My upcoming project car -m52-

[cipher982]

Hey everyone. I am hoping to pick up a project from a friend of mine within the next day or two and am hoping to keep all of you posted on the progress and for answering any of the questions I will have. The guy I'm buying it from just doesn't have the time to work on it so he's getting rid of everything and since I'm just a job-less college student I figured I might as well pick it up and have some fun. It's a 1986 325 and the engine that will be going in the car is a 2.8L from a 1996 528i automatic. Both the engine and transmission have ~70-80k miles on them.

It appears to be that this guy knew what he was doing so far, he's done his research and has the Project Orca CD on the swap (some say it's good, some say it's worthless?). I hope to finish this up real quick so I hope you guys can figure out what extra parts I still need to purchase so I don't figure it out halfway into the job.

Here's a quick parts list of what he sent me in an e-mail. I'm sure there's still many smaller bits and pieces and I'll get those later if you guys want to see those as well.

Car: 1986 BMW 325 - VIN WBAAB5409G9683096, will include eta
motor/Getrag 260 trans
Motor: 06/98 M52B28, from a 1998 528i automatic, 77k miles. All
accessories included.
Transmission: ZF S5D-320Z from a 1996 328i, ~80k miles
Flywheel/clutch: UUC 8.5lb flywheel, M5 clutch/pressure plate

and now, the smaller parts...

S52 cams/ledges, verified good shape by Carl @ Paeco
21# & 30# injectors
ARP 201-4603 head stud kit, new in box
Ireland Engineering urethane trans/motor mounts & steering coupler, new in box
E36 M3 motor mount arms
S52 oil filter housing (to replace plastic E39 M52 housing)
Welded OBD2 exhaust manifolds, set for OBD1 conversion
3.5" HFM
3.5"->3" reducer boot
M50 intake
Manual steering rack from German E30 318i, new
E34 oil pan/dipstick tube
OBD1 harness
413 red label ECU
3.25:1 LSD from E28
Bucket racing seats, need Sparco/Recaro floor mounts. Have the
sidemount brackets.



Again, this is just what he quickly wrote down in an e-mail so it may not be complete, but how does this look so far to you guys? From what I've read so far there's nothing too blatant I'm missing.

I'll try and take pictures and post them up as soon as I can. All comments/questions/harassments appreciated!

[hoveringuy]

Looks like you have an OBD1 conversion in your future, but you're missing most of the OBD1 conversion parts in that list. ARP head studs are probably overkill but it should be a nice little motor!

Enjoy your funemployment.

[cipher982]

Looks like you have an OBD1 conversion in your future, but you're missing most of the OBD1 conversion parts in that list. ARP head studs are probably overkill but it should be a nice little motor!

Enjoy your funemployment.

As I understand I just throw the wiring harness in the car and then it's mostly splicing wires together and connecting little things here and there? I know I'll have to get a chip for it. Contact AA and tell them what mods will be on the engine? Can someone direct me to a thread or parts list I need? And I'll be getting the project ORCA CD, does that include the information I need?

Also, the guy was planning on FI in the future, but I will probably not worry about the studs. Just going as far as changing the cams out. And there is no engine/transmission in the car at the moment, so a lot of this work will be simpler with the engine on a stand.

[hoveringuy]

As I understand I just throw the wiring harness in the car and then it's mostly splicing wires together and connecting little things here and there? I know I'll have to get a chip for it. Contact AA and tell them what mods will be on the engine? Can someone direct me to a thread or parts list I need? And I'll be getting the project ORCA CD, does that include the information I need?

Also, the guy was planning on FI in the future, but I will probably not worry about the studs. Just going as far as changing the cams out. And there is no engine/transmission in the car at the moment, so a lot of this work will be simpler with the engine on a stand.

If you're going with S52 cams then you don't want the stock OBD2 intake manifold, you will want the OBD1 intake manifold. You will also need the rest of the standard OBD1 conversion parts... knock sensors, MAF, throttle body. You can either source the front sensor wheel and a VR sensor or use your existing Hall sensor and my adapter board. Do some searching on "OBD1 conversion"

You will also need to change the plug on your harness or get a harness adapter.

I've never seen the Orca CD; I've heard it's crap and that they have a bunch of screwball recommendations.

[cipher982]

If you're going with S52 cams then you don't want the stock OBD2 intake manifold, you will want the OBD1 intake manifold. You will also need the rest of the standard OBD1 conversion parts... knock sensors, MAF, throttle body. You can either source the front sensor wheel and a VR sensor or use your existing Hall sensor and my adapter board. Do some searching on "OBD1 conversion"

You will also need to change the plug on your harness or get a harness adapter.

I've never seen the Orca CD; I've heard it's crap and that they have a bunch of screwball recommendations.

The guy said he had the OBDII headers welded up to work with the OBDI conversion. Does this sound like it would work?

[Jean]

Intake Manifold, not exhaust. You'll need OBD1 sensors as well (knock/vanos...).

[cipher982]

Intake Manifold, not exhaust. You'll need OBD1 sensors as well (knock/vanos...).

Ah, my bad. Yes, I have both a M52 and M50 intake manifolds. And a 540 3.5" HFM. Besides that I need that I need a throttle body and knock sensors? Along with the wheel speed issue?

[gregslow318i]

if you want/ need a obd1 to e30 adapter harness pm me I still have 2 left from the last batch

[Uber E30]

- OBD I e36/e34 Wiring Harness
- OBD I 413 Red Label ECU/DME
- OBD I Crank Sensor
- OBD I Cam Sensor
- OBD I Knock Sensors (2)
- OBD I Intake Manifold
- OBD I Oxygen Sensor
- OBD I AIT sensor
- OBD I HFM
- OBD I Coolant temp sensor
- OBD I Main engine coolant hose (spider hose.)
- OBD I Throttle Body
- OBD I valve cover with matching coils.(6)
- OBD I Fuel Rail


OBD1 vanos solinoid or buy the pigtail extension for the obd2 unit (12522274971)
OBD1 exhaust manifolds or weld up the egr passages on the obd2's
e30 Temp gauge sensor mounted in a manifold or drilled into the head
You need to modify the bracket that holds all this wiring to the block
figure out what to do with your PCV

[hoveringuy]

- OBD I Crank Sensor

OR

http://www.seattlecircuit.com/hall_to_vr.html

Mine is still working perfectly. Why add a bunch of metal up front?

[FredK]

The guy said he had the OBDII headers welded up to work with the OBDI conversion. Does this sound like it would work?

Intake Manifold, not exhaust. You'll need OBD1 sensors as well (knock/vanos...).

Nah, the guy is correct. The OBD-II exhaust manifolds are tubular stainless steel, rather than the heavy cast iron from which the OBD-I manifolds are made. There are air injection ports that need to be welded shut in order to properly delete the air injection system found on OBD-II cars. So, shave a little weight from the front of your car, and use the modified OBD-II exhaust manifolds.

[cipher982]

Picked the car up today and snapped some pictures before it got dark. Here's a quick sample of what I have. At the moment my garage is packed with parts for the car/motor. I'll get some more as I go.

[lifeiskaos]

cute seats