what engines will go into a 318i 93 cabby w/o changing loom

[matt86]

Hi what engines can i put into my 318i convertible without changing the loom, only a 1.8is? I'm looking to get alot more horsepower, but don't want to be stripping looms out and getting overly complicated.

Cheers

Matt

[E30cabalan]

I put a 2.5 M20 in my 93 318 cab a couple of years ago, more or less plug and play, need to change diff and gearbox as well, best move is a donor car which is the way I did it, good luck
Al

[matt86]

what did you just change ecu, diff, gearbox, engine and exhaust manifold. is the wiring loom the same? cheers mate

[nickphine]

Changing the looms is a doddle, there is a seperate engine loom that can be removed from the car along with the ecu and replaced with the same from the new engine. The harder bits maybe locating the airbox or coil(s) unless your happy with cable ties! Don't forget your exhaust and maybe prop/gearbox too.

[matt86]

oh right I assumed you had to strip dash out and stuff to change the loom? which ones are plug and play for the 318i is the is? or any of the 6 cylinders? How much would somewhere charge me to fit the 2.5 engine if I bought all the bits?

thanks

[Grrrmachine]

maybe you should read this:

http://www.e30zone.net/e30zonewiki/inde ... ngine_Loom

Swapping in the M42 engine from the 318iS will be more complex than fitting an M20 from the 325i, but neither are particularly difficult.

[matt86]

what about a m30, as have decided I want more power, how hards this and whats involved? if this is difficult I may go for the 325i engine. cheers

[matt86]

just looked at the loom diagram, so are the wirings looms teh same on all e30 stock engines? what about the m30, would that run n my wiring loom and what else would be needed to be bought ie diff, ecu, gearbox, exhaust etc etc?

cheers

[adit]

it would be a lot less work to fit an M20 than an M30 Matt

[matt86]

ok thanks adi, maybe I'll do that then, not in a massive rush right now anyway, as need to do other bits first anyway. Am I right in thinking I just need the engine, ecu and exhaust parts to convert it?

cheers

[Grrrmachine]

If you click on the links in the Wiki, they give you more info. So this is for the car loom:

http://www.e30zone.net/e30zonewiki/index.php/Loom

which states:

"The Loom is a standard design across all E30 models, with minor differences between years."