1980 635CSi Euro

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tschultz
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

Decided on a way to share some family news:

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Should be a busy fall for us!

The 635 started up and ran to be able to get the photos, but sputtered close to home. I got it running again to get the photos, unfortunately after 5 restarts, it didn't want to start again. I replaced the ICU, combo relay and recently the fuel pump and tried a spare CTS. I am starting to suspect a solder joint issue inside the ECU.

May open it up in the next week to check...
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'79 635CSi Revival
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'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

So the car hasn't been cooperating and won't start for me now. I haven't had a lot of chance to continue diagnosing and I have tried the following without luck:

Spare Ecu
New Ignition control Unit
Spare distributor
spare combo relay
New ballast resistor
New rotor
replacement fuel pump
spare coolant temp sensor
replacement batter cable
new spark plugs
new coil
Proper timing with the distributor

Not sure what to try next. Maybe spark plug cables or verify what I am seeing spark...

In the mean time I wanted to make some progress and so I installed a new Raid steering wheel. 340mm like what I had, but leather, not suede. It looks great, I'm just sad I couldn't test drive it! I had the alpina horn button and installed that.

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I haven't driven this car enough the past 3 years, especially in the last 1 calendar year!! My wife doesn't like it because it has an exhaust leak/smell that I haven't been able to eliminate (no cats? but also it gets in the cabin with windows open).
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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
Quietlion79
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by Quietlion79 »

Hey Tom,

Hope you figure it out soon! I was hoping for some good news for you on that front, but I guess the steering wheel will have to do for now! As far as the exhaust leak goes, once it is up and running again, have the car running and cover the tailpipe(s) with a rag, that will make the leak more apparent so that you can locate it. Maybe at one of the manifolds to downpipes? Hope that helps and best of luck tracking down your no start issue.

If you want to try to locate the leak without the engine running, Chrisfix has a neat method.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-exs1iMLFU
Last edited by Quietlion79 on Thu Mar 26, 2020 3:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
1952 Austin Sheerline Limo
1960 Studebaker Lark
1963 Chrysler 300J
1963 Studebaker Avanti R2
1964 Jensen CV8 Mk2
1970 AMC Rebel Machine
1972 BMW Bavaria
1981 BMW Euro 635CSI
1989 Chrysler Conquest
2001 Honda Insight
80euro Csi
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by 80euro Csi »

Hey you guys, you keep copying me with your mail. I'm not offended but thought you should know my email is 80Euro Csi and not 1980 635Csi Euro.
Thanks and hope you all are well. Take care
Neal
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

Thanks Andy! I haven't gone in depth like this but I do wonder if some of it has to do with the lack of a cat. convertor. When I get it running again I will have to try that solution as I previosuly found a cracked exhaust manifold.

I am following along with Robert's euro E12 that seems to have similar problems:

https://www.firstfives.org/phpBB-3.2.1/ ... f=4&t=5884

Next step is when I get a chance, use a helper and check for spark and try and move backward through the system starting at the coil.
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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
Quietlion79
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by Quietlion79 »

Wish I could help ya out. I figure I owe you one after all those calls and texts. ;)

I'll bet it is some kind of wring issue, bad connection or pinched wire....it has to be...you've covered everything else! Unless both ECU's have the same lifted solder joint problem...
1952 Austin Sheerline Limo
1960 Studebaker Lark
1963 Chrysler 300J
1963 Studebaker Avanti R2
1964 Jensen CV8 Mk2
1970 AMC Rebel Machine
1972 BMW Bavaria
1981 BMW Euro 635CSI
1989 Chrysler Conquest
2001 Honda Insight
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

So the other day I started the car successfully a few times in a row and got it to operating temp.

For some reason the new Ignition Control Module was not working so it has been working with the old box. I confirmed all 3 combo relays work. I used original coil and had previously replaced CTS. The ECU does not control fuel or spark, but I was able to run with my spare ECU.

