E36 318iS coupé with a sports pack and loads of other goodies which I've owned from about 2.5 months old. It still only has about 63,000 miles on it and I want to do exactly the same - get it back to showroom condition. The rear arches are pretty rusted now, one of them really badly, and there's a bit of the dreaded tin rot cropping up in a few other places too. I know someone who can sort it - I'm just waiting for him to tell me he's ready to make a start.
Get them to check the inner arches as well, before you commit - requires removing the rear wheels and arch liners - just to make sure its not gonna cost an absloute fortune to fix. Luckily, mine were fine with only the outer arches - what you normally see - affected by rust. FYI the cost of the rear arches repair made-up around £450 of the over-all cost of getting the bodywork done...Andy665 said:
Just takes discipline to do whenever you do work / spend money - the real pain is initially getting everything sorted and up to date - keeping on top it then is dead easy
My last 328i Sport went to its new owner with a history file over 15" thick
Love the colour of that car BTW...My last 328i Sport went to its new owner with a history file over 15" thick
MitchT said:
Mine, when I've managed to get it sorted, will be exactly as it was when I collected it from the dealership. I've looked around for 'stock' examples and there just aren't any. They've either been chavved, turned into drift cars or are in bits being broken for parts. I want mine to be mint and totally standard, even if it takes another ten years for its value to justify the cost.
Agreed. I have, however, spotted a couple of lovely stock-looking examples up here in Bristol, but most others I've seen are looking on their last legs, still should only add to the rareity value for us, in years to come.I'm currently on the look-out for a decent E36 M3, but think I will still keep mine, even if this happens... Spent too much time/money/frustration on getting mine to where it is now - and I know its all been done properly, with genuine BMW parts and a decent mechanic to boot! Just waiting for my mate in Southampton - Hi Sam!
- to get my RC 041s finished so that the car really looks as it did when it left Syntners showroom some 17 years ago... 
Edited by RickBristol on Tuesday 19th May 14:00
Andy665 said:
2013BRM said:
yup, too many have been buggered about with so stock ones are becoming rare
Agree - mine was not standard mechanically but they were good quality upgrades - M3 servo, LSD, KW V2 suspension, 325i inlet manifold etc, the wheels and mirrors were only non original body changes and the originals went with the car when it was sold2013BRM said:
what difference did the manifold swap make? thinking of doing it on my girlfriends Z3
Also did the large-bore throttle body, cold air induction kit and re-mapped computer stuff...Bloody-Hell! apart from the lovely growly sound, can take ten years off your face, when changing gear with a heavy right foot!!!
2013BRM said:
what difference did the manifold swap make? thinking of doing it on my girlfriends Z3
Massive difference - the 2.8 was strangled deliberately by BMW as at the time there were significant tax hikes if cars produced more than 192bhp - the 2.5 manifold releases circa 20bhpDifference it made was very noticeable, no more feeling breathless above 5,000rpm, eager to rev well past 6.000 rpm - made the car a lot more enjoyable to drive
on a very rare day off... 
RickBristol said:
Just waiting for my mate in Southampton - Hi Sam! - to get my RC 041s finished so that the car really looks as it did when it left Syntners showroom some 17 years ago...
Morning! Finishing off brakes on my car and my 3-litre build, then I'll get cracking on the wheels! - to get my RC 041s finished so that the car really looks as it did when it left Syntners showroom some 17 years ago... Edited by RickBristol on Tuesday 19th May 14:00
Still got my eyes open for a splitter as well, but they're notoriously difficult to find.
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