Dinan SC'ed E36 M3

[Blueshark]

I am looking at a 1995 Dinan E36 M3 that is for sale.
The facts:
75k on the chassis
Motor replaced at 65k when SC was installed (S50 3.0L BMW OEM Long Block)
New Rear diff w/ 3.42 gears
Dinan Stage III Suspension

Haven't runa carfax yet, but curious of what too look out for other than the typical waterpump, tranny mounts, diff mounts, etc.
Any help would be great, first time I've toyed with the idea of an FI car and getting excited but don't want to make a bad move

[dynopowa]

Here's a quick test that I do:

1) With the car cold, take the top radiator hose and squeeze it. The hose should be easy to squeeze. If its hard, this can mean that you have a potential head gasket problem.

2) Turn the car on and let it run for a few minutes. When the engine is warn, remove the oil cap and look for blow-by.

3) When you have the oil cap off, look to see if you have any gunk on the cap.. If the head gasket is gone, you'll see signs of anti-freeze mixing with the oil.

4) Take a look at the coolant reseviour - for any signs of oil in the antifreeze. Now would be a good time to see if the owner uses BMW coolant or the green stuff.

5) Check the condition of the supercharger belt. Look for signs of the belt having any sort of walking issues. Check around for belt dust.

If the car passes the visual test, take the car to a local mechanic and have them do a compression and leakdown test.

I would also go to a local dyno shop, and have the car dyno tested. Be sure to check your AFRs. You should have AFRs no higher than 12.5:1 when you have boost.

[Blueshark]

I'm having a buyer's check completed on Monday, unfortunately I'm in MD and the car is in CO. So I'm going to have to trust the mechanic until I get there. He is an independent Dinan Dealer though so he should be one of my best options. But when I get there I will def check these things. I've seen the dyno charts and my guess is its only running 5-6psi at the most which doesn't seem to be outrageous to me, but please let me know if I'm wrong. Thanks for the info

[dynopowa]

good luck with it.

If you have access to a peake research bmw code scanner.. I would bring it with you. Scan for any potential stored codes.

If you have a generic OBD-II scanner. Bring that along too. Check for stored codes, and also check your LTFTs (both banks). You want to make sure the tune is okay. Look for LTFTs in the -7 to +7 area. Anything more, would indicate that the part throttle tuning is off.

Also, the generic OBD-II scanner will be able to tell you the state of the OBD-II readiness test.

If these tests are marked "not completed" this may be an indication that the codes were recently cleared... or there is something preventing these test from being run to completion... many new state emission tests require these readiness test to be completed.

You can read more about these test, by googling "obd2 readiness tests"

Please be careful when dealing with FI cars. So many things can go wrong.. and the things that can go wrong can cost a great deal of time and effort to track down and fix.

Take it from someone who's been there and done that.

FYI: I think dinan is a fine tuner, and if the car wasn't abused, your tuning should be fine. But, I'd rather see you play it safe.

[Blueshark]

Thanks man,
I'll let you know what I hear from the mechanics check tomorrow. Hoping I don't run into problems arranging everything since I live in MD and the car is halfway across the country, but I guess "it is what it is". Hopefully I will be joining you all within the next week.

[Blueshark]

Mechanics check went well, only minor easily fixable things, but the guy would not budge from $21k which I think is too much for the car, although modded car do offer somewhat of a subjective value. Thanks for you help.

[Flounder]

on a E46 M3... its a nice car. Did you buy it??

P.S. If I enter races that are far away, Less competition shows up and I place better. *shrug*
2003 M3 SMG Loaded
2003 330XI Prem/Sport/Cold/Step Steel Grey (Supercharged, Dinan & lowered)
2003 330XI Prem/Sport/Cold/Step Steel Blue(Sold "old blue")
Remember, You are what you eat.
Colnago Dream Plus Mapei team issue bike.

[Blueshark]

No I did not. He was asking $20,999, I offered $19k after I got the inspection done, needed a few parts, maybe $1k worth of parts and or labor. He wouldn't budge at all. I'm now hunting down an NA e36 M3, 1997, BMW Individual Avus Blue paint, only 29k miles. Hopefully it works out.