74 Restomod
- Thread starter WALTER
- Start date
tmh
Well-Known Member
Limited slip with more power will make it more nimble, somewhat transformative. I went from an automatic to a 5 speed, limited slip, Suspension Techniques springs and sway bars in 1995. That was transformative.
As long as you accept that you are changing the basic nature of the car then everything is in the table, right?
Here are some random thoughts on how to make an E9 more nimble on a budget:
A steering box that works to spec is not the problem, IMHO. My vintage race car has a worm and roller box and I can put it 1” off an apex repeatedly. The play in this type of box goes away once the steering is loaded up.
To me, E9 steering doesn’t feel sloppy, just slow. So, I would start by changing the ratio of front/rear roll bar stiffness (more relative rear bar). Then try changing the front alignment a bit (a hair less toe in, make sure all the suspension bushings are fresh). Think about a 350mm steering wheel. Next, I would look into speeding up the steering ratio per BelgiumBarry’s mods to the steering arms (don’t go too far and cause bad bump steer).
If it doesn’t handle likes Lotus Elise yet, how about focusing on taking as much weight off the front as possible: a GRP hood & front bumper, alloy radiator, plus AC delete?
Me? I decided not to try making my E9 something it isn’t. So I went shopping for a 2002 or GTV (got the Alfa). It is light and tossable as anything from that same era save a Lotus Europa, Ginetta or VW 914. And when that’s not enough I have a 1000lbs sports racer that’s street legal ;-)
John
Further to John's comment, you can also reduce front end weight by relocating the battery. Trunk relocation is fairly common, and there is also a thread about using a pair of smaller 6v batteries wired in series underneath each of the rear seats to get the weight even lower in the car. (Be advised a pair of six volts batteries can be made to put out 12v by wiring them in series, but the amperage available is not increased when you do this. You therefore need to ensure each 6v battery has sufficient amperage for cold starting.)
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I’m with you on most of the mods. I am also really leaning towards lightening things up this time because I have tried most of the other things already. Again, I realize that the coupe won’t reach Lotus Elise level of handling but I’m still a little baffled as to how every Bavaria i have driven (3) has been more tossable and communicative than my most dialed in coupes.
I’ve done the battery relocation to the trunk before but planned on putting it under the rear seat this time. more for keeping the trunk clear than for performance, but it may be an added bonus to have them that low.
Bavaria’s have more weight in the back and are perhaps slightly better weight balanced?? They also had a better matched rear suspension. FWIW, I never felt any of my E3’s were more nimble than my E9’s. But there was a gap of 25 years between my last E3 and first E9. And neither model can compare with a well setup 2002.
John
Just wait a few years and remember to drive it in the snow and rain. It will get much lighter!
I'd hazard a guess at saying an E3 is much more rigid structurally than an E9 owing to having a B pillar, similar to how vw used 5 door bodyshells for the mk2 Golf G60 limited as they were stiffer, that and a more effective rear suspension set up would make a factory E3 handle better than a factory e9
I don't think this battery was around when I looked into this, but you need to look at whether the amperage of your battery setup is sufficient to start your car under a range of operating conditions. These batteries only have 150 cold cranking amps, so putting two of them together would get you to 300. Also, this battery references something called pulse cranking amperage. Not sure what that means, but you would need to understand that too. These amperage issues are a lot more important in colder climates.
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Hey, just a quick note on the semantics here. Running batteries in "series" increases the voltage, but maintains the same amp-hour rating. Whereas, running batteries in "parallel" maintains the voltage but increases the amp-hour rating. If you have (2) 6v batteries, you'll want to run them in series to reach 12v. If you have two 12v batteries, you'll want to run them in parallel to maintain 12v.
Thanks Stephen - I've updated my posts to correct this.
Walter, There will be a stamped S next to the numbers dictating the ratio, located on pass side below half shaft.
thanks, will look more closely at that area. I thought I read somewhere that the “S” was stenciled on
It can be painted but stamped is very common.
Ok, I checked again and found no stamp. However, upon closer inspection of the white, chalky script that I photographed, there is a faint “S” on its side, just underneath it! Can anyone else make it out, or is this just wishful thinking?
I can see it 
Painted S is usually on the top not the back.