New Journal: Rhubarb

[mnbrennan]

Hi all

A long overdue update here. The previous Coupe was sold, but I wasn’t without one for long!

2016

Here is the coupe when I picked it up. Bare bones stock with the exception of the KWV3 suspension. It has also had a recent respray and Mr Vanos had worked his magic. Full service history which is mainly BMW. The car was on 101k miles.

20160429_153255_zpsx9ee83u2 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

20160429_153309 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

The first thing to do was to install a stormwerks gear knob (along with a brand new gear gaitor), retrimmed steering wheel (courtesy of Royal Steering Wheels) and the Simota carbon fibre induction kit. I also put in the rear mat (sorry, no pictures of these).

The smoked sidelights and indicators were replaced with OEM

The seats needed a bit of a tidy up including the usual bolster wear on the driver’s side. A little scuffmaster brought them up fine.

20160430_143951 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

20160501_063623 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

The next thing I wanted to install is the seatlift mod courtesy of Southernboy. This lifts the front of the seats by only 5mm and is made out a solid piece of metal. You’d think that 5mm wouldn’t make much difference, but it instantly makes the seat much more comfortable.

20160611_143322_zpsxxtxsfmx by mnbrennan, on Flickr

My clutch was difficult to use when the engine was hot. This is the typical coupe issue of a weak existing clutch hose when expands when under pressure and hot. A change to an Earl’s clutch hose now means that the gear change it as it should be.

20160618_083723 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

The window sliders weren’t operating as they should be, so the door cards came off and the sliders were re-greased. No doubt I will replace them at some point. There was also a leak from the top of the a-piller. Using another washer I simply raised the front quarter window to re-seal the window and have fortunately been dry since (and through some torrential downpours)

Next I saw some chaps on eBay were modifying Becker head units. I believe that these headunits were an optional extra from BMW, and suit the interior perfectly. The guys take all of the LED lights out of the fascia and match them to a BMW colour, and then de-solder the EEPROM in order to add a custom start up logo. Here are the end results:

DSCF0746_zpspiroku3o by mnbrennan, on Flickr

A little sad but I think it is a nice touch.

The interior of the engine bay required a tidy up from years of built up grime. I must have spent about 15 – 20 hours under there tidying everything up.

20160506_180935 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

20160611_140457 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

I also installed a refurbished rocker cover and plenum from Aceman. A replacement which was well worth it.

20160612_142911_zpsirq96dzt by mnbrennan, on Flickr

20160612_142919 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

I sourced some gutted rear exhaust boxes from Duncan on this forum, as I wanted a little more noise from the exhaust. I find the standard exhaust is very quiet, expecially compared with newer cars such as the (non)M235i and M2. There is perhaps a little too much rasp nearer the top end, but it’s much better than a standard exhaust. I’ll upload a video in the new year at some point.

I refurbished the wheels as I wasn’t content with the original finish. Whilst the refurbished wheels look great from afar, but on closer inspection there are ripples in the finish. I like the colour so I am planning a fresh refurbishment early this year.

Finally, I replaced the bumper with a new one from BMW. There were a couple of cracks in the paint which I assumed were from previous repairs. The new bumper was painted by the guys who re-sprayed the rest the car, which meant a perfect match.

20161029_124309 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

[mnbrennan]

I entered a couple of competitions for calendar entries, and managed to get into both calendars! Here are some pictures from the year:

20160507_093953_zpsnk8mjqvq by mnbrennan, on Flickr

20160730_162105 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

20160731_173847 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

20160922_133029 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

20161001_074912_zps9xdbqcrp by mnbrennan, on Flickr

20160922_133300 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

[mnbrennan]

2017

Right now, the car is up on axle stands with the wheels, front quarter panels and sills off. The sills are being replaced as there is a small amount of corrosion.

20170204_155811_zps1vpqssao by mnbrennan, on Flickr



I am dropping the rear subframe, as I want to get the entire back end tidied up. There is a small amount of surface corrosion on the end of the inner box sills which will be easily tidied up, zinc primed and painted. I’ll then cover in some Dynax UC for protection. The same process will be followed for any rust spots at the back of the chassis.

Current: 20170129_133554_001 by mnbrennan, on Flickr

I’ll be replacing the rear calipers as the current set are from an M3, not the Z3M specific calipers. They are currently with Bigg Red being refurbished and zinc plated. I’ll also be painting over the top of that (silver) for more protection.

The subframe, diff, and trailing arms will be tidied up and repainted (considering powder coating). The following will be replaced:
• Subframe bushes (poly)
• Trailing arm bushes
• Diff bush (maybe poly)
• Front and rear discs and (yellowstuff) pads
• Stainless brake hoses
• Brake backing plates
• Tank straps
• H&R ARBs

All nuts and screws will be replaced. Anything not replaced will be refurbished.

I’ll also be giving the entire car a machine polish with a new rotary, and trying my new Wowo’s product range.

Most of this work will be completed ahead of my first show of the year on 4th March, taking a week off to complete the work.

[Ian_C]

Nice work Martin - I have similar plans for rear subframe this year

[Dave P]

Keep us updated

[KnightsG]

Great journal Martin and well deserved rewards for your efforts. I look forward to seeing it in the metal this year.

I will drop you a message to arrange a local meet when the weather improves.

[c_w]

Looking good! I bet that small rust on the car sills is on most Coupes - you just can't see it under the outer sill covers.

As I'm doing the same on my rear suspension soon I'll watch out for updates! (and maybe you can give me a hand with mine when you're back in Manchester ). As I said on Facebook I would personally leave the diff mount stock, a poly bush would transfer diff noise/vibration to the cabin I think.

[petecossie]

Well done Martin, looks great so far. Keep the good work up. Hope to see you at a few events this coming year.

[c_w]

Some debate on polybushes here http://zroadster.net/forum/viewtopic...d1611c#p414685

[Spooks]

Good read, Martin

I'm thinking new sills and a good under sill check/correction for mine as well. Do you have any photos of the affected areas?