Project E30 / Ep. 21 / Dashboard Swap and Second Drive

I scored a deal on an un-cracked dashboard. In this video we'll swap it in and also take the E30 for a spin to see how it performs with the new suspension.

[@2candan1]

Makes such a difference to the car, and yet having watched this I feel 100% certain I do not want to change mine 😂

[@WelcomeToTheMadness]

Always love your work, enjoy the E30 man!

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

Thank you! I hope to drive it as much as possible.

[@denismrzljak3244]

I love these videos man. I am on the look out for an e30 myself and this series is what cinched it for me! Can't wait for the next video.

[@e36s50b30]

I love your channel and the way you approach issues on your car. I also like the way you appreciate older technology.

[@chawenhalo0089]

Great stuff. Nice to see it all come together!

[@VehicleVirals]

$175 for a crack free e30 dash?! I can't even find one for cheaper than $600!

[@jaimeimran1306]

i realize it is kinda randomly asking but does anyone know of a good site to watch newly released movies online?

[@kairodavian114]

@Jaime Imran flixportal :)

[@jaimeimran1306]

@Kairo Davian thank you, I went there and it seems to work :D I appreciate it !!

[@kairodavian114]

@Jaime Imran glad I could help :D

[@robsfooty]

So impressive to see it on the road again. Very inspiring after watching all the work you have put in. Congrats!

[@jah2mon]

Awesome detail in this video, you're killing it!

[@chrismoe2926]

Thank you much for the great videos! These have really helped me save my own '89 325is. Being a younger enthusiast, its nice to know fantastic resources like this are out there for the E30. Keep it up!

[@justingustafson7964]

Great job yet again. That was such wise money spent on the alignment as well.

[@MrEdit74]

Crazy work man

[@michaelvangheem5893]

Practical Enthusiast So glad to see you doing right be this E30. Terrific build! I wish I could have shared some of those first-time-Bimmer-owner tricks to spare you some aggravation. But after driving it - I'm sure you'll agree this build is worth every penny and every bit of time you're putting into it. Drive 'er hard!

[@playlistforkids]

love the E30 - great video series

[@ericgunnyporter8964]

I was gonna install a cap in my E30 but saw your video and pulled my old cracked dash out , and installed another I bought from a salvage yard and it looks much better. Thanks

[@stevewuertz3598]

I've started but not completed my dash board swap in my 91 318IS. I took the "as long as I'm in here " approach. Heater fan blower resistor replaced, disassemble and test and lube the fan, change all heater hoses, replace AC components related to a full R134 swap. It adds a lot of time and money to the project. I have to say, of all the E30 tasks so far, I did NOT enjoy this one-its awkward and tight and uncomfortable spending an hour on my back under the dash. Its a complicated job with all the ac/heater vents The other suggestion I'd make to other E30's out there is to clean contacts, check grounds, replace all the dashboard lights when the assemblies are already sitting on your bench. My car had 200K on the clock so I just replace everything before it dies. Great series-I always look forward to seeing your clips. Keep up the great work

[@danbmx445]

I go off the gas light since the gauge on mine doesn't work. Great videos man, motivates me to refresh my suspension

[@jameezy32]

Thank god for the logo refresh. Looking real spiffy.

[@GuitarTy69]

I absolutely love your work

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

Thank you!

[@egbertgroot2737]

You just motivated me to start working on mine!

[@Erikson.Frederick]

Great find! Im also sporting the grand canyon in mine

[@McNasty43]

I thought I was about to hear some Steely Dan when that music started playing.

[@jeffeffinggluck]

Looks great!!

[@sgomez3047]

Nice work PE!

[@amanwithhiscigaretteandcof3474]

Dont ever dare do other video than your e30. I watch all your video about e30. And i always waiting for next episode. cheers from Indonesia.

[@VisceralVibrations]

you have great taste in vehicles. i bought a 91 vfr750 because of your video a couple years ago. i just bought a 91 318i e30 a couple months ago and stumbled upon your new e30 videos. so cool :)

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

Sounds like you have good taste as well! They both are approachable classics that have looks and character.

[@jeffeffinggluck]

sounds great!!

[@goathammerclog9535]

"that's enough talk" 3 mins in lol then great video.

[@shathiso]

Lovely work man.

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

Thank you!

