318ti.org forum

Go Back   318ti.org forum > Technical, Maintenance and Modifications > Engine Swaps

Notices

Engine Swaps Engine conversions.

.
» Recent Threads
M50+manual swap bastard...
03-01-2024 10:00 PM
Last post by Andy318
Yesterday 02:34 PM
3 Replies, 45,701 Views
Cali Top owners: How...
07-14-2014 04:29 PM
Last post by Trusted-1
03-15-2024 02:37 AM
2 Replies, 42,971 Views
FOR SALE: 82k mile 1995...
03-15-2024 01:24 AM
Last post by di318
03-15-2024 01:24 AM
0 Replies, 38,484 Views
BMW E36 Compact rear...
03-13-2024 12:56 PM
Last post by BMW Welsh rally
03-13-2024 12:56 PM
0 Replies, 49,436 Views
WTB: 318ti with...
04-20-2022 08:57 AM
Last post by di318
03-10-2024 08:08 PM
21 Replies, 245,276 Views
The 318ti OBD-II engine...
10-19-2006 06:48 PM
Last post by Cybersid13
03-09-2024 02:12 PM
209 Replies, 678,111 Views
Reply Share/Bookmark
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 08-08-2018, 12:29 AM   #46
ZEK
Senior Member
 
ZEK's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: US
Posts: 315
Vehicles
iTrader: (0)
Default

Yes you can delete the TB garbage.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
__________________
98 318Ti S52
84 318i M10 Zender
93 325is Parker
ZEK is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-19-2019, 04:38 PM   #47
spidertri
Senior Member
 
spidertri's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Elizabeth City, NC
Posts: 3,877
Vehicles
iTrader: (9)
Default

Been a while since I updated.

So the suspension and brake upgrades went pretty smoothly until I got a little careless with the dremel when trimming the rear brake backing plates. I ended up nicking the passenger brake hard line and while it didn't cause a leak it certainly introduced a spot of weakness. The last thing I wanted was to be on track and lose brake pressure due to a rupture at that location.

Luckily, NAPA sells lengths of european brake line that work and are coated like the OE lines. I did also order a couple of OE lines because the length of those was slightly different than the NAPA line.

Since this was my first time bending brake lines I used the NAPA stuff to practice and make sure I didn't screw up with the OE stuff. One thing to make sure of if you do this yourself is to get a good pair of brake line pliers. I looked through all the pairs available at the local stores and only one had jaws that lined up correctly. Even then, I ran a file through the jaws to clean up some small burrs before I used them on the lines.

Pics below, used the old line as a guide and kept holding it up to the trailing arm to make sure it would route through the clips. When working with the pre-flared lines it's critical to keep the bends correct because there is not much slack left by the time to get from one end to the other.



__________________
~Dave~

98 328ti Morea Grun slicktop
11 128i space gray slicktop
13 JGC WK2 Deep Cherry

Search | RealOEM
spidertri is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-19-2019, 04:57 PM   #48
spidertri
Senior Member
 
spidertri's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Elizabeth City, NC
Posts: 3,877
Vehicles
iTrader: (9)
Default

This past week I've had the car down to install the M50 manifold.

It went fairly smoothly but definitely took longer than I expected. I purchased the manifold and eurosport install kit used and while it's a very nice kit I think I would have preferred the m50manifold.com kit because it keeps the CCV and ICV up in their normal locations.

Since the eurosport kit is the same as the Turner Motorsport kit, I followed Turner's install guide which was fairly basic but helped to provide a checklist to follow. I went beyond the guide and trimmed several brackets and the fuel rail to ensure that things fit the M50 manifold properly.

On the manifold itself, I drilled a hole in the web of the rear runners to allow both O2 sensor connectors to pass through. This allowed those wire to route more naturally than trying to get both through the port in the rear most web.

Several cuts were made to the bracket that holds the CCV and ICV. There was a tab that hung down below the CCV that ended up contacting the hard coolant pipe that goes towards the frame rail. I removed that tab to provide plenty of clearance to the coolant pipe. I also notched out the corner of the bracket so that I could get an allen wrench on the front support bracket mount. This made it much easier to install the manifold because I could then leave the bolt loose while I test fit/connected everything.

