Turbocharging a 320i.. feed me some info lol

[dan_emaps]

Guys,

I'm currently storing my 320i Touring with the plan now being to slowly tune it over the coming months (the joys of a garage )

I would like to turbocharge it as i've been inspired by a few projects on here, namely the m30 turbo and the m40

I would like to stick with my 320 engine as i really dont want to get into hauling entire engines out of cars and all that worrying if the new engine is good etc etc (been there done that!) also i'm thinking about budget, and although i imagine a 325 lump would be a far better base my 2.0 seems a good solid unit and would seem a shame to do nothing with it.

So onto the next question... is there any glaringly bad reasons why i shouldnt stick with the 320? how is it for compression?

Heres a basic idea of the parts i'm hopig to use and the figures i'd like to achieve, does this sound sensible and also realistic?

T3 Turbo (volvo?), Megasquirt management, uprated cam, a form of front mount intercooler, hopefully a manifold from a zoner (wonder if i could commission someone to help me here lol) uprated injectors, i'm guessing these would be required, or maybe secondaries?

I would like to see over 200bhp without putting the engine under serious strain, does this sound feasable?

Thanks chaps!

[gcorky]

well you would need sump off anyway,and considering your 40 bhp down to start with id swap a 2.5 in first.

no cam required with 2.5 as duration is allready suitable for f.i,first job -track down a suitable manifold to mount turbo and the rest is readily available.



200bhp is acheivable on an m20b25 without turbo.with 300 bhp is do-able.

[Geeman]

if you're swapping blocks, might as well go 2.7 while you're at it.

[e30_Turbo]

200bhp from a FI M20, easy as.....

Would have thought Malcs M40 turbo was getting on for 200 or so and that's a 1.8!

IIRC 7 psi on a M20B25 with a t3 is about 220bhp @ the wheels.

But if you're only after 200bhp or so I'd go S/C, much easier to install and get working right.

HTH, Mark.

[Ant]

Disagree Fozz, supercharger is more £Â£Ã‚£ to outlay, and less outright bhp unless you can get the drive pulley ratios spot on. also a lot more grief to fit and plumb as I'm sure Lennie can confirm

2.0 M20, std cossie T3 turbo, manifold etc to suit, be a cool weapon methinks

certainly go a lot better than stock

[dan_emaps]

well you would need sump off anyway,and considering your 40 bhp down to start with id swap a 2.5 in first.

no cam required with 2.5 as duration is allready suitable for f.i,first job -track down a suitable manifold to mount turbo and the rest is readily available.



200bhp is acheivable on an m20b25 without turbo.with 300 bhp is do-able.

Why would i need the sump off dude?

I really have decided against a 2.5 guys, i'd like to do this conversion for a fair bit less than it would cost me to fit say a 3.0 M3 engine, if i start messing about with buying new lumps etc then i can see the budget going out of the window and probably ending up costing me as much as M Power would.. besides, 320 turbos don't seem too common

So can i assume the compression will be fine? and also could i use a 325 cam? if i can get 220-230brake that would be awesome, but anything over 200bhp would be cool!

Anyone fancy helping me with a shopping list? so i can get a better idea how much this will all cost..

So i need:
T3 Turbo
actuator
Intercooler?
Injectors?
Manifold
new engine management

What else?

Ant - if i had everything done bar ecu and wiring, could i bring it to you to wire the megasquirt in and map it?

[Ant]

No worries Dan

[Jhonno]

Why not bother with the 2.5.. it'll only cost £200or so more for a lump and have a 40bhp headstart with much more torque

[fuzzy]

wouldnt it be a false economy sticking by your 2 litre? much of your turbos power will be used up just getting you to the 2.5's starting point.id think a decent 2.5 could be picked up from a trusted zoner for a couple of hundred quid giving you a better starting point.even done as cheap as possible its surely going to cost a grand or two anyway.i wouldnt recommend buying the cheapest parts you can find when it comes to turbos etc either as they are notoriously dodgy parts to buy second hand at the best of times,as i and a couple of other zoners have found out to our cost what sort of budget do you have?

[gcorky]

well you would need sump off anyway,and considering your 40 bhp down to start with id swap a 2.5 in first.

no cam required with 2.5 as duration is allready suitable for f.i,first job -track down a suitable manifold to mount turbo and the rest is readily available.



200bhp is acheivable on an m20b25 without turbo.with 300 bhp is do-able.

Why would i need the sump off dude?

I really have decided against a 2.5 guys, i'd like to do this conversion for a fair bit less than it would cost me to fit say a 3.0 M3 engine, if i start messing about with buying new lumps etc then i can see the budget going out of the window and probably ending up costing me as much as M Power would.. besides, 320 turbos don't seem too common

So can i assume the compression will be fine? and also could i use a 325 cam? if i can get 220-230brake that would be awesome, but anything over 200bhp would be cool!