[@mrpistonrecaro6483]

Great deal on a good dash

[@kbquigs21]

Depends on where in Kansas, but you should head to northwest Arkansas. We have some crazy windy roads and my E30 eats them up. Some really great drives around here.

[@iamCairn]

Love your videos! Pulling a dash for my first time on one of these took way longer than you haha

[@motorcyclemicah6309]

Nice job!

[@joejoebear3326]

Hey I’m from the olathe Kansas area! Thought I recognized some of the scenery! I’m actually starting an e30 build next month

[@anilec333]

The day past , and the e30 research increase day by day! Is e30 owner happy 😃

[@Spaghetti-O]

Super helpful video thank you! I am probably going to flock my Grand Canyon at some point soon...I have some fear and this helps.

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

Just be patient with the process and you can do it. I may do a video of flocking the old dashboard eventually. We'll see.

[@bigsur175]

You got a deal I would be happy with your old one

[@lesleyallotey4343]

hello my friend i love these

[@mhyar]

love it

[@Raulmtz69]

You great tips! What are we supposed to do about the VIN# tag?

[@vroomkeys]

175 ! You got a nice price. There's a guy here in Los Angeles, CA trying to get 500 bucks... I need one for my 1991 E30 325i

[@howardtakavingofa5270]

Good video keep it up man I love bmw forever

[@noelaguirre7104]

Dashboard looks fresh, so when you finally deregulate the car from the garage apply some plastic/rubber moisturizer, that thing will look nice for a very long time.

[@matreyia]

Apparently it's easier to remove the windshield and then the dash. I am going to try this on my e28 when I do my dash.

[@fredoo9835]

You should put the clear ceramic tint in the front to protect the dash

[@Restomanas]

It's more interesting to watch after I bought my first e30.

[@lesleyallotey4343]

sorry hello my friend i really love what you are doing. my name is Lesley i have this e30 series and i want to do it just like the way you did thank you

[@Dutch94]

You can get the gaskets for the heatercore at the dealer

[@voltairee3012]

Car looks great. Sad you live Kansas. I love ripping mine on curvy roads. Ill be doing an 885 head swap on my eta. Prepping it for a turbo.

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

Thanks! I'm jealous of anyone with quick access to good roads. It sounds like you have an awesome project ahead!

[@voltairee3012]

@@PracticalEnthusiast should be a well rounded canyon carver. Looking for 3-350 whp on pump. Just changed out my one blown and one tired rear bilstein sports tonight. Such a difference. I have been running the h&r race and bilstein for 5 years. Love it. 22mm front and 19mm rear. Great combo. But even just the front its more neutral, but still rotates nicely.

[@jamesmullins7705]

I've been looking for a crackles dash under 300$ for ages you lucky son of a gun

[@franciscomaldonado2932]

Is the ride very smooth with the B8 suspension? I'm looking for a really comfortable ride for my e30 as my city has pretty bad roads. Just having a hard time deciding between Bilstein and Koni suspension.

[@arvidsnatins6308]

Love your work! Btw, the seats you have in the car right now are not OEM, you should try to find some sportsitze seats and then the car is going to fell much different ;) You will love it.

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

I have some sport seats waiting to go in, but of course they need recovered too!

[@ArcticAutoWerks]

Time for an exhaust!

[@bigsur175]

I got a perfect one but I'm scared to start the job it's been a rough job changing mine from automatic to manual and my wiring harness looks like a rat's nest

[@redeemedheathen]

If you think that steering input is good then you would love an e36 steering rack replacement, that's going from 4 turns lock to lock, to 3.2 turns LTL. Or, if you can find it, then go for a z3 non-M version rack with 2.7 turns LTL ratio, which is nuts! Lots of info on this on R3vlimited or Bimmerforums

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

I might have to look into one of these steering rack swaps. They seem like an affordable way to really enhance the car.

[@cocoyc495]

I watch your videos instead of working on my e34. It's too cold...even in the garage!

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

I feel your pain! Spring is hopefully just around the corner...

[@cladypvp3957]

Guys someone can help me to connect temp gauge and tacho meter on the original Bmw e30 Cluster?

[@miatafan]

Now that the old one is out you should repair the cracks and flock the dashboard. Then you can sell it and make some of your money back

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

Not a bad idea! I've had the old dash up for sale for $30 with no interest. Maybe I should try to repair it for the heck of it.

