BiTurbo #472 now in UK - Page 2

m5 killer · 4th August 2006, 12:21

now you know a little bit about bts, you still got a long way to go it will take a few years to understand this car it will surprise you every time you drive it. enjoy

Cor-Jan · 4th August 2006, 19:21

Congrats Greg,enjoy the car.And yes,it still surprises me after 3 years.Drove it back to back with an E34M5 today and then you really feel Alpina's build quality and effortless performance.

C-J

greg1234 · 4th August 2006, 19:34

It makes for an interesting comparison with the HSV. The HSV is a lot faster for various reasons (much higher power and torque, short shifter, supercharged instead of turbocharged and much better brakes) but there's no way I could have driven as far as I did in the BiTurbo in one day. The HSV is much rougher, noisier and harder work to drive. And the build quality is in a totally different league to the HSV.

I think I'm going to take the car to Munich Legends for some of the work (air con etc) and for them to check it over... Almost certainly worth doing.

Do most BiTurbos have clutches that bite very low down near the carpet? I used to think that was a sign of a weak slave cylinder or a leak somewhere..?

london · 4th August 2006, 20:53

ML will take good care of you but they're expensive (DaveW's house is more or less mortgaged to Barney

)

m5 killer · 5th August 2006, 01:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by greg1234

It makes for an interesting comparison with the HSV. The HSV is a lot faster for various reasons (much higher power and torque, short shifter, supercharged instead of turbocharged and much better brakes) but there's no way I could have driven as far as I did in the BiTurbo in one day. The HSV is much rougher, noisier and harder work to drive. And the build quality is in a totally different league to the HSV.

I think I'm going to take the car to Munich Legends for some of the work (air con etc) and for them to check it over... Almost certainly worth doing.

Do most BiTurbos have clutches that bite very low down near the carpet? I used to think that was a sign of a weak slave cylinder or a leak somewhere..?

greg i would use mjf engineering in surrey he knows the cars very well, hes done alot of rebuilds on alpinas as well as mine theres only two people i would trust on a bt in this country one is mark at mjf and the other is phil crouch who has his own workshop space at birds in uxbridge but he is nothing to do with them, i would give the rest a miss. as for the gas its r12 and theres not many people who do that now i get mine from a fridge place in battersea he charges 60 quid cash. heres telephone numbers for the two people if you want to use them and they are alot cheaper than all the rest and they are both the best for the bt. phil crouch 07960280953...... mjf mark 01306-713232 ps theres very easy ways of making the bt faster than your holden and still be reliable, get your car sorted first and then i might tell you.

greg1234 · 5th August 2006, 10:29

Thanks for the suggestion Roger. MJF is a lot closer for me so might check him out first...

My air con apparently uses R134a - at least that what it says in the advert..? There will probably be a label under the bonnet somewhere, I'll check later.

DaveW · 5th August 2006, 11:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by london

ML will take good care of you but they're expensive (DaveW's house is more or less mortgaged to Barney

)

ML are expensive, but... they will tell you everything that needs to be done.

MJF - I like Mark but I'm not sure I would return the BT there, although I do know he has great BT references from a few guys here and did a great job on Rojer's engine. It's personal preference time!

I run R134a - had it converted by ML and it seems to work ok.

I didn't have to convert the fog lights - and it's passed several MOT's so I assume you just leave them alone.

Headlights - remove the front grill and the metal trim below the lights (a tricky pig of a job made easier if you remove the bumper which is simplicity itself). Then remove 4 philips screws each side, remove the headlamp assembly, loosen 2 little screws on the dip beam and twist through 45 degrees - easy.

Side Repeaters - buy the kit from the dealer. Cover the wing in masking tape, stick the template on the wing and carefully drill and file until you have a neat rectangular hole - I did mine and it's not difficult if you take plenty of care with the drill!

Turbo care - warm the engine gently, 3000 RPM + no boost until 80 degrees and for the cool-down, drive it gently for the last few miles and then I let it idle for about a minute before switching off. Providing the electric water pump kicks in when you switch off, water will pass through the turbos and prevent damage caused by heat soak. Oil Pressures - when hot, I have 4.5 to 5 bar during normal running and 1.8 bar at idle.

Diff temp - I use this to tell me when the diff is up to temp so that I don't abuse it until the oil is warm/hot. Normal running for me is 40 to 60 degrees and the coldest it measures is 21 degrees I think.

Cigar Lighter - check the fuses and at worst case this is just a 12v feed which you ought to be able to fix yourself - does the rear cigar lighter work?

Radio - check the amp and crossover box in the boot on the left hand side behind the trim. If the stereo is standard then this box provides the sound - the radio itself is just a pre-amp I think.

Cheers,

Dave.

greg1234 · 5th August 2006, 13:06

Thanks Dave.

Barons BMW at Hindhead claim they have no idea about the side repeater kit. Do you have a part number I can throw at them?? I also asked them about fitting the lights (they have part numbers for the individual components) but they wouldn't fit them. They reckon the age of the car means that some level of corrosion will be present (whether visible or not) and they wouldn't be responsible for making that worse by cutting holes. What sort of rust preventer did you use?

Greg

Cor-Jan · 6th August 2006, 13:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by greg1234

3. You can't really appreciate the performance if you're not on unrestricted autobahns.. If you took someone for a quick drive, they wouldn't see the car's true character. I planned to take two days for the trip but did it in onbe day without feeling tired - and it's down to the car. I can't imagine doing that in any other car. Weird. Today was (I assume) exactly what the car was built for.

Made a little movie with the photocamera today,sorry for the low quality.Thought you might like it anyway...

greg1234 · 8th August 2006, 00:57

Next impressions to report:

1. The suspension feels very hard. I think Dave suggested this isn't how the suspension is supposed to feel... Perhaps the shocks have "gone hard" or something? It definitely crashes more than I would expect - I thought Alpina suspension was "supple" rather than hard...

2. The car seems surprisingly economical when cruising gently.

3. The gearchange is so sweet. Really really nice.

4. Refinement - the car is so quiet you can hear the microswitches clicking when you press the pedals!