HipMF

1/4" aluminum plate on deck.
saftey glasses on, one hand on the e-stop, the other one's holding a beer.
wish me luck boys.

1/4" aluminum plate on deck.
saftey glasses on, one hand on the e-stop, the other one's holding a beer.
wish me luck boys.

I didn't actually read what changed, but all my photobucket pics are still up. It's a mediocre service at best, but bandwidth isn't free.
I've thought about renting some server space and using it to serve images, but that's more because I'm particular about how things work. Uploading pics and getting links has always been overly tedious IMO (has to be, so they can put more ads in your face and not go bankrupt)

I've been toying with the idea of turboing the car this winter. I may still do some prep work for that, but in the meantime I've come up with a way better goal for the summer of 2018.
Wear out these tires:

#trackdaybro? #2018

Even after removing the rear sway bar, the gas tanks don't fit anymore. I could us a persuader to make the driver's side fit, but on the passenger side the filler neck points directly at the subframe. I thought about modifying them, but at the end of the day it's just easier, quicker, and less leak-prone to just go with a fuel cell. Will relocate the battery to where the passenger tank previously resided for more optimal weight thing-a-ma-jigs.

Looking forward to seeing someone taking the m54 plunge. Let me know if you have any issues with the electronics end of things. I'd like to get my hands (keyboard?) dirty on one of these...

I've been toying with the idea of turboing the car this winter. I may still do some prep work for that, but in the meantime I've come up with a way better goal for the summer of 2018.
Wear out these tires:

#trackdaybro? #2018

I tackled the fueling upgrades this weekend (upgraded fuel feed line not pictured).

First step was to install my new Precision Raceworks Stage 3+ fuel pump bucket that had two Walbro 450s stuffed inside. Robert at PR was nice enough to assemble this for me. Usually you have to modify your stock bucket while mounting and wiring up the pumps yourself.




After fiddling around in the gas tank for a bit, I got the stock bucket out. New PR Stage 3 bucket on the left, old bucket on the right (with my old Stage 1 inline pump attached).


Installation was basically reverse of disassembly. Fairly straightforward, more gas on the hands. A plug-and-play harness is included in the kit to activate the 2nd pump under boost. I routed it from the battery to the two new terminals on the top of the bucket, then up under the hood to a Hobb's switch that I plumbed into my charge pipe. The 2nd pump is set to kick on anytime I'm over 15PSI.

Next up was installing the port injection and upgraded fuel line. I reconnected the battery right before this to test that the LPFP bucket installation worked as it should. For those of you who are aren't familiar with these cars, they run/prime the fuel pump every time a door opens after the car is "asleep". Well, I disconnected the OEM fuel feed line and then opened the door so I could route the upgraded line to the tank. As soon as I opened the door, the pump kicked on and fuel went spraying everywhere out of the open port. I'd assume a gallon of gas was on the garage floor before I quickly plugged the OEM line back in.
Battery disconnected, OEM fuel line out, new fuel line plugged in.


I ran the larger fuel feed line up to the front of the car and started removing parts so I could install the port injection.


Intake manifold removed, port injection plate installed. I added a dab of gasket sealer to the o-rings just to make sure they stayed on.


I connected the upgraded fuel lines to the HPFP and port injection plate. Then I connected all of the injectors to my BMS port injection controller and spent an hour wiring that up to my ECU. I managed to fit everything in the DME box for a stealthy installation. Everything went back together smoothly and you can't even tell the port injection is in there unless you look for it.

After everything was back together, I connected the battery and went to test that the port injection worked. As soon as I did, the fuel pumps primed and I heard fuel spraying under the car. Not just a small leak, it was dumping fuel - another gallon or two on the floor. I quickly disconnected the battery and investigated.
Well, my dumb ass forgot to plug this port on the plate! The kit comes supplied with a proper plug and o-ring... make sure to use it!

I wrapped things up and went out for my first full tank of pure E85. No more mixing!

The car pulls strong on 28PSI, stay tuned for more updates!

Looking forward to seeing someone taking the m54 plunge. Let me know if you have any issues with the electronics end of things. I'd like to get my hands (keyboard?) dirty on one of these...

I am looking for a few parts to fix my m42's oil leaks...
 