[@miatafan]

Practical Enthusiast might as well, gives you practice repairing dashboards Incase you have a car that you can’t find a replacement. Not to mention you can make a video out of it too.

[@ivojara]

How are we supposed to know how to get it out if you fast forward it ???

[@jerryldavis1823]

I miss your old superbike reviews.

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

I know, I'll be doing some more once the weather gets better here. First gen CBR 900RR will be the next one.

[@scottstone686]

/?Another awesome video! I love the music you use. What is it?

[@josuegutierrez2383]

I can’t help but notice that your Inspection Light bars are out, did you ever happen to resolve that issue? I am asking because mine are out as well.

[@poching0521]

Your E30 is looking better and better! Do you have sport seats? I just took a dash out from a parts car few days ago to harvest some HVAC parts. It was fun to take it off without concern of putting it back on :P. Some 303 over the dash will prevent it from future cracking. Did you check your circulation shutter doors when you have the dash off? They are very prone to cracking. The best time to repair them is when the dash is off. My wife drives a mazda too. She was not happy that my needy E30 took over her garage space and so many weekend hours. .ha Love your new channel icon

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

I'm lucky to say my wife has been understanding of the BMW...so far haha. It's taken the Mazda's garage spot for over half a year now! I do have sport seats, but they too need to be recovered. The idea is to recover the original rear seat and then swap in the recovered sport seats. I gave shutter doors a brief look over while it was apart and they seemed to be working alright.

[@philh3178]

I enjoy your E30 videos but I also have some daily drivers in the family stable that need similar work as your Mazda 3. Would you consider making a video of that work too?

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

I've finished the Mazda already, I was in a crunch for time and couldn't record the process. I'll be sure to document it on the next one!

[@richyroli6124]

Quick question... I noticed you temp needle never went to mid point. My 325is only goes up to the first quarter and I was thinking it might be a stuck thermostat. Do you have any insight on this?

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

It's completely normal. This car has a new thermostat in it, and the gauge/sensors are fine. I've noticed other BMWs tend to read below middle of the gauge as well. Nothing to worry about!

[@michaelvangheem5893]

@@PracticalEnthusiast Concur. Brand new temp sensor and thermostat and needle registers a little below mid point. Only disconcerting if you have newer Bimmers which are very consistent with top dead center temp readings.

[@retrokiller8817]

did You figure out whats this high pitched noise ? kinda like diff whining or super tight aux or timing belt

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

It was the transmission. I ended up replacing the transmission with a known-good used one and it went away. Not sure if it was caused by input shaft bearing wear or gear wear because the transmission had been run low on oil.

[@bigsur175]

What springs have you got mine has tokico mine isn't but 4 inches off the ground

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

I put the H&R OE Sports on it.

[@CurithirObila]

How many hours did you need for remplace this part?

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

The dash swap took me about 16 hours.

[@polloloci21]

$175?!?!!? Those were the days.

[@jacobsmith374]

What shop did you take your E30 to? I see you live in JoCo, I live in shawnee and my track build e30 needs an alignment

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

Check out Blue Label Racing, they know how to do a special alignment.

[@buonanotteturchia]

175 bucks for that dashboard is almost FREE.

[@bmw-e30]

Bmw still supply the heater gasket you made up in the video. Its a job that you do once and never again.

[@bigsur175]

How long did it actually take to get the old one out

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

It took about half a day, 5 hours at least. A little less to get the new one back in.

[@bigsur175]

@@PracticalEnthusiast thanks I need to get mine running again lol

[@Roubian1]

Ah so your temp gauge does not read right in the middle as well? I was going to replace the thermostat in mine because I thought it was stuck open.

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

I think it's pretty normal for the gauge to read like that. I've noticed that it will get closer to middle after driving it for quite a while.

[@Roubian1]

Practical Enthusiast same here. I was not sure if my thermostat was bad or the car would run in that range.

[@Iceeeen]

Wouldn't be supprised if your oil cooler thermostat has seen it's best days. The gauge should sit in the middle with an 88c water thermostat

[@jessebemboom9637]

Wait....u have a racetrack in kansas... heartland park in topeka.. I go there & run their road course sometimes.

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

I've done some motorcycle track days out there. It's a fun track. Maybe I'll get this car out there sometime.