Anyone fancy helping me with a shopping list? so i can get a better idea how much this will all cost..

So i need:
T3 Turbo
actuator
Intercooler?
Injectors?
Manifold
new engine management

What else?

Ant - if i had everything done bar ecu and wiring, could i bring it to you to wire the megasquirt in and map it?

oil return from turbo to sump.

[WillG]

some better head bolts/studs and a MLS gasket and a dumpvalve

[E30BeemerLad]

if the stock 320 lump is being retained, would it not be an idea to use the 325 inlet manifold and poke the inlet ports out to match, to get as much air in as poss? cheap mod even just to go with the manifold as i guess head off to do the machining for the ports

[greg320i]

if the stock 320 lump is being retained, would it not be an idea to use the 325 inlet manifold and poke the inlet ports out to match, to get as much air in as poss? cheap mod even just to go with the manifold as i guess head off to do the machining for the ports

then whilst your at it use the 325 throttle body,by then you may aswell just drop the 325 and have that extra for all the peeing around all IMO

[dan_emaps]

thanks for all the info so far guys.

The thing is, with this project i'm not trying to create a total monster, if i get a 2.5 lump with circa 300bhp then i feel i'd need to uprate brakes/suspension etc aswell, i just don't want to spend thousands and thousands on her, what i want is 200-230bhp, and if this is attainable without using a 2.5 lump or machining ports then i won't do that, i certainly dont want to cut corners but i also don't want to spend time and money on things that aren't required, plus i can always upgrade if i'm not happy at a later date

As for a turbo i realise how many dodgy ones there must be about second hand, luckily i have quite a few friends who like their cossies etc and i know of a good t34 thats a possibility, would this be seriously laggy?

Also does anyone know what the cam situation would be? is it worth using a 2.5? would it make any worthwhile difference?

I'll PM you Ant regarding the Megasquirt...

[Turbo-Brown]

How long's the stroke on the 2 litre?

Be great to make a high revving turbo M20

Reckon that 200bhp on a relatively low boost setup should be easilt attainable. It's about a 53% increase over standard, but I managed 54% with 7psi

I reckon you should go for it, and if you wanna upgrade to the 2.5 later on, you've got most of the ground work covered

[WillG]

short , its 66mm stroke on B20 , 75mm or near on B23/25 and stroker is 81mm

[Toby_Unna]

I think it's a great idea, use the 2.0

it should make a really nice sweet engine, and every other 2.5 you hear about seems to have a cracked cylinder head. it's not all about power!

i'd also say go turbo rather than SC, the feeling of power building as it spools is great.

[buster]

should be less chance of head gasket failure due to the fact that the 320 has smaller bores = wider gasket around the bores.More contact ,less chance of it blowing out.

[dan_emaps]

rarrr! it seems theres some advantages to keeping the 2.0 then!

Getting the ball rolling already, One of the Ford boys has managed to source me a Cosworth turbo for £70 he just needs to check it for play, but knows the seals are good.

Also definately going for megasquirt and it seems the Volvo 960 Turbo intercooler is the one to go for, so will source one of these when i can find one!!

Toby... how are you fixed for manufacturing another Manifold? would you make another if the money was right or have you had enough of welding for abit? lol

[fuzzy]

i use the t34 on mine and its not laggy,boost comes in at about 1400 rpm.id have doubts on a £70 turbo though but good luck

[dan_emaps]

lol so would i normally but its from a trusted friend so if he says its good then i'll get it, it's cheap enough not to be too dissapointed if something happened to be amiss anyway

[Turbo-Brown]

Seems to be a bit hit and miss with second hand turbos doesn't it. We paid about £100 for a T25 from a 200sx for my mates car which has tonnes of slop in the shaft. I paid £200 for the turbos on mine and they turned out to be almost brand new!

[dan_emaps]

Turbos... who'd have them eh

Ok so the bits i'm still unsure on, Injectors, did you guys with charged 2.5s uprate them? should i need to?

325 cam, do we know if this will fit in the 2.0 no probs and if so, if is worth it?

Cooling fan - I imagine the I/C will mean i have to remove the viscous fan to fit it in, is an electric front mount fan the way forward?

Headgasket, someone advised fitting a metal one above i think, is this needed and how much/where from?

[Ant]

for the b20 some 30# inj will suffice, or some 19#(M30 units) with a 4 bar base rate on the regulator

I still have my viscous fan in place, as does Fozzy and Alex

H/gasket can stay, I doubt you'll push that as buster has already explained

Some 12.9 headbolts would be an idea though

leave the b20 cam in there Dan, lower duration, less overlap= great for FI

HTH

[dan_emaps]

Excellent, do you have any pics showing how your I/C is fitted?

Also can you supply the head bolts Ant?

Would i need to buy a different regulator for m30 injectors then? sorry guys, i am a total novice here

Pleased about the cam and h/g