I guess I should finally post something, doing a m50 swap soon

[2poor2tune]

alright so i have been on this site for a few years now back and forth buying e30's and hondas. i picked up a 90 325i a while back with a broken timing belt. long story short im going to pick up a m50 out of a 93 525i tomorrow. while i have spent many hours doing research i would like to get an ok from some people who have done it before. keep in mind i have swapped many engines well over 100 in the past 5 years but mostly hondas so eh..

heres what i have gathered from the swap and what i plan on doing

1. m50 from 93 525i.. still not sure if its a vanos or non vanos engine???

2. using my gatrag 260 tranny, clutch, flywheel. (have to bend linkage and make new tranny brace and use stock 260 driveshaft)

3. e36 aluminum engine mount brackets w/ e28 green mounts

4. wiring :/ i have done many wiring jobs including wire tucks and all that and more to hondas and it seems very simple to swap out the 15-20? pins i have to work with at the 101 clip but i worry to much until its done so thats still bothering me. here is the info i am using and it would be nice to have someone confirm it for me

http://media.photobucket.com/image/m50+e30+swap+wiring+/88E30M50/m50wiring.jpg

i need a red tag non ews computer? and it will work with the 525i harness still as long as i keep it obd1?

i am not to concerned about the exhaust for now but more about getting the car running.

any tips? hints? just a "your doing it right" would really boost my confidence here haha

[2poor2tune]

also i plan on slotting the brake booster holes and sliding it over as far as necessary and then back as far as i can after swap

[Lawson509]

Get a porsche 944 booster. It will save you lots of time and effort.

[e30rapidic]

awesome...we can compare notes as I am doing my S50 install right now

[2poor2tune]

Get a porsche 944 booster. It will save you lots of time and effort.

noted and than you very much

awesome...we can compare notes as I am doing my S50 install right now

sounds good. What harness/ecu are you using?

[Jand3rson]

M50 swaps are so played out.

;)

If the valve cover is just squared off at the front, it's a non-vanos. If it has a kind of round "bulge" at the front, it's Vanos, and that's the Vanos unit.

Awesome to see another swap, I've had so much fun with mine so far. There's tons of great info all over this place, some of it can be a little hard to find at times. Don't be afraid to ask questions, but please, search for what you can before you just start posting threads for every question. I'm more than happy to answer anything I can, and so are most of the others that have done 24V swaps.

[2poor2tune]

haha played out is good for me, that means most people have already ran into all the issues. Im gonna have lots of fun with it for sure. I will have to post up everything else I have done to the car so far soon. I wanna get the engine in the bay before posting it up though.

Ill try not to be to annoying with the questions but the wiring still worries me. The rest I think I have under control thanks to this site and google

[e30rapidic]

sounds good. What harness/ecu are you using?

413 red label and auto e34 vanos.

[2poor2tune]

The car I am pulling the motor out of has a silver label idk the numbers yet or if its a vanos motor. Ill have to check when I go back. I couldn't make it today

[Knoepfler]

be patient and don't get too frustrated

[e30s50dan]

....and take notes and photos,for your next swap.....there will be one;)

[2poor2tune]

....and take notes and photos,for your next swap.....there will be one;)

s50/52 perhaps????? i hope so

[greyis89]

If you're using an ecu out of an auto car there's some mod you have to do to override neutral saftey I think but don't know what off hand. The wiring harness can be looked up depending on year car and engine. There's slight color differences but it's not bad.

[2poor2tune]

I think that auto mod is done in the cab and to the chassis harness. I have done it once before on my old 90 325i.

I pulled my valve cover off today to find a pretty damn clean head. I'm hoping the rest of the engine is as healthy head looks. It seems as if the previous owner never replaced the valve cover gasket. It was rock hard and the spark plug holes were halfway filled with oil. Valve cover gasket will be bought tomorrow
also the tranny will be mounted. I already modified the e34 oil pan to fit the stock m20 single mass flywheel

[2poor2tune]

here is the head, looks pretty clean


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is it normal to have the tensioner pop up and down as you turn the crank? the one between the intake and exhaust cam


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