M Technic body kit installer in Bay Area (N. California)

Specific conversations and info for the BMW E28 M5 and M535i.
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sjfirecapt
Posts: 12
Joined: Oct 24, 2018 11:56 PM
Location: San Jose, CA

M Technic body kit installer in Bay Area (N. California)

Post by sjfirecapt »

Hi all,

I'm looking for some references for a reputable and experienced body shop, with installation of E28/M-technic body kit in the Bay Area, Northern California? I know there's a few threads out there with diy install instructions, but looking to get some professional guidance before I get started putting holes in my 88 535is.

Thanks in advance,

j
ilovemycat
Posts: 173
Joined: Jul 03, 2017 4:05 PM
Location: victoria bc

Re: M Technic body kit installer in Bay Area (N. California)

Post by ilovemycat »

Hey buddy, never installed one on a us car , but I parted an M535i and am underway converting a US car to euro chrome bumpers.

A few things I can think of.

- You need a set of euro bumpers to put underneath. I assume you have them as well? Then you need either a set of the conversion brackets, or you can play around with cutting your front frame rails and welding the Euro frame rail ends on .
- If you do have a set of euro bumpers , i really recommend painting them or at least the backsides with some rust paint. The ones i pulled of my m535i had completely disintegrated ! I guess the m-tech bumpers made a really nice moisture trap for them.

- You will not be able to access the stud for the rear bumper on the right side inside the trunk of a US car. To fix this I took a dremel zip disc and elongated the hole in the sheet metal right above it by about 1". Some people cut a big ass piece of sheet metal off to access it , but I see no need , this way can be done fairly clean and discrete . With a 13mm socket , small extension on a 1/4 ratchet you should be able to juuust get the nut on .

- aS far as the spoilers go , i've heard the 3m double sided tape is the way to do it these days. That is what i will be doing on my car

- you wont have to worry about filling in the holes created by the euro conversion in the valences , as the kit will cover all that. no front valance is used with the m-tech kit.

-your us spec exhaust may be a tad too long , no problem . I plan on just using my sawzall to cut mine down. Angle grinder or metal skill saw would work too. To mark a perfectly straight cut , use a pipe wrap and a soap stone.

-Is your car already euro headlight converted ? If not you will need to decide how you want to wire them up. You can just take the backs off and run the us wires directly to them , but that is not exactly the proper way. I think ideally get the same year (diff style main connectors) euro front harness and plug and play? the euro and us fuseboxes are identical so theoretically it should work fine? This solves the turn signal connector issue as well and gives you proper euro headlight functionality. Once I get my wiring figured out I would be more than happy to share with you.

Can't think of anything else off the top of my head right now...

Personally I would just get it painted professionally and save myself a few thousand dollars in labour by doing the rest of the conversion myself , unless you plan to build the car to sell.

Don't be afraid to get a bit dirty or take an angle grinder to your car. It's what makes it yours . I wouldn't worry too much about making a few holes in it , just seal them up properly and drill them in the right spot :)
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