No good deed goes unpunished.

Yesterday a friend comes by the shop and asks if I can help get his E24 running a little better. He'd cover all parts costs and I had discretion on what it needed and all the time in the world to do it. Sounds easy, he is a good guy and has done me some favors so I said sure.

Then he drops the bomb. As payment I figured I would just give you that Merkur I have.

Aww Crap! Problem is I LOVE those cars. I had one in the 90's before the internet had really taken off and solved some of the availability issues of orphan cars. IMON was just an email list.

But I don't need or want another project. The E28 is a damn fine daily driver.

But I also have a collection that includes some pretty sweet 15X8 4X108 wheels, a complete 2.3 T5 trans and a bunch of turbo and intercooler stuff. There is even a MS1 Ver2.2 laying in a drawer.

The car is an automatic '88 in that bland chestnut metallic. Borla exhaust from Rapido back in the day. Was a daily when parked 5 years ago, now doesn't start.

Like this but dirty in a way a car that hasn't been washed in 5 or more years can only be.

I guess I have a few months to make a decision before it is delivered.

Ok enablers, start your enabling

I thought this was going to go a completely different direction based on the first couple of sentences. I have no sympathy for you, but please... continue.

This is a no-brainer. Your question is?

Fueled by Caffeine wrote: This is a no-brainer. Your question is?

Whether to take the easy route and swap in a T-9(?), or just go ahead and build a paddle-shifted manumatic for it???

Get a Type 9, a bellhousing from a 4 cylinder pinto, and a Zetec SVT. Turbo as needed. 2.3T Limas are soooo passe.

You could just modify the T-5 bellhousing to fit the Zetec. Or go hog wild and grab a Duratec/MZR with a ranger or NC miata trans.

Repair, polish, sell. Though I'm talking about the e28....

I am project rich right now. The Fiat keeps getting pushed back by other jobs and I have to have it done by next autumn. I also have the Falcon which needs a few weekends of work before it goes up for sale, the EX500 to put back together by spring AND the 67 Triumph that I hope to someday get back to.

A new project is foolish. The E28 is the nicest long distance cruiser I have owned in years and while ugly, it is almost 100% mechanically.

You guys are supposed to remind me how awful the Lima 2.3's sound and that the 88 manual pedal cluster I would be searching for is a unicorn.

So, did you get the E-24 running better ?

Fueled by Caffeine wrote: This is a no-brainer. Your question is?

This is pretty much where I am too.

Taking the Merkur is the only sensible solution to your situation.

Link to build thread is where?

Lets try a little CPR on this dead thread.

Last time I talked to him I said I didn't really want the car. Yesterday a trailer showed up and he told me he didn't think I was serious. 

Well crap. I am a Merkur owner again after nearly 20 years.... I traded in my 85 in 1998 on a 97 Jetta GT for the missus.

So here it is in all its lack of glory.  Filthy, no filters just a E36 M3ty old car.

One dent, three dings, burnt clear coat and a bent front bumper. That dent in the fender is from a deer and is the reason for the salvage title. 

Brown leather, shockingly uncracked dash and most importantly missing a very important pedal.

He has owned the car since 95. 135K miles. Ran when parked and with a new battery and 10 year old gas fired up a year ago. 90's Rapido Borla dual exhaust kit installed.

So now I am at a decision point. Flip it as is? Wheeler Dealers it? Find the necessary parts to make it a manual, modify and daily it?

I do like these cars a LOT but the combination of the bland exterior color and automatic has me less than enthused about this one.

So....an 88 is what they call wide tunnel, right? Anyone know of a pedal cluster for sale? Are they reasonably priced?

Cliffs notes. I have a 2.3 t5 and bellhousing on the shelf with the larger T3 turbo off a manual XR4Ti and a few different intercoolers. I also have an unused MS1 on a 2.2 board. There are even a set of these 8" wide  American Racing Silvertstones in 4X108 in the spares pile

It all comes down to how difficult to fab or acquire the all important clutch pedal bits.

So what say ye GRM. How should I deal with this atomically crappy car?

I will be a bmw expert for a free that. 

It seems like you've already got a plan in mind and just want us to tell you to pull the trigger...  So in that case, manual swap and bigger turbo it is! 

Swap and daily. Now.

Wheres the build thread?

Can these be built up to be an RS500 replica?  The rear windows would be a problem.  

I wish I had that problem. Always liked these. 

I always wondered if the automatic in these cars use the upper set of holes in the Lima blocks bellhousing pattern or the more typical classic 4 cylinder Ford as the lima has both sets. 

Going against the grain here, but I say wheeler dealer it. Make it look as good as you can as cheaply as you can and get a stack of bills. That car is decent and could bring you some money for the triumph. Or something manual that you actually want.

wheeler dealing it might be tempting.. but aside from us, who wants an orphan car? Unlike europe where these cars were plentiful in many guises, we only got one version and only a few at that. Most people do not even know what it is. That means you have to keep it.

Pretty much unless you find an enthusiast who wants an automatic or has the parts to do the manual swap your looking at selling an 80s four cylinder car that most people have never heard of. Either flip it as is too someone who wants a project or fix it and drive it!

I say clean it up as much as you practically can then once you've polished that turd - err - Merkur, see how much you like it. No sense in swapping it and biggifying the turbo if it doesn't do anything for you cleaned up. And the best part is cleaning it up is the hardest part of Wheeler Dealering it. 

Lima's only sound like a tractor motor until you put a bigger cam in them...then they sound like a cammed tractor motor.  Gnarly cams aren't great for turbo motors so, I'll just go now.

If you love it go all out, if not preserve it and move it on.

They sold a billion manual Ford Sierras in Europe. How hard could it be to find a pedal assembly?

RossD said:

Get a Type 9, a bellhousing from a 4 cylinder pinto, and a Zetec SVT. Turbo as needed. 2.3T Limas are soooo passe.

You could just modify the T-5 bellhousing to fit the Zetec. Or go hog wild and grab a Duratec/MZR with a ranger or NC miata trans.

At this point, I think this is a better choice- https://performanceparts.ford.com/part/M-6007-23T

8 grand geez