Transmission mounts are fairly easy to change. Do not attempt to change the mounts unless you have a car jack handy to support/lift the transmission (just a normal jack, im not referring to anything special; scissor jack, hydraulic jack, whatever). The reason you need a car jack and cannot use a jack stand...
Read More »

On a 25 year old E30 it is hard to know what options were original to the car and what options were added later by previous owners. Take for example my E30, it has the original white exterior with a cardinal red interior. However after decoding my VIN I discovered the cardinal interior was not original to my...
Read More »

I recently acquired another E30 and am officially back in the E30 scene. Unfortunately the car had an overheating problem among other things, and facing a 2500 mile trip ahead of me, this overheating problem needed to get sorted. Basically at idle and while driving the heat gauge would climb right around the 3/4 mark (should be at 1/2)....
Read More »

It is no surprise that an M60 / M62 requires more cooling capacity. There were two styles of radiators in M20 e30’s 1988+ and pre 1988. If you have 1988+ then an e36 or a Z3M (e36/4) radiator will fit without modification. If you have a pre 1988 then ‘it drops in, no mods,...
Read More »

So your thinking, man I really dont like those bottle caps (stock rims) on my E30. A mistake a lot of people make is they intuitively think that a bigger rim automatically equals a bigger overall wheel diameter. Tire sizing is determined by calculating the mm width of the tread, percentage of that width...
Read More »

It has long been the norm to use subframe spacers while preforming the m60 / m62 v8 swap into an e30. Where did this norm start? Well basically as far as I can tell it started with an old-er swap guide which you will find somewhat translated here.  So for the sake of convenience...
Read More »

A few days ago I was researching if it was possible to run a boosterless setup (only master cylinders), and still have leg input force that was daily drivable. When swapping in different engines into an e30, often times the brake booster has to be relocated upfront just behind the left headlight (as with...
Read More »

So you have a check engine light on, and your a backyard mechanic. One of the most useful free tools in your arsenal is what is called the stomp test; this test basically makes the check engine light flash to give you a code, with this code you can determine the fault for why...
Read More »

I have been looking for Free Vin check website ever since I can remember. Thanks to the guys at http://52internet.net/autocheck/ we all can now get a free autocheck report. Its rather nice seeing where all my old cars have ended up, I had always been curious. Below: 1. Input the vin number 2. Click...
Read More »

For some this might be obvious but for those who dont know this will save you alot of headache in the future, tightening bolts properly is essential to seal gaskets properly to distribute the tightening pressure so you dont get leaks; in most cases if you dont tighten in the proper order the gasket...
Read More »