Doing it Right: a bagged E21 build.

[ro@dster_kevin]

Let's get right to it:
I bought this off a fellow forum member (hello Joe!) a 1979 e21 320i. 96,000 miles with an air system and beautiful ARE wheels. The last few cars I've had have never been this nice, so I'm trying to Pictures from the day I got her:
The first thing I did was get music in the car. There was no radio and the headunit that came with the car wasn't really viable. So I rewired the amp that I found under the seat to the front two speakers and wired that to my iphone. It'll work for now until I can get a headunit in.

[ro@dster_kevin]

What I was trying to say in the beginning was that my previous cars have never been this nice, so I'm trying to build this the right way!

[ro@dster_kevin]

Sorry for the triple post, but I wanted to get this thread up to date as a log of my progress with the car.
Anyhoo, a few days after getting the car registered and titled, I decided to go to the big cars and coffee meet in hunt valley. I was taken aback at how many beautiful cars were there!! this mk1 cabriolet won my heart!!
On the way home my air system developed a catastrophic leak in the rear drivers side, about two miles from my house. I left the compressor running and tried to keep as much air in the bag as possible while driving home. I don't have management so trying to keep air in the bag while driving was really challenging! I got home to this: leaks all over the compressor, tank and switches. I tightened up the leaks on the tank and decided to tackle the switches. the blank panel had the gauges I was using for the air system just hanging out of it, I had planned on making a panel for them to sit in at some point, so I took advantage of the dash being apart to make a nice panel! had a nice piece of wood laying around in the shop so my dad and I cut it to size, and stained it! I think it looks great. we also found a small crack in the dash, my dad (who has experience with old German plastic) discovered the ABS plastic that Mercedes and BMW use can be bonded with plastic Legos and chess pieces! Using a soldering gun we melted the plastic and sealed the crack in the dash it isn't visible so I'm not worried about looks, just structural integrity. a shot of the switchboard for the valves, it was originally glued in, I used self tapping screws to secure it this time. screwed in and ready to go! also new press fittings to replace the ones that were leaking. set up and back in the car. took it to a car meet in the county and parked on the sidewalk. and got a photoshoot from one of my friends, Steve (hi Steve!)
I also started working on tucking the wires in the back for the compressor and the safety cutoff. It was a little messy at first, still a work in progress but cleaner than before. tidied up the wires sitting on the rear arches.

Next little project was the windshield wipers. They were off in the hope to shave it, but I'm going to put them back on. I think the car looks a little better with the wipers on, haha. the motor was completely shot, and the wiper assembly needed greasing, so I bought the motor (of course it needs to be shipped from Germany) so it'll be a few weeks until I can get it up and running. So until then, a few shots of the car as it sits until parts from Germany arrive. this is my ultra redneck little brother while he was visiting from Texas. Kinda funny seeing a guy in a camo hat, white t shirt, jeans and cowboy boots driving a bagged classic bmw.