E30 Zone

Well happy with the car got some nice parts fitted handles like a dream few issues to sort out and things to change over the next few month here is a few pics.









not sure about the door cards and the speakers digging right in my leg on the drive home

Really nice looking car, Sterling Silver is the best . The door + parcel shelf speakers look really out of place though, and you should get the other half of the Tech-2 spoiler.

already on with the spoiler and deffo the speakers are going

Inlet manifold from a 320?

congrats
looks nice

Sorry, but alarm bells should be ringing.

As above. Whys it got a 320 manifold?

I reckon you got a good deal there if its as nice as it seems

Got some extras on it! Looks to have air con too.

Have you checked the casting on the head? If it is a 2.5 it's being badly restricted by that inlet.

What's that red thing next to the airbox?

not sujre what the red thing is its got a 2.8 crank in it im no mechanic its had a lot of money spent on maps and engine work

Looks like it could be an adjustable fuel pressure regulator.

I dont think the car is running correctly in a other post i am looking for somebody local to me who knows a thing or two about engines.

The guy i got it off has spent thousands on the engine and mapping

At first i thought it was cause of the mapping and the btb manifold or i might just be paranoid

It's deffo a sport! I fitted the A/C, the suspension and sorted some other issues on it a couple of years ago. All the a/c pipes were brand new!

It did not have a 320i inlet on it back then! It had a Uni Q piggy back chip bodged in and Adam the then owner took its to sheps at circuit motors to map it.

That looks like an after market fuel pressure regulator. The original one on the fuel rail hasn't got the vacuum pipe connected

Has 320i manifold

Looks nice needs going back to OEM
Bet them speakers sound good !!!!

bss325i wrote:It's deffo a sport! I fitted the A/C, the suspension and sorted some other issues on it a couple of years ago. All the a/c pipes were brand new!

It did not have a 320i inlet on it back then! It had a Uni Q piggy back chip bodged in and Adam the then owner took its to sheps at circuit motors to map it.

do you think im best of trying a 325 inlet on the car wonder why he has fitted the 320?

The most obvious reason for a 320 manifold being fitted is that it's attached to a 320 engine. What is the engine type number (on a flat machined area next to the LH engine mount)?
Might be an idea to check the number of bolts holding the diff. rear cover in place as well.

Brianmoooore wrote:The most obvious reason for a 320 manifold being fitted is that it's attached to a 320 engine. What is the engine type number (on a flat machined area next to the LH engine mount)?
Might be an idea to check the number of bolts holding the diff. rear cover in place as well.

i will go have a look now cheers

Brianmoooore wrote:The most obvious reason for a 320 manifold being fitted is that it's attached to a 320 engine. What is the engine type number (on a flat machined area next to the LH engine mount)?
Might be an idea to check the number of bolts holding the diff. rear cover in place as well.

engine number is 256e2 22954356

is this not correct

Yes, that's the M20B25 'medium compression' engine - high compression, but not quite as high as that fitted to the pre-facelift 325i. It would originally have been around 9.4:1 CR, but if it has a 2.8 crank and possibly different pistons fitted, who knows what it is now...

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do ... g=11&fg=05

If you put the last 7 digits of the VIN into RealOEM, you can verify that the engine is correct for your car.

Fitting the correct M20B25 intake manifold should aid breathing.

Sorry to be dumb, but how can you tell the difference between the 325i and 320 manifold from the pic

Speedtouch wrote:Yes, that's the M20B25 'medium compression' engine - high compression, but not quite as high as that fitted to the pre-facelift 325i. It would originally have been around 9.4:1 CR.

im lost now so its the right engine with the wrong inlet on?

E30M3EVO wrote:Sorry to be dumb, but how can you tell the difference between the 325i and 320 manifold from the pic

snap im the same

Yes. The 320i inlet manifold is more angular, compared to the rounded 325i one.

320i manifold:


325i manifold:

If you picked it up yesterday, you managed to fix the rear battery tray section very quickly ( see previous pics on photo stream. What did you do to the rear towing eye ?

Topblag wrote:If you picked it up yesterday, you managed to fix the rear battery tray section very quickly ( see previous pics on photo stream. What did you do to the rear towing eye ?

me mate is a top fabricator and does stuff like that day in day out so he just done it the next day only took 2 hours i suppose its easy when you have a ramp and workshop

Speedtouch wrote:Yes, that's the M20B25 'medium compression' engine - high compression, but not quite as high as that fitted to the pre-facelift 325i. It would originally have been around 9.4:1 CR, but if it has a 2.8 crank and possibly different pistons fitted, who knows what it is now...

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do ... g=11&fg=05

If you put the last 7 digits of the VIN into RealOEM, you can verify that the engine is correct for your car.

Fitting the correct M20B25 intake manifold should aid breathing.

Thnaks

Thanks again guys for all the help i will go about changing the correct intake manifold its in Tuesday for the paint work and rear spoiler fitted.

I will try the manifold alone with a service new plugs ht leads and see if that brings any luck

would still like a local guy to have a good look over it and try and get rid of that red thing in the engine bay

The trouble is, if it has indeed been converted to a 2.8, then you will need a fuel pressure regulator suited to the engine. An OEM one from another 2.8-3.0 litre BMW should suffice.

Speedtouch wrote:The trouble is, if it has indeed been converted to a 2.8, then you will need a fuel pressure regulator suited to the engine. An OEM one from another 2.8-3.0 litre BMW should suffice.

right so take it that red thing is the new fuel regulator.

the car is fast at the moment just feels like its struggerling to get the power down at low speed fine from cold over 30mph no problem at all its a rocket.

shall i go ahead and change the service parts and manifold and see what that brings.

looks like im moving in the right direction

If it's a 2.5 block, then at least it has the correct bore to be a 2.8 (or 2.5, or 2.7).
It's conceivable that this engine was built for torque rather than outright top end power, like a standard M52B28, with its restrictive inlet manifold.
This, of course, is the exact opposite of what you describe in your post above.
Ignition leads, providing they are OEM, are NOT a service part on these engines. As long as they are not physically damaged, the 25 year old ones should be absolutely fine, and far preferable to any aftermarket stuff.

Yes, I would change the inlet manifold as a first step. I would also try reconnecting the original fuel pump regulator and see what effect it has - you may find it suits the engine OK, in which case, you can ditch the adjustable (red) one.