Sitting since 1997.

[mojocoggo]

I woke up one morning and did my usual BMW 1970-1990 craigslist search, when I happened upon this 1982 (E28-base) 635CSi that had been sitting for a pretty good while. To be honest, it needs a complete restoration. But my dream E24 is so far from a stock example, that it made sense to start with a cheap base like this since it is all going to get changed anyway.




Seeing that I am the exact definition of a savvy BMW buyer, I knew this was the car for me. I was so surprised that in a city with almost no car culture aside from classic American cars, this thing had been sitting in this exact spot since I was in the 2nd grade.

So I send some emails and set up a time to check it out.






















Yep looks good to me.





I connected my battery to test out the electrical items and surprisingly, most of them worked. When I switched the highbeams on, the four headlights came to life one at a time over the course of about 10 seconds. It was really funny to watch. The radio took a few weeks of experimenting to finally start working, the A/C blower works at all speeds, the heater blower just clicks but doesn't spin. Power antenna works, wipers mostly work, etc. All external lights are working so far except the passenger tail light, but we'll give it some time.


There were three huge wasp nests on the car, but once I suited up and sprayed the crap out of them and washed 15 years of good ol' Inland Empire dirt off the car, I could push it in the garage and get started.









Quick test-polish, yeah I'm excited



The engine was partially disassembeld when I got the car, but aside from a few IAC hoses, it was 100% complete.

I got everything put back together and turned the engine over a few times, it felt really smooth, and since I'm going to rebuild it anyways, I figured what the hell let's try and get it started.

The previous owner mentioned that he parked it because it was "flooding." Anyways, I checked the fuel pump and it was running, but not pumping any fuel. So I drained the old gas, replaced the pump and filter, plugged everything in, and gave it a go.

It fired almost immediately, but didn't actually start running until starting fluid was used. I wasn't able to get it to idle steadily, and it struggled to reach 2000 RPM, even with the throttle wide open.

After doing a compression test, things made a little more sense:
180
181
180
176
120
178

Noooooooooo!

After squirting some oil in cylinder #5 the compression rose, so it looks like the rings or cylinder wall are the problem. Oh well. Looks like I won't get to drive it before rebuilding the engine.

So that's where I'm at now. COOL. I just need someone to buy my 633 so I can actually do stuff!

As far as plans:

Full color change to hennarot
Black leather interior
Suspension, wheels, and other ricer accessories.

[///Moe]

Nice find, seems like there's a lot of work to be done.
But there's potensial so good luck with the project.

[mojocoggo]

Thanks Moe! Your car is quite an inspiration and it is currently my phone background picture. :)

[alabbasi]

Oh I like that! It's cool to see deals like this come by and then bring them back to life. I bought my Mercedes Benz 6.9 after it had sat since 1997 and it took a couple of weeks of cleaning the fuel system to get it running. After a couple of minutes, the suspension came right up :)

It was a good win.

[mojocoggo]

And some say air suspension is unreliable! I hear an electric pump running for what I assume is the self-leveling suspension, but I couldn't keep the engine running long enough to let it raise up. Either that or something is just broken.

[tschultz]

Nice work-- I see the potential!

[AusE24]

Looks a good start..Is there any Rust?

Greg

[BlackShark6]

This is something I want too, cheap euro needing a new beginning, and not necessarly stock or original for the end product. luckily so cal is the best place to find one
best of luck and if you see another cheap euro, gimme a shout!

So, is this an M90? or b34?

im always confused on the changeover on euros, or what engine they came with on certaain years from late 70s upto 83s or was there a diference fromm 83 to 85 on euro? or 82 to 85?
I just look for the wrap arounds cause i like the style, but 82 sometimes confuses me as to what it really is, e12 or e24, is the answer going to be e12 based e24, so what the heck does that mean

dirty euro = happy

[Finally6]

What a great find, keep pictures coming as you get into it!

[GripGreg]

First, I love the find! Now you guys know what my Buster looks like, except that my interior has E30 black Recaros & factory blk. rr seats & blk. panels. Plus, I got lucky with 16" Hartges.
Polaris with factory Euro stripes is very exquisitely classic.
I wasn't gonna say anything, but, I'm here so here goes; It's your money & car, that's understood, but, you already have a nice red E24, so, what's the point in having two?
Polaris Silver is a bright, very classic color, and, it's the original color.
Why mess with perfection? But, it's not my car, right? Done.

