Resto-mod e21 BMW
Discussion
There has been one delay after another lately but manifold mods and exhaust are complete now.
The new front coilovers are GAZ golds although we painted them black as they're a bit more subtle.
The boot spoiler is a fiberglass copy of a genuine BMW Motorsport ''ducktail'' which means I can prep and paint it in body colour. I really like how squat and agressive the stance is and the spoiler really adds to that. The final ride height isn't set yet though as still need to do geometry.
New wheel bearings all round and can finally get the new WMS billet 4 pot callipers & 298mm discs on. Keri @ WMS did a great job with getting everything machined accurately and it all went on without a hitch. Using braided hoses and HAWK fast road pads.
The Cat fast road cams are in and timed up. The current job is fitting the new wiring loom that came from the USA. It's a major pain re-wiring the whole car but I am determined to lose the OE bullet fuse box and have proper blade fuses etc. I'm also fitting a proper alarm and immobiliser with tracker.
We're really pushing to be finished by mid August......hopefully.
The new front coilovers are GAZ golds although we painted them black as they're a bit more subtle.
The boot spoiler is a fiberglass copy of a genuine BMW Motorsport ''ducktail'' which means I can prep and paint it in body colour. I really like how squat and agressive the stance is and the spoiler really adds to that. The final ride height isn't set yet though as still need to do geometry.
New wheel bearings all round and can finally get the new WMS billet 4 pot callipers & 298mm discs on. Keri @ WMS did a great job with getting everything machined accurately and it all went on without a hitch. Using braided hoses and HAWK fast road pads.
The Cat fast road cams are in and timed up. The current job is fitting the new wiring loom that came from the USA. It's a major pain re-wiring the whole car but I am determined to lose the OE bullet fuse box and have proper blade fuses etc. I'm also fitting a proper alarm and immobiliser with tracker.
We're really pushing to be finished by mid August......hopefully.
Progress on the race car too. The rust free shell threw up some surprises when the screen came out. Someone had tried to stop a leak with a plastic bag at some point.
The steel rear firewall and boot floor have gone to be replaced with alloy.
The cage will tie in to the diff mounts, rear turrets etc
There's still a way to go but it should be finished in a couple of weeks.
The steel rear firewall and boot floor have gone to be replaced with alloy.
The cage will tie in to the diff mounts, rear turrets etc
There's still a way to go but it should be finished in a couple of weeks.
The laguna seca blue car will be my daily driver, which is partly why it's having such a thorough rebuild. The orange car it replaces, was my daily for about 4 years, but there were always a few things that were compromised. This time though, it's pretty much exactly how I wanted it to be. Every nut and bolt is new or refurbished and there isn't any rust anywhere. I could have probably bought a 4 year old 318 or something but I much prefer this.
The track car is just being put together out of stuff I either owned, was owed or I swapped. Even the labour costs were to wipe debts etc, so it really has been done on a budget. That's one of the good things about e21's though. They're still pretty cheap and simple to modify. They're just like a MK2 Escort but with independent rear suspension! I'm hoping that with all the metal we've chopped out, the poly windows, coilovers etc, that we are down to about 875 - 890kgs. It's only going to have an e30 2.5 fitted but that's a reliable 170bhp which should still be fun. It's having a short, side exit system from the 6 branch too, so should sound pretty good sweet!
Just waiting on bonnet pins so that we can finally fit the fiberglass bonnet and boot. Once they're on the whole car is going to be painted flat white. The staggered minilites will be satin black with 235/50 rears and 215/50 fronts to make sure the arches are filled properly. I know it's a budget build but it still needs to look right.
The track car is just being put together out of stuff I either owned, was owed or I swapped. Even the labour costs were to wipe debts etc, so it really has been done on a budget. That's one of the good things about e21's though. They're still pretty cheap and simple to modify. They're just like a MK2 Escort but with independent rear suspension! I'm hoping that with all the metal we've chopped out, the poly windows, coilovers etc, that we are down to about 875 - 890kgs. It's only going to have an e30 2.5 fitted but that's a reliable 170bhp which should still be fun. It's having a short, side exit system from the 6 branch too, so should sound pretty good sweet!
Just waiting on bonnet pins so that we can finally fit the fiberglass bonnet and boot. Once they're on the whole car is going to be painted flat white. The staggered minilites will be satin black with 235/50 rears and 215/50 fronts to make sure the arches are filled properly. I know it's a budget build but it still needs to look right.
Edited by e21Mark on Tuesday 23 July 18:43
Well things are moving along with MIB - honest! In fact, we could well be finished within just a few weeks now. I'm properly excited!
The brakes are awesome. If they work anywhere near as good as they look, I'll be laughing. We hope to offer complete conversions once testing is over.
The race car is also coming along and should just about make the gathering next month.
In fact, we could well be finished within just a few weeks now. I'm properly excited!
The brakes are awesome. If they work anywhere near as good as they look, I'll be laughing. We hope to offer complete conversions once testing is over.