[@jessebemboom9637]

@@PracticalEnthusiast I would love to see that footage. I go to the track nights in America events out there.

[@luqmannulhakim8818]

Sorry of asking, what is under the rpm?

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

That's the fuel economy gauge. It tells you the immediate MPG.

[@luqmannulhakim8818]

@@PracticalEnthusiast oh okay, thank you for reply. By the way, e30 is my dream car😎😎

[@gabe5109]

do you live in lawrence kansas by chance judging by the KU shirts, neighborhood and license plates because i actually lived there for 12 years!

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

Lived in Lawrence for most my life but now live in the KC area.

[@gabe5109]

oh cool i didn't bother watching all of your video until i watched the previous ones but now its obvious from the drive its the kc area so uh yeah

[@diffe]

How much uve spent on the project already? Seems pretty expensive

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

It's a lot. After the interior is finished, I'll be knocking on the door of $9,000 all in. I'll do a recap expenses video once it's "done".

[@diffe]

@@PracticalEnthusiast Thanks, keep up the great work!

[@tomaal]

Wife?! lol. I thought you're 19y old kid living with their parents hahah, Love the E30 Project series man, good stuff!

[@1knowsnothing1]

$600 on eBay says, yeah, great deal

[@jackman8929]

man I need to do something about the dash in my 325i vert. It's cracked to shit

[@S1ckbg]

The gearbox seems to whine alot when you accelerate

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

Supercharger without the side effect of speed!

[@friguy4444]

As much work as it may be to pull the dash $175.00 for a perfect dash is a great price IMHO.

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

Agreed! I hope I can keep this one from cracking.

[@laidback93]

@@PracticalEnthusiast Agreed. You got a steal on that dash. I'd love to find one of the new BMW production run dashes with the better plastic compounds. I'm sure they're all comfy in their new homes not worrying about cracking.

[@Justin-ry2kh]

Try car-part.com I have used them a lot. It searches all of the junkyards in whatever radius you want. A lot of times they'll ship too if the junk yard is far.

[@ccccchao]

$175 for crack free dash in 2019!? More like $1750 in australia here

[@why_11.]

Cheokhang Chao yeah he got extremely lucky lol

[@JD-ml7cg]

You sound like Peter Parker 🕷️🕸️

[@chasetiemeyer1056]

Lindsay has officially lost her spot in the garage.

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

This may be true. Don't tell her.

[@Hendoneesia]

Relegated*

[@jeffeffinggluck]

still need the bottlecaps

[@royobanen1507]

Brother good video BUT TERRIBLE showing on the screws and what type of socket you need for real get it together and show these things.

[@mrvalleycheer]

Where are you located?

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

KC!

[@mrvalleycheer]

Right on, your videos help a lot. Thank you.

[@GravytrainE30]

I have an 87 325es. I have a serious whine when I take off because it had no gear oil in the trans. I have a new trans and I’m waiting for my clutch to come in to put it in. I’m not trying to be a downer, but it’s the same whine yours is making on take off. Same getrag 260.

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

The transmission is definitely worn on this car. The fluid was almost empty when I went to change it. It's topped up now and shifts reasonably well so we'll see.

[@GravytrainE30]

Practical Enthusiast I understand, I was just trying to look out for you. I know mine whines when it’s in neutral unless I press in the clutch and disengage the transmission. Mine was bone dry for a month of my daily driving after purchase, honestly impressive that it still works.

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

@@GravytrainE30 it is impressive they still work after so much abuse! I'm pretending it's a supercharger whine...

[@GravytrainE30]

Practical Enthusiast do you have plans to replace yours? I know that there isn’t a rebuild kit. Your videos are very informative and a guide would be good for when I do it

[@PracticalEnthusiast]

@@GravytrainE30 I'm not sure to be honest. I haven't taken on a transmission rebuild before, and like you said, there doesnt seem to be a rebuild kit available. Rebuilt 260's are pricey as well. It's a difficult situation!

[@Gsr_automotive]

I just realized something... the car has working blinkers

[@Gsr_automotive]

looks like someone's jealous of tavarish

[@fhdz22]

First

[@ivojara]

Useless.

[@brendanchandler1483]

You talk to your viewers like I talk to my toddler. Pleas. Stop. That.