M20 tuning

[320Touring]

after making a fool of myself by asking what a BBTB is

anyone got any ideas of how to improve my m20 2.0?
dave touring has suggested a 2.5 but thats out due to insurance and no garage

i've heard that the head on the 2.0 is damn near perfect and that porting cant release much more?

throttle body and chip(zone of course) , any other suggestions?

320Touring

[MONSPORT42]

What year is your Touring? Just checking which engine management sytem you have. Is it LJetronic or Motronic as it makes a difference to what can be done to improve performance. A chip may add some power if it's Motronic but not so much if it's the earlier one. You are really down to an induction kit and exhaust after that and some on the zone would say that these don't make a great deal of difference.

[320Touring]

its on an 88 F

no idea what fuelling system, but do know the engine is sweet, and i only wanna enhance it slightly
cheers

[Karan]

just get a zone chip from ant for it, that should perk it up

Karan

[MartinSE]

is chip out of the question for my L(?)-jetronic 320?

[MONSPORT42]

I think I will leave Ant to answer that one. I believe as the Jetronic has far fewer sensors the chip can only work on the fuelling. I had this system in my old 323i and I remember that there was only a little that could be done.

[M5pilot]

First thing................fit 325i throttle Body! Its much much bigger than the 320i one.

INfact, fit a BBTB (325i). Dont bother getting a bored 320i one.

Then concentrate on the chip.

Exhaust will probably free up some power as its not a double pipe like the 325i system. So youll just need a 325i Exhaust. Performance ones wont make any difference at this level.

You could even put the 325i inlet manifold on if its any bigger.

After that its a MAF conversion or similar.

When you get bored, upgrade the engine to 325i, none of the mods you will have already done will have gone to waste. Infact they are all prepartions for the 325i conversion!


I cant think if a better and more efficent upgrade path.

[320Touring]

sweet dudes!thanks very much for the info!

think plan will be a wild zone chip plus a BBTB.................. then save me pennies for a 2.5 lump (hell may just buy an old 735 and have some real fun )


ideally i'm looking to do mods that essentially leave it looking stock under the bonnet-like the idea of the 325 exhaust very smart!maybe just find an old beemer and grab as much as I can down the scrappy's

btw, this is all assuming the car passes its MOT

anyone got an old m20 2.0 lying about?

[Jhonno]

if your gonna change the engine there isnt alot of point modding this one tbh! Jus bide your time n spend your Ԛ£Ã”šÃ‚£ on other things towards the new lump..

[Cloggy Saint]

Exhaust will probably free up some power as its not a double pipe like the 325i system

isn't it?

[320Touring]

jhonno-gotta wait til get me some NCB before fitting a 2.5-also want it to ba a bit different from usual 2.0

datourer-no its a single pipe, liek a 318

[Cloggy Saint]

mine's a double

[320Touring]

what year is it?mine is a 320 on a 1988 (f) plate

double is good

[Jhonno]

the 2 320's in the local scrappy to me were double...

Im putting up with a boggo 316i while i save n get everythin for my engine conversion.. I think you may be suprised bout insurance costs on a converted car as my 19yr old mate with a 2.0 16v corsa is paying sub 1k for it insurance! (all mods declared)

Also with the 2.5 it could be dropped in there n look exactly as the 320 lump

[320Touring]

I hear ya Jhonno, but unfort lack of cash AND garage kinda put me off the 2.5 for a while.

not looking for a scorcher just yet, just something thats as smooth as possible (plus cant really justify getting rid of a 2.0 with 87k on it and a full BMW SH)

Its defo a single pipe-suppose i'd just need the backbox for it?No cat either

btw, theres a dude selling a peco exhaust for an M40 on ebay -tryin to find the link

[Jhonno]

Peco is shite dont bother with em!!

[320Touring]

k!sorry

u not got anything planned for your 316i?I've only had my car for 2days and already i'm looking at possible upgrades.

