New Member from Australia

[headlock]

Hi Guys

New member from Adelaide, South Australia.

Just picked up a beaten up 318ti from a mate. Very cheap. It's going to be my little restoration project / daily driver.

I also have an E46 M3 which is my 'good car'

I'll be sure to make use of your DIY guides, and please forgive me if I ask any dumb questions along the way


So about the car.

Mechanically OK, but the interior is in trouble and the paint is knackered. I picked it up for the princely sum of $400. Add another $27 for transfer of registration and stamp duty and i now have a new car.






at least it's a manual



Engine is strong, gearbox is great, clutch is fine. Suspension and Electronics are ok. New window glass. Panels are straight.

it's a 97 which makes it an M44 and OBD2. I had planned on swapping an M50 in there once it was up to snuff, which will be a bit harder with an OBD2 car.

problem list:
Power steering whine, especially when cold.
Rattle eminating from somewhere in the engine bay. Not sure if engine or just a loose ancillary.
Driver side A Pillar clips broken
Centre console broken, hvac controls and stereo loose.
Missing sunroof controls
missing glovebox
rear parcel shelf loose
hatch struts are shot
clear coat peeling on pretty much every panel
retaining clips for window controls missing
passenger seat has a small tear
steering wheel off centre
rear speakers disconnected
passenger airbag cover not clipped on properly
Heater and aircon dont work (Fan ok, but no heat or cooling. AC compressor does not engage when enabled. possible fuse / relay?)
Windshield cowl and a lot of weather stripping needs replacing
One of the dash globes is gone
Dash illumination adjustment does nothing

I'm going to try and DIY this thing back to life as cheap as possible. See how i go

[Stealthbeam]

Not a bad find, I know we all have to start somewhere, These cars are fun and easy to work on for the most part, Good luck with your build, be sure to keep us updated

[headlock]

thanks mate

already fixed a few little things in the interior, rewired the stereo, sorted out the power steering, flushed the engine and put new oil in, etc. Now i need to get the AC working because summer is starting to Kick in, and sitting in traffic with no AC in an Aussie summer is not cool at all (literally)

[turbobaja]

Great find! Wish I could find a deal like that. Can't wait to see what you do with it


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[xxxJohnBoyxxx]

Welcome to the board. Don't worry about dumb questions. we all had to ask them from other members to learn what we know and we all share knowledge...

John S

[headlock]

Originally Posted by xxxJohnBoyxxx

Welcome to the board. Don't worry about dumb questions. we all had to ask them from other members to learn what we know and we all share knowledge...

John S

your name pops up in a lot of google searches on these things haha

i've been looking at your turbo set up with envy, great job on that

i'm somewhat keen to give that a go myself. Although supercharging is also an intriguing option. I had thoughts about doing that to my M3, but i track it once in a while and the extra heat the SC generates is too much. On a daily though that i dont really care about blowing up, a little supercharger might be nice. Cheaper to replace an M44 than an S54 haha.

[xxxJohnBoyxxx]

Originally Posted by headlock

your name pops up in a lot of google searches on these things haha

i've been looking at your turbo set up with envy, great job on that

i'm somewhat keen to give that a go myself. Although supercharging is also an intriguing option. I had thoughts about doing that to my M3, but i track it once in a while and the extra heat the SC generates is too much. On a daily though that i dont really care about blowing up, a little supercharger might be nice. Cheaper to replace an M44 than an S54 haha.

I have two names that are found in google search:

xxxJohnBoyxx is used in most mechanical, BMW or Boat racing forums, youtube, etc.

No1Be4Me is used for electronic/computer forums. Smart card technology, computer OS vulnerability, etc. There are a few No1Be4Me out there but I am the original No1 and mostly post about glitching smart cards to gain control of the card, wireless network penetration, security issues.

Here are my thoughts:

To get good power from the M44 with a DASC roots style supercharger on it you need to change the SC stock pulley which is 3.6" and makes 7.5-8.5 psi boost. Change to a 3.2" which will get you around 15 psi boost, you will need to run a methanol spray system as a chemical intercooler and major octane boost to eliminate any detonation. Remember a Super Charger uses 30%-40% of you crank HP/TQ to make it's boost and that is why a turbo motor will always make more power at any boost level.

Turbos can make you lose 5%-10% HP/TQ by exhaust restriction. The hot compressed charge air is cooled down by the inter cooler which increases power. Also there is nothing like the feeling a turbo give you when it spools, it will slap you in the face going from stock hp to over 250hp in less then a second.

Supercharger for track and turbo for daily driving are what I would recommend and use on my car.

Nitrous is a blast if setup right but you have to fill the tank every 10-20 times of use.

Super Charger cost $4,000
Turbo cost $1,300

I hope I answered some of your questions, John S

[headlock]

thanks John

i had a +400whp evo before the m3, and an s14a silvia before that. i do love boost! one thing i miss with the M.

the SC has appeal because i've never had an SC'd car, and the roots charger makes a very cool noise. Turbo would be great but seems like a lot more custom work to get going - which tends to get pricey pretty quick. The SC set up is expensive too but i guess at least with a bolt on kit you kind of know where you stand before you begin. Once i have the thing sorted out i'll assess which the best option is, that's probably a little way away yet