Black & Tan 332iT

[Ramage]

Ah, the joy of driving an older car! We can never just add the things we want to make it our own or get the look and feel we're after; we always have to keep the 'What the hell are you going to make me buy next?' options open.

Personally, I wouldn't have it any other way, since my M3 is more than just a car, it's one of my favorite hobbies.

My wife always rolls her eyes when I come home from a drive and declare in an upset/angry tone that I need to buy another part.

She totally see right through it.

I am sure you will get it sorted ASAP.

[Slideways]

I didn’t even bother checking, just checked the detents for obvious issues and packed it up. Asking around for who has a good spare gearbox in town ready to drop in. And George Hill is weighing the ZF vs getrag this weekend - for science..

If this is the GS6-53BZ ZF, realOEM has it at 56kg. 420G it shows 46kg.

[Bry5on]

Man, that sucks. Find any glitter in the oil?

I didn’t even bother checking, just checked the detents for obvious issues and packed it up. Asking around for who has a good spare gearbox in town ready to drop in. And George Hill is weighing the ZF vs getrag this weekend - for science..

[heinzboehmer]

Man, that sucks. Find any glitter in the oil?

[karter16]

Damn....

[Bry5on]

Well the car left me stranded for the first time today on the way home from having the roof wrapped. 1-2-crunched the gearbox to death. From its home position, the shifter only moves right (toward 5-6 gates) and won’t go into any gears. Detent springs and GPS all came out looking normal and it’s a factory manual without any riff raffing in the bell housing.

It will be resting on the lift until I summon the energy to deal with this one.

[Bry5on]

XTRONS is absolved, had a wire short in the lighted shifter. All good now!

[Bry5on]

Alright, new AC compressor and oil cooler ($$$) are in and …drumroll… no difference. Still chasing the issues running hot in warm weather under load with AC on. I still see <10C across the radiator and coolant heats up with load. You can also see the 3D printed clips I designed for the oil cooler lines got used, and they fit great.


Stuck a prism onto the windshield and now I’ve got auto headlights and wipers again too. Odd that you can’t order the sedan comfort glass windshield with the RLS sensor, but the sensors do work through the filter at least. The windshield makes a surprisingly strong difference. I can really feel the heat coming through my driver glass but not the windshield glass.

Also, looks like the Texas heat was too much for the XTRONS head unit. It wigs out and crashes when the headlights turn on, acting like a cold solder joint or a failed via. I never use the lighted buttons so I just cut the wire that controls the dimming/buttons in the jumper harness. Good times.

Figured out the part numbers for the thick polyester harness tapes:


Shimmed the m3projekts mirror bases with some layers of kapton tape to eliminate some vibration:


And we’re up to speed. Haven’t started the exhaust project as I’m waiting for some parts from a couple e46 M3 friends (you’re not alone bigjae46). Doors and hatch will follow that.

[Lserra]

Hi Bry5on, apologies for posting here, but my account is too new to send private messages. I have an E30 M3 with an S54, MSS54HP, genuine CSL 32500 software, Karbonius CSL airbox and stock cams, . I’m very interested in your Mullet Tune and would love OEM-like drivability. Would it suit an E30 swap, and is there another way I could contact you while I wait for private messaging access? Thank you, Lorenzo.

[bigjae46]

Sorry, I'll get the floor shipped out this week. Been busting my ass on a couple of things that have taken priority.

Just missing a case of Lone Star. I would have loved those mirror bases before I wrecked my ZHP doors to mount M3 mirrors.

Shiner!

[discoelk]

Just missing a case of Lone Star. I would have loved those mirror bases before I wrecked my ZHP doors to mount M3 mirrors.

[Bry5on]

Alright, here we go! George has given me notes (mostly on the AC - Texas and all) and managed to pack up the car with a stock muffler, section 2, pair of front doors, rear hatch and various tools and parts while still leaving the front two seats free and clear.


And after a nice wash it looks surprisingly good in the Texas sun/clouds


And last, after some fun back and forth with shippers, we got the car loaded up and it's now on its way back home. Thanks again to George, can't wait to put it through its paces once again!

[Bry5on]

I commend you for keeping it non M3 on the outside.

I bet it's fun as hell with slightly narrower tires!

The sleeper is really where it’s at. And honestly after the chassis stiffening there is practically almost too much grip already! But yes the narrow tires and high offset front wheels preserve all the nice steering feedback which keeps it really nice and responsive.

[heinzboehmer]

I bet it's fun as hell with slightly narrower tires!

And less tall! Free shorter diff ratio

[Sharocks]

I commend you for keeping it non M3 on the outside.

I bet it's fun as hell with slightly narrower tires!