E36 328i Touring. When it breaks, upgrade it...
Discussion
carpetsoiler said:
Mark- the E39 is unique in that it has a 74.1mm centre bore, and everything else BMW-flavoured comes with 72.6mm. So, as iacabu correctly mentioned, some spigot rings do the job nicely. I can attest to this because I initially fitted the Rondells sans spigot rings... and it was like driving a Saab convertible from the early '90s. 
amazing what a 1.5mm-thick ring of metal makes on each wheel.
amazing what a 1.5mm-thick ring of metal makes on each wheel.
ta, yep, I recalled the problem from when I was trying to get some winters for my e39 - that way round it's a pain in the... your way round, easy fix.
Humour said:
Cool constantly evolving project OP
Out of curiosity, which OEM BMW part is being used to fulfil the job of the larger 3.5" MAF?
Humour
It's never the same month to month. Out of curiosity, which OEM BMW part is being used to fulfil the job of the larger 3.5" MAF?
Humour
The 3.5" MAF is on the E36 M3s (both 3.0 and 3.2), the 540i, and the 740i. You need the plug as well, but fear not, the wires are conveniently labelled 1-4...
carpetsoiler said:
It's never the same month to month.
The 3.5" MAF is on the E36 M3s (both 3.0 and 3.2), the 540i, and the 740i. You need the plug as well, but fear not, the wires are conveniently labelled 1-4...
HA! Ain't that the truth The 3.5" MAF is on the E36 M3s (both 3.0 and 3.2), the 540i, and the 740i. You need the plug as well, but fear not, the wires are conveniently labelled 1-4...
Thanks for answering my query. Presumably then all E36's use the same 4 core of wire from MAF to the ECU? Strange that because I though the MAF connector was more than a 4-pin part. Must have not been paying enough attention during removal/refitting.
Hum
Loving the upgrades and wishing I knew more about mine to be able to do stuff with it. I don't really have anywhere I can work on it even if I knew how.
Fallen out of love with it in the last couple of days, the heated seats have both decided to pack up (which means it's something behind the dash, yes, I've checked fuses 4 and 23, not it's not the fuses) and the two 12v sockets in the glovebox into one of which the dashcam is plugged have also decided not to work. Basically I have electrical gremlins. On top of that the central heater in the dash is merely puffing out warm air (it's still quite strong when cold but warm air is rubbish).
The other issue is that mine's a daily and I have no other transport so I can't really do anything with it that isn't 'all finished' within a day. I actually thought about getting rid of it on the drive home tonight.
Fallen out of love with it in the last couple of days, the heated seats have both decided to pack up (which means it's something behind the dash, yes, I've checked fuses 4 and 23, not it's not the fuses) and the two 12v sockets in the glovebox into one of which the dashcam is plugged have also decided not to work. Basically I have electrical gremlins. On top of that the central heater in the dash is merely puffing out warm air (it's still quite strong when cold but warm air is rubbish).
The other issue is that mine's a daily and I have no other transport so I can't really do anything with it that isn't 'all finished' within a day. I actually thought about getting rid of it on the drive home tonight.
Humour said:
HA! Ain't that the truth
Thanks for answering my query. Presumably then all E36's use the same 4 core of wire from MAF to the ECU? Strange that because I though the MAF connector was more than a 4-pin part. Must have not been paying enough attention during removal/refitting.
Hum
I think I've been fairly true to what I originally wanted to do. But plans do change, some are more fluid than others...Thanks for answering my query. Presumably then all E36's use the same 4 core of wire from MAF to the ECU? Strange that because I though the MAF connector was more than a 4-pin part. Must have not been paying enough attention during removal/refitting.
Hum
I can only assume so, yes. See below for pics.
Funk said:
Loving the upgrades and wishing I knew more about mine to be able to do stuff with it. I don't really have anywhere I can work on it even if I knew how.
Fallen out of love with it in the last couple of days, the heated seats have both decided to pack up (which means it's something behind the dash, yes, I've checked fuses 4 and 23, not it's not the fuses) and the two 12v sockets in the glovebox into one of which the dashcam is plugged have also decided not to work. Basically I have electrical gremlins. On top of that the central heater in the dash is merely puffing out warm air (it's still quite strong when cold but warm air is rubbish).
The other issue is that mine's a daily and I have no other transport so I can't really do anything with it that isn't 'all finished' within a day. I actually thought about getting rid of it on the drive home tonight.
Could be your heated elements in the seats finally giving up the ghost Funk- they're a bit of a sod for that. Very rare for an E36 to have electrical issues though- what've you been doing to it?!Fallen out of love with it in the last couple of days, the heated seats have both decided to pack up (which means it's something behind the dash, yes, I've checked fuses 4 and 23, not it's not the fuses) and the two 12v sockets in the glovebox into one of which the dashcam is plugged have also decided not to work. Basically I have electrical gremlins. On top of that the central heater in the dash is merely puffing out warm air (it's still quite strong when cold but warm air is rubbish).
The other issue is that mine's a daily and I have no other transport so I can't really do anything with it that isn't 'all finished' within a day. I actually thought about getting rid of it on the drive home tonight.