The last bracket I changed was the forward manifold support bracket. I cut a section out that goes around the CCV so that the bracket could align correctly between the block mount and manifold.

Other than that I followed the guide and had to tweak the fuel hard pipes slightly, bend the starter wire, bend up the O2 tab, and shave down the bosses on the manifold.

I also used this opportunity to replace the crank sensor, clean the ICV, and clean the CCV. I had a ton of nasty yellow snot in the CCV. Unfortunately, in the winter I usually drive the car to work and back so it doesn't get nice long runs to get all the temps up for extended periods of time. I plan to install a catch can between the valve cover and CCV and take it out for extended drives to try and keep that clean.

Next up is prepping for the S52 cams I picked up. I managed to find a set with trays and lifters so I'm going to check and clean the dirty lifters and replace the valve springs/seats with the S52 parts. Once the car comes down for that stuff I'll be sending the DME out for a retune.














__________________
~Dave~

98 328ti Morea Grun slicktop
11 128i space gray slicktop
13 JGC WK2 Deep Cherry

Search | RealOEM
spidertri is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-23-2019, 04:12 AM   #49
Murt
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2019
Location: Hampton, VA
Posts: 9
iTrader: (0)
Default

Do you have a cage in the car? If so any pics? I am in process of building my cage and want to see what others have done in the rear.
Murt is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-24-2019, 04:53 PM   #50
spidertri
Senior Member
 
spidertri's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Elizabeth City, NC
Posts: 3,877
Vehicles
iTrader: (9)
Default

I don't have a cage, just the Kirk Racing bolt-in roll bar.
__________________
~Dave~

98 328ti Morea Grun slicktop
11 128i space gray slicktop
13 JGC WK2 Deep Cherry

Search | RealOEM
spidertri is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-13-2019, 06:41 PM   #51
spidertri
Senior Member
 
spidertri's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Elizabeth City, NC
Posts: 3,877
Vehicles
iTrader: (9)
Default

Well, during my prep for the S52 cams I started mysteriously losing coolant. I pressure tested the system and found leaks in the heater core and thermostat housing. So I installed a new heater core, plastic pipes, and orings. Used anaerobic sealant on the thermostat housing and had no more leaks from there.

However, I started losing coolant again, and all of the sudden I had an issue with warm restarts. If I let the car sit for 25-30 mins it would take multiple tries before it would start the engine.

I hooked up the coolant pressure tester again and found a small leak at the upper radiator hose, so I tightened the clamp. I then pulled all the spark plugs and found cylinder 3 filling up with coolant. Nice to find the leak but not a quick fix.

So the car is being torn down for a head gasket. I have a feeling the head is cracked, there was no coolant in the oil. The only symptoms I had were more "steam" from the exhaust on cold mornings (I've seen HG let go and the white plume coming from the exhaust, my car did not do this) and the warm restart issue when the coolant filled the cylinder while the engine was cooling down.

Plans for now:
- Rebuild head with 3 angle valve job, S52 valve springs, cleaned up and decked
- ARP Head studs
- Stock Elring head gasket kit
- S52 cams installed
- Retune from Markert Motorworks for the M50 manifold and S52 cams

More pictures to come.
__________________
~Dave~

98 328ti Morea Grun slicktop
11 128i space gray slicktop
13 JGC WK2 Deep Cherry

Search | RealOEM
spidertri is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-13-2019, 10:05 PM   #52
ZEK
Senior Member
 
ZEK's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: US
Posts: 315
Vehicles
iTrader: (0)
Default

Sorry to hear but at least it’s getting fixed.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
__________________
98 318Ti S52
84 318i M10 Zender
93 325is Parker
ZEK is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-14-2019, 07:24 AM   #53
anassa
Senior Member
 
anassa's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: SoCal
Posts: 702
Vehicles
iTrader: (1)
Default

Update?

Your m52 will be basically the same as mine! m52+s52cams +m50 manifold. I am putting on the m50 manifold now, I hope it turns out good.

