Another BMW E28 - This Time From Australia

[symmat001]

DUDE!

Well done. Can't wait to see the result, and how it runs on l-jet

I'm still searching for an e23 735i I can rip apart for my 528i. Can get a b35 but that means motronic swap as well.

[epearce]

DUDE!

Well done. Can't wait to see the result, and how it runs on l-jet

I'm still searching for an e23 735i I can rip apart for my 528i. Can get a b35 but that means motronic swap as well.

Cheers, i'll be sure to let you know how it goes!




Stripped the starter motor to bits and put it back together the other week. Was stoked when it worked when I bench tested it. More simple than I expected. Then fitted it as the are sh!t to do in car.





Eight months after starting the rebuild I was glad to finally have an empty engine stand.





First thing was to fit a new throwout bearing, clutch pivot pin and clutch, as well as grease and contact surfaces.







Bolted the gearbox up:





Then the challenging part, lowering it into the bay...











Proved to be harder than I anticipated. Should have had the rear strap longer as getting enough angle was a struggle. Also had to remove the exhaust manifolds as they wouldn't clear the steering box/lines when lowering it down. After some cursing and head scratching it finally sat in the right spot.

Worst part about fitting the front exhaust manifold is that you had to remove the engine mount.. Fitted them to check clearances before taking them to an exhaust shop to see the best way to join them up to the old system. Clearances are minimal, but it could be worse.





Had the wideband bung welded on to the rear manifold in the only available spot the had enough room. And then fitted them.







The plan after this was to fill it with oil and connect the starter motor. Then crank it over to check for oil pressure before fitting anything else. If only this happened.. The first crank was a nervous one, but it sounded smooth and as it should. The issue however is there is no oil feeding to the head, so I can only presume it's not picking up. Cranked it over a few times in total but there are no signs off oil to the head. Your meant to pack an oil pump with vasoline or assembly lube when rebuilding a motor. I did this, but I also turned it over heaps when doing timing and valve clearances. So now i'm worried something isn't right...

Talking to various people there are varied opinions. Some say it should definitely feed at crank speed. Others have said they've rebuilt motors that wouldn't get pressure until they started it. So yeah i'm worried, might have to risk starting it and then turn it off instantly. If it hasn't picked up then there must be a problem.

See what happens I guess :|

[MrViicc]

oh thats so nice good work

[epearce]

Cranked the engine over for a bit longer this time and after 25 seconds the oil light went out and the cam spray bar started squirting oil. Massive relief, I was starting to get worried and doubt my work.

If all goes to play I should be driving this in the less than 48 hours time!

[Asee]

The motor looks super, some sweet work that u have done on it, a bit jealous....

[epearce]

The motor looks super, some sweet work that u have done on it, a bit jealous....

Thank you, I'm jealous of the colour of your e28!



Another weekend pretty much over..

The engine bay is now 90% complete!

Replaced all the fuel and vacuum hoses as well as most of the coolant hoses for silicone ones. Also replaced the clutch hose for a braided version. The factory engine and trans mounts were well and truly stuffed so I swapped them for some urethane mounts. The tailshaft coupling was about to fall apart so I fitted a genuine one of those.









Fitted the intake manifold and started connecting wiring, shame this wiring is hard to hide. I'll try and make it more tidy once I know it goes. Had the fuel injectors flow checked and filters replaced, no doubt they would have clogged up somewhat in 30 years.





Next up was timing the distributor, new rotor button, cap and high quality ignition leads.









At this point it was time to start it for the first time. Nerves set in when it came to turning the key, luckily I didn't film it as it would have been a waste of time. Engine cranked over nicely but gave no inclination of firing. Definitely a mood killer.

Figured out not long later that it had spark and had fuel pressure, but the injectors weren't firing. Hours were then spent trying to figure out the wiring for the injectors as I couldn't find a relevant wiring diagram. For some reason the relay isn't switching the positive to them. No idea how this has happened as I haven't touched this part of the wiring. Hopefully tomorrow I can find a factory wiring diagram book and nut out how it all works.

Was hoping to get it out of the garage this weekend..

[epearce]

Went digging at work and found the factory wiring diagrams for the engine. If I can't get it going now I should be a first year :P

[symmat001]

Such Progress. Favourite build on SW right now.

Mate do you know the company who made the headers? and how much? same issue in South Africa with RHD. Finding headers is proving to be a bitch. And Fritz bits is too expensive for me

[epearce]

Such Progress. Favourite build on SW right now.

Mate do you know the company who made the headers? and how much? same issue in South Africa with RHD. Finding headers is proving to be a bitch. And Fritz bits is too expensive for me

Appreciate it cheers mate!

I bought them off this ebay listing:
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/BMW-E28-E...2b93ea3&_uhb=1

It was a bit of an unknown buying them but i decided to take the risk. I was in the same boat as you trying to find aftermarket headers at an affordable price is hard (yes i know quality isn't cheap and i'm sure a set of german made headers would be better). They are an Australian company that I happened to stumble upon ebay searching. These look to be based on the fritz bits design. So far they seem good, clearances are tight but that is to expect with the rhd e28 m30s. I'll let you know how it sounds when i finally get it going and get them joined up to the rest of the exhaust system. They were $540 AUD plus postage (costed me $600 in total)

[dvious]

Awesome work mate. Been following this build from the start, congratulations on getting the engine in!

[DoABarrelRoll]

wow, this e28 gets better and better - can wait to see it on the ground and running! might have to get a set of those headers, looks like it will flow a heaps better than stock

sweet work!

[epearce]

So the fuel issue is sorted and it now fires but won't run.

Motivation is running out. The amount of hurdles is getting to me. Hours on hours spent to achieve what feels like nothing. Fingers crossed tomorrow is successful.

Makes it worse is seeing these chilling on the couch every day.



Reading the latest stanceworks article has given me some motivation to get this thing going. This quote from the stanceworks article 911SC engine rebuild sums up my current feelings. "I was terrified that the blood and capital I had spent building the engine would be for naught. It’s not that I had a lack of confidence in what I had done as much as I was afraid of the old adage that “shit happens.” "

[Asee]

That's some serious bling...

[epearce]

That's some serious bling...

If only they had a going car to go on

[Asee]

If only they had a going car to go on

Soon, soon my friend..