Things I am looking for:
- MS43 DME (Have 1, but if you have a cheap one I'd buy it as a spare in the event I brick one)
- M54B30 MAF (BMW part number: 13627567451, needs to be known good)
- E30 engine harness firewall grommet
- 16" spal pusher fan
 
Any help finding these things would be much appreciated!
This isn't everything, but I'll update the list as I think of more things or check them off the list

Since I'm going with stiffer springs in the rear, I also need to address the front. The best-documented solution on the net is to shorten the struts and use MKI Golf strut inserts, so that's what I'm planning. Parts are ordered, so I started on the disassembly.
First strut out aaand... wtf? PO kind of left me high and dry on this one... (The gland nut screws into the top of the strut tube and should a larger OD ring on top with two holes for a special wrench.)

Like multiple choice, your first answer is usually the right one, so I went with the first thing that popped into my head:

It took a big lever and a lot of force, but it eventually came out. I was under the impression that the car was riding on Bilsteins when I bought it. Turns out that was only half true... The fronts were some kind of open-bath oil shock. I probably dumped a quart of oil out of each one, and everything just came out in pieces after I removed the gland nut...

Hopefully next weekend I'll have some parts and can start putting stuff back together. My goal is to make it to the autox at RA August 13th. I'm not particularly optimistic at this point, but I'm still trying.

I've been toying with the idea of turboing the car this winter. I may still do some prep work for that, but in the meantime I've come up with a way better goal for the summer of 2018.
Wear out these tires:

#trackdaybro? #2018

Since I'm going with stiffer springs in the rear, I also need to address the front. The best-documented solution on the net is to shorten the struts and use MKI Golf strut inserts, so that's what I'm planning. Parts are ordered, so I started on the disassembly.
First strut out aaand... wtf? PO kind of left me high and dry on this one... (The gland nut screws into the top of the strut tube and should a larger OD ring on top with two holes for a special wrench.)

Like multiple choice, your first answer is usually the right one, so I went with the first thing that popped into my head:

It took a big lever and a lot of force, but it eventually came out. I was under the impression that the car was riding on Bilsteins when I bought it. Turns out that was only half true... The fronts were some kind of open-bath oil shock. I probably dumped a quart of oil out of each one, and everything just came out in pieces after I removed the gland nut...

Hopefully next weekend I'll have some parts and can start putting stuff back together. My goal is to make it to the autox at RA August 13th. I'm not particularly optimistic at this point, but I'm still trying.

Same car, different phone number, higher price, and even shittier pictures... Tempted to offer him $500...
https://milwaukee.craigslist.org/cto/6233009417.html

Same car, different phone number, higher price, and even shittier pictures... Tempted to offer him $500...
https://milwaukee.craigslist.org/cto/6233009417.html

Part of the upper mount for my rear coil-overs. I needed a shorter shock in the rear to go lower and not have crazy droop. Decided to go with a Bilstein motorsports shock with 1/2" heim joints, as I couldn't seem to find an OEM shock that fit all my requirements. Still need to make a plate for the top so everything can bolt up in the stock location.

whoops...

Much better.

Feels like I own an e21 again, instead of a big lump of metal that does nothing but sit around on jackstands collecting dust.

Hoggin out some parts at the shop away from shop (work :/ ). Woo! Friday night!


Damn, I need to get a life...

My co-workers were dismayed to learn that I'd never been to Devil's Lake, so I would have at least two reasons to attend this event.

Stantsing from my apt bae

Also, did this over the weekend:
 

Stantsing from my apt bae

Also, did this over the weekend:
 

Stantsing from my apt bae

Also, did this over the weekend:
 

Much better.

Feels like I own an e21 again, instead of a big lump of metal that does nothing but sit around on jackstands collecting dust.

The next episode looks like this:
M52B28 from 1997 E39 528i 139k miles
OBD1 conversion with 413 red label DME and Sssquid Tuning stage 2 tune
S52 cams, M50 intake manifold, Supersprint replica long tube headers, single 3" exhaust 
Achillies upgraded oil pump shaft and oil pan baffle and every other reliability upgrade I can find
E30 G260, lightened single mass flywheel, South Bend stage 3 street clutch disc, Sachs 918 pressure plate, Z3 shifter with DSSR, S3.25 rear diff

All of the gaskets and seals are being replaced (except for the head gasket), I purchased brand new coilpacks, sensors, hoses, vanos rebuild kit, and a host of other refresh items.
So far I have pulled the exhaust manifold, removed all the exhaust manifold studs, started pulling the intake manifold, began the tedious process of scrubbing the block for a fresh coat of paint, and have cleaned up the injectors, and sent them off to Injector Rehab for some cleaning and testing.

Underneath the valve cover, nothing out of the ordinary, the cam lobes are in great shape which helps re-affirm that this engine was maintained to some extent.

I can't help but sit here counting all of the valves and wonder how I got to this point in my life.