Sid's 2003.5 Silver Grey Speed Run

[Sid_E46]

Personally not a fan of the Black Dinan tips so decided to sand off the paint and polish them (not polished in this pic). I don't know what Dinan used to paint these tips but it took HOURS to get the paint off.


Got the exhaust in including the SS section 2 from the group buy (Thanks Epoustouflant ). I was a bit worried about the fitment since my SSV1s weren't perfect but the section 2 has perfect fitment.


Took some notes from Obioban and used the Inconel bolts from the OE headers to join the section 1 and 2.


Also threw on a CSF oil cooler.

[Sid_E46]

Rod bearings were in good shape, probably didn't even need to change them.


Subframe and TCKs back in.



Can't wait to hear how this setup will sound.

[Singh]

I would have stated with sorry for your CB but you sir already getting there with a well built car. Very cool thread.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Sid_E46]

Enjoying this thread.

You've got some balls to hack up a $900 valve/engine cover haha.

It makes it much easier and quicker to change anything that is usually under the cover, plus better cooling for the coils.

[jet_dogg]

Enjoying this thread.

You've got some balls to hack up a $900 valve/engine cover haha.

[Sid_E46]

SSv1s in.


Got rid of the surface rust in the battery tray and painted it in silver POR15.


Painted the Vince Bar in the same stuff to match the surrounding a bit better.

[Sid_E46]

Started changing out the rod bearings today; got half of them done. The 2003.5+ torque procedure is definitely a pain.





Perfect time to install new header studs and headers while the subframe is out.

[Sid_E46]

Bought some 10mm corrugated tubing off Amazon and managed to replace the old brittle BMW tubing.

For anyone that's interested---- https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1



Replaced the crusty original VANOS line with a Rouge Engineering one.

[Sid_E46]

Starting to come back together up top.


Thanks WOLFN8TR for putting together a great O-ring kit!


Decided to swap in a new clutch and flywheel as well.


New starter once the trans was back in.

[antknee]

Yeah i posted a couple of times on this forum about that AW one. It was my cousins next door neighbor for over a decade…..went to see and test drive it years ago and passed bc of lack of history and lemon buy back. Nice pick up on the SG!

[Loopyspec]

Nice pick up, looking forward to this build. I was also interested in that white slicktop, but the lemon buyback on the title and warnings I saw on BaT steered me away.

[Sid_E46]

A couple of months ago, someone decided to rear-end my 04 CB I've had since I was 16. I was on the way back from the Tail of the Dragon and just 8 minutes from home....The amount of time and work I put into the car, just gone in seconds. I was pretty devastated, but I realized pretty quickly that I was just glad my sister and I were alright and that I can always build up another car. The only issue is that school started up again in a few months and I would have to complete swapping/rebuilding everything within that span; hence an E46 M3 speedrun build.





About 2 weeks after the accident, I decided to go to Virgina to take a look at a slicktop Alpine white 03.5 that was pulled off of bring a trailer. Despite the warnings in the comments, I took the 8-hour trip there just to find a crack the size of the grand canyon in the subframe with 0 heads up at all. So if you see this car, run the other way.




Another week later my friend , LSBNick , sent me a 03.5 Silver Grey on Facebook Marketplace. Owner was very polite, upfront, and responsive so I decide to make the 6 hour drive to North Carolina. Car checked out (no Grand Canyon-sized cracks) and trailered it back to Georgia.



The first course of action; part out the Carbon Black.




Once the CB was torn apart, my garage/house was a complete mess and I was running out of space so I decided to sell the subframe out of the silver-grey as soon as I could to free up some space and swap in my previous subframe with all my parts already attached. Also Installed a Vince bar while I was at it.



Ignore the mismatched tails, the other amber got destroyed in the accident. Got a brand new set once all the cutting and messy stuff is complete.




Once I buttoned up the rear end, I moved onto the VANOS.


Pretty clean for a S54.


Still an absolute mess, but definitely better than 2 weeks ago.