I drove the car and while idling to snap a photo, the car suddenly died. I swapped back to the NEW coil, old ballast resistor and spare combo relays, none with any success.

After 45 minutes I got back to the car and was able to start it and drive it home. I am thinking my pulse generator in the distributor is the problem. Will try again later with my spare. ](*,) ](*,)

The new Raid wheel felt nice to drive although it was only like 5 miles around the block. The E24 certainly felt bigger and heavier than what I have grown accustomed to in the E28 turbo that I have driven lately. Maybe it was just the body roll though. Will see about adding a few photos and figuring out this gremlin!
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'79 635CSi Revival
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'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

Yesterday I was able to try out the car after suspecting the impulse sender being the problem. I thought my spare distributor was bad but it turns out that the replacement ignition control module was causing my issues. With the original ICU box in place, original ECU, original coil, the car was able to start and run. I put in the new ballast resistor and tested all three of my combo relays. However that combination is what stalled out on me earlier this week while idling in a parking lot.

Yesterday with the spare distributor I was able to get it to run so I knew the problem had to be with spark somewhere between ballast resistor and distributor.
I think the original distributor/pulse generator was going bad and intermittently working. This was what was happening at the race track when it seemed to be sputtering a bit and then stalled (11/2018!!)

I drove it around today for about 30 minutes and pushed it pretty hard without misfire or stuttering/stalling. In the past it would sometimes stall when trying to accelerate hard-- so I am hopeful that this was the resolution. A great win for the 10 year ownership I have with this car!

At the gas station I got a compliment which is always pretty neat. The new raid wheel feels great! It does seem that maybe I should replace the steering link which has some play-- funds are tight so I will have to figure out when. The M90 and euro exhaust sounds great and it is such a great sound to hear again!

Some photos from the other night when it stalled out. I put the BBS RS wheels on... as I wanted the Rials on the 535is Turbo for a mountain drive

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Not impressed as the car stalled while I was taking this photo

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And the 535is Turbo. I LOVE the Rials on this car where I simply liked them on the e24.

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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

I have been sucessfully driving the car again this last week. Black on black makes it a bit difficult in the summer, so this is the perfect time.

I do believe the distributor is different US vs Euro as it runs good at full operating temp, but it seems the advance might be different in cold start, it idles lower than it used to (sometimes near 600rpm instead of 1000). I will need to replace the pulse generator or track down another 008 distributor.

In the mean time, I checked the valves due to a clicking noise and found #1 intake had a stripped eccentric bolt. Not sure how I missed that, but fortunately I had the parts I needed. I had to dremel the nut off, but was able to use a magnet to collect the metal particles. I replaced that nut and eccentric and checked all of the valves which quieted down a little bit.

Then, I set about removing and replacing the center link which had slop on the ball joint connected to the steering box. I did get it off, although it was very difficult due to the lack of room for the ball joint tool. I got all of them apart and then set about removing the outside tie rod end link with a torn boot. I got it off and replaced with a Meyle link back on Monday. I put it back together and put some additional miles on the car this year.

Only at 170km driven this year but plan to continue driving for a few months. Hoping to get a few photos to share soon here.
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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by 80euro Csi »

FYI
I've had my 635 ,second owner, since 1984 and it's stock right off the ship and it has always idled cold around 600 to 700 and warms to about 750 to 800.
Neal
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

Working I repairing the drivers door that broke last year. Also messed with window switches in the rear that don't want to go down anymore. Ready to drive it after a recent wax 8)

Ignore the messiness of the garage haha

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My son enjoys playing in the car a bit too

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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

Long overdue update here. I had some bad luck with the car and am not sure if I would consider it my ignorance or not. But I had been driving the car on and off in 2021 until I had resolved the running problem related to the parts inside the distributor. I had resolved that problem and drove the car mostly on trips to work since my wife wasn't enjoying the smell (no cat convertor) and it was difficult getting a car seat in the back when we would go somewhere as a family.

