FAO DanThe

[bryn_p]

Evening all,

I've got a 1985 C2 2.5 that I want to put my E46 B3 S engine in and have been told that Dan is the man to speak to (apologies for the terrible pun )

I don't think my PM has worked, I don't use Facebook and I can't find a phone number so could someone put me in touch please or Dan if you read this please PM me?

Cheers,
Bryn.

[flybynite]

Your car and your money and all that but if it is a genuine C2 you would be chucking away bucketloads of money both for the conversion (to do it properly) and the loss in value because no one would pay the same money for a converted car as the original

Better off putting the C2 back how it should be, selling it and buying a turd to play with.

One of the best reasons to do an M52 swap is what the weight of the alloy engine does for the performance and handling but the B3 and B3s are steel blocks and don't have that advantage

[JungleGus]

I've got a similar setup with a B3.3 M52 and happy to share my thoughts - but I'd echo the above, you'd be better off keeping the M20 and building up a 2.8 (IMO). Getting the M52 to a decent standard isn't easy and will take a decent chunk of time/effort.

If you do go ahead, make sure you use the OBD2 crank sensor (there is a wiring adapter to use with OBD1 engine harness) so you can keep the Alpina harmonic balancer. I'd also suggest the dual mass flywheel with an M3 clutch rather than a M20 and uprated clutch to cope w the power. You also probably want a solution to the electronic throttle body - I'm looking for one myself (there are differences in the Alpina inlet manifold)

[bryn_p]

Your car and your money and all that but if it is a genuine C2 you would be chucking away bucketloads of money both for the conversion (to do it properly) and the loss in value because no one would pay the same money for a converted car as the original

Better off putting the C2 back how it should be, selling it and buying a turd to play with.

One of the best reasons to do an M52 swap is what the weight of the alloy engine does for the performance and handling but the B3 and B3s are steel blocks and don't have that advantage

If it was a mint original car you might be right but the car is far from mint and original... it's been repainted, the original engine has been modified and is knackered, it's got a stupid exhaust on it, it's missing the original driver's seat, it's got an E30 M3 instrument cluster and E30 M3 5 stud hub conversion (hence the B10 Bi-Turbo wheels on it) so to put it back to standard would probably cost more than doing the conversion, assuming you could even find the parts. Although I still think modifying it with only Alpina parts to make it a much better car it will still be worth similar money if not more to the right person. After all a C2 2.5 isn't really that special in terms of performance. I've also got a totally original LHD C2 2.7 Convertible and a bare shell restored B6 3.5 coupe and I'd never sell any of them so the value of the C2 2.5 is not really relevant to me, I'm just making it the car I want it to be.

I get what you're saying about the weight of the M52 but the aim was more to keep it all Alpina rather than save weight and improve handling. Dan's putting the same engine in his own car so it can't be that much of a bad idea

What's the issue with the electronic throttle body? I have the complete B3S so can swap as much as needed and I may even look in to using the entire E46 loom and chopping away what I don't need although I suspect that's a non starter.

Has anyone bought anything off the guy in Poland selling E30 Alpina interiors on eBay? I'm considering one of them for the car as my interior is incomplete and tired.

Appreciate the advice anyway thanks gents and I've got in touch with DanThe who has also been most helpful

Cheers,
Bryn.