That is annoying, but you'll miss it if you do get rid. If you need any parts, let me know, I have something that may interest you...
Latest purchase:
A '95 M50 325i. Breaking for parts. I'm keeping the engine for my 3-litre stroker build, and am getting rid of everything else. It's got a f
ked auto 'box, and plenty of bits on it worth having... interesting to note that the same time last year, I broke another mid-'90s, 6-cylinder, pre-facelift, E36 convertible, also with a broken passenger window, rust everywhere but a strong engine, parking tickets obscuring the chassis number in the windscreen... got serious deja vu when I was completing the deal!
Two little monsters together. I've reverted to a s
t SE bumper for now because I'm sorting out a different bumper at the mo...I also got a little care package from Messrs K and W. Replacement bits for V3s. Let's clean 'em up, and build 'em up...
Also, I have a few other bits too...
24lb injectors turned up from the States. Comparison to an M50B25 green top injector:
They're much slimmer, but actually typically flow 25.5lb/hr as opposed to 24- this is because they are the Ford Racing blue tops, which usually run 3bar in the Mustang they live in. The BMW runs at 3.5bar.
Also, the bigger MAF versus the standard MAF...
(Humour- as you can see, they share the wires, but you need the plug too.)
And the Mishimoto 3.5" intake boot to let the 3.5" MAF actually fit!
Bonne journée. First trackday of the year at Bedford on Monday. Going to get the car on the KWs this weekend, then head on up there for some fun...
Interesting... What colour is the interior and what seats does it have? My fronts are pretty tired and I'd been thinking about replacing them, especially now the heating's packed up.
Also if the car's Stahlblau (it looks like it might be from the pics?), I might see if it's an easy job to swap the driver's door as mine has a spot of rust in the middle of the panel. There's also some rust on the panel under the rear lights but I have a feeling that'll be a nightmare to sort. I would also possibly be interested in the mounts for the door mirrors as mine are looking very tatty and swapping is probably easier than refurbing.
I'd be surprised if both seats failed at the same time, but I suppose it's possible. The light comes on for a short while occasionally when pressed and then goes off fairly quickly. I've got a mate who's going to help me put a multimeter to it at some stage.
I guess there's just a long list of things that need looking at on mine - they're not critical to the function but they niggle a surprising amount.
Also if the car's Stahlblau (it looks like it might be from the pics?), I might see if it's an easy job to swap the driver's door as mine has a spot of rust in the middle of the panel. There's also some rust on the panel under the rear lights but I have a feeling that'll be a nightmare to sort. I would also possibly be interested in the mounts for the door mirrors as mine are looking very tatty and swapping is probably easier than refurbing.
I'd be surprised if both seats failed at the same time, but I suppose it's possible. The light comes on for a short while occasionally when pressed and then goes off fairly quickly. I've got a mate who's going to help me put a multimeter to it at some stage.
I guess there's just a long list of things that need looking at on mine - they're not critical to the function but they niggle a surprising amount.
carpetsoiler said:
Very rare for an E36 to have electrical issues
Except when they decide they'd like to unlearn your key and refuse to start.. 
Don't for Christ's sake leave the key in one of these while the battery discharges.Funk said:
I'd be surprised if both seats failed at the same time, but I suppose it's possible. The light comes on for a short while occasionally when pressed and then goes off fairly quickly. I've got a mate who's going to help me put a multimeter to it at some stage.
You know, I had this on my E46 and I think the parts are pretty much the same. I'm afraid I never found out what caused it, and on mine it was the driver's side only, but I can tell you it went away after a month or so and hasn't recurred in the year since!Anyway - you should have given me a shout if you were at Bedford today, I could have popped down for a look! My E36 is still lurking under its cover for the next month or so but would like to check yours out. Hope all went well!
JordanTurbo said:
I'll take you up on that this week if it's ok with you
Yes mate- drop me an email and we'll sort out the finer details. Free Tues/Weds evening, and all day Thurs/Fri.McSam said:
Anyway - you should have given me a shout if you were at Bedford today, I could have popped down for a look! My E36 is still lurking under its cover for the next month or so but would like to check yours out. Hope all went well!
Erm... about that...carpetsoiler said:
Geeks- all the interior is gone except the handbrake handle! Mark- headlight washers are spoken for unfortunately. Although they're going to someone who already has headlight washers, so may be able to get that bracket for you.
Damn lol! Ok is the handbrake handle black? If so can i take it? Will shed some beer tokens your way!carpetsoiler said:
geeks said:
Damn lol! Ok is the handbrake handle black? If so can i take it? Will shed some beer tokens your way!
Yes it is mate. It's a bugger to get off, but I will try.carpetsoiler said:
Mark- headlight washers are spoken for unfortunately. Although they're going to someone who already has headlight washers, so may be able to get that bracket for you.
Ta, that would be ace, I've got all the other bits of stuff, it's just mounting the flipping relay without it looking like a 2 year old did it, that's doing my head in! If you've got a sec for a quick photo then I should be able to see if it's the same?Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff