First E30, First motor swap. M50NV

[SkorcherX]

Got a few things installed... The oil pump pickup, loc-tited the oil gear nut, got the oil pan on, and then got the headers damn near all bolted up. Could not find my 11mm spanner to tighten the last two bolts.




What am I doing wrong here?


Got it figured out from a guy on the R3vlimited forums.

[SkorcherX]

So here is the money shot I guess? The obligatory shot of fresh parts. Nothing too fancy here, gaskets and belts. Set of eBay headers.

[SkorcherX]

Painted the block. Took forever to mask everything off it felt.

Before/Masking:




Sprayed:



Unmasked:

[SkorcherX]

Hit some parts with the pressure washer. This motor is disgusting on the outside... Any how, here are some before and after photos.














So I got around to cleaning the engine. I went to Wal-mart and bought some Gunk engine degreaser gel, some Wal-mart brand degreaser foam, and some of this power purple stuff. I also nabbed a 94 cent painters plastic tarp.

Before/In Progress (Some of these pics suck, they were taken with an iPhone) :








After:




Anyone got any tricks for taking the clutch fan off? I have the 32mm wrench... I do not have the tool that holds the pulley. Any Shade Tree tips would be appreciated.

[SkorcherX]

Got the valve cover off.

Are there supposed to be an oil baffle over each cam? I need to download an E36 Bentley.


Also is this pretty common? For the coil runners to be all busted at the end? I imagine I can buy just the runners... right?



I was able to fish out almost all the broken bits of the valve cover. I hoping what little is left is in the pan.

[SkorcherX]

Well... bit of a change in plans. I was doing the math on what it was going to take to "freshen up" the ol' M20B27 and do the 325i head swap. It was going to be expensive... Like approaching $700 bucks, if not more.

So I did a bit more research and then stumbled upon something that would actually be worth putting some money into.

Behold... The beginning of my M50 swap.





So this came out of a wrecked 1992 325is. Looks like there is a hole in the "non vanos" cover. I am really hoping the cam and valves are not all rusted from condensation and moisture getting in. I will pull the valve cover tomorrow and assess the situation.


Also picked up the steering rack off the car.


And nabbed an E21 Brake Booster.


So who wants to sell me an E34 Oil pan, dipstick and oil pump pickup?

Got a pretty good deal on everything, cost me $450 for everything you see, plus another $50 just in gas to drive 200 miles (round trip) to pick everything up.

[SkorcherX]

I AM EXCITE!!

Just found this thing has LSD! God damn this thing is gonna love boost.

[SkorcherX]

Well got the pan torn down. I think I will stop, and start getting things cleaned up and painted. I have a mechanic buddy that I will enlist to give me a hand with the pistons, rods, and bearings. I am not familiar with engine assembly, where he has built many. So I will post more pics once I make more progress. Here are some "before" pics.

[SkorcherX]

Well Got the motor torn down some... Well I got the head off at least. How does this head gasket look? It is just me or do the water channels look all blocked? I guess that might be by design.

Think its time for a timing belt? lolz

[SkorcherX]

Small update:

Spent like 7 hours on Saturday, and got the motor yanked out. I really took my time. It was first time I had worked on one of these things, and honestly everything was pretty "text book".

[SkorcherX]

Cleans up pretty good!







The Interior... Well it's going to need some work.

[SkorcherX]

Here it is. Just got this sucker off craigslist for $300. I guess it runs if you jump it... didn't bother to try. I hope to make it nice again. I have a garage full of turbo stuff that might eventually make it on here as well.

Sorry some of the photos are blurry.