I've put this thread on M-Torque but thought i would put it in here too to widen my advise options

Well heres my car i bought for track days as the missus keeps moaning that i use her E46. Well after a bit of searching and looking at a couple of dogs i came across this car. A black 4dr 325i on a G plate with 100k Now i really wanted a 2dr sport but they are becoming rarer than rocking horse for track day money.

So here it is, A mint 325i SE with no rust what-so-ever. Cost us £850



Had a sunroof too but beggars can't be chooser's


So after a couple of days appreciating the classic car, it was time to get to work. Out comes the interior





Then we got to work on the sunroof. We took all the motors and mechanism out that we could then silconed the panel back in



Next we moved to the engine bay. No heater matrix was on the car as it was due for one before we picked it up, no worries there then, a bit more weight saving. Then out come the washer bottles and lines and the full beam headlights.




The last mod for now was a Halfords foam filter made to fit to the existing MAF


As you do when you do these kind of things, you like to try out the results. Well what can i say, a little bit of a diet and a filter has transformed the car. It pulls so much crisper.

Things to do

1, 1 have ordered a set of 17" Team Dynamics race 2's in white, that will be going on next week.

2, 1 need to tidy up the electrics

3, Perspex for windows so then i will be able to remove electric window gubbins, although i will probably be leaving the drivers door as a means of ventilation and convineance of being able to open the window

4, Suspension needs to be sorted, Looking at KW V2 with adjustable top mounts ( any suggestions here would help)

5, Limited slip diff needed ( i'm looking on ebay, but if anyone has one let me know )

After this lot it will be pretty much track ready but i will need to look at the brakes at some point and think about caging it. I will see how it goes before spending too much money and turning it into a race car.

Updates in a week or so

 

looks good im going to do my own track car when i have a spare 5 mins

i was thinking of going down the lines of a 205 gti, but the rwd of the beemer will be fun

 

I'd have thought 15inch wheels would be better suited to be fair.

Good range of tyres at good prices, and hazard a guess would handle better that a car on 17s too.

 

I must admit i thought they would be too big and i really wanted to get 16" but found out that 16's were too alkward a wheel to fit the E30 plus not much of a tyre range. I thought that 17" would be too big too but after speaking to a couple of people they will be fine with no issues or over gearing (wanted smaller rolling radius if any) and they run 17's on the E30 clubsport race cars. Added to the fact that 17's are a common size and pretty cheap in the tyre stakes along with widening brake options, i feel its the correct descision. I Will be running 215/40/17 which gives a radius of 603mm compared to the standard 195/65/14 609mm. I did'nt really fancy the 15" as i want to reduce the tyre roll as much as possible, its shocking on the 14's

 

I wouldnt have gone for 17's but each to their own. I have no problems with 15's on mine and the tyres will be a fair bit cheaper than yours no doubt.


Mine started life as a 325SE too

 

Well ive ordered them now so i'm not changing

Just been looking at yours Gary and i don't think mine will be as professional as yours, Looks very nice, we will have to exchange our findings

 

Gary where did you get your driver's window?

 

My front and rear side windows were made from plastic by a local glazing company. They made them oversize by 5mm to account for the curve in the glass. The slider kits were bought from Demon tweeks. Only fitted one of them so far.
All the door gubbins have been removed and replaced by a small bracket to hold the window in the up position

 

320 i coupe's (E30) seem to be the weapon of choice in E30 circle's. Cheaper to buy and bullet proof. Mark at Munich Legernds was working on a reasonably priced track day upgrade for them.

 

Bucket seats? Harness? Just done that to my track Vauxhall Senator and it makes a world of difference sitting so low to the floor. It installs so much more confidence in cornering and makes it much easier to really hustle the car.

 

Definately.

Have you considered seam-welding? Itll make a massive difference, it doesnt cost much and its essential if youre siffening up the suspension and fitting higher grip tyres.

I have a link to an excellent plastic window supplier, if youre interested.

Id always keep a heater matrix (although not necessarily in the std position), even if it was only to retain the greater coolant capacity and have the extra cooling ability... You can increase the capacity by a decent amount by re-siting and using larger bore pipes too.

 

I've taken the opposite approach, removed heater and associated pipes compltely. Less chance of leaks and less weight.

I've reduced temps by new rad, lower rated thermostat, decent coolant and water wetter. Temps are now bang on for optimum power

 

Its more the increased coolant volume and the reserve cooling capacity that appeals. For me, I think that that outweighs the weight saving and Id certainly strip/alter the car quite radically before removing a heater matrix again.

