And so it starts, Maeve

[1st 5er]

Enough reminiscing, get back to work.

[Mike W.]

One of my favorite games - is it the south of France, west of Nice?

I was thinking Mediterranean too but Spain. Maybe somewhere on the Costa Brava?

Bing!! We have a winner, Costa Brava it is! Wonderful place to visit, small towns, decent food, friendly people, and a hiking trail along the coast.

Maybe I should have been less specific, it is west of Nice after all! lol. Looks gorgeous.

Somehow I knew Charles would know the answer.

[gwb72tii]

Started the restoration of my heater and a/c systems.
First thing was to replace the pivot points of the infamous flaps. As much as I tried, the rods are not quite square and now both flaps are slightly angled as they pivot, resulting in the flaps making contact with the box before closing. I’ll be sanding the edge of the flaps so they can close.


When I removed my hvac system, the bottom drain was broken so now it is epoxied back in place:

[vinceg101]

Be prepared for that bottom outlet pipe to break off when you try to install it. You have to apply a lot of force to lever it into place and there is almost no amount of epoxy that will withstand that kind of shear force.
I have heard of folks using a neoprene rubber hose as a substitute and still think this is a better solution to this common break. Some research will be in order to figure out how to secure it to the case and make it leak-resistant, but it is possible.

(Here's hoping I'm wrong and you did an excellent job with the epoxy )

[gwb72tii]

Well thanks for the heads-up Vince. My dash is out of the car so I hope that helps.

Look what Mr. FedEx brought me! A brand new lock system. Maeve’s driver door lock looked like someone had used a flat blade screwdriver to unlock the car. $200 for this kit from ART Performance which they listed as their only one, but ECS has a kit too.

[Galahad]

Well thanks for the heads-up Vince. My dash is out of the car so I hope that helps.

Look what Mr. FedEx brought me! A brand new lock system. Maeve’s driver door lock looked like someone had used a flat blade screwdriver to unlock the car. $200 for this kit from ART Performance which they listed as their only one, but ECS has a kit too.
*image removed*

You probably don't want to post photos of your keys on the internet, just a heads up

[gwb72tii]

you might want to unquote me

thanks btw

[gwb72tii]

Looks like I’ll be picking up Maeve this weekend.

[John in VA]

Some assembly required! Have fun!!

[Mdreamer]

That was fast!

[1st 5er]

Looks like I’ll be picking up Maeve this weekend.

[gwb72tii]

another picture of progress, this time of the euro valance, front fenders and rear deck lid. I'm getting anxious to have it back and start the rebuild process.

[gwb72tii]

More progress.

[gwb72tii]

I've started to repair/refurbish both the A/C and heater boxes. Part of that was replacing the heater core and this, the evaporator and expansion valve.
On the way back to the Pacific Northwest from Mesa, AZ neither the A/C or heater worked. I'm not sure if any of these parts needed to be replaced but I do not want to be forced to remove the HVAC system after reinstalling it.

[Mike W.]

It looks right from here, but be sure to check you have the right evaporator, several here have bought E28 replacements and gotten E24 evaps, which I am told do not fit.

I don't see a heater core, IMO they fail more than evaporators, and are brand specific, most are Bosch/Behr but I was lucky (not) and had a Sofica, which had to be replaced with a Sofica heater core when mine failed. Price was similar, I just had to make sure I got the right one.

[gwb72tii]

I had already replaced the core and put the heater box back together.

[gwb72tii]

Maeve is back! And now onto putting her put back together. I think the hardest part will be all of the wiring under the dash. There is a logic to it, and BMW changes connectors so it's hard to misconnect two different circuits.

It wasn't supposed to rain on Saturday, but of course it did as soon as we reached the body shop.


My body shop guy said my car looked like it lived its life on a golf course, many many dents everywhere. Well, they're all gone:


And this came yesterday.
if you remember, this is what the dash looked like when I bought Maeve:


This is what her dash looks like now:


I was a bit apprehensive about using Just Dashes as some of you had less than great experiences with them, but the dash looks nice and my experience was good. Expensive but good.

