Recommend engine swaps E30cab

Mon Nov 21, 2011 9:23 am

So I have an e30 325i cab auto which I will be working on over winter, its my first beemer and have enjoyed cruising around slowly in it so far... minus the boom of the dtm backbox which will be coming off... basically got plans for stance and to go manual over the winter but fancy making it a bit more spritely too....

I've looked at the e34 m30b35 coversion looks straight forward and good value for money but having read about weight gain from rough calcs would only give 150bhp/ton in a cab... i'd ideally like to get to around the 200bhp/ton mark... just wondered if this is possible without breaking the bank and if so what approaches people have taken? Can the m30 be tuned for 50-60 more bhp with out spending £,000's??

I guess torque is a big factor in bm's being a bit heavier my current toys are all polo g40's running 200-225bhp/ton but weigh about the same as a crisp packetso torque doesnt matter as much but they have plenty anyway! So I guess you guys may be able to educate me.in that area...???

Basically would like to know of some engine swaps that would make for an enjoyable drive without breaking the bank and not being afraid to get my hands dirty...

Cheers

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Mon Nov 21, 2011 10:34 am

the only other option would be a m50 m52 swap ones a steel block the other aluminium
the m52b28 which is a 2.8 is about the 190 bhp and just over the 200 ft-lb mark which is what your looing for the 2.5 is a bit less than that
sort of a straight forward swap sump needs changing manifolds need altering for steering and loom obviously ive never done one so dont know the ins and out to much but plently of people on here have done it
seems like the obvious choice for you

Mon Nov 21, 2011 12:57 pm

Thanks Ross... ur car looks ace as does the engine!

All the info on m52 builds seem to suggest a budget of 5k+! And would still only give a power to weight ratio of around 140bhp/ton in a cab... Which is only a marginal change from standard unless the alloy block m50/52 full engine is a lot lighter than an m20b25?

Would prefer to keep n/a at present but what are your options re mapping a 6pot for a turbo conversion? Guessing this gets you in to big money straight off?

Cheers

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Mon Nov 21, 2011 1:05 pm

cheers mate

really 5 k ??????
you can build a turbo engine for less than that. that seems alot
well ive found a guy that maps them for good money very nice bloke and he can travel to you too
only reason why mine has cost alot is coz ive redone everything but i would say you could do a turbo conversion for less than 2 k easy knowing now what i do i think thats reasonable

Mon Nov 21, 2011 2:22 pm

Ok you've got me interested now! Thinking i'll start by sticking a manual box in/sort stance n brakes then look at tge turbo route...

Have you got a build thread? Is it mapped from the standard ecu or do you requie stand alone management? Have you managed to get yours to run reliably? I'd probably only want to run lowish boost to get towards the 270-300bhp mark, guessing by this point you need to be uprating props n box?

Got accountancy exams to be revising 4 now all I can think about is god damn cars for a change!

Cheers

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Mon Nov 21, 2011 2:36 pm

yeah the bottom my sig the photobucket link http://s924.photobucket.com/albums/ad86/Rossco1980/
its running stanalone management
well put it this way it was only mapped 2 weeks ago with new ecu and loom and i drove it thro the middle of london last weds night in rush hour traffic to croydon then right round to guilford then round the m25 bk up the a1 to cambridge to where i live
i was either stupid or very brave but it didnt faulter once
i knew the engine was reliable coz ive done over 2k miles in it now actually 2700 now
well mines only running about 8 -10 psi and thats pullling about 280 ish mark maybe 300 and it pulls like a bloody train i can tell ya

Mon Nov 21, 2011 3:24 pm

5k is the S50 swap.
M30 swap is far quicker and less messing about, and you have bags more torque, brilliant for cruising in a cab.
I can cruise at 20 in 5th, and no need to change gear either, just accelerate.

Mon Nov 21, 2011 3:26 pm

5k for a m50 swap i thought that was abit much lol

Thu Dec 01, 2011 9:35 am

Rav335uk wrote:5k is the S50 swap.
M30 swap is far quicker and less messing about, and you have bags more torque, brilliant for cruising in a cab.
I can cruise at 20 in 5th, and no need to change gear either, just accelerate.

M30 =

Thu Dec 01, 2011 12:21 pm

chu346 wrote:
Rav335uk wrote:5k is the S50 swap.
M30 swap is far quicker and less messing about, and you have bags more torque, brilliant for cruising in a cab.
I can cruise at 20 in 5th, and no need to change gear either, just accelerate.
M30 =

Youngsters!!

Thu Dec 01, 2011 12:42 pm

Had an M30, it was pants. The power delivery isn't very good, M30's are tractor engines, all low down and nothing uptop.

Turbo any E30 engine for fun

Thu Dec 08, 2011 7:26 pm

V8

Thu Dec 08, 2011 7:36 pm

^^ Is that yours Jonsku?
How is the servo supported?

@OP why not grab a T5 motor 300 horses without any real engine work and look how many police cars are T5's on the motorways. Just stay clear of any pre 2000 engines due to idle issues.

Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:27 pm

TouringTash wrote:^^ Is that yours Jonsku?
How is the servo supported?

Yap. The brake servo is original E34 V8 item.

There's a new build-thread on the "M60-engines" side ;)

Tue Dec 13, 2011 1:23 pm

Cheers bud I'll go and drool like an idiot.
The engine bay looks unreal, I mean that in a nice way, too go to be true.
If I could even get my engine bay as clean as that I would be a happy bunny.
Suppose I should get off the zone and do something about it.

Wed Dec 14, 2011 9:41 pm

Rav335uk wrote:5k is the S50 swap.
M30 swap is far quicker and less messing about, and you have bags more torque, brilliant for cruising in a cab.
I can cruise at 20 in 5th, and no need to change gear either, just accelerate.

It´s not bags more torque. They make about the same torque.