jonmsm
Part of things
German, Swedish & French
Posts: 208
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Aug 16, 2009 11:08:29 GMT
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HI all - A heap of people have asked me to make a thread about my progress so they can keep tags so here goes! I should explain where this all starts! Well the BMW obsession started with my step dads 840i some years ago as a kid but the current obsession started with this... my second car At 19 that was a pretty epic car to have and I have been hooked since and at 24 (nearly 25.. but shh) I have never been without an e28 of some sorts. My signature pic is also me, on the nurburgring with my second M535i which certainly looked the part even if it was full of tin worm: Then when the MOT man condemned it and it was just too much to fix I bought another one (big mistake maybe) for a 'mate' for £150. The guy writes for PPC (Toby Unna if you're a reader) and I picked up a copy of the mag the month after I bought it to see the bonnet up... and lots of steam! PANTS! Anyway, while my life changed alot the car got retired to the corner of a friends yard where it slowly rotted away. After having the wheels nicked and the windscreen smashed it started to look very sorry and I decided to do something with it. The car was by now showing signs of years of bodge repairs and looking more like swish cheese than a BMW. So I set to and stripped a lot out of it with the plan to make it a track car. It's got a dogleg manual gearbox, LSD and 3.5ltr i6 engine so should be good for it! just needs to go on a major diet! I did quite a bit to the car when I decided it would be a good time to take a photo or two. At this point its had a new bumper with alot of metal work removed from it to save weight, new front wing, some paint laid on the bonnet to protect some rust repair work and so on.. Some new lightweight and basic brackets while I was learning to weld: All new lower suspension arms and poly bushes fitted and since then a completely new set of steering arms (centre drag link, tie rods and idler arms) The now very sparse interior filled with all the left over bits of the car! New stainless pipes fitted, powerflow 'big bore' pipes which I used to have on my old m535i and they do sound very nice! Time to start on the welding. Now I have a few photos of this.. .but not alot! I am going to try to get as many as I can from here on out but there isnt much left to do... New seats - cost me £70 for a pair after selling the runners I didn't need.. bargain me thinks! New runners fabricated! And the new center console taking shape: The more astute of you might have spotted the smashed screen - the car was broken into for the new alloys I had stored inside for the car.. f'in chavs! Anyway, new windscreen time came around on a rather rainy day (good planning that hey!) and here is my mate dave pushing the old screen out and looking very pleased with himself! New screen in!! Looks a lot better now! apart from one cock up with the string.. Now on to some body work as a break from the welding!! more friends at hand - my friend Chris (podcake to most people that know him!) Finally - the first bit looking finished!
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Last Edit: Aug 17, 2009 14:44:27 GMT by jonmsm
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Aug 16, 2009 12:07:02 GMT
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Nice project! Btw. 'Ich habe auf der Nordschleife meinen BMW gedriftet'
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Marc
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,037
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Aug 16, 2009 12:18:14 GMT
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I absolutely love E28s, had an M535i and an M5 converted 528i in the past. Shame they rot so badly, good luck with yours should be a beast!
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jonmsm
Part of things
German, Swedish & French
Posts: 208
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Aug 17, 2009 14:48:30 GMT
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Nice project! Btw. 'Ich habe auf der Nordschleife meinen BMW gedriftet' Balls! Time for a new sig pic! I have used this one for about 4 years! I think I might just correct the text and keep it though :-) Little update, got Sunday off work so masked up the drivers side wing and doors and got them laid with matt black and then most of the front bumper... went back to halfrauds for some more rattly tins and it turns out I have cleared them out... gotta wait for their next paint delivery... curse word! On the plus side I got some good photos of the UBER rust hole in the chassis rail for you to giggle at which I will try to upload later. Should I be able to get most of my hand through a hole in the chassis rail? me thinks not!
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Aug 17, 2009 15:09:33 GMT
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I love these cars - My grandad used to have one years ago and I've wanted one ever since. I love the "not quite in the centre" exhaust they come with! I used to work with Chris.. Small world!
