Alpine e30 progress/build thread

[B C]

This car is very clean underneath! let me know if you need help at any point

Do you know what the main differences between the aluminum M52TU and M54 are besides displacement? From the little info I have they seem to be pretty much the same thing except for the fact that the M52TU appears to be limited in terms of power adders

[m42b32]

Snap said:

This car is very clean underneath! let me know if you need help at any point

Do you know what the main differences between the aluminum M52TU and M54 are besides displacement? From the little info I have they seem to be pretty much the same thing except for the fact that the M52TU appears to be limited in terms of power adders

I'm not super familiar with the M52tu, but as far as I know there is minimal part compatibility between the two even though they are very similar in overall design. The M54 has a lot of small changes that add up to better performance like an improved intake/DISA design, pistons with shorter skirts and low tension rings for less friction (and higher oil consumption lol), slightly bigger cams, and a forged crank in the B30 (same part as S52).

[m42b32]

More things done! The m42 is just almost ready to pull, just the cooling system and power steering lines left to deal with. 

I also started working on retrofitting the drive-by-wire throttle pedal. I removed everything related to the old cable setup, getting the cable itself disconnected from the firewall was a massive pain... glad that's done. With the pedal mount bracket, I shaved off the lower attachment for the e46 as it doesn't line up, and test fit the bracket in the car. I'll be using epoxy to bond it to the bottom piece of the e30 gas pedal so that I can clip it on without modifying the bracket welded to the floor.

Test fit the pedal to try out the spacing with the brake, it works pretty well

Turned my attention back to the engine. I pulled the intake manifold to clean it and paint all the steel brackets. While the manifold is off I figured I would replace the two plastic coolant pipes that run underneath. Glad I'm going that, this is how they both came out:

They literally fell apart and I had to dig all the pieces out from the block. If the engine weren't on a stand it would've been a nightmare. The plastic is so soft where it meets the block you can crumble it in your hands... 

I also got a set of Hella Sharptone horns that I'll be installing behind the grilles. I didn't like the idea of having the yellow covers being visible through the grille so I took them apart and plasti-dipped the covers black. I decided to dip them instead of paint because it seems to hold up better to rock chips. 

[B C]

I need some stock horns if yours are still good

Glad you figured out how to make the pedal not look like this

[m42b32]

I'd cancel the swap if that was my only option... that looks like a MINI pedal haha

I should have a few laying around, not sure what works and what doesn't though. I'll pm you

[m42b32]

Got a used OEM DISA valve to replace the busted aftermarket one that came with the motor, and while it was surprisingly still functional, I decided to rip it apart anyway and install the German Auto Solutions rebuild kit. This kit replaces the plastic flapper valve and bell crank with machined aluminum parts held together by a pretty cool titanium screw. The quality and fit of the parts is pretty amazing, highly recommended to anyone needing to repair a failing DISA valve. 

[B C]

E30 PICNIC OR BUST!

[m42b32]

Snap said:

E30 PICNIC OR BUST!

I sure hope so! I want to drive it as much as possible this summer

[straight6pwr]

m42b32 said:

I sure hope so! I want to kick Dan's ass in auto-x this summer

fixed.

[m42b32]

I'll have to learn how to use the gas pedal like something other than an on/off switch haha, I'm excited to see how they compare!

[m42b32]

More progress.

Getting the block about as clean as it's going to get, maybe 60% done and then I ran out of brake cleaner. 

VANOS unit is still grubby but I'll clean it up when it's removed, going to pick up more supplies and I hope to finish it up the cleaning next week. It looks like I'll need to replace the front crank seal, any tips on getting the jesus bolt off on a stand?

I installed the new thermostat, and when I went to install the new water pump I noticed it looked a little different than the one I pulled out...

The impeller was pressed on backwards! Glad I noticed, that would've been a quick overheat. I contacted FCP and they're going to send me a new one thankfully.

Also popped on the SAP delete plate with a new gasket. Its really easy on the M54, just cap a vacuum port and install the single delete plate. I'll be coding out the SAP with the DME (forced readiness) so it shouldn't cause any problems. 

[KaiserRolls]

Cans of brake clean last two seconds at WOT

Is that a plastic water pump impeller??

[B C]

KaiserRolls said:

Cans of brake clean last two seconds at WOT

Is that a plastic water pump impeller??

WOT 

Nice catch on the impeller. it would probably run in reverse and make for some screwy stuff. Reminds me of when @Jdesign discovered left hand and right hand water pumps on his 302.  

can't trust anybody!

you can also put me on the aluminum block envy list

[Jdesign]

Snap said:

Reminds me of when @Jdesign discovered left hand and right hand water pumps on his 302.  

can't trust anybody!

