1991 325ix

[AJK430]

For those of you that missed it in the intro section... I'm working on a 1991 325ix that was crashed. I bought the car post-crash from a man that let his daughter drive it, she soon put it underneath a semi trailer. I bought the car last spring and sat on it til I found some time and came up with a bit of a plan and found some motivation compliments to m42b32 and his alpine e30 build/progress thread and a few others that suggested it was definitely repairable. Here are some pics from when I bought it in Seattle. Had it shipped back here for right around $1000 in an enclosed semi car hauler. 

Made just a bit a progress yesterday. I pulled the hood and fenders off to further assess the damage. When I get chance next is pull bumper and rest of front end off including radiator to get access to the core support. I plan to buy a brand new core support for around $340 to assure I have a straight piece to rebuild on.

[GunMetalGrey]

I got my core support from the dealer in Appleton and I think I paid something like $200, it was far cheaper than buying it anywhere online. 
I would be interested in seeing pictures with the fenders off to see the extent of the damage. I have done front end repair on E30's and frequently the damage spreads much further than you would expect.

[AJK430]

GunMetalGrey said:

I got my core support from the dealer in Appleton and I think I paid something like $200, it was far cheaper than buying it anywhere online. 
I would be interested in seeing pictures with the fenders off to see the extent of the damage. I have done front end repair on E30's and frequently the damage spreads much further than you would expect. 

Ill keep that in mind regarding the core support when I set out to pick one up. Also just uploaded photos from my phone. I'd have taken the bumper off but ill have to grab the T50 or T55 to pull those big ones straight out of the bottom to get the composite crossmember off?

[Jdesign]

Theres a few E30's in the salvage yard out in Madison with decent panels on them. Im not sure where you are located but just tossing that out there.

[AJK430]

Jdesign said:

Theres a few E30's in the salvage yard out in Madison with decent panels on them. Im not sure where you are located but just tossing that out there.

Right on thanks for the recommendation! I've actually sourced a hood and fenders... They're pretty straight and rust free! I'm in Oshkosh but the car is at my hangar at the Baraboo Dells Airport so thats where I'm slowly setting up shop to work on this and a few other projects...

[B C]

This car is definitely worth saving! What would be the plan when its fixed? Sell for profit or drive it?

[AJK430]

Snap said:

This car is definitely worth saving! What would be the plan when its fixed? Sell for profit or drive it?

Probably keep it

[Jdesign]

I say you combine the plane and the E30 and make a flying E30!!!   

You are quite a ways north but that's great you sourced panels already!

[m42b32]

I'm glad you decided to fix it!! Make sure to take as many measurements as you can before you cut into anything. It's nice that you have another undamaged car to take reference measurements from as well. Getting replacement parts without spending a fortune is half the battle, so you're off to a good start!

If you have any questions on how I rebuilt mine feel free to reach out!

[AJK430]

m42b32 said:

I'm glad you decided to fix it!! Make sure to take as many measurements as you can before you cut into anything. It's nice that you have another undamaged car to take reference measurements from as well. Getting replacement parts without spending a fortune is half the battle, so you're off to a good start!

If you have any questions on how I rebuilt mine feel free to reach out!

Thanks so much. Yeah like the other guys asked... if im going to do all this work I might as well keep it and enjoy. Maybe have it on the road this summer? that might be the goal as of right now...

[AJK430]

Moar progresss. Still stripping her down. Found the whole ignition cover destroyed. Timing case is cracked, and I’ll need to figure out how to get what’s left of the fan clutch off... any recommendations? As of now I just want to get it running, I’ve got some spares from a couple of other m20’s I’ll use to get this engine sorted out.

Anyone familiar or have experience with some sort of pyrotechnic or fuse that shorts a circuit that disabled and shuts off the engine upon airbag deployment? I can only find information on newer chassis regarding that... I don’t think I have power to the starter. 

[GunMetalGrey]

Did you cut the core support? Or did it shear in a super awesome/crazy way?

Be sure to inspect the firewall side of things. Where the wheel tubs meet the chassis, around the fuse box area and battery tray area for separation. Ensure there are no wrinkles in the strut towers or the vertical sheet metal surrounding them. 

Make sure to measure the distance between the frame horns (things that hold the bumper shocks) before cutting the old support out, seeing how much it was deformed is always a nice thing to know. 

I know it isn't your goal, but if you find something that keeps you from wanting to rebuild, I may know a guy interested in the drive-line bits.

[B C]

Yes, thats what caught my eye as well, how it didnt deform there, just sheared away.

Let me know if you need any dimensions from my car while the valence and bumper are off.

[AJK430]

The grinder laying out may lead you to believe I’ve cut some things... the core support did indeed shear on impact nearly symmetrically on both sides... when I get I chance I’ll be measuring some things, I have my 86 to reference but if some of y’all have some cars apart keep me in the loop.