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jt3k
Part of things
Small person at home stops play
Posts: 42
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Looking good mate. Keep it going! It's great to be able to actually see what's going on! I remember that. That thing was a beast. I still had the freakin Punto and I'd have traded anything. Having said that, I did have the Carina with the stupidly big stereo after that, but it was still FWD
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Last Edit: Aug 18, 2009 8:55:10 GMT by jt3k
Currently driving: '95 BMW E34 540iT/6
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I love these cars - My grandad used to have one years ago and I've wanted one ever since. I love the "not quite in the centre" exhaust they come with! haha i love that about em too... i put a cherry bomb on my m535
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jonmsm
Part of things
German, Swedish & French
Posts: 208
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PIC OF CHRIS SPRAYING I used to work with Chris.. Small world! No way - small world indeed! He is indeed a legend though! Thanks for all the other comments. I'm impressed you remember the red beast James! Oh I do miss that car! I am actually in York atm at my uncles house where the 520i broke down for the first time... they remember the car but not so fondly as it dropped all its coolant on their drive! haha OK - on with the photos First of all I got started on the front end of the car, more matt black is the order of the day... after some red oxide primer... Then I ran out of red oxide... as did Halfrauds... So on with the grey - either primer seems to make no difference to the final finish of the black! Then off with the front bumper and after hours of keying the surface for paint - more grey primer laid down! well - after this I ran out of paint... and again - so did Halfrauds so on to new tasks. Took some photos of the new brake lines: Mounted temporarily to the old flexi lines here too as the braided ones are in a box... somewhere! I also modified the washer jet system! The e28 high end models with the light washers etc came with a hideous system of 3 washer pumps, two washer bottles and about 10 miles or tubing... all far too much weight so i ripped the lot out, cut the washer bottle to just the small 'neat washer fluid' reservoir which will not act like a normal reservoir and rewired up just one pump and a T piece so only one pipe. I also took out the pointlessly over engineered washer jets with heating elements too! Gone from this: too this: (please excuse my choice of beverage in that photo! haha) Then finally - before the light gave in on me, I have a go at getting to the rust on the chassis rail and I managed to snap a picture of just how BAD it is! EEEEP! I have some serious welding to get on with me thinks! wish me luck!! Will update you later in the week when I have had chance to get cracking on this mess! Jon out
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jonmsm
Part of things
German, Swedish & French
Posts: 208
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Aug 18, 2009 10:00:25 GMT
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Additional - James (JT3K) I love your avatar! The Lambo was ace! You might also appreciate what was at Halfrauds when I went to get the last of the paint off their shelves Sunday morning.. just LOOK at that ass!!! Notice the tyres too James? hehe FYI - this is the rest of it:
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jt3k
Part of things
Small person at home stops play
Posts: 42
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Aug 18, 2009 14:50:17 GMT
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I'll never forget it. It was the coolest thing I'd ever seen, far better than the bloody Corsa that got you punched. I love that Pantera too, really do want. Having said that the tyres on the Lambo were 345 50 R15 if memory serves - just glad I got rid of it before I had to find another set of those. Even the front was 235. YOU MUPPET! There are billions of single washer bottles about, including the one in mine that you could have, but the three way ones are really hard to come by! Never mind. Loving the work. Get the chassis welded and get it MOT'd - I'm on the way. FYI, just heard back from BMW. The 'Art Cars' are on the move, heading to Mexico as part of a world tour. Having said that, they will be in Europe early next year...
