e36 tds into a e30 tourer

[dbpaintworx]

hi all.

has anyone done a conversion with the e36 tds lump into a e30 got plans, not so sure about wiring and bits etc, have the tourer lined up and a tds lump, box and engine wiring loom.

[e301988325i]

This conversion has been discussed before but noone who has actually gone forward has put any results up.

The easy bit, the block, in mounting terms is the same as a petrol M50, the high presssure petrol pump needs swapping for a low pressure diesel lift pump.

The hard bit, the tds has a 1:1 5th gear ratio and the tall diff ratio required for this the tds is not available in an E30 'case', the innards will have to be rebuilt from an E36 diff into an E30 case, unless you use the 325i M20 b25 getrag G260 overdrive 5th gear gearbox and say an E30 M3 diff 3.25 or 3.15:1 which tend to be costly. Then you have to fit the intercooler somewhere. I'm pretty sure a diesel pump nozzle won't fit in the E30 petrol filler.

After all the costs, the break even point will be after tens of thousands of miles. Then be prepared for the injection pump to expire, at a pump rebuild cost and refit/retime cost in excess of 1.5K. Second hand pump don't fit 99% of time, the pumps must match exactly in part numbers, the pumps fitted to the same engine in the vauxhall omega, range rover diesel, fiat ducato motorhome will not fit, nor will those from the E34 5 series or E39 5 series. Then ry finding someone who knows the engines, haynes don't cover them. The pumps wear out because they were designed to run on fuel WITH sulphur which lubricates the pump, the government kindly removed the lubricating sulphur which has pretty much killed the old advantages of longevity for diesels. You will also find the injector return blanking plug near the bulkhead dies regularly, get around this by running return pipe to meet the one on the front of the engine and T-ing into it with a windscreen washer T which is a perfect size!

Ps) I have an E36 325tds se touring at 182K, I bought this just 6 months after having the pump rebuilt with reciepts. . . all the boost and EGR hoses were refitted incorrectly which buggered up the fuelling until I put them right.

Convert a 325i to LPG it's much much better, keep the nice petrol engine, more power, and cheaper overall!

[dbpaintworx]

hello mate
thanks for the reply i have a tourer with no engine and box, a tds lump, box and engine loom laying in the corner of the workshop and can get pretty much most of the bits ie e30 diff casing from the 3b's. i own a bodyshop which i share with a very good machnic which has done plenty of e30 conversions, i was more worried about wiring up glow plug and the throtle as they are not cable like the e30

brad

[e301988325i]

Does the E36 have an EWS system? ie, immobillizer chip in the key?

Throttle is easy, just fit the potentiometer to the E30 pedal somehow or other and remove the cable, or use the cable to activate the pot remotely.

In europe they did an E30 324td engine based around the M20, I would guess you could use the ignition barrel and instrument cluster (glowplug light) from one of these. . . with an MPH speedo.

[Coyote_ar]

dont you guys have e36 323ti there in europe? i got my 3,15:1 LSD diff from one of those, that should be easier to get than an M3 diff.