What diff do you run? I got a medium case 3.46 so it pulls nicely.
__________________


***328ti Build thread. ***

Even more important:
SUPPORT 318ti.org! CLICK THE LINK ABOVE!
Hosting a forum like this is not free. 318ti.org is one of the best BMW forums on the web because it is member supported, not vendor supported. The cost to become a Supporter is a nominal $10.00... A YEAR! DO IT! NOW!
anassa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-14-2019, 01:32 PM   #54
spidertri
Senior Member
 
spidertri's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Elizabeth City, NC
Posts: 3,877
Vehicles
iTrader: (9)
Default

Yeah, I totally forgot to update this thread.

My head was definitely cracked where they usually do from the coolant passage to the exhaust valve stem seat at cylinder 3. Looked at local machine shops but didn't feel great about them.

So I ended up getting a rebuilt head from Autohead Performance in AL. Highly recommend these guys if you need a BMW head reconditioned or rebuilt. Excellent communication, fast shipping, and a nice clean head to install with a 1 year warranty. I was even able to send them my S52 valve springs and valve stem seals and they installed them in the new head for me.

The reinstall went pretty smoothly, going against traditional forum techniques, I did not use any scotch brite pads or roloc disks to clean the block surface. I was very worried about getting contaminants in the oil and coolant passages. What I did buy was a "Superscraper" and that thing was amazing at getting the gross old stuff off of the block surface. I was able to get the block surface pretty smooth and shiny using the scraper, brake clean, and lint free cloths. Cleaning that up was definitely the bulk of the time I spent prepping.

I installed the elring gasket by itself, no copper seal or anything. Just a couple dabs of anaerobic sealant where the timing case meets the block. The ARP studs were helpful for lining up the head with the block as it came down. I definitely needed my wife's help to set the head on the block smoothly. I then installed and torqued the studs using the original ARP torque specs, not their lower new specs, the forced induction forum on BF.c has good threads on that. I wasn't in a rush so I torqued and retorqued the studs over the course of 2-3 days.

While this isn't a super thick HG, there is some compression in the material so letting it go for several days let it get to the final thickness and torque spec.

After that, I installed the cams, I used the pelican (I think) technique, where you loosen all the caps except the cap over cylinder 1 and then rotate the cam slightly so that you can remove that cap. It went very smoothly, no issues getting the new cams in. The most trouble I had was installing the VANOS, I bought some timing tools from Amazon that were $45 but I eventually found out that the intake side cam block was not machined completely flat which made me think the cams were not timed correctly when they actually were okay. Big pain, the blocks worked but I should have checked their flatness before I started.

After that it was just putting everything back together. I did a fill and drain with some cheaper oil before I filled with my regular oil. Same with the coolant, fill and drain to get any debris out of the passages.

While I had it apart I removed as many wires as possible from the engine harness that had to do with the automatic transmission stuff that was just hanging out since the swap. I was able to pull a lot of wires out.

With everything reinstalled I turned the engine over by hand several times to lubricate stuff and make sure the timing was still good. After that it fired right up.

Since then I've done two autox and two track days, the car feels fantastic. Pulls super hard in the upper RPM, it's awesome. At this point I just want to get more seat time, although I need to get new track tires, thinking about going to 245/45-16 R888R on my BBS RKs.
__________________
~Dave~

98 328ti Morea Grun slicktop
11 128i space gray slicktop
13 JGC WK2 Deep Cherry

Search | RealOEM
spidertri is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-14-2019, 01:35 PM   #55
spidertri
Senior Member
 
spidertri's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Elizabeth City, NC
Posts: 3,877
Vehicles
iTrader: (9)
Default

I am currently running a 3.07 medium case torsen diff from a Z3. I read a few threads by some guys who race Z3M and E30s and they were advocating the torsen because of the rear trailing arm setup we have. The smoother engagement of the torsen lets us get on power sooner, so far I haven't had any issues with it and the rear end is either planted or I can throttle oversteer with an easy to find limit.
__________________
~Dave~

98 328ti Morea Grun slicktop
11 128i space gray slicktop
13 JGC WK2 Deep Cherry

Search | RealOEM
spidertri is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-15-2019, 06:55 AM   #56
anassa
Senior Member
 
anassa's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: SoCal
Posts: 702
Vehicles
iTrader: (1)
Default

Pretty awesome work!