Basically my running problem above was the US distributor with a difference advance curve. So I replaced the guts inside the euro distributor and lubricated my old distributor to get it working and driving well. And it was driving well!

Fast forward to 3/2022 and I decided to drive the car with my son and my brother for a brunch while my dad came into town. Well a mile or so from my house I thought I heard an odd knocking noise as I merged onto the highway on our route to the restaurant. I continued driving and it seemed to happen only when accelerating a bit, but I thought it was odd as I had not touched the distributor and had within the last 500 miles just set the timing with a timing light and made everything run better as well as adjusting the idle down a little bit via a throttle stop screw.

I was watching gauges and trying to be cautious about why I might have heard that noise but just cruised easy over to breakfast. Well, about 10 miles later, the car seemed to have a little bit of power loss and not feel quite as expected-- I had to push the pedal a bit further until I decided to push the clutch in and it just died. I coasted off to the side of the road and knew this could be bad because of the pinging like noise when merging onto the highway. No strange temperature, no lights etc. When I stopped and popped the hood, I saw some light smoke but no oil leakage near the oil filter housing which had happened a few times in the path on very cold starts. But this time the car was in the garage and not any colder than 45degrees. Well, I checked the dipstick and it was bone dry. Not even a small drop or film on the very end. I knew it wasn't good and didn't even try to restart the car.


So in short we changed plans and my dad and brother picked us up to instead eat at his house and gameplan how to get the car. We had strap towed it off the road to a neighborhood down the street of somebody I knew. We made breakfast and then decided to go back to the car and strap tow it the 11 miles back to my house, which is what we did.

At my house I moved some cars and we pushed it in the garage where it has sat untouched since that day. I found a used M90 (actually I think S38) crankshaft for a reasonable price and had it on the shelf thinking I may need it to put the car back together. So about 4 weeks ago I decided that I could start taking off some of the pieces and just maybe at some point I could pull the engine out at my house in the garage/driveway where it has been sitting. So after a few nights of working on it, I got the wire harness off the engine and disassembled all of the other components to pull the transmission and get started on this for sometime when I had enough spare time.

I suspected that the oil light on the dash wasn't working and I still need to determine if my light burned out and I didn't notice or if the circuit or sender for oil pressure went back and di not illuminate properly. I had also heard or read about other with a similar problem of the oil cannister seal blowing due to the pressure relief valve on the pump sticking. I suspect that was the cause and was able to test it a little bit and find it sticking a bit.

Well I guess I was excited to make progress since it was summer time and warm enough in the garage because I worked on it nights and such until within the week I had everything out and the engine was ready to be pulled out to inspect the damage.
My brother was headed to my house for a night passing through for a work trip and he hasd mentioned that he had an engine hoist that I might be able to use. So I asked him about it and he was able to bring up to me in his new E90 wagon. Previously, he didn't really have a way to transport it. We unloaded it and later than week I decided to see if I could put it in position. I had the time and thought I could make it fit.

The E12 engien mounts and subframe are different than the E28 version I am used to and I had a tough time getting the engine off the subframe because of the way it wanted to balance with the cylinder head in position. It took me a while longer than expected of getting it free from the chassis, but here was the fitment really tight even without trans.

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the load leveler helped and I was able to do it with the garage closed like this. I needed the height of the garage closed but almost didn't have enough room to maneuver (but I did!)
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I had to pivot the engine towards the passenger front headlight and push on the engine while leveling it to really get it free because I could not push the engine hoist further under the car due to the front subframe even though it was lifted 6 or so inches.
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I put it on the stand and got things put away the early morning of my birthday this month.

