Discussion
Got a e36 99 compact 1.9 8 valve as a daily, and tbh i think its pretty fun. its under powerd, a bit boaty, but for what i paid i cant grumble. toyed with the idea of tracking it as some stress free fun, and not crying if i bin it. Seen some cheap ebay coiler kits etc, and anti roll bar kits, bushes etc. For say 3-400 quid, whats the best upgrade i could throw at it to tidy up the handling. I put new genuine front arms on last year, so they are relatively tight.
thanks
thanks
limited slippp said:
Got a e36 99 compact 1.9 8 valve as a daily, and tbh i think its pretty fun. its under powerd, a bit boaty, but for what i paid i cant grumble. toyed with the idea of tracking it as some stress free fun, and not crying if i bin it. Seen some cheap ebay coiler kits etc, and anti roll bar kits, bushes etc. For say 3-400 quid, whats the best upgrade i could throw at it to tidy up the handling. I put new genuine front arms on last year, so they are relatively tight.
thanks
Me and my mate got one of these last year as an MOT failthanks
stripped it out, welded the diff, hydro hand brake, ebay coilovers, some generic bucket seats (possibly old impreza ones) and a dished wheel and it never fails to put a huge smile on our faces and it costs sod all to maintain
It's not a bad first car to start using on track really. It's fairly light, enough power to keep it entertaining, RWD, manual, etc.
For me persoanlly though, i wouldn't go too mad with it. Eventually, you may want something with a bit more poke, so you may upgrade to something more powerful or maybe look at doing an engine swap, if it's feasible. I assume the '28i engine could be put in one of these? Either that or sell up for a 325ti or go for something like a Clio 172/182.
What i'm saying is, don't go spending loads on the car to only sell up not long afterwards when you get a bit bored. Starting out, power is not a priority. I'd personally want a bit more poke though once you start getting confident. You may not feel the same though but just my personal opinion.
For me persoanlly though, i wouldn't go too mad with it. Eventually, you may want something with a bit more poke, so you may upgrade to something more powerful or maybe look at doing an engine swap, if it's feasible. I assume the '28i engine could be put in one of these? Either that or sell up for a 325ti or go for something like a Clio 172/182.
What i'm saying is, don't go spending loads on the car to only sell up not long afterwards when you get a bit bored. Starting out, power is not a priority. I'd personally want a bit more poke though once you start getting confident. You may not feel the same though but just my personal opinion.
limited slippp said:
Got a e36 99 compact 1.9 8 valve as a daily, and tbh i think its pretty fun. its under powerd, a bit boaty, but for what i paid i cant grumble. toyed with the idea of tracking it as some stress free fun, and not crying if i bin it. Seen some cheap ebay coiler kits etc, and anti roll bar kits, bushes etc. For say 3-400 quid, whats the best upgrade i could throw at it to tidy up the handling. I put new genuine front arms on last year, so they are relatively tight.
thanks
Pretty sure that would be a 16v thanks
As for making it more entertaining, strip it, remove the sound deadening and seam sealer etc. Add some decent suspension, polybush it and it will handle miles better and feel less boaty. You can chuck on a Z3 shifter and steering (purple dot) rack as well to help things. Don't bother with massive brakes just get decent discs (Brembo OE ones are great) and some decent pads (Mintex 1155 IIRC) will give very good bite and feel. Wheel wise dont over tyre it, stick with a 195/50/15 type tyre. In terms of anti-rollbars use the Msport ones (there are three sizes MSport are the thickest)
Possibilities are endless here really. For £2/300 you can drop in one of the 6 pots for a good glob of power and the standard box and diff will happily take the extra power.
Wow thanks for all the input! Much appreciated. I’m leaning towards a coil over kit on eBay, as I’m sure the 20 year old shocks are past their best. But would I need to re Bush before that?
The engine is the m43, ands it’s bearable as long as you keep your speed up.
What’s the best shout ref bushes or suspension first? Thanks
The engine is the m43, ands it’s bearable as long as you keep your speed up.
What’s the best shout ref bushes or suspension first? Thanks
E36Dan said:
Depends how good the existing setup is. There's a lot you'd want to do to make it drive better on track, but perhaps just spend that initial £300 taking it on a track, getting a feel for the car and upgrade the things you are not happy with.
