Driveline-Suspension-Engine Redo

[italiangerman]

wow

Sven,
Beautiful work...we briefly talked in Monterey as your coupe was in the award line. From another Larson w/ a coupe. Thanks for sharing your efforts with us. Brian

 

[Sven]

Brian - yes I remember the brief encounter, thanks. I hope to make it back in 2016.

Doug - I don't know of anybody in this area that rebuilds the Getrag's. I thought Metric Mechanic was are only option for rebuilding? We did not do anything to the transmission except replace the seals. It works great.

 

[Luis A.]

The engine modifications to the stock m30b35 engine included: Paul Burke high compression pistons, the Paul Burke N21 cam, lightened flywheel, 320i intake runners, new oil pump, and ported intake and exhaust. We ended up using a b34 block as they are stronger (plus the b35 block had the cracks around some of the head bolt holes). The shop added a tab for the cam sensor (for MS sequential injection) welded onto the adjustable cam sprocket made up by Paul Burke.

The intake parts and oil pan were clear coated with a high temp coating.

Sven, Great work man; looks great. What valve cover gasket is that with the thin orange line?

 

[Sven]

Thanks. The gasket is a Victor Reinz 11.12.1.730.231. It only works with the Motronic front timing cover with the offset hole (and a slightly different shape at the front end). The red part is a soft silicone like bead. I have found this seals nicely. Unfortunately, this type is not available for the old style CS covers.

 

[p.smitty]

Nice.

Beautiful job Sven. Awesome.

 

[lloyd]

Beautiful work.

Pictured are what appear to be urethane motor mounts. Were they used to limit engine movement? (Somewhere in the thread there was a mention of the fan's love for a radiator.) Or were there other considerations? Source?

I ask because many years ago I was offered some "yellow" urethane mounts of an unknown origin. For no particular reason, I tried them on an automatic-equipped Bavaria. I also removed them because, despite the six being inherently smooth, virtually every vibration was transmitted to this driver. (I later gave them to an '02 owner who found me in my driveway, and thought they went well with his golf paint scheme. He later informed me that one of the mounts broke and he asked about a warranty.)

 

[Ohmess]

Unless you are planning to race your car, I wouldn't go with mounts that are that hard. The bodies in our cars are quite flexible; these will only transfer the flex elsewhere.

 

[Sven]

lloyd - I have these on both cars and have been happy with them. I don't sense any excess engine vibrations. I am not fond of the sagging stock rubber mounts. Here is the blurb from the Ireland Engineering site:

Performance part. We were the first to make urethane motor mounts for the E30 twenty years ago. These heavy duty urethane motor mounts are stronger and absorb vibration better than the factory mounts. They are not a bolt-through design (effectively a skinny solid mount), but rather the internal plates extend into the urethane offering strength while maintaining some of its vibration-dampening characteristics. They're also more resistant to oil and ozone. The urethane durometer is 80a. Made right here in Southern California.

 

[lloyd]

lloyd - I have these on both cars and have been happy with them. I don't sense any excess engine vibrations. I am not fond of the sagging stock rubber mounts.

Thanks for the response.

What about the transmission mount? BTW, I have seen mixing and matching of different composition mounts. Whether this fosters premature wear for a weaker-softer-more flexible mount or mounts is unknown, but one supposes it might add a a mid-level degree of stiffness and flexion.

I am not touting rubber over urethane or vice versa. My experience with both compositions has been mixed, a la Goldilocks. That includes flex joints (giubo), engine and transmission mounts, and suspension-related bushes. Not sure that price always reflects reliability since some of the off-brands seem to work as well as the OEM offerings, and not all urethane is the same in terms of composition and durability. There may be some peace of mind with the OEM, but maybe not, pursuant to your "sagging" experience. Urethane compounds and construction quality are hard to fully evaluate absent field testing, hence the question.

Urethane is far more tolerant of water and solvents than rubber based products. Curious whether any major manufacturer has forgone vulcanized rubber in favor of urethane, but I digress.