[Jhonno]

Got loads of stuff planned for my 316 - non of which involve keeping the 1.6 lol so im not spending any money on that, other things like wheels/suspension/brakes/interior/ice are being done then engine conversion over the summer when everything else is ready

[320Touring]

my 320 is currently rolling on 4 bbs with tyres with 6mm tread left on em, so i'm gonna run them down first,

front wings are tatty (and being white shows it up even worse)-so may fit fibreglass ones (also lightening it a bit )

interior is mint, so not gonna do much to that (apart from a good scrub)

got a leak to fix in the tailgate (tourings are great for that!)

No big plans for ice although i do have a 12 disc changer and 2x12 subs with 1k watt amp in the loft-think i'm just gonna listen to the sweet sounds of a straight 6 for a while

btw-how much would you want for your 1.6 lump?give me something to play on

[Jhonno]

my ice isnt gonna be major, only talkin an amped 4 speaker setup with cd changer, to me the way a car drives is far more important!

Pickin up my 15" BBS' 2moro n possibly new interior (altho mine is mint i need/want sport style)

Not sure what im doin with sus/brakes atm - its got m-tech on atm with 325i front brakes but it needs uprating, considering 5stud to get the better brakes, or stay 4stud n run rear discs with willwood fronts - suspension choice will come from there as if i go 5stud it'll prolly be e36 stuff

Engine is gonna be 24v of some form, or an outside chance of the m30 3.5

Your welcome to my engine if you want it, not sure how much tho altho it wont be alot (wont be out for a while tho, would make a wicked homebuild off road buggy engine lol )

[320Touring]

hey jhonno-gimme a bit more spec on this motor of yours:)

no problem if it wont be avail for a wile as i'd need to drive down wi the tourer to collect (and it aint even MOT' yet)

Brakes and sus i'm leaving alone (apart from new pads etc as req)
sticking with the 15's bbs as i hate cars that ride too hard!gonna be running 205/65/15 at rear and 205/55/15 at front.

would rather spend cash getting it to go fast and look stock-i'm a sleeper man here

[Jhonno]

Im a follower of the Sleeper mentality either - mine is gonna be stock on the outside other than an iS lip spoiler, possibly rims depending on suspension setup, n thats it other than bodycoloured bumper/mirrors n possibly the little deck lid spoiler (not m-tech)

its gonna keep its 316i badge so all go n v little show will be the end result

[320Touring]

i'm toyin wi the idea of widened steelies just for a laff

how many K's does your m40?m10 block have?-might be fun to have a blast with it-once you get it out

no iS spoiler tho-everyone and their dog has that. I'm thinking fibreglass wings, rear hatch and bonnet

[Jhonno]

its done 61k so far - m40

i was thinkin bout running steelies with wider tyres for a laugh also, no trims on or owt

[320Touring]

ideal on the M40-gimme a forpot to tinker with

steelies wi no hubcaps and 10 years worth of dirt

back tires as wide as the english channel, and two speeds-fast and 's**t we're gonna die!'

[Gunni]

For a M20B20 you should
get a dremel

Then 325i intake manifold gasket and port the head to fit,
then install a 325i intake manifold and if not double exhaust then fit one,

also BBTB, and 325i filter box

If the AFM is the same size stick with it, otherwise you should be able to stick your electronics from the 2.0 one into a 2.5 one,

Pros ,
Stock look
Cons ,
might loose little low end

[320Touring]

thanks gunni-
think im gonna take it easy at the start tho-
maybe a zone chip and a bbtb-give it some extra OOMPH

dremels are only a good idea if you have a nice warm dry garage to work in, with no danger of dirt and grit getting into me nice cylinders

[320Touring]

Btw- just discovered- my 320i does have a double exhaust, just so happens one of the tailpipes is shorter than the other due to tinworm.

as the backbox is ok, do you think it'll affect an MOT?

[Ant]

should be fine, " excessive corosion/blowing and/or insecure"

if in doubt of your local MOT testers abilties a cheapo tailpipe trim will solve that problem =D


Oh yeah, sleepers rule

[320Touring]

sound ant, sound

will prob need new backbox once Wild zone chip is fitted (will purchase if it passes its test )