Some oil was covering the engine but I never realised how grimy it was. Some oil was fresh, but it was tough to know if I had driven over 10+ miles to see where the leak in the system was. I wonder if it had leaked out slowly during a commute and then if I had possibly tightened the cannister down and not checked the oil level. I don't remember that but am not sure. Either wa, I decided to try and degrease it a bit with mainly pine sol and a water hose
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Also notice the jam packed workspace and garage since the car has been sitting. I did get the engine out in that space! Oily mess too!
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The pine sol and a wire brush did really improve the cleanliness, we see some silver again!
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Inspecting underneath the oil pan, this is what I found. The oil pump seemed to have a slightly sticky relief valve when I jammed on it hard... I believe it had to be the cause but I am going to further disassemble the pump. Oddly, I did find this metal fragment but I cannot tell where it came from. It looks like a rocker arm tip but upon inspection I did not see damage to any of the rocker arms. I was wondering if possibly it was a damaged piece from my head reassembly issue back in 2017 when pistons hit valves.... I need to determine some of these answers before I proceed too far.
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Maybe a 1/2 quart of oil in the whole oil pan when I removed it. Notice conrod #1 and #2 look pretty cooked! I think oil burning off here was the smoke I saw when I opened the hood and valve cover of the engine.
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What turns out to be bearing grit on the block itself, by conrod #1. A little bit more of this by #2 and maybe #3 though it is hard to tell
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What I found under conrod cap #1:
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Actual bearing journal as it was a spun bearing causing engine seizure
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#2 also spun, but below is #3 wear even though it didn't spin
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#4 looks good with minor bearing wear and #5 and #6 both seem OK even though there was bearing wear.

I do think the crank is done, not sure if it could ever ben polished or repaired or what. Amazingly the cylinder head looks ok though I do need to do a more detailed inspection. I was able to remove pistons with all look OK and don't seem to have an major scoring or wear. It makes sense the rotating parts that are suppose to be lubricated under pressure all the time would wear.

I am working to pull the crank and then decide what I will replace. Crankshaft, main bearings, con rod bearing, at least 2 connecting rods, oil pressure relief valve, oil pressure light, gaskets. I am debating about replacing the piston rings, but am not sure if I will be able to find any. Thinking I may be able to rebuild it for less than $1000 due to spare parts I have from other engines but need to measure my replacement crankshaft and go from there.

Lots of work to do but I feel good having made meaningful progress even though I still just have a big paperweight at the moment...
Last edited by tschultz on Sat Jul 22, 2023 3:13 am, edited 1 time in total.
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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
songzunhuang
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by songzunhuang »

Wow, thanks for all the detail and pictures. Although an unfortunate occurrence, your sharing makes it a learning experience for the greater community. Best of luck to you on the rebuild. I am sure many will follow your progress.
-----
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1984 633CSi
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

Thanks Song. Uncharted territory for me and I was sad to have the problem and not be able to drive the car but also interested to do the repair and learn more about engine building so I am taking the opportunity to learn more about all of it through the process.

Some additional photos. Here are connecting rods which have an odd hole and a piston partially cleaned up. The M90 piston and rod is on the left and a M30B34 US is on the right. I don't know that this hole does anything because there is no oil squirter or pressure going to it... Interestingly the bushings are different on both pistons.
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The piston with damage came from an M30B34 that was seized up but I got the piston out although with damage6.

2-6 connecting rods and pistons. Notice the blackening of the rod on all but the middle one (#4). Because of this, I am choosing to replace all rods. You can see the difference in the bearings between 3 and 4 with one that didn't seem to wear or see oil starve and the other that did and wore down but did not spin. It must have gotten quite hot.
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Wondering about the crankshaft. This one had a dual chain sprocket which I pulled off and replaced with the single chain sprocket. So I think it came from an S38B35.

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Next up, the thrust bearing I noticed a groove that isn't on any other M30 crank I have seen (only a couple admittedly).
The engine nose side of the thrust bearing journal.
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The groove on the rearward/trans side of the engine
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I am working on the crankshaft to polish out some minor marks. Overall it seemed to measure out quite well on the journals. I think they will be ok, but there are some examples:
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I have been polishing with 400grit sandpaper and string to try and remove any marks I can feel. I have read conflicting information about polishing beyond this grit but I don't think I can do much to the journals because of how hard they are. I mainly have been trying to remove anything that is protruding and make the journals smooth and shiny overall. This is the 84mm crank and I haven't been able to find another so this will have to do, though it isn't as nice on the journals as the 86mm cranks I have seen. I really don't want to regrind, expecially since thye measure out well with the micrometer (2.3599-2.3600")

Before cleaning up the block mating surface.