God that sucked. Sure I will install the water pump 5 times NBD.

[m42b32]

KaiserRolls said:

Cans of brake clean last two seconds at WOT

Is that a plastic water pump impeller??

Its a composite impeller from Saleri which is the OEM supplier (made in Italy), so it likely has better bearings than the aftermarket metal ones as a lot of them seem to be made in China. BMW switched to that material sometime in the late 90's and they've just about eliminated the failing impeller issues.

[Jdesign]

m42b32 said:

Its a composite impeller from Saleri which is the OEM supplier (made in Italy), so it likely has better bearings than the aftermarket metal ones as a lot of them seem to be made in China. BMW switched to that material sometime in the late 90's and they've just about eliminated the failing impeller issues. 

I can second this. If its white its likely going to explode. If its black and swirly, its likely a composite and much better material. I have had a metal Chinese one fail on my E46 and it literally chewed itself apart. It was so bad in fact, I put it on a shelf as a reminder that not all metal ones are good replacements.

[m42b32]

Had some time to work on this on Sunday. Installed a new water pump (with an impeller that faces the correct direction) and ECS aluminum water pump pulley. I also got as far as I could installing the Beisan Systems dual vanos seals and anti-rattle kit. This is a much easier job on the M54 compared to the S52 since you don't need to deal with the splined interface between the cam and the piston. 

Got the valve cover off, cam lobes and lifters all look excellent. Could be a little cleaner, but there really isn't any sludge so I can't complain. 

Vanos unit removed and disassembled:

The anti-rattle kit made a huge difference, so hopefully they are nice and quiet. Before I took them apart there was a pretty significant amount of axial play, but once the new spacers were installed it was completely gone while still allowing them to spin freely. I didn't have to do any sanding or adjusting on either piston which was a nice surprise since that can get tedious. New seals went in easily as well. Got it all reinstalled but ended up breaking one of the plastic plugs that covers the bolt holding the piston to the cam, so I can't go any further till I order a new one.

[B C]

No sanding required here either thank goodness. I did have to check my work about 15 times to make sure i wasnt hamming it up though

[m42b32]

Took advantage of the somewhat decent weather on Sunday and got some work done. Three cans of brake cleaner later I'm calling the block clean enough. It's not perfect, but this car isn't winning any shows so it'll do just fine. 

I got the replacement caps to finish the VANOS install and replaced the OEM buna o-rings with the viton ones that came with the Besian kit. With that installed I finished it off by checking the spark plugs and reinstalling the valve cover (with new gaskets) and coils. I cleaned and re-installed the oil filter housing with a new gasket and filter as well. The bores for the two plastic coolant pipes didn't look the best, so I hit them lightly with some 600 grit sandpaper to smooth them out. There is one scratch on the heater feed bore that might be a problem, not sure if it was there from before or I did it, but I applied a really thin coat of RTV so hopefully between that and new o-rings it doesn't leak. With those installed I zip-tied the knock sensor wires back into position and reinstalled the intake manifold that I rebuilt with new gaskets on the throttle body and head flange, repainted brackets, capped vacuum ports for the exhaust flapper valve and SAP valve, and the newly rebuilt DISA. 

With all that done I zipped off the oil pan bolts, expected it to stick with the gasket (it didn't), and spilled all the residual oil in it all over the garage floor. Like the head, it's a little dirty but it isn't covered in sludge or anything.

I didn't get any pictures of this, but I took the lower power steering mounting bracket off the M54 oil pan, and luckily for me, the boss on the e34 m50 pan appears to be in the exact same spot. I had to make some minor modifications to the bracket to fit the pan, but other than that it should be a direct swap. As my e30 does not have a check panel, I replaced the oil level sensor with the BMW delete plate and a new o-ring. Once I finish some tasks on the bottom end it should be ready to seal back up.

I also started some work on the fuel system. The M54's fuel pressure regulator is part of the fuel filter assembly underneath the car, and since I want to keep the original e30 fuel filter setup and not have a huge fuel filter strapped to the frame rail under the hood, I will be using an s54 fpr housing. I removed the 5.0 bar S54 fpr (left), and replaced it with a new 3.5 bar part from an e39 530i (right). 

I just need to order a fitting to adapt the threads for the e46 m3 fuel filter to a barb for the inlet and figure out a place to mount it.

[B C]

What about the oil pump nut and shaft? is this still a concern on the X54?

the little bit of grime in the corner of one of the block casting features is the stuff thats going to ignite on a hot day.  Murphy's Law said so.