It feels like if I take it on a track at the mo, and hit some quickish corners it won’t be very happy lol. Just to say I’m no driving expert, far from it, but I can tell it’s to soft and wallow as it stands at the mo. 
limited slippp said:
Look very similar to ours, same price as welltheyre firm and quite cheap to the feel but we've not had any issues yet
tannhauser said:
geeks said:
As for making it more entertaining, strip it, remove the sound deadening and seam sealer etc.
WTF? Why on earth would you do this to save a few grams?!
I've 'tracked' a Compact E36. The 1.9 is either a 316i (8v) or a 318Ti (16v).
Pointless stripping it out to save weight, don't waste your time. Is it any slower with a passenger on board? Not so you'd notice.
Cheap Ebay coilovers are fine but you may well need some wheel spacers and long studs with 19mm wheel nuts as the tyres can foul the springs and f
k the sidewalls or just be jammed solid. Eibach spacers are best but a bit pricey, long studs like everywhere for about 50 quid or so. If the rear axle bushes are goosed (they will be) you can fit poly bushes. Apart from that, check the outer front balljoints - if okay, fit a pair of E30 M3 eccentric wishbone rear bushes, change the brake fluid, check the pads etc. You can use fancy brake pads and I use EBC yellows. Decent tyres are a must. Top the oil up to max and away you go.
Pointless stripping it out to save weight, don't waste your time. Is it any slower with a passenger on board? Not so you'd notice.
Cheap Ebay coilovers are fine but you may well need some wheel spacers and long studs with 19mm wheel nuts as the tyres can foul the springs and f
k the sidewalls or just be jammed solid. Eibach spacers are best but a bit pricey, long studs like everywhere for about 50 quid or so. If the rear axle bushes are goosed (they will be) you can fit poly bushes. Apart from that, check the outer front balljoints - if okay, fit a pair of E30 M3 eccentric wishbone rear bushes, change the brake fluid, check the pads etc. You can use fancy brake pads and I use EBC yellows. Decent tyres are a must. Top the oil up to max and away you go.Edited by iSore on Wednesday 20th June 09:16
iSore said:
I've 'tracked' a Compact E36. The 1.9 is either a 316i (8v) or a 318Ti (16v).
Pointless stripping it out to save weight, don't waste your time. Is it any slower with a passenger on board? Not so you'd notice.
Woah, good reply but I take issue with this bit. You'll definitely notice a passenger in a car with such low bhp/ton! My E36 328, was stripped a bit and a few 'power' mods, I could definitely feel the difference in a passenger on track. Pointless stripping it out to save weight, don't waste your time. Is it any slower with a passenger on board? Not so you'd notice.
Not so much that it made me want to run solo, but I did look forward to the occasional solo sprint as the car felt a bit more nimble without the 90kg ballast to my left.
iSore said:
I've 'tracked' a Compact E36. The 1.9 is either a 316i (8v) or a 318Ti (16v).
Pointless stripping it out to save weight, don't waste your time. Is it any slower with a passenger on board? Not so you'd notice.
Cheap Ebay coilovers are fine but you may well need some wheel spacers and long studs with 19mm wheel nuts as the tyres can foul the springs and fk the sidewalls or just be jammed solid. Eibach spacers are best but a bit pricey, long studs like everywhere for about 50 quid or so. If the rear axle bushes are goosed (they will be) you can fit poly bushes. Apart from that, check the outer front balljoints - if okay, fit a pair of E30 M3 eccentric wishbone rear bushes, change the brake fluid, check the pads etc. You can use fancy brake pads and I use EBC yellows. Decent tyres are a must. Top the oil up to max and away you go.
I disagree about the weight, you really do notice the difference on track. Depending on the wheels you use spacers won't be needed either. E39 wheels go on nicely without spacers! Pointless stripping it out to save weight, don't waste your time. Is it any slower with a passenger on board? Not so you'd notice.
Cheap Ebay coilovers are fine but you may well need some wheel spacers and long studs with 19mm wheel nuts as the tyres can foul the springs and f
k the sidewalls or just be jammed solid. Eibach spacers are best but a bit pricey, long studs like everywhere for about 50 quid or so. If the rear axle bushes are goosed (they will be) you can fit poly bushes. Apart from that, check the outer front balljoints - if okay, fit a pair of E30 M3 eccentric wishbone rear bushes, change the brake fluid, check the pads etc. You can use fancy brake pads and I use EBC yellows. Decent tyres are a must. Top the oil up to max and away you go.Edited by iSore on Wednesday 20th June 09:16
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