The Journey getting my 2001 E38 740i Shorty up to my standards

[P1]

Love these kinds of posts, thanks Phil!

[MarcoF90]

Originally Posted by Detailers Domain

Pretty easy you have to pull hard to remove it. That being said we had our in house mechanic do it.

Haha I need me one of those! Haha the closest I got is 2 good friends of mine who are very mechanically inclined. One is familiar with BMWs of this vintage so he's been a great hand for insight and assistance with BMW ownership

[Detailers Domain]

Very excited I just ordered the BMW Instrument Cluster LCD Display Silver Ribbon Cable DIY / from BavTek....hope to fix the pixel issue on my cluster as soon as it comes in

[Detailers Domain]

The small details make all the difference!

Removing the old beat up "non oem" belly pan with an new Genuine part
OLD


NEW

[Detailers Domain]

Suspension and Brake Upgrades

KW V3
Syncro Design Works Thrust Arms
Brembo GT Front Brake Kit / 4 Pistion 355MM
ATE Rebuilt Rear Calipers
Rear Brembo Brake Cross Drilled Rotors
Rear Brembo Brake Pads
Goodridge SS Brake Lines (F&R)
H&R Spacers (I believe it's 12MM Front and 15MM Rear)



OEM Set Up





While the wheel liners were out, I took the opportunity to clean them up




Out with the old in with the NEW



Syncro Design Works Thrust Arms.

Since the OEM Thrust Arms were worn and on the way out I did some quick research to find that these were available, figuring they would improve handling and were about the same price as the OEM I would give these a try.



What a great looking piece!


Test Fit / No Spacers




Test Fit with the spacers

[Detailers Domain]

Brembo GT Front Brake Kit







Some Install photos






Rear Brakes

[Detailers Domain]

A few more photos with the M Parallels with Spacers

[assclown]

beautiful! i remember seeing my first m sport 740iL in the late 90s when I was in school and fell in love!

[MarcoF90]

Was the Alpina Front lip easy to fit on to the front bumper? I am looking at going for an Alpina-esque appearance and have compiled my list of alpina parts I need and that is one of them.

[Detailers Domain]

Originally Posted by MarcoF90

Was the Alpina Front lip easy to fit on to the front bumper? I am looking at going for an Alpina-esque appearance and have compiled my list of alpina parts I need and that is one of them.

I believe it's 2 - 4 screws and its fitted snug

[Wolf 335]

Do you rub in the rear when suspension compresses on dips in the road?

[M-technik-3]

Have always liked the e38's. The car has presence now. Might be over looked by others but I'd spot it out of the crowd!

[Detailers Domain]

Originally Posted by Wolf 335

Do you rub in the rear when suspension compresses on dips in the road?

with this set up yes with a 4 adults in the car I do rub a bit. reduced the rubbing when we went up a turn or 2 and up to a stiffer setting and it reduced it a lot, under heavy load though I will still get some rubbing but far less.

[Maciej]

I can't get over the attention to detail every time I see this car in person, genuinely becoming a time machine a this point. LOVE IT!

[PunsGalore]

This thread is awesome

[Detailers Domain]

Full Interior Restoration

OEM Sport Steering Wheel refinished


The factory interior pieces were all worn due to age ..... Headliner / A/B/C Pillars/ Sunroof Shade / Sun Visor / Rear Deck Lid all redone in alcantara








Front seats were shipped out and restored to as new with new leather skins





Nice and tight


Front seats are in!




Rear deck lid restored and installed


Seats were pulled out for a thorough cleaning and conditioning








Deep cleaning with extraction and Nanolex Professional Interior Cleaner with Odex














Rendition Cup Holder with USB Ports to replace the old OEM ash tray



Dash Vent replaced with new one


B Pillars were damaged, lucky to find these brand new OEM ones still in stock (other colors NLA) when I ordered the black ones were still available.


Top one was buckling, botton one new OEM





Polished out the wood trim with a Rupes ibrid and Rupes Fine Polish


Removed the wood shift knob and replaced it with an all leather OEM version


Rear sun shades were replaced


Beat up oem floor mats were swapped out for new! New OEM fronts and OE rears (NLA)



Putting it all back together

[Detailers Domain]

A common problem fixed / dead pixels .... unfortunately I can't find the dead pixel photos

New screen

[tracer bullet]

Awesome build! Thanks for taking the time to document it here. I love that you are restoring the original parts when you can instead of just buying all new.

[LH44]

This is so cool.

[Detailers Domain]

Originally Posted by tracer bullet

Awesome build! Thanks for taking the time to document it here. I love that you are restoring the original parts when you can instead of just buying all new.

I would love to get new but since most are NLA I have to fix or restore them.

Originally Posted by FC4

This is so cool.

thank you.

[Detailers Domain]

some audio upgrades....

Swapped out the OEM head unit for an updated AVIN with Apple Car Play...loved it for the look and fitment.........









Unfortunately digging deeper with the audio system I found, the rear deck speakers were disintegrated and a few of the speakers were blown.



Blown speakers






BavAuto 5 inch Woofers - direct replacements in





Focals in doors











OEM Speakers


Focal Speakers


Focal 6 Channel Amp

[W///]

My goodness, this is a new car! I should send you my E36 M3