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The cross hatching isn't great all around though they aren't gouges or scratches. I am trying to determine what to do as far as reinstall because M90 piston rings are NLA and very difficult to source...

M90 headgaskets are expensive and I will order genuine BMW soon. Just need to decide if I should throw the original rings back in after cleaning them thoroughly, or if I should consider a flex-hone/ball hone with a few passed and reinstall. I really am on the fence if these are bad decisions...

For reference my block for the m90 is marked 3.5 (cast) and has the following date code 2/1980 chassis production M90 is cast as 12L79
Last edited by tschultz on Wed Oct 25, 2023 3:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
GRNSHRK
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by GRNSHRK »

Hey Tom, we've missed you, but now I guess we know why :roll:

I see that you have some questions and I know a couple of fellas out my way that may have some answers for you :-"

Lemme reach out and see if we can get you some feedback [-o<
:mrgreen:
Bobbo
1980 633 CSi Cypress Green/Pearl Beige
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

Thanks for the nice thought!

Yes, I have been busy with little children at home too! But I was pretty bummed when I realized that my 635 had this big problem.

In the mean time, I have been able to make a bit more progress since August.

I realized I didn't share the details of getting the engine apart. This is probably the hardest step. Here is my method for removing the crankshaft locking nut (jesus nut). It is a little sketchy but does require a block of wood and the oil pan removed to lock the crankshaft when tightening or loosening. Other items needed are an engine stand, floor jack/block of wood, ratchet straps, jack handle and two anchoring vehicles. This was my way of removing it, which I have now done on two engines. I used a 36mm and 3/4 drive 2foot breaker with the jack handle giving my ~3-4ft of leverage.

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Here is the crankshaft with my hand polishing. That imperfection is a divot or recession which sounds like it shouldn't cause any problems, according to my research.
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I had to remove the dual chain sprocket and replace with the single chain sprocket, which is why I think this crank came from an S38.
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Removing the sprocket was with a 3 jaw puller. I also heated the gear and I think that helped. I had to do this twice, because I had to pull the single chain unit off of the spare 86m crank I had in storage. Then I removed the sprocket off of the new 84mm crankshaft and that one took a bit more work.

To reinstall, I actually froze the crankshaft and then put the sprocket in the oven at 200 degrees. I put the cold crank in the block and then grabbed the sprocket and key and slid them into position. Even with the temperature difference, I still had to hammer it all the way down with a socket.
Here is the photo of how it looks reinstalled, though I stole this picture from somebody else
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Here is one of the pistons just to show the condition. I removed the rings on each piston, cleaned them of carbon and reinstalled with the piston grooves all cleaned out onto my spare set of connecting rods. The rods are identical from other M30's of the same generation, minus an oiling hole, as shown above.
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Here is a cylinder wall for reference
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Turns out there is a difference between the early M30 and later M30 in the oil pumps. Later one has that large visible spring
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Photos here courtesy of Brickwhite showing disassembly of the oil pump and what the parts look like. His pump is the later one, the guts are basically almost identical. You can see the oil relief valve along with the pump rotor.

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I ordered a new oil pressure relief spring and retaining clip and then took the existing valve body and sanded it and polished it. The spring may relax over time according some M10 owners. The valve body was definitely stuck in the housing and I had to use a hammer to pound it out of the oil pump housing. The sides were scored and it was definitely the cause of the oiling problem. Once I got it smooth everywhere via sandpaper without any scoring on the edges or gouges that I could feel, I tried to reinstall. The cylinder must have also been scored because it would not slide freely, it would still stick in places against spring force. So I found the closest drill size and lightly drilled out the diameter. I am not sure that I made it any bigger because the piston slides smoothly in there and does not rock. Mostly, I was trying to get a smooth surface and eliminate any burrs or issues inside.

