BMW e36 320i first car project

[ahmadbila]

This is where it spent the next 1 hour

[ahmadbila]

[ahmadbila]

Unloading in Ras Al Khaimah

[ahmadbila]

Now, i had my first chance to closely inspect the car

[ahmadbila]

Head lights were too dirty but not damaged

[ahmadbila]

Sides were mostly smooth

[ahmadbila]

[ahmadbila]

The fuel lid wont stay shut

[devils_smile]

That's a great find. Pretty sure you won't have problems with finding parts either. The amount of brake dust is alarming though. Its like the wheels were painted in that color.

Looking forward to the DIYs. Most of the cosmetic problems mentioned are pretty easy to fix.

Best of luck.

[ahmadbila]

Look at all that filth! I wonder why the last owner didn't bother to clean it.

[ahmadbila]

Dashboard was dry, stained and covered with layers of dust. The only good news was that apart from the leather on steering wheel, everything else was restorable

[ahmadbila]

Engine wasn't so clean either

[ahmadbila]

i washed the trunk lid to see if the stains in earlier pix were just dust marks or in the paint. thankfully it was just dust.

[ahmadbila]

There si a tool kit under the boot lid. Boot lid also covered in carpet. Not bad for a 1994 small sedan

[ahmadbila]

Well, at least i have something

[ahmadbila]

In the trunk i found brand new fog lamps with 1 year old invoice. Perhaps the previous owner was too busy to even get them installed.

[ahmadbila]

The car had 197484 KMs on it. Not bad for its age. The check light is on due to shot out bulbs. Yes, even bulbs are monitored !!

[ahmadbila]

That's a great find. Pretty sure you won't have problems with finding parts either. The amount of brake dust is alarming though. Its like the wheels were painted in that color.

Looking forward to the DIYs. Most of the cosmetic problems mentioned are pretty easy to fix.

Best of luck.

Thanks. Yes parts are not only easily available but also very cheap. The brake dust problem is very common here. I ve seen 1 2 year old new mercs bimmers with rims completely gone black because people don't care about it. The dust shows up very soon because much of our driving is done at higher speeds. Even within city, cars are averaging 80 to 100km/h so its very harsh on the brakes. I new clean the rims weekly and the outside part is clean but inner area is still not clean because its not reachable easily. Even car wash guys don't care to clean the brake dust properly and everytime i have to instruct them to clean it again.

[ahmadbila]

Finally, i found a decent mechanic from my home town in Pakistan (who even knew my Pakistani mechanic) and the work started

[ahmadbila]

The priority:

1) Replace tie rods
2) Fix all the exterior lights
3) Fix (or clean) any oil seepage

Without these three, the car would not pass the test.