M3 Prop for M30 conversion

[gareth]

i've found a M3 prop for Ԛ£100 but having read the E30.de article it reckons that engine position 2 (what i'm doing) will need the M3 prop shortened.

is this correct?

if so, is there any benefit to a cut-up M3 prop over a hybrid M20/M30 prop?

[charlE30]

I doubt if any will fit in p3, in this position the gearbox is further back than in any production e30. an e30 m3 shaft will fit without mods in p2 and p2.5 though (I have custom mounts)

Just been looking for this, I knew I'd heard Toby say the M3 prop should be OK..... thank god cause that's what I'm using

The thread that this was quoted from is: http://www.e30zone.co.uk/modules.php?na ... ic&t=22729

[Toby_Unna]

it will def fit in p2 with no mods

unfortunately how much further back it will go i can't say because my mounts are home made and don't match the e30.de ones.

i have approx p2.5 and it fits fine, there's still adjustment left

Ԛ£100 is cheap, buy it.

[gareth]

cool! just what i wanted to hear!

maybe the adjustable splined thingy in the centre ends up a lot shorter than usuall...

anyway, best buy it then!

cheers lads!

[rs4pro3]

With my m30 swap and the engine being in position 3 ussing e30.de mounts I was actualy able to reuse an e30 driveshaft, with no shortening needing(just took it up in the center spline). The shaft I used came from an 87 325e(here in the U.S that year got the larger flange that fits' the m30 flex disk)

[charlE30]

gareth have you seen http://www.e30zone.co.uk/modules.php?na ... ic&t=25031 it's got a link to a site describing an entire M30 conversion. You can never have to much info

[gareth]

i've just had a read of that article...

so all i need is a E34 535i front end, a E30 325i rear end and simply make a hybrid? that's class!

no M3 prop needed here then!

i can get a E34 one for Ԛ£30 or something! can anyone else confirm this before it turn down an expensive and rare M3 prop?

edit:
just been comparing the engine positions on the "no decal performance" site to the E30.de ones and it looks like they're both in the same position (pos 2 on e30.de)
e30.de pos 2: http://www.e30.de/fotost/f00120/06.jpg
no decal performance: http://www.jaredsquires.com/ndp/images/ ... arance.jpg

so, E34 prop is is then! (assuming there's nothing funny with the us market ones....)

[charlE30]

Good luck with it, I'm only using an M3 prop cause when I bought my engine of Davetouring it came with it aswell as engine mounts from Karan

[bigdek]

props must vary as there was no way i could have used the front of one and the back of the other without getting it cut and welded.

you may be lucky though

[Toby_Unna]

no M3 prop needed here then!

Andy335touring had an e34 535i and e30 325i prop and still needed to get them cut and welded to get to P3

P2 isn't really ideal, but if you can do it cheaply then i'd go for it. just bear in mind that once set up for P2 changing to P3 is a pain (exhaust needs shortening, gear linkage needs shortening etc.)

[gareth]

hmm, in that case if there's a chance i'll have to cut & weld + buy a E34 prop then i'd better just get the M3 one. i'll kick myself later if i don't!

i have the mounts to allow me to get P2 and P3 so i'll have a play when i get it.

does anyone have any pics of the mods needed to the bulkhead to get P3?
this would make life easier if i go for forced unduction at a later date! (if the M3 prop will allow me... if not, then P2 it is.)

[rs4pro3]

With P3 I had to pound in the firewall where the back exhuast manifold flange was(early B33 engine), Where the top tranny bolts where(did get it enough and on bolt put a hole in the firewall), and then where the block extends on the lower intake side by the oil pan.

[gareth]

cool. would you say it's worth it? how far did you have to actually shift the metal back?

[rs4pro3]

ya it's worth it, the car handeled great, your feet may get a little hot(if right hand drive) but other that that worth it.

[gareth]

hehe! warm toes!

i'll have to have a play when it comes to fitting it all together...

[Toby_Unna]

i really dunno about the propshaft. it would be great if the e34 and e30 bits went together ok and i guess they must do if the chap says so.

much easier to put the later engine into p3 because there's no water pipe on the back of the head and the exhaust manifolds don't extend back into the bulkhead.

[gareth]

well, worst case, if i get the M3 prop for Ԛ£115 inclusive then i can sell it again for that with no problems...

it would be odd if the E34 front fitted the E30 rear and all worked... wonder why noone else has done it. is it possible that the E34 one would end up short and hence not much spline engagement?

i'd better have a look at the local bmw specialists to see. take a tape measure with me and have a play. i can measure the splines with a vernier to see if they're compatible.

has anyone got any length measurements from conversions they've done?

[rs4pro3]

Ya, I didn't have any problems with the water pipe on my older engine, but one time when accelerating hard the engine shifted, and the hose clamp hit the firewall putting a tiny hole in that rear hose(was a pain in the ass to replace that hose)

[bigdek]

the prop that came off my e34 didn't have the big nut like on the e30 prop.

it bolted in from the end down the centre.

