So.. on the roadtrip the compact developed a creeping problem with the clutch bearing. It started when
DanRoM drove it from Sarajevo back to Rama lake. At the viewpoint i smelled something burning.
After that, the clutch bearing started to get louder and louder untill i could really feel it on the clutch pedal. Something was wrong. To prevent a catastrophic failure i had to source a new bearing somewhere in the Dubrovnik area. Thanks to a croatian e30 owning friend who lives in the area i was able to source a repair pit 100m away from our camping in Kupari. Ivan drove me into dubrovnik, to buy the clutch kit, and we were ready to go.
But before we could get going, i had to help repair a T4 with a burst coolant pipe.
Then it was the Compacts turn
This pic shows how intense everything was.
Some rare pics of the process, since we were quite busy and had dirty fingers.
The standard BMW extension game:
Finally, the gearbox is separated from the engine and the bearing was procured:
New bearing:
Old bearing:
Job done:
At this point we were both very tired. We wiped down with Lidl wipes as best as we could and went to the beach to have a swim. The roadtrip could be resumed.
In zeljava it became obvious that the clutch plate itself is also on its way out, so this is next on the agenda. Changing the flywheel from a dual mass to a single mass, which has been additionally machined and is now about 2kg lighter still.
Another thing that will also be added is an LSD, which i procured just today.
I’ll keep you posted.
A special thanks to
DaBoom !!!! He’s such a trooper and this operation wouldn’t have gone so smoothly without him.