Alpine e30 progress/build thread
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You drove it to work!
I appreciate you properly taking it out of storage mode. Its like safely ejecting a USB flash drive, almost nobody does it but it make you feel good about yourself (jk, I yank it out mid-write)
Which diff are you using?
I remember having chatter on a clutch for just a few miles when I transferred it from my M20 to my M52. No concern there.
I was certain I would hit the right volume level with my exhaust based on how I liked the M20 with turbo but its amazing how much louder life gets when its tubular headers instead of cast iron manifold and turbine. I think a chambered muffler is a must.
Well done, sir!
Thank you!! Proper storage mode switching is often overlooked but a very critical part of e30 ownership.
Diff is a 3.15 LSD from a Z3M. I didn't get the cool finned cover but also didn't pay for that so it evens out.
Good to know on the clutch! Seems better already this morning after a bit of traffic in my commute, just going to keep driving it and see what happens. Its already proving hard to respect the break in period though...
And with the exhaust I figured this would be a good starting point but it's pretty much unpleasant. The muffler I ordered to replace the one in the center is a straight through perforated tube design, and so is the one in the rear. The rear is an offset inlet, center outlet, so the gasses do get forced into the perforations a bit more than a straight one. I hope that is enough...
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155.8k
Made it to the picnic! Forgot to take any pictures since I was having too good of a time. The weather couldn't have been better and it was great seeing everyone! Snapped this crappy picture of it after washing off 1.5 years of garage dust and dirty fingerprints.
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Awesome
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paint that damn lip already.
jk, great work! wish i could have seen it in person at the picnic.
Dan
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paint that damn lip already.
But it matches half my engine bay!
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155.9k
Boring update: I drove it about 300 miles the week of the picnic, then the passenger front wheel bearing started making a lot of noise so I had to park it. I haven't been able to work on the car for the last month and a half which was frustrating, but I finally got a chance to get them swapped out after work this week. I used e28 wheel bearings since the only differences between them and the e30 m3 part is the ABS ring and a couple hundred bucks (each!). Since I don't have ABS I didn't bother swapping the rings over.
I also still had a small leak at both of the temperature sensor adapters. I was able to tighten them both another half turn so hopefully that seals them up. The brake lights are also sticking on again so I will have to re-adjust the switch. The car is up on stands to start re-working the exhaust mid-section hopefully soon, It's killing me to not drive this in the nice weather!
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Back up on stands and mirrors folded in. See you in 2024
jk. Bring it to RA autox on aug 11(?) I think it’s the 11.
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Back up on stands and mirrors folded in. See you in 2024
jk. Bring it to RA autox on aug 11(?) I think it’s the 11.
That's what it feels like at this rate... trying not to let that happen!
I'm hoping to get to a few auto-x's this fall, this summer has had way too much stuff going on
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156.2k
I had a free Saturday morning over the long weekend to clean my garage and work on a few little loose ends with the car.
- Coolant leak seems to be sealed up finally, at least so far.
- I have functioning brake lights again after bending the switch bracket a bit to make sure it gets better contact against the pedal.
- New front wheel bearings made a world of difference, they must've been a lot more worn out than I thought.
I left the exhaust alone for now because I want to drive the dang thing. It is now doing daily duty for the next week or two to get everything broken in and start sorting out the minor details!
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How are the daily duties going??
Loving it! I really missed driving this car but the downtime has been worth it so far. There are definitely some kinks to work out and minor changes to make but the extra power and torque have really upped the smile factor in everyday driving. I've been easing into beating on it a bit now that the clutch has some miles on it too. The rear tires definitely aren't going to as long as before haha. I had to switch back to the wagon for the last few days because I needed the bike rack though.
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Loving it! I really missed driving this car but the downtime has been worth it so far. There are definitely some kinks to work out and minor changes to make but the extra power and torque have really upped the smile factor in everyday driving. I've been easing into beating on it a bit now that the clutch has some miles on it too. The rear tires definitely aren't going to as long as before haha. I had to switch back to the wagon for the last few days because I needed the bike rack though.
pssh, have you seen my e30 with 2 kayaks, 1 bike and 10 fishing poles on the roof?
Dan
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pssh, have you seen my e30 with 2 kayaks, 1 bike and 10 fishing poles on the roof?
Haha I've seen a picture or two of the two kayaks, who needs a truck! My excuse is laziness... I actually have a Thule rack for the e30 from back when I bought the car, but the only roof tray I have that holds my mountain bike is bolted to the wagon at the moment.
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156.4k
I picked up another ms43 ecu to start messing around with (in case I brick one). I did a full firmware flash to delete EWS/checksums and set it up to run an M54B30 to match exactly what the current one is set up as initially.
I then started messing around with TunerPro and RomRaider (there are really nice ms430056 definition files for each). I have been getting a P0444 (Evaporative Emission Control System Purge Control Valve Circuit Open) and P1112 (Engine Coolant Temperature Radiator Outlet Sensor High Input) code every time I start the car, which makes sense because I don't have either of those things anymore. I was able to suppress the DTC's for those two systems and now my ultragauge shows 0 trouble codes! I'm sure it's throwing many, many more but they will only show up in something like INPA so they're less of a priority.
I also started messing around with the electronic thermostat temperature maps to try and bring down the peak operating temps a bit. Right now it runs between 197-206F and I'd like to shift that range down slightly to 190-200 or so. I lowered the peak values in the AC on and off maps, as well as the initial value before it reaches the oil temperature threshold, but didn't see a corresponding change when driving the car, so I'll have to investigate further and try some things. I might have to lower the actual oil temperature threshold to force it into the main coolant temperature maps sooner.
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156.8k
I had a blast with @KaiserRolls and @AsparagusMike at the FVSCC event at Road America this past Sunday! The car ran flawlessly, but boy do I have some dialing to do on the handling/my driving after all the changes I've made. Well over half the course was spent counter steering... and while this was hilariously fun, it made for quite the white knuckle ride when trying to push and improve lap times! I'm already looking forward to next season!
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Im happy you got a chance to do some proper flogging! What’s your gameplan to balance the car?
Agreed!!
For adjustments I think working towards reducing oversteer (I know, boo) is going to be the main focus if I want to go faster. That and getting more practice of course.
I didn't really get an opportunity to dial in the brake bias so I'd like to play around with that a bit and just see what happens. Right now it doesn't feel bad, but it might have too much rear bias as the car feels like it pivots quite a bit when braking hard into a corner.
Another thing I'd like to try is softening or even disconnecting the rear sway bar. Mike said that really made a difference for him so I think it would be worth giving it a go too. Right now I have it set on the middle setting (19mm UUC bar), so dropping to the softest or even disconnecting it all together could help the rear end stay in line a bit better too.
It is also entirely possible my tires have gotten pretty hard as they sat in an unheated garage for the last two winters... I know the RA motorplex surface is pretty slick, but it did feel like I had significantly less grip in every aspect compared to the last few times I was there with this car two years ago. Not much I can do about that one, so I'll just work with it for now.
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