My 1st 'Baby BMW' - 2007 E81 130i LE

[danb79]

Managed to give the 130i a full exterior detail today; cleaned all window shuts and roof lines with a detailing brush and plenty of APC... Absolutely full of cack; green mould etc

Exterior has had a full snowfoam, rinse, hand wash, rinse, towel dry and coating of AGs Rapid Ceramic Spray; wheels deep cleaned too with Bilberry wheel cleaner and a few brushes, tyres treated etc

Just in time for it to start raining

It's tucked up the driveway for now; may stick it on trickle as I'm not going anywhere this week...

[danb79]

Interior cleaned; winter mats fitted and cleaned and new sill covers fitted, as the old ones had started to fall apart

[UnderSteerD]

This is looking very smart, great job!

Have you given any more thought to which coilovers you might go for?

[danb79]

UnderSteerD said:

This is looking very smart, great job!

Have you given any more thought to which coilovers you might go for?

I'm not sure yet

The likes of BCs, Meister Rs, GAZ and STs come up in searches etc... GAZ appeal to me seeing as they're UK made and fully serviceable etc

[911Spanker]

danb79 said:

UnderSteerD said:

This is looking very smart, great job!

Have you given any more thought to which coilovers you might go for?

I'm not sure yet

The likes of BCs, Meister Rs, GAZ and STs come up in searches etc... GAZ appeal to me seeing as they're UK made and fully serviceable etc

Coilovers scare me - always seem way too stiff and never seem to work on road.

I am sure some custom exe-tc may work but spending considerable sums to get a car that bounces about and only works on a smooth track isn't for me..

[UnderSteerD]

911Spanker said:

Coilovers scare me - always seem way too stiff and never seem to work on road.

I am sure some custom exe-tc may work but spending considerable sums to get a car that bounces about and only works on a smooth track isn't for me..

I know what you're saying.

I'm sure someone who knows what they're talking about may say differently; but I've found that a monotube damper tends to lack sufficient travel and often feels very hard, especially at lower 'normal road' speeds.

Conversely I've found that a twin tube damper can perform very well on the road, even if they're compromised when it comes to outright performance.

For a road car, I would happily consider a coilover that uses a twin tube damper.

Edited by UnderSteerD on Friday 18th October 13:45

[danb79]

911Spanker said:

danb79 said:

UnderSteerD said:

This is looking very smart, great job!

Have you given any more thought to which coilovers you might go for?

I'm not sure yet

The likes of BCs, Meister Rs, GAZ and STs come up in searches etc... GAZ appeal to me seeing as they're UK made and fully serviceable etc

Coilovers scare me - always seem way too stiff and never seem to work on road.

I am sure some custom exe-tc may work but spending considerable sums to get a car that bounces about and only works on a smooth track isn't for me..

Never had any issues with coilovers; ran them for a long time through all my JDM import Honda's and Mitsubishi's and a few BMWs too...

For me it's all about getting them fitted properly and set up properly; some corner weighting and a full fast-road set up etc. It's all about getting the ride height set up properly as well; I never go low with them, just lower, if that makes sense...

Exactly why I'd use my pals at Grinspeed to get them dialled in

I ran my E38 & my 1st 2 E39 530i's on coilovers and they were superb; car handled brilliantly and didn't bounce at all. Took rough roads very well and compliant when required

E38:


E39:


It was great on its 16" winters

[danb79]

More parts ordered for the top end engine refresh (basically to stop its natural rust proofing)

OEM BMW rocker cover & gasket(s), OEM BMW oil filter housing gasket, oil cooler gasket and valvetronic gasket. Gates belt, INA tensioner and pulley. Will get spark plugs ordered and HEL braided lines ordered when we're back from the Yorkshire coast in just over a weeks time, and new Motul brake fluid and then I'll get it booked in with my pals sometime mid Nov for them to work their magic on it

Edited by danb79 on Thursday 24th October 11:08

[JakeT]

If you’re into using the OE type bits the INA pulley/tensioner combo is the one to use. I put one in my car nearly 75,000 miles ago and it is still just fine.

[danb79]

JakeT said:

If you’re into using the OE type bits the INA pulley/tensioner combo is the one to use. I put one in my car nearly 75,000 miles ago and it is still just fine.

Sorry; yes it's the INA tensioner & pulley I've gone for from PartsInMotion, not Febi!

[stickylabels]

[quote=danb79]More parts ordered for the top end engine refresh (basically to stop its natural rust proofing)

Heh-heh, B10 does the same, don't they all?

HEL braided lines are good too I've found, as long as you can get the old 'uns off! I went full tart on carbon look and they looked lovely in the packet, not seen them since they were fitted mind.....

[danb79]

stickylabels]anb79 said:

More parts ordered for the top end engine refresh (basically to stop its natural rust proofing)

Heh-heh, B10 does the same, don't they all?

HEL braided lines are good too I've found, as long as you can get the old 'uns off! I went full tart on carbon look and they looked lovely in the packet, not seen them since they were fitted mind.....

Haha yes; all BMWs have their own rust proofing, it's just the wisps of smoke into the cabin I'm not keen on (ok if the windows are down) I have given the whole area a good clean with brake cleaner to see where the main issue is and like M54s, it's right above the exhaust mani and that rear quarter. Front looks very clean by the oil cooler, but looks like the oil filter housing is weeping too, like they all do on straight 6s...

And yes; the HEL lines are superb; I've given all the brake lines a thorough clean and they look to be corrosion free, but I'm sure my pals will soon use some Wurth Rost Off on them and crack them loose before they do the whole job... There's 6 lines needed on the 130i!

And yup; once fitted they're soon forgotten about... I tend to just go for black lines

[JakeT]

danb79 said:

Sorry; yes it's the INA tensioner & pulley I've gone for from PartsInMotion, not Febi!