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Currently driving: '95 BMW E34 540iT/6
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jonmsm
Part of things
German, Swedish & French
Posts: 208
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Aug 18, 2009 20:32:26 GMT
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YOU MUPPET! There are billions of single washer bottles about, including the one in mine that you could have, but the three way ones are really hard to come by! Never mind. Loving the work. Get the chassis welded and get it MOT'd - I'm on the way. FYI, just heard back from BMW. The 'Art Cars' are on the move, heading to Mexico as part of a world tour. Having said that, they will be in Europe early next year... Don't worry, I have a spare twin bottle - and the top bottle is about 1/8 the size of a normal single bottle so further weight saving!! Could be an if we drive to the ring with it - will have to fill the washer fluid bottle almost as often as the fuel tank when driving on the M'way but so worth it! hoping to get on with the welding tomorrow if I can be arsed, its gonna be a SOD cos its under the car and I'm gonna have to weld on my back, so if any weld splatter comes off... it'll burn my chest again! Took months to get rid of the last major weld burn marks from my chest! HAHA
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jonmsm
Part of things
German, Swedish & French
Posts: 208
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Aug 18, 2009 20:34:33 GMT
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Love these, my dad has a 1988 M5 us spec. I've been eyeing e28 5 series and checking the value of my current car. Favorite BMW of all is the e28 series.
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jt3k
Part of things
Small person at home stops play
Posts: 42
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I expect nothing less from you. Legend.
lol
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Currently driving: '95 BMW E34 540iT/6
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paulss
Part of things
Posts: 61
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Aug 19, 2009 13:48:57 GMT
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brillant cars the old sharknose e28 wish i could be to get mine back on the rod as brillant cr to drive none of this computer curse word that you have these days
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lae
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,045
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Aug 19, 2009 14:14:34 GMT
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I used to work at that Halfords in York. Did the old grey angry man at the parts counter serve you?
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Currently: Mk1 Focus blandmobile
Formerly: 1969 MG Midget 1972 Avenger GT 1981 Datsun Cherry 1989 Corolla 1979 Mercedes W123 200D 1995 Ford Falcon 1996 Ford Telstar (bet you had to google that one)
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Aug 19, 2009 14:40:07 GMT
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This looks like it's going to be a proper menace when it's done. The matt black suits it down to the ground!
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1967 Morris Traveller 1971 Series IIA Land Rover 1991 Golf GL 4+e 1992 Corrado G60 1986 E28 BMW 528i
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jonmsm
Part of things
German, Swedish & French
Posts: 208
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Aug 19, 2009 22:27:31 GMT
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Love these, my dad has a 1988 M5 us spec. I've been eyeing e28 5 series and checking the value of my current car. Favorite BMW of all is the e28 series. I have to say I am the same - not really sure why I love the e28 so much because its a 4 door saloon - surely I should love the e30 M3 or the 3.0 CSL (don't get me wrong - I would swap a testicle for a 3.0 CSL!), maybe its the 286bhp super saloon status, the first super car fast 4 door car that appeals with the e28 but I just love it to bits - i do wish I had a minter and not a track slag but you know - beggers cant be choosers and all! FYI - more pics to follow from todays burn fest.. sorry - i mean welding session!
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jonmsm
Part of things
German, Swedish & French
Posts: 208
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Aug 19, 2009 22:44:56 GMT
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This looks like it's going to be a proper menace when it's done. The matt black suits it down to the ground! whitbytom:- Your damd right there - menace is a good choice of word! Thats the idea at least! I am currently cleaning up all the front grilles to spray matt black and polishing up the chrome bits - just to excentuate the mattness! :-D OK - so on to the photos of todays. Not many, First things first - new goodies.. HARNESSES ARE HERE :-D Then the 14 inch plate is on the chassis rail after ALONG time under the car and many burns (welding upside down is not fun!) The main issue here (as you might be able to see) is that the sheet sits slightly off the metal work as I had to bend it by HAND (hammer wouldn't do it) so it wasn't a perfect fit and it's 1.5mm thick so its hard to molest into shape! So I have to build up the weld in section! fun fun fun I must admit - this is the prettier side of the strip - the other side sat further from the floor-pan and took a lot more 'blobby' welding - meep! As I did it - a lot of the sound deadening melted on the floor of the passenger foot well so we scraped it away to find the inside part of the rust hole so cut the loose bits out and stuck a patch on there too.. Ok - that's it for today as I finished up early to go to the little retro rides meet in Notts in the little fiat!
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jt3k
Part of things
Small person at home stops play
Posts: 42
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Aug 20, 2009 12:52:31 GMT
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Loving it. Wish mine progressed that quickly.
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Currently driving: '95 BMW E34 540iT/6
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