Need some advice on what to do with an E21 BMW 318i

[E21 Lover]

Guys, i need some advice,

i know theres alot of experienced tuners in here eh, so hear me out, im gonna do up my first car, wich might i add, is in exceptional condition for a car of its age and usage, as its a pretty comfortable car, i imagine it would be quite awsome a little done up say, with a hoping 130-140kw engine output (hopeful) ive calculated id need to put about 8-9 grand into it to acheive this, im willing to change out the original engine for either a rebuilt 2.0 litre, or the same 1.8 n/a. What sort of mods should i think about, and what dangers whould i consider about modding this car, and what things should i consider about engine effiency, or engine wear. btw, im 17

Just another wog...

[BMW Lover]

toss it and spend 8-9grand on a 89-91 325is

[E21 Lover]

Id rather not, its kinda a family car sorta, thing, dads old car, and its better that the average one, my dads a car enthusiust soo, its in near perfect condition, and i cant afford to buy a 325 dude <_<

[DJProfessor]

take it from me, don't mod it if it is that clean. rock it stock. my 325 came from pops as well (outbid my stepmom for it) and she is staying all stock cause it is so clean. now my other BMW's are another story..........

[BMW Lover]

lo i was just tryin to give you a hard time, but yeah just oem part it up if things go bad, make it look way clean.

[E21 Lover]

Hey man, i have to say, even tho its stock, i have to say, it looks pretty boring, and being a guy whos been payed out for driving his parents car so long, i thnk its nessisary to make this fairly quick, and fairly swave looking. Besides, im not into sleepers. But im not into over modding either

Aight ill list the shit i think would be goood for my BMW, things ive just calculated, from the guys up my street who do up E30 325's.

I just need u to give some prices, if u know them (in AuS dollars plz, if u can)

Better flowing exaust/podfilters ...

Mech fan is replaced with electrical one

New engine either 2.0/4 or 1.8/4 reconditioned, and rebult

Supercharger possibliity (no idea on price on that one)

17's nice ones

Port n polish, (if cant pay for, will do with dad)

Lightened flywheel

New Seats possiblility (old ones pretty nice, but not very pimp looking, just sheep skin covers)

Crome exaust, twin

Good sound system

Gear knob, and other little tidbits inside interior.

Angel eyes, if i have the chance

Halogen replacement bulbs

new tail light covers, and headlight covers

Respray?





Ive got a fair bit of money to spend
soo, should work out nicley, but i just dont wanna sell this one, plus, ive seen what u can do with this model, it looks quite nice done up.

If u want, ill send u a pic of it DJ, and u can decide, what i should do.


Just another wog... <_<

[BMW Lover]

http://www.racetep.com/bmwngin.html
has a nice setup for your engine that can own alot once its done, get that 1 e21 that you love and try and design your car around that

here is a site dedicated to e21's im sure you will get a ton of info there

http://www.bmwe21.net/

[325eXTATIC]

I just need u to give some prices, if u know them (in AuS dollars plz, if u can)

Mech fan is replaced with electrical one
www.flex-a-lite.com ~260+ Aus Dollars (summitracing.com)


New engine either 2.0/4 or 1.8/4 reconditioned, and rebult
http://www.kormanfastbmw.com/e21eng4c.htm The sky is the limit


Supercharger possibliity (no idea on price on that one)
http://home.att.net/~jroal/jay/bmw.htm The sky is the limit

17's nice ones

Port n polish, (if cant pay for, will do with dad) ~ 975 Aus Dollars
http://www.gethoned.com/price_list.p...ice=automotive

Lightened flywheel
have a local machine shop lighten/balance your stock one. Should be under 200 Aus Dollars


Gear knob, and other little tidbits inside interior.
www.acschnitzer.com
www.momo.com
Don't forget a short shift kit! Get a Z3 2.8 liter stock shifter assembly
http://www.mz3.net/articles/143.html

Yes, I am THAT bored! Hope these give you SOME ideas!

Josh W.

