'75 E12 530i Mini-Build Thread

[MrZ]

Hi All,

My years-long quest for a pre-facelift (aka, 'power bump') E12 has come to an end with the 11/74 build Canadian Market 530i. The car was purchased by the current seller from the original owner a couple of years ago, and it seems from maintenance records that the original owner kept it roadworthy for the duration. Mileage is 196,000 kilometers.

Transport from Vancouver to the US during COVID was a bit of a challenge, but I ended finding a good import broker and auto transport company that made the process as painless as it could be all things considered.

So, about a month after the purchase the car was safely delivered to me.

Impressions:
Cosmetically, the car in in fair to good shape, having no serious rust that I've come across yet. The Polaris paint has been resprayed at least once, and by the amount of bubbling and overspray not very well. Overall, it's a 10-footer, but (notably) in the condition described by the seller so in line with my expectations.






As witnessed below, the previously Marineblau velour interior has faded to a nauseating shade of violet. It was actually reupholstered by the original owner back in the late-90s, but did not fare well over the following two decades. I won't even mention the steering wheel...






From a mechanical standpoint, I'm pretty pleased with the condition. Converted to a G265/6, head replaced with later non-thermal reactor era casting, suspension is okay, upgraded to vented front rotors, etc. It made it through a 500 mile drive down the interstate with really no issues, so I consider that a win. My one gripe... someone decided to rattle can most of the bare aluminum parts in the engine compartment.


So, all in all the car is as described by the seller and in road worthy condition. But, this wouldn't be a build thread without actual projects, so here's what's on the docket (some of this has already been completed, just need to get pics uploaded):

* Interior: I got a hold of some factory Nylonbraun corduroy material for the seats. I've also sourced a set of E21 Recaros, which (luckily) bolt right up to the early E12s with standard 2002 adapters. I've also sourced matching carpet and door cards. Sorry to the fans of blue interior...

* Suspension/Wheels: H&R springs and Bilstein HD (Front) and Sports (Rear). I've also sourced a set of staggered BBS RS 005 16x7 ET11 and RS 061 16X8 ET20.

* Exterior: Euro bumpers are sourced and assembled. Working on installation now.

*Engine: As mentioned, the motor is in good working order. But, not being able to let well enough alone I've sourced a complete M102 turbo setup from a member here. Yes, there are better/more efficient turbo setups, but that's not really what I'm going for on this car. More along the lines of 'if the M102/M106 was in production in 1975, what would a factory install on an E12 look like'? This will be accompanied by Megasquirt of a variety to be determined.

Anyway, I'll provide updates as the projects progress.

-Keith

[austin8753]

very cool. subscribed.

[hunneman]

looks like a solid car you can do alot with ..

nice color..

Good luck with it..

[kojo96]

Love that early hood! Really nice car.

[Mike W.]

10 footer maybe, but it looks sweet in the pics. I swear I'd had my first E12 a couple of years in the early 90s before I saw one with the early power bulge hood, and was just wow! They were rare even then. Early welded plenum intake, don't be so hard on the PO, Al when it gets old and gray can be difficult to make presentable, BTDT. And the interior. Funny how colors fade, I've seen window tint that was that color that surely didn't start out that way. Still, I'd take it over horsehair and steel springs. (barring your plan, just with a couple of cans of fabric spray)

[Bonsaibacker]

Great find. That interior is hard to lookout although the tape deck brings back memories!
Following and looking forward updates.

[Galahad]

I know everyone will disagree with me, but I think the seats are great. Looks like the passenger one needs to be restuffed or something.

[MrZ]

I know everyone will disagree with me, but I think the seats are great. Looks like the passenger one needs to be restuffed or something.

[tig]

I love it. Way to make it your own.

[muleskinner]

Looking forward to seeing the transformation. Terry Sayther turbo'd one of these back in the day. It was wicked fast and a blast to drive.

[maybeillbuyit]

Hey congrats on the car. I've actually come close to buying that car 3 times over the years. I new the previous seller a little and know he had done quite a bit of work to it. Looking forward to the build. Lots of good info over on FirstFives if you haven't been there yet, although its pretty quiet on there these days.

[MrZ]

Hey congrats on the car. I've actually come close to buying that car 3 times over the years. I new the previous seller a little and know he had done quite a bit of work to it. Looking forward to the build. Lots of good info over on FirstFives if you haven't been there yet, although its pretty quiet on there these days.

Very cool. I've been on FirstFives over the years since I owned my first E12 about a decade ago. Traffic has definitely slowed down there.

I actually have a request for you since it looks like you own a '77. Since you know my car, you might remember that the original owner had converted to electric '78+ side mirrors. I'm in the process of removing all of that and reinstalling the pre-'78 flag mirrors that bolt directly to the door.

What I need, though, are measurements for where to place the drivers side mounting plate/screws. Could I bother you to provide the measurements for A, B, and C in the picture below from your car? The black dots representing the mounting screws/holes that are in the mounting plate behind the mirror base.