M30 engine oil flow for good reference. Notice 3A, the pressure relief which is what caused my problems. You can also see that the main bearings get oil first and then the connecting rod bearings.
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I got that reinstalled and wanted to show a picture of my hack to installing and removing the crankshaft 'jesus' nut, as shown above. This worked again to tighten everything to the same ~300ftlbs. I just used my body weight and the jack handle and estimate I am pretty close to the torque required to remove it, which should be good enough.

Oil pan after removal. Shavings of bearing material everywhere
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Cleaned out and degreased, but I didn't go crazy trying to get rid of the carbon, just any particulates
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Reassembly of the oil pump once I got all those parts and had finished torque on the rotating assembly and installed the crank nut.
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The boys who take most of my time also wanted to help out with this step. Since the engine was clean, I could let them 'wrench' with me.
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At this point, I did add some oil to the pump pickup and rotate the engine a partial turn. There was oil coming out of the oil filter housing hole. At least there is some lube in there for the first start to aid on priming. I had spun the pump by hand on the bench and all seemed to be working appropriately No major scrapes or wear on the wear plate and housing face.

I installed the oil pan after this step and then it was time to work on the head reinstall. Everything looked OK after inspection so I reinstalled in onto the BMW M90 headgasket. The head has drilled holes that match the holes in the block, some call them steam escape holes. Supposedly they provide an additional pathway to allowing coolant to flow and cool the channels. I have thought about trying to add to other engine builds... Here you can also see crosshatching of cyl #2 and my damaged piston from timing chain issue 6 years ago :oops:
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I got everything reinstalled on the engine stand and cleaned off any other grease I could reasonably find. No, I decided not to refinish all of the engine parts but I did clean the engine bay as well to try and get it oil/grease free...
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Earlier this week I was able to drop the engine back in the engine bay by myself.
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Last night I got almost all of the wires and hoses hooked up... I have a couple more and I need to reinstall the transmission before considering a first start. I am a little nervous, worried that maybe I did something wrong. But I did put it all back together the way it came apart and have fixed things in the mean time. The oil control rings had some carbon on them that is now all cleaned up and the bearings were lubricated on the crank side only.

I should be ok but I have to finish reassembly before worrying to much about that.

I also need to check to see if my oil pressure light is burned out or what. More details soon enough!
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'79 635CSi Revival
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by zinnocoupe »

Awesome to see you back on the forum and working on the m90. I didn't know m90 rings were nla. Mmmm. I've got an m90 that needs work and probably rings. :shock: Your cross hatching looks pretty good Hope you have luck getting it started Tom. Cute kids as well.

BTW I bought a big cordless Makita impact gun a while ago and it took off the crank nut in about 5 secs. Best $350 I ever spent

Dave
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1979 Euro 635ci no longer a basketcase, just a running rust bucket!
1977 530i Partially restored and running now!
1987 635csi 60K KM Garage Queen
kronus
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by kronus »

call La Jolla Independent to see if they have the rings available. They were able to source a 1st oversize set for me, which is even harder to find than a std set.
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tschultz
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

I made more progress last week and got the engine fully bolted down and the wire harness rerouted along with a bunch of other items.
When bolting the engine in, I left off the fan clutch and fan, as well as the flywheel and clutch so that I would have a bit more clearance for reinstall.

It is a a tight fit in the E24 nose, but this helped quite a bit. I also loosened the passenger engine mount so that I could position everything more easily. Once I did this, it was much quicker to get the engine in position on the driver's mount. Then I was able to put the passenger mount on and then reinstall the 4 mounting bolts on that mounting arm.

The parts on this car have all been original so I believe this is the original oem flywheel. It measured at 16.8lbs.