[E21 Lover]

AIght, i got some prices set out then, now all i need to know, is with all the shit i suggested buiying before, how much horsepower do u think my little beema will pump out. just high revs, thats all im loking for, im not into torque beasts. B)

[325eXTATIC]

Without forced induction, (Turbo or supercharger) even if you match ported the intake, head and exhaust, lightened the flywheel, and deleted the mechanical fan, I wouldn't expect you to make more than an aditional 10-15 hp (11.1 KW) If you are going to go forced induction, MAKE SURE you build the engine to handle it. The timing chain engine is a big bonus in longevity and the M10 is known for REVOLUTIONARY horsepower when built properly, up to 1000 HP or more (745 KW) in full race trim(http://www.bmwworld.com/engines/m10.htm)!!! But you NEED to make sure you use lower compression pistons, or at least double thickness head gaskets, and you should rebuild the whole bottom end with reinforced rods, and a balanced (perhaps lightened and knife edged) crank to ensure good balance at high revs while eliminating oil frothing. Don't forget double wound valve springs and titanium spring retainers to ensure the valves don't float at higher revs. Then you can look at re-grinding your stock cam, or getting a turbo oriented aftermarket camshaft to take full advantage.
This is a Carbeurated engine correct? If so, take a look at converting from a Pierburg setup to a Weber or Delorto. I don't honestly know if either company offers anything, but it is worth looking into. You could also port the stock carb to match your ported intake for better flow. That can be a PITA though because you have to find larger throttle butterfly's, jets, secondaries, etc...

Just a stream of conscience type of post, hope you can get some info from it.

Josh W.

[DJProfessor]

yes, hook me up with some pics.....post em' here or if you can't PM me and i will give you my email addy........

personally i am a fan of rocking it stock if it's clean enough, so i would like to see it....

alright 17's? that will make it look like it's on stilts. not to mention you are going to have to keep an eye on your offset to make sure you don't hit your tie rod ends on the spindle. i had a pair of imolas collecting dust (16in) and i tried them on the car and they didn't fit because of the offset. i recomment 15's with a drop, that would look good. 16's are pushing it, but with the right rim it could probably be pulled off.

but all the other stuff you want to do.......seriously go buy an e30. you are going to be spending so much loot and at the end of the day.....an e30 with an I motor and a couple of mods is going to be able to either run with you or out run you. and where's the fun in that?

my advice, don't want to rock it stock? go get a set of eibachs some nice 15in rims and call it a day.......then go get an e30 with an I motor and go have fun putting some money into that. your gains will be bigger and the car will be much faster at the end of the day. you said you didn't have the money for an e30, but all those mods add up to at least twice what a good e30 would cost you easy.

look i love the e21's i really do, hell go look at my swap thread and how much freaking time i have spend on that car thus far....but take it from someone who has been in your position before. i would either leave the e21 alone or just drop it on some rims and i would go find a good car to make my project, something strong to build on......or you could also get crazy like me and go find a non-running e21 and do an e30 motor swap, that would make it haul.......hell i will have those adaptor spacers up for sale real soon, my fab guy took it again for some more adjustments.

[BMW Lover]

Originally Posted by DJProfessor

yes, hook me up with some pics.....post em' here or if you can't PM me and i will give you my email addy........

personally i am a fan of rocking it stock if it's clean enough, so i would like to see it....

alright 17's? that will make it look like it's on stilts. not to mention you are going to have to keep an eye on your offset to make sure you don't hit your tie rod ends on the spindle. i had a pair of imolas collecting dust (16in) and i tried them on the car and they didn't fit because of the offset. i recomment 15's with a drop, that would look good. 16's are pushing it, but with the right rim it could probably be pulled off.

but all the other stuff you want to do.......seriously go buy an e30. you are going to be spending so much loot and at the end of the day.....an e30 with an I motor and a couple of mods is going to be able to either run with you or out run you. and where's the fun in that?

my advice, don't want to rock it stock? go get a set of eibachs some nice 15in rims and call it a day.......then go get an e30 with an I motor and go have fun putting some money into that. your gains will be bigger and the car will be much faster at the end of the day. you said you didn't have the money for an e30, but all those mods add up to at least twice what a good e30 would cost you easy.

look i love the e21's i really do, hell go look at my swap thread and how much freaking time i have spend on that car thus far....but take it from someone who has been in your position before. i would either leave the e21 alone or just drop it on some rims and i would go find a good car to make my project, something strong to build on......or you could also get crazy like me and go find a non-running e21 and do an e30 motor swap, that would make it haul.......hell i will have those adaptor spacers up for sale real soon, my fab guy took it again for some more adjustments.

yeah man i wana internet slap you if you put 17's on a pre '91 bm"dub" rofl...no 17's man... lookk at the ronal LS or some asa's...look at my 4 lug thread