I finally found my E9!

T

texinbc

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Hi guys,

I'm Tex, in vancouver canada, long time reader here but am new to actually having an account.

After three years of searching, a few near misses, a lot of time spent of craigslist and way to many emails received saying "sorry, its sold" I have finally found the e9 for me. She's a former donor car (not sure why because the metal is in amazing shape) so the seats, trans, engine, wheels, driveshaft are all gone, also there are no wires in it it at all.
There are a lot of boxs of parts, but I dont know what is there and what else is missing.

I am thinking of putting a M30B35 with a 5 speed, and was wondering if there is a driveshaft I can get that will connect right up, or do I need to get one cut & balanced?
Alternately... I have a M52 donor e36 sitting four blocks from me that is complete, and was wondering what else would be involved into putting that in.
The options for a engine I have at the moment are:

1. M30b35; looks like the toughest one to find,easy to put in though I dont know what to do for the driveshaft when mated to a 5 speed, power would be good, parts aren't to hard to come across, but they are a litter tougher to find as a unit

2.3.5 out of a e34/e24; The 3.5 looks like a normal swap, bolts up without any issues I have found, they are cheap, parts are a'plenty, give decent power right away, and the fuel mileage should be decent

3.m52; I was hoping for a few words of guidance as the M52 I haven't seen/heard of it being done, but the power would be good, they are lighter, good on fuel.


Not sure why the photos are coming in upside down, but I figured pics are better then no pics

Thank you
 

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Markos said:
Welcome! This looks like a great project car.

Did you pick it up last October, or buy it more recently from someone who decided that they were in over their head?

http://e9coupe.com/forum/showthread.php?t=20433
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Thanks :smile:


No actually, I was trying to, but out of nowhere the guy went quiteand pulled the add. I kept in touch over the winter, and am talking to him about it again. I know he got it for $2500 as a shell already, and he is looking to turn a quick buck on it. We havent agreed on a price yet, but after seeing your link again I will be going over the body with a fine tooth comb again just to make sure, he is looking in the area of $4500, I think $3500 is fair as it sits being a shell of a 2800. I am glad I havent paid him for it yet as this new info will make me look at it again a lot harder.

In any case maybe I'll just buy it, dump some e24 seats into it, whatever motor and just drive it as is till the roof caves in on me :mrgreen:
 
I may have some parts you may be interested in (5-speed, OEM perfect blue seats, some door panels).

I'm in the Seattle area.

M52...way too much trouble for what it's worth. Also, aren't these actually HEAVIER than an M30?
 
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teahead said:
It's not a dogleg: http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/pts/5437948895.html
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I will keep that in mind thanks.
At this point it kind of depends how the car looks and what the guy wants for a final number as to it I restore it or just buy it, dump a cheap e24 motor/trans/seats and just play with it, or walk away if he wont be reasonable.
I got a look at it about a month ago, engine bay was stripped down to bare metal, a few chunks where replaced, front passenger wheel well will need to be changed, there is a quarter sized rust hole in the spare tire spot, about 8 inch's or the rocker panel lip are rusted and folded over(looked like someone tried to use that as a jack point), but the shock towers are beautiful, under the car has had the floor replaced at some point and is covered in pour15, the fenders & doors are good, no bubbling that I noticed, the headliner is still in it so I couldn't check the sun roof and around it for rust, I didnt notice anything on or around the pillars.
 
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Wow, for that price it looks pretty good from the few photos I have seen.
 
Did anyone read Rick's post from October?

"Hi

A friend of mine just looked at the car beside the fact that it is very rusty, rockers full of bondo, rust behind the A pillars and I am sure lots of other places. No interior, no engine or trans, a few bits here and there. Even as a parts car maybe worth half of that at best Too good to be true Sorry everyone for getting excited

Thanks, Rick

PS and I don't want it for myself."
 
HB Chris said:
Did anyone read Rick's post from October?

"Hi

A friend of mine just looked at the car beside the fact that it is very rusty, rockers full of bondo, rust behind the A pillars and I am sure lots of other places. No interior, no engine or trans, a few bits here and there. Even as a parts car maybe worth half of that at best Too good to be true Sorry everyone for getting excited

Thanks, Rick

PS and I don't want it for myself."
Click to expand...
I did yes, and honestly I am not sure if we are talking about the same car. I have seen it in person, and its in great shape, I'm going to check it again with a friend who has one, but it seems like we are talking about two different cars, because it shows no signs of anything at the A pillers, there is not a single paint bubble anywhere on it, both the rockers are solid as a rock with no bondo.
 
texinbc said:
I did yes, and honestly I am not sure if we are talking about the same car. I have seen it in person, and its in great shape, I'm going to check it again with a friend who has one, but it seems like we are talking about two different cars, because it shows no signs of anything at the A pillers, there is not a single paint bubble anywhere on it, both the rockers are solid as a rock with no bondo.
Click to expand...


How do you know the rockers are solid? Are the outside covers off? Bring a flashlight, study picts from Svens restoration carefully, check up above the Fuse box and same place on the P side. Bring a small magnet or dry film thickness gauge and check the bottom rear of the front fenders, bottom corners of the door skins, rear wheel arches, tops of fenders (the u-section just under the edge of where the hood i. Look at the seams of the trunk and hood from the underside (where the outer skin is crimped over the inner panel) as water tends to collect there and cause the seam to bulge (rust).

I just came back from looking a late 1960's Alfa, owned by the same guy for over 4 decades and claimed to be rust free. It was indeed rust free because it was repaired with some metal and some body filler in the rockers and rear quarter panels. Couldn't have detected this with out a magnet or gauge. Gauge also told me overall thickness which confirmed bare metal respray in the early 1980's when the body was fixed up. P-side door lower seam was pretty fat compared to d-side so definitely some rust in that seam From when it was a Four season car in the early 1970's. Didn't buy it, but an easy car to clean up for $2-4k in body work plus a 6k respray. If anyone out there wants a highly original Duetto from a 100% honest and responsible owner, with all the original bits, and 45 years of records, pm me.
 
I bought a digital paint gauge on Amazon for $20. On my parts CSI the roof reads between .2mm and .3mm across the entire skin. The doors read up to 1.2mm, but look fine on the outside. By comparison, my '09 Subaru reads 0mm.

Everyone has your best interest in mine. I went through a similar set of warnings but decided to proceed without regret. If you go into the sale knowing that major demons are hiding underneath the bodywork, you won't be set up for disappointment. Also, if you are just buying it to throw an engine in it and drive around knowing that it could fall apart, than so be it. Not every car needs to be a restoration candidate.

If you do intend to restore it, just do the math. Are you doing the work or someone else? Like the car in question, my interior is shot. I've spent $1,000 on little pieces here and there, door panels, dash parts, etc. It will cost me another $3,000 in parts to do the seats (assuming I don't re-chrome), and at least another $1,000 in labor if I decide not to do the upholstery myself. Alternatively, I could use a set of early e24 seats from $300 to free. Dashboard wood is $1,000 refinished, or a few hundred in veneer plus a vacuum kit if you do it yourself. Don't overlook the interior, as it is costly. Cheap carpet is $300, excellent carpet is $600.
 
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