Thanks,
Keith

[maybeillbuyit]

OK , so I removed the mirror and took some pics. Sorry for the shitty old yard stick. Both my good rulers are hiding in the mess of my garage.
When I bought my car it had the larger power mirror on the driver side and the smaller flag mirror on the pass side. I found a power passenger side mirror in a yard so thats whats on now. They both use the same mounting holes so check out the pics. If you need more info PM me

56CA448D-F1C9-4938-BD05-AA4895721291 by Dave Grayson, on Flickr
4DB39854-8C83-48AE-BC24-918F2AC047AC by Dave Grayson, on Flickr
723EAED4-E120-4E9F-90FE-23FC56C0C305 by Dave Grayson, on FlickrF739A705-A0F9-44B9-81CA-8890902DED35 by Dave Grayson, on Flickr

My drivers side has a factory stiffening plate that is inside the door and makes the Mirror a lot more stable and firmly mounted. The pass side just has the factory nuts mounted inside the door and the mirror isn't nearly as firm. It shakes around a bit. I need to do something about that someday. Something to consider if you are starting from scratch. I would also say BMW mounted those mirrors about 4-6 inches too far back to really give a good view. That was remedied by the e28 style mirror. Just my opinion.

[maybeillbuyit]

Realoem pic of plate. No 17
Screen Shot 2020-11-25 at 4.23.48 PM by Dave Grayson, on Flickr

[MrZ]

Thanks, really appreciate it!

Is the mounting position the same for the driver and passenger side? Or is the passenger side set back further to the rear of the car?

[maybeillbuyit]

Hey you're welcome. Thats a good question. I'll take a look in the morning, I think it was the same.

[Adam W in MN]

Very cool E12 and congrats on the purchase. I do kind of like the purple interior actually.

Are you going to strengthen the diff mount since you are adding a turbo setup? With the power you'll have i would say it's mandatory.

[Crazy_Canuck]

* Interior: I got a hold of some factory Nylonbraun corduroy material for the seats. I've also sourced a set of E21 Recaros, which (luckily) bolt right up to the early E12s with standard 2002 adapters. I've also sourced matching carpet and door cards. Sorry to the fans of blue interior...

When you have the Recaro's re-upholstered, reinforce the lower bolsters wire bar. The bar likes to rip the sheet metal pan.

I would also double check that the drivers seat back is not twisted, it is not uncommon on E21 Recaro's.

[maybeillbuyit]

Thanks, really appreciate it!

Is the mounting position the same for the driver and passenger side? Or is the passenger side set back further to the rear of the car?

Just checked and the mirrors are in the same position.

[MrZ]

Thanks, really appreciate it!

Is the mounting position the same for the driver and passenger side? Or is the passenger side set back further to the rear of the car?

Just checked and the mirrors are in the same position.

Great, thanks for checking.

Are you going to strengthen the diff mount since you are adding a turbo setup? With the power you'll have i would say it's mandatory.

Yeah, this is a good point. Even without additional torque the mount is suspect.

When you have the Recaro's re-upholstered, reinforce the lower bolsters wire bar. The bar likes to rip the sheet metal pan.

I would also double check that the drivers seat back is not twisted, it is not uncommon on E21 Recaro's.

Yeah these already went down to Dave Varco at Aardvarc for the necessary repairs along with reupholstering.

[MrZ]

Finally getting around to an update on the E12.

As mentioned in my first post, the first thing that had to go was the pimpin' purple interior. Step one was to pull the seats and carpet, and begin removing the factory sound deadener. This was achieved using a heat gun and putty knife, using mineral spirits and a rag to remove any remaining residue. This shot is about 80% removed:


Once the sound deadening removal was complete (several days of labor and blistered hands), I proceeded with removing the dash.

Next, being a '75 US-spec car, it came equipped with the dreaded seat belt start interlock, warning lights, etc. Also, there was a myriad of wiring both inside and under the hood for the EGR. The bundle below is the result of excising all of this from the harness:


Next came decisions about sound upgrades. The general theme on this car is to keep any mods subtle and/or invisible, so I wanted makes sure I could keep any sound upgrades mostly out of sight. I purchased the car with a mid-80s Sony cassette deck powering two 6 inch speakers in the kick panels and two four inch speakers in the rear:





Since early E12s came with equipped a mono in-dash speaker, I got the idea that I could find a correct factory Blaupunkt for 75-76 model years and use it to power the in dash speaker.



A few months of searching Ebay.de I found a correct Euro-spec Bavaria radio. Notice the correct knobs, which took several more months of searching to locate:



I'd been toying with the idea of a Bluetooth-equipped amp for some time on other projects, and it seemed like this would be a good platform to try it out on. The amp can be mounted out of sight and power four speakers in the factory kick panel and parcel tray locations. For the amp, I opted for a Kenwood KAC-M1824BT mounted under the driver's seat. For speakers, I went with with Infinity Kappa 64cfx 4x6 panel component speakers.





