E36 cheap track day toy

E36 cheap track day toy

Author
Discussion

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Saturday 16th February 2019
quotequote all
The thing is it always seems to be cylinder 2. I have moved the coils around. The plugs around and the injectors. If you push it hard it starts to go in cylinder 3 as well.
I suspect 1 stays a bit cooler as it’s right behind the water pump.
Anyway I have invested in some benchmark coils.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Saturday 16th February 2019
quotequote all
I had thought about it. I did suspect the lifters Thursday morning. I did strip them and clean them out when I built the engine.
It seems to go away so quickly though when the engine is stopped I’m sure it must be more electrical than mechanical.

Edited by Hamster69 on Saturday 16th February 19:58

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Sunday 17th February 2019
quotequote all
I moved all of the injectors around at Bedford but it made no difference.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Sunday 3rd March 2019
quotequote all
I have replaced the cam and the crank sensor not very long ago.
I have bought some new coil packs and a new short shift. Now I just need to find time to fit them.
Rather busy at the moment with the Boxster. First race is at Easter, but the car needs to be ready for testing long before that.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Sunday 14th April 2019
quotequote all
Thanks All Torque. So far so good.
I should say two weeks ago we returned to Bedford Autodrome. The race season starts for 2019 at Donington next weekend. For the last few months I have buried myself in the evenings and weekends rebuilding the Boxster. So unfortunately there hasn’t been a huge amount of work done on the BMW.
But there has been a little.



Squeezed in on a Saturday morning, while still working on the Boxster at the same time. I finally stumped up for some upgraded coils.




Edited by Hamster69 on Friday 28th June 21:34

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Friday 28th June 2019
quotequote all
The weekend came for the first Boxster shake down of the season. We returned to Bedford. I must admit the focus of the day was the Boxster and we took a complete pit crew with us.
I did bring my old 3 along though, to give it a try and use it to follow the Boxster round.



So the C hooks seem to be working well. It is hard to tell which bit of the new discs is really beneficial. Don’t forget the discs are bigger and vented. So we should be seeing cooler braking anyway.
It is also not terribly easy to tell under braking what the rear is doing, as the front is now juddering madly.


Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Friday 28th June 2019
quotequote all

I should have said earlier, the new coils went in. I can see why they are an improvement. Thicker terminals, nicer coating and just not being quite old.


Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Friday 28th June 2019
quotequote all
Unfortunately they didn’t cure the missfire.
The car has been back under its sheet for a few months, but I am planning my next move.
We discovered in the boxster the “Race” oil that Mobil make is rubbish! I breaks down and goes like water. So I will be taking it out of the BMW too. Millers from now on. I have also decided to attack the problem full on. My new injectors have finally turned up, which I ordered when building the engine.
But I’m going whole hog now, I have bought an M3 coolant reservoir and oil filter housing.
These will be needed when I fit a bigger radiator and an oil cooler.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Sunday 11th August 2019
quotequote all
As I said, I have decided to have a bit of a redesign. The engine as a whole I’m happy with, but there are a few parts that let it down. The injectors are old and tired, the cooling is not up to scratch, the oil temp sensor is unreliable, the fan temp switch in the top hose is leaking while looking naff and the cam cover is not in great condition.
Although these are all individual issues, I’m going to tackle them all at once in a mini rebuild.



A lovely sunny day came along so I got stripping. I’m not going to rush this and try doing it all one Saturday at work.
While out and up I took the opportunity to hammerite the front wheel arches. It has been a few years since the had any care. The dreaded rust monster is lurking.


Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Sunday 11th August 2019
quotequote all
That should hopefully hold it back for a few more years.
With the wheels back on I pushed her back into the garage and laid her up for the winter.



This is going to be, one part at a time job of a winter project, but I think I have made a good start.
I dragged to new oil filter housing out.



Very similar to the M52 one but the S50 filter housing has an oil cooler take off.
This one being particularly filthy, but nothing we can’t handle.



After a bit of scrubbing I started to swap over fittings.
The oil pressure switch mounted on the end of the adapter for the pressure gauge, has always been a bit close to the breather system for me. I’m hoping I can mount it in a different hole this time.
While bringing the oil temp sensor up from the sump to the filter housing. It always seemed to be affected by air flow where it was before.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Sunday 11th August 2019
quotequote all
Thanks for the advice Touring.
I’m not sure, I have seen many cars fitted with pusher fans, but you could be right.
I have talked to several people who have built these strokers and they all agree the standard rad is not up to the job and gone the M3 route.
I may well try it just with the one puller fan at least to start with, while I work out my oil cooler positioning.



Cracked on a bit this afternoon, new cooler thermostat in (88 degrees).