Ah nice, good stuff. I’ve got similar jobs as you to do on a friends 130i. His is a ‘57 LE, on 130k. It needs a valve cover, gasket and belt tensioner. We have the arrangement where I’ll sort his car out, and when I need help doing various wiring/house work he’s the one to do it. It’s a good trade off!

[Court_S]

danb79 said:

It's a belting little car Sir... It goes very well too and sounds superb with the OEM exhaust (valve left open) and the OEM spec K&N filter in the airbox etc...

It's got a great rumble but howls when it's pulling through the gears and it soon picks up

Handles great too; the Bilstein B4 shocks / Eibach pro-kit combo suits it well (exactly what's on the F31)

However, I may replace the main arms come the New Year/Spring 2025, and the track rod ends etc and get a set of coilovers on there to really dial in the ride height and get Grinspeed to do a fast road set up

I'll be treating it to some new alloys for summer tyres; need to decide between 17s or 18s...

The M3 front arms are definite worthwhile upgrade and are not too expensive from TRW.

Getting the alignment done by a specialist and moving away from the stock set up does wonders too. Mine was an absolute hoot…..having big regret about selling it seeing yours.

[danb79]

Court_S said:

danb79 said:

It's a belting little car Sir... It goes very well too and sounds superb with the OEM exhaust (valve left open) and the OEM spec K&N filter in the airbox etc...

It's got a great rumble but howls when it's pulling through the gears and it soon picks up

Handles great too; the Bilstein B4 shocks / Eibach pro-kit combo suits it well (exactly what's on the F31)

However, I may replace the main arms come the New Year/Spring 2025, and the track rod ends etc and get a set of coilovers on there to really dial in the ride height and get Grinspeed to do a fast road set up

I'll be treating it to some new alloys for summer tyres; need to decide between 17s or 18s...

The M3 front arms are definite worthwhile upgrade and are not too expensive from TRW.

Getting the alignment done by a specialist and moving away from the stock set up does wonders too. Mine was an absolute hoot…..having big regret about selling it seeing yours.

Cheers Sam

I'll be doing a suspension refresh in Spring I think and may go for coilovers, so M3 arms will be a decent upgrade to allow it all to be dialled in properly.

[jackcactii]

danb79 said:

I'm not sure yet

The likes of BCs, Meister Rs, GAZ and STs come up in searches etc... GAZ appeal to me seeing as they're UK made and fully serviceable etc

Don't cheap out and get the KW V3s. Had them on my 135i for eight years and only now they're starting to feel tired. Much improved handling and comfort.

[danb79]

JakeT said:

danb79 said:

Sorry; yes it's the INA tensioner & pulley I've gone for from PartsInMotion, not Febi!

Ah nice, good stuff. I’ve got similar jobs as you to do on a friends 130i. His is a ‘57 LE, on 130k. It needs a valve cover, gasket and belt tensioner. We have the arrangement where I’ll sort his car out, and when I need help doing various wiring/house work he’s the one to do it. It’s a good trade off!

Yeah. This time I'm just going to leave it with my pals and they'll have it sorted in a few days. I'm not desperate for the car back so they'll fit it in between jobs etc

It'll be quite a bit of work really but worth doing and then I'll leave it until Spring next year...

[TameRacingDriver]

UnderSteerD said:

911Spanker said:

Coilovers scare me - always seem way too stiff and never seem to work on road.

I am sure some custom exe-tc may work but spending considerable sums to get a car that bounces about and only works on a smooth track isn't for me..

I know what you're saying.

I'm sure someone who knows what they're talking about may say differently; but I've found that a monotube damper tends to lack sufficient travel and often feels very hard, especially at lower 'normal road' speeds.

Conversely I've found that a twin tube damper can perform very well on the road, even if they're compromised when it comes to outright performance.

For a road car, I would happily consider a coilover that uses a twin tube damper.

I've considered the KW Street Comfort (V2 Comfort) for my Mini, supposed to ride quite nicely. Not sure what the handling is like with them but never really read anything bad.

[danb79]

TameRacingDriver said:

UnderSteerD said:

911Spanker said:

Coilovers scare me - always seem way too stiff and never seem to work on road.

I am sure some custom exe-tc may work but spending considerable sums to get a car that bounces about and only works on a smooth track isn't for me..

I know what you're saying.

I'm sure someone who knows what they're talking about may say differently; but I've found that a monotube damper tends to lack sufficient travel and often feels very hard, especially at lower 'normal road' speeds.

Conversely I've found that a twin tube damper can perform very well on the road, even if they're compromised when it comes to outright performance.

For a road car, I would happily consider a coilover that uses a twin tube damper.

I've considered the KW Street Comfort (V2 Comfort) for my Mini, supposed to ride quite nicely. Not sure what the handling is like with them but never really read anything bad.

Very good. They take the roads very well and very compliant but with very little roll.

V3s are overkill IMO for an every day road going car. Like Bilstein B16s etc... Superb for what they are but just too firm for every day use IMO

A friend has the V2s on his M5 and they just work very well indeed.

He had the B14s before that and just too rigid. He has B16s on his Integra but that's mainly his track day car and for that they do a fantastic job

[TameRacingDriver]

danb79 said:

Very good. They take the roads very well and very compliant but with very little roll.

V3s are overkill IMO for an every day road going car. Like Bilstein B16s etc... Superb for what they are but just too firm for every day use IMO

A friend has the V2s on his M5 and they just work very well indeed.

He had the B14s before that and just too rigid. He has B16s on his Integra but that's mainly his track day car and for that they do a fantastic job

Good to know, might consider forking out for the comforts then! Enjoying this thread, a car I've always had at the back of my mind but never quite got there, but at least I managed to enjoy the same engine in my z4c