1998 318ti sport, 1.8L Turbo or 2.5L I6

[Bluebimma]

So, as some of you know, i have a couple of bmws over here. The ls1 project is nearing completion and will be road tripping in it this upcoming spring with a couple of friends. A parts car, i bought back in february for some panels, has been sitting in my garage for a while and after looking it over, i just cant junk it. Theres like two spots of rust on the passenger rocker, hit a large rock or something and smashed it a bit and never fixed i guess, and thats it. The underside is flawless, just dirt. The engine bay is clean. The car was kept up pretty well and the PO had a LOT of audio/video going on, judging by all the wires ive pulled from underneath panels and such.

The issue is, it has a salvage title. From what the shop owner, whom i bought it from, told me, the PO blew the head gasket, sold it to the shop, and while there, it was broken into. The audio and such was stolen, passenger window busted out, and thats it. From there, the shop called in the insurance and they totaled it out. The shop started parting it out until i got ahold of them for the drivers door and the hatch. The price for the parts and picking it up was the same as buying the whole chassis without wheels. Nate and i drove down and picked up the complete chassis and threw some of my wheels on it and towed it home.

Now that its winter, im just going to throw a drivetrain in and winter beat it this winter and fix it up as well so my friends can drive a separate car and maybe have a bit more fun on the trips.

The dilemma is, what drivetrain do i do?

I currently have a 2.5 I6 with intake, headerback, tune, p/s+a/c delete, timing work, 5 speed manual, m3 euro clutch, and a 4.10lsd. The engine needs a new head gasket, leaks oil, and maybe some valve guides or rings because it burns it as well. Stock, the engine puts out 189hp and with the intake, 3.25lsd, and slipping clutch, i ran a 14.73 a couple years back in my green car. Not sure what itll run now, but its decently quick, not fast.

I could rebuild this engine for about 300 or so bucks and throw it into the parts car with a 3.45 rear and call it a day but i really want a turbod engine as well as something thats slower and more DD than the ls1 car.

The other idea is using my 1.8 in the garage and running about 5-6psi through it to make around 180-190hp with it. Stock, its 138hp and can handle up to 14psi before needing internal work done. I could sell my 6cyl stuff as a kit to fund a low psi turbo setup but still have a learning curve to conquer trying to get it going properly.

What would you guys do? Also, not planning on boosting the 6, please dont suggest.