Totally different and still the wrong length regardless.

[gareth]

maybe there's a late / early difference with the E34 props?

[bigdek]

possibly

mine was an 88(F)

[Andy335Touring]

My prop is 1450mm in P3 with the E30.de mounts

[gareth]

andy, did you get any pics of the work involved in reaching P3? (eg, bodywork bashing!)

i'm still not sure if i should go for P2 or P3...

afaik i can use the standard M3 prop for P2 but not for P3. (but the e30.de site reckons it needs shortening for both...)

if going P3 then i'll almost definately need a custom prop so butchering a real M3 one is daft and expensive

what's odd if the differences in quoted length here (1450mm in P3) and on www.e30.de (1930mm in P3) : http://216.239.39.104/translate_c?hl=en ... 35i/12.htm

has anyone here actually used a real, standard M3 prop? if it will definately fit then i'll buy this one, if not then i'm into a custom one so may as well use a E34 M30 one and cut/weld.

[Toby_Unna]

i have an e30 m3 prop.

will fit in p2 fine with no cutting.

i've also had it in what i'm sure is as far back as p3, had to remove the collar nut on the prop to allow it to slide fully together, but it worked perfectly. I would have been quite happy to run it like that permanently, but at the time i had the older type engine installed and the protruding rear water pipe was rattling on the bulkhead.

[gareth]

that's all i needed to hear! cheers toby

i'll send the money off for that M3 prop now then.

i reckon if i slot the engine mounting holes (on the E30.de brackets) then i can loosen the prop and try various positions with relative ease. then i can get an ideal position with minimum bashing of panels and maximum clearance up the front.

this is what mine look like: the two holes are supposedly P2 and P3
http://www.e30.de/fotost/f00431/18k.jpg

[Toby_Unna]

i would just buy it like you say, it'll still be worth the same if you need to sell it.

i'm not too keen on what the Jared Squires site did with the engine mounts (separate steel mounts welded direct to the chassis legs which support the normal e34 alloy mounting arms). much harder to remove everything and swap shells if you prang it!

[gareth]

i thought that was a kinda harsh way of making the mounts.

could allow more room for a 6 branch manifold though?

[Toby_Unna]

the mounts are the least of your worries if you want an e30 m30 with a six branch. LHD is fine but RHD is not really feasible without a custom manifold or a lot of cutting about to an existing one.

but unless you're staying NA you don't need one

those mounts work fine i'm sure but just more difficult than necessary, and more of a problem if you end up swapping shells like Glenn is!

[gareth]

i am planning on staying N/A... but i may still want one...

can you see where this is heading.... a clue... KOMPRESSOR! merc ideally as it's got the german link but it'll still be an Eaton so i may go for the jag blower.

that's a long way off yet though!

[Andy335Touring]

Who uses twin screw S/C's ? Jag or Merc ?

[gareth]

both!

[gareth]

AAAAAAARRRGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

just finally got an email back form the bloke with the M3 prop and he's sold it while not replying to me!!!!

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

DIY time then....

i'm going to have a rummage round the BMW specialists breakers in ashford on friday as they have tons of stuff off the shelf and i can offer loads of stuff up... maybe find this E34 unit that'll fit if i'm lucky?

[Toby_Unna]

probably got offered more for it. M3 props are rare. i got mine from quarry motors for Ԛ£80, was in sheffield and just gave them a ring on the off chance and they had one in. spent a lot of time chasing people around fruitlessly beforehand.

keep looking for one, it's a bolt on solution!

[charlE30]

I know it's a long shot but have you tried www.partsgateway.co.uk they've managed to find bits for me in the past.

[gareth]

i phoned a bmw spares in ashford earlier and the reckon there's a very good chance they have one and if so they'll put it to one side for me to collect tomorrow. they also reckon they'll have a manual E34 gearbox, E28 flywheel + clutch and all sorts of other stuff i may need in stock! it's all neatly sorted out in racks so perfect for browsing though! ;)

fingers crossed!

if they don't have one in stock, they'll have loads of E34 ones so i'll look into the chances of putting one together with a E34 splined type... if they have such a thing.

regarding the required length, do i take it that the e30.de site is wrong here too?

Variant 3: The e30 M3 Driveshaft
The best option is to use the e30 M3 driveshaft. This driveshaft fits in Engine Position I without any modifications. In Engine Position II the driveshaft must be shortened by around 4-5 cm. If using the motor mount brackets from www.e30.de to fix the engine in Engine Position III the driveshaft must be shortened by around 7 cm, in all it should measure about 193 cm.

the stated 193cm is about 0.5m longer than position 3 on andy335i's car...

i've not measured anything yet but who's right? i assume andy but can anyone else confirm at all? i'm hoping to have a rummage with a tape measure and about 200 stocked props and make up the unit i need!