Dar-Dar's 1995 Avus Blue E36 M3 Project Car

[Dar-Dar]

New Wheels and Tires

I got an amazing deal on a set of BBS RA518 from a local Craigslist seller. They are 17x8.5 with 40mm offset.


I also snagged a deal on two 235/45/17 Pilot Super Sport tires with 6-7/32 " tread remaining for $50. And I have two brand new 255/40/17 Kumho KU36 that have been sitting in the garage for a few months. I got the tires mounted on the wheels, but not balanced. I noticed that the paint is chipping during the tire install. So I only requested only for tire mounting. It looks like the person who painted them did not spray primer. *Scratches head* I can also remove the paint with my nails. So road debris will easily destroy the finish. I'll repaint them myself using PlastiKote self etching primer, Rustoleum Graphite wheel paint, and 2K Clear coat. It will be durable.

I can't complain about the paint job since I had a really good deal on the BBS (not going to mention price). I'm also not liking the way the color looks on the car. It looks too dark. After the wheels are painted (both sides of the wheels), I'll get them balanced.

So here is what the car looks like now with the wheels/tires mounted on the car. I removed the Style 44s since someone is interested in buying them.

Don't mind the rust on the passenger side since only the driver side is done.




Honestly, I love how the car sits on stock springs (with 14mm rear upper isolators)! It is around a two finger gap on all four corners. I think the 235 front and 255 rear setup is perfect. I would have gone 245 on the front, but the front PSS tires are taller (235/45/17 vs 225/45/17) than stock and have a much larger area of contact patch.

I'll order rear mud flaps since the rear tires are super wiiiide (dat stance doe) and it will be kicking so much dirt and rocks to the rear bumper, which it already did.

 

[Dar-Dar]

Here is the finish on the Rustoleum Graphite Wheel Paint on my stock Si wheels.

It is a darn close finish to my OZ Alleggeritas, except that the Allegeritas are satin.

 

[bauer311]

That's a nice teaser shot of the wheels

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

 

[Dar-Dar]

Yeah. I'm sure the BBS wheels will look great after the repaint. The graphite wheels look good on my blue FG2 so why not on the blue E36?

I just ordered a X-brace for my car. I decided to not take my brother's from his convertible since it needs that structure reinforcement more than the coupes/sedans.

 

[webby]

I think the color will look nice on it

 

[jrotax101]

Thanks for the input, Robert.

I will have a couple performance parts lined up soon (by summer or fall).

-Short Shifter (the one you told me about a while back on the fb messager)
-Radiator duct (I'll be fabricating my own)
-Exhaust (I'll probably get this really soon. Possibly within this week). I have two exhausts in mind, Borla or UUC? I'll buy these second hand.

I would recommend Stromung, RCS36 Corsa, Eisenmann, UUC System U, Active Autowerke, Borla. (in order of my preference)

 

[Dar-Dar]

I would recommend Stromung, RCS36 Corsa, Eisenmann, UUC System U, Active Autowerke, Borla. (in order of my preference)

Ah, I forgot about the Stromung. It looks like only VAC Motorsport has it listed on their site, but it's only for a preorder. I'll probably wait a little longer just in case I see better deals on Panjo/eBay. Right now, I'm only seeing good deals (used) on the UUC and Borla.

Not a fan of Super sprint?

 

[Dar-Dar]

I purchased a set of used Dove Grey E36 M3 floormats on eBay. It will need some cleaning. These mats are replacing the Si mats that I currently have on the car.

I also purchased a set of Lloyd clear rubber floormats that will go over them since the factory ones are known to deteriorate from wear.

 

[webby]

Rasky made so many mats look brand new. I never paid attention to what product he used on carpets. May be worth looking at his detailing thread if you don't already have a cleaner. I talked to him earlier in the week and he said he would be starting up detailing again in April. So he may be back soon.

 

[Dar-Dar]

Oh, I was just thinking about only steam cleaning it. The imperfections will be covered by the clear rubber mat nonetheless.

 

[Dar-Dar]

Accelerated Paint Job - Fog Light Covers

Since today was a nice day, I decided to paint the foglight covers.

I started by sanding the surfaces with a 500 grit sandpaper. Then I taped the areas that didn't need painting.

I then started coating with Dupli-Color Adhesion Promoter which is basically the best primer to use for plastic parts. I applied four coats of this. The great thing about this product, wet sanding is not necessarily and can be skipped. And it dries super fast.

Four coats of base was applied. I purchased the paint from Automotivetouchup.com. They make great paint matched base coats.

And this is what the covers look like after four coats of clear coat. I used my leftover Rustoleum heavy duty wheel paint for this. I then accelerated the cure time by putting them in my make shift oven heated by a hair dryer. I baked them for a good 1-1/2 hours on the low fan setting.

I know paint work has to cure overnight before getting wetsanded and buffed, but I can care less about that since they are only foglight covers. I wetsanded using 2000 grit then finished with 3000 grit.

I used my Griot's Garage 3" dual action polisher, Meguiars 3" Microfiber with Meguiar's M105 for cutting and a white foam pad and M205 for polishing. And then waxed using Meguiar's Synthetic Wax 2.0.

A color comparison to the car.

The M3 is still suspended and hasn't been driven for a while. All that dust is from cutting the rusty panels with a grinder.

But here are the finished pictures.

Maybe I should throw some rocks on the covers to match the bumper. Lol.

 

[webby]

1.5 hrs of the hairdryer running? Have you had hairdryers crap out on you from doing that length of time?

 

[Dar-Dar]

1.5 hrs of the hairdryer running? Have you had hairdryers crap out on you from doing that length of time?

Surprisingly, this one is a beast of a hair dryer. It's the same one I've been using for my previous paint jobs and many sets of wheels painted. My stock wheels, my TSX wheels (twice), my brother's RX-8 wheels, my dad's Pilot Wheels, wrinkle painted parts, etc. And keep in mind, I run it for 45 minutes per wheel, baked in a cardboard box, at full heat and high fan speed.

 

[Dar-Dar]

Someone local is selling a rear sub frame that looks refinished with polyurethane bushings only for $125. I wanna get it since the current sub frame is a bit rusty.

 

[webby]

I remember your "oven" boxes you had made before. What brand is the hairdryer? Is it an old one?

 

[Dar-Dar]

I remember your "oven" boxes you had made before. What brand is the hairdryer? Is it an old one?

Revlon. I removed the end tip.

 

[Dar-Dar]

I just read the Amazon reviews on this product. Haha.

 

[webby]

Lol fire hazard??

 

[Nomar06]

Would a heat gun be too much heat? I never have done your box oven method......maybe I would start doing that.

 

[Dar-Dar]

Heat guns go for over 500F and will burn the paint. I doubt the temperatre in an enclosed box will go over 200F using a blow dryer. Here's a pic from years ago:

It's so simple and it works.