Parts, parts, parts…

Aug. ’21: Upcoming plans include an M30B35 head on a B34 block with high-compression pistons and (hopefully) an E34 center section. That should get me reliably on the road.

No updates for 2020

August ’19: I’d lazily pushed the B34 into the back of the garage while other priorities took front stage, but I’ve gotten back to it. As promised by the seller, it’s in really nice shape. That’s a minor problem since it puts me on the horns of a dilemma. It’s a nice problem to have, two complete engines to choose from! So…do I use the older, less powerful but slightly “revvier” B32? Or do I clean up the B34? Both have an 86mm crank throw, the B34 gains its extra displacement from a 92mm bore (vs. 89mm in the B32). The B32 does have a higher compression ratio, 8.8 to 8.0 for the rather low compression B34. So the B34 ends up at 182HP/210 ft-lb. I couldn’t find accurate numbers on the Motronic B32, but I’d guess it’s in the neighborhood of 181HP/190 ft-lb. Other concerns: the B34 is oozing a lot of oil from the lower gaskets. On the other hand the top end is more or less brand new. It also had a nifty single-mass flywheel attached.

 

January ’19: The new year is here! Happy New Year to all my readers, BTW. I’ve managed to sell quite a few parts. It’s been keeping my busy enough that I have no other projects to report. If that changes, I’ll update this blog right away. Most of the E24 parts listed below are already gone. I don’t have anything left from the E21s at all, except a few random little trinkets. To resolve that issue, I bought another E21…I also picked up an M30B34 along with a sweet low mileage Getrag 265 overdrive gearbox. Listings updated!

October ’18: Heading into Halloween already…where did the summer go?!? I managed to pick off another selection of E24 parts from the same car I visited way back in March! Front fenders, a pretty decent hood, most of the electronics and a pair of rear bucket seats are among the parts I saved before the chassis went off to the scrapper.

July ’18: Happy Independence Day! Things were relatively slow here at T.I.BMW, but I did manage to sell off most of the E21 remnants. In the process I met a few really nice people in my voyages out west. The most spectacular discovery was a cache of E30s. If you need any E30 parts, email me and I’ll get you in touch with the owner. Want some pics to feed your curiosity? Absolutely!

June ’18: We said ‘auf weidersehen’ to both E21s. They took their final voyage on a rollback this week. Sadly, we can’t save them all. Many of those parts will live on, donated to other cars in far better shape. There’s a silver lining too…it sure cleared up a lot of working space. Now we can focus on the E24 project (unless another needy BMW turns up locally, that is!).

April ’18 Update 2: The E21 deconstruction project is coming along nicely. I’ve pulled a lot of parts from the gray (Graphite) car. Moderately high mileage (213K miles). Available parts include the Getrag 245 5-speed transmission, clutch, flywheel, driveshaft, two 13×6″ BBS basketweaves and misc. trim parts. I’ve also spent some quality time with the silver (Polaris) car…so I also have the Getrag 245 5-speed (only 165K miles), flywheel, clutch & a set of four 13×6″ turbine wheels are available.

April ’18 Update 1: Spring is here, and it brings more than just daffodils…two more parts cars showed up! Due to an unfortunate chain of events, I’ve had to make room for these two ‘new’ project cars. It took two days of diligent work, but we managed to transport them from the field and deliver them without major incident to Iconic BMW HQ. I’ll be reporting on parts availability and condition next week.

In case you don’t recall, here’s the cars as I found them, nearly four years ago:

Apr. ’18: Big developments! I’ve been storing some cars over at a buddy’s house, and he’s been hit with a citation for abandoned cars. We’re chopping up the most unfortunate ones, and trying to salvage what we can. With a lot of time & effort we’ll save whatever can be salvaged. Today’s victim was an ’88 325. This one-year-only special ran the rare M20B27 “Super” Eta. Somewhat sought after, this engine is used to make a so-called 327i hybrid, combining the revvy power of a M20B25 with the low-RPM torque of an M20B27. Feast your eyes on the destruction:

Mar. ’18: I’ve stumbled into two purchases so far this month. The first seller was building an E28 hybrid project. He pulled the original M20B27 to install a Chevy smallblock V8. It’s an injected 350ci and matching 5-speed from a mid-80s Camaro…I’d presume a healthy boost of torque will certainly perk up that old E28. Should it become a 557i?. The second seller was cutting loose some decent E30 parts. Many were from an E30 autocross project. It’s currently running a warmed-over M52, but he’s turning it up a few more notches with a medium-sized turbocharger. I’ve listed a few on eBay to cover my costs, but I’ll likely keep the trunk lip spoiler, the M20 gearbox. I’m suspecting the M20 single-mass flywheel and Bilstein Sport/BavAuto spring combo are getting a new lease on life in my M42-powered 318i.

Feb. ’18: The E23 is finally gone. I’d finished pulling the HVAC unit and the power front seats. I left a few good parts on the car, and donated it to a local pick-n-pull called Rusty Hook Auto. They’re a good place to go, I definitely recommend them. If anyone needs some E23 parts, I’ve listed many of them on eBay. Check them out & mention my blog to receive a 10% discount!

Jan. ’18: I’ve had a lucky few weeks shopping for stuff I needed, picked up a few great bargains. To top it off, I passed a few of those bargains off to other addict/enthusiasts like me. Santa was good to more than a few Bimmerheads this season! The M106 sold as a package deal, along with the Clutchmaster FX300 setup and a matching 260/6, heading for an E30 project. I also sold both Getrag 265s, the 3.46 LSD, the E23 driveshaft, then the matching E23 5-speed swap kit. Even the B32 harness is on the way out! All I have left is the E23 chassis, the M30B32 and a set of 14×6″ BBS wheels (sold). I’ll likely end up using them both unless I find a buyer first. I always look for the win-win situation, if anyone needs these parts let me know.

Dec. ’17: First off, the M106 has been pulled from the E23 parts car. I’m finally prepping it for sale. Among other discoveries, I also found a high-performance Centerforce clutch mounted onto the lightweight flywheel. The differential is a limited-slip 3.46 unit. Looks to be in great shape too.

I also followed up on an offer I made on an M30B32 & transmission (along with a set of OEM 14″ BBS style 5 wheels) from a really nice guy in the Cleveland area. So I fired up the my wife’s car (my parts hauler), rented a trailer and headed on up. He’s bought an E24 and has decided to swap out the tired M30 for a GM LS smallblock. It was nice to help him fund that project and get some parts I needed. As it was described in the ad, I presumed the B32 was in poor shape. There is some evidence of a blown head gasket. However, the bottom end looks virtually brand-new. The air cleaner housing still had an original paint job.  The DME and AFM are both virginal. The wiring harness was also incredibly well preserved. Almost every clip and plug was accounted for. It’s been on the motor for 35 years, but even the vinyl conduit sleeves and bulkhead grommets aren’t cracked! I have no idea how this happened, I’ve never seen one like it. Not sure what I’ll do with it, but a clean 059 DME and harness has to be worth something to someone.

I had really bought it for the transmission. It’s a Getrag 265/6 with provision for Motronic 1.0 sensors, which is great. I was pleased to note that the cable drive was still functional. This configuration of mechanical speedo and digital fuel injection was only available for a single year (1981), and only on the E24. Newer 5-speed manuals cannot easily be installed in earlier pre-80s BMWs, since newer gearboxes have different bell-housing patterns and no provision for a cable-drive speedo output. This particular transmission can be installed in virtually any BMW built since the 60s.

I’m thinking this sweet little B32 will find a temporary home in my E24 while I rebuild the high-compression B34 into something even more fun. It’s been a good month…I certainly can’t complain!