TVR T350
TVR T350
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BMW M3 Race Car
3.0 Litre
The picture above is of the old engine being lifted out of the car, and below is the replacement M3 engine. This engine had been fitted to a competition car, but had only done one season of racing. Nevertheless, the engine will be rebuilt and upgraded to provide a reliable power unit for the seasons racing.
I have been looking after this car for some time, upgrading and renewing brakes, suspension etc, and recently fitted a protective mesh on the front bumper to stop stones/debris damaging the radiator.
However, it was too little, too late as unknown to both myself and the owner, a small hole was already present in the radiator. The consequence was that the coolant finally leaked out at Donnington and the car overheated.
The head gasket on the engine was compromised and would require replacing. The engine had done some hard racing over the previous couple of years, so a decision was taken to upgrade the engine and rebuild it. The car is going to go up to the M1 class, and the engine will develop a lot more power than previously.
The story is of the engine build, the up grades and finally a video of the car in action.
The new engine was stripped down the the block and measurements taken on the bores and crankshaft etc. The engine was found to be in a. good shape, with all the tolerances within limits. The lightened steel flywheel and clutch assembly from the old engine were to be used, as they were new, and the new engine didn't have a flywheel fitted when it arrived. However, as we were bolting on a new flywheel and a modified front pulley, the crankshaft would require to be balanced, along with the pistons.
The left hand video, shows the bronze bar being machined to size. Here the part that will become the threaded section, is being turned to a diameter of 22mm, before being screw cut with the new thread.
On the right, the hexagonal part of the plug is being made, the part set up on the rotary table, which makes the process straightforward.
Once the hexagonal part is completed, the piece is put back in the lathe, for the thread to be screw cut. This is shown below, and the finished plug fitted to the block.