The race car is also coming along and should just about make the gathering next month.
Well we've been plodding along with the repairs to the race car shell. There was nothing to worry about structurally but the front screen rubber had obviously been holding some water and the same problem affected the rear. It's just been a case of grinding any rust out and letting in new metal wherever needed. It's all pretty much done now and the cage is also finished. In fact, the whole car was primed today so things are really moving along.
Hopefully we're not too far off it looking like a complete race car?!
Hopefully we're not too far off it looking like a complete race car?!
LaurasOtherHalf said:
directed from link in GG, great car! 
Thanks. I'm so looking forward to it being finished.I got sent this link today. Just goes to show that an e21 can be a fine alternative to a 2002 oe E30.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Djv_2AEN6vI&fea...
LaurasOtherHalf said:
directed from link in GG, great car!
Thanks. I'm so looking forward to it being finished.I got sent this link today. Just goes to show that an e21 can be a fine alternative to a 2002 oe E30.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Djv_2AEN6vI&fea...
Things are progressing with the car but there have been loads of hurdles to overcome. I guess that's to be expected with so much custom fabrication but even some of the supposed 'bolt on' bits have had their issues.
When we were looking at what engine to go with, we considered the S50/3.0 from the early e36 M3. The problem, apart from the cost of the engine, were also maintenance costs. We know the M52 makes less power but they're just so cheap and readily available. This one was just a couple of hundred quid! Once we'd settled on the M52, we wanted to get the most from it and a common mod is to use the USA spec M3 cams and the M50 inlet manifold. This gives around 240 brake. Because the US cams are quite hard to source, Cat Camshafts supplied their 'fast road' profiles which are about the same profile. We've used Cat camshafts before and always found they performed well. If we had the budget we would have gone for Schrick but we had to try and keep a lid on costs.
Anyway, on fitting the new cams we discovered the end plate on one wouldn't fit. It seems that they simply forgot to machine it down, so rather than send the camshaft back we got a local machine shop to finish it off. Cat were very apologetic and would have sorted it, but we just wanted to get it done asap. So, after a bit of last minute fettling, the new cams are in.
The wiring still needs to be sorted and we want to keep the amount of e36 loom used to a minimum. We also want there to be minimal wiring in view in the engine bay. We know it's only cosmetic but with the loss of all that brake linkage and servo it'll just look so much nicer under there.
Whilst it would have been nice to have individual throttle bodies, it would have just been too expensive. The performance gains aren't big enough to justify the costs either. So, what we plan doing is building a bespoke airbox and cold air intake. The plan is to lay fibreglass and shape it to the space between inner wing and throttle body. It's hard to describe but when it's done we can post a few pictures. Hopefully it'll give a nice induction sound too?! It should also help keep the nitrous install hidden.
Anyway, a few pictures that we took when sorting the camshaft issues. I owe a big thank you to Cat Camshafts.
Done and dusted!
When we were looking at what engine to go with, we considered the S50/3.0 from the early e36 M3. The problem, apart from the cost of the engine, were also maintenance costs. We know the M52 makes less power but they're just so cheap and readily available. This one was just a couple of hundred quid! Once we'd settled on the M52, we wanted to get the most from it and a common mod is to use the USA spec M3 cams and the M50 inlet manifold. This gives around 240 brake. Because the US cams are quite hard to source, Cat Camshafts supplied their 'fast road' profiles which are about the same profile. We've used Cat camshafts before and always found they performed well. If we had the budget we would have gone for Schrick but we had to try and keep a lid on costs.
Anyway, on fitting the new cams we discovered the end plate on one wouldn't fit. It seems that they simply forgot to machine it down, so rather than send the camshaft back we got a local machine shop to finish it off. Cat were very apologetic and would have sorted it, but we just wanted to get it done asap. So, after a bit of last minute fettling, the new cams are in.
The wiring still needs to be sorted and we want to keep the amount of e36 loom used to a minimum. We also want there to be minimal wiring in view in the engine bay. We know it's only cosmetic but with the loss of all that brake linkage and servo it'll just look so much nicer under there.
Whilst it would have been nice to have individual throttle bodies, it would have just been too expensive. The performance gains aren't big enough to justify the costs either. So, what we plan doing is building a bespoke airbox and cold air intake. The plan is to lay fibreglass and shape it to the space between inner wing and throttle body. It's hard to describe but when it's done we can post a few pictures. Hopefully it'll give a nice induction sound too?! It should also help keep the nitrous install hidden.
Anyway, a few pictures that we took when sorting the camshaft issues. I owe a big thank you to Cat Camshafts.
Done and dusted!
Edited by e21Mark on Wednesday 28th August 13:31
Suspension and brakes are going on. Going to bin the EBC pads though, as found them to be rubbish. Found Hawk to be about the best for reasonable cost.
Some small repairs to do to the arches but nothing too tough. I know its only a race car but I still want it to be finished to a high standard.
Some small repairs to do to the arches but nothing too tough. I know its only a race car but I still want it to be finished to a high standard.
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