Is 350K+ on the chassis too much for a swap?

[markseven]

Any reason that one should not swap an S50 into a car with 350K+ on the chassis? The car I am considering has been lowered and tracked for the last 10 years. Do you folks think the chassis may have weakened to the point that it would be unwise to swap a high HP/torque powerplant into her?

[Danny]

Nope

Do it.

[lifeiskaos]

as long as it's not a rust bucket it should be ok...

[sharky]

doing mine at 270 and not worried. You will upgrade things with the " while im in there" method.

[JGood]

I swapped a 220k mile m50 into my 250k mile 325e daily driver.

[jrdeamicis]

Mine has 360k and I am doing an S50 - 6 Speed - coilovers - and then a SC. :)

[markseven]

Nope

Do it.

Alright, I appreciate the confidence in your tone

as long as it's not a rust bucket it should be ok...

No rust, a California car all her life ;)

doing mine at 270 and not worried. You will upgrade things with the " while im in there" method.

She's in excellent condition, but some of the suspension bushings may need to be replaced soon. Is this the kind of stuff you are referring to?

I swapped a 220k mile m50 into my 250k mile 325e daily driver.

Mine has 360k and I am doing an S50 - 6 Speed - coilovers - and then a SC. :)

Studs!

[z31maniac]

She's in excellent condition, but some of the suspension bushings may need to be replaced soon. Is this the kind of stuff you are referring to?

YES! This is precisely what has happened with my swap. Originally it was just going to be an M50 with a chip and call it a day.

5+ months later, I've rebuilt the camber plates, new springs front and rear, new control arms, new E30 M3 CABs, front subframe was reinforced/stripped/powdercoated, new UUC sway bar kit with bushings and adjustable end links, new stainless steel brake lines, rebuilt calipers, UUC slotted rotors and Porterfield R4-S pads, new hubs/bearings.........and now an OBD-I S52 with 540i MAF and TRM chip.

Next year I'm planning to refresh the rear suspension stuff and go 5-lug.

[e30polak]

Any reason that one should not swap an S50 into a car with 350K+ on the chassis? The car I am considering has been lowered and tracked for the last 10 years. Do you folks think the chassis may have weakened to the point that it would be unwise to swap a high HP/torque powerplant into her?

Do it already Mark! I figured she'd be swapped by now after seeing the grin on your face driving mine. :p

YES! This is precisely what has happened with my swap. Originally it was just going to be an M50 with a chip and call it a day.

5+ months later, I've rebuilt the camber plates, new springs front and rear, new control arms, new E30 M3 CABs, front subframe was reinforced/stripped/powdercoated, new UUC sway bar kit with bushings and adjustable end links, new stainless steel brake lines, rebuilt calipers, UUC slotted rotors and Porterfield R4-S pads, new hubs/bearings.........and now an OBD-I S52 with 540i MAF and TRM chip.

Next year I'm planning to refresh the rear suspension stuff and go 5-lug.

That's all good Buddy, you're just spending the money now that you would've spent later anyway. But. now you'll be able to enjoy it from the get go! :D

[e30s52]

YES! This is precisely what has happened with my swap. Originally it was just going to be an M50 with a chip and call it a day.

5+ months later, I've rebuilt the camber plates, new springs front and rear, new control arms, new E30 M3 CABs, front subframe was reinforced/stripped/powdercoated, new UUC sway bar kit with bushings and adjustable end links, new stainless steel brake lines, rebuilt calipers, UUC slotted rotors and Porterfield R4-S pads, new hubs/bearings.........and now an OBD-I S52 with 540i MAF and TRM chip.

Next year I'm planning to refresh the rear suspension stuff and go 5-lug.

5-lug is a must with a s52 car. I feel alot better now I have bigger brakes but I still need to get a bbk.

[markseven]

YES! This is precisely what has happened with my swap. Originally it was just going to be an M50 with a chip and call it a day.

5+ months later, I've rebuilt the camber plates, new springs front and rear, new control arms, new E30 M3 CABs, front subframe was reinforced/stripped/powdercoated, new UUC sway bar kit with bushings and adjustable end links, new stainless steel brake lines, rebuilt calipers, UUC slotted rotors and Porterfield R4-S pads, new hubs/bearings.........and now an OBD-I S52 with 540i MAF and TRM chip.

Next year I'm planning to refresh the rear suspension stuff and go 5-lug.

Wow, I love it. How did you reinforce the subframe?

Do it already Mark! I figured she'd be swapped by now after seeing the grin on your face driving mine. :p

That's all good Buddy, you're just spending the money now that you would've spent later anyway. But. now you'll be able to enjoy it from the get go! :D

Chris, yeah buddy, I have been living vicariously through your posts and memories of my stint behind the wheel of your ride :D That was a milestone in my BMW travels.

5-lug is a must with a s52 car. I feel alot better now I have bigger brakes but I still need to get a bbk.

Slotted rotors and track pads wont cut it? If not, the 5-lug conversion will have to wait a while. This is may be a really dumb question, but here goes: why is the brake upgrade so important? Is it because of the booster?

[etxxz]

5-lug not nec unless you plan to track the car. even then, you can upgrade the 4-lug brakes to support just about any power an FI s52...but its a nice cheap solution. i has it! slotted on hawk blues and ATE fluid. i have yet to overheat these brakes.

as for the chassis. The ONE thing to consider is RUST.
no rust, no problem mon.

[e30s52]

Wow, I love it. How did you reinforce the subframe?



Chris, yeah buddy, I have been living vicariously through your posts and memories of my stint behind the wheel of your ride :D That was a milestone in my BMW travels.



Slotted rotors and track pads wont cut it? If not, the 5-lug conversion will have to wait a while. This is may be a really dumb question, but here goes: why is the brake upgrade so important? Is it because of the booster?

I had slotted rotors and good pads but they dont cut it. You have all this power but little stopping power. I was afraid to get on the car because of the brakes being so small and not having enough stopping force. I feel alot better now having bigger brakes behind it now. I said you will need a 5-lug conversion for the bigger brakes or you could buy a bbk for your 4-lug. It is one of the problems I noticed after the swap.

[JGood]

My stock $30 rotors with Hawk HT-10's locks up V710 r-comps easily at any speed, even after many laps. They don't even come close to fading. I don't think the addition of an s52 would change this so drastically that I would NEED bigger brakes. And if it did, I could go with a higher temp-range pad. The brake size is not an issue. Bigger brakes are for more consistent pedal feel and usually offer better modulation, etc... I'm still running stock rotors HPS's on my m50 car, that thing is probably 2900 lbs, and the brakes feel great. A buddy of mine has an s52 in his e30 and that seems to stop fine as well with stock rotors.

[e30polak]

Bigger brakes are only needed for a lot of quick high speed stops. I nrun Mintex reds (which aren't even that great), with Ate crapslots, and Valvoline fluid, and I do fine in the streets and in the canyons. I will be doing the rx-7 brake upgrade this summer, since I want to start auto-xing my whip. A competent suspension and gearing set-up is much more important in my opinion. ;)