[AndrewC1989]

Installed new valve stems and plate frame:

[AndrewC1989]

Painted the calipers, rotor hubs, and dust shields and ordered a 6WB (still waiting for it)

Before:





After:

[toxik]

any plans for headlight upgrade andrew?

[F30_320D_UK]

Which bulbs did you go with for the fog lights?
Did you code it out using Bimmercode?

Car looks great. Everytime I see your 403m's it reminds me I need to get mine refurbished

[AndrewC1989]

Originally Posted by F30_320D_UK

Which bulbs did you go with for the fog lights?
Did you code it out using Bimmercode?

Car looks great. Everytime I see your 403m's it reminds me I need to get mine refurbished

Coding can be done in easy mode in bimmercode.

This is my set up:

Front fogs: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Low beams: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

DRL: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Turn signals: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

High Beams: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

That strange parking light bulb: https://www.amazon.com/HSUN-Chipsets...ps%2C81&sr=8-8

Bulb sizes are:

H7 for low beam and high beam (but high beam housing has less room so usually bulbs with a fan won't fit)

H8 for the front fogs

PY21W for the front indicators

H6W for the parking lights


Custom Fog Light Coding: https://www.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...php?p=28937662

[F30_320D_UK]

Thanks man

[AndrewC1989]

Originally Posted by toxik

any plans for headlight upgrade andrew?

Would love OEM LED but too expensive and complicated to retrofit on a budget. Was thinking about these potentially but am worried about the quality and longevity of the parts:

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/32568...9-1671167d4757

[toxik]

Originally Posted by AndrewC1989

Would love OEM LED but too expensive and complicated to retrofit on a budget. Was thinking about these potentially but am worried about the quality and longevity of the parts:

https://m.aliexpress.us/item/3256804...9-1671167d4757

that's what I was going to suggest and why I asked. LCI headlights now being more or less affordable compared to even a year ago when the only option was paying $2500+ for an OEM LCI set. i remember an ex-gf of mine had a F30 320i with the halogens, and I always used to think that was the first mod I'd do, need some halos on a bmw

I could be wrong, but from what I've seen, headlights and taillights reproductions have stood the test of time.

[AndrewC1989]

Originally Posted by toxik

that's what I was going to suggest and why I asked. LCI headlights now being more or less affordable compared to even a year ago when the only option was paying $2500+ for an OEM LCI set. i remember an ex-gf of mine had a F30 320i with the halogens, and I always used to think that was the first mod I'd do, need some halos on a bmw

I could be wrong, but from what I've seen, headlights and taillights reproductions have stood the test of time.

There were a couple users here who bought them not long ago and some arrived with one headlight not working properly which is why I'm wary:

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1842004

[toxik]

Originally Posted by AndrewC1989

There were a couple users here who bought them not long ago and some arrived with one headlight not working properly which is why I'm wary:

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1842004

ah gotcha, nevermind then I actually thought they were DEPO like the other pre-LCI repos. Weird that on aliexpress, when you click the link, its all 5 star reviews.

[AndrewC1989]

Originally Posted by toxik

ah gotcha, nevermind then I actually thought they were DEPO like the other pre-LCI repos. Weird that on aliexpress, when you click the link, its all 5 star reviews.

I’ll probably cave in and give them a try once I recover from my last round of mods

[AndrewC1989]

Just got my 6wb, love it!

[F30_320D_UK]

Nice mod, man! Must update the cabin by whole bunch of years

Interesting how your old tachometer stops at 6k and the new one at 7k
So does that mean you can retrofit a petrol 6wb cluster onto a diesel?

Is it alot if coding requied for this mod?

[AndrewC1989]

Originally Posted by F30_320D_UK

Nice mod, man! Must update the cabin by whole bunch of years

Interesting how your old tachometer stops at 6k and the new one at 7k
So does that mean you can retrofit a petrol 6wb cluster onto a diesel?

Is it alot if coding requied for this mod?

Thanks! Yes the interior definitely feels newer now.

