Cyclone101

Well, just for giggles, my car has stock springs cut 1coil, and 165/80-15, sitting at 6.7in (17cm)

Just make sure the measurements come from people with the right tyre diameter.

Wow... Amazing work, that is one fine looking car!

TobyB's rear subframe removal tips: http://www.bmw2002faq.com/topic/101959-rear-subframe-removal-questions/?fromsearch=1

Front strut removal tips and pictures: http://www.bmw2002faq.com/topic/146895-replacing-struts-while-on-the-car/?fromsearch=1

What exactly do you mean by axles? The 2002 has independent suspension front and rear, I am guessing you want the rear subframe and front struts? Rear subframe is held on by the diff hanger, shocks, 2 big mounts at the front of the rear wheel arches and 2 metal straps. Support the diff and remove away. There is a suspension refresh diy on here that shows everything in detail.

This is an older thread, but it gives you an idea of what's involved, and from there you can research current prices. http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?552415-turbo-e30-price-list If you go diy it should be possible to turbo your current car.

Very stiff sways can do that as well, or lack of downward wheel travel. But on 02s I suspect its a combo of a slightly softer rear end and a stiff ARB, although now that I am typing this, it sounds like a understeer cocktail. I guess it could also be slow rebound and fast compression, but then it would only happen in esses I guess. Ok, my conclusion is that I don't know. Lol

Yep, it's done too. I don't mind obvious questions, anybody can forget the silly stuff.

All replacements were elring from BMW. The last time I even tried a copper HG sealer (I hate the stuff in general, but desperate times...) I checked, the deck was level otherwise, and the head was level as well. Head bolts all measured the same and threads looked good. The pitting is all that's left, and maybe a crack in the block, but I cant see anything on the deck. This time the only indication was water in the oil, so I will flush and replace the filter/oil and see if it happens again, compression seems fine. Haven't done leakdown.

I only have pictures of the uncleaned block, but you can still see it a bit. The pitting seemed very little, and the scraper didn't clean it out the first time. Its right between the water jacket and the HG seat surface.

Thanks for all the advice. I noticed that the gasket failed on the block side, not the head, so I removed the head again and inspected the block more closely. I found rust pitting, hidden by what I assume to be part of the original HG. After I cleaned it, it seems its too deep and the block will need to be decked. After surfacing the head I am guessing that decking the block will change the timing too far for an oversized HG to fix. What can I do to fix that? So it seems I need a complete rebuild, you know, the whole "while I'm in there" argument. So once again I am disappointed. Now I need to price everything and see if I cam afford it now. Fun... Regards Jacques

Even with the booster failing completely, you should still be able to brake. I would suspect the master cylinder first, most of the brake issues I have seen on these cars were either MCs or stuck pistons in the calipers. But your booster is also suspect by the sound of it. I would replace the MC and go from there.

Thank you Lars, Here are some pictures of the previous head gasket. This is the new gasket that failed instantly, but not the latest one, as it is still in the engine. Yes, i will send the head back in for a pressure test when I remove it. Regards Jacques

Good to see a fellow saffer representing 02's! I have no idea how accurate my torque wrench is, but its supposed to be +-3nm. I don't have a angle meter but I guess I can get one if push comes to shove. I'm going to remove the bolts tonight and check their length.

They are either aftermarket, or painted. I have only ever seen black springs from BMW with colour paint markings indicating stiffness. You can measure their length, I am sure CD can post up the original coil's length. Regards Jacques

Goeie middag. (it's afternoon here already , 15h35 to be eaxact). How do you know Afrikaans? Yes I did clean the bolt holes, meticulously in fact. I used a plastic bore brush with thinners, till I could find any more residue with a Q-tip. And I used a little bit of oil to lubricate the threads. I suspect that its the fact that I started the car with the bolts torqued to 65nm. I inspected the head for cracks and could not find any after its been cleaned. Although, I still think that at 65nm it should have held up, I mean, I saw cappuccino oil in less than 30 seconds of running, and it blew water out the radiator almost immediately.

I'm a bit disappointed to say the least. I got the head back, on a long weekend and with the shops being closed I thought I would reuse the head gasket (it was torqued to the second stage and never ran when it was removed) hoping it would hold up fine. Wen all was said and done, i bumped the starter a few times to get the oil/water/fuel around and noticed the gasket was leaking (water in oil) I then removed the head and waited till the shops opened again to buy a new gasket. Fast forward a bit, the new gasket is also not working. The compression is forcing gas into my radiator and water in oil. I am either suspecting a cracked head, or my torque method is wrong. I stupidly forgot to ask the shop to do a pressure test on the head. I am now regretting it thoroughly. As for my torque method, I think I might have mixed up the new and old method, and not in a good way. I cleaned all the bolts and threads in the block. Tightened the bolts by hand, then first torque to 40Nm, then relaxed for 15mins,second torque to 65Nm, then tried to warm the engine before final torque of 72nm iirc. I never made it to the final torque. After looking to find where i found the info, I noticed the old method was torqued to final spec and then only started. Would the gasket fail at 65Nm immediately as it did with me or could it be a cracked head? I suspect operator error in this one. Regards Jacques

I can't begin to explain how much I just laughed!

Thanks Steve.

You can, but it can be torqued hot as well according to elring at least.

Hey, I can reply on a topic easily, but I can't create a topic with tapatalk because I can't select a topic prefix, then the post is not accepted. Is there a way around this? I like tapatalk as I can upload pictures to posts from my phone much quicker than with the mobile website, although, I use the mobile site for everything else. Regards Jacques PS. Thanks for all the great work on this site Steve, it truly is the best car forum I have encountered thus far.

Lars, I don't know the actual compression ratio of the 2002ti, but the factory specs at least, indicate a 9.3/1 ratio.

Wonder what happened. How does a car flip over and stay on the inside of the turn? My condolences.

Also remember, that a higher peak bhp does not mean the car is faster. You want the area under the bhp curve to increase for a usable street performance engine. Do a compression AND leakdown test first before you assume the condition of your engine. Start with carbs and exhaust, it is bolt on and can be adjusted for cam/compression changes later on. I prefer to do one mod at a time, that way you can tell the difference each change has made. Regards Jacques