Here was my method for holding the flywheel to tighten everything to spec (77ft-lbs) on the flywheel bolts. Tighten a bolt in to the block and then use the carabiner to prevent it from turning. Clutch was good and so it is going back in with the same flywheel surface.
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When inspecting parts, I found my TO bearing ear damaged. I had a spare that I was able to reinstall, but sad to see how this one failed.

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I got the transmission in place after I put the clutch on and was able to reinstall the crossmember trans mount, guibo, driveshaft and shifter.

It took a couple of hours to wrangle the exhaust (full length) back into position under the car, but I was able to get it in place and then hung, it just took a bit longer than it should have. I installed the alternator, power steering pump, some new hoses and then the radiator and expansion tank. Then oil filter housing, oil cooler lines and fluids. Here you see the battery installed along with ignition components and exhaust/exhaust heat shields. I did paint those.

Looking cleaned and degreased, even if not restored.
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Here's with the airbox but before I put the hood on the car.

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Lastly, I had to mount my new license plate. I made some simple brackets and I think it looks ok. The new plate is a different number so I may have to retire my 500-VTZ euro plate up front.... But at least I have collector plates and haven't had to worry about the annual renewal process.
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So I need to muster the courage to crank it and build oil pressure and then try to connect the fuel pump and start it. Then I can check timing and theoretically I am basically all ready to use the car again.
http://www.Drive4Corners.com
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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
songzunhuang
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by songzunhuang »

Alright! We are rooting for you.
It'll be such a sweet day when it's humming down the road again.
-----
Song Huang
1984 633CSi
Last 7 of VIN: 6997383
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tschultz
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

Thanks Song. Tangible progress always helps!

I went to build oil pressure and crank the engine and the starter wouldn't turn. So I ended up pulling the starter this week and it only arcs when I give it 12v signal on the bench.

I ordered an sr441x starter and supposedly it will have enough power to not need the red/black ballast resistor switching wire for ignition.

Also here's some information on why I decided not to hone: http://www.snowvalley.20m.com/bikes/dnthone.htm

When you hone a cylinder, you are running an abrasive surface up and down it. This creates random scratches, and removes metal. These scratches, miniature valleys, accumulate debris in their roots. The debris is composed of bits of expensive cylinder metal and also of carborundum and/or other grinding material - the cylinder is removing grit from the hone as the hone is removing metal from the cylinder. Moreover, you have now created a new "base level" for your cylinder after it has done its new wear-in. What remains of your previous cylinder surface, at, say, 3.100 in. is now "high spots" above your soon-to-be cylinder surface of maybe 3.104 (assuming .002 deep scratches.) And as this rough mess of peaks wears down, the metal which comes off becomes "grinding compound," polluting your oil, to wear out all your other components as well, such as bearing and even gear surfaces. And, worst of all, once the high spots have been removed, the new cylinder diameter is now .004" larger, meaning an extra .004" of piston clearance - above and beyond what was already there from the previous running!

Why would you want to pollute your engine thusly? Only because you've bought OWT #1 - you must "deglaze" your shiny, beautifully polished cylinder in order to "seat your rings." Well, it turned out that this wasn't necessary. They _did_ find that chrome rings don't seat well, if at all, in wear-polished (don't call it "glazed - that's something else again) cylinders. Turns out they need the roughness of a honed cylinder to seat properly, as both they and the cylinder go through a regrettable but necessary (only in the case of a fresh rebore!) period of wearing each other down. But polished cylinders _will_ seat cast iron rings just fine. So, in a nutshell, here's all you do: Don't hone cylinders, do use cast iron rings. If you hone, you will be treated to greater ring gap, more piston clearance, and greater engine wear as your engine goes through a completely unecessary break-in period, wearing itself back into a fit.

