|
2008 bought tricked out 1996 328. The guy I bought it from had suspension mods for the track, with a 3.91 final drive that was pretty extreme in daily driving and really loud exhaust. Ended up picking up M3 diff that was perfect. Did clutch and a bunch more fixes and mods that had me intimately aquatinted with BMW E36 strengths, weaknesses and quirks.
Lets see, has expansion tank blow up and overheat, had fan blade launch thru the hood. Diff cut loose from mounts, clutch slave gave way and more I can't remember. But man did I miss that car when I sold it. Still the best handling car ive ever driven.
Fast forward to 2016 and picked up a '98 540 6 speed. Did pretty much everything to that, suspension overall, eibach sway bars, BC racing coil-overs, Zionsville radiator, UUC clutch and short shifter, 2 batteries, starter, rebuilt AC system, rebuilt paper steering system with M5 steering box, redid all door actuators, (im getting tired just remembering and listing this stuff). Car finally broke my heart and wallet when timing chain cut loose. I know, should have had that done early on (car had 160,00 when it broke). but man, the car was so fun to drive with 6 speed manual, it felt like a smaller car the way it handled. Made me lust for E39 m5 a bit, which I may someday find one to have.
That car got sold whole in 2019 as parts car to M5 owner as donor car
Fast forward to yesterday, 08/04/2020 and just picked up an absolute mint 2016 340i with only 29,000 mi on her. The car looks brand new inside and out. It will be my first "modern" BMW, loaded with all the bells and whistles including track handling package. Its an auto, but a really capable 8 speed that shifts lighteng quick, and its the fastest car ive owned to date. Lots of technology to figure out, but in Sport+ mode, manual shift mode, it feels like a BMW should.
|