BlackShark; My Buster is E12 based, this one is E28 based. The heater controls are different, window switches too, plus the door handles are different along with the door pockets.
E12 map pockets are elasticized, E28 has a cover you can flip up. To me, it makes it a little tighter, but, maybe not.
Buster's build date is 9/81, sold as an '82. Same Euro bumpers, spoiler and air dam.
Personally, I like the look of the spoiler ending at the trunk lid.
This one has a build date sometime after mine, both being '82's.
Good luck Mojo,,,,Greg
Ps,,,Oh, my mechanic tells me it's an M90. Built for the European market and then shipped over=dirty Euro
PPs,,,Is that the famous "bundle o' Snakes"?? Plus, the factory cloth Recaros!!

[mojocoggo]

Looks a good start..Is there any Rust?

Greg

Just a tiny amount of surface rust on the edge of the sunroof and bottom front of the passenger door. Underbody, trunk, framerails, and everything else is completely dry. I'm lucky it was sitting on a slanted driveway which didn't allow for water to collect under it.

So, is this an M90? or b34?

im always confused on the changeover on euros, or what engine they came with on certaain years from late 70s upto 83s or was there a diference fromm 83 to 85 on euro? or 82 to 85?
I just look for the wrap arounds cause i like the style, but 82 sometimes confuses me as to what it really is, e12 or e24, is the answer going to be e12 based e24, so what the heck does that mean

dirty euro = happy

I'm fairly certain it is just the 10:1 compression M30B34. The VIN shows it as the non-catalyzed version but it looks like one was installed at some point, possibly for federalization.

I too am confused by the changeover dates in '82. My car is 04/1982, and RealOEM shows it as having the early style rear bumper and all E12 suspension, which it doesn't. It also only has one fuel pump, underneath the car, with no in-tank pump. Everything on the car is E28-based. From what I've read on here, the M90 was only used until mid-'81 production, but I may be wrong. It is safe to assume though that if the car has the wraparound bumper, it is certainly E28 based. A quick look at the interior will verify that.

First, I love the find! Now you guys know what my Buster looks like, except that my interior has E30 black Recaros & factory blk. rr seats & blk. panels. Plus, I got lucky with 16" Hartges.
Polaris with factory Euro stripes is very exquisitely classic.
I wasn't gonna say anything, but, I'm here so here goes; It's your money & car, that's understood, but, you already have a nice red E24, so, what's the point in having two?
Polaris Silver is a bright, very classic color, and, it's the original color.
Why mess with perfection? But, it's not my car, right? Done.

Well I am selling the red one so that I can get started on the Euro car. The red one is really nice, which is why I was originally going to just convert it to Euro bumpers, but then there would be all the bodywork involved in getting the rear rub strip to fit right, and then I'd have to get the valences painted anyway to match, so I just figure if I'm spending all that money in the first place, I might as well start with a Euro car as a base so I know the bumpers will fit right.

This is my 5th E24 and I've had an 81, 84, 85, 86, and now the '82. So I've seen the changes over the years and I know exactly what I want now.

I love how Polaris looks when it's clean, but bright orange/red has always been my favorite color for a car.

(See my '74 Celica)



I'm definitely going to keep the Stripes, and hopefully find an M-Tech front valence, Zender sideskirts, and some type of rear valence. The vision of the completed car is already in burned in my head so there is no turning back now!

[tschultz]

You are correct, as I understand no e28 based cars utilized the M90.

I would suspect it is the 10:1 euro B34 (also Greg, not a bundle of snakes-- that only comes on S38/M88!) that came in the e28 based cars.
Notice how it has motronic control and the one piece intake manifold.
Also, Greg, the bumpers aren't completely the same-- the rear is different between e12 and e28 cars.


Hopefully you can have it up and running soon!

[GripGreg]

Okay, okay!
Have you thought about Kastienarot? It's a gorgeous unique orange/red with a splash of cinnamon. It's a factory color from our era.
In American it translates to Chestnut Red. Much nicer than any other red.
Do some research & I think you'll like it. Upper end paint shops should be able to help you.
Are those the 'bundle O' snakes'?? It sorta looks like it. Almost.
I luv those Recaros & I hope you cover them while re-building.
I think one of the websites, maybe bavauto.com, has some cheap covers?
Or, maybe any auto parts store? Or, hey,,an old sheet!
To save the factory carpet, please get some black car mats?
I say car mats 'cause you can always replace them, but, not the carpet. Black 'cause it hides dirt.
Enjoy & I envy you,,,,Greg
Ps,, Your Celica is one of the prettiest profiles, sorta like an E24, huh?