The filter housing fits quite nicely, although I’m going to have to do some more fettling to get the power steering pump back on properly.
I knew I had to fit a 15mm spacer, but it turns out the bolt hole is capped unlike the old housing.
A bit more wiring to mess around with to as I move the sensors to better positions.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Friday 29th November 2019
quotequote all
Been waiting a while now for some parts to turn up, but finally I think I have everything I need. Radiator, hoses, reservoir hose, injectors, cam cover, oil cooler and hoses.
I’m having a little trouble relocating the oil temp sensor. I have taken it away from the sump as it always seemed to be affected by air flow over it. I want to mount it up behind the oil filter as that is where the M3 had one. I’m just struggling to find a fitting that will take a 1/8 npt and also be a M10x1.5 banjo fitting for the Vanos. I was just going to drill and tap a normal banjo bolt. But the temp sensor is long, so would block the oil flow to the Vanos.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Friday 29th November 2019
quotequote all
Yes I have an M3 filter housing on it. I have the two holes, but from them I need to run the Vanos line, oil pressure sensor, oil pressure switch and oil temp sensor.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Tuesday 24th December 2019
quotequote all
Some work actually completed yesterday. M3 coolant reservoir plumbed in.



I have been messing around trying to get the oil pressure sensor, pressure switch, temperature sensor and Vanos line connected to the two ports on the oil filter housing.



This was my solution in the end.
I could find nothing on the market to combine a 1/8 NPT take off and a banjo bolt. Particularly as the temp sensor is quite long so if you just used a normal banjo bolt the core would be blocked.
So I drilled out and tapped a longer AP fitting.



So I can now refit the inlet manifold, which means I can finally install my big injectors!

Hoping to get the Rad in just after Christmas. But that is it for now. Have a good Christmas everyone.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Monday 30th December 2019
quotequote all
More work today. Modified the S50 oil filter housing so the M52 power steering pump will fit.



The M52 housing holds the pump further forwards and has one hole that goes right through, to a captive nut on the pump frame. The S50 has two capped holes. So drilled through then spaced the front of the pump out to bring it back in-line with the belt.



After a lot of messing around googling part numbers I managed to get the right cam cover gasket, for the new metal cam cover from a 728.



No more brittle plastic for me.
I quite liked the studs that were fitted and thought the coils would look good mounted on them. But when I went to fit them several didn’t line up. So I extracted them all and fitted the coils with new bolts.
All silly little jobs, but I got the scuttle a back together and ripped out the old fan wiring. I won’t bother running two fans this time. I will just have the temp switch and manual switch wired in parallel.
As usual when bolting on bits from different cars loads of niggles keep arising. Like the alternator duct is in the way of the oil cooler pipes. The oil cooler has come with no mounts, the radiator mounts are wrong, etc etc. But on the whole it is getting there. First test booked for the start of March.
I am not racing this year so will be doing a few more track days this year. Bedford and a Cadwell already booked. Looking at Snetterton and maybe Castle Combe too.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Saturday 4th January 2020
quotequote all
Several small items arrived this week. Another Saturday afternoon tinkering and it now fits.



That’s with the correct mounts fitted. Happily all the hoses also line up.



As you can see the oil cooler isn’t mounted up yet, but that is one of the last things I need to sort.
The Vanos line is finished and fitted.



Considering I did a bit of guessing what would fit, sat in front of eBay one night. I’m really pleased with how it fits.
Last but not least the oil cooler lines are now in the right place. Unfortunately the M3 pipes and 328i alternator don’t seem compatible. I have had to cut the ducting on the alternator to fit the pipes. I will drill and mount the ducting, hopefully this will still provide some cooling, although I haven’t seen a duct like this on any other alternators.



I have continued with the rust proofing. You may have noticed in some of the pictures, I have painted the N/S of the engine bay. Yes with a brush, but I’m not trying to win any presentation awards. My car is now 24 years old and I’m more worried about corrosion than I used to be.
Once up and running again the next project may have to be some welding.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Wednesday 1st April 2020
quotequote all
The last couple of months have been pretty hectic. Trying to do my full time job, spend time with the family. Baby is still under one. Whilst rebuilding the car. Something had to give, which was basically me working on the BMW after the family went to bed.



Let me tell you in January and February it’s pretty cold out in that garage at midnight. Also helped by the fact I have no power out there. I borrowed a bonnet mounting lamp from a mate and got on with it.

It has been a while since I had a chance to post, with a couple of other mechanical projects getting in the way.
The wife wasn’t really coping with her small car and the baby. So old 1.9tdi A4 purchased. Which obviously meant I spent a weekend doing, cambelt, water pump, thermostat and service.
I also took a bit of a gamble. I have wanted to stop driving the BMW to track days for a long time. But I haven’t been in a position to do much about it. Then this turned up.



It is also a bit of a long story, which I may start another thread on. But basically I bought the cheapest T5 transporter on eBay. Yeah I know, foolish. Anyway three weeks later it was a runner with an MOT.

All of which resulted in the BMW getting sidelined. That being said, it is back together and has done a track day!
Now everyone is stuck at home, it gives me a chance to update this. Hopefully people will have time to read it with all the new free time. I will finish the build write up and report back on the first test of this year later.


Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Tuesday 28th April 2020
quotequote all
The final bit of the rebuild was the oil cooler, which needed mounting to the new rad. I had a look around for the original mounts. Which for some bizarre reason were hundreds of pounds. The more M car bits I bolt on the more I am glad it isn’t an M3. Just like if it says Porsche on the box the price suddenly zooms up.
Anyway some studying of photos told me the brackets were simply steel angle with some holes in.