Was this your first time doing a headgasket job? Good tips on letting it settle (for that material) and how you went about it. I would be super paranoid if I did it myself, thinking I might mess something up lol. Especially with timing for cams etc.

That also must be pretty nice to get rid of all the extra wires, I know right now I got some wires that make me scratch my head, so maybe I'll get to that too.

Do you have a tune for the s52cams/m50 setup? Or just using the stock DME?

What specs for the BBS RKs? How does it compare to the previous setup?

I have a torsion too, but why torsion vs clutch type?

I feel like the 3.07 is kind of long for the m52, even the s52 had 3.23 stock.
__________________


***328ti Build thread. ***

Even more important:
SUPPORT 318ti.org! CLICK THE LINK ABOVE!
Hosting a forum like this is not free. 318ti.org is one of the best BMW forums on the web because it is member supported, not vendor supported. The cost to become a Supporter is a nominal $10.00... A YEAR! DO IT! NOW!
anassa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-15-2019, 12:17 PM   #57
spidertri
Senior Member
 
spidertri's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Elizabeth City, NC
Posts: 3,877
Vehicles
iTrader: (9)
Default

Yeah, this was my first time doing a HG. It's a bit nerve wracking but I made sure to put the hardware I took off in labeled plastic baggies, had a clean bin to lay out removed parts in, and bought a cheap storage tray from harbor freight that I could put all the lifters in and keep them soaked in oil while they were out of the car. It worked well, I only have a one car garage so not a ton of room.

Timing the VANOS really isn't too bad, but it is a pain when you can rely on your timing tools. I have a lightweight flywheel so no TDC lock hole, I thought that was screwing me up and I was being super careful with lining up the TDC mark on the timing cover and I had a wooden dowel down cylinder 1 to see when it was at TDC. All that looked good and I finally took a closer look at the blocks.

I had Markert Motorworks retune my DME while it was out of the car, they turned it around quickly and were very responsive. I've been running their swap tune since I put the M52 in back in 2016.

The RKs are 16x8 et38, I also have a set of 17x8.5 ARC8s but those currently have RE71Rs on them for autox. I really like the 15x8s but I want wider rubber and with their low offset I can't fit much before I run into my fender. They are a great wheel if you want to run the cheaper, smaller, performance tires. Interested in the 15s???

Torsen vs clutch, just from driving both (had a 3 clutch 3.73) I like how I can put power down way sooner with the torsen coming out of corners. That could be a limitation of the stock diff type and adding a third clutch actually made things worse. Apparently torsens are bad on bumpy surfaces but the autox I ran last weekend was about the worst concrete I've ever driven on and I didn't notice any wheel spin.

I like the 3.07 because it gives me a little more 2nd gear top end for autox, on track I pretty much only use 3rd and 4th, and then 5th is pretty chill for cruising to events. (I'm getting old haha) The E36 transmission has pretty close ratios so it hasn't seemed to be an issue with bogging down. With the cams and manifold there is absolutely a "here comes the power" point around 4K. Diff ratios are just all about trade offs, more top end or more acceleration? BMW picked the ratio at the time to hit a performance target they selected that could have been defined by other cars on the market.
__________________
~Dave~

98 328ti Morea Grun slicktop
11 128i space gray slicktop
13 JGC WK2 Deep Cherry

Search | RealOEM

Last edited by spidertri; 06-15-2019 at 12:30 PM.
spidertri is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-16-2019, 06:43 AM   #58
anassa
Senior Member
 
anassa's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: SoCal
Posts: 702
Vehicles
iTrader: (1)
Default

Oh nice! Congrats on doing the head job well then! Sounds like a good learning experience.

I wonder how much the tune has to do with the 4k "power switch" I have a TRM tune, it is tuned for m50 manifold+S52 cams - but for the longest time I didn't have the m50 manifold just s52 cams and there was still a bit of a "power switch" around the 4k point instead of a smoother transition. Once the m50 manifold is on I wonder how it will feel.

Anyways the reason I find it weird is because it reminds me of my Honda days with VTEC YO! But that was actually a change of physical cam profiles that gave that power surge, which the m52 doesn't have, it almost seems like the tune does it on purpose to make you feel like the tune/mod is worth it - instead of having a smooth power band. I also wonder how similar our tunes are since they both seem to have the same characteristic - tuners just sharing boxed tunes and charging different prices?