[mojocoggo]

Okay, okay!
Have you thought about Kastienarot? It's a gorgeous unique orange/red with a splash of cinnamon. It's a factory color from our era.
In American it translates to Chestnut Red. Much nicer than any other red.
Do some research & I think you'll like it. Upper end paint shops should be able to help you.
Are those the 'bundle O' snakes'?? It sorta looks like it. Almost.
I luv those Recaros & I hope you cover them while re-building.
I think one of the websites, maybe bavauto.com, has some cheap covers?
Or, maybe any auto parts store? Or, hey,,an old sheet!
To save the factory carpet, please get some black car mats?
I say car mats 'cause you can always replace them, but, not the carpet. Black 'cause it hides dirt.
Enjoy & I envy you,,,,Greg
Ps,, Your Celica is one of the prettiest profiles, sorta like an E24, huh?

We're gonna go ahead and call it a bundle of mini-snakes. They are Stahl headers and I have no idea what CA smog is going to say about them but that's down the road anyway. I loved Chestnut Red on my '79 528i. But my mind is still stuck on Henna. I know it isn't the classiest red, it's just something about a bright red-orange that gets me.

The Recaros are getting recovered in black leather with the rest of the interior, unless I can find some rear seats from an '89 with the soft leather. Carpet will be getting replaced as well, and I'll probably use OEM black (dark grey) floor mats. And yeah, the Celica has an awesome profile with no b-pillar, I just wish E24s were the same way!

[GripGreg]

Thanx, Tschults, I just noticed the rr bumper wraps around while mine ends at the corner.
And, you you say the engine is differant? Okay!
I'll peek at my intake system.
Gotta change the oil right now, anyway. Right now 'cause the sun is shaded by nice clouds. My other way to say that is, "the Grips have a silk on the sun"!
Greg

[Shipper 01]

Looks a good start..Is there any Rust?

Greg

Just a tiny amount of surface rust on the edge of the sunroof and bottom front of the passenger door. Underbody, trunk, framerails, and everything else is completely dry. I'm lucky it was sitting on a slanted driveway which didn't allow for water to collect under it.

So, is this an M90? or b34?

im always confused on the changeover on euros, or what engine they came with on certaain years from late 70s upto 83s or was there a diference fromm 83 to 85 on euro? or 82 to 85?
I just look for the wrap arounds cause i like the style, but 82 sometimes confuses me as to what it really is, e12 or e24, is the answer going to be e12 based e24, so what the heck does that mean

dirty euro = happy

I'm fairly certain it is just the 10:1 compression M30B34. The VIN shows it as the non-catalyzed version but it looks like one was installed at some point, possibly for federalization.

I too am confused by the changeover dates in '82. My car is 04/1982, and RealOEM shows it as having the early style rear bumper and all E12 suspension, which it doesn't. It also only has one fuel pump, underneath the car, with no in-tank pump. Everything on the car is E28-based. From what I've read on here, the M90 was only used until mid-'81 production, but I may be wrong. It is safe to assume though that if the car has the wraparound bumper, it is certainly E28 based. A quick look at the interior will verify that.

First, I love the find! Now you guys know what my Buster looks like, except that my interior has E30 black Recaros & factory blk. rr seats & blk. panels. Plus, I got lucky with 16" Hartges.
Polaris with factory Euro stripes is very exquisitely classic.
I wasn't gonna say anything, but, I'm here so here goes; It's your money & car, that's understood, but, you already have a nice red E24, so, what's the point in having two?
Polaris Silver is a bright, very classic color, and, it's the original color.
Why mess with perfection? But, it's not my car, right? Done.

Well I am selling the red one so that I can get started on the Euro car. The red one is really nice, which is why I was originally going to just convert it to Euro bumpers, but then there would be all the bodywork involved in getting the rear rub strip to fit right, and then I'd have to get the valences painted anyway to match, so I just figure if I'm spending all that money in the first place, I might as well start with a Euro car as a base so I know the bumpers will fit right.

This is my 5th E24 and I've had an 81, 84, 85, 86, and now the '82. So I've seen the changes over the years and I know exactly what I want now.