There is one threaded hole on one end and a flat plate on the other. Some aluminium sheet and angle from eBay. An hour or so with the saw, file, drill, taps and spanners.



Now the rad with oil cooler could now go on. Thankfully everything fitted without much modification.
I don’t often pay to get things done, particularly on this car. But I felt I really needed to rebuild it as good as new. Having finished painting the under bonnet area myself, I gave the never painted bumper and much stone chipped slam panel to our body shop.



Not cheap! But as usual they did a fantastic job. We really are very lucky to have such an excellent body shop on site. Unfortunately in the plans to redevelop the site they are going to be moved away.



The front cross member also received paint, but I’m not made of money. Hammerite on everything not visible.

I had started booking Trackdays back at Christmas. I can never resist Opentrack’s sale. As I had the car in pieces at Christmas I made the optimistic assumption that it would of coarse all be back together by March.
February pressed on, this is when I started working late nights in the garage.



Thankfully this time everything went back together. I had a small problem with the fuel rail hoses. When first starting the car they kept blowing off. I think the speed release clips have just been on and off once too many times. I looked up some new, but they were silly money too. So I simply measured the pipe and made up new hoses without any fittings. Slid on the pipes with hose clamps they worked fine. A sod to fit from above, but fine.



With just over a week before the first outing of the year, the bumper went back on.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Friday 30th October 2020
quotequote all
So I suppose I better do an update. Hasn’t this year been rubbish! I did do the trackday at Bedford in April. Unfortunately the missfire was still present although temperatures were much more under control.



Then we went into lockdown. I had several track days booked including ending the summer with a weekend away at Cadwell. These were all cancelled.
Don’t get me wrong in the big scheme I’m very lucky, people have died and lost their jobs, but I was really looking forward to going back to Cadwell for the first time in over five years.

Anyway not to waste an opportunity I had a few months at home and decided the thing that needed the most work was the van. Don’t worry I won’t go into details, this isn’t a Van thread. Just to say the long term goal is to have this as a tow vehicle for the 3.
It started lockdown like this.



Kind of how it came, and ended lock down like this.



No it’s not finished but that was a lot of work, a huge amount of electrics you can’t really see. It is now a usable race support vehicle.

Eventually lockdown came to an end. Things started to open up and I managed to book a day at Snetterton in the mad rush of people trying to get out of the house.

So missfire, I’m pretty sure is electrical and not coils, plugs or injectors. Basically leaves wiring and control unit. So I found a second hand ignition loom and put it on.
The brakes were the only other thing I came away from Bedford wanting to improve. The car stops great, but the pedal travel is just too far.



After a lot of research and a couple of non starts I had to just pay the M tax. I looked into a variety of later 3 series and 5 series master cylinders and servos. The only real plug and play upgrade though is an e36 3.2 M3 set up. Very annoying as it was six times the price of all the 5 series stuff. Which had a bigger cylinder but wouldn’t fit the bulkhead or pedal.
Anyway the result was probably worth the money.

That being said I didn’t really get to try it much. The day before Snetterton my wife came down with something. It turned out not to be Covid, but we were in isolation while the track day happened.

A few more months pass and there really isn’t anything on the horizon. Then Javelin posted on Facebook, some new dates. I jumped on the website and managed to find one I could do. Annoyingly back at Bedford but beggars can’t be choosers.



We returned to Bedford last Monday and I’m pleased to say had a great day. The brakes were phenomenal! The missfire still present but it takes twice as long to start as it did before the loom and goes with a turn of the key.
Obviously I didn’t do any timing, but I did have the track app on my phone open. I have shaved 17.1 seconds off my best lap time over the old engine. The car feels electric. It is so usable, I remember why I love it.

Very little caught me on the day. The picture above is of a later M3 moving over for me. I’m not blowing my own trumpet, the guy was quick and I did let him past when he caught me on the straight. I was carrying so much more speed in the corners though, I pulled him back in and he let me past.



I think I can get on top of the missfire now. I will make a heatsheild to go under the ignition loom and probably wrap it in some reflective stuff.

Now cleaned and tucked back under her sheet we will see the winter out. I might have started to research stand alone engine control units.
Next year I will have owned the old girl for a decade and I’m still enjoying the hell out of her.

Hamster69

Original Poster:

747 posts

147 months

Friday 22nd January 2021
quotequote all
Happy new year again everyone.
A very slow year for obvious reasons last year. I’m hoping this year will see some more action. I am trying to get back into racing since work pulled the plug on the Boxster program at the end of 2019. It has been really tempting to run the BMW in the track day championship or something similar.
I think I would very quickly destroy what I have spent ten years building though. The joy of track days for me, is you can do a few laps and stop. Let everything cool down and it all lasts a lot longer. So I may well build something else. I have started a dedicated Instagram page hoping to build up a following to approach sponsors with later this year. @TeamHamsterRacing if you are interested.
I have booked a day at Snetterton in the boxing day sale again. Hopefully this year we will be able to do it.



Edited by Hamster69 on Friday 22 January 20:04