E30 Roadrally Project

[ianclapham]

I have just bought this one owner 85K mile 318i with t&t for £100

I am going to use her in the ANWCC roadrally championship in 2009.

I will post photos on here during the build.

I would also appreciate and advice on weak points on the car, i.e suspension, engine, transmission.

[scottyboy]

well done fella! good car choice! im currently building a road rally e30 but havent started my own thread yet. what engine are you planning on using? and where are you?

[ianclapham]

Hi pal, the car is staying standard 1800 for now, just putting a cage in, seats belts, upgrade brakes and yoko 21r's, the less i spend the more rallies i can do.
fancy xe or s2000 lump for 2010, see how this one goes first, or i may go for a tuned m40 lump, know very little about e30's so any help would be very welcome.

im based on north wales, abergele, and doing the ANWCC roadrally championship next year.

[avtovaz]

hi mate

i hope to see you out as im building a compact to get out on some of the anwcc rounds too!

If you contact Jason at the e30 center he will help you out loads, 07871662902

I have bought a alpina lsd unit from him for £250, ususaly the e30 325i ones og for £225 from him.


I bought bilstein motorsport struts and inserts from autoquip uk, do you know bainsey? 01829781705

I paid £300 for them new, thats quite cheep. Tweeks will sell you fast road ones for that price!

Escort grp4 shocks fit on the rear

Im sure everyone on here will know more than me so.......

[is-si]

Looks a good shell, ours was 'Dolphin Grey' in a former life

Maybe release the front inner arch linings at the rear edge and ensure they are clear of debris etc. and do the same in the rear arch, remove the guard and ensure the area behind is clear of debris too.

Suspension tuning is as far as you want to go, Challenge bilsteins are hard to beat, use e30 m3 front wishbones rear rubbers (£23 a pair) and ensure the rear beam bushes are good - ideally polybush them. I'd fit the roll bars from the sport models too.

M40's like good oil, theres a spray bar over the cam that gets blocked and sees off the camshaft. Make sure this is good and it will get you started.

Basically with a good service it should be a reliable RWD tool

Any q's just ask.

[ianclapham]

cheers pal, the shell is mint, one lady owner!! diffs a little whinny, the fuel pump is quite loud, and it a little tappety when cold, other than that she drives lovely.

im looking to poly bush everything, im looking at fitting either cibie or kc daylighters long range lenses 5 3/4" to the inner lights, and changing the outers for h4 lenses, will i need to modify the bowls and brackets or will they be ok,

thanks ian

[is-si]

We havent changed the lights as our regs permit 2up 2 down.
If it helps the standard bosch lights seem a lot better than the hella ones.

This link says you can fit bigger bulbs ( ) perhaps give it a cautious trial? http://www.esatclear.ie/~bpurcell/318iselectrical.html

i have seen a set of inner cibies fitted on a 325i challenge car - but its nearly 2 years ago and i cant remember how the adjusters fixed to the outer rim

edit: you dont have to polybush everything, the solid rubber m3 front wishbone bushes are top notch and the standard rear wishbone rubber bushes handle over 200hp for life. Stick an uprated diff bush (powerflex or bmw z3m) in to help stabilise the beam poly bushes.

[avtovaz]

Did you get that cage then matey?

[mjwales]

Looks a good'n mate. Think my old man is getting a bm for road rallying an all. Nice to see someone pretty local an all!

[jonnysprinter]

Single cam engines that have a spray bar don't take kindly to poor servicing. If you do need/want to replace the camshaft (and followers) then you could consider fitting a Schrick cam http://www.avl-schrick.com/dat/MK/AVL_S ... 2008_E.pdf. I'm sure the E30 BMW 318i which competed on the 061 Road Rally last night had a performance cam in it and sounded nice, setting off from our passage control

[jonnysprinter]

or maybe a Piper camshaft http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Piper-Cams-Camsha ... 7C294%3A50

[Marlon]

If you want to go for 5 3/4" lights then you'll need to source some headlight buckets and grills from America as they had sealed beams as standard and so have all the necessary fittings required. You'll need a bit of rewiring to do to wire up a set of outer H4's (with sides) correctly but other than that should be fine.

[ianclapham]

Well after 16 months the rallycar build gets underway.

£100 rear cage courtesy of Leon Newton fitted today.


£100 RWD Challenge sumpguard courtesy of Avtovaz fitted today.


A slight modification to the rear seat had to be made to accommodate the cage.

[avtovaz]

Nice one mate, did it fit ok?



I got a phone call today, " what where those shock s i sold you??? i have been asked for ones the same as yours " LOL ))

Hope Dave sorts you out!

[ianclapham]

Nice one mate, did it fit ok?



I got a phone call today, " what where those shock s i sold you??? i have been asked for ones the same as yours " LOL ))

Hope Dave sorts you out!

Ha ha yeh it fits like a glove, just needs a bit of inch box at the rear of the guard as a spacer but apart from that its mint!!!

I called Dave on saturday he forgot what he sold you lol, i prob will have a pair off him.

Ta jon