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#1. RE: Trunk will not open - from Erik Martin
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Date: Mon, 13 May 2002 20:21:36 -0700 (PDT) From: Erik Martin <ermartin@cisco.com> Subject: RE: Trunk will not open Mine failed this weekend too. only way i found was to crawl into the trunk thru the back seat.Funny thing is nothing looks broken or out of allignment but the button throw doesnt hit the latch release anymore Erik Martin 95 Alpine white M3
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#2. different size rear tires...hurting anything? - from Steve Grigory
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Date: Mon, 13 May 2002 22:30:48 -0700 From: Steve Grigory <sgrigory@pacbell.net> Subject: different size rear tires...hurting anything? Question... Does it hurt anything to put a few hundred miles on a 95 M3 when the two rear tires are different sizes? One is a 235 MXX3 (the spare) and the other is a 245 S03. The SO3 is a BIG TIRE! Thanks, steve
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#3. 95 vs 96+ Movits? - from Rob Birkhead
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Date: Mon, 13 May 2002 22:53:40 -0700 From: Rob Birkhead <rbirkz@earthlink.net> Subject: 95 vs 96+ Movits? I am looking at a used set of Mov'its and I hear that there is a difference between the kit for the 95 and 96+. Does anyone know the difference? How hard is it to get the 96+ kit to work on a 95? Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks, Rob
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#4. Reduced braking after new Rotors and Porterfield R4S pads - from Mark Kern
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Date: Mon, 13 May 2002 23:25:01 -0700 From: "Mark Kern" <markkern@cox.net> Subject: Reduced braking after new Rotors and Porterfield R4S pads Well, I just changed out my rotors (slotted front and OEM rear) and put in RS4s for the first time. To my surprise, my braking feels much softer/weaker today, one day after I changed the brakes. I heard that the combo of new pads with new rotors will not be as effective until the pads get a chance to deposit some carbon onto the rotors. I'm hoping that's all it is, and that I haven't glazed the pads. Although the R4S is not supposed to be fussy about bedding in, I brought the car up to 30, slowed to 5, repeated 5-8 times, took a drive for 20 minutes with minimal/careful breaking (only a few lights), then parked it for 40 minutes. Any advice? Thanks, Mark 99 Cosmos Black M3
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#5. Re: Suspension turning question - from Ahmad Lutfeali
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Date: Tue, 14 May 2002 14:38:21 +0000 From: "Ahmad Lutfeali" <m3_racer99@hotmail.com> Subject: Re: Suspension turning question <html><div style='background-color:'><DIV>Regarding your suspension setup and the understeer, maybe I can shine some light here since a lot of people on the list helped me out with my car setup. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>First thing first, what sort of coil over are you running? (Are the shocks adjustable?) </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>You mentioned adjusting spring height. I wouldnt play with it casually.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Try to get some negative camber if you alredy dont have it. KMAC kit (can be purchased from Turner) is a option. Or you can swap the front strut hats from left to right to gain some camber but the downfall is the camber will be fixed. For street application I wouldnt go beyond -2 degrees in the front. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>With coilover, corner weight balance is essential (hence dont play with the ride height). </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Swaybars can control the understeer. But it looks like you dont have the suspension in gear yet. Hence follow these steps.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>1) Get a camber plate installed (for the fronts). Its less of a gamble than swapping hats with the coilover setup (since lowering your car gets you -camber and you swap the hats to realize you are running beyond -2 and your street tires will burn up fast). </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>2) Get the car properly aligned and corner balanced. Here is what I am running and am really happy (on the street its an overkill and on the track I am very happy-given the fact I dont chew up tires)</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Front camber -1.85 degrees</DIV> <DIV>Toe +0.1inch (toe in)</DIV> <DIV>Caster +6.5 degrees (camber kit robs a bit of caster)</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Rear camber -1.75 degrees</DIV> <DIV>Toe +.12 degrees (toed in)</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I am running Racing Dynamic swaybar and front is set on middle position whereas the rear is full stiff.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>3) if you dont have a swaybar yet, dont worry. Try to setup the car first and see how it feels (one step at a time). Play with the shock settings (stiffen the rear a bit and soften the front to dial out the understeer) If you still experience minor understeer, sway bar should fine tune the problem. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I am no expert in this field but have learnt through research, trial and error tuning my 2 M3s and previous RX7 TT.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Goodluck.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Ahmad Lutfeali</DIV> <DIV>97 M3 (Track/Street)</DIV> <DIV>Boston, MA</DIV> <DIV> </DIV></div><br clear=all><hr>Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at <a href='http://g.msn.com/1HM105401/44'>http://explorer.msn.com</a>.<br></html>
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#6. Re:Suspension tuning questions - from Michael Stembera