Are GRP rear doors available for the four door E30 (I might consider a GRP nearside door too, but your weights will be all over)? This'll make a massive difference, but I wouldnt part with the steel drivers door until after Id fitted a a fully tied-in cage.

Simon

 

Nice

Should never have sold mine when I bought the Scoob. Would have been a great track day weapon. Two door too. Oh well!

 

Small update!

We have tidied a few bits inside, meshed the missing lights, removed plates and any other plastic and bits that are not doing anything

Removed all electric window gubbins

Fitted perspex windows ( although its a bit brittle so hoping it does'nt start to crack, we have to look at something else if it does)

Fitted and cut some 1.5mm black plastic door cards for front doors

Hopefully wheels will turn up by the end of the week, Once they turn up i will fit them, give it a wash and put some more pics up.

GC8, Good points about heater matrix, will keep an eye on it and see what happens. Seam welding is a good idea too, This list keeps getting longer I think i wil being going for the KW's with some solid adjustable top mounts. My mate has experiance as a race driver and car builder so will probably buy the suspension and diff and ship it off to him for a couple of weeks to get it set up and then maybe welded

Seat are harnesses are going in but will probably be a bit further down the line.

 

Let me know if you need the details for the window firm. With regards to the chassis prep: its a pain in the ****, but if you up-tyre and stiffen a road cars suspension then the body will fail under the increased load... Ive seen a Lancer that had the chassis rigidity of a plate of jelly after a year of track days on coilovers, with lightweight wheels and inters.

Simon

 

I must be getting old. All I can think is that its a waste of what looked to be a mint looking future classic

I wouldn't have minded if it had been a bit rough

 

Dont be shy with the plumbed in extinguishers either.....

 

Wheels turned up today so are fitted. They are Team Dynamics Pro Race 2 with 215/40/17.




New OMP steering wheel fitted


Meshed the front lights


Taken out all door windows and electric gubbins and fitted perspex. Rear window was a bit of a pain to fit as the perspex was bigger than the opening as we took out the rear quarter. After breaking a couple we finally got them in with a little trimming. Basically they are the same size as the windows and then siliconed into the existing rubbers


Door cards, 1.5mm black plastic screwed with flat head tecs


Cables are now tidy as much as i can get without cutting through something important. Next step is to get suspension sorted, diff and service. I'm looking at KW v2 for suspension, front and rear strut braces, Eibach adjustable top mounts and a diff from a sport. After this is done i will be looking at getting it out on track to see how it goes

 

Looking good which track you taking it too for testing/shake down?

 

looking good mate keep the good work up looks sweet !

 

Probably Bedford as they allow drifting

 

blimey shes sitting high now !

just a word of warning about perspex windows ,i made perspex windows some time back because it was lightweight and cheap but as you have noticed its very brittle ,i had one fail and splinter into a thousand bits at very high speed ,sounded like a bomb had gone off and it wasnt just me that got a shock ,the car behind got hit by all the shrapnel too.Brown trouser moment that one and they were fitted in nice and secure .Ive since swapped to polycarbonate ,a bit thicker so a nadger heavier but much stronger and flexes without shattering.
My cars down to 980 kilos now but i have been working on it a few years .

 

Could you not put a film over the perspex to contain it if it does crack?

 

I think you may find that isn't the case anymore

When we were there in Feb they reminded us how strict they now were on noise and that VERY much included tyre squeel i'm afraid.

Wheels look nice, although I still think the 17's were over the top. The suspension will sort the ride height issue out. What with the heater still being in

It's about time you put a cage in it too

Looking good though.


I had mine on track at Combe last weekend. R888's int he pouring rain are not a great combination
:: northloop.co.uk :: we're not playing games ::


Off up to Yorkshire this afternoon for a couple of days to make a magazine article on it. Should be fun.

 

Why not send these guys a template and they will make a polycarbonate version

Products & Prices

Have fitted them in my Pug

 

Nice e30, I had a 318is in black. Was a great looking and and fun car but Extremely frisky in the wet, even with expensive tyres. You've done a good job on race prepping it

 

Any updates Scott?

 

I think that the argument for 'removing the heater' is valid only where you have to seal the firewall and close the heater's pipe holes. Even then you should leave the device intact in order that you can demist the windscreen on a wet day.

 

Id be curious to know how much weight you have saved and where from. Just the door cards and handles weighed 5kgs on my car...