Those photos are after install but before coding so fuel doesn’t say diesel and redline is wrong. Both changed after coding.

I paid a coder to remote code it for me, wasn’t something easy I could do myself in bimmercode.

[F30_320D_UK]

Very cool! Thanks for clarifying
Looks top shelf

[AndrewC1989]

Trying out some gloss black M Sport fender badges. Not sure if i’ll keep yet, need to sleep on it.

Edit: Did not keep them

[AndrewC1989]

Coded my rear plate lights off in reverse to reduce glare

DIY thread here: https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...php?p=29976284

[thatgarrett]

Really enjoyed following your build, has given me lots of inspiration for my own Imperial Blue Metallic! One thing I like in particular is how light you went on your tint, I’m on the fence between going after your set up or something in the 35-45 range.

I’m currently debating whether to prioritize a tint before summer hits or go after other mods first. How big of a difference with heat transmission did you feel after the tint?

[AndrewC1989]

Originally Posted by thatgarrett

Really enjoyed following your build, has given me lots of inspiration for my own Imperial Blue Metallic! One thing I like in particular is how light you went on your tint, I’m on the fence between going after your set up or something in the 35-45 range.

I’m currently debating whether to prioritize a tint before summer hits or go after other mods first. How big of a difference with heat transmission did you feel after the tint?

Thanks! I love lighter tints, looks classier in my opinion.

The ceramic tint makes a huge difference in the summer, especially with a black interior. I see you’re in NoVA like me, so a lighter tint like 40-50 will be fine. If you were in Arizona or something I’d recommend going darker. It’s also perfectly legal to go 50% all around in VA which is nice, don’t have to worry about the police.

The 80% on my windshield isn’t technically legal, but it’s light enough where no one will ever notice. I got my state inspection sticker without any issue. The only annoying thing will be removing it when it expires. Will have to do it myself with a plastic razor blade so the tint isn’t damaged. Definitely worth the hastle though, not having the windshield covered is like only putting sunscreen on 3/4 of your body.

Obviously ceramic tint isn’t a miracle product, the car will still heat up when you park outside for long periods of time, and you’ll still want to use a sunshade and crack the sunroof (also tinted), but when you’re parking for shorter periods, and driving with the AC on (no longer have to blast it) it really makes a world of difference. If I were you I would definitely do tints first.

[thatgarrett]

That is super helpful! Yeah on past cars I’ve done 25-30% usually, but things were more lax in TN and SC, and alpine white took a darker tint very well. I was always a little nervous when I moved to NoVA with my old Impreza that had 25% all around but never had any trouble. Having a black interior I don’t want a cave, but I don’t want it hot, so hearing that feedback was the last little bit I needed to convince me to do that! Great tip on the inspection sticker, I wouldn’t have thought about that and could have been bad!

Honestly, I think I saw your car on the tint thread and another that was imperial blue with a 35%, and your car sold me on the lighter tint for the first time! Yours also sold me on a gloss black grill, which I was in the fence about for this color. Anyways thanks for posting so many of your mods, a huge help for people like me debating certain things!

[AndrewC1989]

Originally Posted by thatgarrett

That is super helpful! Yeah on past cars I’ve done 25-30% usually, but things were more lax in TN and SC, and alpine white took a darker tint very well. I was always a little nervous when I moved to NoVA with my old Impreza that had 25% all around but never had any trouble. Having a black interior I don’t want a cave, but I don’t want it hot, so hearing that feedback was the last little bit I needed to convince me to do that! Great tip on the inspection sticker, I wouldn’t have thought about that and could have been bad!

Honestly, I think I saw your car on the tint thread and another that was imperial blue with a 35%, and your car sold me on the lighter tint for the first time! Yours also sold me on a gloss black grill, which I was in the fence about for this color. Anyways thanks for posting so many of your mods, a huge help for people like me debating certain things!

Happy to help, cheers!

[AndrewC1989]

Most recent pic thus far. She's come a long way from life as a base model!