First thing to do is to remove the carpet and see if I can clean it up. It is terrible after 34 years of abuse, spilled drinks, dirt and hot weather. Then it's removing the motor and tranny. The shifter is so bad that it was always a challenge to select the right gear when driving north from Mesa AZ.

[gwb72tii]

More progress today. Maeve had aftermarket tinted windows, so dark it was hard to see into the car. I can see where, if you live in AZ, they might be desirable, but not up here in WA state where too much sun is not a problem.

Thanks to YouTube and those that had done this before me, removing the window tint was about a easy as it could be. Heat gun and patience.

[gwb72tii]

I just saw something that surprised me on Maeve. The PO used spacers on the rear wheels, and the left rear wheel is spaced further out than the right rear! At least, with the level of restoration needed on this car, I’ll be able to correct all the wrongs before getting her on the road.
Pretty crazy though.

[Mike W.]

I just saw something that surprised me on Maeve. The PO used spacers on the rear wheels, and the left rear wheel is spaced further out than the right rear! At least, with the level of restoration needed on this car, I’ll be able to correct all the wrongs before getting her on the road.
Pretty crazy though.

That's funny as from the factory the left side is slightly further out than the right and many, including myself, have had problems with tires rubbing, on the left side only.

[tig]

Holy shit buckets. I'm sad I've missed this thread until now.

Thank you for deciding to go with single-stage Glasurit. You will be soooo much happier that you did. And you will start to notice Zinno resprays with two-stage...and how much better your car looks. .

I know you think you've bit off too much here, but I don't agree. You are doing amazing work.

Subscribed for life!

[gwb72tii]

It was your use of Glasurit on Vlad that helped make up my mind for me. My 2002tii was painted with Dupont and it will never look correct (until I have it repainted).

[gray635]

George:

What a great build! Top work.

I was glad to be able to make a very small contribution to Maeve with that driver's side sun visor I shipped out to you today. I will continue to follow your project with great interest and enjoyed very much our text message exchanges today.

Safe travels and good luck!

Regards,
Mike

[gwb72tii]

ok, so here is a question for all of you mechanics.
My car came with H&R springs.
So I looked at the code on the springs and H&R says they are for an e34!
Why would someone install these springs?

anybody try this, using e34 springs on their e28?

[gwb72tii]

a few things done today.

Talked to Mr Fixit about brightening my taillights, and he suggested a good bath for the lights to clean them. The pic doesn't show it but there is around 30+ years of Arizona dust in and on the lights. Then adding one of his upgrades!


and then, with new gaskets, I re-installed the taillights, at least for now, just to see how it looks. I know this isn't much, but its exciting to me as the taillights are the first pieces to go back ON the car!


And the lower edge of the rear valance turned out pretty nice. These are before and after pics:



I am super happy with my body shop man, Brian Hanson. Great guy to deal with, more than reasonable cost wise, and quality workmanship. There is still some light orangepeel to polish out, but the car looks great.

I love zinnoberrot

[1st 5er]

Looking super.
Keep those pics and updates coming.

[gwb72tii]

George:

What a great build! Top work.

I was glad to be able to make a very small contribution to Maeve with that driver's side sun visor I shipped out to you today. I will continue to follow your project with great interest and enjoyed very much our text message exchanges today.

Safe travels and good luck!

Regards,
Mike

Back at you barrister. Happy Fourth of July, and make sure you're having fun along the way! Got the visor today and it looks good.
I'll be seeing you somewhere along the way.

[tig]

Looking fantastic.

Did I miss the reasoning behind not doing the euro-exhaust cutout?

[gwb72tii]

haha no cek, I didn't know there was such a thing until well into the process.

but here is a serious question for you and others that run euro bumpers.
I am going to install a Supersprint exhaust system, and am planning on using the same rear muffler as you and others have used. Is the cutout necessary or will the exhaust tips clear the lip of the rear valance without modifying it?

[Panici]

Maeve looks great! New paintjob makes it pop.
Can't believe the price on that gallon of paint, but at least you got it while it's still being produced.

How much did the bodywork & paint end up running, if you don't mind me asking?

I paid dearly for my E30's paintjob. I don't think I'll ever pay to get another car bodyworked & painted, but I don't regret my decision. Next time I paint a car I'm going to try my hand and probably end up with a "good enough" job.