Jake's Epic BMW 135i Build Thread! (5+ Years of Ownership)

jc43089

Looks great, I just did a hand polish with Griots Garage "One step sealant" on my '89 and it made a huge difference. The one step sealant is a fine polish and paint sealant in one, I unfortunately don't get around to taking as much care of the cosmetics as I would like and it is a longer lasting than a wax.

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jc43089 said:

Looks great, I just did a hand polish with Griots Garage "One step sealant" on my '89 and it made a huge difference. The one step sealant is a fine polish and paint sealant in one, I unfortunately don't get around to taking as much care of the cosmetics as I would like and it is a longer lasting than a wax.

Thanks man. I actually used a high-speed corded drill with a velcro attachment for cutting, polishing, and waxing. This was my first time doing any sort of paint-correction and I am very happy with the results.

To see a list of products and the process I used, check out the post on my website.

YoungCR

Have you machine cut/polished a car before at all? That's one skill I never got around to learning at the dealer that I wanted to.

patsbimmer1

The car looked great at Dubs in the Valley man! Wish I had a chance to meet you!

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CYoung said:

Have you machine cut/polished a car before at all? That's one skill I never got around to learning at the dealer that I wanted to.

Never. I've applied wax by hand with a small foam pad, but that's it. I bought a 7" variable speed polisher from Harbor Freight for this, but it was too much for me. It was hard to use and I didn't like it. That's when I opted for the high-speed electric drill, it was the perfect speed and very easy to use compared to the large polisher.

patsbimmer1 said:

The car looked great at Dubs in the Valley man! Wish I had a chance to meet you!

Thanks! Same here. Your car looks very similar to my old E36... except mine was a coupe.

patsbimmer1

I am pretty sure yours ended up in the Janesville area. I was doing an event at Blackhawk Tech in Janesville and I swear it was your old car up on an alignment rack a few months back.

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patsbimmer1 said:

I am pretty sure yours ended up in the Janesville area. I was doing an event at Blackhawk Tech in Janesville and I swear it was your old car up on an alignment rack a few months back.

I'm pretty sure it did too. The kid that bought it said he drove up from the Milwaukee area.

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It's been a while since I've updated this thread. A few things have changed...

I wasn't planning on driving this car through the winter months, but the unexpected always seems to happen. My winter beater threw a rod within 1 week of driving it. At the time, we were getting pretty heavy snow so I had no other choice but to drive the 1-series through winter.

The rear tires were bald and I knew they wouldn't get through snow, so I bought a new set of winter wheels and tires from TireRack.

17×8″ Gunmetal MSW Type 85 wheels
225/45/17 General Altimax Arctic tires
OEM TPMS sensors

You can see my blog post about them here. It includes more some more details, review, and a few more pictures.

BMW 135i - Snow by Jake Spence Photography, on Flickr

The car was due for some maintenance so I spent a weekend tidying things up.

Returned to factory pump gas flash for winter season
Replaced broken hood latch and stretched hood cable
Oil change with Motul 8100 5W-30 and MANN oil filter kit
Replaced faulty front brake pad sensor
Installed missing jack pad (front, passenger side)
Replaced broken dome light bulb holder

After getting the car back on the road, it's performed flawlessly. The wheels are great and it purrs like a kitten.

Bobdudeman1988

Going though this thread and i was like, hey thats my garage! Lol glad to see its going well jake, currently defucking a 135 in my garage now lol

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Bobdudeman1988 said:

Going though this thread and i was like, hey thats my garage! Lol glad to see its going well jake, currently defucking a 135 in my garage now lol

Yup! Glad to have your help.

That's too bad about Ben's 135i. Glad you're sorting it out.

Bobdudeman1988

Just wait till im done, it will be mint and lci like

i_love_cars

damn, i wish i woulda known sooner that your beater died. I have a buddy here in Waukesha that does primo work and he just put a new long-block and transmission into a 1994 Civic hatch with a stick, only 124k miles on the car, and he's flipping it for like 2000 bucks. I was tempted to buy it myself but my beater is still functional.

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Again, it's been a little while since I've updated this thread.

After 4 weeks, my LCI Blackline taillights were delivered straight from Germany!

See more details and comparison shots on my blog post about them.

bmw-135i-pre-lci-vs-blackline-off-1024x6

New Blackline (left) vs. OEM taillight (right) - OFF

bmw-135i-pre-lci-vs-blackline-on-1024x68

New Blackline (left) vs. OEM taillight (right) - ON

I bought a front splitter from fmxomar (see this thread). I've always felt like the front end needed something more aggressive, and this splitter was perfect. Paired with APR support rods, I think it looks great and it's also functional.

I got a pair of side splitters as well, but those will go on in a few weeks.

You can read about the full install (with more details/pictures) in my blog post.

Also, I converted all of the interior lights to LEDs. Front dome light, map lights, rear dome light, trunk, and glovebox.

You can read the details on my blog post about them.

After all of this, I performed the $2 DIY blow off valve mod for cool noises. With my exhaust, I can't hear much of a difference.

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(See bottom of previous page for most recent updates/pictures!)

Continuing on from that post... I also sold my BBS LM replica wheels! Stay tuned for something more 'track-worthy' in the upcoming months.

I have a Rieger rear diffuser and those side splitters waiting to be installed once the weather gets a little nicer.

My 335is/550i clutch and MFactory SMFW will be installed next week, along with a fresh transmission fluid flush. The car should be able to hold the power it's putting down this summer!

i_love_cars

approved.

YoungCR

What years did the LCI lights start? Looks great.

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i_love_cars said:

approved.

Thanks!

CYoung said:

What years did the LCI lights start? Looks great.

Started in 2012 for the E82.

patsbimmer1

Looks good! This is similar to something I am working on for my car right now.

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Update: As I posted above, I sold my BBS LM replica (ESM) wheels. I ended up getting a deal on a set of APEX AERO-7 wheels locally, so I bought them this weekend. I test-fitted them right away and decided I really didn't like them, whatsoever. See below:

I took them off right away and listed them for sale. The wheels sold right away, but I still have like-new Nitto INVO tires and TPMS sensors for sale.

I found a set of wheels across the country on Craigslist and convinced the seller to ship them. So, I sent him money last night and hope to have them by this weekend or early next week!

Anyone think I made a mistake by selling the LM reps or APEX AERO-7s?

ClassE

I think it's always a mistake to put black wheels on black cars, and I have no issues with remakes/cast wheels/reps as long as they don't have fake bolt heads... But that's just me.

Some people get way too caught up in "wheel elitism" in the car scene today. I've had absurdly rare 3-piece wheels, and I've had cast "knock-offs" (still do) and I'll happily rock the cast wheels any day. I love rare wheels and will certainly buy more, but bending/cracking lips can happen regardless of what ultra-hip or rare name is on the face. Id rather pay to replace the readily available cast wheel for cheap, then cry like a schoolgirl because I ruined a face on a unobtainium set of rare wheels.

Short Version: Do what you want because it's how you like it... And screw anybody who says otherwise.

WIBIMMERS

Jake's Epic BMW 135i Build Thread! (5+ Years of Ownership)