For the rears, I wanted to make sure they were mounted such that they could be covered by the parcel tray:





Compact powered subwoofers are in a sort of renaissance right now with modern infotainment integration being all the rage, so after some deliberation and measuring I found that I could mount an Infinity Basslink Mini under the passenger seat:


Power to the amp and subwoofer only required 10ga wire which I was able to run through two blank fuse locations in the fuse block.

Next came sound deadening an heat reduction. Using Dynamat was a no-brainer, but I also needed to find a suitable replacement for the rubber and foam factory sound deadening that's used against the firewall, in the footwells, and over the trans tunnel. I would have reused the factory stuff, but it was pretty funky smelling. Thus, after a bit of research I landed on Dynapad which is expensive but really the best stuff out there per pound for quality sound and heat absorbing. Using the factory stuff as a template, I ended up with this:



Next up was the steering wheel. The car came to me with a Nardi knock-off wheel which was objectively terrible, but the factory wheel was also not to my liking being both too large (400mm) and ugly as sin. E12.de maintains an awesome archive of E12-specific sales literature, and from a 1976 accessory catalog learned that several Petri wheels were available for E12s in Europe. I've always liked the 'Turbo' wheel that many of the 2002 guys use, and lo and behold they were a dealer option on the early E12s:


More Ebay.de searching and I eventually found a complete 380mm version. Spline count and spacing was a perfect fit:



Finally, for upholstery, I knew early on that I did not want to keep the blue interior. I love that the car came with velour from the factory, and I knew that I wanted to go with a cloth interior rather than velour or vinyl/leather. After pouring over archive photos on E12.de, I discovered that corduroy upholstery was available in Europe on early E12s, in gray, blue, beige, and green. I really liked the look of the beige (i.e., 'nylonbraun') interiors in pictures, and set out to find the correct upholstery.

By pure luck, it happened that a guy living in Poland on one of the Facebook groups I'm in had several yards of the correct factory BMW corduroy upholstery that I needed. A few messages, payment, and a couple weeks of shipping later and I had enough fabric to do probably four cars:


Obviously, doing a color change to nylonbraun also required carpet and door cards. I knew that sourcing these was going to be a challenge, but ended up finding a real gem for E12 spares at classicbmwparts.nl. They were able to send good-condition carpet and door cards with a few weeks shipping at a very reasonable price.

For seats, the early E12s mount differently than the later cars, and I suspected early on that the bolt spacing was the same as the 2002. I had a friend's 2002 at the time with a set of E21 Recaros that could be test fitted. They bolted right up, which was a pleasant surprise:


So, I went about locating a set of E21 Recaros locally and deciding where to have them and the rear seat upholstered. My friend used Aardvarc in Bonita, CA for his 2002 and it really came out nice. After chatting with the owner (Dave), I arranged for everything to go down to him. About a month later, the end product for the interior finally came together:




I have a few more interior projects on the horizon, but next I'll post about exterior, suspension, and mechanical things.

[Adam W in MN]

Great update! I really approve of the steering wheel choice.

Thanks for the tip on the speakers as I have been wondering/searching the forums on and off for one that will work with the shallow e12 depth. I assume they would also be good for E28 front kick panels.

How did you handle the thickness of the sound deadening to replace the factory foam under the carpet? I doubled or tripled mine in a few places and the carpet still doesn't sit right because the factory foam was thicker.

I'm not a fan of tan interior but you ended up with a very nice finished product.

[Foonfer]

One of the most used-up expressions in real estate is the reference to "good bones" when an old house is well built but doesn't look like it. It seems like you are working with very, very "good bones" in this case. I hit that "subscribe" button real hard.

[MrZ]

Great update! I really approve of the steering wheel choice.

Thanks for the tip on the speakers as I have been wondering/searching the forums on and off for one that will work with the shallow e12 depth. I assume they would also be good for E28 front kick panels.

How did you handle the thickness of the sound deadening to replace the factory foam under the carpet? I doubled or tripled mine in a few places and the carpet still doesn't sit right because the factory foam was thicker.

I'm not a fan of tan interior but you ended up with a very nice finished product.

Regarding the speakers, I should note that the PO trimmed the kick panel to fit the 6 1/2 in speakers, mostly opening the hole towards the door frame. This allowed the speakers I used to fit, and I was still able to position the speaker so that the cover fit in the correct position.

The factory sound deadening really wasn’t that thick. The rubber part is like 1/8” and the foam is <1/2”. The Dynapad is around 1/2”, so I didn’t really notice any carpet fitment issues.

I generally agree with you on tan interiors. On this car, the light color interior (vs. black or blue) just struck me as a better fit for a car with such a prominent ‘green house’ of glass. The black, blue, and grey interior also lack the color contrast of how this turned out, which to me really makes the look.

[muleskinner]

Car is looking awesome. That sound system is also going to kick some ass.