Alpine E30 Convertible Running Log
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Congrats on actually trying, let alone succeeding. The cruise in my TI hasn't worked since I bought it. Troubleshooting has been limited to....um.... yeah, kinda never really did anything about it, despite the fact that I drive 100 miles each way to the shop and back most weekends....
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Congrats on actually trying, let alone succeeding. The cruise in my TI hasn't worked since I bought it. Troubleshooting has been limited to....um.... yeah, kinda never really did anything about it, despite the fact that I drive 100 miles each way to the shop and back most weekends....
I feel that. It hasn’t worked for over 10 years in this car, I guess I was the first one to care enough about it to try haha. If you even get around to it, I think I have an e36 control stalk laying around if that turns out to be the issue.
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Another small update.
The faded and worn rockers have bugged me for as long as I can remember, so I finally decided to tackle refinishing them. I did a bit of research on what to use, and finally decided to just use SEM trim black over something like bedliner or a rubberized undercoating. I wasn’t really sure what lengths I should go to for prep work (i.e. whether I need an adhesion promoter, primer, or something else) so I just scuffed with 400 grit per the can instructions and went over it quite a few times with a degreaser. I guess we’ll see how well it holds up.
In case anyone was wondering, the black spots above the rockers are POR-15 that was used around 5 years ago when the trim strips were pulled off and rust was found underneath. I just wire wheeled the rust off and coated it, it’s covered by the trim so I figured it didn’t matter much. It does look gross with the trim off though, I’ll take some pics tomorrow with the trim reinstalled.
Pics:
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We use that paint all the time on prototypes at my work. Its really nice stuff.
https://www.instagram.com/_jdesigner_/ http://nevertoolow.tumblr.com/
🥳SOLD BMW E24 633CSI - BMW M30B32 🧪SOLD HCH ES9 - 1.3 LDA
👽BMW E30 325IC - Toyota 1JZ-GTE ⏰ HONDA EF9 CIVIC SI - JDM B18C5
☠️BMW E36 318i - Ford 5.0 FE302 🚴♂️ GT-Labomba - 26x2.75 Freeride
🤹♀️SOLD BMW E36/7 Z3 - BMW M54B25 🧓SOLD BMW E10 2002 - BMW M10M05 -
We use that paint all the time on prototypes at my work. Its really nice stuff.
Yeah, I really liked it. What I liked even more is that the auto body supply shop off Fish Hatchery Rd. that I bought this stuff from has a whole rack of different SEM paints, and they’re cheaper than on Amazon or anywhere else I could find.
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Yeah, I really liked it. What I liked even more is that the auto body supply shop off Fish Hatchery Rd. that I bought this stuff from has a whole rack of different SEM paints, and they’re cheaper than on Amazon or anywhere else I could find.
That's where we get it. They delivery to us weekly.
https://www.instagram.com/_jdesigner_/ http://nevertoolow.tumblr.com/
🥳SOLD BMW E24 633CSI - BMW M30B32 🧪SOLD HCH ES9 - 1.3 LDA
👽BMW E30 325IC - Toyota 1JZ-GTE ⏰ HONDA EF9 CIVIC SI - JDM B18C5
☠️BMW E36 318i - Ford 5.0 FE302 🚴♂️ GT-Labomba - 26x2.75 Freeride
🤹♀️SOLD BMW E36/7 Z3 - BMW M54B25 🧓SOLD BMW E10 2002 - BMW M10M05 -
which body shop has that paint? Which one is best match for BMW?
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and don't forget its really good quality - it sprays nice, covers evenly and is very durable. i've sprayed basically every trim piece of my e30 with this stuff with great success.
Dan
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and don't forget its really good quality - it sprays nice, covers evenly and is very durable. i've sprayed basically every trim piece of my e30 with this stuff with great success.
I see you have the headlight trim rings there-do you like the look painted black? I’m on the fence on whether to keep the silver or go black.
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I see you have the headlight trim rings there-do you like the look painted black? I’m on the fence on whether to keep the silver or go black.
all my headlights are smoked, so it's necessary. for regular headlights, both work nice. it seems unnecessary to buy silver paint since you have the black already.
Dan
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Haven’t updated in awhile, I’ve really just been enjoying driving it lately. I rolled over 194k recently, making that more than 2000 miles since late May.
I recently did some paint correction, took me around 16 hours for the whole process of washing, clay barring, compounding, polishing and waxing but was well worth it both in results and the lessons learned. Most if not all of the light scratches and swirls are gone, revealing a surprising amount of deeper scratches, gouges and chips. I suppose that’s what happens with 29 year old original paint. I’m going to go back and redo the trunk and hood, I think I can still get some more imperfections taken care of because I did a super light cut the first time.
I also picked up a new to me sport steering wheel from @YoungCR to replace my cracked and worn out one. It made a huge difference in the look and feel of the interior, super pleased. I also got a replacement speaker as well, so my speakers all work now. Thanks again!
The other new thing is a set of euro grilles that I picked up from a guy in Chicago along with a perfect, uncracked rear ashtray for $45 total. The drivers side grille is warped which is why I got them so cheap, but I made some good progress with a heat gun to straighten it out. It’s still a little wavy, but I’m gonna work on it more tomorrow, then do some filing, sanding and then paint to cap it all off.
I’ll post some random pics of all this tomorrow.
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Today’s happenings:
Front right shock let go in a mildly spectacular fashion, guess that means that I have a bit of work ahead of me when I get back from school next year. All of the rubber in the front end is worn out anyways, so I’m just gonna do it all at once when I have the opportunity, probably with an e36 rack as well.
I’ve heard that using e36 centered control arm bushings is a good upgrade, any other recommendations? Would e90 drop hats work fine with stock suspension, or is it not worth it? I’d like to maybe reduce the wheel gap a little bit if I can for cheap.
Also, some pics of the euro grilles. The passenger side one is a genuine BMW part, but the drivers one isn’t and I think that’s why it fits kinda weird and was warped.
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I highly recommend a z3 rack over an e36 rack. Drop hats also give you roughly 1/2" drop. If that's what you're going for then it's worth it
Yeah, a z3 would be the ideal choice. If i see one for cheap I'll jump on it but otherwise an e36 would be acceptable I think and probably for a lot less money.
Even a 1/2" lower would make it better I would think, and for $30 it's worth a shot.
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No real update, but got the car out of storage today. Feels weird to be back in the e30 after the e34, steering felt stupid light in comparison. Looking forward to getting in some good miles this summer and replacing the front suspension, I’ll be hitting up @patsbimmer1 soon for that. Also got an e36 rack from @wasnt m3 this weekend, just need to clean it up and machine myself some spacers and we’ll be good to go there.
Requisite potato phone pic:
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Mileage: 195,400
Changed the oil, poked around, made a list of the front end parts to replace after the e30 picnic.
Also repaired the drivers side seat, one of the seat back adjusters wasn't latching so the whole seat would twist and move under heavy acceleration and braking. Just needed a bit of lube and we were on our way, really nice how easy they are to strip and service. No broken tabs even! I unfortunately didn't get any pictures, but if anyone cares or has questions, let me know.
Looking forward to seeing you guys at the picnic!
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