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Originally Posted by boss23  Hey guys.. looking to do a swap, but am not sure what I want to do just yet. I've been hearing mixed reviews about both motors and want to know what the concensus was here on the forum.. especialy for those of you who have already swapped their motors out. So here's the deal. I have a 95' OBDI 318ti. I know the s50 is pretty much a direct bolt on, but have heard that I'd be happier with the more powerful s52. I did buy Jim's swap manual and it seems that he pushes for the 95 OBDI owners to have the s50 to make things easier. I know the s52 motor will be harder to install and more obstacles to run into, but I'm the type that would rather do the job right the first time. I don't want to have any regrets if I'm going to go through the trouble in the first place. My brother keeps on telling me that the s50 and s52 are identical when placed in my motor bay because of the obdI restrictions; however I am not sure that this is entirely true since he's not an e36 owner (e30). I know the difference is about 10-15 hp different (to be on the conservative side), but he seems to think that my car wouldn't be able to utiltize this. Hmmm.. this is why I am here.. I need more opinions.. instead of one that thinks he knows all. Jim mentioned a few things that I'd need different for the s52, but if you are one that pushes for the s52, can you please give me a list of things I would need different for this as opposed to the s50 swap? I am very new to this.. have been doing hours upon hours of research (I know.. same story for anyone who is contemplating this sort of thing) and still do not have a definitive answer.  Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!  Erica (and yes, I will be posting a swap thread as soon as it commences if I get enough interest). |
Well you can have the best of both worlds with a little work. I have an OBDI S52 installed in my Tis. The conversion isn't that involved and you might as well but an M50 manifold on it also. If needed I have some spare parts that you will need. Check my swap thread for more info on this conversion.
BTW the power difference isn't that big of a deal (if any) I would be more concerned with the differences in the head.
Also for software TRM is the only way to go.