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MrCat

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  1. MrCat

    BMW E30 enthusiasts?

    Wow! This is news. Been away from AL for a loong looong time.. I think I've mentioned a few times here as well, E30 parts are getting quite difficult to find and prices are absolutely crazy all over the world. One of the main reasons why I sold my E30 is that it was no longer a cheap to run, fun old RWD car! E46`s for example, are much cheaper to run and maintain (in general) these days (as a fun-to-drive RWD car)..
  2. MrCat

    BMW E30 enthusiasts?

    Great to hear Manoj!! Haven't logged in to AL for a long time, saw this reply just now. Any photos and details about your car?
  3. Those leaf springs at the back! Aint` no Defender there! ๐Ÿ˜ฌ
  4. Hello all, it`s been a while! Thought Iโ€™ll share some of the first upgrades done to the car, for anyone who`s interestedโ€ฆ. I know everyone likes power but personally, I am a sucker for handling โ˜บ๏ธ This car has plenty of power for my liking, but being based on the 1 series chassis (which is no different to the base model 116i) handling is definitely not it`s strong point! It`s plenty of fun, but it sure aint` no โ€˜Mโ€™ car. An M2 Competition really does put the power down incredibly well (wider track, bigger wheels, fancy electronic locking diff.. it all helps). Even the front-end grip and agility of an M2 is really something else! So, the biggest issue with the 140i rear end is the twitchiness under hard acceleration. It tends to jump around a bit when powering out of a corner as well, especially when the road surface is not perfectly smooth. Here`s one way to stiffen up that rear end a bit. Got some bush inserts installed. Rear subframe bush inserts: Differential bush inserts: Here`s them all installed (just slips in to fill the void inside each rubber bush) Then got the best remedy to prevent single wheel burnouts . An M-Performance LSD. This is a genuine item (clutch pack-based LSD, 2.81 ratio) bought down from the U.K. Well, they are actually manufactured by an Australian company, for BMW Germany, where the retail price is generally cheapest in the U.K. Here`s the sucker with the part number: The old diff which came out. It`s a boat anchor for the moment (no real use) but will hold on to it in case I need in future. These are not designed in way that the centre can be easily swapped out with an LSD centre. The new diff ready to do it`s job: Extremely happy with the outcome though. The rear end โ€˜almostโ€™ feels like an M car now! The car behaves predictably and the turn-in (under acceleration) also feels better due to the support from the rear. No increase in NVH levels. The best bit about this LSD is that it`s designed to work perfectly in tandem with the traction control system and also with the 'electronic' diff which mimics a locking diff by braking the slipping wheel (the standard e-diff feature is actually quite good and it works). Apparently this is 30% lockup on acceleration and 9% lockup on deceleration. Need to get a rear underbody brace installed next, and that`s as far as I can go with standard parts/components.
  5. Thanks mate! Yeah, the 370mm Mtech2`s are extremely hard to find these days... ๐Ÿ˜ฌ
  6. Yeah, havent driven one but very nice car. Nice stance and wider track in standard form, even at the back.. Spacious interior compared to the BMW.. Continuously in the top 3 best handling FWD car list (various reviews) as long as i can remember. If i was after a FWD hatch this is probably the car i'd get.. ๐Ÿ˜‡
  7. Got a snap against a legend in the hot hatch game.. A Renault Megane RS.!!
  8. ^^^ Funny how the noise get`s muted with the last two generations.. maybe because they were in higher gears Nah not really, emissions controls FTW..! That induction noise in second though.. ๐Ÿคฉ
  9. Xmas arrived early...! ๐Ÿ˜ Always good to receive new car parts right? ๐Ÿ˜‡๐Ÿ˜‡ Guess what's going in??
  10. Kinda sad day... ๐Ÿ˜– Sold the last significant item from my BMW E30 parts collection.. An Mtech-2 370mm steering wheel... Wasnt planning to get rid of it, but I wont be getting in to the E30 game anytime soon so... 30 years later, still looks good compared to the current MSport wheel in the 140.. ๐Ÿ˜ฌ๐Ÿ˜ฌ
  11. Considering the current market situation, I`d say a KE72 wagon.. But it`s a solid axle at the back, so would need to get the axle sorted properly so that it doesn't wheel hop/axle tramp.. Something like an early Mark2 would be nice, but not sure about the prices at the moment.. A BMW e36 would also work, plenty of drive-train options to mix and match.. Whatever the car it is, it`s not an easy thing to do mind you. The cheapest option is to get the diff welded, because good 100% locking differentials are very expensive to build.. Even then, you need quite a bit of power to drift/power slide properly, unless the road surface is wet or the tires are very skinny.. you can make suspension geometry changes to make a car drift easily, but it`ll be a bitch to drive on the road then.. I would say just buy a car and try to have some track time first, think about drifting later on.. .
  12. In other GTR news, the aging Zilla is to be axed in Aus.. "Australian Design Rules (ADRs) for side impact collisions mean the Nissan GT-R canโ€™t be imported to Australia from October 31, 2021." https://www.carexpert.com.au/car-news/nissan-gt-r-godzillas-reign-ending-in-australia