Nice wheel collection! I have a feeling the 15" wheels are the same TRM set I sold you years ago? Good to hear they are still good! What tire size is giving you trouble with the fenders?

Hmmm I have a 3.15 that I am thinking of swapping out the 3.46 for. The acceleration of the 3.46 is nice, but more shifting is required as well as well as having not so fun cruising rpms- I feel you on the getting old part haha - besides the 3.15 came stock with the 2.8L z3s so it seems like a good combo . . . but I am hesitating because accerlation from the 3.46 is attractive and the idea of purposely putting in a "slower" part bugs me for no logical reason. I would almost prefer to swap for a 6spd to have a cruising gear. But that is not happening any time soon.
__________________


***328ti Build thread. ***

Even more important:
SUPPORT 318ti.org! CLICK THE LINK ABOVE!
Hosting a forum like this is not free. 318ti.org is one of the best BMW forums on the web because it is member supported, not vendor supported. The cost to become a Supporter is a nominal $10.00... A YEAR! DO IT! NOW!
anassa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-16-2019, 12:42 PM   #59
spidertri
Senior Member
 
spidertri's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Elizabeth City, NC
Posts: 3,877
Vehicles
iTrader: (9)
Default

VANOS is essentially a more complicated version of VTEC, around 4K is when the VANOS switches over. So it's more pronounced with the cams but the M50 manifold is much more aggressive in the top end of the RPM band. Larger runners flow more air as the engine winds up.

Yeah, same 15s, I've never found another set for sale. I wanted to run a 225/50-15 or 235/50-15 but it will contact the fender too much without going to flares.

I was a little apprehensive to do the 3.07 before I did but I've been running it since before the swap and it's been great. I just have different reasons for why I chose it, in my case I don't need the outright acceleration I need the speed within the gears.
__________________
~Dave~

98 328ti Morea Grun slicktop
11 128i space gray slicktop
13 JGC WK2 Deep Cherry

Search | RealOEM
spidertri is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-07-2020, 01:14 AM   #60
higgt00l
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2020
Location: Greensboro
Posts: 3
iTrader: (0)
Default

Hey everyone. I bought Spidertri’s car. I’ll likely be using it for HPDEs and having fun. Given the hard work that he put in to the car, I though I should have it Dyno’d. Here are the results: Max Power of 216hp and 189.5 torque.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version Name:	F37A4FD1-91DF-4202-B290-F2D5ECFDDC47.jpg Views:	132 Size:	73.3 KB ID:	17835   Click image for larger version Name:	629275B9-7BF9-4DD0-82EF-D3CC550511E7.jpg Views:	121 Size:	53.9 KB ID:	17836   Click image for larger version Name:	7664A691-8C25-451E-9007-DB47BD2C5F66.jpg Views:	132 Size:	116.6 KB ID:	17837  

Click image for larger version Name:	1A23121D-3DCF-4496-8753-1924E542B7D4.jpg Views:	156 Size:	60.5 KB ID:	17838   Click image for larger version Name:	B1D35598-833C-4076-B367-B6BF9D41B025.jpg Views:	130 Size:	65.9 KB ID:	17839  
higgt00l is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
MVP Track Time 2016 Track Events (Come Drive With Us) Feffman Track, Auto-X & Drag Racing 1 02-06-2016 11:41 AM
MVP Track Time 2015 Track Dates Feffman Track, Auto-X & Drag Racing 2 07-08-2015 01:10 PM
MVP Track Time 2015 Midwest Track Dates Feffman Great Lakes - US 1 06-30-2015 01:57 PM
MVP Track Time 2014 Track Dates Feffman Track, Auto-X & Drag Racing 3 09-18-2014 12:38 PM
2012 Midwest Track Dates - MVP Track Time Feffman Great Lakes - US 2 06-16-2012 12:54 PM


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 06:15 AM.


.
Powered by site supporters
vBulletin Version 3.8.8
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©1999 - 2024, 318ti.org
© vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.2
[page compression: 154.37 k/179.99 k (14.23%)]

318ti.org does not warrant or assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information or products discussed.