bentonh (03/14/83)
As I understand the situation on importing european
model cars, you need to bring them to federal safety standards,
but don't need to federalize the engine. (You probably do need
to meet emission std's, just aren't required to have the
extra garbage!)
Miller-Norburn (don't know where they live (NJ/Philly?))
is one of the companies that will help you, tho' I understand
it's not cheap. Mostly what they do (in BMW's at least) is
replace all the glass, (euro-Bimmers have tempered, non-safety
glass) and add steel to the door panels. They also have available
some nice spring, shock, and sway bar setups.
As far as putting in an american engine to meet the spec
on an otherwise US available car is pointless. I'd go european
in a 320i for instance because there is basically one setup
shipped to the US. A 1.8 liter matched to a close-ratio 5 speed.
(Yes, you can also get an automatic, but is that what you really
want in a high performance sedan?) (Well maybe you would!) In
Germany you can get 1.6, 1.8, 2.0, or 2.3 liter engines mated
with the 4 speed, 5 speed close-ratio, or a 4 speed + overdrive.
Does anyone know the EPA policy on aftermarket options, like
turbochargers? Hardy & Beck has a nice, clean looking package.
And an outfit in Massachusetts, Lichtenstein (or something like
that) makes a supercharger for the 320i (taking off the injection
equipment, I think) that lops 3 seconds off the 0-60 time.
The supercharger sounds like a somewhat more significant mod.
I might as well finish with a personal query...
Has anyone compared the suspension packages offered by Miller-
Norburn and Quikor Engineering? I lean towards the M-N's
progressive-rate spring setup, but it's a little spendy. Does
anyone have any other favorites?
As always,
Benton Holzwarth
...teklabs!tekid!bentonh