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Date: Tue, 14 May 2002 10:21:21 -0500 From: "Michael Stembera" <m_stembera@yahoo.com> Subject: Re:Suspension tuning questions How exactly does one best reinforce the swaybar mounts/tabs? Do you need to reinforce both front and back? Thanks, Mike ----------------------------- Date: Mon, 13 May 2002 13:54:09 -0700 From: Steve Walsh <stevewalsh@earthlink.net> Subject: Re:Suspension tuning questions Joe, Firstly, have you had a *good* wheel alignment done recently. If, so, what were the specs.? If not, then get one. Next, because you have coilovers, do yourself a BIG favor, and get the car corner weighted. That way you can have the ride height set to you liking, AND get the weight distribution equalized (as best as can be done on a street car). Next, to dial out understeer we can start with 2 well known paths for the E36. Path 1 : bigger swaybars. Path 2 : stiffer springs/shocks. Path 1 is cheaper, and on a street car, the ride compromise is smaller. The downside is that you *will* need to reinforce the swaybar mounts/tabs. Path 2 gives way more options but is much more expensive to do right. You could just try stiffer springs to increase the roll stiffness at the front, but I suspect you will be outside the 'useful' range of the shox (unless you have 300lb+ springs and double adjustables on already)
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#7. Re: [E36M3] Re:Suspension tuning questions - from twisty M3
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Date: Tue, 14 May 2002 08:43:58 -0700 From: "twisty M3" <twistym3@hotmail.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Re:Suspension tuning questions I'm not sure if there is actually a way to reinforce the front mounts, aside from having new brackets fabricated. Turner Motorsports actually sells a "kit" for the rear, shown near the bottom of this page: http://www.turnermotorsport.com/subcategory_detail.asp?subcat_id=92 They also list a front sub-frame kit. After breaking several front mounts and a rear mounting point once, I ended up going to the stiffer springs and shocks/struts instead of just the sway bars. Haven't had any problems since, but I do have the Turner reinforcement plates sitting in my tool box waiting to eventually be welded in some day, just for preventative medicine. Jonathan L. >From: "Michael Stembera" <m_stembera@yahoo.com> > >How exactly does one best reinforce the swaybar mounts/tabs? >Do you need to reinforce both front and back? > >Thanks, >Mike > _________________________________________________________________ Send and receive Hotmail on your mobile device: http://mobile.msn.com
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#8. Re: LTW strut bar nuts - from Carguymb@aol.com
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Date: Tue, 14 May 2002 13:09:36 -0400 From: Carguymb@aol.com Subject: Re: LTW strut bar nuts Having just bought a set from Bekkers, I can confirm that they come pre-rusted.... However, I think that Bekkers is now having these made. The price was lower than posted on the website, the finish on the nuts is not a particularly good match for the bar, and the nuts are flat-topped, rather than having an acorn profile, which I'd recalled the OE nuts had. In short, I strongly suspect that Bekkers is no longer supplying the OE nuts (I didn't ask, and they didn't tell). Not sure whether originals are still available from TC Kline, who also lists them, but at an even higher price. Martin Bullen '95 M3 (braced like a lightweight) '97 Z3 2.8 (half-braced like a lightweight) >RFKoby@aol.com writes: >Hello group, >Yes, it is true, these $16? nuts look >like they are black oxide coated, >but they RUST!!!!! > >These are special SHOULDER NUTS >that cannot be found anywhere else.
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#9. Anybody here run in BMW CCA club racing? - from Scott McClung
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Date: Tue, 14 May 2002 10:22:54 -0700 From: Scott McClung <scott.mcclung@ubicom.com> Subject: Anybody here run in BMW CCA club racing? Just curious if anyone here runs with BMW CCA in club racing. I currently have a '91 Corvette that I run in open track events. I want to go to the next level and get into a competitive racing environment over time. But it makes no sense to continue to develop the C4 because there is no series outside of SCCA ITE for me to run, and that is very expensive and involves more time commitment than I have. So I recently bought a '98 M3/4 and simply love the car. And it has me re-evaluating my track car strategy..... The biggest concern for me is the roll cage requirement. In a Corvette there is just no way to put in a roll cage and still use the car on the street - the roof is to close to my head. But my M3 has a lot of headroom, so I'm wondering if perhaps a 6-point cage could be constructed to make the car still useable as a back-up street car, at least the front seats. With my lack of time I have been unwilling to commit to a fully dedicated track car - minimum I want to be able to drive it on the street when needed. I sure like the vintage no contact format and the schedule looks great with 6 events here in Northern CA. I think over time I could work up to 4 or maybe 5 events per season. Any thoughts of E30 M3 vs. E36 M3 as relates to room for a cage that is not too close to the head for street use? Scott '98 M3/4 '91 Corvette '94 Q45t '01 Suburban
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#10. Re: [E36M3] Anybody here run in BMW CCA club racing? - from Jim Bassett
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Date: Tue, 14 May 2002 11:00:46 -0700 From: Jim Bassett <jimbassett@attbi.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Anybody here run in BMW CCA club racing? At 10:28 AM 5/14/02, Scott McClung talked about: >my head. But my M3 has a lot of headroom, >so I'm wondering if perhaps a 6-point cage >could be constructed to make the car still >useable as a back-up street car, at least >the front seats. With my lack of time I >have been unwilling to commit to a fully >dedicated track car - minimum I want to be >able to drive it on the street when needed. Hi Scott, Most cages (and seat mounting) will allow the car to be driven on the street - I drive my 325is race car to/from the track and to/from mechanic's shop. The car has an Autopower cage & Sparco Evo seat. I wouldn't necessarily recommend to do any more street driving than that, but it is doable. There are several racers locally that drive their cars to/from the track. If you have any more questions, feel free to email me. Jim Bassett 1998 M3/4 - once, briefly, considered racing it 1993 325is #44 KP