  13. Here's the state of an oil filter after 17,000kms. As per BMW codition based service, its good for another 8,000 ๐Ÿ˜ Glad its all done and running fresh oil now. Plus points for the design and engineering of the filter housing and location, very easy job to do..
  14. Wow.!! 6k 180sx`s (and 5k Skylines) are surely a thing in the past.. These days you`d be lucky to find a roller for that.. I didn't expect this massive demand for Japanese sports (or sporty) cars really, but Covid just accelerated it.. Cant even find an Integra Type S for sale anymore.!
  15. LOL..? yeah nah, not lol..! ๐Ÿ˜„
  16. Parts from Perth? That`s great.! I know there`s a small Datto community here, quite a few 1200`s (batu sunny), 1200 utes, 1600`s, Z`s etc... 1600 (Bluebird) prices are through the roof these days, nothing decent for less than 20k AUD.! 120y`s (b211) and b310`s come up for sale from time to time. They are still relatively cheap.. Let me know if you want me to follow something up with a seller here etc...
  17. I understand oil tech and engine design has come a long way and the oil quality sensors and their algorithms can work this shit out, but this is NOT a situation where I can sleep well at night... ๐Ÿ˜ I've seen what 5k, 10k and even 15k (kms) used oil looks like in my own eyes.. Its all good if I flog the car in a couple years, but what if I wanted to keep it for 10? Engine oil is much cheaper than a rebuild right? Newer BMW oil standards are a bloody mess..! The manual says that there's a bunch of specs you could use ONLY for "topping up"!! They obviously dont want you to DIY a simple oil change! Genuine BMW Longlife 14 FE (or the newer 17 FE standard which is what they probably sell now) is over twice the price of good quality alternatives. Plus, this is just an intermediate oil change till next service. Castrol is an OEM supplier for BMW, so BMW branded oil is apparently based on Castrol Edge. Found one alternative on Castrol oil finder which is a match for this car (meets BMW Longlife 01 spec). I could not care less about it not being an "FE" (fuel economy) spec. as long as the engine is well lubricated. I only need to run this oil for 8000 kms till the next service, so decided to change for the above this weekend.. ๐Ÿ™‚๐Ÿ™‚ Will see how this goes...
  18. So this car's service history was all recorded in iDrive and the local dealer confirmed that the car was in their system. Never paid much attention to the details, untill now.... The car currency sits at around 56k, last service at 54k, so its all good i thought.. Had a look in the actual entry, the last service was just a check! But the 40k service had a whole bunch of things done/replaced.. So the car has done 17,000km's without an oil change... And the next oil change is not due for 8000kms OR 07/22.. What the actual F...? So its all good to run 25,000kms' without an oil change? ๐Ÿ˜ฎ๐Ÿ˜ฎ Its all condition based service so BMW wont publish exact milage, called them up to confirm. Yeap, oil changes are good for around 25k or 2 years.!!
  19. Awesome! You dont see many old school engines with the intake and exhaust on the same side these days! Might need to build a small bracket to support the weight of the turbo assembly. It`s all hanging off the exhaust manifold studs at the moment right?
  20. Keep up the good work and keep us posted! With A/L being dull and event-less these days, just wanted to encourage you with a comment! ๐Ÿ™‚
  21. Havent used this type of carpets before, bought a set from an ebay china man and just installed.. Not bad quality really, does a nice job covering it all up.. Not a huge fan of the cheap looking logos', but normal carpets goes on top so its all covered.. ๐Ÿ˜๐Ÿ˜ Drivers side - some creases are still there from shipping.. Passengers side: Rear:
  22. Nissan Australia has confirmed the Z will be offered here by 2022.. If they can keep the price around 70k that will undercut the Supra by around 15k. Could be the cheapest GT/Sports coupe offered in Aus..! Chassis and engine is proven old(ish) tech by the looks, so hopefully that Mercedes sourced auto transmission would be good depndable unit...
  23. Car needs a wheel upgrade eh.. Good ol` Enkei RPF1`s ?? ๐Ÿ™‚ : Rota Grid Classics? ๐Ÿ™‚ Had these Mitsubishi wheels on one of my previous Lancers (might fit the Del Sol). 14 inch, made by Enkei, nice and cheap second hand
  24. Dont know how it happened, but one of the rear wheel nuts were missing. ๐Ÿ˜ฌ Went to the dealer to pickup a nut.. Got a chance to snap old Vs new there.. Here's against a current model 135i Xdrive.. ๐Ÿ™‚
  25. ^^ Also note how they moved the coolant reservoirs to the 'cold' side of the engine. The intake is in the 'hot' side, but the air box has got a heat shield at the bottom. It`s a better design since the intake is right next to the turbo and the air path is very short (i.e. less heat soak). The whole layout of the B58 is a significant improvement from the previous N55 (turbo I6) which had coolant reservoirs and other plasticky bits cracking since they were mounted right above the turbo/exhaust. This is also having a water to air intercooler incorporated in to the intake, so extremely short charge pipe (no FMIC) and almost no turbo lag.
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