Jayzzle

I think that this, will be my best option, I guess I can just get another car for a "go faster" car. Does that mean that you don't rate aftermarket Ecu's on stock everything else? I thought that even without changing anything else an upgraded ecu would make the car run better, is that not the case? Yeah I expect it will be off the road for a VERY long time, partly because I haven't done it before, and partly (mostly) because I'm lazy lol. I am looking forward to it though, I expect it will be a very educational and challenging experience, and hopefully I can see it through from start to finish. Thank you, you have all been such a big help to me already. With the overheating problem and the Exhaust and that, I really appreciate it. I can see before the end all my constant questions will become annoying haha :P

Hmm, you have given me a lot to think about. I was really excited about messing about with my M40. I wasn't planning to just leave the engine as it is. But I'm starting to have doubts now as I find more and more problems surfacing. They are all minor problems and simple fixes (I think), just time consuming. The plan was to just gut it completely, and change a whole bunch of things. But I got pretty into the idea of rebuilding the M40 and having the car with the original engine still, I know it wouldn't be that much quicker, but it was just gonna be a project for me to see if I could do it. I dunno, I realy like the idea of doing it to the M40, but I do quite like the idea of a 2.5 straight 6 too.. Trouble is if I had an engine like that, I'd only really wanna do 1 thinig with the car, and I don't know if this old shed of mine could take that kind of punishment.

Yeah I know that feeling all too well mate ^.^

It's not worth it? I don't know how much it is worth tbh lol.

It might be, but I have convinced myself to do an M40, my reasoning is that hardly anyone see's it as worth it, preferring M42s or M20s. I heard a lot of bad things about tuning an M40 but I wanna see for myself. Plus it's just going to be something to mess about with anyway, it probably won't ever see the road again when it's finished (unless it's lucky :P) Actually Dabs it was your manifold idea that got me thinking about turbos and that led me onto ecus and all-sorts, so.. Thanks :D

So, I'm planning some ridiculous things for my battered old E30. I know I'm getting way ahead of myself here but, I'm really just looking into things atm so when it comes to actually doing it i can have it all planned. I would like advice/suggestions on stand alone ECU options for an M40B18 which will eventually have a turbo on it. I have read a few things on various forums and they all mention MS standalone because it's simple to install, does anyone have any thoughts on this? Can anyone suggest a better option? Thanks guys. I'm looking forward to reading your input.

Me too, It's a mint looking car.

If only :(

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1988-BMW-E30-M3-Evo-2-in-Misano-Red-Number-261-of-500-/370700798179?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item564f7d48e3 Lawl.

That was awesome, I love Japans customs and especially the cars. Everything is just better there IMO. Thanks for the vid :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_AO_TLQaEI

John, or Jay, Birmingham, lived in a few places, Watford, Dunstable, Houghton Regis, Luton... https://www.facebook.com/jayzzle.jahayzzle?ref=tn_tnmn Also, Snypa, it's a long shot, but did you used to own a White E36 316i about 6 or 7 years ago now that you sold? Orrrrr, did you/do you work on Faldo Road industrial estate?

Yeah, I was just looking into your idea of fabricating a 4 branch, checking out some pictures online and it doesnt really look any more harder than the rest of it so, I'm in the middle of making a pipe bender so I think I'll have a go at the 4 branch too.

I don't have any materials at the minute, I'm just planning right now tbh, what with all the other problems it has atm it will be lucky if I can manage to scrape it through the MoT. But either way I'm pretty sure I'll end up doing 95% of the exhaust myself. I'd really like to get like a dual exit going, one on either side of the car, I have a nice oval that looked amazing when I was sizing it up, and i think one of those either side would look incredible. But I couldn't get it to fit with the exhaust that's on the car and I have to get it ready for the next few days as it's due for its test now. I have some ideas of what to do with it if it fails, but I'm hoping it doesn't as it's a really nice car as it is. When I get round to doing proper work on it instead of just messing around with it like I am just now, I'd like to document it and detail how I'm doing it all, is there a place on this forum for me to do that?

I'm not sure how I would get that right tbh, because, the downpipe is 2 seperate pipes that join onto 1 pipe, so I don't know if I would just leave that bit as it is, and start from just after the join, or to redo the whole exhaust into a single piece from the manifold/downpipe bit you mentioned. Or I could just go overboard and try to make the whole thing from scratch including the manifold :S But I think I'm biting off more than I can chew here lol.

:) Cheers bud.

I didn't check the manifold today no but I was under there the other day fitting new engine mounts and didn't see any signs of one.

Yep You're right, no Lambda sensor :)

I'll check that in a sec when I go and put the dashboard back together lol :P

Well I have had it all off, when I put a middle box on it, (which I put in the wrong place I think but it was the only place I could put it xD) and it seems to look more or less the same as some of the aftermarket systems I have looked at. And like you say, it's just a metal tube :) Hopefully I can take it from the bottom of the downpipe and from there I guess it's just trial and error. Thanks for your help mate, I think when I get the money I will have a go at making it myself, you have given me confidence :)

Yeah that's not a bad idea tbh, but I'm not really sure if the one that's on there is right? Because the previous owner took the Cat or Middle Box off (I'm not sure if the car had a Cat or not, some said it did and some said it didn't :P) and there are lots of bits of pipe welded together by the looks of it, so I don't know if it is the correct shape if you know what I mean.

Thanks very much mate much appreciated :)

Odd question, but does anyone happen to know, the bend angles and dimensions etc of an E30 318i? Cheers :D

I live in Birmingham.

Sorry to bring up a dead thread, but I wanted to update you all as you have been so helpful. I changed the thermostat a while ago, but it still overheats like anything. It has also started pouring out white smoke every now and then, so I guess it is a head gasket problem after all. I have bought some K-Seal, it's supposed to be a permanent head gasket repair, has anyone had any dealings with it before? I'd like to know if I wasted my money or not lol. It will just be temporary anyway untill I can gather the £80 to get a head gasket kit and a further few hundred to get it fitted, I could probably do it myself but I don't feel confident enough anymore after I snapped that bolt off. The MoT ran out now and I'm just trying to find all the bits that need replacing so it has a better chance of passing. I got a few other problems that I need to look into cus I'm not sure if they will cause a fail or not. So yeah, that's where it stands now :) Thanks again for everyones help. Jay