If you've experienced problems with oil burning after a re-ring, it's not because you didn't "de-glaze" properly, but because

you honed a cylinder that didn't need it.your clearances on assembly were too great - ring gap, piston clearance.your cylinder is too far gone in terms of diameter irregularity - taper, barrel-shaping, or out-of-round.you sensibly avoided honing out that extra clearance, but mistakenly gave baby a "treat" and used the more expensive chrome rings.
http://www.Drive4Corners.com
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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
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hornhospital
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by hornhospital »

Your choice not to hone, but to Mr Snidel I respectfully disagree, and so do just about every automotive producer. Open up any new-from-the-factory engine and look down the cylinders, what do you see? Classic cross-hatch honing marks. If honing is thought necessary by the builders of new engines, why is it unnecessary in a rebuild?

I can understand if the cylinders are not bored during a rebuild. In fact, most engines I've rebuilt still showed their factory crosshatch pattern (even at 330k miles!!!).
Ken Kanne
'84 633CSi "Sylvia"; '85 635CSi "Katja";'85 325e "Hazel Ann"; '95 M3 "Ashlyn"
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tschultz
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

Agreed, I don't know what type of material our rings are for m30, but I mainly wanted to point out if you see factory cross hatching and in my case reuse of rings, a rehone shouldn't be necessary.


Also wanted to share this thread about the wire for red/black which on let cars and sr441x may stop running. https://e9coupe.com/forum/threads/start ... ies.20646/
http://www.Drive4Corners.com
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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
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tschultz
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

I was ready to start this and then possibly drive it!

Had problems with the starter not wanting to turn. Bosch SR441X seems to be NLA, so I got an aftermarket starter. 10.5 vs 15.3lbs
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It just clicked, so I am not sure what I want to do... Should I rebuild my original? It just sparked when I hooked it up to power on the bench... Do i just need to try and disassemble?
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Also eyeing a non-running '79 635... seems to tempting to pass up. Dogleg, Recaro's, M90, Slicktop, Henna (but needs repaint).
http://www.Drive4Corners.com
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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
User avatar
tschultz
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Re: 1980 635CSi Euro

Post by tschultz »

Good news, today I was able to get the car started and with the oil pressure light going out!

I may not have had the second cable connected to the battery, I am not sure, but I got a replacement starter and it seems to spin smoother on the bench, so I am pleased.

After a successful start up and a finding that a few idle hose clamps were loose. Once I got that together and tried starting it again, it idled a bit better. I went about looking at the timing and making sure there were no leaks. After a bit of effort I was able to get vacuum hoses off and set timing. I have found the right setting to be repeatable by checking maximum timing with both advance hoses plugged and on my light, approximately ~36-38 degrees maximum. I did this with a small white strip of paint by the alternator and on the harmonic balancer.
Rotating the distributor in the counter clockwise direction will ADVANCE the timing.

ADVANCE = the opposite direction of rotation

RETARD = the same direction of the rotation
The light of day after too long of a slumber! I didn't wash it yet, but will the next time I plan to take a drive

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I did a short trip around the neighborhood and has a successful first drive in the car. I found the brakes needing to be bled and almost not working! So I bled them and then adjusted the advance a slight bit again (retarded it). I took a short test drive and found it was a bit jerky, likely due to too much advance. Going around the neighborhood after another tweak, the jerkiness was gone, so I knew things were much closer to where we wanted! My idle returned to a nice 900 rpm which I had set in late 2021 to a great setting.

The refreshed engine all cleaned up now
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The engine and exhaust sounded great and the engine cranks and fires very quickly! I do think the replacement PMGR permanent magnet starter is stronger than the one that came out (and stopped working mysteriously!).

Next up, I need to see why the brakes were pulling to the driver's side, but alas a great milestone on this project. Plans are to pick up a second 635CSi on friday... this one is also a e12/dogleg/m90 combo! I will create a separate project thread for it:

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The engine pic, sitting for 25-30 years is quite the contrast!
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Last edited by tschultz on Tue Mar 26, 2024 6:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
http://www.Drive4Corners.com
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'79 635CSi Revival
'80 635CSi
'83 633CSi Callaway Turbo continued as 1988 535is Turbo
SOLD: '81 635CSi/A
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