BMW Compact Rally Car Build

[pdxmotorhead]

It comes out without removing the window, but if you need to do a roll bar you'll want to gusset the cage to the A-pillar anyway so I'd have removed it no matter what.

Looks good so far!

Check out these shocks.... http://www.genright.com/category.aspx?categoryID=113


Dave
(Pdx version)

[DaveKern]

Shot of the car from the back looking to where the rear subframe used to be. Its getting lighter, and I can now lift up on the frame rails and move the car.



Finally got the dash out and just about everything is off the firewall. Wiring is still a bit of a mess, and I need to spend a bit more time labeling everything before I try to string it through the hole on the driver's side.



Dave

[Will'sBimmer]

Well man looks like you got it stripped down pretty good.

[DaveKern]

I spent another afternoon working on the car today. Made some good progress, removed the ABS module, windshield, hood, hatch, and finished fishing the wiring harness through the little hole in the firewall. Even did a bit of vacuuming to remove all the leaves.



Also, finally a picture of the engine we'll be using once things start going back together. Its a 1995 S50 B30. This engine will give us a few options for what class to race in thanks to the 3.0L displacement.



Dave

[Minninips]

Originally Posted by DaveKern

Couple videos of my Evo doing work:

Towards the end of this one, we're doing ~120mph catching pretty good air:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzanQzyX4xk

About 2/3rds of the way thru this one, we go pas a dump truck, and the road just after that is enough to shake apart our truck, but motoring over it with the rally suspension, my wife remarked "that suspension really proved its $$ worth today."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNJU_lJqd40

Dave, Is that the same EVO that flipped at the XGames last year? I know it was a NOS EVO, thats why I ask.

[DaveKern]

Nope, not my evo, but it does have the same vinyl wrap. That's ACP's Evo, he's been running the the Rally America series for a number of years now. I was hoping to get into it as well, but without big sponsor backing, running an AWD car is not sustainable, so that's why I'm building a 2wd car to rally instead.

More progress to report. Nothing like working in a non heated garage in 15 degree weather.

Useless brackets removed from the interior. The weight just keeps coming off.



What the floor looks like now.



Shots of the front and rear shock towers, lots of misc. brackets removed, and any mounting tabs or bolts that I won't need anymore have been cut out too.





The car should be getting the liquid nitrogen treatment next to remove all the rubberized coating, and get it prepped for seam welding.

Thanks for following along!

Dave

[tiFreak]

nice, looks like the project is moving along pretty quickly, can't wait until it starts getting put back together

[DaveKern]

So I've basically finished stripping down the car, and I've yet to invest in a manual. Can someone tell me what the second box in the "ECU compartment" is for?

The 318 wiring harness has two plugs that go to the compartment, and my M3 harness 0only has one plug. Just wondering if I need to pull the 318 harness apart?

Thanks,

Dave

[minicoop900]

ill bet you the ti was an auto and the m3 is a manual, and thats what that plug is for, the automatic transmission module

[DaveKern]

Originally Posted by minicoop900

ill bet you the ti was an auto and the m3 is a manual, and thats what that plug is for, the automatic transmission module

Yep, the TI was an auto. Thanks for the info, now I'll just leave the old motor as-is with all the wiring still attached in case anyone wants to buy it.

I need to figure out what to do with the wiring harness. I was shocked with how heavy the entire harness was in this car. It was damn near as much wiring as I found in my Evo, and that's a high strung turbo with crazy electronic differentials, and OBD II.

-ABS system is going away, so I'm sure there's a brain for that somewhere amongst the cluster.
-rear wiper/washer are not going back on the car.
-I'm still up in the air on whether I'll go with lexan windows.
-Unsure if I want to lose rear defrost.
-Unsure if I want to remove the 3rd brake light.

And the list goes on and on. I want this car to be light light light!

Dave

[pdxmotorhead]

I'd keep a third brake light since its a legal requirement... and last I saw rally cars have to drive on the road....

I'd get a M3 harness, Use velcro tie wraps to hold it together and unwrap the whole harness and strip out the un-needed wire. Takes a while. Or,,, Get a full ETK with electrical diagrams, and point to point the wiring harness for the motor, and use a painless harness for the rest of the car. Theirs comes with a nice rocker switch panel that mounts well in race cars.

I'd volunteer to help but it would be a wicked commute....

Dave

[DaveKern]

Originally Posted by pdxmotorhead

I'd keep a third brake light since its a legal requirement... and last I saw rally cars have to drive on the road....

Good point. My first rally car had that yanked, but it was a 1988, which was about the time where they were coming into use. It was also a hatch and I just chopped the wiring going to the hatch and both doors. Now that I think about the Ti hatch, since the license plate bolts to it, I'll need some wiring running out into the hatch to power those.

I'll probably just end up stripping down the harness that came in the car. When I did my Evo build, I stripped the chassis harness as much as I could, but ended up leaving the engine harness for fear of yanking something essential.

Of course if $$ weren't an issue, I'd order up one of the MoTeC computerized fuse boxes and do the whole thing in mil spec wiring. On a realistic budget, I'd love to have fuses/relays at my fingertips inside the car...but that's still probably above the amount of $$ I'd spend on replacing wiring that's 100% functional.

Dave

[KINGAMR]

Good work Dave, btw there's a download link to a free e36 bentley manual circulating around on bf.c which might end up being useful sometime along the build. I'll post the link if I find it again.

[pdxmotorhead]

I have not used these guys but,,,, http://www.superbrightleds.com

You could drop to like 18 Guage wire to run them. and I think I saw a couple cool options for a 3rd light...

Also google Simple Digital Systems, I know a couple racers running them and if you want simple and functional its a great option.

Good Luck!

Dave T.

[tiFreak]

Originally Posted by DaveKern

I was shocked with how heavy the entire harness was in this car. It was damn near as much wiring as I found in my Evo, and that's a high strung turbo with crazy electronic differentials, and OBD II.

it's like the German engineering motto: "Why make it simple, when you can make it complicated"

I figure the 3rd brake light is so light anyway you're not going to gain much by removing it