This is my 1988 M3. I replaced the S14 with a 1997 S52. The transmission is a ZF five speed from a ’98 M3. Everything is in excellent condition. I spent 17 months building this. Now I have to sell it. I can guarantee you there is no rust on this car, no door dings, and no bondo. Odometer says 150239.
I don’t quite know where to begin so I’ll start with the engine.
Aside from the standard OBDI conversion, it is a stock S52. I had in “freshened” by a local, reputable shop before I installed it. Freshening meant; standard block prep, chains and guides, main and rod bearings, oil pump, gaskets, and rings. They replaced 8 exhaust valves. I installed a new Stewart water pump, an aluminum pump housing, and 21 pound Accel fuel injectors. The A/C compressor, alternator, starter, P.S. reservoir, oil level sender, all sensors and hoses, AND the actual engine harness are new. Yes, the engine wire harness is new. Fitment was for a 1995 OBDI 325. I also used the Treehouse Racing conversion wiring adapter. There should be no electrical problems with this car. The A/C lines and radiator are from Treehouse Racing too. The valve cover, injector rail cover, and firewall wiring covers are new. The header is one of those Asian supersprint copies available on the net. The exhaust system is a VSR center section with cats and a Stromung E30M3 muffler/tailpipe set connected to the header by a short, stainless steel H-pipe I had made locally. The DME has an old Turner chip in it. All in all, it’s a very peppy set-up.
I installed the lightweight aluminum flywheel/clutch kit from Bavarian Autosport. The guibo, CSB, all the seals, shifter rod coupler, bushings, clips, slave cylinder, and shifter ball-cup are new. I installed a budget SSK from Understeer. All the driveshaft heat-shields are in place. The differential is a 3.46lsd. It’s from an old E28 I think.
I use Mobil One and Redline fluids in the engine, trans, and diff.
I think I did a pretty good job under the hood. Almost everything has been replaced. As you can see in the pictures, I relocated the ABS pump, I’ve been an airline mechanic since 1985. I’m confident that my electrical connections and tubing work is all just fine. In fact, all my electrical connections were done with uninsulated butt-splices and covered with heat-shrink tubing. No bulging black tape or red, Home Depot splices. The effect is very clean and stock looking.
I disassembled most of the car and had it repainted. The color is called Techno-Gray, it’s a Saturn color (sorry). All window and door seals, sunroof, trunk, hood, and tail-light seals are new. I replaced the door sill plates, the rear portion of the center console, and the shifter/boot. The dashboard is flawless. Considering it’s about 20 years old, the interior is amazing. There is one small tear on the driver’s seat and one small tear on the right, rear seat. The M-Tech2 steering wheel is a little dry but not torn. The front windshield and seal are new. Windows are tinted but not limo-dark. The trunk trim is complete except for the tool kit. The stereo sounds very good. I confess I’m not much of a stereo nut so I don’t know much about it. I have a Sony CDX-GT710 head unit. A small Denon amp with an Infinity crossover, 2 small Rockford Fosgate subwoofers and Kenwood 6x9’s in the trunk. I don’t remember what kind of speakers are in the front doors and didn’t think this detail was important enough to warrant removing the door panels.
I installed a new, Evo-copy front bumper and an EvoIII carbon fiber decklid spoiler kit. The spoiler base is C.F too, it just wasn’t “paint-grade.” I purchased these from a shop on the west coast called DrCar.com IIRC. The foglights are new, the headlights are euro ellipsoids with the city lights. All the badges are new. I had the gray-scale M stripes made in our decal shop at work. I installed a pair of those boy-racer, carbon fiber, DTM style mirrors. They are basically worthless but I love the way they look. All the exterior trim has been repainted.
The majority of the suspension bushings and bits are new. H&R springs, Bilstein Sport shocks, Treehouse eyeball arms, aluminum control arms, new motor and trans mounts, new upper strut bushings. I installed the TMS front and rear sway bar reinforcing kits on their respective control arms and the Ireland billet rear sway bar mounts. Aftermarket front and rear sway bars (Suspension Techniques I think), had been fitted by the PO. Fronts are 22 mm and the rears are 19 mm. The sway bar bushings, rear trailing arm bushings, and rear subframe bushings have all been replaced with urethanes. The trailing arms are adjustable for toe and camber. Rear sway bar links are adjustable. Wheels are ASA AR1’s, 17x8 and 17x9. Tires are Goodyear Eagle F1’s. They have less than 350 miles on them.
Aside from drilled rotors, the brake system is basically stock. I don’t race the car. I installed stainless brake hoses and caliper bushing kits from Bav Auto. I rebuilt the parking brakes and replaced the parking brake cables and housings. ALL the brake hoses are braided steel.
The car has some issues I need to mention. The differential is starting to make some noise. Frankly, I think the LSD is going. It occasionally rumbles a little during a tight, slow turn, like entering or backing out of a parking spot. I think I wired the oil level sender backwards because the warning light is always on. I never wired the oil temp gauge. I don’t like the way the front bumper fits. Central locking works but the driver’s door lock is VERY stiff. On the rare occasion that I park this car somewhere, I use the trunk to lock the whole car. Carfax will reveal two incidents IIRC. One was a significant wreck in New Mexico in 1989. It must have been a good one because the front left fender, hood, and core support are DOT-R parts. The other involved a pedestrian. I think the car won that round.
This is not a daily driver. In fact, I insured it with American Collectors Insurance Company and can only drive it 2500 miles per year. I finished the swap in May of 2008. I drive it on Saturday mornings, that’s about it. Otherwise, it sits in my garage. I’ve never raced it and don’t abuse it. I drove it up to Austin once for a show. I don’t have many receipts but I am confident that a PPI at the shop of your choice will validate my descriptions here.
