M42 Preparation

Here's how scope creep works: after researching a lot, I decide to abandon my Megasquirt EFI project in favor of an M42 engine from a 1991 318is. As it turns out, the transmission and driveshaft from the same car can be used with little to no modification, as long as one has a shortneck differential, which most 2002s have. Since my 1600 is a super early model, she has a longneck differential. The swap to the shortneck rear suspension isn't difficult, but who would do the swap without refreshing the bushings? Then, of course, one cannot refresh rear suspension components without do the same to the front. Also, the swap to an M42 requires some consideration and possible modification to the steering components, so I should replace those too.

You see how that worked? I am now doing basically the same scope of work that I did this time last year, less the interior. What's wrong with me?

Anyway, the M42 is a great choice. I realized that, noble and cool as the Megasquirt crowd is, I found it difficult to pass up the factory research and development that went into the M42. Everything from the engine, transmission and driveshaft will be from the same donor car. Also, I won't need a special bracket to hold the A/C compressor (stay tuned on that one).

Performance-wise, the M42 is a distributorless DOHC 1.8L 4 cylinder that makes 136hp. If you group it together with its nearly identical brother, the M44, it's the last 4 cylinder that BMW made until the current line of N20 engines, which have yet to see US showrooms. The M42 is reliable, light, fuel injected, digitally ignited and easily replaceable; all the things I wanted to get out of my M10.

So here it is:

I found a deal on an engine, transmission and driveshaft for not a lot of cash locally. I had to locate a complete engine wiring harness and a slew of gaskets and vacuum hoses. I also found a great thread on www.m42club.com that explained how to simplify the mess of vacuum and coolant hoses under the intake. Apparently, the US required some throttle body preheating nonsense to warm up the engine quicker, lowering the unspent fuel emissions. While noble in intent, this meant the addition of a spaghetti bowl of coolant and vacuum lines under the intake. I followed the instructions and save myself a few hundred dollars in new parts by removing all of it.

I also replaced the input, output and gear selector shaft seals. The clutch looks good and dry, so I'll leave that for now. Oil pan seals will be done soon, too. I also have a set of Jake's M42 mounts to mate the engine to the 2002 subframe.

This was before I cleaned inside the bell housing.

And after:

According to Jake, one must grind a little from the center of the steering drag link and the bottom of the transmission to clear movement for the steering. After consulting with a local 2002/E36 guy, I decided to do all of the clearancing on the transmission. So, with a little help from Dudley and his grinder, voila.

Suspension Assembly

     Dudley and I assembled most of the suspension this weekend. The work was mostly the installation of the new OEM rubber bushings. Here's the fruit of our labor:

New tie rods, drag link, ball joints and bushings. Everything is greased up and ready for installation. As soon as I find some bolts for the steering box, I'll bolt it up.

The differential is an E21 3.91:1 and the sway bars are stock for now. The the hard brake lines looked pretty new, so they're staying.

My DIY bearing installation/removal tool was worth its weight in gold.

And here's a short video of how to install these bushings really quickly:

When we checked the condition of the compliance bushings, I found that, though the rubber was in good shape, something was amiss. Instead of pressing the bushings in properly, the installer of the existing bushings (not Marshall) sawed them in half and sandwiched them in; not the preferred method of installation.

Suspension Parts Aquired

     After cleaning and painting the 1600's original subframe and working out the issue with the odd idler arm bushings, I convinced Marshall Lytle that it would be good karma to help me reinforce the driver's side motor mount, as to avoid the infamous cracking that occurs after decades of spirited driving that these cars demand.  Marshall's parts car is a squarie beater that had been blessed with an S14. It also had an odd mix of new parts attached to an otherwise forlorn body that was sprayed with a purple that would only suggest that the previous owner was Burgess Meredith.

     The S14 is currently being fitted into Marshall's non-beater `75 2002 and the rest of the parts had yet to find a home. After seeing that the purple car's subframe was already reinforced and the suspension bits that I needed were all present, we struck a deal and abandoned our reinforcement job in favor of removing all the necessary parts from the parts car. Before long, we had stripped the entire suspension from the car, rendering me the front subframe less steering components and the rear trailing arms less the brakes and stub axles.

Yep, that's a color befitting only the most devious of Antarctic-based Batman foes.

Amazingly, we didn't have to utilize the roof rack to get it home. I did ride a bit low on the way home, though.

The next step will be cleaning it all up, especially those trailing arms. I will also be installing the new bushings and bearings that I got from Steve at www.blunttech.com. 

$100 Roof Rack

I've wanted a roof rack for some time now. I didn't like the common Thule racks that look a little too modern for me. Another option is to modify a vintage Type 1 VW roof rack, but they cost a few hundred before the modification. So, I decided to take a crack at building my own. Here's what I came with.

I started with a set of Quick and Easy roof rack brackets. Though I got a set from a member of http://www.bmw2002faq.com/, they are available online for around $80 for four.

I bought two pieces of 1-1/2" aluminum angle for the crossbars. For the slats, I (ahem) recycled a wood futon. A few carriage bolts and some careful drilling resulted in a useful and sort-of-vintage looking roof rack for about $100.

New Trigger Wheel and Sensor Mount

Tom Rafalski over at http://www.02again.com/ used me as something of a test mule for his new trigger wheel setup. He already sells VR Sensor Mounts, so the next logical step was to make preset trigger wheels. This one rocks.

It's a really nice piece that looks and works better than my homemade unit.

Getting Rid of the Gas Smell

After the slightly colder weather forced me to roll up my windows for the first time since the car has moved on it's own, I realized that the smell of gas from the trunk was nearly coma-inducing. I temporarily fixed the issue by sealing up the speaker holes in the rear deck. To attack the actually problem, I inspected the vent tube in the trunk. As with all early 02s, the tube just runs from the filler neck to a little hole at the rear of the trunk to vent outside. As with many early 02s, the little grommet that holds the tube in place and prevents fumes from re-entering the trunk has disappeared. Not satisfied with merely fabricating a new grommet to replace the NLA one, I mimicked the later 2002 models' carbon-fume-capture system.

First I bought a bottle of fish tank filter activated charcoal, some 3/8" - 1/4" tubing, a few 1/4" brass fittings, some JB Kwik, two brackets, two 3"-5" plumbing hose clamps and a quart-sized paint can.

Next, I drilled a hole in the lid and the can.

I then glued the fittings in from the inside and filled the can with the charcoal pellets.

I snapped the lid onthe can with the above orientation.

While I was waiting on the glue to dry, I pop-riveted the brackets together. I later expanded the 90 degrees bracket to be a little more obtuse.

I bolted the bracket to the existing hardware in the trunk.

Next, I cut the vent tube off just a few inches from the filler neck.

I then ran the tubing as seen above. The bottom tube runs to the original exit hole, but sticks out a bit further.

E21 Rear Brakes and Some New Bearings

After one of the orignal 1600 CV boots cracked I realized that I needed to upgrade to the much more abusable 2002 halfshafts over the weaker 1600 units. A bolt pattern difference required the swapping of the passenger side stub axle, which led to bearing replacement. Marshall Lytle (with the blinding white aura) brought over his expensive and awesome BMW bearing installation tool.

I also took the opportunity to fix and adjust my emergency brake handle. The thrust bearings really tighten up the movement in the handle.

Also, Jay managed to detain/entertain himself.