E30 Zone

hi all im thinking of doing a engine change . i just wanted to no whats the best engine to put in . im just looking for more power . hi have a work shop and all the gear to do it my slef .
thanks

M50 or M52 FTW

Whats your location mate? What you doing with the 325 engine one its out??? I have a 318i which would love 325 in it...

im in surrey woking . will tell you when its out .. im thinking of doing a nissan 200sx engine has any 1 done 1 on hear ???
m50 -m52 sorry for being dumb but what bmw are they from .
sorry iv had jap cars all my life.

Yes theo has done one

http://www.e30zone.net/modules.php?name ... ght=nissan

M50/M52 came mainly from E36's 325i/328i

If you have a 325i to start with an M30 would be a simple swap (engine from an E34 535i)

M30 old scrap !!! lol each to ther own yes theo did a sr20det swap goes alright too

A nice, lazy ol V8.

fowler wrote:M30 old scrap !!! . each to ther own yes theo did a sr20det swap goes alright too

Tut tut Fowler, M30's suit the Cab better than the M5x's, low down torque, lazy motorway driving, and plenty of grunt without the need to "Mod" it.
M5x, nothing in it befor 3-3.5k rpm, always need to "Push" the engine, totally wrong for a cab.

im likeing to sound of the m30 . i want somthing with low down grunt and good power. what bmw has the m30 in . i dont want to much of a project as i get bored lol

Look for the E34 535i, best to buy the whole car and run around in it for a few weeks to see if the engines a good one.

Well, it all depends on your budget.
You can check out the engine codes for example here; http://www.unixnerd.demon.co.uk/enumber.html

Simple and cheap swaps;
-M30 gives you nice grunt and decent power, though the engine sound is bit uncivilized.
-M50 / M52 is silent but doesn't give you much power & torque.

More expensive swaps;
-S50, simple and reliable way to 300hp.
-S38, basically M30 swap with brake booster modification


Sure you can also swap BMW V8 or V12 in there, though they require lot more work and give basically same power output.

Jonsku wrote:Well, it all depends on your budget.
You can check out the engine codes for example here; http://www.unixnerd.demon.co.uk/enumber.html

Simple and cheap swaps;
-M30 gives you nice grunt and decent power, though the engine sound is bit uncivilized.
-M50 / M52 is silent but doesn't give you much power & torque.

More expensive swaps;
-S50, simple and reliable way to 300hp.
-S38, basically M30 swap with brake booster modification


Sure you can also swap BMW V8 or V12 in there, though they require lot more work and give basically same power output.

I do not know if you are an expert in S38 Swap ,, but IMO this is not correct ,, and if B38 more electronic solutions

1) basic volume .. Block and head is similair ,, but the S38 head is a lot bigger and higher,, the intake box is huge and as you mentioned the booster must be relocated ,, (redrilled in the firewall and in most cases IX or M5))

2) The water pipes in front of the S38 is IMO the biggest problem of ALL,,,,, they are just in the way and that is why there is so little room left ,, some have used the M88/3 cooling pipes and an extra thin radiator,, but the firewall must be smashed with Peter Gabriel ((sledgehammer)) for these gymnastic movements .. also a subframe drop is must
the servo is also another catagory as all S38 have SLS

IMO .. >S38 is not a wise choise,,,
I do not know how much work there is for M6x but if i think back .. i would for sure take the EURO S50B32

and if i would be not wise at all .. i would take the M7x,,,

chip it and have 320-350 ps with a fine torque curve
But that is a lot of work i guess

S38B38 wrote:I do not know if you are an expert in S38 Swap ,, but IMO this is not correct ,, and if B38 more electronic solutions

I've seen plenty of S38 swaps, and as S38 is basically M30 block with DOHC head it's quite straightforward swap. It doesn't have many wires to be connected, as it originates from E34 which didn't have EWS II or anything like that..

1) basic volume .. Block and head is similair ,, but the S38 head is a lot bigger and higher,, the intake box is huge and as you mentioned the booster must be relocated ,, (redrilled in the firewall and in most cases IX or M5))

2) The water pipes in front of the S38 is IMO the biggest problem of ALL,,,,, they are just in the way and that is why there is so little room left ,, some have used the M88/3 cooling pipes and an extra thin radiator,, but the firewall must be smashed with Peter Gabriel ((sledgehammer)) for these gymnastic movements .. also a subframe drop is must
the servo is also another catagory as all S38 have SLS

Yes, it's somewhat big engine, but the dimensions are somewhat same as with M30 excluding the intake box for which the brake booster needs to be modified.

Waterpipes aren't the hardest in the earth to modify..

IMO .. >S38 is not a wise choise,,,
I do not know how much work there is for M6x but if i think back .. i would for sure take the EURO S50B32

and if i would be not wise at all .. i would take the M7x,,,

chip it and have 320-350 ps with a fine torque curve
But that is a lot of work i guess

Yap, i agree that S38 isn't the wisest choice, especially for cabrio which is a cruiser, not a bruiser.

M6x and M7x are way harder, because everything needs to be relocated in the engine bay. Additionally, V8 needs hassling with exhaust manifolds and brake booster, V12 has 5 ECU boxes and hydraulic brake booster setup has to be installed.


So, to put all together; swap M5x in there if you're on low budget and +200hp is enough for you, go for S50 if you've somewhat more money and want 300hp.

If you know how to use tools and have lots of time and money, swap M6x or M7x in there. They're the best engines for cabrio anyways

in a left hooker the conversions are easier as you have no steering colum to worry bout with the exhausts and in a RHD the engine has to be shifted to over slightly

Rav335uk wrote:

fowler wrote:M30 old scrap !!! . each to ther own yes theo did a sr20det swap goes alright too

Tut tut Fowler, M30's suit the Cab better than the M5x's, low down torque, lazy motorway driving, and plenty of grunt without the need to "Mod" it.
M5x, nothing in it befor 3-3.5k rpm, always need to "Push" the engine, totally wrong for a cab.

yes you for get to mention custom prop and diff ration with a m50 m52 swap you can retain the orginal gearing some what eg keep the m20 gearbox prop and diff

fowler wrote:

Rav335uk wrote:

fowler wrote:M30 old scrap !!! . each to ther own yes theo did a sr20det swap goes alright too

Tut tut Fowler, M30's suit the Cab better than the M5x's, low down torque, lazy motorway driving, and plenty of grunt without the need to "Mod" it.
M5x, nothing in it befor 3-3.5k rpm, always need to "Push" the engine, totally wrong for a cab.

yes you for get to mention custom prop and diff ration with a m50 m52 swap you can retain the orginal gearing some what eg keep the m20 gearbox prop and diff

You can with an M30, only thing custom would be the mounts.

leeparkes wrote:

fowler wrote:

Rav335uk wrote: Tut tut Fowler, M30's suit the Cab better than the M5x's, low down torque, lazy motorway driving, and plenty of grunt without the need to "Mod" it.
M5x, nothing in it befor 3-3.5k rpm, always need to "Push" the engine, totally wrong for a cab.

yes you for get to mention custom prop and diff ration with a m50 m52 swap you can retain the orginal gearing some what eg keep the m20 gearbox prop and diff

You can with an M30, only thing custom would be the mounts.

+1

Leave the m20 2.5 in .they go together like jesus and sandles in a e30