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I can haz BMW?

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bmw haz
14K views 155 replies 20 participants last post by  Elysian 
#1 ·
The victim:


The recipient:



Things are moving nicely on the swap. Need to find an oil pan from an older 530I, need an oil pickup fabricated, need a set of headers, and a 3" exhaust fabricated... its a long term project though, and I think budget constraints will show soon, because I need to replace the entire suspension, fabricate a 6 point cage, and replace every rubber part I possibly can...
 
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#23 ·
Just got done pressure washing the engine bay. I also got a free M24 rear subframe minus diff, gonna see if theres any parts i can use to get 5 lug out back. Also picked up E36 M3 spindles. Really enjoying working on this project so far. A local friend is going to try to find me the E34 oil pan+pickup+dipstick for a fair price.
 
#27 ·
What crapped out on the 86? It was just left to sit for years by the previous owner, it could have run, had I cared to get it running, but I didn't. It's basically the "I'm going to get the most out of my 14.5k I spent on the damned 330, so I'll put the engine into a car that will appreciate it", is that alright with you?:squint:
 
#30 ·
#31 ·
Shoving newer, more powerful engine into older, lighter, more nimble car = WIN

VW guys have been doing this kind of thing for years, shoving the VR6 motor into older MK2 GTIs:

SamSnaps - silver mk2 gti vr6t - IMG_3979
The coolest part, IMO, about my swap is, it's only been done a couple of times, or at least, posted on the internet about. Most people stick to the older engines, so an M54 is a unique swap. A handful of people have done the S54 from the 02-06 M3, but those are about as rare, and even more complex lol.
 
#38 ·
Got the rear subframe out of the E30 and did some measuring. The E24 subframe I got would fit under the E30 no sweat, like you said, the mounts are about half an inch apart. The only thing I have to do to fit it is grind down the bead along the side of the subframe by the mounts on each side, and only a tiny bit of it would need to come off. Probably would patch it up with a weld, so it doesn't cause an issue structurally... I'm concerned about the spot where the shock/spring mounts on the E24... With the E30, the shock mounts below the axle, on the E24, it mounts directly above the axle, so I'm concerned it's going to cause some headache when I get the subframe mounted in the car. I also measured how far from the subframe mount the rear wheel was on the E24 rear end versus the E30, and it'd move the wheel rearwards about 1/4", maybe slightly less, so I don't think that's an area of much concern.
 
#44 ·
Well, the 01 BMW is fully paid off now, so I own a fucked up piece of shit outright :rofl: I've been working on removing the wiring harness today... I worked for half the afternoon and came in completely drenched in sweat, it's like I'd jumped in a pool with my clothes on. I also found out the 86 BMW has a limited slip rear diff, but it's only a 2.93:1 ratio, so I'll be able to swap the gearing and save some money. Instead of costing me 300-400, it'll cost me 50 bucks to get the gearing I want, probably 3.73:1... I'm also still on the hunt for an oil pan for my motor swap...
 
#46 ·
The 01 is now gone :( It really pisses me off to no end that BMW designed the rear subframe mounts so poorly, and basically forced me to have to get rid of one of my favorite cars ever. Words can't even fully describe how pissed I've been about this...
 
#49 ·
You absolutely got the shaft, dude. If I were you, I'd never buy another BMW ever again. :noway:
 
#54 ·
That's the thing about cars like that, they dive to a point, sit stable for a few years and then start rising. 3 door RS Cosworths were 2-a-penny around the £3000 mark a couple of years back, try finding one for under £7000 now.

If you like the E30 M3, how about the ultra rare E30 320is? It's a special made for the Italian market as for some reason they decided to make it cripplingly expensive to have a car with an engine bigger than 2.0l. What did BMW do? Take a late model 325i Sport (with M-Tech 2 kit & leather), pull the M20 and replace it with a 2.0l version of the M3's S14 motor, pumping out circa 190bhp. Halfway house between a 325i and an M3, plus most people haven't a clue it exists.
 
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