I love how Polaris looks when it's clean, but bright orange/red has always been my favorite color for a car.

(See my '74 Celica)



I'm definitely going to keep the Stripes, and hopefully find an M-Tech front valence, Zender sideskirts, and some type of rear valence. The vision of the completed car is already in burned in my head so there is no turning back now!

Love the orange celica. Nice find with the 82. I also like that look. Still, given how many you have owned it is no surprise that you now know exactly what you want. I'm also considering selling my 633 to start to look for a 635 or M6 project.

You will know if you have an M90 as it will have the horizontal water jacket cast into the side of the block running from No.1 to No.5 cylinder. See attached photo.

[GripGreg]

Also, TSchultz;
MY Buster has the one piece intake, not the six tubes like the L-Jet.
I also remember someone saying it's the 'dirty Euro-six?'
He was made for the German market, bought by a soldier in Germany, shipped here & federalized.
I think I read that he originally had 210 horses at the factory.

Also again,,MOJO,,check with BPoliakoff for your new Euro stripes.
He has a good connection. He likes to order in bunches, so, if you get the ball rollin' now,,,,,,,.
Bert hangs out on 'firsfives.org' a lot.
I just found Bert on the second page of the"members" list at 'firstfives.org'.
It's free to join. Wait, I'll ask him to advertise his stripes on 'Bigcoupe'.

[bunty635]

THE CAR SAT IN A SPOT SINCE YOU WER IN 2ND GRADE.

HOW BEAUTIFUL

THATS A REALLY CLEAN FIND BTW WELL THE EURO E24S ARE PRICELESS
BUT NONETHELESS GREAT PRICE.

[mojocoggo]

Not much progress on the car until just recently. I pulled the engine and took it to a machine shop to check out why the compression was low. They found that several piston rings were caked in rust and were stuck in the pistons, which prevented them from expanding properly and sealing.

I'm on a rather limited budget, but I don't want to cut corners. So I had the pistons bead blasted and cleaned up and new rings fitted. Also, since they were out, I had the rod bearings replaced. The crankshaft was not removed so the bearings were not replaced, and the rod bearings looked to be in good enough shape with no signs of poor lubrication so I felt no need to go into the crankshaft.



The cylinder walls were not machine honed, but they were cleaned up by hand to remove what little debris was found.

The cylinder head was checked and completely gone through. No warpage or cracks were found. Valves and seats were machined for a perfect seal, and new stem seals were installed. Guides were surprisingly in good shape so they were not replaced.







I also brought in the injectors for cleaning and to be flow-matched. The shop found that two injectors were too "far gone" to be repaired, so I am on the lookout for replacements. Part number is 0 280 150 130, which is apparently pretty hard to find.


Then Christmas came, and I got an amazing gift from my GF. A 70s Marchal shift knob from Japan that has been hot rodded with some black paint with rainbow metallic flakes. I absolutely love it, and it looks and feels great. The problem is that the knob was threaded for Japanese cars, where as BMWs use a snap-on style. So I removed the shift lever and brought it to the shop where my engine was being worked on. I had them remove about an inch from the height so that no metal would be showing above the shift boot, and then cut some threads so that the shift knob could be fitted. It turned out great!







So that's all ready to go. I've just ordered all the gaskets and seals required to put the engine back together. Can't wait to get started on reassembly!

[winfred]

new rings may not seal without breaking the finish on the walls and drink oil and or have poor compression, get a cheap pad hone and spend 30 seconds or so in each hole keeping it wet with wd40 while stroking the drill up and down to put about a 45 degree crosshatch on the walls

hard to see but this is the only shot i have of my m20b28 ( ) stock pistons in stock bores 30k miles more then 10k of that boosted with no consumption

[mojocoggo]

That's essentially what was done. They just couldn't put it on the machine with the crank still installed so it was done by hand.

[mojocoggo]

A little more progress. I have the engine mostly put together now, just waiting on a head gasket and finding the right injectors.





I know the painted stuff looks horrible. I think eventually I'll just find some that are clean, mine were pretty badly discolored and no amount of scrubbing or jet washing was going to bring them back.

[mojocoggo]

Getting closer!

My friend did a little work on the steering box bracket, which was broken.







Coming together

[hornhospital]

You have a COUCH in your garage workshop? I'm very jealous.

[mojocoggo]

Haha it's super convenient. Also it was free on craigslist, brought it home in an E30 vert.