$16500
I don’t quite know where to begin so I’ll start with the engine.
Aside from the standard OBDI conversion, it is a stock S52. I had in “freshened” by a local, reputable shop before I installed it. Freshening meant; standard block prep, chains and guides, main and rod bearings, oil pump, gaskets, and rings. They replaced 8 exhaust valves. I installed a new Stewart water pump, an aluminum pump housing, and 21 pound Accel fuel injectors. The A/C compressor, alternator, starter, P.S. reservoir, oil level sender, all sensors and hoses, AND the actual engine harness are new. Yes, the engine wire harness is new. Fitment was for a 1995 OBDI 325. I also used the Treehouse Racing conversion wiring adapter. There should be no electrical problems with this car. The A/C lines and radiator are from Treehouse Racing too. The valve cover, injector rail cover, and firewall wiring covers are new. The header is one of those Asian supersprint copies available on the net. The exhaust system is a VSR center section with cats and a Stromung E30M3 muffler/tailpipe set connected to the header by a short, stainless steel H-pipe I had made locally. The DME has an old Turner chip in it. All in all, it’s a very peppy set-up.
I installed the lightweight aluminum flywheel/clutch kit from Bavarian Autosport. The guibo, CSB, all the seals, shifter rod coupler, bushings, clips, slave cylinder, and shifter ball-cup are new. I installed a budget SSK from Understeer. All the driveshaft heat-shields are in place. The differential is a 3.46lsd. It’s from an old E28 I think.
I use Mobil One and Redline fluids in the engine, trans, and diff.
I think I did a pretty good job under the hood. Almost everything has been replaced. As you can see in the pictures, I relocated the ABS pump, I’ve been an airline mechanic since 1985. I’m confident that my electrical connections and tubing work is all just fine. In fact, all my electrical connections were done with uninsulated butt-splices and covered with heat-shrink tubing. No bulging black tape or red, Home Depot splices. The effect is very clean and stock looking.
I disassembled most of the car and had it repainted. The color is called Techno-Gray, it’s a Saturn color (sorry). All window and door seals, sunroof, trunk, hood, and tail-light seals are new. I replaced the door sill plates, the rear portion of the center console, and the shifter/boot. The dashboard is flawless. Considering it’s about 20 years old, the interior is amazing. There is one small tear on the driver’s seat and one small tear on the right, rear seat. The M-Tech2 steering wheel is a little dry but not torn. The front windshield and seal are new. Windows are tinted but not limo-dark. The trunk trim is complete except for the tool kit. The stereo sounds very good. I confess I’m not much of a stereo nut so I don’t know much about it. I have a Sony CDX-GT710 head unit. A small Denon amp with an Infinity crossover, 2 small Rockford Fosgate subwoofers and Kenwood 6x9’s in the trunk. I don’t remember what kind of speakers are in the front doors and didn’t think this detail was important enough to warrant removing the door panels.
I installed a new, Evo-copy front bumper and an EvoIII carbon fiber decklid spoiler kit. The spoiler base is C.F too, it just wasn’t “paint-grade.” I purchased these from a shop on the west coast called DrCar.com IIRC. The foglights are new, the headlights are euro ellipsoids with the city lights. All the badges are new. I had the gray-scale M stripes made in our decal shop at work. I installed a pair of those boy-racer, carbon fiber, DTM style mirrors. They are basically worthless but I love the way they look. All the exterior trim has been repainted.
The majority of the suspension bushings and bits are new. H&R springs, Bilstein Sport shocks, Treehouse eyeball arms, aluminum control arms, new motor and trans mounts, new upper strut bushings. I installed the TMS front and rear sway bar reinforcing kits on their respective control arms and the Ireland billet rear sway bar mounts. Aftermarket front and rear sway bars (Suspension Techniques I think), had been fitted by the PO. Fronts are 22 mm and the rears are 19 mm. The sway bar bushings, rear trailing arm bushings, and rear subframe bushings have all been replaced with urethanes. The trailing arms are adjustable for toe and camber. Rear sway bar links are adjustable. Wheels are ASA AR1’s, 17x8 and 17x9. Tires are Goodyear Eagle F1’s. They have less than 350 miles on them.
Aside from drilled rotors, the brake system is basically stock. I don’t race the car. I installed stainless brake hoses and caliper bushing kits from Bav Auto. I rebuilt the parking brakes and replaced the parking brake cables and housings. ALL the brake hoses are braided steel.
The car has some issues I need to mention. The differential is starting to make some noise. Frankly, I think the LSD is going. It occasionally rumbles a little during a tight, slow turn, like entering or backing out of a parking spot. I think I wired the oil level sender backwards because the warning light is always on. I never wired the oil temp gauge. I don’t like the way the front bumper fits. Central locking works but the driver’s door lock is VERY stiff. On the rare occasion that I park this car somewhere, I use the trunk to lock the whole car. Carfax will reveal two incidents IIRC. One was a significant wreck in New Mexico in 1989. It must have been a good one because the front left fender, hood, and core support are DOT-R parts. The other involved a pedestrian. I think the car won that round.
This is not a daily driver. In fact, I insured it with American Collectors Insurance Company and can only drive it 2500 miles per year. I finished the swap in May of 2008. I drive it on Saturday mornings, that’s about it. Otherwise, it sits in my garage. I’ve never raced it and don’t abuse it. I drove it up to Austin once for a show. I don’t have many receipts but I am confident that a PPI at the shop of your choice will validate my descriptions here.
$16500
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